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Logan
Hawkes
10/04/06
Crop News Weekly
Already the October moon hangs in the evening
sky and harvest continues across the Midwest at an accelerated rate.
Iowa corn farmers are reporting the crop isn't a record and not as dry
as a couple of weeks back, but say they still expect a decent yield. A
few enterprising farmers have opened their Harvest corn maze operations,
a growing trend to produce non-traditional farm revenue. All in all it's
a good time of year to be involved in farming. With midterm elections
looming, that could change.
In the top of the news this week, you've heard the expression
"penny-wise and pound foolish." A new study released by the University
of Tennessee's Agriculture Policy Analysis Center says ideas about doing
away with the Conservation Reserve Program could be just that. As
Congress prepares the next farm bill, some organizations are suggesting
that it do away with or scale back the 34.7-million-acre Conservation
Reserve and make more land available for farming. In other news, just
when U.S. farmers thought they could breath a little easier about the
Doha Round, U.S. Trade Representative Susan Schwab reportedly said the
United States is willing to make more reductions in its farm programs to
help re-start the world trade negotiations. Elsewhere, Midwest harvest
is underway with mixed results being reported so far. Soybeans are
strong in some areas, not so good in others. Overall it looks like it
will be a productive year. Review the crop report in this issue for all
the details. Meanwhile, Brazilian officials have filed a second request
for a new World Trade Organization panel to investigate U.S. compliance
with an earlier WTO dispute panel ruling against the USDA cotton
program, once again indicating the U.S. ag industry remains subject to
global complications. Elsewhere this week, according to a recent grower
survey, bioenergy and the structure of safety net programs are of high
interest to farmers and ranchers as the next farm bill is debated. And
finally this week, farm-state senators struck out in their first attempt
to pass a new emergency assistance bill. The issue is expected to garner
a lot of attention when Congress returns and faces the reality of
midterm elections.
There's a lot of news to cover this week, so dig in and enjoy. And
thanks for reading Crop News Weekly.
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CRP
savings would be costly, analysts say
10/03/06
You've heard the expression "penny-wise and pound
foolish." A new study released by the University of Tennessee's
Agriculture Policy Analysis Center says ideas about doing away with the
Conservation Reserve Program could be just that. As Congress prepares to
get down to the task of writing the next farm bill, some organizations
are suggesting that it do away with or scale back the 34.7-million-acre
Conservation Reserve to save federal tax dollars and make more land
available for growing crops. - Forrest Laws, Farm Press Editorial
Staff
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More
fodder for U.S. policy critics
10/01/06
Just when U.S. farmers thought they could breath a
little easier about the Doha Round, U.S. Trade Representative Susan
Schwab reportedly said the United States is willing to make more
reductions in its farm programs to help re-start the world trade
negotiations. According to press reports, Schwab was attending a meeting
in Cairns, Australia, when she said Washington was willing to give more
ground on the subsidies issue, which supposedly led to the collapse of
the Doha Round negotiations in Geneva in July. - Forrest Laws, Farm
Press Editorial Staff
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Thiesse's
Thoughts: Harvest underway
09/27/06
The fall corn and soybean harvest is now getting into
full swing in many portions of southern and western Minnesota. Primary
attention is being focused on the soybean harvest, as many soybeans have
now reached maturity, and timeliness is very critical to prevent soybean
harvest loss. Frequent rainfall events in the past couple of weeks have
slowed soybean harvest in many areas. Early soybean yield reports are
predictably highly variable in Southern Minnesota, ranging from less
than 40 bu./acre to over 60 bu./acre. Most growers are reporting good to
excellent soybean yields thus far. - Kent Thiesse, The Corn & Soybean
Digest
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Brazil
asks WTO to investigate U.S. in trade dispute
09/29/06
Brazilian officials have filed a second request for a
new World Trade Organization panel to investigate U.S. compliance with
an earlier WTO dispute panel ruling against the USDA cotton program. The
Bush administration blocked the first request, which was filed earlier
this month, but will be unable to prevent the formation of a review
panel now that the government of Brazil has filed the second petition.
The filing occurred in advance of a WTO meeting in Geneva Sept. 28. -
Forrest Laws, Farm Press Editorial Staff
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News from the Top of the
Hill
09/29/06
National Hog Farmer
Congress in Recess -- Congress was trying to
complete action on a number of bills before leaving town until after the
November 7 elections late last week. Congress is leaving a number of
unfinished items for the lame duck session later this year. Only two
appropriations bills, defense and homeland security, are expected to be
completed before they leave. All of the remaining appropriations bills,
including agriculture, will be considered when Congress returns the week
of November 13. Other items that will be left for November are disaster
assistance, immigration reform, estate tax, tax research and development
tax credits, Commodities Exchange Act, etc. A concern to many is will
the lame duck session be for only one week in November or will it
carry-over into December.
AG Groups Ask House to Vote on Disaster Assistance --
Congressman John Barrow (D-GA) has filed a discharge petition trying to
force the House Republican leadership to allow a vote on disaster
assistance before Congress leaves for the November elections. Over
thirty agricultural organizations sent a letter this week to every
member of the House of Representatives urging them to sign the discharge
petition. It takes 218 signatures to force a vote. The groups said, "A
disaster is a disaster -- regardless if it comes from a hurricane,
tornado, flood or drought. There are myriad nationwide agricultural
disasters -- from coast to coast. Congress should not continue to fail
to act." Currently, USDA has declared over 66 percent of all U.S.
counties as primary or contiguous disaster areas. Agricultural
organizations signing the letter included: American Farm Bureau
Federation, American Soybean Association, American Sugar Alliance,
Independent Community Bankers of America, National Association of Wheat
Growers, National Corn Growers Association, National Cotton Council,
National Farmers Organization, National Farmers Union, National Grange,
USA Rice Federation, and Women Involved in Farm Economics.
EPA Particulate Matter and Air Quality Rule -- EPA issued its
national air quality standards rule, "National Ambient Air Quality
Standards," to address fine and coarse particle pollution or particulate
matter. The rule strengthens EPA's previous daily fine particle standard
by nearly 50 percent. The standard will go from 65 micrograms of
particles per cubic meter to 35 micrograms of particles per cubic meter
of air. Many agricultural groups had asked that agriculture be exempt,
which it was not in the final rule. Senator Charles Grassley (R-IA) has
asked EPA Administrator Stephen Johnson to come and visit his farm so he
could understand how the EPA expects farmers to contain dust on their
farms. In the invitation letter to Johnson, Grassley said, "This visit
will allow you to show me first hand how a farmer is to contain dust on
their farm while combining." The American Farm Bureau Federation said,
"Because agriculture will be included in the rule, it will be all the
more critical to examine the breadth of the rule, and the monitoring
provisions that will follow, to gauge their impact on farming and
ranching operation."
USDA Appointments -- J. Burton Eller, Jr., has been appointed
USDA Under Secretary for Marketing and Regulatory Programs. He will
assist Under Secretary Bruce Knight and Deputy Under Secretary Chuck
Lambert with the Agricultural Marketing Service, Animal and Plant Health
Inspection Service, and Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards
Administration. Eller had been serving as an official of the Farm
Service Agency. At one time, Eller was an executive of the National
Cattlemen's Association. - Scott Shearer
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Road
Warrior: Asian Free Trade Zone
09/26/06
Dave Kohl writes: "North America and Europe
aren't the only regions of the world that may have free trade zones.
Backed by the economic powers of Japan and China, a new free trade zone
is being explored. This zone would represent over half of the world's
population and about 25% of the world's GDP, about $10 trillion. This
new zone could challenge the old spheres of the Western World. The U.S.
and Canada were absent in the initial discussions despite close trade
links with this region. Formal negotiation could begin in 2008 when the
world is focused on China and the Olympics." - The Corn & Soybean
Digest
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Bioenergy,
safety net are top farm bill priorities
09/28/06
Bioenergy and the structure of safety net programs are
of high interest to farmers and ranchers as the next farm bill is
debated, according to more than 15,000 farmers and ranchers in 27 states
surveyed by Farm Foundation's National Public Policy Education
Committee. Producers ranked renewable energy, enhancing opportunities
for small and beginning farmers, and assuring a safe and affordable food
supply as their top three goals for the next farm bill.
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Drought
relief likely hot issue in October
09/27/06
Farm-state senators struck out in their first attempt
to pass a new emergency assistance bill when Sen. Ben Nelson, D-Neb.,
attempted to attach it to a port security bill. But, even if Republicans
continue to bottle up the legislation, they are likely to hear plenty
about it when they return to the campaign trail for the Nov. 7
elections. Nelson's amendment failed to get a vote on Sept. 14 after
Republicans said it wasn't germane to the port security bill. Sens.
Nelson, Kent Conrad, D-N.D., and Conrad Burns, R-Mont., say they will
keep trying to find a way to pass the measure. - Forrest Laws, Farm
Press Editorial Staff
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Emergency
appropriations reform bill introduced
09/29/06
Saying he wants to ensure emergency assistance bills
only help those with emergencies, Rep. Randy Neugebauer, R-Texas, has
introduced legislation that would limit how Congress responds to natural
disasters. Neugebauer's legislation, the Responsible Emergency
Appropriation Limits Supplemental Act, H.R. 6176, would change House
rules so that an emergency supplemental appropriations bill can only
provide for a single emergency, contain only emergency spending, and
must be free of earmarks. - Forrest Laws, Farm Press Editorial
Staff
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Louisiana
soybean/corn harvest progressing rapidly
09/29/06
Farmers harvesting Louisiana crops continue to dodge
late-season rains. Now on the tail-end of collecting the soybean crop,
"harvest is progressing rapidly," says David Lanclos, LSU AgCenter
soybean/corn specialist. "I'm extremely optimistic with how things are
shaping up. "Farmers are wrapping up the latest-planted soybeans in the
sugarcane area. The average on those beans should be in the low
40-bushel range." - David Bennett, Farm Press Editorial Staff
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Commentary:
Renewable fuels are coming of age
09/28/06
Renewable fuels are coming of age and that's great for
rural America. As the nation works to reduce our dependence on foreign
sources of oil, the potential for renewable fuels on the agricultural
economy can be summed up in three words: positive, significant and
imminent. The road to energy independence runs through the farm, and
USDA Rural Development is playing a key role in encouraging the new
agriculture economy represented by the renewable fuels industry. -
Under Secretary Thomas C. Dorr
United States Department of Agriculture
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Renewable
energy conference scheduled Oct. 10-12
09/28/06
The U.S. Department of Agriculture and the U.S.
Department of Energy will sponsor a conference on renewable energy Oct.
10-12 at the Americas Center in St. Louis. The event, "Advancing
Renewable Energy: An American Rural Renaissance," is designed to create
partnerships and strategies that will accelerate commercialization of
renewable energy industries and distribution systems, the crux of
President Bush's Advanced Energy Initiative.
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Specialty
crops legislation benefits farmers
09/28/06
Calling it "an important step forward in improving
farm policy to make U.S. agriculture more competitive and provide
expanded benefits to both farmers and consumers," American Farmland
Trust has endorsed the Equitable Agriculture for a Healthy America Act.
The legislation was introduced today by a broad bi-partisan
Congressional coalition led by Representatives Richard Pombo (R-CA),
Adam Putnam (R-FL), Dennis Cardoza (D-CA) and John Salazar (D-CO).
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Grain
combine fires; still a burning problem
09/26/06
University of Minnesota research show that combine and
tractor fires still cause millions of dollars in property losses each
year and even more because of lost time and downed crops during the busy
harvest season. Fires not only cause huge losses and waste time...they
also cause dozens of injuries each year, and occasionally a person is
killed because of a farm machinery fire. - The Corn & Soybean
Digest
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Last
straw -- farm programs blamed for obesity
09/27/06
Big bad agriculture is at it again. This time, our
farm programs are being blamed for the obesity epidemic in developing
countries. According to Philip James, the British chairman of the
International Obesity Task Force at the 10th International Obesity
Congress in Sydney, Australia, existing farm policies, particularly
agricultural subsidies in the European Union and the United States, have
been damaging people's health for decades. - Elton Robinson, Farm
Press Editorial Staff
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2006
Mid-South harvest early for some crops
09/27/06
The 2006 harvest season is a little ahead of schedule
in the Mid-South, according to USDA's Sept. 25 crop progress report. In
some areas, however, crop conditions are iffy at best. About 17 percent
of the U.S. cotton crop has been harvested, compared to 15 percent last
year and a five-year average of 14 percent.
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Late surge
in ASR cases not concern for soybean crop
09/27/06
Louisiana's latest confirmation of Asian soybean rust
came Sept. 25 with a find in St. Landry Parish. The disease has been
found in 16 parishes. "If you look where these cases have occurred on
the map, there are only a couple of soybean parishes left that don't
officially have ASR," says Clayton Hollier, LSU AgCenter plant
pathologist "However, we have deep suspicions the disease is there. It
just hasn't been found yet. It's probably just a matter of time before
ASR is found in those holdouts." - David Bennett, Farm Press
Editorial Staff
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Ground
Swell: Survey Finds Farmland Values Up Again
A Purdue University survey of farm lenders,
appraisers, land brokers and farm managers found that Hoosier cropland
posted strong gains in value during the year that ended in June. The
survey also revealed that cash rents rose in the same period but by a
much smaller percentage. Purdue's Department of Agricultural Economics
conducts the survey each June. Indiana farmland values have trended
higher for about 20 consecutive years, says Craig Dobbins, a Purdue
agricultural economist and survey coordinator. - Purdue
University
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American
Cowman launched
About 90% of the beef cow-calf operations in the U.S.
are small family farms with herds of 100 head of cattle or fewer,
according to USDA. Collectively, these family beef operations contribute
an important share of the American beef supply, along with having an
essential role in the stewardship of natural resources and the
leadership and social fabric of rural communities. BEEF magazine
recognizes the importance of this beef production sector, and recently
launched a new electronic venture called American Cowman that is
designed to meet the information needs of today's family-owned cattle
herds with up to 100 head. The American Cowman effort consists of a Web
site (
http://www.americancowman.com.) and American Cowman Update, a
twice-monthly electronic newsletter to be sent free to subscribers.
Both endeavors provide a resource of information on facilities,
nutrition, animal health, pasture and range, and genetics. Additionally
the website includes industry news, new products, and links to breed
associations, ranch horses, weather, markets, recipes, continuing
education opportunities, and books about beef and rural life. To learn
more and to subscribe to the American Cowman Update newsletter which
will be sent out free via e-mail on the second and fourth Wednesday of
each month, go to
http://www.americancowman.com.
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