Farmweek july 29 2013

Specialty growers are exper i e n c i n g a m i xe d b a g a s t h e y r e a ch p e a k h a r ve s t t i m e f o rfruits and vegetables. .............3

Preparing machinery for harvest? Check these tips on testing batteries and getting rid of field residue. ............................................9

A new method of field scouting could soon take wing, eliminating hot days of wading through corn and soybean fields. ..............11

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Bustos: Accountability would simplify farm bill debate Monday, July 29, 2013

BY MARTIN ROSS FarmWeek

U.S. Rep. Cheri Bustos argues the ongoing farm bill stalemate underlines the need for greater congressional accountability — both to farmers and taxpayers.

Bustos, an East Moline Democrat on the House Ag Committee, continued to tout

Two sections Volume 41, No. 30

House-Senate conference approval of Senate farm bill proposals as the solution to continued House-Senate debate over food stamps and crop insurance.

She has hosted a pair of July farmer roundtables to field concerns about the farm bill and other key issues. Producers stressed the need to ensure

“crop insurance is there” and sought “behind-the-scenes” insights into prospects for a five-year farm bill, Bustos told FarmWeek.

The House recently approved a “split” farm bill that peels nutrition programs from ag provisions and eliminates traditional default options for farm bill expiration.

Senate Ag Chairman Deb Stabenow (D-Mich.) instead has asked House conferees to approve a comprehensive Senate bill that proposes $4 billion in Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) funding over the next 10 years.

House leaders unsuccessfully pushed a $20 billion SNAP cut. Bustos cites talk of what

she deemed “absurd” food stamp cuts of closer to $100 billion over the next decade among some conservatives.

She has joined with Highland Park Republican Sen. Mark Kirk to sponsor new measures aimed at trimming government waste. Greater fiscal accountability would help See Accountability, page 2

image of hogs in pens.

Repeat visitor Pat Millerick of St. John, Ind., was accompanied by her three grandchildren, daughter and veterinarian son-in-law from Texas. “It’s an excellent opportunity for grandparents to spend time with their grandchildren,” she said.

“There is a huge reservoir of people who do not know about modern agriculture,” Corbett summarized. “Their reaction (to Pig Adventure) has been fun to watch. There was a woman who said, ‘These are hogs?’ It’s a whole new world for consumers.”

Pig Adventure opening world of modern agriculture

BY KAY SHIPMAN FarmWeek

Periodicals: Time Valued

Excited children raced down a long hallway, whizzing past expansive windows overlooking hundreds of pigs.

Squeezing together, they peered anxiously into a small room. Greetings of “aaah” and squeals welcomed a tiny, newborn pig as the youngsters gawked in awe.

Yet another educational moment captured at the Pig Adventure at Fair Oaks Farms, near Fair Oaks, Ind. “People who come here do not have an attitude. People who come here genuinely want to have fun with their family and learn something,” Gary Corbett, chief executive officer of Fair Oaks Farms told FarmWeek.

Believed to be one of a kind, Pig Adventure takes agritourism and ag literacy education to a higher level. Pig

Adventure is a not-for-profit educational enterprise that uses a breeding-to-weaning operation to teach the public about modern pork production.

Corbett outlined three guiding principles for Pig Adventure: agriculture and the environment are compatible; agriculture and animal welfare are compatible; and pork is good for you.

Pig Adventure features a series of barns that house 2,800 sows and allows visitors taking a self-guided tour an opportunity to view all aspects of raising, feeding and caring for hogs. In each room, several young employees answer questions or explain what visitors are watching. A grand opening will be Aug. 5.

Interactive exhibits, including an ultrasound that lets visitors search for embryos, make education entertaining — even for farmers. Eleven-year-old twins Gracie and Sara Miller of Galveston, Ind., took turns testing their ultrasound skills.

Wearing jackets emblazoned with “Miller Show Pigs,” the girls appeared as fascinated as nonfarm visitors.

Sara declared Pig Adventure was more fun than their farm “because we get to see more pigs and the life cycle.”

“We just get to do chores on the farm,” added Gracie.

Education and fun brought Nina Carter, her three friends and their 13 children from Munster, Ind., for a third visit.

Previously, they visited the adjacent Fair Oaks Farms

Above: Eleven-year-old Gracie Miller of Galveston, Ind., searches for piglets at an interactive ultrasound exhibit. Watching is Miller’s twin, Sara, and Andy Mink of Dyer, Ind. The Miller girls are planning to show their own pigs at the Indiana State Fair.

Ri g h t: A F a i r O a k s e m p l o y e e shows a newborn pig to a crowd of young visitors. From time to time, baby pigs are brought to an observation room to give visitors a closer look after they’ve seen sows give birth in stalls below. (Photos by Ken Kashian)

Dairy Adventure, the original edu-tainment farm enterprise that attracts 500,000 visitors each year.

“It’s good to teach them in person instead of Googling it,” Carter said, while her young son stomped on an interactive mat, causing images of feed to “float” over an

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Quick Takes

FarmWeek Page 2 Monday, July 29, 2013

QUINN SIGNS BILL WITH ASSESSMENT CHANGES — Gov. Pat Quinn last week signed a massive “omnibus bill” that included adjustments to the state’s farmland assessment law.

As approved, the value change for all farmland productivity index (PI) soils will be limited to 10 percent of Illinois’ median cropland soil PI. A one-year, $5 discount to the 2015 certified value will be applied.

The Department of Revenue proposed the change to bring farmland assessed values in line with the law’s original intent.

Also in the omnibus bill were tax incentives to attract a urea plant project to Tuscola in east central Illinois. Cronus Chemical LLC is proposing to build a $1.1 billion project in Illinois or Iowa.

TOPINKA: COURTS MUST RULE ON SALARIES — State legislators will not receive their salaries unless a court rules or lawmakers vote to override Gov. Pat Quinn’s amendatory veto, state Comptroller Judy Baar Topinka reported last week. Topinka had sought a legal review of Quinn’s action to use a line item veto to cut that spending from the state budget.

The governor said he will withhold salaries and stipends until the General Assembly passes comprehensive public pension reforms.

“Let me be clear: this is no way to run government,” Topinka said in a prepared statement. “Threats, blackmail and inertia may be good theater, but it makes us look ridiculous and takes away from our ability to get things done.”

EMINENT DOMAIN SOUGHT FOR PIPELINE PROJECT — A Canadian oil company filed a petition last week with the Illinois Commerce Commission (ICC) seeking the authority to use eminent domain to obtain easements from landowners who haven’t reached agreements with the firm, according to The Pantagraph.

Enbridge Pipelines (Illinois) LLC is building a 170-mile pipeline from northern Illinois to Patoka in southern Illinois.

In 2009, the ICC approved the pipeline project and a proposed route, but did not grant Enbridge authority to use eminent domain. Instead, the ICC encouraged the company to continue negotiating; however, the ICC stipulated if negotiations weren’t successful, Enbridge could file a petition seeking to use eminent domain.

IMPB SEEKS DIRECTOR — The Illinois Milk Promotion Board (IMPB) is seeking an Illinois dairy farmer to serve as the District 1 director. Active milk producers in Carroll, Jo Daviess, Ogle, Stephenson, Winnebago and Whiteside counties are eligible to serve.

The IMPB is comprised of dairy farmers who oversee investment of the 10-cent checkoff amounting to nearly $2 million each year. IMPB invests these funds with qualified organizations that conduct research, promotion and advertising, and nutrition education programs in Illinois.

Eligible producers can contact Jim Fraley, IMPB manager, at fraley@ilfb.org or 309-557-3109. Letters of interest are due by Aug. 15.

GOVERNMENT

Court ruling shows need to revise EPA ethanol data

BY MARTIN ROSS FarmWeek

California and federal regulators need to rerun the numbers regarding corn ethanol benefits, argues Illinois Corn Growers Association Market Development Director Dave Loos.

A California district appeals court has ruled in favor of Iowa biofuels producer POET, which challenged California Air Resources Board’s (CARB) Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS). The ruling temporarily prohibits CARB from ramping up LCFS enforcement beyond 2013 levels.

The court ruled CARB must re-evaluate the standard’s overall environmental impact and allow public comment on the greenhouse/climate values of ethanol based on the disputed concept of “indirect land use change” — the idea that biofuels demand spurs cropping of currently natural areas.

A key point of attack for Growth Energy, which brought the case, was the impact of separate California fuel standards on interstate commerce. The LCFS basically incentivizes “ethanol produced in California” over Midwest ethanol that may offer greater benefits, Loos said.

But perhaps more grievously, in his view, the standard rates Brazilian sugarcane ethanol higher than corn in reducing overall fuel greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Recent University of Illinois, Purdue University and U.S. Energy Department Argonne Natural Laboratory studies counter that assumption, Loos said.

U.S. Rep. Cheri Bustos, an East Moline Democrat, discusses ag issues during a Peoria farmer roundtable Friday. (Photo by Adam Nielsen)

Accountability

(ISSN0197-6680) Vol. 41 No. 30

July 29, 2013

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“(CARB’s) certainly not giving us the credit for greenhouse gas reductions we deserve,” he told FarmWeek. “Our numbers show we’re 40 or 50 percent better than gasoline and that we’d be very similar to sugarcane ethanol.”

ICGA hopes to provide input both at anticipated CARB “workshops” aimed at refining the LCFS and to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

While EPA continues to defend federal Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS2) biofuels mandates, Loos stressed its need to properly credit corn ethanol’s GHG benefits. The RFS2 is based on relative greenhouse benefits attributable to ethanol, biodiesel and newer “advanced” biofuels.

The RFS2 caps corn ethanol blending requirements at 15 billion gallons through 2022. However, as the administration looks at ramping up greenhouse regulations, Loos argues EPA should factor “what’s already in the marketplace.”

U.S. Rep. Bobby Rush, D-Chicago, has sought updated EPA data on greenhouse benefits. During a House Energy and Commerce Committee hearing last week, the Environmental Working Group in particular showed “a fundamental disconnect in their understanding of the EPA’s data” in attacking the RFS2, Growth Energy stated.

“The old numbers (EPA) established in 200709 are now being used against us, arguing the RFS2 hasn’t worked,” Loos said. “Given our latest (carbon) reductions, it’s worked very, very well.”

Continued from page 1 colleagues intelligently and dispassionately design SNAP cuts that address fraud and inefficiency while preserving benefits for Americans “coming out of a very tough economy,” Bustos said.

“We’re all over the board here,” she said. “What is the appropriate number? What do we need to make sure kids aren’t going hungry? If there is indeed waste and corruption and abuse, let’s figure that out.”

Bustos reported House Ag Chairman Frank Lucas (ROkla.) and Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) have conferred regarding possible next steps. Ag Committee Ranking

Democrat Collin Peterson (DMinn.) told Bustos bipartisan committee leaders also are continuing to eye potential options.

Amid the House-Senate divide, Lucas warns lawmakers could be forced simply to reextend the 2008 farm bill, which expires Sept. 30.

Batavia Democrat Rep. Bill Foster warns decoupling public food assistance from food production and farm programs risks alienating urban lawmakers and “breaks up this wonderful bipartisan coalition that has been forming to pass the farm bill for decades,” Foster said.

Further, House proposals to eliminate 1949 “permanent ag

law,” which kicks in when lawmakers fail to pass new farm legislation, removes “a huge incentive to write and keep updating the farm bill,” he said. Without the threat of triggering “onerous” 1949 commodity provisions, Foster is uncertain Congress would act on a new bill.

As for a 2013 farm bill?

“We’re absent the entire month of August, and only scheduled to work nine days in September,” Foster told FarmWeek. “The conference would have to be completed by the end of September. It sounds pretty much like we’re headed for a one-year extension.”

SPECIALTY CROPS

Page 3 Monday, July 29, 2013 FarmWeek

Specialty growers reaping results of a cool spring

BY KAY SHIPMAN FarmWeek

Specialty growers are harvesting fruits and vegetables that started in a cool, wet spring and are encountering regional conditions, three growers told FarmWeek early last week.

In the northwest part of the state, Diane Etnyre and her husband, Dennis, needed rain early last week for their 12 acres of fruits and vegetables at Argo Acres near Thomson in Carroll County.

“We were getting rain, but now it’s getting dry and we could use rain,” Diane Etnyre said. Recently, the squash and pumpkin vines started to look stressed.

Following the delay of a cold, wet spring, strawberry harvest was 10 to 12 days later than usual but much better than expected, she said.

High tunnels helped the sweet corn planted April 9, and the Etnyres harvested their earliest-ever crop June 30. On July 12, they picked sweet corn planted April 28.

While diseases have not been a problem, the same can’t be said for Japanese beetles that are swarming on the new raspberry canes.

“It’s horrible what they’re doing to the raspberries now; That’s one of their favorites,” Etnyre said.

The Etnyres sell about half of their crop at their farm stand and half at a farmers’ market in nearby Clinton, Iowa.

Central Illinois growers also encountered a cool, wet spring and dry weather lately, but the crop outcome has differed compared to their northern counterparts.

Dale Jefferies of Jefferies

Orchard, Springfield, is harvesting his best blueberry crop and a good rhubarb crop. He grows a variety of vegetables and fruits on 80 to 90 acres in Sangamon County.

The blueberries and rhubarb were bountiful; strawberries weren’t.

“We have a big peach crop coming up,” he said. The cool weather caused a “long, drawnout” bloom period for peaches and blueberries, but Jefferies estimated the early peach variety harvest should happen later this week.

As for diseases and pests, Jefferies reported he hasn’t had problems with either except for fire blight in some apples. Jefferies sells his crop at a roadside store.

Southern Illinois growers are encountering an entirely different –- and better –- growing season compared to last year, said Wayne Sirles of Rendleman Orchards, near Alto Pass in Union County. The family operation raises a variety of fruits and vegetables on 300 acres.

Last year’s drought was devastating, but timely rains this year replenished soil moisture.

“It’s been a strong growing season for vegetables,” Sirles said.

The cool weather early in the growing season delayed bloom and crops about a week to 10 days, he added.

“The crops are looking good. Not many problems with insects or disease. But we work at it (pest and disease management) very hard with a spray schedule,” Sirles said.

“Right now, peach season is going very well,” he said. Apple season will start at the end of August or early September.

Shoppers have pick of produce, markets ‘Tis the season for fresh fruits and vegetables.

To find them, go to Prairie Bounty, a directory of Illinois-grown products, farmers’ markets and agritourism businesses.

The directory also provides consumers with farm contact information, products available and method of sale.

It offers a complete list of all local farmers’ markets and agritourism businesses in the state and is searchable by city, county or zip code.

Prairie Bounty is available on the Illinois Specialty Growers Association web site at {specialtygrowers.org/prairiebounty.html}.

Above: Diane Etnyre looks over the green bean crop on her farm, Argo Acres, near Thomson in Carroll County. Diane and Dennis Etnyre use high tunnels to lengthen their growing season in northwest Illinois.

Below: Dennis Etnyre carries tomatoes grown on his farm. The Etnyres sell half their fruit and vegetable crops at their farm stand and half at a farmers’ market in Clinton, Iowa. (Photos by Cyndi Cook)

Illinois produce giant to host immigration town hall meeting

BY MARTIN ROSS FarmWeek

Shortly after Sarah Frey-Talley offered to open her business to a town hall meeting focusing on immigration issues, “I thought, oh my gosh, had I lost my mind?”

She then realized her Illinois-based nationwide produce marketing operation, and indeed the entire specialty crop sector, have much more to lose if farmers fail to be heard regarding immigration reforms.

Frey Farms’ Poseyville, Ind., operation is the venue for an Aug. 5 Illiana Produce Industry Luncheon and Town Hall Meeting featuring immigration comments from Carlos Gutierrez, U.S. commerce secretary under President George W. Bush.

Producers and businesses impacted by immigration issues are invited to attend the two-hour event Frey-Talley deems “a platform for this debate in the Midwest.” For details and to register, visit {unitedfresh.org}.

Frey Farms relies on the federal H-

2A ag guest worker program to secure some 250 seasonal workers a year, but the H-2A program has become increasingly costly and burdensome for ag employers. The Senate recently voted a comprehensive immigration reform package including a proposed new twotier program that offers a temporary ag “blue card” for undocumented workers in the U.S. and improved visa opportunities for contract and seasonal “at-will” workers.

The House Judiciary Committee has been assembling the pieces of a package, but conservative criticism of proposals toward a so-called “path to citizenship” for undocumented workers could endanger a final agreement. While Frey-Talley feels “we are close to a solution,” she stressed the stakes of the debate are high both for producers and the U.S. economy.

“Either we have foreign workers come here on this seasonal timeframe and harvest our local and domestic food, or we’re going to be importing our food,” she told FarmWeek.

“Many companies in my industry are moving operations into Mexico because they have longer growing windows and they do not have this issue with labor.

They’re growing in Mexico and importing into the United States, because it’s so challenging to get a harvest labor workforce.”

U.S. Rep. Bill Foster, D-Batavia, urged the House to consider passing the Senate package. He discussed the issue with his district immigration advisory team and met with proreform pastors from Illinois, Arizona, California, New York and Texas last week.

Frey-Talley noted Rep. Bill Foster “a lot of work went into crafting the legislation,” which was developed with a coalition of ag groups and backed by the influential United Farm Workers union. “Everyone from (conservative libertarian Republican) Grover Norquist to every left wing

group you could imagine is more or less united behind the Senate bill and the principles behind it,” Foster said.

The congressman acknowledged the bill proposes a “tough but fair path to citizenship” for undocumented workers able to pass stringent criminal background checks and willing to pay fines and taxes.

Those workers would “stay in line behind those who already are on the legal path,” waiting up to 13 years for citizenship opportunities, Foster told FarmWeek.

He anticipates a series of August town hall meetings across the state aimed at garnering support from business leaders and “Republicans of all stripes.” Frey-Talley fears lawmakers also will hear “loud opposition to any type of comprehensive immigration reform” during their August recess.

“I’m afraid that if our voice isn’t as equally loud, they just won’t have the political will when they return in September to get anything done,” Frey-Talley said.

SUSTAINABILITY

FarmWeek Page 4 Monday, July 29, 2013

Sustainability effort focused on outcomes, not practices

BY KAY SHIPMAN FarmWeek

Stephanie Regagnon, right, sustainable ag portfolio strategy director with Monsanto, discusses the St. Louis company’s sustainability efforts with members of the Illinois Agribusiness Roundtable. The roundtable focused on the importance of environmental/economic sustainability during a one-day meeting at Illinois Farm Bureau in Bloomington. (Photo by Martin Ross)

Sustainability key to U.S. communities, African villages

BY MARTIN ROSS FarmWeek

Ag sustainability fosters “livelier” communities and a more secure planet, according to Monsanto Sustainable Ag Portfolio Strategy Director Stephanie Regagnon.

Marking the fifth anniversary of Monsanto’s corporate commitment to “sustainable agriculture,” Regagnon outlined global projects and partnerships aimed at improving food production in an environmentally responsible manner for industry leaders at the Illinois Agribusiness Roundtable.

Monsanto’s sustainability pledge includes three basic “pillars”: helping farmers double yields from a 2000 baseline through 2030, enabling producers to accomplish that goal using a third less “key resources,” and improving the lives particularly of small farmers across the developing world.

Monsanto’s efforts are aimed at improving domestic well-being as well as global profitability, Regagnon nonetheless stressed.

“We also feel that achieving true sustainability in agriculture means we have lively rural communities,” she said in an RFD Radio-FarmWeek interview. “Our third pillar includes making sure the communities our farmer-customers live in are attractive places for young people to farm in.

“Implementing some of these practices on the environmental side actually makes them more profitable. If you figure out that you can apply less pesticide, for instance, that absolutely impacts your bottom line, and it’s good for the environment. When you’re more profitable, you reinvest those dollars in the community.”

On a global level, sustainable productivity is key to development or even survival. Higher yields offer business opportunities especially for women in developing nations — according to Regagnon, opportunities “essential to these countries and communities coming out of poverty.”

Meanwhile, Monsanto is in its sixth year of Water-Efficient Maize for Africa, partnering with the Howard G. Buffett and Bill and Melinda Gates Foundations, and the U.S. Agency for International Development to supply drought-tolerant seed to farmers in five African nations.

Donated seed will be available to Kenyan farmers for the first time this fall.

Regagnon stressed Monsanto is not involved exclusively in crops it markets. An example is Monsanto’s Beachell-Borlaug International Scholars Program, named for famed crop pioneer Norman Borlaug and focused on fostering worldwide wheat and rice breeding research.

“While we have no business interest in rice and very little business interest in wheat, we are very aware that 3 billion people across the globe depend on those two crops for their very existence,” Regagnon related.

“Research in these two crops was static for many years. Dr. Borlaug told the leaders of our company, ‘If you want to do something about food security, this is where you should invest.’”

A national effort seeks to help U.S. farmers increase production through sustainable use of natural resources. The goals are science-based with measurable outcomes, Julie Shapiro, a senior associate with Colorado-based The Keystone Center, told FarmWeek.

Last week, Shapiro discussed the Field to Market effort with members of the Illinois Farm Bureau Agri-Business Roundtable in Bloomington. Field to Market is a diverse alliance of 50-some farm and commodity organizations, food companies, academia and conservation groups and agencies. American Farm Bureau Federation is among the partners.

“Sustainability is a big topic,” Shapiro said.

Collaboration of all sectors is needed given the complexity of issues and U.S. commodity production, she added.

Last December, Field to Market released a national report on agricultural sustainability.

The report is online at {fieldtomarket.org}.

The authors concluded corn, soybeans, wheat, cotton, rice and potatoes are being produced more

efficiently in the U.S. now compared to 30 years ago. They also noted increased production to meet growing demand resulted in greater overall use of resources by many crops.

Given the year-to-year variability of growing seasons, pests and other factors, Field to Market tries to collect multi-year data to study trends in resource use and sustainability, Shapiro said.

The effort also takes a technology-neutral, outcome-based voluntary approach rather than recommend a few practices or methods for all types of farms nationwide, according to Shapiro.

To help farmers assess the sustainability of their farm, Field to Market developed a free online tool, the Fieldprint Calculator. A farmer may enter data to analyze how his management practices impact efficiency and natural resource use. The tool is online at {fieldtomarket.org}.

Field to Market also is involved with pilot field projects in several states. None are located in Illinois. However, The Nature Conservancy has suggested a pilot project be located in the Central Illinois Mackinaw River watershed, according to Shapiro.

Farmer survey shows cover crop growth, changing attitudes

Midwestern farmers raised more acres of cover crops that boosted yields after the 2012 drought, according to a new farmer survey.

“The size of the yield impact was greater than we expected,” University of Missouri agronomist Rob Myers told FarmWeek. Myers is the regional extension director for the USDA National Central Region Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE) programs.

Last winter, more than 750 farmers from Illinois and other states in the upper Mississippi River watershed were surveyed about cover crop acres, challenges and yield impacts.

Researchers had anticipated some of the survey results, but some of the double-digit yield increases after the 2012 drought were larger than expected, Myers said.

In general, corn and soybean yields in the survey area were nearly 10 percent and 12 percent higher, respectively, in crops that followed cover crops. In the hardest hit Corn Belt areas, farmers harvested 11 percent higher corn yields and 14 percent higher soybean yields on fields that had cover crops compared to those without.

Not surprising, survey respondents reported they continue to plant more acres in cover crops — 301,100 acres in 2013 compared to 218,608 acres the previous year. Indi-

vidual farmers also are planting more cover crop acres on average from 303 acres in 2012 up to 421 acres this year.

The survey results also point to a change in farmers’ attitudes about cover crops, Myers noted.

For the first time, farmers were asked what they would be willing to pay for custom seeding of cover crop acres. The respondents answered they would pay an average of $25 per acre for seed and an additional $15 per acre for seeding costs.

Myer called it “significant” that farmers would pay for cover crop seeding on top of seed costs.

The farmers surveyed gave reduction of soil compaction as their No. 1 reason for growing cover crops, Myers said. In previous surveys, preventing soil erosion was farmers’ top reason for growing cover crops, he added.

Compared to last year’s

drought, many Illinois farmers faced flooded fields that delayed planting or required replanting. Myers was not sure the impact that will have on farmers’ attitudes toward cover crops. A follow-up survey is not planned this winter.

Some farmers have expressed concerns about wet fields delaying burndown of cover crops and pushing back spring planting. In some cases, cover crops, such as cereal rye, may help use excessive moisture and enable farmers to get into those fields earlier, Myers said.

Another question this year will be seeding of cover crops into fields where harvest will be delayed due to late-planted crops.

Farmers also are learning some cover crops, such as tillage radishes that can have an odor when decomposing, should not be planted in fields near shopping malls, churches or other public areas. — Kay Shipman

INNOVATION

Page 5 Monday, July 29, 2013 FarmWeek

Budget crunch no issue for carp control efforts FarmWeek Federal budget constraints should not impact efforts to contain the voracious Asian carp, according to a member of an interagency carp monitoring/control team.

Concerns about the potential spread of Asian carp species into the Great Lakes ecosystem have sparked debate over continued operation of key Chicago-area locks and a multi-state/federal control effort now including Canada.

No bighead or silver carp have been found north of an electric dispersal barrier system in the Chicago Waterway over the past three years, according to Kevin Irons, aquatic nuisance species program manager with the Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR).

Irons credited success to “a

BY MARTIN ROSS

very well-coordinated dance” between IDNR, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, U.S. Geological Survey, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the Cook County Metropolitan Water Reclamation District and Will County officials.

IDNR continues to monitor for carp in Chicago-area canals and waterways above the electric barrier with help from contracted commercial fishermen.

Despite congressionally mandated budget sequestration cuts for the remainder of fiscal 2013, the program continues to operate under full federal funding, he assured FarmWeek.

“Sequestration has not held us back,” Irons said. “We were lucky to have the opportunity for some planning and forethought, and we were able to bridge the gap in 2012 and

2013 funding by using some 2012 funding this year.”

IDNR and contract fishermen to date have removed roughly 1.5 million pounds of Asian carp south of the barrier region. Depopulation should provide more localized food for remaining downstream carp and thus reduce or eliminate the need for them to migrate toward the Great Lakes, Irons suggested.

Schafer Fisheries in Thomson has been converting that catch into a liquid fertilizer.

Plans to export carp to China, where they are a popular food species, have moved slowly because of the logistics and costs of transporting fish vs. anticipated profit potential.

With Pearl-based Big River Fish Corp. ramping up marketing efforts, Irons hopes to see more offshore movement

Fishermen check Chicago’s Lake Calumet for Asian carp. A three-year intensive monitoring and control program to date appears to be successful in keeping the voracious invasive fish out of the Great Lakes and Chicago-area locks open. (Photo by Kevin Irons, Illinois Department of Natural Resources)

of carp by 2014.

“We’ve already seen a reduction in catch rates for bighead carp,” he reported. “What the commercial fishermen used to catch in three to four hours may now take them a whole

day or even several days.

“Silver carp have remained abundant — they’re slightly smaller and take more effort. We can easily catch the bigheads.

We now have to expand our focus to the smaller silver carp.”

Dairy tech showcase displays industry cream Seventy-five people from four states caught a glimpse of state-of-the-art dairy practices during last week’s Illinois Milk Producers’ Association (IMPA) Dairy Technology Showcase.

Two Tremont-area dairy farms hosted the tour. Owned and operated by the Gregg and Cindy Sauder family, River ValBY KELLEY FORNOFF

ley Dairy is internationally known for its development of a high-type genetic herd of Jersey dairy cattle. They have incorporated four Lely Astronaut robots into their automated milking system with a freestall and box stall housing unit for their 300-plus cow milking herd.

Sauder said the milking system helps relax the cows, result-

A River Valley Dair y cow wears a special necklace that identifies her when she enters a Lely Astronaut robotic milker. Participants in the Illinois Milk Producers Dairy Tech Tour watched robotic milking and a demonstration of the ai24™ HRtag system that monitors rumination time, physical activity and heat detection.

(Photo by Kelley Fornoff)

Adopted teacher visits Edwards County farms

Palos Heights teacher Donna Plocharczyk could write a book for her students about what she did during her summer vacation.

Edwards County Farm Bureau members paired with the St. Alexander School instructor six years ago. Plocharczyk and her son, Jimmy, recently made their first farm visit.

They spent three days visiting Allen and Sharon Hickenbottom’s working dog farm as well as Matt and Cassie Lynch’s grain farm.

Carol Beadles, Edwards County Farm Bureau Ag in the Classroom coordinator, also arranged a visit to Wabash Valley Service Company and Stumpy Hill Farm, a farrow-to-finish hog operation.

“My friends and family thought I was crazy to take a vacation to visit farms,” stated Plocharczyk. “I was like, ‘why not?’ These people have come to my classroom every year, and it’s time for me to go see everything that they have talked to my students about.

“The entire visit was very educational,” the adopted teacher added. “I learned a lot, and saw first-hand how farmers really are stewards of the land, and very caring people. Not only do they care for each other, but their crops and livestock too.”

BY REBECCA PERRY

Rebecca Perry serves as Edwards County Farm Bureau manager.

ing in an increase in cow health, temperament and production.

The Sauder family has also installed two Lely automated calf feeding stations for their heifer calves with compost-bedded housing for their older heifers.

Aberle Farms owners Pete and Rollyn Aberle showed participants their ai24™ HR-tag system that monitors a cow’s rumination time and assisting in heat

detection. Cows wear collars that are read every time they eat, helping the Aberles detect and monitor rumination, heat or other health problems that can occur before or after giving birth.

The 150-cow milking herd is managed and housed in sandbedded freestalls with packmat stalls and cable scrapers for scraping the manure. Pre- and postfresh cows are housed in a bed-

ded-pack transition barn and all cows are milked three times per day in a 10-stall flat parlor. New calves at Aberle Farms are placed on an accelerated milk replacer program and weaned at 6 to 7 weeks of age, gaining an average of 2.5 to 3 pounds per day.

Kelley Fornoff is an Illinois Farm Bureau Governmental Affairs and Commodities intern.

FarmWeek Page 6 Monday, July 29, 2013

CROPWATCHERS Bernie Walsh, Durand, Winnebago County: We have gone from above-average temps to below-average temps with a forecast for a high temperature Saturday (July 27) in the 60s. We received 0.25 of an inch of rain on Monday night (July 22), along with 50 mile per hour winds that downed trees and caused power outages in the Rockford area. There is still some wheat left to combine, but very little.

The corn seems to be pollinating well and the planes, as well as high clearance ground rigs, have started applying fungicide. We still have not seen many bugs in the corn or beans.

Pete Tekampe, Grayslake, Lake County: A great week for the Lake County Fair with temperatures in the high 70s, but it wouldn’t be fair week without rain. Showers were in the forecast Friday to go with 0.6 of an inch of rain that we received last weekend (July 21-22).

Most of the corn has tasseled, but the late-planted corn is showing some stress. Beans are looking good and approaching waist-high. Some wheat has been cut with yields average to good, depending on the goose damage. Some second-cutting hay is being baled. Have a safe week.

Leroy Getz, Savanna, Carroll County: Rain was very spotty this past week. Mostly on the dry side with just a few sidewalk wetters. Crops are still looking excellent. I walked into a 3-foot-tall bean field that has many flowers and some pods. Planes are hurrying to apply fungicides. I combined some oats on Thursday that tested 8 percent, but the straw is still green. If you missed the Carroll County tractor drive last week, you can still watch it on the Web at www.paccnews.com.

Ryan Frieders, Waterman, DeKalb County: Lower temperatures and humidity levels have made it much easier to be outside.

Showers moved through the area early last week, but they were very spotty with some areas receiving nothing. All the corn is pollinating or done pollinating and beginning to fill ears. Airplanes were flying last week spraying corn. Soybeans are filling pods. We need a good rain to relieve moisture stresses and help the plants.

Larry Hummel, Dixon, Lee County: I believe this has to be a first. The Lee County 4-H Fair is in full swing and daytime highs are in the 70s. As long as I can remember, 90 degrees was the norm.

Evidently, processors have gotten all of the old-crop corn that they need to get them to harvest. Basis on corn has dropped almost $1 in the last couple of days. New-crop basis has held steady so far. Corn that was planted into wet soils is struggling with the change to dry weather. Those areas are shooting tassels almost two weeks behind the rest of the field.

Soybeans look good and have started setting pods.

Ken Reinhardt, Seaton, Mercer County: Rain Friday morning left less than a half an inch.

From 0.2 to 0.7 of an inch was received earlier in the week. Lawns are mostly dormant, but the crops are into moisture for the most part.

Replanted corn is growing rapidly, but it will not be pollinating until August. The record cold weather forecasts do not bode well for finishing it.

Ron Moore, Roseville, Warren County: We only received 0.1 of an inch of rain last week and 0.4 for the whole month of July. It looks a lot like last summer without the heat. There are cracks in the cornfields that are 1 foot deep and tile lines that are now dry. The corn is showing some drought stress with bottom leaves turning brown and upper leaves rolling up even with cooler temperatures. The soybeans are flowering, but don’t look like they have grown for two weeks. The Japanese beetles are still here, but not causing a lot of damage. I am concerned about the lack of tile water to feed the streams in my pastures. So far, they are still flowing, but continued drought will mean I may have to move cattle home sooner than planned.

Tim Green, Wyoming, Stark County: It was a pleasant week. A lot of planes were putting fungicide on the corn and there was a lot of discussion about whether it is too soon or too late.

Timing is always a discussion. A little bit of fungicide is being applied to the first-planted beans that went in in May. Beans are big enough that most are putting insecticide on to control the Japanese beetles. They are right at the threshold level, so some don’t know what to do. The corn looks better now than it has all year. We had a little bit of rain that amounted to 0.7 to 0.8 of an inch depending on where you were. It seems like it helped and it does perk things up.

Mark Kerber, Chatsworth, Livingston County: The news here is dry weather. The eastern part of our county has not received any substantial rains all summer.

Our yards have dried up and corn on the center ground is firing.

Soybeans also need a drink to put on more growth and flowers.

Applications of fungicides on corn and soybeans are starting, as you can see many planes in the air. Insect populations in corn are low so far, as corn looks to be pollinating OK. Farmers are finally getting caught up from this late spring. We will have plenty of time to get ready for harvest. It’s time for a vacation. Enjoy the cooler weather. Markets are heading south. Nothing surprising. Will corn end up with a 3 in front of it?

Ron Haase, Gilman, Iroquois County: The airplanes were flying over local fields again.

Fungicides are being applied in cornfields, but at a slower pace than in past years. Corn development ranges from the V11 growth stage for our replant corn, up to the R2 or blister stage. Most fields are at R1 or R2. Many cornfields continue to roll their leaves during the day even though the temperatures were cooler. Rain has been hard to come by. On Tuesday, we had a small shower that brought us a range of 0.05 to 0.3 of an inch of rain on our farms.

That brings our total for the month of July to 0.3 to 0.5 of an inch of accumulation in 5 to 6 different rain showers. We need some rain.

Most soybean fields are in the R2 or full bloom stage up to the R3 or beginning pod stage. As prices continue to slide downward, the local closing bids for July 25 were nearby corn, $5.93; new-crop corn, $4.60; nearby soybeans, $13.69; new-crop soybeans, $12.06.

Brian Schaumburg, Chenoa, McLean County: Cooler temps aided pollination and relieved crop stress, but July rainfall totals rival last summer’s low mark. Subsoil moisture has carried the day. Aerial and ground fungicide applications in both crops are ongoing. Market meltdown continues. See you at the McLean County Fair. Corn, $5.62, fall, $4.63; soybeans, $13.84, fall, $12.01; wheat, $6.21.

Steve Ayers, Champaign, Champaign County: The skies opened up Sunday evening (July 21) on much of the area with amounts varying from 0.5 to more than 4 inches. Last week was a “textbook” pollination period and looks like it will continue into this week. Our eastern crop reporting district reported 61 percent of the area was silking, compared to 11 percent on July 15. Tragedy struck the village of Sidney when a resident was killed in a grain bin accident on July 17. On Thursday (July 25), 79 detasselers were sprayed with fungicide drift from a crop duster along U.S. 45 near Pesotum. The Champaign Fire Department responded with a portable decontamination truck with showers, and the detasselers were taken to the emergency room as a precaution.

No serious injuries were reported. See you at the Georgetown Fair August 3-10!

Wilfred Dittmer, Quincy, Adams County: As I said last week, it will surely rain this week since it is fair week. So far only 0.3 of an inch hit the gauge Sunday evening (July 21), so crops are still running on empty.

Just trying to catch up with general farm chores that seem to accumulate so we can move on to the next. Hay guys are busy and livestock always needs attention. Re-spraying on some resistant weeds is helping. Have a safe week.

Carrie Winkelmann, Tallula, Menard County: Early wet weather has given way to drier conditions. Cooler weather last week helped the crops cope. Ninety percent of the corn is tasseled and fungicide applications are under full swing. Earlier-planted soybeans have reached the R3 stage and are growing fast.

Tom Ritter, Blue Mound, Macon County: Sunday (July 21), we were fortunate to pick up 1.5 inches of rain throughout the area.

It was very much needed because we had been on the short end of most of the showers leading up to that period. Needless to say, that perked up corn and beans considerably, and coming at an excellent time for the corn, with a lot of it pollinating. We continue to have fields that have not quite yet tasseled. Hopefully, we will get more rain in the near future to keep those going at the critical period. Soybeans also continue to grow with a lot of flowering, but as with corn, we see varying sizes in the crop depending on the planting date. We are running behind, but definitely catching up on corn with excellent temperatures and some moisture, but we will still have a later start to harvest. Overall, at this point, crop prospects still look good.

Jimmy Ayers, New City, Sangamon County: We had a little rain in the center part of Sangamon County amounting to 2.5 to 3 inches. The north and south sides had 0.1 of an inch of rain. Weather was the big deal of the week. On Wednesday, we had a morning record low of 54 degrees. The news also reported that one year ago, the record high was 103 degrees. I guess global warming is not working at this point, especially not in this part of the state. Corn is responding to the cool temperatures and the water. A lot of pollination going on and still a lot of corn coming on strong. Some beans have taken off and some are still in a holding pattern and recuperating from their chemical shot. Markets seem to tell us that there is an abundance of crop. Don’t know if that is the sentiment of everyone. It depends on the frost date. The locusts were around this past week and some of the old wives tales say that six weeks after locusts would present us with a frost. I certainly hope that is not the case this year. I think September 24 or 25 is normal around here. Be careful on the crossroads out in the country.

Doug Uphoff, Shelbyville, Shelby County: What a difference a week makes. Temperatures cooled off and the markets did, too.

Cash soybeans down $2.66 and corn down 78 cents. Some fungicide is being sprayed. Gray leaf spot and some rust is showing up in fields of corn. Corn sure looks different than it did this time last year. We still have some really uneven corn in the county, but where it is even, it really looks good. Our corn that had 28 percent applied with pre-emerge herbicide has the most even stand. Soybeans on the other hand are very short and will be hard to harvest. I don’t believe yields will be all that great either. I hope I’m wrong, though. Fall cash grain: corn, $4.60; beans, $12.16.

January prices: corn, $4.72; beans, $12.28.

Farm diesel, $3.53; b-11, $3.38; truck diesel, $4.00; b-11, $3.83; gas, $3.65.

Dave Hankammer, Millstadt, St. Clair County: This past week seemed more like fall than summer. With temperatures reaching into the low-80s and low humidity, the weather has been great for the month of July. We had some stormy weather on Saturday (July 20), which left as little as 0.1 of an inch in the western part to as much as 7 inches in the northeastern part of the county. High winds in other parts caused some green-snap in several cornfields in the area, as well as damage to trees. The crops continue to flourish under mild conditions, as many of the later-planted corn started to tassel and the earlier-planted beans are setting blossoms. Post applications of herbicide continue on later-planted soybean fields as these fields reach the appropriate stage of growth to control weeds. Many of the roadside produce stands are featuring sweet corn, blackberries and peaches, which seem like a good combination for a summer meal. Local grain bids are corn, $5.34; soybeans, $13.53; wheat, $6.43. Have a good week.

Page 7 Monday, July 29, 2013 FarmWeek

CROPWATCHERS David Schaal, St. Peter, Fayette County: We had showers around the area on the afternoon of July 20 that only left 0.2 of an inch in the gauge here. A couple miles north received 0.6 and areas in the northern part of the county acquired 2 to 3 inches of rain. Hot and humid here again up until Wednesday and now we are cooler than normal. Still some post spraying going on over soybeans, trying to kill another flush of weeds. There is also fungicide being applied on corn. Not too many pests around, other than a few Japanese beetles, but they don’t seem to be a concern on anything at this point. Have a good week.

Rick Corners, Centralia, Jefferson County: Cancel the hot and dry complaints for now.

Last Saturday, we got a dandy 2inch rain. As usual, it varied from 0 in one direction to 4 inches in the other. Early corn is in full tassel. I thought it was just me that felt the beans were growing very slow, but I went to an agronomy field day Thursday and that was the talk there. They said we need warmer temperatures to keep things growing. It was 56 degrees Thursday. Way too cool to swim in the cement pond. I guess me and Jethro will just have to shoot some golfs.

Randy Anderson, Galatia, Saline County It was a great week at the fair; the best weather a person could ask for. We received some nice rains in parts of the county, but where I live, we got floods. On July 20 and 21, I received more than 6.7 inches, but the crops were big enough to handle it fairly well. Temps this week have been from the low 80s to 60 at night. It feels like mid-September. Corn is starting to go into roast ear and some beans are podding. Have a good week and take time with your family; summer will be gone before you know it.

Dan Meinhart, Montrose, Jasper County: Heavy rains moved through the area Saturday afternoon (July 20) and Sunday night (July 21) leaving 3 to 5 inches and in some places more. The week started out very hot and humid.

Cooler air moved in mid-week and made it more comfortable. Very little field activity for the week. Some post-spraying and fungicide application by ground and a lot by air. Farmers were busy moving grain and cleaning equipment.

Dean Shields, Murphysboro, Jackson County: The weather last week cooled off around Tuesday. We had almost 2 inches of rain in some places that freshened everything up nicely.

The river locks are finally open in our area. It’s a little too late to plant anything. Most of the corn crop is pollinated now and looking good. The roasting ears are ready, and we are giving those away to the neighbors.

Some spraying of fungicide on beans for late-blooming Johnson grass, pigweed and waterhemp is going on. The wheat field beans are peaking through the straw now.

Our peach crop is coming in with some good fruit. Have a safe summer.

Ken Taake, Ullin, Pulaski County: It was 59 degrees as I called in my repor t on Friday. This is not bad for July 26. Daytime weather has been in the low 80s and it has really been pleasant for the last couple of days. We received only 0.3 of an inch of rain in the thunderstorms that moved through the area last weekend, so we are still short and could certainly use a good rain.

Some areas received up to 2 inches and they are in a lot better shape. There have been a lot of planes active around the area with quite a bit of fungicide being applied to corn. Please be careful and have a safe week.

Kevin Raber, Browns, Wabash County: Rain and cooler weather were the top topics last week.

Rainfall amounts around 2 inches, plus cooler temperatures and low humidity, made outside activities very nice. The early corn is looking good, but there is a lot of later-planted corn that has a long way to go. Rain is just what the double-crop and replant beans needed to get off to a good start.

Crop prices plunge; downside risk expected to linger

BY DANIEL GRANT FarmWeek

Crop prices took a dive last week as demand waned in anticipation of a big harvest this fall.

B a s i s l e ve l s p l u n g e d a s much as $1 per bushel in a matter of days at some locations.

“We saw the market play a little cat and mouse (last week),” Curt Kimmel, market analyst with Bates Commodities in Normal, told FarmWeek. “China signaled it will use its soybean reserves to satisfy demand until the new crop comes on line.”

The tight old-crop supply of corn and beans compared

Reports received Friday morning. Expanded crop and weather information available at FarmWeekNow.com

to projections of a record harvest this fall created a large gap in recent months between old and new-crop prices. That gap shrunk last week.

USDA earlier this month projected ending stocks from 2012/13 to 2013/14 will increase from 729 million bushels to 1.9 billion bushels for corn and from 125 million bushels to 295 million bushels for beans due to a large harvest.

The 2013 U.S. corn crop this month was projected to be 858 million bushels larger than the current record set in 2009. USDA this month also increased its estimate of U.S. soy production by 30

million bushels.

“The risk to producers is still to the downside,” Kimmel said. “We look for an early fall low with the idea end-users will come forward (with purchases) as the new crop becomes available.”

Kimmel believes basis levels will fir m this har vest once demand picks up.

Scattered rains and cooler temperatures, which followed a heat wave last week, also took some of the edge off of the markets.

Nationwide, crop conditions last week were rated 63 percent good to excellent, 26 percent fair and 11 percent poor/very poor for corn. Soy-

beans were rated 64 percent good to excellent, 28 percent fair and 8 percent poor or very poor.

“There’s really no extreme weather in the forecast, which limited the weather bullishness (last) week,” Kimmel said.

Crop conditions deteriorated slightly during the heat wave, during which time the heat index topped 100 degrees at some locations. The portion of crops rated good to excellent last week declined by 3 percent for corn and 1 percent for beans.

“The soil water supply was good coming into July, but how well the crop is tapping into this supply will make a

difference as we move into the second half of the season,” said Emerson Nafziger, University of Illinois crop specialist.

Participants of the Doane crop tour last week reported the corn crop in Illinois generally is in good to excellent condition, but various maturity levels, due to variations in planting dates, will create a lot of yield variability.

Soybeans, similarly, have a wide range of yield potential depending on planting dates.

Doane crop tour participants also re por ted the hot, dr y weather of recent weeks retarded crop g rowth and, potentially, final yields.

The challenges of marestail and waterhemp control We c o n t i nu e t o r e c e ive calls from many growers on how to control large marestail and wa t e r h e m p.

Unfortunatel y, t h e r e a r e no herbicides labeled for complete in-crop conBarry Nash trol of large marestail and waterhemp.

Furthermore, most herbicides caution against their use after flowering or after R2, and generally require a 30-, 60or even 90-day pre-har vest interval. So, realistically, there are no options for chemical weed control at this point.

The only solid option is

BY BARRY NASH

rogueing — a “professional” ter m for “weed hook.”

Although this method of control may not sound ver y appealing, it is critical to avoid letting these two weeds produce seed. One marestail plant can produce up to 200,000 seeds per plant, while waterhemp can produce up to 400,000 seeds per plant.

Allowing these weeds to produce seed will set you up for an even more challenging 2014 growing season.

All is not lost, however.

Now is a good time to evaluate your current weed control program. Pay close attention to the details, evaluate the importance of residual herbicides versus no residuals, the performance difference between residual herbicides, and most

importantly, pay special attention to those fields that received a fall-applied herbicide.

In many areas throughout Illinois, marestail control is becoming exceedingly difficult with any ALS herbicide as well as glyphosate. The only real recourse is a fall application of a plant growth regulator herbicide such as dicamba or 2,4-D. In the case of waterhemp, complete control may consist of “layering” residual herbicides. In areas of heavy waterhemp pressure, we have been

successful with the use of a half-rate of a residual herbicide applied in late fall followed by the remaining halfrate in early spring. For V3 soybeans, an application of a chloroacetamide herbicide with glyphosate (at higher r a t e s ) f o l l owe d by a P P O inhibitor herbicide (if needed) has tended to provide satisfactory results.

We have entered into a new world of weed control. As a result, we recommend developing a weed management system. This system is similar to a

playbook. It requires sitting down with your crop specialist shortly after harvest and developing an entire game plan for weed control that begins in late fall.

It is critical that the grower follow this game plan throughout the entire growing season.

A successful weed management system may require fallapplied herbicides as well as “layering” residual herbicides throughout the next six to eight months. For more information on how to develop a successful weed management system, contact your local crop specialist.

Ba r r y N a sh is GROW MARK’s weed science technical manager. His email addr ess is bnash@growmark.com.

FB IN ACTION

FarmWeek Page 8 Monday, July 29, 2013

IFB Action Teams elect new leadership

Members of the 2014 IFB ACTION TEAMS recently met to develop new, innovative statewide programs and to elect new officers.

Chairs and vice chairs include: • Quality of life – Chair Steve Launius (Washington County), Vice Chair Roger Christin (Winnebago County) • Public relations – Chair Deb Moore (Warren-Henderson counties, Vice Chair Diane Murphy (Montgomery County) • Membership — Chair Monica Green (Douglas County), Vice Chair Bridgett Verbeck (Henry County) • Education – Chair Dana White (Woodford County), Vice Chair Deanna Keeney (Clark County) Green and Launius were also elected chair and vice

chair, respectively, of the ACTION Coordinating Council. Launius will serve on the IAA Resolutions Committee in 2014.

Members of IFB ACTION TEAMS meet twice annually in Bloomington. Recent ACTION TEAM projects include proagriculture ads on buses in Champaign, formation of the University of Illinois Collegiate Farm Bureau and farm family signs to place near busy highways around the state.

If you would like to serve on a 2014 ACTION TEAM, contact your county Farm Bureau for an application/brochure or go to {www.ilfb.org}, then select Get Involved/Grow Committee & Teams/ACTION TEAMs. For more information, call IFB Member Services and Public Relations Division at 309-557-2922.

Sangamon County golfers boost scholarship coffers

Seventy-six golfers teed off in the recent third Sangamon County Farm Bureau Foundation Golf Outing, adding more than $5,000 to scholarship coffers.

Golfers played 18 holes and various games. Prizes were awarded for longest drive, lowest score and longest putt. The outing ended with a prime rib dinner.

Sherrard FFA members unpack boxes at the recent Mercer County Farm Bureau-sponsored mobile food pantry in Aledo. Farm Bureau members helped feed more than 150 families. (Photo by Mercer County Farm Bureau Manager Kendra Bolen)

Mercer mobile food pantry feeds 150-plus families A recent mobile food pantry effort by Mercer County Farm Bureau members helped feed more than 150 area families.

Mobile food pantry volunteers distributed 10,000 pounds of food worth about

BY KENDRA BOLEN

$18,000. Volunteers included members of the Sherrard FFA Chapter, County Line Vacation Bible School and area churches.

Food for the mobile pantry was paid for through the Bushels for Hunger program sponsored by Farm Bureau Young Leaders in Henry, Mercer, Rock Island, Stark and Whiteside counties. The cash value of corn and soybeans donated at local elevators was transformed into food items secured by the River Bend Foodbank in Moline. Those items were distributed through the mobile food pantry.

Kendra Bolen is Mercer County Farm Bureau manager.

DATEBOOK

Fruit, vegetable farming program taking applicants

Aspiring farmers, farmers interested in diversifying their crops and high school/community college ag teachers may apply for a free training program offered through the University of Illinois crop sciences department.

Preparing a New Generation of Illinois Fruit and Vegetable Farmers will accept applications through Oct. 15 or until capacity is reached.

The year-long program will feature classroom, hands-on and in-field instruction. It will be offered at three locations: the U of I Urbana campus, the U of I Dixon Springs Agricultural Center, Simpson, and the Kane County U of I Extension office, St. Charles.

Classes will be from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. one Saturday each month at each location from December 2013 through November 2014.

Participants may apply online {newillinoisfarmers.org/new_ge neration_app.php}.

July 30-31 The National Grain and Feed Association and the Soy Transportation Coalition, “A Modern Infrastructure for Modern Agriculture” conference, Westin O’Hare near Chicago.

USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service will co-sponsor the summit. {soytransportation.org} or {ngfa.org/meetings.cfm} to register.

August 1 Conservation Buffer Field Day, 9 a.m. to 12 p.m., Gene Craft and Jerry Cisco Farms, Atlanta. Contact Debbie Fluegel at 309-613-0095 or email dfluegel@treesforever.org for more information.

August 1 University of Illinois Dixon Springs Agricultural Center field day, 9 a.m. to noon. Contact John Pike at 618-695-2441 or email jpike@illinois.edu for more information.

August 8-13 Illinois State Fair, Springfield August 13 Agriculture Day, Illinois State Fair, Springfield August 15 57th Annual Agronomy Day, University of Illinois, Urbana. For more information go to {agronomyday.cropsci.illinois.edu/}.

August 23-Sept. 2 DuQuoin State Fair September 2-4 IAA Foundation Illinois Agriculture in the Classroom Bike Ride. Call Susan Moore at 309-557-2230 or go to {iaafoundation.org} for more information.

SAFETY

Page 9 Monday, July 29, 2013 FarmWeek

Changing technology flavors RC review of 911 issues Technological change is a good thing except when the technology is an obstacle to lifesaving communication.

Funding levels for statewide 911 services have dropped significantly in recent years, prompting concerns about personnel and delays in needed technology upgrades for some systems. Part of the problem lies in the public shift from wired-in “landlines” to wireless cell phone service.

Funding for 911 services comes primarily from phone bill surcharges for both landlines and cell phone lines. Sur-

charges for wired lines vary among Illinois’ 196 emergency systems, ranging from no cost to $4-plus, and can be increased via voter referenda.

Wireless surcharges are fixed at 73 cents per line, of which a portion goes to reimburse cellular carriers; only 57 cents is provided for 911 services.

The Illinois Farm Bureau Resolutions Committee (RC) is asking county Farm Bureaus to consider the current pace of local 911 services relative to telecommunications changes and system funding priorities and address whether cell phone and landline surcharges should be brought into line.

“When we have an emergency, we really want it to be addressed very quickly,” stressed Lin Warfel, chairman of the RC State and Local Government Subcommittee.

“Funding the 911 organizations is a very important part of their functioning the way they need to function.

“The (telecommunications) industry is changing dramatically, very quickly. A lot of homes now don’t even have a landline — they only have cell phones. In a lot of cases, different family members have their own cell phones. Currently, cell phones pay a smaller amount into the 911 system

than do landlines.”

A detailed review of 911 issues will be included in a special IFB policy development supplement to be included with the Aug. 5 issue of FarmWeek. The RC will reconvene in November to consider final policy proposals for member approval in December.

Current 911 capabilities vary significantly across Illinois. Some areas have adopted global positioning system (GPS) technology that allows emergency crews to pinpoint the cell caller’s location (i.e., an accident site), while others merely target the cellular tow-

er serving the phone.

“As machinery and equipment need to be updated, there has to be money to do it,” Warfel pointed out. Unfortunately, with fewer people — and cellular carriers — per square mile, rural southern Illinois has ostensibly greater 911 needs and more limited resources for funding them.

But even more populous northern areas are grappling with the challenges of evolving technology, too. RC member Earl Williams of Winnebago County relates instances of 911 cell calls being received in neighboring Ogle County.

A few minutes in the shed or the field can keep costly farm assets from going up in smoke or even save a life.

On July 17, Woodson and Murrayville firefighters were called to an afternoon tractor fire on Illinois 267. The machine caught fire while 22year-old Kyle Schone was mowing near a field along the roadway south of Jacksonville.

Though the tractor became engulfed in flames, Schone was uninjured. The Morgan County man reported seeing smoke rising from under the cab before he jumped off and called 911.

While such incidents were more common amid last year’s dry crop conditions, Dave Newcomb, ag program director with the Illinois Fire Service Institute, notes tractor maintenance prior to fieldwork and between trips to and from the field is always crucial in preventing equipment fires.

Field residues and “trash”

trapped in tractor mechanisms can serve as an ignition point during or after harvest. Even mowing roadsides places producers in a potentially hazardous “dusty environment,” Newcomb said.

He noted wheat chaff and other small particles can accumulate on combines without “necessarily being real noticeable.” In late June, chaff and dust were blamed after three tractors caught fire within a roughly eighthour period on a large New York farm.

“We need to take our time to make sure material isn’t gathering around the exhaust manifold or the muffler,” Newcomb told FarmWeek.

“In the fall, stuff can get up around the muffler or under the hood.

“In the case of a gentleman I farmed for years ago, we had to watch the taillights on the combine, because that’s where the bean chaff accumulated. We’d smell smoke coming from the heat

of the taillight. If there’s a place where heat can be generated, you have a possible ignition source.”

Hot hydraulic lines pose a particular threat for ignition if residues or dust build up under the hood. Using an air compressor before and

between runs can help clear material from the engine.

Tractors and combines should be equipped with a fire extinguisher for use in case of fire during operation or refueling. The extinguisher should be charged and easily accessible to the operator.

According to Newcomb, the proper gear for the job is an all-purpose, 10-pound “ABC” dry chemical extinguisher designed to smother a basic Class A, a Class B flammable liquid, and/or a Class C chemical fire. — Martin Ross

BY MARTIN ROSS FarmWeek

Maintenance key in preventing machinery fires

Battery replacement demands safe environment

Tractor battery replacement also is a potential point of onfarm combustion (see accompanying story).

Batteries contain sulfuric acid, which can burn skin. They can also produce hydrogen gas/oxygen mixtures which explode if a battery’s exposed to heat or sparks.

When replacing a battery, work in an area free of spark or heat sources. Don’t smoke while working near the battery, and make sure the area’s well ventilated.

Disconnect the ground cable first and identify cables as positive and negative before reattaching them. Clean terminals and connections before reattaching cables, and ensure the new battery’s secured with the hold-down assembly provided with it.

While installing the battery, make sure terminals don’t come into contact with metal parts on the engine or tractor body.

Reconnect the ground cable last to prevent sparks.

To avoid acid burns or eye injury, wear personal protective equipment covering eyes and hands. A full face shield offers the greatest protection, but even with full gear, never work leaning directly over the battery.

YOUNG LEADERS

FarmWeek Page 10 Monday, July 29, 2013

The 2013 Young Leader Achievement Award finalists

Illinois Farm Bureau’s Young Leader Achievement Award recognizes extraordinary accomplishments in farming and leadership. This year’s award winner will be honored at the Young Leader Agri-Quiz Bowl at the Illinois State Fair on Aug. 13 at 11 a.m. in Springfield.

Participants are judged on their management, innovation and selfinitiative, as displayed through their farming operations. Leadership ability and involvement and participation in county Farm Bureau or other civic, service or community organizations also are major factors in selecting the top young farmer.

The first-place winner receives a two-passenger Scout courtesy of Case IH and IFB, $2,500 cash courtesy of IFB, a one-year membership in the Illinois Corn Growers Association and expense-paid trips to the IFB annual meeting in Chicago, American Farm Bureau Federation annual meeting in San Antonio, AFBF Young Farmers conference in Virginia Beach, IFB YL state conference in Bloomington-Normal and the GROWMARK annual meeting.

The first runner-up will receive $1,500 cash courtesy of IFB, Farm Credit Services of Illinois and 1st Farm Credit Services.

Two producers are finalists in this year’s competition. Here, they share thoughts about dealing with challenges, exploring opportunities and leading the industry into the future.

Interviews for this feature were conducted by Daniel Grant.

Ed and Kali Livengood Milledgeville, Carroll County E d a n d K a l i L ive n g o o d grow corn and rye, and operate a beef feedlot on a third-generation farm.

The beef operation consists of about 800 head of feeder cattle and 130 cow/calf pairs.

“I graduated high school in 1999 and bought my first 20 cows in 2001,” Ed, 32, said.

“We’ve just been steadily adding and growing since then.”

The Livengoods previously raised hogs on the farm. Ed also used to work in home construction with his father-in-law, Randy Landis, until the housing market crashed in 2008.

“That’s when we decided to step into farming full time,” Ed said. “We’ve come a long way.”

Ed has been in Young Leaders for a decade. He served as the Carroll County YL chairman during that time.

“I’ve enjoyed my time in Young Leaders and everything I’ve learned,” he said. “It feels really good to be a finalist (for the Achievement Award).”

Looking ahead, Livengood believes

Learn to Shine with IFB’s Young Leader Discussion Meet Friendly Competition That Builds Your Leadership Skills Show your art of discussion for hot agricultural topics - and compete for great prizes, including a chance to represent Illinois in the National Discussion Meet.

District & State Discussion Topics: How do we encourage young farmers and ranchers to continue to be involved in Farm Bureau? How can young SURGXFHUV OHDG HYHQ LI WKH\ GRQ·W KROG HOHFWHG SRVLWLRQV RQ boards?

US agriculture is one of the major industries for the American economy. What can farmers do to stimulate more economic growth?

Additional State Topics: How should Farm Bureau engage farmer/rancher members, representing all types and kinds of operations (i.e.

conventional, organic, large, small and niche markets, to work together to better promote a more positive image of agriculture?

What are the best practices for youth working on farms and ranches to ensure their safety and provide them learning opportunities in the area of agriculture production?

How can Young Farmers & Ranchers work with elected and DSSRLQWHG RIÀFLDOV WR HOLPLQDWH XQQHFHVVDU\ RU H[FHVVLYH regulations placed upon agriculture while ensuring that new UHJXODWLRQV DUH MXVWLÀHG EDVHG RQ WKHLU FRVWV DQG DQWLFLSDWHG EHQHÀWV"

Entry Deadline August 1 (to Illinois Farm Bureau) Contact your county Farm Bureau® for eligibility and contest information.

IAA District

Date

Starting Time

1&2 3 4 5&6 7&8 9 10 11 & 12 13 & 17 14 15 & 16 18

July 29 August 15 August 19 August 14 August 7 July 31 August 14 August 15 August 20 August 6 August 20 August 15

7:00 7:00 7:30 6:30 7:00 7:00 7:00 New 7:00 Date 7:00 6:30 7:00 7:00

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Location Stephenson County FB, Freeport Henry County FB, Cambridge Mendota Civic Center, Mendota Dwight Village Hall, Dwight Peoria County FB, Peoria Hancock County FB, Carthage Menard County FB, Petersburg Champaign County FB, Champaign Edwards County FB, Albion Montgomery County FB, Hillsboro Madison County FB, Edwardsville Jackson County FB, Murphysboro

For more details - www.ilfb.org/youngleaders

Farm. Family. Food.™ YL010T3

Mother Nature and market volatility are two of the top challenges for farmers. But he also believes there are good opportunities in the business.

“There are a lot of opportunities in ag, especially for young people,” he said. “People will always need two things – food and fuel. So as long as you can deliver, you’ll always have a place in the industry.”

Kali works on the farm and off the farm as a high school math teacher. The couple has three children, Karter, 5, Kennedy, 3 and Keagan, 3 months.

Matt and Cassie Lynch West Salem, Edwards County Matt and Cassie Lynch grow corn, soybeans and wheat on their multigenerational farm.

Matt, 33, started farming straight out of college. He served as chairman of the Edwards County Young Leaders and on the State Young Leader Committee.

“We’ve always been active in Farm Bureau and the community,” Matt said.

Matt always wanted to farm, but was thrust into an owner-

ship role at a young age when his father passed away in 2006.

“It was hard,” said Matt, who has three sisters who help out part time on the farm. “It’s an advantage (to be a young farm owner) some times and at other times it’s a disadvantage.”

The top challenges for farmers are weather volatility and labor issues, Matt said.

“You’ve got to be competitive with your payroll and insurance,” he noted.

But, overall, he believes there are a lot of opportunities for young farmers in the highly competitive world of farming.

“There are a lot of opportunities,” he said. “A lot of

ground is changing hands, although not necessarily at the right price. I’ve lost ground and gained ground because of it.”

Cassie works on the farm and off the farm as a speech therapist.

The couple has three children Owen, 5, Cooper, 3 and Brier, 1.

Robbe selected for 2013 YL Excellence Award

Daniel Robbe, Jo Daviess County, is the finalist for the 2013 Young Leader Excellence in Ag Award.

The award winner will be confirmed and announced Aug. 13 at the Agri-Quiz Bowl at the Illinois State Fair in Springfield.

The Ag Excellence Award recognizes county Farm Bureau Young Leaders who may not be full-time farmers for their efforts in agriculture and leadership achievement.

Robbe, who resides in Elizabeth, grew up on a dairy farm. He currently works on the cow-calf operation of Don Kautz in Jo Daviess County in northwest Illinois. They also produce corn, soybeans and wheat.

“The rolling hills of this area are the perfect location to have pasture ground for grazing cattle,” Robbe said. “I’d like to think there are opportunities to expand or start my own operation in the future.”

Northwest Illinois also is a prime location for agritourism.

Robbe enjoys helping out with farm fun days, petting zoos, dairy promotions and other farm-related activities to provide entertainment and educational opportunities for visitors.

“It gives me an opportunity to help others better understand agriculture and about where their food comes from,” he said. “I feel it’s important (for farmers to connect with consumers) for the future of agriculture.”

Robbe has been involved with Young Leaders since 2002.

He also serves on the Jo Daviess County Farm Bureau Board and is an emergency medical technician.

The winner of the Ag Excellence Award will receive $2,500 courtesy of Illinois Farm Bureau, an iPad courtesy of the IAA Credit Union and expense-paid trips to the IFB and American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF) annual meetings, the IFB and AFBF Young Leader Conferences and the GROWMARK annual meeting, courtesy of GROWMARK.

COMMODITIES

Page 11 Monday, July 29, 2013 FarmWeek

New method of crop scouting could take off in U.S.

BY DANIEL GRANT FarmWeek

A new method of scouting crops is ready to take off in the U.S., thanks to technology used for years by the military.

Companies that manufacture unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), or drones, this month showcased the technology and possible applications of it for row-crop farmers during the InfoAg Conference in Springfield.

The event was organized by the International Plant Nutrition Institute.

“UAVs have a lot to offer to (row crop) and horticultural crop producers,” said Reza Ehsani, ag engineer at the University of Florida.

“There’s great value to the view from above.”

Ehsani started using UAVs four years ago in Florida to detect a citrus disease that initially shows up in the tops of trees.

He quickly found numerous uses for aerial crop scouting with unmanned vehicles that carry still cameras, video cameras and other

data recording sensors and devices.

“We started to see a lot of applications for it,” Ehsani said. “On the ground you’re limited to what you see at the boundary of the field.

Above, you can see the pattern of the field and details of the plants.”

UAVs can improve the accuracy of crop scouting by providing bare soil imagery, information for irrigation and drainage planning, early disease detection, inventory management information, and yield estimates and monitoring, according to Ehsani.

Users can place a $200 digital camera on a UAV or invest much more for thermal imaging or even hyperspectral imaging, which processes information from across the electromagnetic spectrum.

“If you have a drainage issue, it shows up very well,” he said.

The cost of UAV systems ranges from $500 for a hobby aircraft up to $50,000plus. There are fixed-wing and rotary vehicles available.

Start-up costs and regula-

IBA president optimistic about future

Alan Adams, a cattle producer from Sandwich and newlyelected president of the Illinois Beef Association (IBA), recently celebrated his 40th year in the business.

And he’s as optimistic about the future of the cattle industry in Illinois as he has been at any point the previous four decades.

“When I started farming, the livestock industry was headed out of Illinois to the High Plains (in pursuit of a good climate for livestock and cheap energy/input costs),” Adams told FarmWeek. “Now, that trend is starting to reverse.

Alan Adams “I see economic reasons to be in the livestock industry (in Illinois),” he continued. “Our rations are cheaper — ethanol by-products are a big part of that — than in the Plains, and we solved a lot of our climate issues with new building technology (employed in many new monoslope and hoop structures).”

Adams farms with his wife, JoAnn. Their son, Ross, and daughter-in-law, Jessie, joined the operation in 2009.

Adams believes the added value of livestock operations on farms is critical for young people who have interest in joining or returning to farming operations.

“The high cost of (land) and cash rents makes starting out in farming difficult,” Adams said. “I hope bankers see the money spent to buy heifers or to put up a new cattle building as a good return.”

Three cattle operations in Adams’ township are in the process of bringing in young people for work or adding new facilities.

“I hope that trends continues in Illinois,” he said.

Cattle farmers this year are in a good position as more abundant hay and cheaper grain prices lowered input costs. Meanwhile, cattle prices remain at strong levels.

“We’re pretty optimistic this year,” he said. “I think there will be a lot of hay put up.”

Adams’ top goal as the new IBA president is to help steer the organization in new directions.

“We’ve turned over our entire staff in the past year,” he said.

“New people coming in have all kinds of ideas and ways to change.

“We encourage those ideas,” he continued. “It’s about trying to be effective and grow.” — Daniel Grant

tions are the key limiting factors for the widespread use UAVs in U.S. agriculture, according to Robert Blair, an Idaho farmer who has researched UAVs in South America and Germany.

“Everyone thinks of UAVs as a big giant thing (used in the military) that bombs your house,” Blair said. “But many are 10 pounds or less. They’re smaller than a goose.”

However, Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) regulations currently prohibit the use of UAVS for commercial purposes. Users of drones currently must obtain either a certificate of authorization to use them for research or a pilot’s license.

Blair and Ehsani are hopeful the FAA will open U.S. airspace to commercial UAVs by 2015.

If that occurs, though, Blair believes the wide-scale use of UAVs could cause privacy issues.

“Do you want the technology flying over your farm,” he added.

Drew Janes, of Aerial Precision Ag, discusses the capabilities of a quadcopter unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) during the InfoAg Conference in Springfield. Opportunities to use such vehicles for crop scouting are enormous if the Federal Aviation Administration opens U.S. airspace for the use of UAVs for commercial purposes, according to speakers at the conference. (Photo by Daniel Grant)

FB IN ACTION

FarmWeek Page 12 Monday, July 29, 2013

Pistol shoot proves success for White County Young Leaders

Twenty-one shooters heated up the range at the Car mi Rifle Club for the 3rd Young Leaders Pistol Shoot coordinated by the White County Far m Bureau Young Leaders Committee.

Shooters at the recent event had to work their way through three stations with five steel targets. Individuals shot through the targets five times at each station. Time was kept for each round with the slowest time at each station being dropped. Les Cline of Cisne posted the lowest overall time of 33.1 seconds to win the competition.

Proceeds from the event support the annual Young Leaders Collegiate Scholarship as well as the committee’s participation in other county and state young leaders programs.

Photos from the event are posted at {whitecfb.com} and on the organization’s Facebook page.

BY DOUG ANDERSON

Doug Anderson is manager of White County Farm Bureau.

Robin Tupper, 14, of Grayville quickly fires through her five steel targets. One of 21 competitors in the recent White County Farm Bureau Young Leaders Pistol Shoot, she completed the event in 76.7 seconds. (Photo by Doug Anderson, White County Farm Bureau manager)

Four county Farm Bureaus awarded ag literacy grants

Four Illinois county Farm Bureaus received minigrants of up to $500 each from the American Farm Bureau Foundation for Agriculture.

Edgar County Farm Bureau received a grant for a barn-shaped activity center with wheels. The center will be used for community agriculture education.

McHenry County Farm Bureau received a grant for copies of the book, “Who Grew my Soup,” and copies of Ag Mag, an ag-based educational magazine, for school learning centers. The information will be used to expand the county Agriculture in the Classroom program.

McLean County Farm Bureau received a grant for GPS receivers to teach fifth-grade students about precision agriculture. This program is part of the county Farm Bureau’s Food and Farm Discovery Zone education initiative.

Ogle County Farm Bureau received a grant for embryology kits with lesson plans and activities for students in kindergarten through eighth grade.

The four county Farm Bureaus were among 15 recipients nationwide. The winners were selected based on their proposal’s effectiveness in connecting agriculture and education, and in encouraging students to learn more about agriculture, food and fiber industries.

The White-Reinhardt Fund for Education is a project of the AFBF foundation in cooperation with the AFBF Women’s Leadership Committee.

DONATIONS HELP FOOD BANK

Calhoun County Farm Bureau Director Kenny Kronable, right, delivers a $1,106 check to Pat Droege, a Lutheran Child and Family Services Food Bank volunteer. Calhoun County members raised the money by donating grain in their first Harvest for Hunger campaign. Jersey County Grain and CoBank also contributed to the project. Members also donated 168 pounds of pork steak, hamburger and hot dogs to the food bank with help from an Illinois Corn Marketing Board grant. (Photo by Brenda Bizaillion, Calhoun County Farm Bureau manager)

FROM THE COUNTIES

Page 13 Monday, July 29, 2013 FarmWeek

C

LARK — Farm Bureau will host a picnic at 5:30 p.m. Aug. 19 at Mill Creek Park. Call the Farm Bureau office for reservations.

ASPER — Farm Bureau will host a family appreciation picnic at 3 p.m. Aug. 17 at Peterson Park in Newton. Call the Farm Bureau for a complete listing of events and to register.

ANKAKEE — Farm Bureau will host a booth Wednesday through Sunday at the Kankakee County Fair. Cost for the ag breakfast at 7 a.m. Thursday at the free stage pavilion will be $10. Michael Winters will be the speaker. Young Leaders Ag Olympics will be at 3 p.m.

Sunday in the cattle show arena. Call 932-7471 for more information.

EE — The Marketing Committee will sponsor a day trip to DeKalb beginning at 9 a.m. Aug. 20.

Cost is $36 for adults, $32 for ages 13 to 17 and $30 for ages 12 and under. Call the Farm Bureau office at 857-3531 or email leecfb@comcast.net for more information.

• Farm Bureau will sponsor an Illinois Farm Families spokesperson training session and dinner at 5 p.m. Thursday at the Farm Bureau building. Call the Farm Bureau office at 857-3531 or email leecfb@comcast.net to register.

J

K L

M

ONROE — Farm Bureau will sponsor a member appreciation ice cream social at 7 p.m. Aug. 8 at the Monroe County Fairgrounds.

ICHLAND — Young Leaders Committee members will sponsor a trap shoot Aug. 17 at the County Line Gun Club in Noble. Early registration cost is $100 for a five-person team, $125 after Aug. 15, and $25 for individuals. To register, call the Farm Bureau office, a Young Leaders Committee member or go to {richlandcountyfarmbureau.com}.

• Farm Bureau and COUNTRY Financial will host a member and customer appreciation picnic from 5 to 7 p.m.

Aug. 6 at the Community Building in the Olney City Park. Call the Farm Bureau office or a COUNTRY Financial representative to register.

OODFORD — Farm Bureau will host Congressman Aaron Schock’s “Coffee with your Congressman” at 9:30 a.m.

Aug. 5 in the Farm Bureau auditorium. Call the Farm Bureau office at 467-2347 or email woodfordcfb@gmail.com for more information.

R

W

“From the counties” items are submitted by county Farm Bureau managers. If you have an event or activity open to all members, contact your county Farm Bureau manager.

CHICKS MAKE FAIR SPLASH

Lilly Winans, left, enjoys meeting baby chicks with Elizabeth Stare and Chloe Grant at the Christian County Fair. Farm Bureau members hosted an interactive farm display attended by about 600 fairgoers. The display included piglets, miniature mules and horses, dairy calves, chicks, ducklings, goats and a llama.

(Photo by Christian County Farm Bureau Manager Mellisa Herwig)

PROFITABILITY

FarmWeek Page 14 Monday, July 29, 2013

Improved fuel economy decreases demand for gasoline

Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFÉ) standards were introduced in 1975. As you can see by this chart {epa.gov}, automobile manufacturers have responded to the law and have made huge strides to stretch a Charlie LaBelle gallon of fuel. A national news channel reported recently that combined fuel economy in 2012 was more than 34 miles per gallon (mpg). This has been evident in gasoline demand, which has been very “sluggish” lately in comparison to historical norms — well below the fiveyear average demand figures.

Since 1975, the energy business has accepted the demands for lower emission fuels by lowering diesel fuel sulfur content gradually to the current Ultra Low Sulfur Diesel (ULSD) at .0005 parts per million. Sulfur in gasoline has also been lowered correspondingly.

Looking forward, the administration intends to enhance CAFÉ standards for cars and light trucks in model years 2015 to 2017. The EPA is considering a range of 47 to 62 mpg by 2025, reflecting an

BY CHARLIE LABELLE

annual fuel economy increase of 3 to 6 percent.

How will we get there?

Achieving the new fuel efficiency standards will encourage innovation and investment in advanced technologies that increase economic competitiveness. In 2011, 13 major automakers, which together account for more than 90 percent of all vehicles sold in the United States, announced their support for the new standards. The standards encourage investments in clean, innovative technologies that will benefit families, promote U.S. leadership in the automotive sector and curb pollution.

Hybrid vehicles, electric autos and battery technology advancements are also important parts of the equation.

Interest in wheat may continue to grow in Illinois.

The combination of good to excellent yields, some reportedly in excess of 100 bushels per acre in southern Illinois, and strong prices in many cases could add up to a profitable year.

“Wheat has done relatively well (in corn/soy rotations) the past year,” said Gary Schnitkey, University of Illinois farm management specialist.

Wheat harvest as of the first of last week was 97 percent

Weighted Ave. Pric5 $39.77 NA

This Week Last Week 95,118 88,485 *Eastern Corn Belt prices picked up at seller’s farm Receipts

Eastern Corn Belt direct hogs (plant delivered) Carcass Live

Charlie LaBelle is GROWMARK’s senior energy analyst. His email address is clabelle@growmark.com.

800,000 acres of wheat, 155,000 more than last year.

Wheat harvest last week was nearly complete in northern Illinois.

“We’re about two weeks behind,” said Daniel Robbe, a farmer from Jo Daviess County.

“I’m guessing yields in my area were between 70 and 75 bushels per acre (down about 15 to 20 bushels from last year).”

Overall, the wheat crop in the state is expected to total 51.2 million bushels, up 26 percent from a year ago.

“We’re projecting really good returns,” Schnitkey said. “The way to make it work is to double crop (in southern Illinois).”

Guinnip reported a fair amount of double-crop beans were planted in his area, but some didn’t get planted due to wet conditions or the lateness of wheat harvest.

Schnitkey projected 2013 will be a profitable year for crop farmers, despite a recent downturn in prices. However, profits in 2013 are expected to be significantly lower than in the previous two to three years.

Schnitkey will discuss wheat in rotations/profits and risk next month at the Illinois Wheat Forum.

The event, organized by the Illinois Wheat Association (IWA), will be held from 9 a.m. to 2:45 p.m. Aug. 20 at the Knights of Columbus Hall in Highland.

For more information, visit the IWA website {illinoiswheat.org} or call Diane Handley, IWA executive director, at 309-557-3662.

BY DANIEL GRANT FarmWeek

Feeder pig prices reported to USDA* Range Per Head $31.68-$48.00 NA

such as ethanol and biodiesel can also offset petroleum use.

Many companies are changing their fleets to propane or natural gas engine technology.

Schnitkey: Wheat economics profitable as harvest winds down

M A R K E T FA C T S Weight 10-12 lbs.

40 lbs.

Advances in vehicle transmission technology and injection systems will further aid in reaching new vehicle mpg standards. Renewable fuels

(Prices $ per hundredweight) This week Prev. week Change $91.78 $92.79 -$1.01 $67.92 $68.66 -$0.75

complete statewide, which is back on track with the five-year average pace after a slow start.

USDA projected the wheat crop in Illinois will average 64 bushels per acre, up one bushel from last year.

“We had a pretty good crop, but it was a struggle to get it out,” Don Guinnip, a farmer from Marshall and Illinois Soybean Association board member, told the RFD Radio Network.

“Some fields got rutted up.”

Farmers in Illinois this season were projected to harvest

USDA

USDA five-state area slaughter cattle price (Thursday’s price) Steers Heifers

This week $119.81 $119.55

Prev. week $120.81 $122.00

However, a common theme in many articles about fuel economy is that vehicles need to get lighter, smaller and possibly less protective.

Lighter cars still need to be safe and durable. Car manufacturers are responding through the use of materials like carbon fiber. Replacing steel components with carbon fiber would reduce the weight of most cars by 60 percent.

Still, new crude oil and natural gas production in the upper Midwest and Canada will keep the U.S. using fossil fuels for centuries to come.

Change -$1.00 -$2.45

CME feeder cattle index — 600-800 Lbs. This is a composite price of feeder cattle transactions in 27 states.

(Prices $ per hundredweight) Prev. week Change This week $145.63 $145.99 -$0.36

Lamb prices Slaughter Prices - Negotiated, Live, wooled and shorn 104-169 lbs. for 110.12-125 $/cwt. (wtd. ave. 116.76).

Export inspections (Million bushels) Week ending Soybeans Wheat Corn 7/18/2013 2.8 23.1 8.9 7/11/2013 3.7 24.5 16.3 Last year 15.8 11.8 19.6 Season total 1295.7 159.8 615.1 Previous season total 1266.8 127.9 1388.0 USDA projected total 1330 1075 700 Crop marketing year began June 1 for wheat and Sept. 1 for corn and soybeans.

CRP OFFERS IN ILLINOIS — USDA will accept 73,270 acres in Illinois that were offered under the 45th Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) general sign-up that ended in June, Scherrie Giamanco, state executive director for the Illinois Farm Service Agency (FSA) announced Friday.

The Illinois FSA office received nearly 86,828 offers on more than 28 million acres of land.

CRP is a voluntary program that allows eligible landowners to receive annual rental payments and cost-share assistance to establish long-term cover over 10- to 15-year contracts.

For more information regarding the CRP sign up, contact your county FSA office.

PROFESSIONAL CRP WORKSHOP — Conservation professionals and independent consultants must register by Aug. 6 for an Aug. 28 workshop on Conservation Reserve Pro-

Farm Service Agency

gram (CRP) mid-contract management.

The workshop will be held at the USDA-NRCS Office, 2623 Sunrise Drive, Springfield. Online courses on wind erosion modeling, soil erosion modeling and web-based planning tools are available now with a registration deadline of Sept. 1.

An online part of the course must be completed before the Aug. 28 workshop. Instructions for completing the online requirement will be provided three weeks prior to the class.

For more information on the CRP Readiness Initiative, go online to {facesofcrp.info}. For specific questions, contact Tim Gieseke, CRP Readiness Initiative Midwest media contact, at tgieseke@agresourcestrategies.com or call 507-359-1889.

To register for the Illinois or online workshops, go to {conservation-training.wisc.edu} and click on the Conservation Planning link.

PROFITABILITY

Page 15 Monday, July 29, 2013 FarmWeek

CASH STRATEGIST We’ve been to this rodeo before

Shell shock reverberated throughout the trade last week, not only in the farm community, but also in the commercial and trading communities as well. Even though prices have had a lot of volatility the past 5 to 6 years, markets like those we had last week are difficult to anticipate.

The break was even more flashy and dramatic than the turn down from the peaks we had at the end of last year’s move up. A year ago, corn and soybeans gave early indications that price strength was eroding. But that’s not unexpected when prices are at, or near, record highs.

While this year’s prices were at reasonably good levels, neither were near record. And the basis levels for both were at record levels by a huge margin, enhancing expectations that prices for both deserved to go higher yet. The known fundamentals seemingly supported the arguments that prices had not yet rationed what was perceived to be a very tight supply until the new crop arrived.

But it’s the new crop, and the extreme discount those prices had to its old-crop counterparts, that was an important part of the mix.

End users only needed to buy enough old crop to get to newcrop harvest.

Once those needs were covered, no one had a reason to buy 1 more bushel of old crop at the prevailing levels. The price action the market experienced last week indicated that need had been covered. The collapse in the corn and soy-

bean basis, along with the collapse in futures, confirmed short-term demand for the physical product had “evaporated.”

This scenario has played out before in the past. The years 1977, 1984 and 1989 quickly come to mind, as well as the 1996 corn market. But everyone’s guard was let down because all of those were so long ago. Very few people have those experiences in their arsenal to draw upon with the exception of maybe 1996.

The other issue is understanding that the tightness, soybean meal in particular, was in the U.S., not elsewhere in the world. On July 22, soybean meal out of the U.S. Gulf was quoted at $630 per ton.

The official quote out of Argentina was $509, with indications it could be bought for less than that. That’s a $121 premium, with the cost of getting South American meal to the U.S. at about $35 per ton.

U.S. soybean meal prices have been at a modest premium for a number of weeks, but imports have been limited.

But the recent surge in our soybean meal prices may finally have tipped the scale to sourcing more short-term needs from South America instead of domestic suppliers.

The reality is that last week’s break signaled old-crop price strength had come to an end.

The premium for old crop vs. new crop will continue to decline into harvest.

Correction: Last week’s article on crop conditions had the sentence; “In 1995, the corn yield ended 7.8 percent below trend at 148.5 bushels per acre.” That sentence should have read: In 1995, the corn yield ended 7.8 percent below trend, equivalent to 148.5 bushels per acre this year.

AgriVisor endorses crop insurance by

AgriVisor LLC 1701 N. Towanda Avenue PO Box 2500 Bloomington IL 61702-2901 309-557-3147 AgriVisor LLC is not liable for any damages which anyone may sustain by reason of inaccuracy or inadequacy of information provided herein, any error of judgment involving any projections, recommendations, or advice or any other act of omission.

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Corn Strategy

ü2012 crop: The futures and basis collapse made it painfully apparent last week that end users had nearly all their needs covered to get them to new crop. At this point, we’d exercise a little patience in wrapping up sales.

Prices should recover some from current levels. ü2013 crop: The collapse in the old-crop market and the absence of weather stress kept prices on the defensive. But, the development lag of the crop is still important. Wait for December futures to rebound to $5.12 to $5.25 before considering sales. vFundamentals: The shift in the weather to something cooler and wetter, especially in the Western Corn Belt, undermined corn buying interest last week. But, the development of the crop in western and northern locations still lags normal, a feature that will be accentuated by the cooler short-term temperatures. Some risk premium needs to be put back into the market until the crop is relatively safe from frost. Still, gains will be capped by the competition from large world supplies.

Cents per bu.

Soybean Strategy

ü2012 crop: A rumor about China selling soybeans from government inventory started the break, but the ease and extent of the break illustrated just how precarious the market had become. Still, we’d wait for a rally above $13.80 on August futures to price remaining bushels. ü2013 crop: Weather has improved, but production uncertainty warrants putting some risk premium back in the market. At a minimum, wait for November futures to rebound to $12.50 to make catch-up sales. vFundamentals: Everyone re-learned a painful lesson last week; when bull markets end, they rarely end “pretty.”

The shift in the weather, the Chinese talk and the premium U.S. prices have to South America’s all contributed. But in the end, it was simply a case of weak longs in futures being

forced out of positions when short-term demand dried up.

The weakness in basis, alongside the collapse in futures, suggested end users had completed coverage to get to new crop.

Wheat Strategy

ü2013 crop: A seasonal low still has not been established, with the short-term trend still pointing lower. Do not sell into the weakness; wait for a recovery bounce, near $6.86 on the Chicago September contract for making catch-up sales. vFundamentals: Wheat

is having difficulty generating upside momentum because of the collapse in corn prices. In addition, seasonal pressure remains an influence, but should start to ease with the winter wheat harvest now more than 75 percent complete. The trade has been hoping for strong demand for U.S. wheat, but those hopes are starting to diminish because of aggressive competition from a record global wheat crop. Still, business isn’t bad as evidenced by this past week’s export sales number at 661,400 metric tons, above the high end of trade expectations.

PERSPECTIVES

FarmWeek Page 16 Monday, July 29, 2013

Farm lessons in learning, fun

Sisters Nancy Mackowika, left, Schererville, Ind., and Donna Cornell, Mesa, Ariz., watch sows from the glass-enclosed observation deck above the farrowing barn. The 10-room farrowing complex holds 480 stalls. (Photo by Ken Kashian)

Describing The Pig Adventure at Fair Oaks influence what they think about farming and agriculture. It has to.

Farms isn’t easy. Describing what happens Otherwise, how do they reconcile an electronic there is. feeder system and expansive pens with some picLearning and fun. ture of a trough and a farm lot? Perhaps what The crowds of families and students they saw at Pig Adventure will represent agriculswarming over the hog farm and an adjacent ture to them, especially when they never visit dairy proved the popularity of the venture in another farm. Those childrens’ perspective of northwest Indiana. Last week, a transit bus — powered by natu- agriculture certainly will be different from their parents’ and grandparents’. ral gas from the farms’ digester That’s not to say adult learning didn’t happen — was standing room only at Pig Adventure. Many adults -– some without when I rode it to and from Pig children in tow –- wandered through the barns. A Adventure, which officially young mother told me she learned something opens Aug. 5.

Farmers and others who work about hog feed. Nearby, two men in farm caps asked the purpose for solid panels in a sow group in agriculture probably can’t KAY pen. replicate Fair Oaks Farms, but SHIPMAN At Fair Oaks Farms, future ideas are as broad they can learn from it.

“For many years, a lot of as the horizon. A crop learning center is planned, farmers thought our world ended at the farm but Corbett declined to say what entities will be gate,” Gary Corbett, Fair Oaks Farms chief involved. executive officer, told me. “We felt the best Other educational farms may house 500,000 vehicle for us was to open our farms. That was to 1 million laying hens and 30,000 to 40,000 a big step for us.” steers. An aquaculture farm also may be built. In Pig Adventure makes hog a couple of years, Corbett envifarming understandable and uses sioned a you-pick farm to harFarmWeekNow.com common words to do so. Visivest the fruit from 40 acres of Check out our photo galler y tors read about manure and castrees. By 2020, he speculated from the Fair Oaks Pig Adventration. No one seemed offendmore than 2 million people a ture at FarmWeekNow.com. ed. Anyone who wanted more year may be touring and learninformation than what was availing about Midwest agriculture. able on several touch screens could ask the Making modern farms accessible and undercollege-age employees circulating around each standable counters a perception that farmers area. have something to hide.

Several of those young employees said they “Agriculture has to be able to answer quesare studying agriculture in college. I imagine tions from consumers — or you don’t have a leg some young Pig Adventure visitors might join to stand on,” Corbett emphasized. them. That’s the hope of Bill Johnson, a Joliet Every farmer can’t reach the public on the Junior College (JJC) agriculture professor, who scale of a Fair Oaks Farms, but Corbett believes guided me around the farm. every question answered is important.

Six JJC graduates are working at Fair Oaks, “It’s important to do this in your home area and a current student is completing a summer whether it’s school kids, the rotary or the local internship. Johnson speculated a boy or girl chamber of commerce,” he shared. might want to become “a professional pressure “The consumer today is more educated and washer” or have some other job working with sophisticated about food than in the past... We animals after watching Pig Adventure employ- have to change the dynamics between us and ees. consumers. Let them understand us and what we “The way the swine industry is changing need and start the dialogue,” he concluded. young people have lots of opportunities to get The crowds at Fair Oaks Farms show the into agriculture,” Johnson told me. A young per- public wants to learn about farms. Every farmer son could get into a wean-to-finish operation or can help with that. Ag’s future is depending on even manage one, he pointed out. you.

Whatever the kids oohing over a baby pig think about their future, one thing was cerKay Shipman is the legislative affairs editor for tain. What they saw and experienced will FarmWeek.

Economic changes are on U.S., global horizons With another month of jobs data now on the books, investors continue to look for signals about the pace of economic growth and the likely impact it will have on the direction the Federal Reserve takes.

During June, the U.S. added 195,000 new jobs. While the pace does not indicate substantial growth by any means, it is another positive indication that the economy is on the mend. The DEREK adjustments to VOGLER prior months also were positive, showing that 70,000 more jobs were created in April and May than had been previously reported.

Based on the last communication by the Fed, this likely signals a tapering as soon as this fall of the Quantitative Easing program, which increased the money supply. The bond market is definitely taking it this way, as rates have seen yet another move higher. The 10-year Treasury rate touched 2.72 percent right after the report and now has settled in around 2.65 percent.

While many investors would scoff at loaning their hardearned money to the U.S. government for a mere 2.65 percent annually over 10 years, this looks much better than the 1.67 percent rate seen in April.

The current rate is actually a much better indication of true U.S. interest rates as inflation hovers between 1 percent and 1.5 percent. Federal Reserve policies are undoubtedly containing all Treasury rates, but given current inflation expectations, 2.65 percent makes much more sense than what we had a couple of months ago.

Maybe investors are taking a realistic view of what the market will be like without the Fed’s meddling. Individual savers and institutional investors might actually have a choice of asset classes once again if rates normalize and begin to reflect reality as opposed to never-ending manipulation.

For consumers, the most obvious impact is on loans and mortgages. As the standard product for the typical homeowner, the 30-year mortgage rate is a key element in the affordability and health of the housing market. New home buyers and those looking to refinance are now seeing rates hovering near 4.5 percent — a far cry from the sub-3.5 percent offered only a couple of months ago.

While these rates are still very attractive from a historical perspective, a 30 percent increase in rates could have a dramatic

impact on a monthly payment for buyers who were already stretched with their existing payments.

Supposedly, these higher rates will actually increase demand in the short term from “fence sitters” who are able to get loans and don’t want to miss out on low rates. But this dramatic change also raises some concerns about what will happen to the housing market if this trend continues.

Recent home sale data continues to be strong, but mortgage applications deteriorated over the last few weeks. This could point to an overall slowdown and another hurdle for the U.S. economy over the coming months.

While there has been plenty of excitement in the markets based on U.S. economic data, recent news out of China also has begun to increase market volatility. While the U.S., Europe and Japan are looking for ways to boost growth, China is in the opposite situation — seeking to curb some of the excessive growth in its economy.

Much of China’s growth over the last decade has been reportedly overdone and created significant excess capacity. Easy credit has been one factor fueling this growth and the government now seems intent on changing the environment.

The fear is that continued growth based on easy credit, as opposed to real demand, will eventually catch up to China’s economy and have serious repercussions. The long-held belief that the government would not let a large bank or institution fail is also coming into question.

If the Chinese want to be considered serious players in the global landscape, they have to address some of these concerns.

Another effect of this “rationalization” in China is lower future inflation. As they attempt to reign in over-speculation and easy credit, they have put pressure on worldwide commodity prices. China was once considered the most valuable emerging economy to soak up commodities of all kinds.

The ramifications for the world, and especially other Asian countries, are dramatic.

As a key purchaser of many of the region’s goods, a slowdown in China will impact all other countries.

When the fear subsides, this could ultimately prove to be a positive development for the global economy as China is seen as a more rational and stable economic power.

Derek Vogler is vice president of investments at COUNTRY Financial.