January 28, 2015
www.gfb.org
Vol. 33 No. 4
AG FORECAST ’15: PROFITABLE POULTRY, ROBOTICS RESEARCH REVIEW A crowd of 175 people heard updates from UGA economists and learned about a series of joint ag research projects being done by Georgia Tech and the University of Georgia on Jan. 23 during the final installment of the 2015 Georgia Ag Forecast series. The series, funded through a Georgia Farm Bureau endowment and sponsored by the Georgia Agribusiness Council and the Georgia Department of Agriculture, ran from Jan. 14-23 in six venues around the state. New UGA Associate Dean for Extension Dr. Laura Perry Johnson welcomed attendees to Macon. “It’s no secret to us that ag is big business in Georgia,” Perry Johnson said. “Ag is the largest driver of the Georgia economy.” She said the state is well positioned for a growing role in feeding the world, due to geography, climate and natural resources while enjoying a Douglas Britton unique access to both a leading land grant university in UGA and a leading technological university in Georgia Tech. Dr. Douglas Britton, program manager for Georgia Tech’s Agricultural Technology Research Program, outlined a number of collaborative projects his department is conducting with UGA’s College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences. The GT/UGA partnership has three key strategic areas: poultry processing and production, food safety sampling and sensing, and agrirobotics. “What about 2050? What’s modern agriculture and food processing going to look like?” Britton said, telling the audience about the Georgia Agritechnology Innovation Initiative. “It may not look like a bunch of robots on a processing line or a robot picking fruit off the trees. But the real question is what is Georgia’s role going to be in developing what the future of agriculture looks like? I think this is something that’s just as important as what it’s actually going to be: How do we play a role in dictating where that goes?” Britton said the goals of the initiative are to address challenges facing food and agriculture. “It’ll serve as an educational and technology conduit. We want to make sure that it positions Georgia as a ‘thought leader’ in the development of technologies for agriculture, and we think we’re well positioned to do that.” Britton described the poultry processing and production research including “intelligent deboning,” a mechanized way to remove the meat from poultry carcasses. The food safety research is focusing on ways to separate live bacteria from dead bacteria in food products, while the agricultural robotics research includes a variety of potential uses, including robotic field -continued
GFB News Alert page 2 of 8 AG Forecast, continued mapping to the extent where stresses can be identified for individual plants using robotic scouts. The ag robotics program area is in the early stages of developing audio monitoring for poultry flocks. Britton said he repeatedly heard from poultry growers that they could tell from the sound of their flocks if there were problems without entering the poultry houses and from there developed the idea of an automated way to monitor flocks. UGA Extension Economist Dr. Curt Lacy gave the forecast for Georgia’s producers of animal products and timber. Poultry production is expected to increase, though there are concerns regarding exports, particularly to Russia and China. Lacy predicted poultry prices would be slightly lower but that factor would be offset by lower feed prices and poultry producers should enjoy another profitable year. Lacy said supplies of beef would continue to decline and U.S. pork production could surpass U.S. beef production for the first time in decades, noting that restoration of declining beef herds could take an extended period of time. “Land being taken out of pasture and converted to crops is affecting the size of cattle herds,” Lacy said. Lacy expects the prices milk producers receive to decline from $27 per hundredweight in 2014 to around $21 per hundredweight in 2015. UGA Extension Economist Dr. Nathan Smith gave the economic outlook for row crops. Smith said early peanut contracts are being offered for $400 per ton and he predicted that price level would not go up much. He also said that peanut prices will likely be influenced by programs in the 2014 farm bill. Smith predicted that Georgia growers would plant 20 percent more acres in peanuts in 2015 than they did in 2014, noting that the Price Loss Coverage (PLC) payment rate was $105 per ton in 2014 and goes up to $120 per ton in 2015. Smith said cotton prices most likely would be in the 65-75 cents-per-pound range, and that PLC and Agricultural Risk Coverage (ARC) payments could be a factor on planting decisions on generic base acres. “It’s tough to predict what’s going to be planted in generic base acres in the first year under the new farm bill,” Smith said. Smith explained that the current worldwide cotton stocks are at 109 million bales, roughly equivalent to a year’s worth of demand. Nearly two-thirds of that is held by China, a major importer of U.S. cotton. As a consequence, U.S. acreage, including that in Georgia, is expected to decline, as is worldwide production. For corn, livestock feed demand is expected to increase though U.S. and foreign corn production is expected to decline. Georgia corn prices, Smith said, would likely be between $4 and $4.50 per bushel. After an excellent year for soybean production nationwide in 2014, including a record year in Georgia, soybean stocks are no longer tight, but soybean utilization is strong, keeping the demand stable. The rising value of the U.S. dollar is making U.S. wheat less competitive in international markets and Smith said U.S. wheat exports are likely to decline in 2015.
GFB News Alert page 3 of 8 DOWDY YIELD RECORD, RESEARCH HIGHLIGHT CORN SHORT COURSE Georgia corn growers received information on the latest production and storage practices and Brooks County farmer Randy Dowdy was recognized for his world-record yield during the 2015 Corn Short Course and Georgia Corn Growers Association meeting at the UGA Tifton Campus Conference Center on Jan. 20. Dowdy’s irrigated yield of 503.7 bushels per acre in 2014 surpassed the previous world record of 454 bushels per acre set in 2013 by Virginia’s David Hula. Dowdy said the key was taking preventative measures to remove yield-robbing stressors before they occur. “It’s just understanding what stress is,” said Dowdy, who planted his irrigated plots with as many as 52,000 plants per acre. “You have to be more proactive than reactive. You discover what has taken yield away from you in the past and be proactive to make sure that doesn’t continue.” Dowdy won the Georgia Corn Growers High Yield Contest in both the irrigated and nonirrigated categories. His non-irrigated average yield was 353 bushels per acre. He also won the prize for irrigated production efficiency, producing the record yield at an average of $2.63 per bushel. David Stafford of Murray County won the production efficiency award for non-irrigated land, averaging 86 cents per bushel. The Corn Short Course included sessions on maximizing inputs, losses due to diseases and nematodes, weed control, fertilizing, nutrient management, the value of Bt corn, stored corn management, fumigation and an economic update. In the stored corn management session, UGA’s Dr. Michael Toews discussed pest control and temperature management within grain bins. He recommended completely emptying the grain bins, including removing the augurs, and sweeping and vacuuming them out, followed by pesticide applications. This allows a clean start for storage of the next crop. To manage the temperature, Toews suggested leveling the stored grain to permit uniform airflow and ventilation to maintain moderate temperature and minimize moisture within the bin. The leveling tactic prevents cone- or funnel-shaped tops of the stored grain within the bin. Because air will seek the path of least resistance, Toews said, it will travel to the lowest point of the surface of stored grain. If the top of the grain is cone-shaped, this results in higher temperatures and moisture at the center. “The grain is a living organism, and problems develop with elevated temperature and moisture,” Toews said. UGA Plant Pathologist Dr. Bob Kemerait discussed diseases that cause yield loss in corn, particularly southern corn rust, which showed up early in 2014. “It was the worst year we had in 15 years,” Kemerait said. “Southern corn rust could have taken a fourth of our yields if we hadn’t protected against it.” When the rust develops early, it has longer to get established, Kemerait said, noting that the early arriving rust avoids application of fungicides, which farmers often wait to use until the corn plants form tassels. Kemerait stressed the importance of timing in the use of fungicides and said disease control is improved with a second application.
GFB News Alert page 4 of 8 TREASURY AND COMMERCE DEPTS. UPDATE RULES FOR CUBA The U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control and the Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security have updated federal government policies related to Cuba, according to a joint press release issued by the two departments on Jan. 15. The new measures will allow travel to Cuba for certain purposes, increase the amount of money people in the United States can send to Cuba, allow U.S. financial institutions to open accounts with Cuban financial institutions, facilitate the use of credit cards for Americans traveling there, allow limited importation of Cuban goods and more. These policy updates, which implement measures announced by President Obama on Dec. 17, are not a full restoration of trade and travel, which would require Congress to roll back legislation formalizing the embargo and travel restrictions. Prior to these revisions, exporters were denied access to U.S. private commercial financing or credit; all transactions had to be conducted in cash in advance or with financing from third countries. Authorized U.S. food exports to Cuba authorized in reporting year 2013 were $348.7 million, down from their 10-year peak of $710 million in reporting year 2008. USDA ANNOUNCES FUNDING FOR RCPP PROJECTS, INCLUDING TWO IN GA On Jan. 14 Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced that 115 high-impact projects across all 50 states and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico will receive more than $370 million in federal funding as part of the new USDA Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP). Included are two projects in Georgia – one to enhance conservation in the Lower Flint River Basin and one to protect soil and water quality in six watersheds in East Georgia. The Lower Flint project, led by the Flint River Soil and Water Conservation District, aims to increase agricultural water use efficiency on irrigated cropland in the Lower Flint by implementing conservation practices, incorporate innovative precision irrigation methods into the project and sustain natural resources for future generations of producers in Southwest Georgia, according to the USDA’s project summaries. The East Georgia watershed projects, which include work in the Savannah, Oconee, Ogeechee, Ocmulgee, Satilla and Altamaha watersheds, will address the natural resource concerns of water quantity and quality, livestock production limitation, diminishing wildlife habitat by assisting farmers in the implementation of conservation practices for livestock production, conserving land and water, preserving farmland, improving soil health and supporting the viability of farming. Nationwide, these projects will leverage an estimated $400 million more in partner contributions—for a total of nearly $800 million—to improve the nation's water quality, support wildlife habitat and enhance the environment. RCPP competitively awards funds to conservation projects designed by local partners specifically for their region. Eligible partners include private companies, universities, non-profit organizations, local and tribal governments and others joining with agricultural and conservation organizations and producers to invest money, manpower and materials to their proposed initiatives.
GFB News Alert page 5 of 8 COURT HEARS ARGUMENTS IN APPEAL OF VIDALIA ONION START DATE The Georgia Court of Appeals heard oral arguments on Jan. 14 in the case to determine whether Georgia’s agriculture commissioner can determine when Vidalia onions can be packed and shipped. The suit was filed by Tattnall Ccounty farmer Delbert Bland, who wanted to continue the practice of shipping onions before the official shipping date under the condition that they pass inspections for quality. Bland grows Vidalia onions on about 3,000, acres, approximately a fourth of the acreage on which the Vidalia onion crop is grown. In a rule published in 2013, the Georgia Department of Agriculture (GDA) established the Monday of the last full week of April as the earliest packing date of the Vidalia onion marketing season, citing quality concerns. In March 2014 the Fulton County Superior Court struck down the GDA rule. The state appealed. According to published reports the Georgia Court of Appeals could take as long as three months to issue its ruling. A group of 11 growers accounting for 5,000 acres of Vidalia onion production filed a friend of the court brief with the Georgia Court of Appeals in support of the action taken by the GDA. On Jan. 26 Fulton Superior Court Superior Court Judge Wendy Shoob issued a clarification on last year’s ruling, saying that the GDA exceeded its authority when it changed the start date for Vidalia onions and is prohibited from enforcing its packing date rule while the case is on appeal. USDA DEREGULATES HERBICIDE-TOLERANT TRAIT FOR COTTON, SOYBEANS On Jan. 20 the USDA published a Federal Register notice of deregulated status for Monsanto’s dicamba-tolerant traits in cotton and soybean seeds. According to the National Cotton Council, this decision to deregulate dicamba means that Monsanto is now free to transport, process, package and distribute cotton and soybean seeds of this new technology. The EPA is nearing completion of its concurrent review of the new use of the related herbicides on these genetically engineered plants. It is expected that EPA will make its proposed regulatory decision in the coming months. Dicamba may not be used on these crops until EPA has approved the use on the label.
GFB News Alert page 6 of 8 GEORGIA DAIRY FINANCIAL & MANAGEMENT DECISION WORKSHOPS Jan. 29 Brooks County Extension Office 229-263-4103 Quitman Feb. 3 Burke County Extension Office 706-554-2119 Waynesboro The University of Georgia Extension, along with the University of Florida, are releasing three new printed and electronic dairy budgets for dairy producers using conventional, grazing, or hybrid production systems. The two universities will also be releasing several stand-alone decision-aids. These workshops are designed to help dairy producers and managers learn to utilize these free Excel budgets and decision-aids programs for their operations. The workshops are free, but pre-registration is requested to plan for meal and laptop usage. Please call the phone number provided for each meeting. When registering, please indicate whether you will bring your own laptop or would like one provided for you. VEGETABLE GROWERS WORKSHOP Jan. 30 UGA Griffin Student Learning Center 9 a.m. – 3 p.m. Griffin This program will cover many aspects of how to grow vegetables for food and/or profit. The workshop will cover a range of topics, including how to select varieties and grow from transplants, understanding Georgia soils, planting and maintenance of vegetables and more. The program will provide handouts and includes lunch and break refreshments. Pesticide credits will be offered. Cost is $30 and preregistration is required. To register, visit http://tinyurl.com/pjabm69. For more information contact Beth Horne at 770-228-7214. SALES CLOSING DATE NEARS FOR CROP INSURANCE IN GEORGIA Jan. 31 is the sales closing date for crop insurance in Georgia. This sales closing date applies to crop insurance policies for fresh market tomatoes in Colquitt, Decatur, Grady, Mitchell and Seminole counties and pecans in eligible counties in the state. The sales closing date is the last day to buy a new policy or change an existing policy’s coverage level. Crop insurance is sold and delivered solely through private crop insurance agents. Contact a local crop insurance agent for more information about the program. A list of crop insurance agents is available at all USDA service centers or on the Risk Management Agency website at: www.rma.usda.gov/tools/agents/. 2015 GA/FLA SOYBEAN ASSOCIATION SOYBEAN/SMALL GRAIN EXPO Feb. 5 Georgia National Fairgrounds & Agricenter Perry The Expo will provide up-to-date marketing projections and the newest production techniques, as well as remarks from University of Georgia College of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences leaders. Featured speakers are UGA Extension Economist Dr. Nathan Smith, who will give a world outlook for southern ag commodities; American Farm Bureau Federation Deputy Chief Economist John Anderson, who will discuss the 2014 farm bill and Dow AgroSciences Field Specialist Dr. Ralph Lassiter, who will discuss Dow Enlist technology. The registration fee is $10 for advance registration or $20 on the date of the Expo. Please make checks payable to the Georgia /Florida Soybean Association, mail to 2425 South Milledge Avenue, Athens, Georgia 30605. Registration must be received before Feb. 1. For more information contact the Georgia/Florida Soybean Association at 706-542-3793 should you have questions or comments.
GFB News Alert page 7 of 8 SOUND AND SENSIBLE ORGANIC CERTIFICATION WORKSHOP Feb. 5 Clarke County Extension Office 8:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. Athens Hosted by the National Center for Appropriate Technology (NCAT), this workshop is intended to enlist new farmers and ranchers and help them learn how to become National Organic Program (NOP)-certified. It will provide information and expertise to farmers interested in NOP and answer questions regarding organic farm practices and NOP certification. This event is free, and lunch will be provided. For more information contact NCAT's Gulf States Regional Director Rockiell Woods at rockw@ncat.org or call 479-575-1385. To register, visit https://www.ncat.org/events. GFB OFFERING COLLEGE SCHOLARSHIPS Feb. 6 Deadline to apply Georgia Farm Bureau is offering 10 Scholarships for Agriculture for high school seniors who plan to pursue a college undergraduate degree in agricultural and environmental sciences, family and consumer sciences or a related agricultural. The top three students will each receive a $3,000 scholarship. The remaining seven students will each receive a $750 scholarship. Students submitting an application must currently be a Georgia high school senior and plan to enroll in a unit of the University System of Georgia or Berry College during the 2015-2016 academic year. Scholarship recipients will be announced in April. Contact your county Farm Bureau office for more information or an application. Applications must be approved and signed by the Farm Bureau president of the county in which the applicant lives or attends high school. You may also download a copy of the application by visiting http://bit.ly/gfbschols. OLD SOUTH FARM MUSEUM HOG KILLING DEMONSTRATION Feb. 7 Old South Farm Museum 8:30 a.m. Woodland This event will demonstrate how farmers once slaughtered hogs on their farms for their families and the many products made from hogs. Program includes a meat-cutting class and demonstrations on making various products from pork including sausage, Brunswick stew, meat skins and lye soap. Classes run from 8:30 a.m. into the afternoon. Breakfast and lunch will be sold at the museum. The fee to observe and receive free sausage is $12 per person. The fee is $35 to participate in the workshop demonstrations with hands-on experience and receive pork products. Feb. 2 is the deadline to pre-register. For more information or to register, contact Paul Bulloch at 706-975-9136 or visit www.oldsouthfarm.com to print the registration form to be mailed with payment to Bulloch. NATIONAL PEANUT BOARD NOMINATION MEETING Feb. 11 UGA NESPAL Building 8:30 a.m. Tifton The Georgia Peanut Commission will hold a meeting to select two nominees to represent Georgia on the National Peanut Board and two nominees to serve as alternate. All eligible peanut producers are encouraged to attend the meeting and are eligible for nomination. Eligible producers are defined as those who grow and sale peanuts and who own or share the ownership and risk of loss of the crop. USDA requires each peanut producing state to nominate two nominees for the position of board member and two for alternate. The National Peanut Board will submit Georgia’s slate of nominees to the U.S. Secretary of Agriculture, who makes the appointments. John Harrell of Whigham is the current Georgia NPB Board member. Andy Bell of Climax serves as the alternate.
GFB News Alert page 8 of 8 BEEF QUALITY ASSURANCE TRAINING Feb. 26 Brooks County Extension 6 p.m. – 9 p.m. Quitman This training is for beef producers who have never been certified under the Beef Quality Assurance (BQA) program or those who need to renew their certification. RSVP by Feb. 12. A meal will be provided. For more information please contact Kurt Childers at 229-561-3466 or email him at kurtchilders@windstream.net. VETERANS AND SMALL FARMERS WORKSHOPS Feb. 19 Fort Valley State University Pettigrew Center Fort Valley March 12 Gwinnett Technical College Busbee Center Lawrenceville These one-day workshops are designed to provide veterans and small farmers with knowledge of funds and programs available to them. Each workshop begins with registration at 8:30 a.m. and runs through 4:30 p.m. Topics include the 2014 farm bill, micro-irrigation, Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) veteran ranking process, small vs. large farms, organic certification, seasonal high tunnels, and more! Early registration and payment of the $20 fee can be completed online at http://conta.cc/1vjYPvM or call 678-376-9518 with any other questions. Please select specific workshop location under session section of link. SMALL FARM CONFERENCE Feb. 26-27 Unicoi State Park Helen The Broad River Soil and Water Conservation District, in partnership with the Upper Chattahoochee River Soil and Water Conservation District and USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service, is hosting this conference to educate farmers with small-scale operations on ways to improve their operations and make them run more efficiently and profitably. The conference will feature general sessions that will cover major agricultural topics, as well as breakout sessions that will cover unique topics of interest to small farming operations. Registration for the conference is $225 per person. However, through sponsorship from the Broad River Soil and Water Conservation District, the first 120 people to reserve a spot will receive a fully-paid scholarship for the event. Registration must be received by Feb. 20. For more information, and to register for the event, contact the Georgia Soil and Water Conservation Commission Region II office in Athens at 706-552-4479. UGA ACCEPTING CAES ALUMNI AWARD NOMINATIONS The UGA College of Agricultural & Environmental Sciences Alumni Association invites you to make nominations for its Young Alumni Achievement Award, Alumni Award of Excellence and the Georgia Agricultural Hall of Fame. The Young Alumni Achievement Award is for alumni who are 35 years old or younger and who have achieved excellence in their chosen field and/or in their community. The CAES Alumni Award of Excellence recognizes extraordinary CAES alumni 36 years or older. The purpose of the Hall of Fame is to recognize individuals making unusual and extraordinary contributions to agriculture and agribusiness industries in Georgia. The Young Alumni Achievement and Alumni Excellence awards must be received by Feb. 28. Hall of Fame nominations must be postmarked by March 15. For more information or to make nominations for these awards, visit http://www.caes.uga.edu/alumni/CAA/scholarships.html.