WASHINGTON, D.C.—Senator Pat Roberts (R-Kan.), Ranking Member of the Senate Agriculture Committee, and Senator Jerry Moran (R-Kan.), a member of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Agriculture, today announced that Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) acreage is approved for emergency grazing for 12 Kansas counties.

“I am pleased that the USDA has recognized the severity of the drought we’re experiencing in Kansas,” said Roberts. “Cattle producers are facing severe hardship due to a lack of available feed caused by the drought, and I am pleased they now have this assistance provided to them.”

“With cattle inventories at the lowest level since the 1950’s, emergency grazing on CRP acres will allow producers to retain livestock they would otherwise be forced to sell as a result of forage shortfalls,” said Moran. “I hope FSA will continue to approve emergency grazing requests from other drought-affected counties as conditions merit.”

CRP emergency grazing acreage has been approved for Grant, Hamilton, Haskell, Kearny, Lane, Meade, Morton, Ness, Seward, Stafford, Stanton, and Stevens counties.

Emergency grazing is now allowed through September 30 of this year. Those who participate must leave at least 25% of each field ungrazed for wildlife, or not graze more than 75% of the stocking rate. All livestock must be removed by the end of the grazing period.

Those wishing to participate must contact the local FSA county office to request emergency grazing on an individual contract basis prior to grazing.  For more information, visit: http://www.fsa.usda.gov/ks/.

WASHINGTON – Sen. Mike Johanns (R-Neb.) has voted to oppose a measure that could have an adverse impact on gas prices and increase American dependence on foreign oil. Johanns voted against proceeding to debate on S. 940, a bill that would increase taxes on American energy companies. The bill required 60 votes to proceed and, failing 52-48, will not be brought to the Senate floor for debate.

“With our kids not even out of school for the summer and gas already more than four dollars a gallon, considering a bill that could raise gas prices for Nebraskans and increase our country’s dependence on foreign oil is out of the question,” Johanns said. “This bill’s proponents readily admit it will do nothing to help Americans at the pump, and the experts say there’s a good chance it could hurt. It’s time to focus on responsible energy policy aimed at lowering gas prices and encouraging American energy produced by American workers.”

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Background:

• S. 940 was written by Sen. Bob Menendez (D-N.J.)

• Quotes from the bill’s proponents:

o   “Nobody has made the claim that this bill is about reducing gas prices.” – Sen. Bob Menendez  (D-N.J.)

o   “It will not reduce gasoline prices by one penny.” – Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-La.)

o   “It is not a question of gas prices.” – Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.)

o   “This was never intended to talk about lowering prices.” – Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.)

 

 

 

 

 

The National Corn Growers Association recently sent a letter to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission stating the organization’s opposition to a proposed rule change that would increase daily price limits on Corn Futures and Options CBOT Rule 10102.D. A petition filed by the CME Group requests approval to increase the daily cap on corn futures and options trading from $0.30 per bushel to $0.40 per bushel. NCGA believes that this will not aid price discovery and that, ultimately, growers will bear the cost.

“We recognize the valuable role non-commercial traders and speculators play in the Futures market, but we also recognize that daily price limits serve as a check against irrational price runs,” NCGA President Bart Schott said. “This increase will needlessly increase market volatility and this added risk will, ultimately, be passed along to farmers.”

Schott also pointed out that, while the CME group cites the number of contracts that settled at their daily limit in the proposal, CME failed to show that trading was halted due to limits on back-to-back days.

“For growers, this issue is not a theoretical debate about price discovery, but a real dollar and cents concern. Under the proposed increase, grain elevators will face higher trading margins and more margin calls,” said Schott. “As a consequence, elevators may be forced to take actions that negatively impacted growers such as spreading the basis, adding new fees and curtailing bids for future grain contracts.”

NCGA urges growers and their allies to voice their opposition to this proposed rule change. Click here to register a comment with the CFTC before the period closes on Friday, May 20.

The increase in Mexican cattle imports thus far in the year is being offset by the decline in Canadian cattle imports. Through March, imports of Mexican cattle were 35 percent higher year-over-year, but imports of Canadian cattle were just over 35 percent below year-earlier levels for the quarter. The largest impediment to higher Canadian cattle imports, beside a lower Canadian cattle inventory, is a lower U.S.-Canadian slaughter cattle price differential, also a function of the higher exchange rate between the U.S. and Canadian dollars. The U.S.-Canadian slaughter steer price differential (5-Area, all grades vs. Alberta, mostly select 1-2) has remained well below the 5-year average thus far in the year and has yet even to match the price differential levels of 2010. Conversely, the spread between U.S. and Mexican feeder cattle prices (Las Cruces imported feeders vs. live grass-fed Mexico city steers) has continued to widen, a trend beginning in January 2010, but noticeably increasing since the Fall of 2010.

The North American Drought Monitor also classifies almost the entire region of Northern Mexico as experiencing extreme to severe drought as of March 31, 2011. Imported Mexican cattle are mainly entering U.S. feedlots directly, not surprising given the extension of drought conditions into Texas and surrounding States and U.S. feeder cattle demand.

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USDA\ERS
CattleTradeCenter.com

ST. LOUIS (May 17, 2011) — After a thorough analysis of empirical evidence, new peer-reviewed research calls into question one of the chief claims of ethanol opponents, the negative impact of so-called “indirect land use change” as a result of corn production for ethanol. To the National Corn Growers Association, this disproves yet another anti-ethanol myth that spread so easily in the mainstream media.

“It’s time for flat-earth ethanol opponents to back off on land use change,” said NCGA President Bart Schott. “Unless they can present clear and compelling data, they need to realize that  technology and science are not on their side. We’re growing much more corn per acre, and this – along with shifting demands – eliminates the need to significantly increase acreage to meet all needs.”

The new study, “Indirect Land Use Change for Biofuels: Testing Predictions and Improving Analytical Methodologies,” was prepared by Seungdo Kim and Bruce Dale of Michigan State University, and is to be published in an upcoming issue of Biomass and Bioenergy.

Prior studies on indirect land use change have failed to compare their predictions to past global historical data, Kim and Dale pointed out. They use an empirical approach to detect evidence for indirect land use change that might be catalyzed by United States ethanol production through a data-driven statistical approach, and the results show that biofuel production in the United States between 2002 and 2007 was not significantly correlated with changes in croplands for corn plus soybean in regions of the world that are corn and soybean trading partners of the United States.

This is not the first time a report has cast strong doubts on the idea of indirect land use change, Schott noted. A 2010 study by Oak Ridge National Laboratory found “little support” for large land-use conversion or diversion of corn exports because of ethanol production in the United States during the past decade.

MANHATTAN, Kan. — The Walnut Council Field Day scheduled for Thursday, June 2, in the northeast corner of Kansas will give equal attention to nut production, timber management and sawmill processing.

“All three are parts of a forest products industry that could be yielding more and better returns in Kansas. And, that’s saying quite a bit, given that black walnuts already are the state’s most valuable forest resource,” said Dave Bruton, Kansas Forest Service district forester who helped organize the council’s annual event.

Field day check-in will begin at 8:30 a.m. near Troy, Kan., at the plantation George Rush has established with improved cultivars of black walnut. After a series of morning sessions there, participants will travel to Wathena for lunch (covered in the event’s $10 registration fee) and afternoon sessions at the Hewins’ Sawmill.

If the weather brings rain, the entire day’s program will be in Troy’s fair building at 211 North Boder St.

Those who register by May 31 also will have their names put into a drawing for a chance to buy one of 20 grafted Kwik Krop black walnut trees for $5. (The cultivar regularly sells for five to six times that much.) A development of Stark Bro’s in Missouri, Kwik Krop is producing big crops of easy-to-shell nuts in half the time that wild black walnut trees require.

Directions for registering and for driving to the Rush plantation are online in the field day brochure at http://www.kansasforests.org/calendar/index.shtml.  For further information, participants can contact council member Larry Rutter by phone (785-484-2509) or email (lrutter@embarqmail.com).

The day’s speakers and their topics will include:

• * Why use improved black walnut varieties? – John Knorr, president, Nebraska Nut Growers Association.
• * Black walnut pruning and management techniques – Bill Reid, nationally recognized Kansas State University Research and Extension specialist in nut production.
• * Bonus benefits of black walnut riparian plantings – Carl Johnson, coordinator, Missouri River Watershed Restoration and Protection Strategy (WRAPS) group.
• * Industry perspective of log quality (walking tour) – Marty Hewins and Gary Rudloff, each of whom has more than 30 years of experience in identifying and grading quality black walnut logs.
• * Thousand cankers disease (always fatal to black walnut trees): update on Kansas’ quarantine – Jeff Vogel, the Kansas Department of Agriculture’s program manager for plant protection, and Nicole Ricci, the Kansas Forest Service’s forest health specialist.
• * Evaluating and processing a log, grading and valuing the lumber – Michael Hewins, Christopher Hewins and Marty Hewins.

While they’re growing, black walnut trees reduce erosion, as well as provide shade and beauty, Bruton said. When harvested, they benefit from Kansas walnuts’ worldwide reputation for quality wood. Much of their timber goes overseas into the manufacture of veneers, to cover lesser woods.

As a group, Kansans also sell an average 1 million pounds of walnut nuts to Hammons Products Company in Stockton, Mo.  While the nutmeats are a favorite for cooking, the shells can become a variety of products, including gentle abrasives for both jewelry polishing and skin exfoliation.

In a late fall 2010 interview, CEO Brian Hammons said his company pays more for walnuts from named varieties. In 2006, for example, it bought 41,000 pounds of black walnuts from just 11 producers growing such cultivars as Kwik Krop, Emma-K and TomBoy. Their average price was 50 cents a pound, while the top price was 82 cents per pound. The growers produced more nuts per tree, and their nuts were an average 23.4 percent kernel.

That same year, the company typically purchased wild trees’ nuts for 8 to 13 cents a pound, Hammons said. Those nuts’ yield rate averaged about 7 percent kernel.

He urged growers who want to make extra money via agroforestry to consider planting black walnut trees that are grafted with improved cultivars.

K-State Research and Extension is a short name for the Kansas State University Agricultural Experiment Station and Cooperative Extension Service, a program designed to generate and distribute useful knowledge for the well-being of Kansans.  Supported by county, state, federal and private funds, the program has county Extension offices, experiment fields, area Extension offices and research centers statewide. Its headquarters is on the K-State campus in Manhattan.

From Drovers CattleNetwork
Greg Henderson, Editor, Associate Publisher

Count U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack among those who believe the Birds Point levee should be rebuilt. Last week Vilsack sent a letter to Secretary of the Army John McHugh urging him to commit to rebuilding the levee in Missouri as soon as conditions allow.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers used dynamite to blast open the levee in three locations on May 2 to relieve flooding in Cairo, IL. As a result, about 200 square miles of fertile farmland was flooded, and more than 200 people were forced to evacuate approximately 90 homes. The flooding also presumably discharged stored agricultural chemicals, petroleum products and LP-propane gas into the environment.

As yet, McHugh and the Army Corps of Engineers has not committed to rebuilding the levee. In the letter, Vilsack asked the Corps of Engineers to make a public commitment, saying, “The more quickly the levee can be rebuilt, the sooner our farmers can ranchers can be back in their homes, back in their fields and back on their feet.”

Rebuilding the levee, however, will not happen without opposition. Last week three Southern Illinois University professors wrote to President Obama urging that the levees not be rebuilt, and that the area be “left open to the river and allowed to be inundated regularly.”

That idea swiftly met criticism from Missouri Farm Bureau president Blake Hurst, who believes the new wetland created by such a decision would result in a giant mosquito hatchery. “It’s imperative that we drown this foolish idea in its infancy. The levees must be repaired as soon as it dries enough for dirt to be moved.”

The intentional breach of the Birds Point levee has quickly become a controversial issue, drawing comments from national politicians. Last week Vice President Joe Biden visited St. Louis touring destruction left by last month’s storms. He praised the Corps of Engineers’ decision to breach the levee.

“As bad as it is, and it is bad, it is evidence that the Corps of Engineers has come up with a method along the Mississippi to be able to mitigate some of the significant damage that otherwise would have occurred,” Biden said. “It’s a hard thing, and it’s just evidence of the fact that there is a need for something larger.”

Those comments outraged U.S. Rep. Jo Ann Emerson, who represents Southeast Missouri where the Birds Point levee is located.

“I believe it was an ignorant comment in the literal meaning of the word,” Emerson said. “His comments were ignorant and uninformed. It shows a total lack of understanding.”

Rural Missourians are outraged about the Birds Point levee breach because it is estimated the agricultural economy lost $65 million due to the flooding. Emerson noted that, so far, there has been no public indication by Biden or the corps that the federal government will provide assistance to farmers and other residents for flood recovery.

In a news release, Emerson’s office says “there is no evidence to suggest that any reduction in Mississippi River flood stages at Birds Point last week will lead to a reduction in damage as the crest moves downstream.”

Officials say the breach did reduce river levels upstream. Before the breach, On May 2, the Ohio River at Cairo peaked at 61.72 feet, a record. The river was at 56.49 feet at 4 p.m. on May 12.

WASHINGTON, May 17, 2011 – On Monday, May 23, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack will appear on RFD-TV for a special LIVE show at 6:30 p.m. to discuss the importance of producing renewable energy here at home and reducing America’s dependence on imported oil.  Secretary Vilsack will highlight the role of farmers, ranchers and rural businesses in building a more secure, sustainable energy supply and the economic and job creation opportunities for America’s small towns and communities.

The Secretary will take questions from RFD-TV’s national television audience along with special guests made up of rural youth, including FFA and 4-H members.

Deadline to apply is June 30, 2011

(JEFFERSON CITY, Mo.) — The Missouri Department of Agriculture announced today that the Missouri Agricultural and Small Business Development Authority (MASBDA) has funding available to accept additional applications for the 2011 Dairy Business Planning Grant Program.

This funding will enable dairy producers to work with a qualified dairy business planning professional to develop a business plan for the startup, modernization, expansion or increased production of a Missouri dairy farm.  Funding for the Dairy Business Planning Grant Program is provided by the Missouri Soybean Association and the Missouri Dairy Growth Council.

“The dairy industry is vitally important to Missouri, and as such we greatly appreciate the investments of organizations like the Missouri Soybean Association and Missouri Dairy Growth Council,” said Director of Agriculture, Dr. Jon Hagler.  “These business planning grants will help farmers as they seek innovative ways to grow and further develop their existing operations as well as provide needed assistance to those who want to enter the dairy industry.”

The dairy planning grant may finance 90 percent of the cost of the business plan, up to $5,000.  The dairy producer is required to pay at least 10 percent of the cost of the work done.  Applications are scored competitively.

Applications are online at mda.mo.gov and must be received by MASBDA no later than 5 p.m. on Thurs., June 30, 2011.  For more information, contact MASBDA at (573)751-2129 or masbda@mda.mo.gov.

For more information on the grant or to view an application packet, visit mda.mo.gov.