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WINTER 2013
Baker
Student gets inside the dairy business Page 4
Barley production soars, prices drop Page 13
How polio spurred implement inventor Page 10
Apple trade with China could bite back Page 14
Produced quarterly by Tribune Publishing Company
2 | Monday, December 30, 2013
Northwest Farm and Ranch | Winter 2013
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Northwest Farm and Ranch | Winter 2013
Learning the ABCs of the dairy industry Internship gives students hands-on experiences By Elizabeth Rudd for Northwest Farm & Ranch
When Kim Davenport started college at the University of Idaho she had very little experience with the dairy industry and did not expect to even like it that much. But that all changed after an “Introduction to Dairy” class, followed by a six-week summer internship with the Southern Great Plains Dairy Consortium in Clovis, N.M. “I’m sure that dairy will be part of my future,” Davenport said. The 19-year-old Moscow resident is a sophomore at UI studying to become a veterinarian of large animals. Davenport said her interest in the dairy industry developed after she decided to take an introductory course just for fun. “I just thought, ‘Why not? This sounds fun,’ ” she said. Steve Hanks/Lewiston Tribune In that course, the students University of Idaho’s Kim Davenport recently returned from New Mexico where she studied dairy cows. were able to care for their own cows, including milking them and dairies are a main source learn about the wide variety and learning how to induce immediately accepted into the so hands-on,” she said. Davenport said she and of income for the area, which of businesses within the dairy lactation with hormones. program after submitting her Davenport said she became application, but with some prod- about 35 other students in the is different from Moscow and industry and other internship opportunities. Several of ding from her, program — including three northern Idaho, she said. really interested the directors more UI students — would “It was a change from here,” the businesses were sponsors in dairy after for the internship program, were persuaded spend about half the day Davenport said. that class, and to change their learning in a classroom from a The students were also able Davenport said, which made it ended up joinminds. variety of experts and half the to visit a yogurt and dairy possible for students to receive ing the UI Dairy “So they let day on a dairy farm. production plant and cheese free room and board, tuition, Club and applyme and I was “So we were out on dairies factories, along with a number some meals, tours and transing for the sumgood to go after all the time,” she said. of dairies in both Texas and portation. mer internship “So it was a good deal, but that,” she said. Each week focused on a New Mexico. program. And she’s different aspect of the dairy “All the dairymen were so our sponsors were a big part of T h e happy they did. industry, including a cow’s nice and cooperative in deal- it,” she said. Southern Great Davenport said she is more D a v e n p o r t reproduction system, milk ing with us,” she said. Plains Dairy confident in her dairy studies spent from midmicrobiology, cow comfort and Davenport said her favorConsortium is Kim Davenport May through nutrition, along with how a ite aspect was learning about after completing the program, an organization University of Idaho sophoJune gain- dairy operates financially. the reproduction system. The and also found that some of that focuses on more, studying to become a ing experience “It’s a pretty neat deal, students spent that week what she learned can be applied providing leadlarge animal veterinarian she said she especially for kids who don’t doing blood tests, palpations to other large animals. ership, support “It was a lot of fun,” she wouldn’t have have a lot of dairy background, to check if the cows were and resources been able to any like me,” Davenport said. pregnant, ultra sounds and said. for education other way. Davenport said just being dissections. and research in “It was just a really inter- in Clovis, which is near the “I loved that week,” she Elizabeth Rudd can be reached at large herd management while (208) 791-8465, or by email to erudd@ coordinating with the industry, esting experience that I prob- Texas-New Mexico border, said. ably wouldn’t have gotten any- was a change for her. There The summer program also lmtribune.com. Follow her on Twitter @ academia and government. Davenport said she wasn’t where else just because it was are thousands of cows there gave Davenport a chance to elizabeth_rudd.
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All the dairymen were so nice and cooperative in dealing with us.”
Winter 2013 | Northwest Farm and Ranch
Idaho producer makes mark with pulse crop exports By Joel Mills
for Northwest Farm & Ranch
An increasing number of Russians are getting a little taste of Idaho in their traditional yellow split pea soup. “It’s different than American pea soup,” Dean Brocke, president of George F. Brocke and Sons, said of the local fare on a recent trade mission to the country. “It’s not thick, it has a lot of vegetables, and some meat. It’s quite good.” And consumers in Idaho’s 11th largest agricultural trading partner are starting to appreciate the high quality of the pulse crops Brocke is exporting into their market. He has been doing business over the last several years with Mistral Trading, and now has up to 10 50,000-pound containers of split green and yellow peas, lentils and chickpeas leaving the Port of Lewiston for Russia each month. “It’s not peanuts, but it’s not huge either,” he said of the revenue the crops bring in. “It’s a good, steady business with a good, steady trading partner.” There was even a spike in volume that followed the trade mission, which Idaho Gov. C.L. (Butch) Otter led last month. “I wouldn’t say it was 100 percent due to the trade mission, but it certainly helped,” Brocke said. Laura Johnson, manager of the Market Development Division at the Idaho Department of Agriculture,
confirmed that Russia is a growing market for Pacific Northwest pulse crops, of which Brocke is the largest exporter. Of the so-called BRIC countries (Brazil, Russia, India and China), Russia has the highest per capita income, and a growing middle class. That leaves many Russians with the rubles needed to splurge on higherquality items, like Brocke’s legumes. The Kendrick, Idaho, company ships them in bulk, then Mistral packages and markets them as a better alternative to locally produced products. “We actually did store surveys, and saw our product on the shelf next to the local product,” he said. “And the local product was quite low quality. The American products shined like a star. It was really fun, and it really brought home what they’re trying to do, and how successfully they’re doing it.” Johnson said Mistral’s packaging even includes the USA Dry Pea and Lentil Council logo, and one brand has the word “Idaho” translated into Russian. The alliance has been so fertile that Otter presented Mistral with the Idaho Valued Partner Award at a ceremony at the U.S. ambassador’s residence. The Idaho Department of Commerce funded Brocke’s participation in the trade mission after he applied for one of its State Trade and Export Promotion (STEP) grants. That is one avenue Idaho business leaders can take to joining such future missions, but Johnson said they are open to any company that wants to participate.
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Feds to boost ferrets in Great Plains BILLINGS, Mont. — Federal wildlife officials have crafted a new plan to restore the highly endangered blackfooted ferret that includes re-introducing the animal to more states. The prairie dog-eating member of the weasel family was thought to be extinct until 1981, when a rancher found a solitary enclave of the animals in northwest Wyoming. A U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service recovery plan released recently calls
for boosting their numbers to about 3,000 animals. That’s versus about 500 black-footed ferrets in the wild today. The agency will work with private and public landowners to establish new populations across a 12-state historic range stretching from Texas to the Canadian border. Past recovery efforts were hampered by resistance from the agriculture industry and disease that wiped out many prairie dog colonies that ferrets depend on. — Associated Press
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Leading research in feed efficiency For most cattle operations, the single biggest cost driver is feed. Often fluctuating from year to year, prices for hay, feed and grains can often be a determining factor in whether or not an operation makes a profit. The subject is the basis of a book, “Feed Efficiency in the Beef Industry,” as well as the focus of years of research, by University of Idaho’s Dr. Rod Hill. “The work on the book was a coordinated effort with contributions from 33 different authors from five nations,” Hill said. “It puts together all the different comHill plexities and factors that impact on feed efficiency in beef cattle.” Feed prices, he said, have recently skyrocketed, making the topic an even more relevant factor for research not just worldwide, but particularly in a state where beef and dairy cattle make up the two largest agricultural industries, worth about $4.3 billion annually. His research into modern approaches to feed efficiency is specifically intended to help improve the profitability and sustainability for cattle operations, Hill said. His work led Hill to be one of 14 researchers in agriculture, food and renewable resources that were named fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science in November, and among 388 new fellows from across all scientific disciplines to be honored in February at the world’s largest scientific society’s annual meeting in Chicago. An animal physiologist by training, Hill’s work delving into drivers that modulate how well animals can utilize feed was honored “for distinguished contributions to the field of animal physiology for service to the scientific community.”
Hill’s research ranges from the molecular level to the whole animal, from basic discovery science through to actual application, and can even be used to aid in understanding of human physiology and medicine as well as that of animals. He has done studies involving the use of nanotechnology to change gene expression, and he has collaborated with social scientists to determine barriers to the use of new technologies in field work. Much of what he’s been working on over the past few years, and the basis for much of what he talks about in his book, involves using existing technologies, both in the field and in the lab, that make it possible to measure the intake of individual animals, which he said opens up unique areas of study. “They have a radio tag in each ear, which allows us to measure when they go to feed and how much they eat, based on the weight change in that feeder as the animal’s eating,” he said. “So we can sit here in Moscow and watch while individual animals are eating in the field.” He found that individual cattle, like people, eat and process food at different rates and that this way of measuring efficiency is independent of just about all of the other factors that producers are interested in. “What that means is that we can improve an animal’s performance, improve their growth, improve their marbling, improve the product quality and reproductive rates, while at the same time improving their feed efficiency, by using it as a selection tool,” he said. The implications for this, in terms of both breeding and managing animals, is huge, he said. The topic is one of numerous covered in his book, which he said progresses from more basic concepts that could be useful to people in the industry to more complex topics, that would likely require a graduate degree to understand completely. “The intention was to bring all we knew together in one place for a ready reference, so that it could be used as a text for students,” he said. “But there is also broader information in it, so it’s also set up for someone from the industry if they want to pick it up.” Bill McKee can be reached at (208) 883-4627, or by email to wmckee@dnews.com.
Winter 2013 | Northwest Farm and Ranch
Monday, December 30, 2013 | 7
Researchers collecting honey bee semen to diversify gene pool
The diversity will help increase bees’ fitness and their ability to better adapt to environmental challenges. An increased level of fitness, Cobey said, means a colony’s queen bee mates with multiple drones which creates more diversity. And the colonies with a large number of drones produce more honey and are better at fighting off diseases. Because of restrictions on honey bee importation into the U.S. that have been in place since 1922, the gene pool for honey bees in America has been limited. The restrictions were originally set in an effort to protect domestic bees from imported mites and other dangers. Now with the assistance of improved technology allowing researchers to preserve honey bee semen, Cobey and her fellow researchers have imported germplasm from several breeds of honeybees in Europe. Researchers are crossing the germplasm with domestic bee breeds to create healthier, stronger bees, Cobey said. Cobey said people can find plenty of information about bee-friendly flowers on The Xerces Society’s website at http://www.xerces.org/. The Xerces Society is a nonprofit organization that protects wildlife through the conservation of invertebrates and their habitat, according to its website. For information about honey bee research at WSU, visit http://entomology.wsu.edu/apis/.
Flowers could help stop disappearance of pollinators By Meredith Metsker for Northwest Farm & Ranch
Orchardists hoping to have bees around to pollinate their apple and cherry trees should plant flowers, says a Washington State University researcher. “Plant more flowers,� Sue Cobey, WSU bee breeder-geneticist, said. “That’s the big message.� Cobey urged Northwest farmers to assist honey bees’ survival by establishing native plants, especially in places where it’s not profitable to grow crops. Even something as simple as planting hedgerows with bee-friendly flowers will make a difference, Cobey said. Bee-friendly flowers can include a general mix of wildflowers, or plants like dandelions or locust and maple trees. Honey bees are crucial to the survival of about 100 crops, including strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, cherries, pears, apples, cranberries and almonds. And the continuing disappearance of bees over the past seven years due to colony collapse disorder continues to cause problems in eastern Washington where apple and cherry orchards need pollination. Cobey said the two main races of honey bees in the United States, the Italian and Carniolan bees, are both being impacted by CCD, which was first mentioned by beekeepers around 2006 when entire api-
aries began disappearing. Researchers now believe CCD might be caused by a variety and combination of factors, including pesticides, parasitic mites, pathogens, viruses and malnutrition resulting from the declining diversity and abundance of flowers. The Natural Resource Defense Council estimates nearly one-third of all honey bee colonies in the United States die annually, a staggering number given their roles in agriculture. Cobey, along with Steve Sheppard, chair of the WSU Department of Entomology, is working to preserve and increase honey bee genetic diversity in the United States by establishing a genetic repository of honey bee semen, the first of its kind in the world.
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8 | Monday, December 30, 2013
Northwest Farm and Ranch | Winter 2013
A kitchen for the hopeful entrepreneur University of Idaho Food Technology Center offers guidance and equipment to start a small business By Anthony Kuipers for Northwest Farm & Ranch
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Those with an idea for a food product they want to sell, but who don’t know how to get their business off the ground may find their solution in southern Idaho. Since 2005, the University of Idaho’s 7,000-square-foot Food Technology Center in Caldwell has operated with the goal of providing prospective entrepreneurs with a helpful first step in developing their own recipes into something profitable. “It’s designed to give individuals a better idea of what it takes to start a small food business,” FTC director Josh Bevan said. The FTC, located next to the UI Caldwell Research and Extension Center, houses professional equipment including a 150-gallon steam kettle, a Simplex filling machine, a food processor and a quart Hobart mixer. The list also includes myriad ovens, grinders and juicers as well. People with their own recipe for salsa or barbecue sauce, for example, can learn how to fill thousands of jars a day at the facility. Bevan said kitchen supervisors are on hand to help with product testing, processing, packaging and making a product FDA-approved. To rent the facility, clients must attend a one-day seminar offered several times a year called, “Developing Your Food Product Idea: A Blueprint for Pre-Venture and Startup Food Companies,” Bevan said. They must also submit an application with a busi-
ness plan describing their product. There are usually 40 to 60 clients a year, he said. The seminar costs $100, and the cost to rent is based on a sliding scale depending on the specific needs of the client. Bevan said it usually ranges from $20 to $30 an hour. He said the facility offers a chance for people to start a business at a minimal cost. They only have to spend money on the ingredients and renting the equipment. They also save time in looking for a facility. Along the way, they’re receiving guidance from experts in the field. “This kitchen prevents a large capital outlay,” Bevan said. He said there are probably around 150 commercial kitchens around the country, but very few that provide the same expertise with this type of cost savings. Bevan said several local businesses like Treasure Valley Salsa have taken advantage of the FTC, but most of the clients tend to be individuals operating on a smaller scale. “They have a recipe they’re interested in producing and selling at local markets,” he said. Bevan said he hasn’t seen many farmers at the FTC, adding that it’s likely because farmers are more interested in farming than developing their food for sale. But what the FTC could provide them, he said, is a convenient place to add value to their products, like turning their wheat into flour or fresh-packing their vegetables. He said several business can attest to the FTC’s track record in adding value. “If this kitchen didn’t exist, nor would most of these businesses,” he said. Anthony Kuipers can be reached at (208) 8834630, or by email to akuipers@dnews.com.
Winter 2013 | Northwest Farm and Ranch
University of Idaho study takes a wide-ranging look at cooperatives By Eric Barker for Northwest Farm & Ranch
A University of Idaho study aims to drill down into cooperatives and determine the degree to which they deliver myriad benefits to members and nonmembers. Lead researcher Aaron Johnson, a UI agricultural economist, said the study will examine several different types of co-ops, ranging from agricultural-based models like Primeland and the Genesee, Idaho-based Pacific Northwest Farmers Cooperative, as well as rural electrical co-ops and even more urban-based models like food coops in Moscow and Boise. He and graduate student Hannah Hallock plan to interview employees of various types of cooperatives to gauge what they see as the benefits they provide to members. They will also interview members and customers of the various cooperatives and tally their impressions of the relationship between members, employees and customers. Eventually they will compare and contrast the information they gather and paint a picture that shows the effectiveness of co-ops. Johnson said the study may show
that co-ops are doing a great job and offer members real values. Or, he said, it might show there are things co-ops could change to better serve members. “What we are trying to do is look at does the cooperative offer a value that resonates with their producers, whether the producers are members or not,” he said. “If we can find a way to increase the value maybe we can increase the loyalty and increase the overall numbers, then it’s a win-win. The co-op gets bigger and stronger and the producers get more of what they want.” The premise of the study originates from a conversation Johnson had with a cooperative employee who essentially said cooperatives would have many more members if people were aware of all the benefits they offer. “What we are trying to do is go back and look at is, are they really delivering the value they say they are.” The study is being funded by a $50,000 graduate student fellowship from CHS Foundation, the giving entity of the CHS company, a parent to the Primeland Cooperative; and $30,000 from Darigold, a subsidiary of the Northwest Dairy Association, the fifth largest dairy cooperative in the nation. Johnson said the study should be finished in early 2015. Eric Barker can be reached at (208) 848-2273, or by email to ebarker@lmtribune.com. Follow him on Twitter @ezebarker.
China rejects 545,000 tons of US corn for Northwest Farm & Ranch
BEIJING — China has rejected 545,000 tons of imported U.S. corn found to contain an unapproved genetically modified strain, the country’s product safety agency announced recently. China’s government is promoting genetically modified crops to increase food production. But it faces opposition from critics who question their safety, especially those imported from the United States. An unapproved strain called MIR162 was found in 12 batches of corn at six
inspection stations, according to the Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine. It said the shipments would be returned to the United States. In a statement, the agency called on U.S. authorities to strengthen controls on corn exports to ensure unapproved strains are not sent to China. China allowed its first imports of a genetically modified crop, soybeans, in 1997. Authorities are trying to develop others that produce bigger yields or can resist insects without use of pesticides. — Associated Press
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Northwest Farm and Ranch | Winter 2013
A kitten brought him back Arlie Hill of Nezperce overcame childhood polio to become a renowned inventor of helpful farm implements By Kathy Hedberg for Northwest Farm & Ranch
NEZPERCE — Irony being what it is, Arlie Hill’s success as a farm implement inventor probably was due mostly to his ill health. The creator of such devices as the hydraulic harrow cart, the combine swing arm leveling system and many others that are now internationally known products of Hillco Technologies in Nezperce, started out life as a victim of polio. Hill, 87, was 2 1/2 years old when he contracted the crippling and sometimes fatal disease. His was the only case of polio in Idaho at that time, he said. The family doctor “didn’t
think I was going to make it,” Hill said. “And he told (Hill’s parents) if they didn’t get something to get my attention that I wasn’t going to live more than a couple more days, he was sure.” In response, Hill’s father filled an apple box with kittens from the barn and placed it in his son’s crib. For the first day, the child paid no attention to the kittens. “Next day, late in the day, they said there was a little gray kitten with a white nose, and every time he would get up close to my face I would try and open my eyes and see it. And so then Dad took all the other kittens back up to the barn and that kitten brought me back to this world.”
The kitten, later named Sport, remained Hill’s constant companion during those early days of recovery. Later, as Hill grew stronger, he would sit on the rough wooden floor of the house with Sport and roll a marble to him. Sport would roll the marble back to Hill, and gradually he became stronger and learned to walk again. Hill recovered, but remained undersized and underweight for several years. And then, when he was 13 years old, his father suffered a disabling heart attack and Hill had to take over running the family farm. “I only weighed 97 pounds and I had a tough time,” he said. On two separate tracts of rented farm ground, Hill cultivated certified potatoes, wheat and barley, using horses to pull the machinery. The Percheron horses were too tall for him to reach and
Arlie Hill of Nezperce started farming when he was 13 and dealing with the effects of polio. He still managed to invent unusual farm machinery while staying busy for many decades in the fields.
Barry Kough/ Lewiston Tribune
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Winter 2013 | Northwest Farm and Ranch Hill lacked the strength to lift the collars and bridles to their heads. So he rigged up a plank between the stalls to give himself some elevation, then used pulleys to raise the tack from the ground and fit them onto the animals’ heads. It worked, but it was exhausting for the young boy, who was farming solo. Eventually, his father saw the need and bought a small, used John Deere tractor Hill could use for the farm work. He remembers he paid about 17 cents a gallon for the stove oil that powered the tractor. In the meantime, Hill tried to fit in school work. He had some teachers, he said, who graded him on the quality of his work — not the quantity — and that helped him get through school. But by the time he graduated from high school in 1944, he was drafted. “There were several people in the community that were unhappy they had sent me up there because I was doing the work on the farm,” he said. He went to Spokane for a physical and was rejected because he’d had polio. So Hill returned to the family farm, met and married his wife, Francie, and the couple produced three daughters and two sons. Hill loved farming — often working from sunup to sundown — and found farm work relaxing.
Monday, December 30, 2013 | 11
But he continued to struggle with his Even so, the news of the invention health and had difficulty maneuvering spread and before he knew it, Hill was heavy equipment. One of those pieces building harrow carts for people as far was the harrow, an agricultural imple- away as New York, Florida, Canada ment with many spikes, tines or discs and everywhere in between. dragged across the soil, which, he said, Hill shakes his head when asked most people had trouble with because it how people found out about his invenwas so heavy. tion. Hill pondered the “We never adverproblem for some time tised. It had to be word and finally created a of mouth. I would say model for a hydrauit probably was relalic harrow cart using tives (his customers) wooden dowels and had all over.” metal coils. With the Although his formodel, he and an mal education was employee built the first limited and he never harrow cart that lifts had an engineering the heavy equipment course in his life, Hill Arlie Hill and moves it without discovered he had a straining one’s back. knack for designing “After I built the harrow cart, the equipment that could solve problems neighbors saw me moving my harrow on the farm. and they started borrowing my har“Everything I did, things wouldn’t row cart. And they wanted me to build work for me and so I’d be thinking them one. And in 1964, I built a shop about it. Sometimes I’d wake up at here in town and started building har- night with the answers,” he said. row carts.” “There’s so much stuff, and there’s Hill said he followed the advice of going to continue to be so much stuff an implement dealer in Moscow and needed that somebody needs to be decided not to apply for a patent for his thinking about what it is that’s needed design. The dealer suggested putting and how things can be built to take the money into advertising but Hill care of it.” chose against that as well. Besides his mechanical ability, Hill
“
Sometimes I’d wake up at night with the answers.”
became known as a problem solver. People often would call him on the phone from around the country and describe a situation that was bedeviling them. Hill said he would ask questions and before long the callers would figure out a solution. “I helped a lot of people; never charged them anything,” he said. “However, it made me feel good that I could do that. But how the word got out there, I don’t know.” After 71 years of farming, Hill finally retired three years ago because of health reasons. It’s been difficult getting used to not being on a tractor every day, and Hill said if his health permitted it, he’d be out farming now. Through all those years, he never got a patent for one of his inventions, nor did he ever have a written lease for all the rented farm ground he worked. He may have passed up millions of dollars, he said, “but would I have been any better off? I think life has been pretty interesting and rewarding to me, and we are still here. “It’s a good feeling when you accomplish something, no matter how small it was, it was something that needed to be accomplished and it felt good.” Kathy Hedberg can be reached at (208) 9832326, or by email to kathyhedberg@gmail.com.
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12 | Monday, December 30, 2013
Northwest Farm and Ranch | Winter 2013
Cattlemen set their priorities for 2014 Environmental regs, taxes and wolves top the lists in Idaho, Washington By Kathy Hedberg for Northwest Farm & Ranch
Predators, regulatory agencies and tax preferences are some of the top priorities for Washington and Idaho cattle producers heading into the 2014 legislative session. Groups from both states met this fall to discuss concerns and draft a list of topics to take to their respective state capitals. Jack Field, executive director of the Washington Cattlemen’s Association, said one of the chief issues for his state will be trying to get clarification on a new rule giving the Department of Ecology the authority to impose regulatory actions on landowners if the department believes there is a potential for erosion to occur. “We’re trying to eliminate that subjective judgment call and have the requirement that the department has
to quantify” when erosion is occurring, “not just having the ability to make an assumption,” Field said. This has become a case where the landowner is guilty until proven innocent and Field said cattle producers believe that’s wrong. “It’s one of those things we believe the burden of proof should be on the state and not on the landowner,” he said. Washington cattlemen will be looking to preserve the current tax structure and the exemptions producers have. Field said beginning in the 2014 session a citizens’ commission on tax preferences will be reviewing all tax exemptions. Those in agriculture need the current exemptions, he said, “to ensure consistency in some of the production side in terms of cost structure.” In the past session Washington legislators indicated a willingness to expand tax preferences for the aerospace industry, he said. “We believe that we in agriculture utilize and put tax preferences to good use and we hope to maintain those in the future. Because agriculture is a major driver in our state economy on both
sides of the Cascades and we want to make sure all aspects of agriculture can remain viable.” The third issue facing Washington cattlemen has to do with reducing additional regulations being laid on agriculture producers. “We will be working diligently to ensure state agencies adhere to the requirements … to ensure that good quality sound science is the basis for the regulatory framework that may come in the future,” Field said. Idaho cattlemen are stepping up to adequately fund and equip the wildlife services that are in charge of predator control, said Wyatt Prescott, head of the Idaho Cattle Association. There has been a steep reduction of funding for these services that are in charge of tracking, quantifying and controlling predators that target cattle herds and sheep flocks, Prescott said. “We’re actually going to ask for a raise on a brand inspection and registration that comes out to $5 per year when (cattlemen) renew their brand licenses,” Prescott said. That money will go toward funding
the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal Plant Health Inspection Service for animal damage control. “We’re trying to get that program fully functioning,” Prescott said. “They’re the professionals that are equipped to manage wolves, trap them and harvest them when needed. Not only wolves, but other predators that can be a problem. It’s pretty wide in terms of what those folks do.” Idaho cattlemen also will be pushing for more rigorous elk management by the state Fish and Game department to cut down on crop depredation. “We’ve heard a lot of sportsmen say that (elk) populations are incredibly decreasing. But the fact of the matter is we don’t really know that because we don’t have any population numbers. Fish and Game is not producing those.” As a result, Prescott said, elk populations in some areas are causing big problems for the cattle industry, consuming large amounts of feed and, because of their proximity to cattle, increasing the potential spread of brucellosis. See CATTLEMEN, Page 12
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Winter 2013 | Northwest Farm and Ranch
Cattlemen from Page 12
The third issue is not so much a legislative concern, Prescott said, but the cattle industry recently filed a lawsuit against the Bureau of Land Management over the permit renewal process. Cattlemen deal with the federal agency for grazing rights on federal land. “We’ve seen over the past year a disturbing trend from the BLM in renewing decisions to avoid litigation from environmental groups,” Prescott said. “The strategy is to cut cattle utilization by as much as 50 percent.” Prescott said the cattle industry wants to make certain the agency makes grazing permit decisions “based on the resource and not an attempt to stay out of court with environmentalists.” The first round of hearings on the lawsuit is scheduled for May, Prescott said. Kathy Hedberg can be reached at (208) 983-2326, or by email to kathyhedberg@gmail.com.
Monday, December 30, 2013 | 13
Barley production soars, prices drop Idaho remains highest US producer By Elaine Williams for Northwest Farm & Ranch
Idaho’s 2013 barley production of 55.8 million bushels was 4 percent higher than last year, making the state the largest producer of the grain in the nation. “It’s not the first time,” said Kelly Olson, administrator of the Idaho Barley Commission in Boise. “Mostly it was higher planting, a little better yields.” Those bragging rights, however, aren’t turning into more cash for farmers because of the rules of supply and demand. The world crop was even more robust, up 10 percent from 2012 and Australia is in the midst of harvesting a record crop, Olson said. The other barley production areas, Europe, Russia, Canada and the Ukraine, which all
Barry Kough/Lewiston Tribune
Barley ripens in the summer sun near Genesee, possibly headed for the ethanol market. account for more volume than the United States, also had strong showings, Olson said. The only place where barley production fell was in Argentina because farmers planted more barley in 2012 than they normally would have to make a political statement, Olson said. “It was a protest against the
Argentina government for their wheat export tax.” That bounty has translated into falling barley prices, especially in north central Idaho, where much of the barley is shipped overseas from Portland, Ore., Olson said. In December, prices were running from a low of $6.60 per
100 weight in Nezperce, Idaho and Craigmont, Idaho, to about $12 per 100 weight in Idaho Falls, Idaho, according to the Idaho Barley Commission. That compares with a year ago when barley was commanding from $10.60 per 100 weight in Nezperce and Craigmont to $13.25 per 100 weight in Idaho Falls. The prices play a role in where barley is grown. Northern Idaho is a small player in barley, representing less than 10 percent of the state’s crop, Olson said. “Barley is not really attractive right now in northern Idaho.” In contrast, barley is more prevalent in southeastern Idaho because the region is home to many barley processors, which keeps prices higher and more stable, Olson said. “That’s where the malting industry is.” Elaine Williams can be reached (208) 848-2261 or by email to ewilliam@ lmtribune.com.
14 | Monday, December 30, 2013
Northwest Farm and Ranch | Winter 2013
China apple trade could be double-edged sword Product quality and import pressure concern experts By William L. Spence for Northwest Farm & Ranch
WSU Extension/Daily News
Honeycrisp apples in Benton County could someday be on their way to China.
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Washington apple growers are hoping to resume exports to China as early as next spring, but they could be facing competition at home from Chinese apple imports within a year or two after that. How closely the two issues are linked isn’t clear. “They ought to be separate, but China operates a little differently than other countries,” said Chris Schlect, president of the Northwest Horticultural Council, which represents Pacific Northwest fruit growers on trade and regulatory matters. China has historically never been a major export market for Washington growers. It only began accepting red and golden delicious varieties from Washington in 1993, and those ended in August 2012, allegedly because of concerns about fungal diseases.
However, with a population of 1.3 billion and a booming middle class, Schlect said, it could be a critical export market in the future. “It’s an opportunity that can’t be overlooked,” he said. The council is working with federal negotiators to address China’s concerns about fungal contamination. Following the most recent talks in November, Schlect said, negotiators came away “fairly optimistic” that exports of red and golden delicious could resume soon, possibly as early as next spring. Ultimately, though, the council wants China opened to all apple varieties grown in the Pacific Northwest. The earliest that could happen, he said, would be the winter 2014 or spring 2015. At the same time, China has made apple exports to the United States one of its top agricultural trade objectives.
The USDA recently released a draft risk assessment regarding potential pest and fungal organisms that could be associated with Chinese apples. The comment period ends Jan. 3, after which the agency will decide whether and how to move forward. A lot of things could go wrong to delay any of these trade issues, Schlect said, but if a final risk assessment and subsequent mitigation plan are completed by next fall, it’s conceivable Chinese apples could show up in U.S. stores by the spring of 2015 or the year after that. The council isn’t advocating opening the U.S. to more apple imports, Schlect said, but “if we want to gain access to China, most people in the industry think we need to focus on that and not try to prevent Chinese apples from coming into the U.S.” Karina Gallardo, an agricultural economist with Washington State University’s Tree Fruit Research and Extension Center in Puyallup,
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Winter 2013 | Northwest Farm and Ranch said allowing Chinese apple imports into the U.S. could be a double-edged sword. “China is by far the largest apple producer in the world,” she said. “When you increase supply, that drives prices down, which could harm U.S. producers.” In 2010, China produced more than 33 million metric tons of apples. The United States ranked second worldwide, with 4.2 million tons — and Washington accounts for about 70 percent of that. China also enjoys a significant labor cost advantage, Gallardo noted, although as more people migrate from rural to urban areas, even it is beginning to see a shortage of agricultural workers. However, U.S. domestic consumption of apples has stabilized at about 15 to 20 pounds per person per year, she said. At the same time, growers are replacing older orchards with new, high-
Monday, December 30, 2013 | 15
is stagnant, where are the apples going to go?” Gallardo said. Washington currently exports about 30 percent of its apple crop. Mexico and Canada are its two largest markets. Taiwan and Hong Kong are also major destinations, but China could ultimately dwarf all of them. “With the westernization of the Chinese market, Washington apples are more appealing,” Gallardo said. “The eating quality of Washington apples is superior, in terms of taste and crispness, and China has some problems with pesticide controls and food safety, so there’s a quality gap.” It will take time for China to bridge that gap, she said. In the meantime, “I think Washington growers can Granny Smith apples are one of many types that grow in Idaho. Granny Smith apples are crisp, juicy, sleep well at night.”
and tart, which makes them perfect for baking in pies or stewed in sauces. density systems that have 1,000 or more trees per acre
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16 | Monday, December 30, 2013
Northwest Farm and Ranch | Winter 2013
It’s all applied research for UI extension agent Ag extension post filled after long absence By Kathy Hedberg for Northwest Farm & Ranch
www.directseed.org/events
Nez Perce County’s new University of Idaho Extension agent, Doug Finkelnburg, gives meaning to the university’s mission of marrying campus research to on-the-farm application. Although Finkelnburg, 33, has officially been on the job since January, it’s only in recent weeks he’s been able to retire his campus responsibilities and turn his focus to county matters. So far he’s been wearing two hats. “This office is busy and has a competent staff, so I stepped into a situation in motion … and all I had to do was start facilitating these regular, ongoing events,” Finkelnburg said. At the same time, he was continu-
ing to run the varieties field testing program at the Moscow campus that he’s been in charge of for about five years. That program oversees test plots throughout the region that yield information for growers and others regarding new and old varieties of wheat. The information is then parlayed into marketing decisions. It was important, Finkelnburg said, to keep both programs going at once. But it means he’s been on the road constantly. “If I hadn’t done it, it wouldn’t get done,” Finkelnburg said. “If it didn’t get done, it would be the first year we’ve not had this information being produced throughout all the dryland growing areas in northern Idaho in well over 15, 20 years. And that puts a giant hole in letting growers know what’s happening in their backyards with new varieties and would have diminished (their) ability to accurately
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Winter 2013 | Northwest Farm and Ranch market their products. If I could do one thing to support growers in northern Idaho, continuing to run that program was the thing to do.� Finkelnburg is an Idaho native, growing up mostly in southeastern Idaho and graduating from high school in Pocatello. He received both undergraduate and master’s degrees in environmental science and ended up working for former UI scientists Stephen Guy and Robert Zemetra before assuming lead responsibilities for the varieties testing program. The Nez Perce County Extension position has been vacant since the retirement of longtime extension educator Larry Smith in 2009. And because of recent economics, there was some question whether the university would fill Smith’s slot, at least in the way people had known it. As it turns out, all the county extension educator positions in Nez Perce, Idaho, Clearwater and Lewis counties are filled, with the exception of the Latah County position that was recently vacated when Cinda Williams took another position within the university. Bill Loftus, spokesman for the UI College of Agricultural and Life Sciences, said the college plans to replace the Latah County position but
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Barry Kough/Lewiston Tribune
The Nez Perce County University of Idaho Extension Agent Doug Finkelnburg at Lewiston has been combining campus research and real time farming. nothing has been done at this point. Finkelnburg said when he was offered the Nez Perce County job, he jumped at the chance. “I like working with people,� he said. “I like helping people. (Extension service work) is applied research — it’s not research for research sake; it’s research with a purpose. “And that purpose is to have an impact on the real world as much as
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possible.� So far, Finkelnburg has been trying to build on programs already in place in Nez Perce County and throughout the region by helping to coordinate field days and other clinics, as well as drawing on his own contacts to come help growers with their questions and concerns. New agriculture research is coming out of the university all the time,
Finkelnburg said, and he will help growers understand and make use of it. Some of that new research involves the use of lime on acidic soils and new soft white wheat varieties that have been bred using classical breeding methods to be resistant to a herbicide used to kill joint goat grass, which has a detrimental effect on crops. One thing Finkelnburg does not expect to be doing anytime soon is overseeing testing at the university involving genetically modified wheat. “The current position of the UI is that we do not support the production of GMO wheat in the Pacific Northwest, strictly due to the negative impacts on the export market,� Finkelnburg said. He added, however, that many growers would like to use GMO wheat if it was available and acceptable to wheat buyers. “If the export market changes and is more accepting of GMOs then we may see the production climate change,� Finkelnburg said. As he looks down the road, Finkelnburg said he expects to continue to become more involved with growers as they deal with all the issues involving agriculture these days. But he hopes to keep his mileage mainly in Nez Perce County and the surrounding region.
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18 | Monday, December 30, 2013
Northwest Farm and Ranch | Winter 2013
Tech startups create virtual farmers markets By Terence Chea Associated Press
SAN FRANCISCO — Sara Pasquinelli doesn’t shop at the grocery store much anymore. The busy mother of two young boys buys nearly all her food from a new online service that delivers to her front door — but it doesn’t bring just any food. The emerging tech startup specializes in dropping off items that Pasquinelli probably would only be able to find at her local farmers market. Minutes after her weekly GoodEggs.com order arrived at her San Francisco home, Pasquinelli unpacked bags and boxes of finger limes, organic whole milk, kiwi fruit, beef short ribs, Dungeness crab and pastured eggs. “I don’t even remember the last time I went to the store for anything other than bananas and string cheese,” said Pasquinelli, an attorney who started using the service
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about a year ago. The San Francisco-based Good Eggs is among a new crop of startups using technology to bolster the market for locally produced foods that backers say are better for consumer health, farmworkers, livestock and the environment. These online marketplaces are beginning to change the way people buy groceries and create new markets for small farmers and food makers. “It’s a new way of connecting producers with consumers,” said Claire Kremen, a conservation biology professor at the University of California, Berkeley. “The more alternatives people have access to for buying food outside the industrial agricultural regime, the better it can be.” The Good Eggs website features attractive photos of offerings such as Hachiya persimmons, chanterelle mushrooms, grass-fed beef steaks, pureed baby food and gluten-
free poppy seed baguettes. It also has pictures and descriptions of the farmers and food makers. Prices are similar to what shoppers pay at a farmers market, and customers can pick up their orders at designated locations or have them delivered for $3.99 — usually two days after they’re placed. “There’s this wave of entrepreneurship and creativity happening in the food world, and Good Eggs is all about bringing that high-quality production right to your door,” said CEO Rob Spiro, who co-founded the startup after he sold his last company, a social search service called Aardvark, to Google Inc. for $50 million in 2010. Good Eggs offers more varieties of fruits and vegetables than most supermarkets, but the selection is limited to what can be grown and made locally, so you can’t buy bananas in San Francisco in December. The service started in the
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deliver groceries and Amazon launched its AmazonFresh service in San Francisco this month. Another San Francisco startup called Instacart allows customers to order groceries from local supermarkets and delivers in as little as an hour. Good Eggs currently sells food from about 400 local producers that meet the company’s standards for environmental sustainability, workplace conditions and transparent sourcing of ingredients. Produce is usually picked one or two days before it’s delivered. The startup is helping farmers such as Ryan Casey, who runs a small organic farm that grows more than 50 types of fruits, vegetables and flowers. His Blue House Farm in Pescadero, about 45 miles south of San Francisco, mainly sells its produce at farmers markets and through community agriculture programs, but Good Eggs makes up a growing share of business.
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Monday, December 30, 2013 | 19
SOUTH DAKOTA
New company launches grass-fed beef effort By Joel Ebert Capital Journal
PIERRE, S.D. — NuAgra, a Brookings-based company, has begun selling grass-fed South Dakota beef directly to households throughout the United States — and the company’s beef starts out in central South Dakota. Formed just 10 months ago by John and Kyle Robinson, NuAgra seeks to carve out a niche by trying to enhance “consumer health and lifestyle through a holistic, sustainable approach to food products,” according to the company. Once a dominant practice, grass-fed beef production is an alternative to the traditional corn-fed beef most people are used to, Kyle Robinson told the Capital Journal. “The product represents what many desire — high-quality nutritious food that is traceable and raised with sustainable values,” she explained. “We also make it convenient for families by delivering directly to their doorstep.” In contrast to grass-fed beef, the meat from cattle finished with a corn-based diet tends to be higher in saturated fat and omega-6 fat and lower in omega-3 fat, said Dr. John Robinson, an M.D. who also has a Ph.D. in biochemistry and molecular genetics. A healthy diet includes fewer saturated fats, according to 2010 USDA dietary guidelines. “On average grass-finished beef has 8.3 times more protein than fat,” John Robinson said. That is 5.4 times higher than salmon and 4.2 times higher than tofu, he added.
Grass-finished beef dominated the on its farm since 2007. The farm U.S. beef industry from its beginnings explores ways to turn a profit from in the 1800s until the 1960s, according restored grassland, including through to Eric Mousel, a cow and calf special- such products as grass-fed beef. ist at the University of Minnesota. The Robinsons said the cattle being “Feeding corn to cattle during the grass-fed on EcoSun land were supplied last two months of the finishing stage by former South Dakota Cattlemen’s began on a larger scale in the 1960s. Association president Todd Mortenson Corn-finished beef was deemed a more of Eagle Butte. A Leopold Conservation cost-efficient method of producing Award winner, Mortenson previously beef by producers and a higher-qual- entered into a three-year agreement ity eating experience with EcoSun to finish by consumers. Thus, his cattle on native as grass-finished prairie grass. beef was gradually After tasting replaced by corn-finEcoSun’s beef, the ished beef, grass-finRobinsons said they ished beef has become knew they were on a niche market for resto something special. taurants and enthusi“EcoSun had so many asts who prefer the things worth admiring sharper flavor and — an entrepreneurial more rigid texture spirit, a passion for of beef finished on environmental stewgrass,” said Mousel, a ardship and the willformer range livestock ingness to step outside production specialist conventional comfort at South Dakota State zones,” said John Kyle Robinson University. Robinson. Co-owner of NuAgra Approximately 3 Shortly after their percent of beef contour of EcoSun, the sumed in the United States is grass- Robinsons formed NuAgra. By May finished, he explained. they had established a relationship The Robinsons said research on the with another Leopold Conservation effects of grass-fed beef is what led Award winner — Pat and Mary Lou them to create their business. Then in Guptill, from a ranch in Quinn that March, Robinsons were introduced to would later become a part of the proCarter Johnson and Cody Zilverberg of cess involving EcoSun and NuAgra. EcoSun Prairie Farms. The ColmanThe Robinsons later attended the based nonprofit corporation has been Grassfed Exchange Conference in restoring wetlands and native plants Bismarck, N.D. The conference rein-
“
The product represents what many desire — high-quality nutritious food that is traceable and raised with sustainable values.”
forced their ideas. “It helped us become part of a network that was interested in pursuing change,” said Kyle Robinson. After developing relationships with members of the grass-fed beef industry, the Robinsons turned their focus to the consumers. With a background in marketing, Kyle Robinson determined the best entry point. “The beef industry very much focuses on the male,” she said. For that reason, Kyle Robinson said she wanted a totally different approach for NuAgra. “We needed to market to women because 80 percent of food decisions are based on the head-of-household purchases,” she explained. Upon identifying their new approach, Kyle Robinson determined through market research that a market for grass-fed beef existed in metro and suburban areas. The East Coast became their main focus due to the fact that grass-fed beef is difficult to find in that area of the country, she said. Robinson also said the potential health benefits for consumers in a region with high rates of obesity was another factor she considered. The company will send 5,000 pounds of premium grass-fed beef from South Dakota to a fulfillment center in North Carolina this week. It will then be shipped directly to the doorsteps of clients in cities throughout the East Coast, including Washington and Atlanta. Although the East Coast is NuAgra’s initial primary focus, the company can ship anywhere in the United States.
World-record hottest pepper is grown in South Carolina By Jeffrey Collins Associated Press
FORT MILL, S.C. — Ed Currie holds one of his worldrecord Carolina Reaper peppers by the stem, which looks like the tail of a scorpion. On the other end is the bumpy, oily, fire-engine red fruit with a punch of heat nearly as potent as most pepper sprays used by police. It’s hot enough to leave even the
most seasoned spicy food aficionado crimson-faced, flushed with sweat, trying not to lose his lunch. Last month, The Guinness Book of World Records decided Currie’s peppers were the hottest on Earth, ending a more than four-year drive to prove no one grows a more scorching chili. The heat of Currie’s peppers was certified by students at Winthrop University who test food as part of their under-
graduate classes. But whether Currie’s peppers are truly the world’s hottest is a question that one scientist said can never be known. The heat of a pepper depends not just on the plant’s genetics, but also where it is grown, said Paul Bosland, director of the Chile Pepper Institute at New Mexico State University. And the heat of a pepper is more about being macho than seasoning.
“You have to think of chili heat like salt. A little bit improves the flavor, but a lot ruins it,” Bosland said. Some ask Currie if the record should be given to the single hottest pepper tested instead of the mean taken over a whole batch. After all, Usain Bolt isn’t considered the world’s fastest man because of his average time over several races. But Currie shakes off those
questions. “What’s the sense in calling something a record if it can’t be replicated? People want to be able to say they ate the world’s hottest pepper,” Currie said. The record is for the hottest batch of Currie’s peppers that was tested, code name HP22B for “Higher Power, Pot No. 22, Plant B.” Currie said he has peppers from other pots and other plants that have comparable heat.
20 | Monday, December 30, 2013
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