American Farmer

Is Corn Rationing on the Horizon?

2011-09-15T07:18:00.000-05:00

In the news as of late is speculation that the American corn supply may have finally maxed out, especially in a year that is expected to produce a smaller crop than in recent years.

The much anticipated September USDA crop report is now behind us, and the supply-side estimates showed mixed results. The USDA slashed the yield estimate from the August estimate by a staggering 4.7 bushels per acre (bpa), to 148.1 2 bpa. A downward revision was in the market, but the estimate was below the average analysts’ guesstimate of 149.086 bpa. The crop estimate fell to 12.497 billion bushels, a scant 50 million bushels larger than the 2010-11 crop, which was planted on much smaller acreage.

On the other hand, the USDA maintained the August estimate for the harvested-to-planted ratio at 91.4%. Analysts were expecting to see the ratio lowered as well and were surprised that it was not. There is talk that once all the data are in, it will be reflected in the October estimate and that the cut could be as large as one million acres. That would bring the ratio down to 90.4%. Aside from the two disastrous crops in 2002-03 and 1993-94, that would be near the low end of the range of the past 20 years. Were that to happen, the crop would be 12.351 billion bushels – actually smaller than last year’s crop!

Many are blaming ethanol as the new game changer in the market place as the congressional RFS has been fully realized in the last few years. This doesn't make the livestock industry happy at all:

Representatives from the livestock, dairy and poultry industries testified Sept. 14 about feed availability—or as one witness said, feed unavailability—in front of a subcommittee of the U.S. House Committee on Agriculture. Although comments varied, the majority pointed to the ethanol industry as a main factor in rising feed prices and called on Congress to end government subsidies, particularly for corn ethanol, while also providing a mechanism for a renewable fuel standard (RFS) waiver and altering Conservation Reserve Program policies to open up more cropland for planting.

So where does this leave American agriculture, once a unified industry? Just as the 2012 farm bill is getting ready to be written, the lack of unity will likely affect the outcome. Couple this with the pending changes that are set to slash up to $1.6 trillion in federal spending, things aren't looking good for agriculture.

NCGA - Cellulosic Fuels Just a Fantasty?

2011-08-26T08:48:00.002-05:00

A recent post on the National Corn Growers Association blog "Corn Commentary" is causing quite a stir in the bio-fuels world:

When a two year-old throws a temper tantrum because he cannot have a pet unicorn, it can seem confusing, annoying or possibly endearing. No matter which gut reaction a parent has, they universally understand the need to explain the concept of “nonexistent.” When the Environmental Protection Agency continually demands the impossible, why are they treated any differently?

The issue is simple. The updated version of the Renewable Fuel Standard mandates usage of 250 million gallons of cellulosic ethanol this year and 500 million gallons by 2012. As of June 2011, zero gallons of qualifying cellulosic ethanol were produced. The target is, under current conditions, an impossible demand.

It is a demand based on promises. Much as parents may tell stories about unicorns and fairies, some players in the ethanol and environmental industries pushed a product which they were not prepared to deliver. In both scenarios, optimism created a beautiful vision of a world that does not exist. Once the story was sold, neither party could meet the unrealistic expectation that they had created.

The blog post created such a stir in the bio-fuels world that it was later taken down and is now only available via google cache.

U of Illinois Agronomy Day 2011

2011-08-16T11:23:00.001-05:00

The University of Illinois Agronomy Day will be held Thursday August 18 at the South Farms on the University of Illinois Campus.

Agronomy Day is a great opportunity for farmers, agri-business and others to come see and learn the latest about research in agriculture. The opportunity for lunch and good networking is also a long tradition at Agronomy Day.

Come out and enjoy!

Half Century of Progress

2011-08-16T11:02:00.001-05:00

The Half Century of Progress returns to Rantoul, Illinois on August 25-28, 2011. Don't miss this great showcase of historic farm equipment.

Fwd: News for YOU for the 4th of July Holiday!

2011-07-01T11:59:00.001-05:00

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: "Susie Harbaugh" <susie@ccfarmbureau.com>
Date: Jul 1, 2011 11:21 AM
Subject: News for YOU for the 4th of July Holiday!
To: "Susie Harbaugh" <susie@ccfarmbureau.com>

CHAMPAIGN COUNTY FARM BUREAU

Leader

A weekly update for active volunteers

who want to stay

"IN THE KNOW"

News for YOU for the Week Ending July 1

ALL AMERICAN FARMER!

Gerald Henry, CCFB Director representing Sadorus Township, proudly displays the 2011 wheat crop which he was harvesting on Wednesday. Henry has plans to retire after this, his 40^th crop year. He was hoping for an 84 bushel-per-acre yield on his soft red winter variety and planned to bale the residual straw prior to double-cropping soybeans with his Kinze 15-inch row, no-till planter. Wheat from the Henry farm will end up at Siemer Milling in Teutopolis to be used in bread and cracker flour.

NEARLY 30 SPEAKERS HAVE BEEN BOOKED FOR THE 2^ND ANNUAL LEADERSHIP ACADEMY slated for the 5 Mondays in August. The first evening kicks off with a working session in leadership led by Dr. Tom Ramage, President of Parkland College and continues with hands-on sessions regarding the media taught by IFB personnel and University of Illinois professionals. There will be an etiquette lunch and the opportunity to question a panel of past Farm Bureau Presidents to glean their expertise. Attorney Steve Beckett will be on hand to explain Parliamentary Procedure while Executive Director of Governmental Affairs and Commodities for Illinois Farm Bureau Mark Gebhards will kick off a session on legislative issues that will also be attended by Representative Chad Hays, and members of the Champaign City Council and the Champaign County Board. Interim Chancellor and Provost Robert Easter is slated as the keynote speaker at the final Leadership Academy session scheduled for Monday, August 29. Applications are available by calling 352-5235 or e-mailing Susie@ccfarmbureau.com Deadline to apply is July 15. This is a TREMENDOUS opportunity to expand your knowledge base and fine tune your leadership skills for positions in Farm Bureau, your community and beyond. Consider the opportunity!

THIS IS THE WEEK FOR THE CCFB FOUNDATION PULL 4 AGRICULTURE at Olde Barn Sporting Clays on Saturday! Walk-ins are welcome from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. so bring a team down or shoot individually! Each shooter gets a raffle ticket for a Beretta shotgun and lunch…..plus CASH PRIZES for the winners! The 5 Stand will also be open for a chance to win Cabela's gift cards! Why not come on down to Oakland, have some fun, and help raise money to support our young people who are hoping to pursue a career in agriculture!

YOUNG AG LEADERS WILL MEET THIS THURSDAY AT 7 P.M in the CCFB Auditorium. Agenda items will include finalizing a sign-up sheet for workers at the Fisher Fair; plans for the Champaign County Fair Kiddie Peddle Tractor Pull; Discussion on the Tractor Safety School for youth; and an opportunity for an event for Young Ag Women that is scheduled for July 27. Beat the heat! Come out for dinner and discussion on Thursday evening!

TRACTOR SAFETY SCHOOL REGISTRATION IS OPEN for farm youth ages 14 years and older through July 15. This Young Ag Leader sponsored project will train youth who work or plan to work on farms and run tractors on the proper methods to safely operate farm equipment. Dates for the school will be August 5 and 6 and August 19 and 20 with a possible skill practice date of August 13. Friday classes will run from 4:30 to 7:30 p.m. and the Saturday portions are scheduled from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Class participants are required to attend all four sessions to become certified. Registration is $40 for Champaign County residents and $80 for out-of-county residents, payable at the time of registration. Student manuals, handouts, meals and refreshments are all covered in the tuition fee. Call Brenda at 352-5235 to register.

LOOKING THINGS OVER!

Jim Esworthy, a 100^th Anniversary Committee Member, looks over the final manuscript of the CCFB 100^th Anniversary Book written and compiled by Harold Guither during a meeting of that committee on Tuesday evening in the conference room. The full color cover is completed for the manuscript and plans call for publishing to begin on or around the end of July. Excitement is mounting for a raffle, a trivia night, a golf outing, a tractor drive, a family picnic and a fall harvest fest to celebrate this great milestone in Farm Bureau history! The 100^th anniversary of CCFB officially begins on Monday, January 30, 2012, with the county annual meeting featuring guest speaker, Orion Samuelson.

YOUNG AG LEADERS WHO HAVE ORDERED TICKETS FOR THE CORNBELTERS GAME on July 8 at 7 p.m. should plan to pick tickets up at Will Call upon their arrival at the game. For more information about this event, contact Anna Zieglar at Macon County Farm Bureau: anna@mcfb.org

TOOLSHED MEETINGS WILL PUT FARM BUREAU TO WORK ON ISSUES THAT ARE IMPORTANT TO YOU! Wednesday, July 13, is the date and there are THREE LOCATIONS and times to fit your need.Meet and greet Mark Gebhards, Executive Director of Governmental Affairs and Commodities at 8 a.m. for donuts, coffee and juice at Mark Pflugmacher's shed, Gifford. Lunch will be served at Dick Parnell's shed, located at 1837 CR 500 E, Champaign. By 3 p.m. you'll be ready for ice cream from none other than the world famous Sidney Dairy Barn. Jerry Watson will be hosting this afternoon session at his tool shed located 1 mile east of route 130 on County Road 200 N near Villa Grove. Come and voice your concerns over the latest developments regarding truck regulations; free trade agreements; the 2012 Farm Bill; EPA regulations; New state and congressional maps; the Illinois budget and it's impact on agriculture; or any other items of concern to YOU. THIS IS OUR OPPORTUNITY to lock arms and get our questions answered and MORE IMPORTANTLY, our VOICES HEARD!

Farming Founders

A 4^th of July GIFT from CCFB Director Lin Warfel

Washington, Adams, Jefferson and Madison

are noted for being framers.

They molded ideas grand

into a plan for freedom

They yearned with all their might

to breathe free

pushing back from tyranny

Tom J had ideas in mind

"that independent farmers should be

the foot soldiers of the nation."

So they were

and so they are.

The framers, farmers,

had thoughts too for trees and soil

James M proclaimed: 'Preserve'

the forests and the soil.

They framed the constitution

pledging their lives, their farms and fortunes, their sacred honor

Their names on the line condemned them

to do or die, hanged as traitors....

With their doing

they gifted us

the soil, the fields and forests

They planted the nation crop

One man asked:

"What have you given us?"

to Ben Franklin of the document.

"A democratic republic sir, if you can keep it."

answered he.

Today we fly our flags

watch the parades and fireworks

remembering

those who pledged and did, who do,

put themselves on the lines

defending, preserving

the daily gift to us:

freedom.

Oh! thus be it ever, when free men shall stand
Between their loved homes and the war's desolation!
Blest with victory and peace, may the heaven-rescued land
Praise the Power that hath made and preserved us a nation.
Then conquer we must, when our cause it is just,
And this be our motto: "In God is our trust."
And the star-spangled banner in triumph shall wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave!

*Verse 4, The Star Spangled Banner, F.S.Keyes

Lin 4 July 2011

Illinois Farm Families Launch Program The Illinois Farm Families coalition -- commodity groups for beef, corn, soybeans, pork and Farm Bureau -- kicks into a higher gear for summer by bringing a national program "Farmers Feed Us" to Illinois. The sweepstakes program launches July 5 and will award two grand prizes of Free Groceries for a Year ($5,000).

"Farmers Feed Us" is a contest that runs for 90 days, through October 2. It is a publicity activity to begin a long-running series of events for the Illinois Farm Families (IFF) coalition.

County Markets Stores -- with 33 Illinois locations -- will be the retail partner for this promotion. Its stores will utilize point-of-sale materials featuring Illinois farmers. Space in a number of their stores has been secured for advertising circulars, promoting the sweepstakes directly to consumers.

Print, radio and television ads for Farmers Feed Us are scheduled to run in July. The ads feature five farm families that raise the coalition commodities, plus dairy. Ads will run both in the Chicago area and downstate.

The sweepstakes will serve as the launch point for on-going Illinois Farm Families communications platform, designed to engage consumers throughout the state with information about how their food is grown, while introducing them to farmers in Illinois.

Featured farm families for Farmers Feed Us are: Ron and Deb Moore, soybean farmers from Roseville; Brent and Kathy Scholl, pork farmers from Polo; Dave and Linda Drendel, dairy farmers from Hampshire; Mike and Lynn Martz, beef producers from Maple Park; Steve and Elizabeth Ruh, corn farmers from Sugar Grove.

Watch for local names YOU know as the program expands into Champaign County!

STATE REPRESENTATIVE ADAM BROWN (R-DECATUR)

along with Bill Mitchell (R-Forsyth) and Chapin Rose (R-Mahomet) are proposing a "major push back" against proposed regulations that will overburden the operators of Illinois' #1 industry: Agriculture. "We need to raise awareness as much as possible," said Brown on Thursday during an afternoon press conference at CCFB. "It's important to get farmers back in the fields where they should be and alleviate their concern about these regulations regarding implements of husbandry, the for-hire designation regarding crop-share farm leases and the interpretation of interstate versus intrastate." These three legislators are sponsoring House Resolution 470 which urges the federal government to reverse its recent interpretation of farm vehicle rules.

TRUCK REGS - At the request of several members of Congress, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration has extended the comment period on Docket ID: FMCSA 2011-0146, Applicability of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations to Operators of Certain Farm Vehicles and Off-Road Agricultural Equipment, by 30 days until August 1, 2011. IFB's Adam Nielsen says given the concerns of other state Farm Bureaus about meeting the June 30 deadline, we did not oppose an extension as long as FMCSA remained committed to providing updated guidance by fall harvest. They assure us they will be working to meet that goal. CCFB has had some FABULOUS letters come through the office from members on their way to the mailbox. Content has included specific ways that the interpretation of these laws will negatively impact individual farm operations. KEEP WRITING! If you need assistance, editing, or the FAX or mailing address, let us know. We're here to help!

"I'll be out of the office on July 8……see you again on Friday, July 15! Have a VERY blessed 4^th of July holiday!"

Susie

Susie Harbaugh, Assistant Manager

801 N. Country Fair Drive, Ste. A

Champaign, IL 61821

Phone: (217) 352-5235

Fax: (217) 352-8768

susie@ccfarmbureau.com

Happy Thanksgiving

2010-11-24T19:44:00.000-06:00

Changing of the Guard

2010-11-18T12:55:00.000-06:00

Changing of the Guard

Combine Fire near Ivesdale, Illinois

2010-09-22T06:46:00.000-05:00

Tom Kirwan was combining near Ivesdale, Illinois when his alarms went off on his combine indicating a fire in his combine.

00921-172436-pic-259137784.jpg

It took firefighters from six different fire departments to put out a field fire in rural Ivesdale on Tuesday afternoon.

Ivesdale Fire Chief Jim Brewer said firefighters were called to a fire along County Road 300N at about 175E at 1:45 p.m. Tuesday.

Coal Mine Planned for Champaign and Vermilion Counties Illinois

2010-08-13T10:20:00.000-05:00

From a press release I received:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
August 11, 2010

Contact:
Suzanne Jaworowski
Director of Communications
Sunrise Coal, LLC
(812) 299-2800 x 214
sjaworowski@sunrisecoal.com

Sunrise Coal Proposes Mining Techniques to Preserve Farmland

Terre Haute, Indiana – In response to public concern over a possible mine in the
Champaign-Vermilion County area, Sunrise Coal announces its approach to a
prospective mine would be “room and pillar” which is designed for safety and is an
ecologically friendly approach to extracting coal. Recent reports have expressed
concern over the possibility of a “long-wall” mine, which is not the intended
approach for Sunrise Coal.

As part of the exploratory evaluation of the coal reserve Sunrise Coal has met
with local leaders to discuss plans. Currently Sunrise has leased over 17,000 acres
in Vermilion County, IL for exploratory drilling. Sunrise is reviewing quality
and rock mechanics information at this time and hopes to declare the property
a minable reserve before the end of the year. The permitting process is expected
to take 18-24 months. If Sunrise moves forward with the permitting process, the
company will file for a non-subsidence plan, which confirms that there will be no
long-wall mining in the reserve.

Sunrise Coal President, Brent Bilsland explains, “When mining using the room and
pillar approach roughly half of the coal is extracted and the remaining coal is used
as support so as not to disturb the surface. Additionally, we install metal supports
to safeguard our miners.” Bilsland, a former farmer, employs the room and pillar
underground mining approach at its existing coal mine in Carlisle, Indiana because
it promotes safety and preserves the land.

Concerns around water quality and water availability have surfaced among local
land owners. As a standard requirement of the permitting process, Sunrise plans
to put in numerous monitoring wells and take stream samples around the property
to ensure that water quality and availability will not be affected. Additionally,
the company expects to pipe in its own water supply. Sunrise Coal is required by
Federal and State Law to design all facilities to prevent any material damage to the
area water, both quality and quantity.

The Sunrise permit will require the company to comply with State water quality
standards. Any discharge point will be sampled regularly and monitored by an
independent third party, State government officials and Sunrise Coal engineers.

The prospective plan for a new mine would employ over 300 workers. The
company expects to hire and train many local residents for long-term jobs. The
average hourly salary would be in the range of $18 – $26 and the expected life of the
mine is roughly 30 years.

Sunrise Coal, LLC is a wholly owned subsidiary of Hallador Energy Company
(NASDAQ - HNRG). The Sunrise team has extensive experience in mining in
the Indiana-Illinois region including the Riola Mine, under the name of Catlin
Coal. Founded in 2002 by Ron and Steve Laswell, the company has focused on
underground coal mining. In 2006, Hallador Energy purchase part of Sunrise
Coal and began the development of the Carlisle Mine in Carlisle, IN. The Carlisle
mine currently mines over 3 million tons annually and employs over 320 people. In
2010, Forbes Magazine named Hallador one of their Top 100 Most Trustworthy
Companies.

More information on Sunrise can be found at www.sunrisecoal.com.

Farming Under the Influence....

2010-07-12T08:19:00.003-05:00

You've heard of DUI...driving under the influence?

Well, here is FUI...farming under the influence!

--
Greg Knott

RANTOUL 2009 HARVEST HALF CENTURY OF PROGRESS

2010-06-12T07:35:00.000-05:00

New Illinois Soybean Association CEO Named

2010-06-04T10:19:00.001-05:00

ILLINOIS SOY ANNOUNCES NEW CEO

The Illinois Soybean Association (ISA) Board of Directors has selected Craig Ratajczyk as its new CEO to replace the retiring W. Lyle Roberts, Jr. Ratajczyk has been serving as ISA's senior director since 2009, and will transition into the new position when Roberts officially retires September 1, 2010.

As senior director, Ratajczyk was responsible for directing ISA's strategic and tactical planning efforts and providing leadership to nearly all departments and programs. He coordinated ISA's new fiscal year 2011 strategic plan to reflect the direction of the board of directors and to align with national and international soybean industry efforts.

Ratajczyk previously served as director for global issues and alliances for the U.S. Soybean Export Council, Inc., for seven years and held several positions with the American Soybean Association's International Marketing program. He also serves as the Navy Intelligence Reserve Unit U.S. Strategic Command 0319's Executive Officer.

Roberts retires after more than 25 years of service to Illinois soybean farmers. "We will miss Lyle's vast experience and knowledge of the soybean industry in Illinois and the U.S.," says Moore. "We expect him to remain active in Illinois agriculture for many years to come. The board appreciates his dedication and passion for the industry."

Time for Walker Farms to Pay Up?

2010-05-14T07:57:00.001-05:00

The Andersons grain company has won a $9 million judgment against Walker Farms who defaulted on corn delivery contracts back in 2007. The suit was filed in Federal Court in Urbana, Illinois.

According to the original complaint filed in Urbana federal court in 2008, the Walkers signed personal guarantees in August 2007 for future delivery of corn and wheat to The Andersons for the 2007 crop year.

In late December 2007, The Andersons officially notified the Walkers that the fall corn contracts had been breached, subsequently canceled, and The Andersons was demanding payment, as set forth in its written contracts, of about $3.6 million. In March, The Andersons officially notified the Walkers of their failure to deliver on the fall wheat contracts as well, and those were also then canceled by The Andersons, which demanded payment of about $1.8 million for the wheat.

When the Walkers didn't make the payments, The Andersons filed suit in April 2008, demanding about $5.5 million against the Walkers, in addition to attorney fees, costs and interest.

DuPont and Pioneer Contribute to Ag Communications at University of Illinois

2010-03-31T14:05:00.000-05:00

DuPont Pledges $200,000 to Improve Communications Effectiveness in Agriculture

Challenge Award Supports Innovative Program at the University of Illinois

CHAMPAIGN, Ill., March 31, 2010 – DuPont announced a $200,000 award to a University of Illinois initiative between the College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences (ACES) and the College of Media designed to address the growing need for effective communications in the fast-changing world of agriculture, food, feed, fiber, bio-energy and rural development.

The award, from DuPont businesses Pioneer Hi-Bred and Crop Protection, will be paid based on the university meeting milestones in its $2 million goal for the effort.

“Agriculture is undergoing incredible change at the same time dynamic new media is redefining the field of communications,” said Paul E. Schickler, president – Pioneer Hi-Bred. “Additional focus and understanding at the intersection of those two trends should bring incredible benefits to farmers and consumers and others throughout the value chain.”

The university plans to enhance its joint agricultural communications program with a first-of-its kind endowed chair in agricultural communications to support teaching and research in the field. The university plans to have at least three teaching positions and include initiatives in environmental and consumer communications.

“Agricultural production needs to nearly double by 2050,” said James C. Collins, president – DuPont Crop Protection. “Science from DuPont is part of the solution. We’ll also need collaboration and innovation across sectors to meet the challenge. And effective communications is vital to our ability to do that.”

“We are grateful for DuPont’s willingness to support this important initiative that will benefit the university’s students in agricultural communications for years to come,” said Robert Hauser, interim dean of the College of ACES.

Pioneer Hi-Bred is the world’s leading source of customized solutions for farmers, livestock producers and grain and oilseed processors. With headquarters in Johnston, Iowa, Pioneer provides access to advanced plant genetics in nearly 70 countries.

DuPont is a science-based products and services company. Founded in 1802, DuPont puts science to work by creating sustainable solutions essential to a better, safer, healthier life for people everywhere. Operating in more than 70 countries, DuPont offers a wide range of innovative products and services for markets including agriculture and food; building and construction; communications; and transportation.

University of Illinois Pell Farm is Sold

2010-03-02T08:19:00.000-06:00

The News-Gazette is reporting that the University of Illinois Foundation has sold the Pell Farm in Urbana. The unofficial word is that Champaign County resident Renee Lo has purchased the property.

Residents Fighting to Keep Centennial Farm

2010-02-22T12:29:00.000-06:00

Some residents in Champaign County, Illinois are fighting to keep their farms from being carved up for a new road project:

The agreement with Urbana would detail how the two cities will use a $5 million appropriation from the state Legislature. It also would allow officials to continue negotiating to purchase farmland on which the road is to be built.

Some affected residents have spoken in opposition at Urbana city council and Champaign County board meetings.

"It takes right of way to build the road, and we would have to negotiate for right of way," said Assistant City Engineer Dave Clark. "And that impacts people's farmland and businesses."

Billy Ziegler, who owns farmland at 4704 N. Willow Road in Urbana, said he stands to lose between 20 and 25 acres of his own land if the road project continues. His farm has operated since 1865, he said.

"(Farmland) is one of the greatest resources that this county has ever had," Ziegler said. "And once you cover it with concrete, you can't reclaim it."

Overall, Ziegler said 85 acres of farmland would be lost if Olympian Drive is extended.

Bunge Downsizing in Danville, Illinois Plant

2010-02-22T12:26:00.000-06:00

Bunge North America is no longer going to process Soybeans in their Danville, Illinois location:

100 jobs to be lost as Bunge halts soy processing at Danville facility

Mon, 02/22/2010 - 11:29am
Tracy Moss

DANVILLE — Bunge North America announced this morning that it will discontinue soybean processing at its Danville facility effective April 23.

About 100 employees will lose their jobs by the shutdown of the soy operations. The site will continue to employ 185 workers in the other operations there.

The plant at 321 E. North St. in Danville will continue to serve local farms as a grain elevator for soybeans, and the corn mill will remain open as well, according to Bunge corporate officials.

Mark Van Emon, vice president and general manager of Bunge Oilseed Processing, said the decision was made because the soybean processing market has more capacity than required and so it could operate all of its facilities efficiently as possible.

Last Year's Late Harvest still Presents Problems

2010-02-20T08:24:00.000-06:00

BERRY — One of the latest, wettest harvests in decades is still working its way through Illinois grain elevators, bringing with it higher costs, quality issues, safety hazards, and possible effects on affect prices and planting during the 2010 season.
Corn and soybeans aren’t rotting on the ground or in bins. But there is a possibility some of last fall’s crop will still be drying when the fall 2010 harvest comes in, said Robert Ramsey, one of the family owners of Ramsey Grain in Berry.
“These last two years have been a bear,” Ramsey said Friday, as he fired up two propane-fueled dyers attached to concrete silos. “We’re usually not running dryers this time of year, but last year we were drying corn all summer,”

Read More

East Central Illinois Tractors on 2010 Classic Tractor Calendar

2009-12-22T07:25:00.001-06:00

We have some great tractor collectors here in East Central Illinois and two of these will be featured in the 2010 Classic Tractor Calendar:

Machines from Mahomet, St. Joseph showcased
Meet Ms. (or Mr.) May.

The bright orange, 1960 Chamberlain Canelander hails from Welshpool, Australia, and now resides on the farm of Darius Harms of St. Joseph.
A collector of antique and classic tractors, many of them International Harvesters, Harms said the Chamberlain is one of his favorites.
"It's a fast-moving tractor," he said. It can reach speeds of 35 miles an hour on the road. "And it's a nice tractor to drive," he said.
The Chamberlain is one of a dozen tractors highlighted in the new 2010 calendar "Classic Farm Tractors." Two of the tractors in the calendar this year are from East Central Illinois.

Go the the Classic Tractor Website

Catlin, Illinois Soil Management Teams Gets 300 Bushel Corn

2009-12-19T08:32:00.002-06:00

Catlin soil firm's mix has corn yields hitting new heights

By Christine Des Garennes

Saturday December 19, 2009

Rick Danzl
Total Soil Management technical services manager Randy Simonson, left, holds some of the company's micronutrient mix Friday in Catlin as company President Larry Schonert shows the mix they used to help produce a 300-plus-bushels-per-acre corn yield in their research plots near Catlin this season.

CATLIN – The state average for corn yields in Illinois this year is 175 bushels per acre. And farmers are quite pleased if they can bring in 200 bushels per acre to the grain elevator.
But 300 bushels per acre?
"We were surprised. You don't hear of 300-bushel-an-acre very often," said Larry Schonert, president of and an agronomist with Total Soil Management, a soil-fertility firm in Catlin.
After harvesting corn from their research plots and crunching their data, the firm learned six of the plots near Catlin yielded more than 300 bushels per acre. The highest yield was at 320 bushels per acre. The plots included several different corn hybrids.
"First and foremost, we've got Mother Nature to thank," Schonert said.
You know that old saying, "Rain makes grain?"
"That's obviously true," he said.
Between May and August, the Danville area received about 19 inches of rain, according to Illinois State Water Survey data.
And – this may not come as a surprise, since the firm makes fertilizer recommendations to fertilizer dealers and farmers – it doesn't hurt to have a good soil-fertility program.
"We believe in having what we call a balanced fertilizer program," said Randy Simonson, technical services manager with Total Soil Management. Staff apply the usual nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium but also micronutrients such as sulfur, zinc, manganese, boron, copper and iron.
"We want to provide the crop with everything it needs," Simonson said.
In the spring they plant slowly, making sure the planter puts the seeds precisely down in the furrow, and they plant "a good population of seeds – about 35,000 plants per acre. That's a little higher than what most people plant, but most corn hybrids can handle that population," Simonson said.
He uses a pre-emergent herbicide and then, if he encounters problems with weeds during the growing season, he may apply Roundup as needed. Fertilizer is applied in the spring, and he uses a slow-release nitrogen. The benefit to that is if a heavy rain comes it won't wash away half the nitrogen, sending the nitrogen into the ditches and stream.
The company's plots have yielded some big numbers before, but they've never seen anything close to 300 bushels or above.
"I think the envelope is going to keep being pushed. Hybrids also have a lot to do with it. They also are getting better and better," Schonert said.

Find this article at:
http://www.news-gazette.com/news/2009/12/19/catlin_soil_firms_mix_has_corn_yields_hitting_new_heights

Just North of Mt. Vernon. IL.

2009-12-14T08:55:00.000-06:00

JUST NORTH OF MT. VERNON , IL .

Look at what James Snipe hit with his car on state route 161 east of Iuka road. The lion was still alive but
unable to move, so our neighbor called the Marion County Dog Catcher and they came and put him down.
A land owner had seen this one a week before dragging off a 320 lb steer. His neighbor is an amateur taxidermist
and he's going to stuff him. This one weighed 260 lbs.while most mature male mountain lions weigh
80 to 150 lbs. We had no idea they still roamed around here!
[cid:C482EC9CE1D64E07BBBBA9C57053BAF4@Delldesktop]
[cid:6AC1ABFF4FF5465FA5F9267A8CFCC4CA@Delldesktop]

Farmers Back in the Field

2009-11-01T16:26:00.000-06:00

Several farmers were back in the field today. They were cutting both beans and corn. I was surprised it wasn't more muddy, but they were able to get through. I am sure they are feeling the pressure of getting the crops out while possible.

Should have a few clear days to get things done before the next round of rain comes.

Is Illinois Farm Bureau Already Endorsing Chicago Democrats?

2009-10-20T07:08:00.000-05:00

Illinois Governor Pat Quinn is running for re-election and is already airing TV ads in the Chicago and some downstate markets. In the ad is a clip of Illinois Farm Bureau President Phil Nelson walking with Quinn. I was suprised to see this.

Is Illinois Farm Bureau already endorsing the Chicago Democrat? I would have a hard time believing this since this Governor has completely wiped out the only agricurultural state research funds with the elimination of funding to the Council on Food and Agricultural Research (CFAR).

Despite the fact that this Governor was part of the Blagojevich adminstration, one of the most corrupt in this nation's history and who floated a plan in the past to implement a sales tax on farm machinery and seed/chemical inputs.

Scary isn't it.

Contest Brewing for Illinois Farm Bureau Presidency

2009-08-18T20:43:00.006-05:00

Doug Wilson

Phil Nelson

Apparently former Illinois State USDA Office of Rural Development Director Doug Wilson is preparing for a run at the Illinois Farm Bureau Presidency. At the Illinois State Fair Ag Day today, several people were wearing stickers promoting his candidacy.

He would face off against current IFB President Phil Nelson when the election is held at the annual meeting in December.

Could make for an interesting race.

More Consolidation in the Seed Business

2009-07-14T17:36:00.003-05:00

Pfister Hybrid Corn Company is being acquired by Dow Agro-Sciences. The number of independent seed companies seems to be shrinking each year. Pfister used to be one of the dominant seed corn names in our area, but I believe has lost market share through the years.

Dow AgroSciences LLC announced today it is acquiring the majority of assets of Illinois based corn company Pfister Hybrids. The addition of Pfister Hybrids will further expand Dow AgroSciences’ current U.S. seeds business as the company anticipates the introduction of SmartStax™ in 2010 and Dow AgroSciences Herbicide Tolerance (DHT) technology in corn in 2012. The transactional close is expected in the near future.

“Pfister was one of the founding seed corn companies in the Midwest, and we are proud to continue the legacy started more than seven decades ago by one of the nation’s original seedsmen Lester Pfister,” said Stan Howell, vice president, North America Regional Commercial Unit for Dow AgroSciences. “Pfister Seeds is a welcomed addition to our U.S. seed business. At Dow AgroSciences investing in innovation is the key to our future, and we look forward to building upon the Pfister tradition.”

Under the terms of the agreement, Dow AgroSciences will acquire the Pfister brand and the sales and marketing areas, as well as the warehousing and administrative services of the business. Dow AgroSciences will continue to independently market seeds under the Pfister Seeds brand, and Pfister Seeds will continue to be headquartered at its existing location in El Paso.

Tractors Coming to A. Lincoln Presidential Museum

2009-07-14T13:11:00.001-05:00

The Abraham Lincoln Presidential Museum in Springfield, Illinois is one of the great treasures in the world in regards to our 16th President. This is an amazing facility and I am glad to see they are going to have this special exhibit.

More than 30 antique and small-engine tractors will be displayed outside the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Museum, Sixth and Jefferson streets, from 10 a.m.
to 3 p.m. Saturday, July 25, in conjunction with the museum’s exhibit, “Illinois
Stories: How Vast and How Varied a Field ... The Agricultural Vision of Abraham
Lincoln.”Tractors can be viewed along Sixth Street in front of the museum. The
Land of Lincoln Antique Tractor and Engine Club will present the show. Visitors
are encouraged to go into the museum to see the only known intact model of a
1918 John Deere all-wheel-drive tractor. Paid admission is required.Original
Lincoln documents and artifacts are displayed alongside antique farm implements
in the exhibit, which runs through Aug. 31, 2010. For more information, visit www.presidentlincoln.org.

VID 00002-20090710-1331

2009-07-10T13:32:00.000-05:00

Greg Knott

Historic Farm Days open Today!

2009-07-09T07:39:00.003-05:00

The I & I Tractor Club opens the 2009 Historic Farm Days in Penfield, Illinois today. The feature tractor is Allis-Chalmers. We will be taking a WD, WF and RC to the show. We have had some rain, but I am sure the grounds will be in great shape.

Be sure to come out and look at all the great tractors on display. I will be posting pictures throughout the show.

Big Bud Arrives in Rantoul Illinois

2009-07-06T13:18:00.003-05:00

The largest tractor in the world Big Bud arrived in Rantoul, Illinois this week. It's final destination will be the I & I Historic Farm Days in Penfield, Illinois. Be sure to come out to the show and see Big Bud. Allis Chalmers is the theme tractor this year. As always it will be a great show.

Wet Spring Continues

2009-05-13T08:42:00.001-05:00

Someone emailed me these pictures that I believe were taken near Watseka, Illinois.

Someone emailed me these pictures that I believe were taken near Watseka, Illinois

Ag Hall of Fame Struggling

2009-05-12T07:47:00.002-05:00

The Agriculture Hall of Fame in Kansas City, Missouri is struggling to stay open:

The National Agriculture Center and Hall of Fame in western Wyandotte County is in desperate need of a few good ideas that will allow it to stay open.
Executive director Tim Daugherty hopes it can find them because the lessons the center can teach are more important than ever before.
“We are in search of a new business model that can help us address financial shortfalls and at the same time tell the story of agriculture,” Daugherty said. “Our role is more important than it was 15 years ago.”
Many people don’t understand where their food comes from, Daugherty said. And looking to the future, he hopes to promote food safety.

Collin Peterson Invokes Some Common Sense into Climate Debate

2009-05-08T06:53:00.002-05:00

Finally! Some in Congress are finally starting to speak out about the EPA's crazy method for calculating the net effects of biofuels. Minnesota Congressman and House Ag Committee Chair Collin Peterson was not pleased with the EPA's new rules yesterday:

"I'm off the train," Peterson said May 6 during a strongly worded statement at a hearing on the Environmental Protection Agency's new proposal for assessing indirect effects of ethanol production on greenhouse gas emissions. Peterson predicted that the EPA proposal, combined with the climate change legislation under consideration, could "kill off corn ethanol."

Peterson said, "I will not support any kind of climate change bill -- even if you fix this -- because I don't trust anybody anymore. I've had it."

Peterson said his position was not negotiable. "I don't have any confidence. The only way I would consider supporting any climate change legislation would be if it was ironclad that these agencies had no ability to do any rulemaking of any kind whatsoever ... (that) we could be absolutely guaranteed that these folks would not get involved," he said.

Obama Administration Wants it Both Ways on Ethanol

2009-05-06T17:23:00.003-05:00

The Obama Administration in it's first 100 + days has seemingly taken both sides of many issues. For example, they passed a trillion dollar "stimulus" bill and then a few weeks later floated press releases that they were going to balance the federal budget within the next few years and then proceeded to identify about $100 million in "waste". This isn't even enough to make dent on the federal debt, but it did make for a good press release.

This week the Obama Administration EPA has thrown Ethanol under the bus and then announces an interagency taskforce to expand the availability of ethanol for consumers an attempt to increase demand:

The effort announced today, which will immediately assist the corn-based ethanol and biodiesel industries, would help reduce America's petroleum consumption by 11 percent and lower direct emissions of greenhouse gases equivalent to "taking 24 million cars off the road," said EPA administrator Lisa Jackson. But she described corn-based ethanol, the predominant biofuel in the U.S., as only a "bridge to the next generation of biofuels," adding that biofuels must "reduce greenhouse compared to the fuels they replace."

Even as they applaud the White House's moves, the powerful farm lobby and farm state politicians are readying for a fight.

Tax Breaks Over for Ethanol

2009-05-06T07:05:00.001-05:00

Rough last couple of weeks for ethanol:

The Obama administration on Tuesday proposed renewable-fuel standards that could reduce the $3 billion a year in federal tax breaks given to producers of corn-based ethanol. The move sets the stage for a major battle between Midwest grain producers and environmentalists who say the gasoline additive actually worsens global warming.

For much of the last decade, federal officials have touted the potential of corn ethanol as a substitute for gasoline and a tool for reducing global warming and foreign oil dependence.

However, environmentalists and others have questioned the wisdom of that support.

A recent Congressional Budget Office study found that increased ethanol production was responsible for 10% to 15% of last year's increased U.S. food costs. And the rush to produce more corn for fuel has had a global environmental impact as forests and other vegetation have been cleared to make way for cropland.

The Environmental Protection Agency's climate-change rules are subject to public comment and revision before they become final. And exactly how big their impact will be on corn producers' tax breaks depends how corn ethanol is determined to affect the environment.

Swine Flu Concerns Pork Industry

2009-04-29T07:01:00.002-05:00

The outbreak of Swine flu in Mexico and elsewhere is causing some serious concerns for the Pork industry. Though you cannot contract swine flu from consuming pork products, many pork producers have legitimate concerns that consumers may choose other products.

Senator Tom Harkin, Democrat of Iowa, convened a hearing on Tuesday on a subject he described as “the so-called swine flu,” even as a campaign was mounted by farm groups to rename the virus “North American influenza.”

“Swine flu is a misnomer,” said C. Larry Pope, the chief executive of Smithfield Foods, who said he feared panic among consumers. “They need to be concerned about influenza, but not eating pork.”

Researchers say that based on its genetic structure, the new virus is without question a type of swine influenza, derived originally from a strain that lived in pigs. But the experts are still sorting out how long ago it infected pigs and how much it might have mutated when it jumped to humans.

“It’s fair to say that at some point the virus passed through a pig,” said Dr. Paul A. Offit, an infectious disease expert at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. “It could have been months; it could have been years ago.”
Even if pigs were the original source of the disease, experts said they did not appear to be playing any role in its transmission now. The virus is passing from person to person, they said, most likely by the spread of respiratory droplets.

Are Cow Farts Destroying the Planet?

2009-04-25T07:13:00.004-05:00

Carol Keiser a cattle farmer from central Illinois wrote an article this week on Truth about Trade & Technology about cow farts and global warming. Carol points out about the enormous amount of information on the internet about this topic:

Global warming stinks.

Some people mean that so literally that they’re starting to blame rising temperatures on cow farts.

I am not making this up. Just Google the terms “global warming” and “cow flatulence” and check out the results. The hits number in the tens of thousands, and they comprise a long list of earnest environmentalists who think that bovines need to reduce the size of their fart footprint.

But as Carol points out many of the individuals and groups are attacking animal agriculture are using this as an opportunity to push their extreme agenda on the elimination of animal agriculture.

Harry Siemens, who has many fine commentaries about American agriculture also talked about Carol's article. You can listen this this here. He agrees with Carol's comments.

This is a mellow dramatic campaign against meat.

The extreme left is on a march right now to change our lifestyles, be it the food you eat, the choice of transportation you use, the way we heat our homes, etc. Unless the public acts now, it may be too late in the future.

Get informed!

Spring Planting Not Yet Started

2009-04-19T19:47:00.002-05:00

It's been raining here all day today and this will cause more delay's for spring planting in East Central Illinois.

If farmers in East Central Illinois plant between April 20 through May 10, "we're in pretty good shape," said Jerry Watson who farms north of Villa Grove in the southern part of Champaign County.

Last year's planting season was a wet one, with farmers being forced to delay planting or replant after rains flooded fields. So far, this April has been cold and wet. Temperatures in the first two weeks were 4.5 degrees below normal and precipitation was 58 percent above normal, according to the Illinois State Water Survey. The first two weeks saw the statewide average temperature at a chilly 44 degrees.

Temperatures are expected to be warmer in the second half of April, but it still could end up being one of the colder Aprils on record, according to state climatologist Jim Angel with the water survey. The coldest April on record in Illinois was in 1907 with an average temperature of 43 degrees. The second coldest April was in 1926 with 45 degrees.

John Deere Reorganizes Some Divisions

2009-04-14T16:14:00.001-05:00

John Deere announced today that they were combining some of their business units in order to more effectively compete in this tough economy:

Deere & Company today announced a new global operating model that will combine the technology, expertise, experience, channels and investments of the Worldwide Agricultural Equipment Division and the Worldwide Commercial & Consumer Equipment Division into a single unit called the Worldwide Agriculture and Turf Division, effective May 1, 2009. Through the new operating model, this combined organization will be positioned to achieve the alignment and efficiency necessary to develop a more complete portfolio to meet worldwide customer needs – while reducing overall costs.

The new division's global operating model will leverage common processes, standards and resources to develop solutions more quickly. It is designed to enable the division to grow profitably across many geographic markets, increase its competitiveness, and achieve and sustain exceptional operating performance – at all points in an economic cycle.

Eric Rund - 2009 Farm Leader of the Year

2009-04-10T07:04:00.003-05:00

Pesotum, Illinois area Eric Rund is truly a visionary amongst farmers for where he sees farming going in the future. Eric has long been an advocate for considering alternative crops for producing bio-fuels. For his efforts he was recently named the News-Gazette 2009 Farm Leader of the Year. Be sure to watch this video.

Aventine Renewable Energy May Declare Bankruptcy

2009-03-20T08:17:00.002-05:00

Ethanol producers are hurting badly as the market for ethanol has leveled off and the industry capacity is exceeding demand at this point in time. Several ethanol producers have had serious drops in revenue and it is starting to show in the industry.

Aventine Renewable Energy Holdings Inc., which last Friday announced the layoff of 25 people and on Monday said it lost $47.1 million in 2008, is facing possible reorganization bankruptcy in the near future, CEO Ron Miller said Wednesday.
"Bankruptcy is out there as a possibility. It's highly dependent on re-establishing the demand for ethanol," he said of the corn-based fuel.

Corn Producers Fight Back

2009-03-02T14:26:00.001-06:00

A new coalition of Corn Producers is fighting back against all the untruths in Food v Fuel

Washington, DC (March 2, 2009) – When corn prices spiked last year, big food manufacturers and oil companies claimed there wasn’t enough corn to feed everyone and make ethanol.
Now we know that was not true. There was always plenty of corn to make ethanol, not to mention corn to export and to feed ourselves and the cattle, chickens and pigs we raise on corn. And the federal Agriculture Department says there will be plenty of corn to meet demand for the foreseeable future. So corn farmers from 10 states and the industry’s trade group — the National Corn Growers Association — formed the Corn Farmers Coalition to educate policymakers in Washington. The coalition today launches a Web site (www.CornFarmersCoalition.org), an advertising campaign and a statistical abstract on America’s biggest crop.
“Washington needs to know that corn farmers are using some of the most advanced technologies on the planet to do more with less — to grow more corn using fewer resources every year,” said Mark Lambert, director of the coalition. “American corn farmers, the majority of them small business people, are among the most productive in the world.” The coalition will meet with reporters, think tanks and members of Congress to talk about what’s ahead: how U.S. farmers, using the latest technologies, will continue to grow enough corn in an environmentally friendly way to meet all our needs; the prospects for making the farm bill more responsive to the market; and the future of renewable fuels, a vital issue for our economy and national security and a key issue for the new administration.

Are Walker Farms Growing Rice in Danville, Illinois?

2009-02-07T12:50:00.005-06:00

I have visited the Danville, Illinois numerous times over the last year and have seen bountiful crops of corn and soybeans. But somehow the Rice farms in Vermilion County, I missed. According to the Environmental Working Group website, the Walker Farms of Danville, Illinois received $26,534 in 2007 direct payments from USDA for Rice.

There is of course no Rice grown in Danville or Vermilion County, Illinois, but somehow the Walkers managed to collect anyway. It is no wonder the public is so unsupportive of the most recent farm bills or farm welfare.

This was a part of the $497,823 received in 2007 in direct farm welfare payments from the US Taxpayers.

Farmland Auction is Catching alot of Attention

2009-01-16T07:25:00.002-06:00

3,900 acres of prime Illinois farmland is coming up for auction and is causing quite a stir in the countryside:

“What we have is a phenomena where we have lots of people in the upper crust, top 20 percent of the country finance-wise, who are experiencing something that they’ve never experienced the last two or three years. It’s kind of an ‘in’ thing now to have farmland in your investment portfolio,” said Mac Boyd, immediate past president of the Illinois Society of Farm Managers and Rural Appraisers.
The sale of land from the Kilton Farm near Litchfield, about 50 miles south of Springfield, has generated industry buzz well beyond the state, including with investment firms, real estate companies and corporate farms, Boyd added.
“If they’re in the land business, they know about it,” he said.

Obama to make Determination on Ethanol Future

2009-01-14T19:22:00.002-06:00

President-Elect Obama campaigned heavily on developing alternative fuels to gasoline and could very early in his administration need to make a decision on what direction the industry may head in these regards. The normal detractors such as the Environmental Working Group are out with their latest informative report:

The corn ethanol industry sucks up $2 out of every $3 the government spends to support renewable energy, according to a new report from the Environmental Working Group (EWG) based on data from the Energy Information Administration.

The Obama administration should take a “hard, clear-eyed look at how we are investing in renewable energy,” said Craig Cox, EWG’s Midwest vice president.

But the Renewable Fuels Association has some advice for the new Administration:

“Last week, at the request of President-elect Obama’s transition team, the Renewable Fuels Association submitted discussion ideas for consideration as the president-elect formulates an economic stimulus package partially designed to create green jobs and spur the green economy. Some have misconstrued this communication as a request for federal assistance or a bailout. To the contrary, the RFA recognizes that by stimulating increased production, innovation, and investment in new technologies and cellulosic feedstocks, a revitalized renewable fuels industry can help bail out the flagging US economy and lessen America’s dependence on foreign oil."

So it is fair to say that the debate has just begun...

It's Cold!

2009-01-14T19:01:00.003-06:00

We had about 3 inches of snow here in East Central Illinois today, with some drifting and many of the schools getting out early. The temperature dropped rapidly and is now around zero outside and will dip below tonight. Agriculture Meteorologist Greg Soulje has the best round of up weather in the area.

Only a few Agribusiness Dollars to Vilsack

2009-01-12T20:15:00.002-06:00

Former Iowa Governor Tom Vilsack will soon undergo the confirmation process for nomination as USDA Secretary. The Des Moines Register examined his past fundraising efforts to see how many were directly tied to Agriculture and Agri-Business. This is what they found:

Secretary of Agriculture nominee Tom Vilsack raised only a small portion of his campaign cash from farmers, grocers and others with direct ties to the agriculture industry, despite serving eight years as governor in one of the country's most emblematic farming states, documents and fundraising data show.From his first run for governor in 1998 to his short-lived presidential bid in 2006, Vilsack raised almost $15.8 million through contributions to his campaign and political action committees. Only about 2.3 percent, or $364,000, came directly from interests connected to agriculture.

Political observers said the small share of industry donations Vilsack received could earn him credibility and a perception of independence as he prepares for his confirmation hearing Wednesday. Others note the agricultural industry has long exerted its political influence through connections, not money.

Merry Christmas!

2008-12-24T14:21:00.001-06:00

Vilasek to be named Secretary of Agriculture

2008-12-17T05:00:00.001-06:00

Reports are naming former Iowa Governor Tom Vilsack as the choice of the Obama administration for the Secretary of Agriculture.

Vilsack positioned himself in the presidential campaign as a Washington outsider with heartland appeal, but he dropped out after poor showings in early primaries. He endorsed Clinton and campaigned actively for her in the long primary campaign against Obama. After Obama defeated Clinton, Vilsack endorsed him.

First elected governor in 1998, Vilsack, 56, carved out a reputation as a political centrist. He balanced Iowa's budget and resisted raising taxes, but he was willing to spend money on such priorities as education and health. He argued that pushing alternative energy sources is key to bolstering rural sections of the nation that are struggling economically and with vanishing populations.

Global Warming a Man Made Myth?

2008-12-16T18:21:00.003-06:00

The Associated Press has released an article "Obama left with little time to curb global warming" written by AP Science writer Seth Borenstein that has caused quite a stir with some claiming it is much ado about nothing.

When Bill Clinton took office in 1993, global warming was a slow-moving environmental problem that was easy to ignore. Now it is a ticking time bomb that President-elect Barack Obama can't avoid.
Since Clinton's inauguration, summer Arctic sea ice has lost the equivalent of Alaska, California and Texas.
The 10 hottest years on record have occurred since Clinton's second inauguration. Global warming is accelerating. Time is close to running out, and Obama knows it.
"The time for delay is over; the time for denial is over," he said on Tuesday after meeting with former Vice President Al Gore, who won a Nobel Peace Prize for his work on global warming. "We all believe what the scientists have been telling us for years now that this is a matter of urgency and national security and it has to be dealt with in a serious way."

But some leading scientist disagree with these assumptions:

They say the report, which was published on Monday, contained sweeping scientific errors and was a one-sided portrayal of a complicated issue.

"If the issues weren't so serious and the ramifications so profound, I would have to laugh at it," said David Deming, a geology professor at the University of Oklahoma who has been critical of media reporting on the climate change issue.

There are many that believe that climate change will be a top priority for the incoming Obama administration, but bioenergy, the environment and other new pushes for technology taking center stage. Yesterday Steven Chu was named Secretary of Energy. Chu is a Nobel Prize winning scientist who currently heads the Lawrence Berkley National Laboratory in California. This lab is one of the partners in the Energy Bioscience Institute (EBI) that is being funded by British Petroleum (BP) in conjunction with University of California at Berkley and the University of Illinois.

Many see Chu's appointment as a clear sign the new admistration will be headed. But what will this mean for Agriculture? The Secretary of Agriculture nominee has not yet been named, but this could also give some indication where things will go. Over the last few years DOE and USDA have been cooperating on bionergy efforts and recently released a new report "Increasing Feedstock Production for Biofuels: Economic Drivers, Environmental Implications, and the Role of Research".

With a federal mandate in place to increase the amount of renewable fuels, the future of agriculture is still bright. But sound science and policy will be needed to ensure decisions are based on facts and not just politics.

Secretary of Food?

2008-12-12T07:04:00.002-06:00

The NY Times columnist Nicholas Kristoff is advocating for the appointment of a "Secretary of Food" by the Obama administration:

As Barack Obama ponders whom to pick as agriculture secretary, he should reframe the question. What he needs is actually a bold reformer in a position renamed "secretary of food.”
A Department of Agriculture made sense 100 years ago when 35 percent of Americans engaged in farming. But today, fewer than 2 percent are farmers. In contrast, 100 percent of Americans eat.
Renaming the department would signal that Mr. Obama seeks to move away from a bankrupt structure of factory farming that squanders energy, exacerbates climate change and makes Americans unhealthy — all while costing taxpayers billions of dollars.

First Snow of Year Hits

2008-11-30T12:27:00.003-06:00

We had about 2 inches of snow early this morning and it completely covered everything. It was somewhat refreshing to see it.

Thanksgiving Tractor Auction - Incredible!

2008-11-29T19:51:00.003-06:00

I attended the Aumann Thanksgiving tractor auction today that was held at the Christian County Fairgrounds in Taylorville, Illinois. There was approximately 250 tractors that were sold through the main ring and a huge amount of other equipment sold through a second ring. This truly had to be one of the premier auctions in the country. There were quite a few rare tractors, with some imported from Argentina that had been used in vegetable crop farms in South America.

The Aumann's run an extremely professional auction. It was well organized and tractors were sold in a very logical order. They provided everyone with a sale bill that listed the lot numbers and a description of the tractors. This was extremely useful to keep track of what was being sold.

RFD-TV was in attendance to film the auction and I presume show at a later date.

We bought two Massey tractors. One was a Massey 81, pictured below and the other was listed as a 101, but we talked with someone who thought it was actually a Massey 20.

Happy Thanksgiving to You and Your Family

2008-11-27T06:00:00.000-06:00

Thanksgiving Dinner will Cost More this Year

2008-11-24T06:00:00.000-06:00

Thanksgiving dinner will cost slightly more this year according to the American Farm Bureau, who does an annual survey of costs:

AFBF’s 23rd annual informal price survey of classic items found on the Thanksgiving Day dinner table indicates the average cost of this year’s feast for 10 is $44.61, a $2.35 price increase from last year’s average of $42.26.
“Throughout the year we’re fortunate to enjoy a bounty of foods produced in every state of our great nation,” said AFBF President Bob Stallman. “It’s especially appropriate as we gather at the Thanksgiving table to savor not only food and fellowship, but to take a moment to recognize that this blessing begins with our hard-working farm and ranch families.”
The AFBF survey shopping list includes turkey, bread stuffing, sweet potatoes, rolls with butter, peas, cranberries, a relish tray of carrots and celery, pumpkin pie with
whipped cream, and beverages of coffee and milk, all in quantities sufficient to serve a family of 10.

IRL Says No to American Ethanol - Yes to Brazil

2008-11-23T07:39:00.005-06:00

In an almost unbelievable turn of events the Indy Racing League has decided that they will fuel all of their 2009 season cars with Brazilian ethanol. I have been to the Indy 500 race a few times and if there is any event that is truly American, it is the Indy 500. From Jim Neighbors singing "Back Home in Indiana", to the awesome lineup of American soldiers presenting the colors and the Stealth Jet flyover, nothing is more American than this race.

Bob Dinneen, President & CEO of the Renewable Fuels Association, wrote a letter to the Indy Racing League asking them to reconsider their stance:

The decision to bypass the more than 180 ethanol biorefineries across our country in favor of a tanker ship from Sao Paulo to be the official supplier of fuel for the [Indy Racing League] is an affront to America’s farmers who have worked to enhance economic opportunities for rural communities and all Americans who have fought and are fighting for our energy independence […] At a time when the US economy is faltering and America is seeking to maximize ethanol use, your decision to engage Brazilian ethanol producers is even more perplexing.

New Wind Farm Coming to Central Illinois

2008-11-13T06:53:00.003-06:00

A new wind farm was approved by the Ford County Board this week that will allow permitting to begin for construction.

Ford County Board members approved an application by K4 Wind Farm LLC for a special-use permit on Monday. The company, which has spent more than two years in the planning stages, previously gained approval from both the county's zoning and plan commissions.

The tax revenue to various Ford County bodies will range from $1.4 million to $2.3 million, depending on generator wattage, according to Mark Gershon, company legal representative of DLA Piper, Chicago. Of that total, Gershon estimated the county board's own tax revenue increase at $220,000 to $368,000. Additionally, up to $1.44 million in new tax revenue could go to Tri-Point school district, which operates schools in Piper City, Kempton and Cullom.

New Biofuels Group Formed

2008-11-12T06:57:00.004-06:00

A group of American ethanol producers have come together to form a new group called Growth Energy. The backers of this group include POET, ICM Inc., Green Plains Renewable Energy and Hawkeye Energy. Their spokesman is former US House Speaker Newt Gingrich.

The organization was formed as a direct result of the Food v Fuel debate that has consumed the food and agriculture industry this year. With commodity prices now 50% less than what they were just a few months ago, many want to know why food prices haven't fallen. The Grocery Manufacturers Association, US Grains Council, the National Restaurant Association and the American Bakers Assocation have been amongst the leaders pushing the Food v Fuel debate, arguing that biofuels production has been the major increase for the price of retail food.

But with the drop in grain prices, the retail food prices have not dropped and many are now starting to question the legitimacy of the Food v Fuel debate at all.

From the GrowthEnergy press release yesterday:

The Grocery Manufacturers Association (GMA)–engineer of much of this year’s “food vs. fuel” debate–and its members face a tough choice: admit they were wrong about ethanol being the leading driver of food costs (and keep today’s high prices), or stick to their script (and lower their prices appropriately).
But this is more than a “gotcha” moment for the GMA. By exaggerating both ethanol’s impact on corn prices and corn prices’ impact on consumer food costs, GMA and its allies have distracted policymakers,the media, industry and consumers from the larger trends and challengeswe face in feeding the planet and enhancing our energy security.
It is essential that interested parties work together to address the flawed assumptions those biased calculations helped promote.

Cathedral on the Prairie Still Shines

2008-11-11T07:00:00.002-06:00

News-Gazette Photo by Darrell Hoemann

Many of the country churches around the US have disappeared to the antiquity of time over the last few decades. We used to have one in the small neighborhood that I live in - the Tipton Christian Church that closed 50 or more years ago.

But some still thrive, including St. Mary's Catholic Church, near Pesotum, Illinois. It was recently featured in an article in the Champaign News-Gazette.

The "Cathedral on the Prairie," as it's sometimes called, is an impressive example of Gothic architecture created by a strong and faithful group of Catholic parishioners in 1894. Its 144-foot spire can be seen for miles across the prairie and is topped by a large golden cross.
Many of the settlers to the area came from Germany and wanted to build a church that resembled the churches they had left in their homeland, according to church historian Bob Schaefer. A member for all of his 82 years, Schaefer wrote an account of the history of the Catholic parish and the current church on its centennial
celebration. He found that all of the bricks used in the construction of the church were hauled by the parishioners from the Bernie Youngman Tile Factory in Pesotum.

Johanns wins Nebraska Senate Seat

2008-11-05T21:41:00.003-06:00

Former Agriculture Secretary Mike Johanns won his race for the US Senate in Nebraska yesterday. Johanns stepped down early from the USDA to pursue the race.

He was a Republican governor in one of the reddest states, and part of President Bush's cabinet. Now for the first time in his political career, Mike Johanns finds himself in the minority, as the Senator-Elect from Nebraska. "In the
United States Senate the majority and minority must work together," Johanns
said. Johanns points out he's worked with many senators, when he was
Secretary of Agriculture andgovernor before that. He said, "I have met
Sen. Obama. I don't know him well but he campaigned on a theme of 'look let's
put this behind us, let's work together.'"

Who will be the Next Secretary of Agriculture

2008-11-05T21:32:00.002-06:00

President-Elect Obama is now beginning the process of assembling a staff and naming cabinet secretaries. Several names have been mentioned as possible candidates for Secretary of Agriculture and they include:

Several names have surfaced to run the Agriculture Department. Tom Buis, a former aide to Daschle and now the president of the National Farmers Union, is one of them. He is a registered lobbyist, and Obama’s chief strategist, David Axelrod, has said administration officials wouldn’t be put in charge of agencies that they had lobbied. But Buis’s group represents small farmers, not the type of constituency that typically prompts revolving-door worries. Former Rep. Charles Stenholm (D-Texas), former Rep. Jim Leach (R-Iowa) and ex-Iowa Gov. Tom Vilsack (D) are also mentioned.

I have had the opportunity to listed to Charlie Stenholm speak on a couple of different occasions and I think he would be a great choice. He is especially in touch with the agriculture issues of today and is by all appeareance a strong supporter of bioenergy and biofuels.

Obama

2008-11-05T08:24:00.002-06:00

Election Day

2008-11-04T06:22:00.001-06:00

Go Vote - Your Future Depends on it!

Verasun Files for Bankruptcy Protection

2008-11-03T10:04:00.001-06:00

Verasun has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.

The VeraSun Energy Corporation, which accounts for roughly 7 percent of ethanol production capacity in the United States, announced that it had filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection late Friday.
Shares in VeraSun were trading for pennies in anticipation of the move, which, the company said in a statement, was “precipitated by a series of events that led to a contraction in VeraSun’s liquidity, impairing its ability to operate its business and invest in production facilities.”

Obama Blames Farmers for Obesity Problem

2008-11-03T10:00:00.001-06:00

From the Des Moines Register:

Washington, D.C. — Barack Obama appeared to link farming with some of the
nation's leading health problems, including obesity and heart disease, in a
recent interview.Obama - citing an article by Michael Pollan, an author and
outspoken critic of U.S. farm policy - told Time magazine that agriculture is
"partly responsible for the explosion in our health care costs because they're
contributing to type 2 diabetes, stroke and heart disease, obesity, all the
things that are driving our huge explosion in health care costs."

Almost election Day

2008-11-02T20:23:00.000-06:00

It's almost over.

Go Vote.

This Video Says it All - Vote John McCain for President

2008-10-31T19:27:00.000-05:00

China Wrap-up

2008-10-28T21:57:00.003-05:00

Made it home from China. It was a remarkable trip, especially seeing the growth of Beijing. At times there were tower crains as far as the eye could see. Everything is new and the locals are very proud of the changes they are seeing. All know that their quality of life has improved considerably.

One issue that I spoke with a few people about was food safety. Food safety in China has become a huge problem, especially in light of the melamine scare in milk. Over 50,000 people became sick because of the tainted milk product, especially young children. This has caused many Chinese to think very deeply about how safe their food supply is. One must consider that many of the locals are still eating foods produced by local farmers. I read one report that said of 10,000 food manufacturers, that most had 3 employees are less.

What this indicates to me is that getting a handle on quality of the Chinese food supply will be a challenge. The changes in lifestyle have come quickly to China and the regulations of a safe food supply haven't kept up. I did get the sense that the public was supportive of additional regulations, especially as the food industry continues to grow and mature.

Local Foods in China

2008-10-21T16:12:00.002-05:00

One thing about being in Beijing, China is the overwhelming amount of local foods. You only need to walk down some of the small side streets to find many delights that were locally produced.

China Seeks to Bolster Agriculture Productivity

2008-10-20T08:13:00.002-05:00

I am visiting China this week and it has been announced that China will now begin allowing farmers to "lease their contracted farmland or transfer their land-use right." This will be a an economic boost for some, who will now have options on their land. According to one website:

According to domestic law, farmland is collectively owned, but meted out to farmers in small plots in long term leasing contracts. The new measures adopted are seen by economists as a major breakthrough in land reforms initiated by late leader Deng Xiaoping 30 years ago, which will avail farmers of opportunities to conduct scale management and new business operations.
When the document was drafted, some have argued that the new policy might create a few landlords and many landless farmers who will have no means for a living. And arable lands to be used for non-farming purposes, might threaten the country's food safety.
To ease such fears, the CPC Central Committee also provided in the document that the country would carry out "the most stringent farmland protection system" and urged local authorities to firmly safeguard the 1.8 billion mu (120 million hectares) minimum farmland set line.
China is facing a sharp conflict between land supply and demand. The area of arable land shrank 610,100 mu in 2007 to 1.826billion mu, only slightly above the government's set target.

Visiting Beijing China this Week

2008-10-19T17:00:00.001-05:00

Local Students Learn About Agriculture

2008-10-17T06:27:00.002-05:00

3rd grade students at St. Joseph Elementary School in St. Joseph, Illinois recently visited a local Frito-Lay grain handling facility and with several local farmers to learn more about agriculture:

For the students, the highlight was the chance to ride in the combine or in the tractor that drives alongside, collecting the corn into a cart. Student Hunter Harris said the tractor ride was his favorite part of the day.

"I got pelted with corn husks that hit the glass of the tractor when the corn went around us. That was cool," Harris said...

Third-grader Karsyn Foster said she learned that "at Frito Lay, 70 semi-trucks of corn could fit in a big giant silo."

Bev Pridemore, who organized the field trip, said many of her students had never been to a farm, and the farming unit in their social studies book focuses on techniques used in California. She said she wanted the children to get a sense of what farming is like in their own local area.

Third-grader Zach Kietzman said, "I learned about farming and simple machines. And if the weather is nice, how farmers see if they can harvest during harvest season. I liked getting to ride on the big huge tractor, because I got to see how they worked."

Asked whether he would consider a career in farming, Kietzman said, "I'm thinking about it. I have some ideas.

McCain Calls for End to Ethanol Subsidies

2008-10-15T20:44:00.002-05:00

In tonight's Presidential debate, Senator John McCain once again called for the end to ethanol subsidies and the import tariff on Brazilian ethanol. When asked how much the US could reduce imported oil. McCain didn't give a specific number, but did list off range of ideas such as off shore drilling, nuclear power, wind, solar, biofuels, etc.

Oprah Talks Pigs

2008-10-15T07:10:00.002-05:00

Oprah Winfrey has caused quite a stir in the past in regards to her shows on animal welfare, especially related to agriculture. This week she took up the issue again:

"I believe how we treat the least of being among us determines our own humanity," stated Oprah Winfrey in the opening of her "The Oprah Winfrey Show" on Tuesday.

The show which was dedicated to issues of livestock treatment, covered subject matters such as whether cages for egg layers, gestation stalls for sows and individual crates for veal calves "cross the line" into animal cruelty.

Illinois Farm Bureau President Phil Nelson invited Oprah to come and visit a farm for herself:

"If Oprah is willing to take some time out of her busy schedule to visit a farm, she would discover that modern livestock producers are ethically committed to the well being of their animals. Our livelihoods depend on the production of healthy animals. No one understands better than a livestock producer that well cared for animals mean healthy food for Americans and the rest of the world."

National Farm Safety and Health Week

2008-09-23T17:21:00.003-05:00

It's National Farm Safety and Health Week September 21-27. With harvest beginning this is an important time to take notice and be safe. As the days get shorter and the pressure begins to get the crop in, remember to take time to be safe.

How will financial changes affect Farming?

2008-09-23T06:51:00.002-05:00

The unprecedented bailout of Wall Street by Uncle Sam has every industry considering how it is going to affect them. Many analysts think that agriculture will only be mildly affected by these changes, but will feel the impact none the less:

Jason Ward with Northstar Commodity Investment Co., says the financial crisis affects the U.S. farmer directly and indirectly.
"AIG especially is a large player in the ag sector and their spiraling is causing widespread commodity liquidation," Ward says. "Banks are tightening credit with everyone, which directly tightens credit at ag banks, so end-users wanting to buy commodities ahead (like a livestock producer wanting to buy corn) simply cannot get the credit necessary to do so because his bank is tight.

It's a good thing the 2008 farm bill has already been passed, or agriculture may have faced more pressure to face further reductions

Farm Journal's John Phipps weighs in on the crisis with his thoughts:

Agriculture will not go unscathed in financial crisis, although my investigations lead me to suspect the consequences are not immediately obvious. After reading reams of stuff about what the heck is going on in Washington and New York, maybe these links and guesses will help.

Bryce Knorr from FarmFutures:

With the panic in the financial markets beginning to subside, traders are again turning their attention to the size of the 2008 crop and the potential for very tight supplies into 2009. Rains this week are expected to focus on the northwestern Corn Belt, with little moisture making it into the rest of the region. Warm temperatures should promote maturity and drying, with frost not showing up until the first week in October, at the earliest. Weather models continue to disagree on the cold blast, with the more accurate European model not projecting much of a threat.

Harvest Begins

2008-09-23T06:50:00.001-05:00

Greg Knott
www.infinityfarms.com

Harvest is Going to Be Late

2008-09-19T06:51:00.006-05:00

In eastern Illinois, I have not seen any real activity involving harvest with the exception of seed corn that has been harvested. With so many crops being planted late this year, it will probably be the end of October before everything is done. The corn around my house is now turning rapidly and the ears have begun to drop.

Last Sunday we received 3 1/2 inches of rain as a result of hurricane Ike. It has washed out some fields, but seems to have drained off generally very quickly.

Obama Receives Agriculture Endorsements

2008-09-19T06:51:00.003-05:00

Over on The Back Fourty blog is reporting that Barak Obama has received the endorsement of some national agricultural leaders:

U.S. Senator Barack Obama’s campaign today announced the endorsement of 25 former and current leaders of the National Farmers Union (NFU), including the personal endorsement of the NFU President and Vice President, along with several other rural leaders, farmers and current and former agricultural officials from across the country. These endorsements come on the 60th Anniversary of President Harry Truman’s historic speech in Dexter, Iowa on the American farmer. That speech, delivered on September 18, 1948, was given during Truman’s “Whistle Stop” campaign tour, and is regarded as one of the first major addresses regarding modern farm policy.
These endorsements come from agricultural leaders from across the political spectrum, representing almost all of the 50 states. Among the supporters are 25 current and former leaders of the Farmers Union, including Tom Buis, President of the National Farmers Union, six former Presidents of the National Corn Growers Association, including Fred Yoder and Leon Corzine, 22 current and former State Directors of Agriculture, including Roger Johnson, President of the National Association of State Departments of Agriculture, and 38 former State Executive Directors of the U.S. Department of Agriculture Farm Service Agency (FSA).

Senator Barack Obama said, “I am humbled to receive this support from those that know America’s farmers best. Many of the issues facing rural America are the same that we are all facing, and I am determined to ensure that we do all that we can to support this key industry. If we fail rural America, we fail all of America.”

Tuscola Illinois is Growing Crops for Biofuels

2008-09-02T20:21:00.002-05:00

Tuscola Illinois has decided to become a pioneer in the quest to grow crops for the next generation of biofuels. This is truly what it is going to take to develop the markets that will be necessary to have cellulosic ethanol and other biofuels to become viable:

Meanwhile, city officials have been talking with Duke Energy, which operates a power plant at Tuscola's Lyondell chemical-manufacturing facility, about converting the facility so that a portion of its power would come from the biofuels.

"We want to set up a market, so we told Duke we would figure out a way to get a supply of biofuels to them," Moody said.

Moody said the experiment could become a model to help attract a biofuel-related industry to Tuscola (perhaps even a miscanthus-burning ethanol plant), providing a market for farmers seeking to grow miscanthus or other biocrops.

Moody said he has been approached by developers interested in the possibility of burning biomass to produce electricity.

More Leadership from Blagojevich

2008-08-29T07:05:00.002-05:00

Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich is once again demonstrating his leadership this week is by closing dozens of state historic sites and state parks, including Kickapoo State Park near Oakwood, Illinois.

Tod Satterthwaite who operates Kickapoo landing was not impressed:
"It's unimaginable," Satterthwaite said.

The move takes away from the area's quality of life, he said.

"If you want to call yourself a world-class university and draw people in, you give them quality of life," Satterthwaite said. "It's the start of a downward spiral that no community, no state, can afford."

State Representative Bill Black was almost in disbelief over the decision:

State Rep. Bill Black, R-Danville, called the move "ridiculous."

"I think it's a shame and disgrace to do this as we go into the 200th anniversary of Lincoln's birthday," he said.

Though he said the governor "has a very legitimate concern in that the budget was not balanced," he "slashes with a dull ax."

"When we go back to veto session in November, we'll try to find places where we can restore money," Black said.

Vermilion County Illinois Ag Leaders Honored

2008-08-28T10:09:00.004-05:00

Vermilion Advantage recently named it's 2008 Agriculture award winners:

2008 Ag Business - First National Bank of Georgetown
2008 Ag Leader - Joe Daughhetee, CPA with Daughetee and Parks
2008 Ag Educator - Craig Potter, Danville Area Community College
2008 Friend of Agriculture - Jerry Askern, Danville City Council and First National Bank of Georgetown

Local Landmark Coming Down

2008-08-27T11:09:00.003-05:00

Photo by the News-Gazette

The old Staley Elevator west of Champaign Illinois on Route 10 is coming down this week. It has been unused for many years.

Obama picks Biden for VP

2008-08-23T19:31:00.003-05:00

Barak Obama has chosen Delaware Senator Joe Biden as his pick for Vice Presidential nominee. Biden has been a Senator for 35 years. Here are some of his thoughts on agriculture from his Senate website:

The Farm Bill
Senator Biden supported the Farm Bill and believes that it is a responsible compromise.

Opening Domestic and Foreign Markets to Delaware Products
Senator Biden is one of the Senate’s leading proponents of the idea that the future of American agriculture lies in exports. In 2000, he voted to give Delaware’s farmers unprecedented access to China’s market of 1.2 billion consumers for U.S. farm products and services.

Supporting Agricultural Research and Education
In an effort to improve our lead in agricultural productivity and efficiency, research investment is necessary so that U.S. producers can continue to serve a global marketplace and meet the demands of a growing world population.

Funding the Farmland Protection Program
Senator Biden has been a long-time advocate of funding for the Farmland Protection Program. Under this system, landowners are encouraged to voluntarily convey the development rights of their land to the state while retaining the right to use the property for agriculture.

Record Price for Champaign County Farmland

2008-08-16T20:35:00.003-05:00

In what was a record price for Champaign County Illinois farmland, the Lo family paid $32,000 per acre. This likely is development ground for the future. The Lo family owns thousands of acres of in east-central Illinois, but have developed a reputation as very poor farmers. Many areas agri-business will no longer do business with the Lo's because of the hassle old lady Lo gives thems.

They also routinely go through quite a bit of farm help each year. But when you don't really need to make money, it doesn't make any difference.

Record Prices at Illinois State Fair - Sale of Champions

2008-08-13T07:35:00.001-05:00

Some record prices at the Illinois State Fair - Sale of Champions last night in Springfield:

With two steers going for around $50,000 each, the 2008 Governor’s Sale of Champions at the Illinois State Fair saw a slew of sales records broken and some obliterated.

The sale of Kendall Stahl’s 1,307-pound Angus steer belongs in the latter category. The Land of Lincoln Grand Champion sold to Crosscreek Farm for $50,000, nearly doubling the previous record of $26,600.

University of Illinois Agronomy Day is Coming

2008-08-12T14:51:00.002-05:00

The 52nd annual University of Illinois Agronomy Day is Thursday August 21 at the University of Illinois South Farms. This year the theme is "Energizing Agriculture". There will be tours focused on some of the latest research that is happening on the UI campus. The event tours start at 7am and runs till noon. The Center for Advanced BioEnergy Research is leading this years efforts.

At noon there will be two features speakers; United States Dept. of Agriculture Undersecretary Gale Buchanan and Seth Snyder from Argonne National Laboratory who will talk about bioenergy.

Be sure to come by if you are in the Urbana, Illinois area.

EPA Tells Texas NO!

2008-08-09T07:11:00.003-05:00

The EPA announced this week that they would not grant Texas' request for a temporary easing of the Renewable Fuel Standard.

EPA Administrator Stephen Johnson made the announcement:

In a conference call with reporters yesterday, EPA administrator Stephen L. Johnson said while "the agency recognizes that a number of factors have contributed to high corn, food, and fuel prices as a nation," it does not believe the renewable fuels requirement is "causing severe economic harm" to Texas.

The mandate, Johnson argued, "is strengthening our nation's energy security and supporting Americans' farming communities."

But Texas Governor Rick Perry strongly disagreed:

Perry, who spoke by phone with Johnson before the announcement, said he was "greatly disappointed with the EPA's inability to look past the good intentions of this policy to see the significant harm it is doing to farmers, ranchers and American households. For the EPA to assert that this federal mandate is not affecting food prices not only goes against common sense, but every American's grocery bill."

Names Begin to Float for Future Ag Secretary

2008-08-04T06:51:00.003-05:00

The rumor mill has begun as to who may be the next Secretary of Agriculture. The thoughts I have heard include Farmer's Union President Tom Buis as a potential pick by Barak Obama. If Senator John McCain is elected, his fellow Senator Sam Brownback of Kansas.

Of course this isn't on most political pundit radar's at this point, but to those in the country side, it may be enough to change some votes for president.

Will Obama pick Veneman for Vice President

2008-07-29T07:10:00.003-05:00

One of the more interesting rumors going around is that Democratic nominee Barak Obama is considering former Agriculture Secretary Ann Veneman as his Vice Presidential choice. Veneman as the Ag Secretary in the first GW Bush administration and left after a lack luster performance in this job.

However, it does rule out the one name floated so far by his vice presidential selection committee: former Secretary of Agriculture Ann Veneman.

Veneman's a veteran corporate lobbyist who used her position to advance the interests of the agribusiness conglomerates with which she had been associated with before taking over the Department of Agriculture. Strike "integrity."

She's a lifelong Reagan Republican, who never broke with Bush on any issue of consequence. There is no evidence that she even attempted to pressure him to do the right thing on farm or food policy, let alone on the global trade issues to which she devoted most of her time as ag secretary. Strike "independence."

Locally Grown Food Catching on Even More

2008-07-27T16:47:00.002-05:00

With gas prices at an all time high and growing consumer interest in knowing where their food comes from, an evolving group of "locavores" - those that love to eat locally grown food.

Although it’s relatively easy for a home cook to find a dozen ears of sweet corn or a quart of strawberries, it’s more difficult for restaurants, schools and cafeterias to find local suppliers for the volume of food they need.

“Leaf lettuce in June and July? You can’t get it here,” said Brown Hitt, who has worked at or managed a number of local restaurants and bars since the 1970s.

“The whole thing about sustainability and locally grown has burst on the scene in the last two years. But restaurants don’t have a lot of time to beat around with supply. It’s all about convenience. The local guys can do it, but it’s a lot of extra work.”

Another downside is that smaller farms tend to have higher production costs, especially if foods are grown naturally or organically.

Blagojevich Hurting the Environment

2008-07-23T06:20:00.002-05:00

Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich, whose administration is under federal investigation, is certainly no friend to anyone outside of Chicago, this has included Agriculture where he has made devestating cuts over the last few years. His latest target is now the environment. Blagojevich has cut $14 million from the Illinois Department of Natural Resources.

These cuts will eliminate an additional 162 positions for an agency that is already down 25% from its numbers in 2002. Now a coalition of environmental and conservation groups are taking him to task having identified some of the impacts:

*The agency’s ability to implement the Illinois State Wildlife Action Plan, a blueprint for protecting vanishing natural resources and keeping plants, animals, birds, fish and other organisms from becoming endangered.

*Loss of funds for the Water Supply Planning Initiative that is studying Illinois’ water resources – both surface and underground.

*DNR having enough staff to manage state parks and natural areas.

*Falling numbers of Conservation Police Officers. Eric Poertner of the Policemen’s Benevolent & Protection Association said 24 positions remain unfilled, leaving 133 officers to police about 470,000 state-owned acres, 720,000 licensed anglers and 317,000 licensed hunters. A dozen others are slated to retire soon. In 2000, 170 officers were on the job.

*The future of the Illinois State Museum system that is not supported by fees paid by hunters and anglers.

US Offers to Cut Ag Subsidies

2008-07-23T06:01:00.002-05:00

US Trade Representative Susan Schwab stated that the United States was willing to cut agriculture subsidies to $15 billion as a measure of good faith to keep the Doha round of negotiations. This is a major concession on the part of the United States to other nations who have been critical of the US farm subsidies.

"This is a major move taken in good faith with the expectation that others will reciprocate and step forward with improved offers in market access," she said. "These cuts will deliver effective and significant reductions in trade distorting domestic farm support."

The talks, called the Doha Development Round, aim to make trade fairer for poor countries. The United States and European Union have been under pressure to reduce their agricultural subsidies and to cut tariffs.

Developing countries say trade-distorting subsidies give the wealthy countries an unfair advantage, making it difficult for them to compete in the open market.

Wealthy countries say they are willing to cut their farm supports, but in return the poorer countries have to provide greater market access to their manufactured goods and services.

DuPont Posts Big Earnings Thanks to Agriculture

2008-07-23T05:51:00.002-05:00

Agri-Business giant posted big earnings this week:

The Wilmington, Del.-based company's profit for the quarter was $1.07 billion, up from $972 million during the same quarter last year, pushed largely by a 23% increase in agriculture and nutrition sales stemming from strong global demand for DuPont's corn, soybean and crop-protection products.

But the company said it expects earnings per share for the second half of 2008 to be "modestly lower" than last year because of increased energy and ingredient costs.

With this growth in the agriculture part of their business, DuPont is going deeper into agriculture:

The company, which has interests in chemicals, agribusiness, construction, communications and transportation, made moves during the quarter to delve deeper into agriculture. In May, DuPont teamed up with Danish biotech leader Danisco A/S to develop ethanol from non-food plant sources. See full story.

Historic Farm Days in Full Swing

2008-07-12T21:25:00.002-05:00

I have attended the first three days of the Historic Farm Days at Penfield, Illinois. The weather has generally cooperated, with some rain Saturday morning that stopped some of the field demonstrations, but the grounds were in great shape. This years feature tractor is CASE, and there are some great examples of CASE tractors present at the show. I have created this gallery if you want to see some CASE tractors.

I & I Historic Farm Days

2008-07-09T13:36:00.003-05:00

One of the very best farm shows in the United States starts tomorrow in Penfield Illinois, the 2008 Historic Farm Days which is run by the I & I Tractor and Gas Engine Club.

I painted up this McCormick O-4 orchard tractor to take to the show, even though the theme for this year is Case tractors.

Pork Producer Get's Bigger

2008-07-09T13:26:00.002-05:00

Despite the outcry from the pork industry that the corn price is driving them out of business, at least one company seems to be making money:

The nation’s seventh-largest pork producer - processing more than 2.7 million hogs a year - just got a little larger.

Maschhoff’s Inc. has purchased Iowa-based Blackjack Pork, including facilities in Iowa, Illinois, Iowa and Oklahoma. The private, family owned companies did not disclose the sale price, but the acquisition adds more than 20,000 hogs a year to Machhoff’s production capacity, a spokesman for the company said today.

Happy 4th of July

2008-07-04T07:19:00.001-05:00

Have a Happy 4th of July

Lawmakers Ask for Reduction of Ethanol Useage

2008-07-01T07:58:00.004-05:00

As the midwest begins to recover from flooding, the assessement of how much crops were lost has begun. USDA has release their June 30 crop report and the numbers did show a decline from last year, but not as much as some analysts thought would happen.

But a group of lawmakers has asked the EPA to lower their requirements for ethanol production:

More than four dozen House Republicans asked the Environmental Protection Agency on Monday to reduce required ethanol production this year, saying renewable fuel standards enacted by Congress will boost already high corn prices in the wake of Midwest floods.

"The Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) is a significant factor in the increased cost of commodities, which is causing severe economic harm for low-income Americans and livestock producers," the 51 lawmakers, led by Rep. Bob Goodlatte of Virginia, senior Republican on the House Agriculture Committee, said in a letter to EPA Administrator Stephen Johnson.

Midwest Sunset

2008-06-30T20:15:00.001-05:00

Bee Loss is Becoming a Serious Issue

2008-06-29T21:20:00.003-05:00

No one is still quite sure why the bee colony sudden collapse is happening in North America. Bee's are vital to American agriculture, providing pollination to fruit crops that are worth $15 billion to the American economy.

"There were enough commercial hives available to do the pollination needed," said Janet S. Kaplan of the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Agricultural Research Service, which is studying the disorder.

Honeybees are responsible for pollinating more than $15 billion worth of apples, peaches, blueberries, squash, nuts, seed fruit, and vine crops annually. About a third of the food Americans eat has some connection to bee pollination, according to the USDA.

In much of the country, including New England, pollination relies heavily on commercial beehives trucked in from elsewhere, often from warm-weather states where bees are cultivated throughout the year.

Last year, Colony Collapse Disorder gained national attention when beekeepers in more than two dozen states checked their hives after the winter and found that up to 90 percent of the bees had gone without a trace. It was feared that the disorder would spread to all hives.

But the disappearances have remained inconsistent, said Kaplan.