FarmWeek May 7 2012

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Monday, May 7, 2012 Two sections Volume 40, No. 19

FarmWeek on the web: FarmWeekNow.com Illinois Farm Bureau®on the web: www.ilfb.org

The U.S. eNvIrONMeN-TAl Protection Agency (EPA) andits regulatory agenda are comingunder greater public scrutiny. ..........4

PrOPOSeD legislation thatwould use “quick take” powers fora tollway project concerns IllinoisFarm Bureau. ..................................3

DOMINO’S PIZZA rebukesthe Humane Society of the U.S.and delivers a “common sense”policy for hog farmers. .................2

Country elevators prepare for expanded trading hoursBY DANIEL GRANTFarmWeek

CME Group’s decision toexpand electronic trading hoursfor grains and oilseeds couldpresent opportunities and chal-lenges for local elevators andfarmers.

CME Group this monthplans to expand market accessto Chicago Board of Tradecorn, ethanol, soybeans,wheat, soybean meal, oats, andrice futures/options to 22hours per day via CMEGlobex, an electronic tradingplatform, starting May 21.

Traders will have access toCME Globex from 6 p.m. inthe evening to 4 p.m. the fol-lowing day, Monday throughFriday. CME Globex will openat 5 p.m. on Sundays.

Open outcry trading hourswill remain the same, 9:30 a.m.to 1:15 p.m. Monday throughFriday. The time changes gointo effect May 20 for the tradedate of Monday, May 21.

The Minneapolis Grain

“The world is changing. Ithink this could add to (cus-tomer) demands down the

road,” said Dennis, who notedmany small elevators would notbe able to have staff available 24hours per day to take grainorders.

Country elevator managers

also will have to determinewhen to conduct day-in proce-dures, which include record-keeping and posting grainpositions, according to HughWhalen, commodity risk con-sultant for Mid-Co Commodi-ties.

Day-in procedures currentlyare conducted at the 1:15 p.m.close, but the markets soon willremain open until 4 p.m.

“There is some concern (ele-vator managers) will have to waituntil after 4 p.m. to do their day-in procedure,” said Whalen, whonoted many elevators during theoff-season close at 4:30 p.m.

See Trading, page 2

Exchange and Kansas CityBoard of Trade last week alsounveiled plans to expand trad-ing hours to 22 hours per day.

“In response to customerfeedback, we’re expanding trad-ing hours for our grain andoilseed products to ensure cus-tomers have even greater accessto these effective price discov-ery tools,” said Tim Andriesen,managing director of ag com-modities and alternative invest-ments at CME Group.

Steve Dennis, grain depart-ment manager at Evergreen FSand president of the Grain andFeed Association of Illinois,believes the expanded hours arefor traders and expects the

move to be mostly a non-eventin the countryside.

“(Traders/farmers) will have

a lot more options (to marketgrain) without having to call andtalk to a person,” Dennis said.

However, expanded tradinghours could present challengesat some elevators.

‘The world is changing. I think this couldadd to (customer) demands down theroad.’

— Steve DennisEvergreen FS

Costello: Keep infrastructure improvements moving alongBY MARTIN ROSSFarmWeek

With a $9.2 billion blue-print for prospective Illi-nois road and bridgeupgrades at stake, HouseTransportation and Infra-structure Committeemember Jerry Costelloargues Congress mustmove forward with majorhighway measures.

The Belleville Democraturges fellow House-Senate

transportation conferees to adopt the Sen-ate’s two-year, bipartisan $109 billion surfacetransportation bill, rather than the House’s90-day stopgap extension of the current“highway bill” proposed by House leaders.

Illinois Farm Bureau President PhilipNelson maintains approval of key Senateprovisions “would help Illinois immedi-ately address its significant transportationinfrastructure needs.”

Senators rejected House TransportationChairman John Mica’s (R-Fla.) original planto tie approval of a Canadian/U.S. KeystoneXL oil pipeline to the bill. That and otherdifferences in House-Senate proposalsprompted House approval of a mere exten-sion of current highway programs.

House conferees reportedly have beenasked to push Keystone as part of a confer-ence agreement. In addition, Costello antici-

pates strong Senate resistance as well tomajor “environmental streamlining” provi-sions House Republicans propose to tie tofuture transportation projects.

Costello, in fact, supports Keystone, buthe told FarmWeek lawmakers should con-sider a standalone vote on Keystone “if it’sgoing to kill this (transportation) bill.”

In a letter to Illinois congressmen,Costello and Springfield Democrat con-feree Sen. Dick Durbin argued “we mustbe serious about securing a meaningful,sustainable transportation funding plan topromote our economic future.”

Illinois Department of Transportationofficials last week released a new blueprintthat includes improvements to Central Illi-nois’ Interstate 74, a study into the feasi-bility of a new interstate across southern-most Illinois, and replacement or rehabili-tation of 500-plus bridges.

According to IDOT, the plan couldcreate 120,000 jobs over the next six years,but it is contingent on receiving $6.5 bil-lion in federal funds.

“The $9 billion is based largely uponfederal money coming to IDOT,” Costellostressed. “We have to get a highway billpassed. We need to put aside our parochialdifferences and pass a clean highway billfor two years for $190 billion to move thecountry forward.”

Costello concedes another extension ulti-mately may be necessary. But he is hopeful

conferees can move forward “once we getpast the fact that there’s really only one billon the table — and that’s the Senate bill.”

Nelson noted the Senate plan includes ahighway funding formula that increases fed-eral funds for Illinois, sets aside funds in anew competitive project program thatostensibly “would benefit rural Illinois,” andmakes permanent soon-to- expire seasonal“hours of service” exemptions for ag driv-ers. Costello agreed the exemptions shouldbe permanent to assure certainty for Illinoisfarmers and their suppliers. The Senate’s funding proposals are “a lit-tle more favorable for Illinois” than wereoriginal House provisions, he said. “Wewould get current levels of funding, plus afew million more,” Costello related.

Costello acknowledged concerns abouthow rural Illinoisans might fare under theSenate’s competitive funding program. Abudget-conscious Congress has banned so-called spending “earmarks” in individual dis-tricts, but Costello notes past earmarksoverall have “benefited rural America.”

“Most of the highway dollars go tourban areas like Chicago or L.A.,” hemaintained. “It’s been the dollars thatmembers who represent rural districtswere able to direct through earmarks thathave improved roads, bridges, and othertransportation needs for rural America.I’m going to keep a keen eye out for ruralAmerica.”

Rep. JerryCostello

FarmWeekNow.com

To learn more about how theCME expanded trading hourswill impact your farm, go toFarmWeekNow.com.

E15 ENTRY — The Renewable Fuels Association(RFA) is countering claims by a major oil industry groupthat the Environmental Protection Agency’s approval ofE15 (15 percent ethanol gasoline) is premature becauseabout half of retailers in the U.S. reportedly are notready to handle it.

“Because some upgrades may be needed is no reasonto accept the status quo as the best we can do,” RFA’sMatt Hartwig argued. “The nation didn’t have the infra-structure in place for a transcontinental railroad, but thatdidn’t stop us from moving forward because it was inthe best interest of the nation.”

RFA responded to criticisms as Ag Secretary Tom Vil-sack called on oil companies to help increase the per-centage of ethanol in American gas tanks to reducedependence on foreign oil, boost job creation and pro-mote development of renewable energy from farm-pro-duced feedstocks. “The availability of E15 will increaseAmerica’s energy security and spur additional job cre-ation,” Vilsack said.

ILLINOIS FARM MOM VYING FOR HONOR— Clark County Farm Bureau member Sherri LynnKannmacher of Martinsville is in the running for the2012 America’s Farmers Mom of the Year award byMonsanto Co. Kannmacher was named the Midwestregional winner and received $5,000.

Kannmacher and her husband, Mark, raise corn, soy-beans, and wheat and have a herd of Hereford-Anguscattle. They also have a custom hay baling and conser-vation reserve planting operation.

The top farm mom will be determined by online vot-ing among the five regional finalists at {www.americas-farmers.com}. Voting will end Saturday. Appropriately,the winner will be announced on May 13 — Mother’sDay.

SAFETY STEPS — USDA last week announced aseries of prevention-based policy measures designed tobetter protect consumers from foodborne illness in meatand poultry products.

The measures will significantly improve the ability ofboth processors and USDA to trace contaminated foodmaterials in the supply chain, to act against contaminat-ed products sooner, and to establish the effectiveness offood safety systems, according to a department newsrelease.

New traceback measures will be implemented byUSDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) withthe goal of controlling pathogens earlier and preventingthem from triggering foodborne illnesses and outbreaks.

FSIS is implementing three provisions included in the2008 farm bill which would require establishments toprepare and maintain recall procedures, to notify FSISwithin 24 hours that a meat or poultry product thatcould harm consumers has been shipped into com-merce, and to document each reassessment of hazardcontrol and critical control point system safety plans.

FarmWeek Monday, May 7, 2012

(ISSN0197-6680)

Vol. 40 No. 19 May 7, 2012

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Quick takesmarkets

Continued from page 1Whalen believes daily settlement prices still

will be based on prices at the 1:15 p.m. close ofopen outcry.

Another possible kink in the new systemcould be the fact that crop markets will beopen during the release of USDA reports.Those reports traditionally have been releasedat 7:30 a.m. to give traders time to digest thenumbers before the markets open, thoughthat could change.

“If there is a big surprise in a crop report(and the markets are open at the time), it could

throw additional volatility into the market,”Whalen said.

On the plus side, the expanded trading hourswill give elevators operators more time to hedgerisk.

Overall, Whalen expects a relatively smoothtransition to the new trading hours similar towhen electronic overnight trading was added tothe market.

“People will adjust quickly to this,” he added.“They adjusted very well to the overnight sessions.”

Overnight electronic markets currently areopen from 6 p.m. to 7:15 a.m.

Trading

Domino’s delivers ‘common sense’policy to U.S. hog farmers

Many U.S. hog farmers last week welcomedthe news that Domino’s Pizza will continue toprovide a choice of swine housing systems toits pork suppliers.

Domino’s Pizza shareholders rejected — bya majority vote of 80 percent — a resolutionfrom the Humane Society of the United States(HSUS) that proposed Domino’s require itspork suppliers to end the use of gestation stalls.

“The vote to reject the HSUS resolution was avote for common sense,” said R.C. Hunt, presidentof the National Pork Producers Council (NPPC).

“We appreciate Domino’s belief that Ameri-ca’s farmers, veterinarians, and other animalagriculture experts are better suited than activistgroups to determine what the best animal carepractices are.”

Animal activist groups, including HSUS, recent-

ly influenced McDonald’s, Wendy’s, and BurgerKing to begin phasing out the use of gestationstalls by its pork suppliers.

Burger King recently announced that in fiveyears it will purchase pork sourced only from farm-ers who do not use gestation stalls.

McDonald’s and Wendy’s previously asked theirpork suppliers to outline plans to eliminate gesta-tion stalls, but a timetable was not set in either case.

“Removing sow stalls has no demonstrablehealth or welfare benefits to animals,” said LizWagstrom, NPPC chief veterinarian.

NPPC supports the position of the Ameri-can Veterinary Medical Association and theAmerican Association of Swine Veterinariansthat notes gestation stalls are as appropriate asgroup housing systems for providing the well-being of sows during pregnancy.

New trading hours could alter releasetimes of crop reports from USDABY DANIEL GRANTFarmWeek

USDA’s National AgriculturalStatistics Service and its boardlast week discussed implicationsof expanded electronic tradinghours for grain and oilseedfutures at the Chicago Board ofTrade (CBOT).

The CME Group, whichoperates the CBOT, and theMinneapolis Grain Exchange lastweek announced plans toexpand trading hours from 17 to22 hours per day.

The announcements toexpand trading hours followedthe IntercontinentalExchange

Inc.’s announcement it wouldoffer corn and bean contractsfrom 6 p.m. through 4 p.m.beginning May 14 when it entersthe North American ag markets.

Some in the trade have calledfor USDA to release its cropreports later in the day so theinformation doesn’t come outwhen the markets are open.

USDA currently releases itscrop reports at 7:30 a.m., twohours ahead of the market open-ing. But the markets will be openwhen reports are released oncethe expanded trading hours takeeffect.

Hugh Whalen, commodity

risk consultant with Mid-CoCommodities, said the downtime between reports and theopening of the markets currentlygives traders and analysts time todigest the numbers and get a bet-ter feel for the market beforetrading begins.

Traders under the expandedhours likely could make rushjudgments about the bullishnessor bearishness of a given reportand create additional volatility inthe market, according toWhalen.

USDA reported any changesto the report release schedulewill be deliberate.

STATE

Monday, May 7, 2012 FarmWeek

Efforts under way to protect farmers’ rights when fracking used BY KAY SHIPMANFarmWeek

Wayne County FarmBureau President DavidWhite is no stranger to hav-ing oil wells on his farmlandor the use of hydraulic frac-turing (fracking) to extractoil. Recent energy compa-nies’ interest in horizontaldrilling in the county hasraised new questions aboutfracking, White toldFarmWeek.

“We’re farmers, and wewant to protect the land,”White said. He has leasedthe mineral rights on 39acres to an Oklahoma com-pany that will do the drilling.

Fracking is used toincrease the flow of oil orgas from a well and involvespumping liquid under highenough pressure to fracturerock. The wells under con-sideration now would behorizontal. White said hehad experience in the 1990swith fracking used with avertical well.

The county Farm Bureau

and local University of Illi-nois Extension office willhold a second informationalmeeting on the practice onMay 22. More than 200 peo-ple attended an information-al meeting in March.

“The goal is to providefarmers with first-handknowledge,” said Doug

Anderson, Wayne CountyFarm Bureau manager. Localresidents “see good oppor-tunity, but they also are con-cerned about the environ-mental impact,” he added.The mood is one of “cau-tious optimism.”

At the May meeting, twoOhio State University

Extension specialists willshare their experiences withfracking. The presentationswill cover the pros and consand what to expect fromfracking technology, Ander-son added.

Meanwhile, Illinois FarmBureau has worked toaddress landowner concernsthrough SB 3280 that wouldestablish rules for fracking.

Among the provisions arerequirements for wellintegrity testing, reportingof chemicals used in frack-ing, and proper storage ofthose chemicals.

The legislation wouldprovide a process to allowlandowners and agriculturaltenants to challenge trade-secret protections if theyhave been affected and needinformation about thechemicals used. SB 3280passed in the Senate.

State legislatures aroundthe country are debatingfracking legislation.

As of March, more than130 bills had been intro-

duced in 24 states, accordingto a new report from theNational Conference onState Legislatures (NCSL).Legislation has passed in atleast six of those states —Indiana, North Carolina,South Dakota, Tennessee,Pennsylvania and Utah.

Some of the more com-mon actions states are con-sidering include establishingan impact fee, drilling mora-toriums, reporting of frack-ing chemicals, and wellintegrity and casing require-ments.

Nationwide, fracking pol-icy debate is expected tocontinue, according to theNCSL report.

Many state legislaturesalso are expected to consid-er waste treatment and dis-posal to protect watersources; improved drill cas-ing and well spacing require-ments to prevent spills andleaks; and severance taxchanges to fund environ-mental projects and balancestate budgets.

Proposed tollway raises property rights concernsProposed legislation that would use “quick

take” powers for an Illinois-Indiana tollwayproject concerns Illinois Farm Bureau aboutproperty rights issues, said Kevin Semlow, IFBdirector of state legislation.

Last week, the House Transportation: Regu-lation, Roads, and Bridges Committee passedSB 3318 with an 11-4 vote. IFB opposes themeasure.

The legislation would allow the use ofquick-take eminent domain to obtain landfor construction of an Illiana tollway.The proposed project would connectI-55 in Illinois to I-65 in Indianathrough Will County.

“The government would useits power to take private prop-erty and give it to a privatecompany” that would oper-ate the tollway, Semlow said.

While the state needs thepower of eminent domain,“quick take powers short cir-cuit the safeguards and

proper vetting” of projects, said committeemember Rep. Rich Brauer (R-Petersburg).

Instead of a three- to five-year processunder eminent domain, quick take powerswould reduce the property acquisition to oneyear, Brauer noted. He estimated about 2,400

acres would be used for the tollway corri-dor.

Fellow committee member Rep. Ray-mond Poe (R-Springfield) explained thelandowners would not know their acqui-

sition settlements before the project isbuilt, unlike the process used in

eminent domain. “As a landowner, I would want

to know what the settlement isbefore they build on my prop-

erty,” Poe added.Semlow said three 2,000-

foot corridors have beenproposed for the tollway,but a final route has not

been determined. — KayShipman

AgrAbility outlook more secureif state budget funding returns

AgrAbility Unlimited has scrambled to provide services todisabled farmers over the past two years.

However, the program’s financial stability will be moresecure if the governor’s proposal of $200,000 for the pro-gram remains in the budget.

For two years, AgrAbility has relied on grants and dona-tions, Bob Aherin, AgrAbility project director, toldFarmWeek.

The donors illustrate the support of the agricultural com-munity. They include Illinois Farm Bureau, GROWMARK,1st Farm Credit Services, Farm Credit Services of Illinois,and the Farm Service Agency. The John Uhlrich Foundationdonated funds for services in the five counties aroundDecatur.

“Right now, we are able to maintain basic services, butwith additional funding we could reach out to more farmers,”Aherin said. “We are getting a lot of interest from young peo-ple who have a disability and want to plan a future in farming.

“We also would be able to help some farmers who don’tqualify for cost-share (funds) with assistive technology(through) the Department of Rehabilitative Services,” hesaid.

Additional money also would allow AgrAbility to offertraining for rural occupational therapists and physical thera-pists who work with farmers, he added.

“We return many more dollars (to the economy) than areinvested in us,” Aherin noted.

The National AgrAbility Project is reaching out onlinewith a database of available assistive technology for ag work-ers with disabling injuries or illnesses.

Recently, the information was expanded to include horti-culture, gardening, and forestry tools.

The database, dubbed The Toolbox, is online at{www.agrability.org/toolbox} and includes information aboutmodified hand controls for utility vehicles, tools with extend-ed handles, and heavy-duty outdoor wheelchairs and scooters.

New products include log-cutting and brush-clearingequipment and orchard and nursery aids for fruit and veg-etable farmers.

Information is available about items to make safer every-day farm tools, such as chainsaws.

For more information, contact Aherin at 217-333-9417 [email protected]. — Kay Shipman

The USDA Rural Develop-ment is accepting applicationsfor grants to provide broad-band service to residents ofremote rural communities.

Known as the CommunityConnect Broadband program,the program offers fundingfor broadband infrastructureto rural, unserved, and low-income areas.

Grant recipients also arerequired to establish commu-nity centers that offer freepublic access to broadband.

Previous Illinois recipientsinclude the Jefferson Countytown of Bluford.

A grant was used to provide

wireless broadband serviceand 10 computers for freebroadband service for twoyears.

The town partnered withMt.Vernon.Net to build thebroadband infrastructure.

In the first two years, the

company signed up 140 cus-tomers, and the number hassince grown to 200.

More information on Com-munity Connect Grants,including the application guide,are online at {www.rurdev.usda.gov/il}.

USDA offering broadband grants for rural services

IDOA promotes local gifts for moms The Illinois Department of Agriculture (IDOA) is promoting

its website as a place to find unique — and local — Mother’sDay gifts for the May 13 event.

Several small- to mid-sized Illinois food and agribusinesscompanies reported they are offering an assortment of specialsfor Mother’s Day.

For a complete listing with links to the companies, go onlineto {www.agr.state.il.us/marketing/mothersday}.

government


Industry execs ask EPA to keep the faith with RFS2BY MARTIN ROSSFarmWeek

Major players in theprospective cellulosic ethanolsector joined last week to askCongress and the U.S. Envi-ronmental Protection Agency(EPA) for a vote of confi-dence in the rapidly approach-ing future of next-generationfuels.

BP, Dupont, andNovozymes, the latter a biofu-els technology provider,stressed the need to leave thecurrent federal RenewableFuels Standard (RFS2) intactand on track toward an ulti-mate 36 billion gallons of U.S.biofuels use by 2022.

RFS2 sets graduated annualethanol/biodiesel mandatesfor the fuel industry. Howev-er, some in Congress seek toeliminate the standard andEPA has, in the industry’sview, lowballed projections ofcellulosic and other

blenders credit expired inJanuary, but as a productioncredit that rewards successrather than a fuel industryincentive, Koninck deemsthe cellulosic credit poses“quite low risk to the taxpay-er.”

Despite recent policy shifts,the ethanol industry faces con-tinued congressional chal-lenges. The RFS FlexibilityAct would allow EPA to waiveannual biofuels mandatesbased on corn stocks and use,while the RFS Elimination Actseeks total repeal of the stan-dard.

Ellerbusch stressed theRFS, unlike ethanol credits, is“not a taxpayer support mech-anism.”

At an Urbana energy lawand policy conference, U of Itechnology law specialist Jay

Kesan agreed that “purely as apolicy instrument, mandatesare attractive” in terms ofgovernment cost.

Kesan said RFS2 has con-tributed significantly toexpansion of existingethanol plants that likely willbe primary drivers of cellu-losic ethanol production.

Michigan State Universityresearcher Bruce Dale notesa half-dozen larger-scale cel-lulosic plants are expectedto come online in 2013, tap-ping feedstocks rangingfrom stover and wheat strawto hardwood chips in Michi-gan and Florida “energycane.”

“I think we’ll have close to100 million gallons of capacityby the end of 2013,” Dale pre-dicted. “Right now, we’reunder 10 million.”

“advanced” biofuels suppliesneeded to meet 2013 man-dates.

“The Renewable FuelsStandard has worked, and it’sa credible policy we absolute-ly should be proud of havingand that should continue asit is going forward,”Novozymes North AmericaPresident Adam Monroesaid, crediting ethanol withproviding lower-cost con-sumer fuels and jobs.

BP plans to break groundon a commercial cellulosicconversion facility later thisyear in Florida.

The RFS2 spurred “thelargest R&D project in(Novozymes’) history,” culmi-nating in a $200 million bio-mass ethanol facility set tolaunch this month in Nebras-ka, Monroe said.

Dupont plans to beginconstruction of a 28-mil-lion-gallon-per-year Iowa

corn stover-based plant laterthis year, said Jan Koninck,industrial biosciences globalbiofuels director.

“All of us are making sig-nificant investments in thecellulosic space; all of us areon the verge of commercial-izing, breaking ground, put-ting facilities up,” BP Biofu-els North America PresidentSue Ellerbusch toldFarmWeek. “We are all mov-ing from demonstration tocommercial scale.

“Having been in oil andgas for 20 years, I’m not sur-prised at the time it’s takento develop this, but I’d saythis is a quick developmentprocess. Ten years to takenew ideas and technology tocommercialization is notuncommon. We’re doing itfaster at BP than we have inthe past.”

The executives were unsurewhether Congress wouldextend a $1.01-per-gallon fed-eral cellulosic ethanol taxcredit set to expire Dec. 31.

The corn ethanol fuel

Regulatory pushback gaining momentum?

In an election year where the economy is tak-ing center stage, the U.S. Environmental Protec-tion Agency (EPA) and its regulatory agenda arecoming under broader public scrutiny.

Last week, the American Farm Bureau Federa-tion (AFBF) hailed new bipartisan legislation thatwould prevent EPA from finalizing “guidance”on identifying waters protected under the U.S.Clean Water Act (CWA).

That guidance would extend EPA’s purviewbeyond major “navigable” waters potentially to“every ditch in this country,” AFBF analyst DonParrish told FarmWeek.

Congress’ counterproposal — whose sponsorsinclude House Infrastructure and TransportationCommittee Chairman John Mica (R-Fla.) andHouse Ag Committee Chairman Frank Lucas (R-Okla.) and ranking Republican Collin Peterson(D-Minn.) — would not amend CWA provisions.

Last year, the House passed legislation aimedat canceling EPA pesticide permit requirementsthat duplicate safeguards under the Federal Insec-ticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act, but thebill stalled in the Senate.

EPA guidance would “more than magnify thenumber of permits” currently needed by contrac-tors, homebuilders, utilities, road builders, andothers, Parrish warned.

The impact of regulation on a struggling econ-omy has become a growing theme in federal cam-paigns: Republican presidential candidate MittRomney last week told commercial fishermen“regulation is running amok.” That kind of pub-lic profile could spur action on House measures,Parrish said.

“Between these (current regulatory relief pro-posals, it’s going to put some real pressure ramp-ing into the election on members who are need-ing to kind of differentiate themselves, particular-

ly in rural states and rural districts,” he argued. “This legislation may continue to be a pain in

the neck for people like (Senate Majority Leader)Harry Reid (D-Nev.). He has to figure out what todo, because some people in his party could getdefeated if they don’t move something.”

EPA drew fire last week as Al Armendariz, theagency’s South Central Region director, resignedin the wake of a newly surfaced 2010 video inwhich he promised to “crucify” oil and gas inter-ests that have violated environmental laws.Armendariz’ statement betrayed a generally arbi-trary “I gotcha” attitude at EPA, Parrish suggest-ed.

Meanwhile, the environmentalist groupPotomac Riverkeeper has dropped plans to sueEPA over its Chesapeake Bay nutrient reductionplan amid a threat from the Keith CampbellFoundation for the Environment, a major backerof the group, to withdraw funding. “Moneytalks,” Parrish said.

AFBF charges the East Coast plan would stifleeconomic activity and set the stage for similarregulations in the Upper Mississippi Basin.

On the other hand, Riverkeeper opposes pro-visions to pay Bay region landowners to plantcover crops and install buffers to reduce stormrunoff.

Parrish sees a growing divide between groupsthat seek environmental and economic balanceand those like Riverkeeper that oppose “offsets”for environmental costs and seek to use EPAauthority “as a way to stop economic develop-ment.”

“I think there’s a struggle between two facetsof the environmental community — one thatwants to preserve things for people and the otherthat wants to preserve things from people,” hesaid. — Martin Ross

RFS2 clause impedimentto cellulosic development?

If the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS2) is to be an effec-tive tool in fostering cellulosic ethanol production, officialsshould consider closing an existing RFS2 loophole, PurdueUniversity energy economist Wally Tyner suggests.

In terms of corn ethanol, RFS2 “is the operative policytoday,” Tyner told FarmWeek at a biofuels conference inUrbana. Even before the federal ethanol blenders tax creditexpired in January, RFS2 “got the (production) capacitybuilt,” he said.

Now, with U.S. production approaching the 15-billion-gal-lon RFS2 cap for mandated annual corn ethanol use, themandate could play a crucial role in spurring cellulosic devel-opment. RFS2 mandates were designed to encourage use ofbiomass ethanol to help reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

However, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency(EPA) allows fuel blenders to buy a 25-cent-per-gallon RFS2credit waiver in lieu of purchasing cellulosic biofuels in yearswhen production capacity falls below RFS2 targets.

Given current cellulosic ethanol costs, blenders may findit in their interest “just to buy the credit from EPA and bedone,” even if biomass fuels are available, Tyner argued.

“As long as we’re not at the level of the mandate for thatyear, EPA has to waive part of the mandate,” he noted. “If itwaives even one gallon, blenders don’t have to buy the stuff.They can buy the credit from EPA for a quarter.”

That poses a dilemma for the biofuels industry. Last week,cellulosic ethanol developers cited risks in Congress’“reopening” the RFS2 (see accompanying story). BP BiofuelsNorth America President Sue Ellerbusch admitted RFS2 is“not perfect,” but argued EPA instead should make neededchanges.

Legally, EPA could opt not to waive fuel use require-ments, Tyner said. But despite reports of major productioncoming on line in 2013, currently “there’s just not enoughstuff out there” to allow blenders to completely meet 2013cellulosic requirements, he said.

Prospective cellulosic producers may find outside capitaldifficult to secure given the uncertainty the credit waiver cre-ates, Tyner warned.

University of Illinois technology law specialist Jay Kesanthus sees the need for Congress to extend a soon-to-expirecellulosic ethanol production tax credit as an incentive forblenders to buy biofuels, as the industry ramps up capacity.

“We think RFS2 will also make a big difference with sec-ond-generation cellulosic biofuels,” Kesan said. “Our ques-tion is whether that alone is enough.” — Martin Ross

prODucTiON


Many wheat growers in Illi-nois so far this spring havewatched their crop mature wellahead of the average pace.

And, as of next week, they’llhave a better idea of its yieldpotential as the Illinois WheatAssociation (IWA) on Tuesday,May 15, will host its annualSouthern Illinois Winter WheatTour.

The tour date was movedup about a week earlier thanusual this year due to the rapidmaturity of the crop and thehigh probability of an earlyharvest.

A majority of the crop (80percent) in the state was head-ed last week compared to thefive-year average of just 6 per-cent, the National AgriculturalStatistics Service Illinois fieldoffice reported.

“The wheat crop is probablytwo to three weeks ahead ofnormal,” said Steve Stallman,IWA president and a RandolphCounty farmer. “It depends onthe weather this month, but Ithink we’re definitely looking atan earlier harvest.”

The wheat tour will pro-vide growers with informa-tion about yield potential anddisease pressure. It willinclude field checks madeduring the day on May 15 fol-lowed by an evening report

session and dinner at Brown-stown Agronomy ResearchCenter.

Tour participants will meetat 9 a.m. next Tuesday (May 15)at one of three locations:Siemer Milling Co., 111 W.Main St., Teutopolis (217-857-3131); Mennel Milling Co., 415E. Main St., Mt. Olive (217-999-2161); or at WehmeyerSeed Co., 7167 Highbanks Rd.,Mascoutah (317-502-4099).

Participants should call thecompany location where they’dlike to join the tour prior to theevent. Dinner reservationsshould be made by May 11 by

contacting IWA at 309-557-3619 or via e-mail [email protected].

Growers who cannot partic-ipate in the tour can take theirown field samples, and thosewho plan to take their ownsamples should contact theIWA office for samplinginstructions.

“The more samples we get,the more accurate our estimatewill be,” Stallman said.

The IWA president as oflast week believes yield poten-tial for the crop is good.

“It appears to be above aver-age,” Stallman said. “Althoughthere does seem to be someareas where numerous diseasesare working on wheat. That willtrim yields a bit.”

The condition of the wheatcrop statewide last week wasrated 80 percent good to excel-lent, 16 percent fair, and 4 per-cent poor or very poor.

If the wheat crop is harvest-ed early as expected, Illinoisfarmers likely will plant moredouble-crop soybeans, Stallmanadded. — Daniel Grant

Wheat tour set for May 15

Wheat harvest expected to start early

FarmWeekNow.com

For additional information onthe upcoming wheat tour, goto FarmWeekNow.com.

Rain slows planting progress, but farmers not complainingBY DANIEL GRANTFarmWeek

On-and-off rainfall activity the past week slowed plantingprogress, but most farmers in Illinois likely didn’t complain.

Parts of the state prior to last week were in the initial stagesof drought, according to Kirk Huttl, meteorologist with theNational Weather Service office in Lincoln.

Huttl reported much of Central Illinois as of Friday received1 to 2 inches of rain the past week with more precipitation in theforecast through today (Monday).

Elsewhere, a portion of Southwestern Illinois between Quin-cy and St. Louis, and a stretch along I-80 between the QuadCities and Chicago, received 3-plus inches. Rainfall was lighterand more scattered in deep Southern Illinois.

“It was some pretty badly needed rain,” Huttl said. “Some por-tions of Illinois were in the beginning stages of drought. A lot ofrivers and lakes were running low heading into (last) week.”

Topsoil moisture as of the first of last week was rated 22 per-cent short or very short statewide compared to 28 percent shortor very short the previous week.

“The rain was critical for fields and pastures,” said RonMoore, FarmWeek Cropwatcher from Warren County, whosefarm received 2.7 inches of rain last week through Friday morn-ing. “Many of the streams that run through our pastures werelooking like late August instead of April.”

Many farmers hope to get back in the fields this week. Andthe forecast as of Friday appeared favorable.

“Overall, it’s looking like a drier, cooler pattern starting Tues-day,” Huttl said.

Illinois farmers as of the first of last week planted 79 percentof the corn crop, well ahead of the five-year average pace of 29percent. Thirteen percent of the soybean crop was in theground, compared to the average of 2 percent.

The early jump on planting was due mostly to an unusuallywarm March followed by a dry April.

The statewide average temperature in March was 55 degrees(13.8 degrees above normal), compared to 54.1 degrees in April.

This year marked just the second time since 1895 that Marchwas warmer than April in the state, according to Jim Angel, stateclimatologist with the Illinois State Water Survey.

The only other time that March was warmer than April wasin 1907, he said. Rainfall across the state in April averaged 3.32inches, a half-inch below normal.

May 10Rural listening session with Lt. Gov. Sheila Simon, 10a.m. to noon, the Ray and Joan Kroc Corps CommunityCenter, Quincy.

May 12IAA Foundation 5K Grow and Go, Illinois Farm Bureauheadquarters, Bloomington.

June 14IAA Foundation Golf Outing, Pontiac Elks and WolfCreek Golf Club, Pontiac.

DATEBOOK

New look for Cropwatchers onlineCropwatchers enters its 20th

season with a new look online.The website has been

revamped, and Cropwatchersnow have the ability to postphotos along with their weeklyreports.

Visitors to the site can viewweekly reports by selecting acounty from the menu or byclicking on the Cropwatchersmap.

Cropwatcher reports areupdated each Friday eveningonline and also are available inthe online and print versions ofFarmWeek.

There is one new face forthe 2012 growing season. JeffGuilander is the new JerseyCounty reporter. He replacesJersey County farmer Ted Kue-brich, a long-time Cropwatcherreporter.

Jeff farms with his father,Ronnie, and brother-in-law,Terry Hall. They grow cornand soybeans and have a smallcow-calf operation.

Check out Cropwatcherseach week to get the real pic-ture of Illinois’ crops through-out the growing and harvestseasons.

Bernie Walsh, Durand, Winnebago County: Greetings fromWinnebago County, where mywife, Deb, and I farm about twomiles from the Wisconsin stateline. We raise corn, soybeans,and wheat, and this is the start ofmy eighth year as a Cropwatcher.This year started out like no otherin anyone’s memory around here.

We had very little snow all winter, no frost inthe ground, and June-like weather in March,which had some people thinking about planti-ng corn a month early. April has been morenormal, and most of the corn has been plant-ing around here. A few neighbors have start-ed to plant soybeans. The wheat and haycrops are one to two weeks ahead of normal.It could be a very interesting year, I hope it isa safe and prosperous one for everyone.

Pete Tekampe, Grayslake, Lake County: I’m one of the orig-inal Cropwatchers (in his 20thyear). I farm corn, beans, andwheat in central Lake County.Because of the ice cube that islocated to the east of us (LakeMichigan), we have not had manygood days in the field. Field condi-tions were great in the middle of

March, but not much work was done becauseit was still only the middle of March. All of Aprilwe mostly had winds out of the northeast oreast, which doesn’t help field conditions inLake County. About 10 percent of the corn isplanted. Winter wheat looks great, but notvery much good-looking alfalfa is left.Potatoes planted on Good Friday are still notup. We had rain six of the last seven days andthey are calling for rain five of the next sevendays. I hope they are wrong.

Leroy Getz, Savanna, Carroll County: The 2012 crop sea-son started early inNorthwestern Illinois as it hasthroughout the state. Some cornwas planted in March, which hasnever happened before.Seventy-five percent of the cornwas planted by May 1. April pro-duced 4.9 inches of rain and

several mornings of freezing temperatures.Frost damage to fruit and nut trees and thealfalfa fields are still to be measured. We willkeep you posted from our Lucky Clover dairyfarm here in beautiful Carroll County.

Ryan Frieders, Waterman, DeKalb County: Greetings fromWaterman. March brought verywarm weather conditions, andspring fieldwork was completedbefore April even started. Cornplanting began April 9 into excel-lent soil conditions. Then theweather turned cooler and therewere a few nights with heavy

frost. Luckily, none of our corn had emergedat the time. We finished planting corn onApril 25. Since then, we have gotten 1.2inches of rain. The early corn has emergedwhile the later corn is sprouting. We have notstarted planting our soybeans but no-tillacres have been sprayed with a burndown.

Larry Hummel, Dixon, Lee County: The excitement ofanother season is already build-ing. The majority of the cropshave been planted, there isample moisture, and now we aregetting some heat. What morecould we ask for? Falling cornprices are the only bull, I meanbear, in the China closet. I farm

with my brother, nephew, and son rightwhere Lee, Ogle, and Whiteside countiesmeet. We grow corn and soybeans, butacreage of the latter has fallen over the lastfew years. I am looking forward to keepingeveryone south of Interstate 80 up to date onwhat’s happening here in Northern Illinois.

Joe Zumwalt, Warsaw, Hancock County: Welcome to the2012 growing season. It is a plea-sure to be writing to you all again. Ifarm in the Mississippi River bot-toms between Quincy and Warsawin the westernmost part of Illinois.A dry and pleasant winter led toearly corn planting in this part ofthe state. Corn planting is finished

and most has emerged. Perhaps as much as 30percent of the soybeans have been planted withseveral fields emerged. Rains over the past twoweeks have slowed planting progress quite abit, but we are on a great pace to get crops invery timely this year. I’m looking forward to aprosperous crop year in 2012.

Ken Reinhardt, Seaton, Mercer County: Powder dry con-ditions in mid-April have turnedto mud. Planting has been at astandstill since April 27. Mostproducers are finished or downto a day or two of corn left. Somewere putting in soybeans the lastweek of April. Corn hasemerged, or is emerging, and is

looking good. Some of the earliest plantedcorn got nipped by frost. As freakish as theweather has been so far, it is a fair bet it willbe an interesting growing season.

Ron Moore, Roseville, Warren County: Greetings againfrom Western Illinois and WarrenCounty. With the warm, earlyspring, we started planting cornin early April and finished onApril 20. All of the corn hasemerged and the populationcounts are very near what wasplanted. We started planting soy-

beans on April 27. Up to that point, we werevery dry and needed a good rain. We sincehave received 2.7 inches and more is fore-cast for the next few days. The rain was criti-cal for both fields and pastures. Many of thestreams that run through our pastures werelooking like late August instead of April. Weshould get back into the fields later this weekand finish soybean planting soon after.

Jacob Streitmatter, Princeville, Peoria County: The yearhas is off to a very dry start withfieldwork starting the first week ofMarch around here, and plantingstarting around the first of April.There were only trace amounts ofprecipitation from March 1 to May1. The majority of all the corn isplanted and a good start has

been made to soybeans. Rain showers theweekend of April 28-29 put the brakes on allthe planters in the area. Much corn and soy-beans were planted in dry dirt in the countyso the rain was needed.

Tim Green, Wyoming, Stark County: I farm about 75 per-cent corn and 25 percent beansright on the Marshall-Starkcounties border. Corn plantingwent quickly, and a lot of peoplegot done April 22-24. A little cornwas planted around here inMarch, which is rare. Some peo-ple have planted beans, and

they are starting to grow. We were dry but gota really-needed 1.9 inches of rain in the lastfew days. Our moisture levels were low, oursubsoil was low, and our tiles had quit run-ning. The rain will make us all look like goodfarmers.

Mark Kerber, Chatsworth, Livingston County: My son andI operate a corn and soybeanrotation in the southeast part ofthe county. Every year is differ-ent and this one started out thatway with March warmer thanApril. Corn was planted thisyear with excellent field condi-tions. It was a little dry at times,

but we were able to work ground, spray, andplant with no compaction. As they say, plantin dust and the bins will bust. Some soy-beans have been planted, but many pro-ducers were waiting for rain and warmerweather. We did receive some good rainlast week with no floods yet. Old-crop val-ues seem to be in a trading range, whilenew-crop corn just can’t seem to movehigher.

Steve Ayers, Champaign, Champaign County: Lastweek we got our million dol-lar rain with more than 1.5inches and chances of rainfor the weekend. Tuesday, aline of tornadoes hopscotched from Monticellothrough Sidney throughTilton into Indiana. It caused

$10,000 damage to Lee and MichelleReifsteck’s home southwest ofChampaign but no injuries. Looks like itmay dry up later in the week so we canstart beans. Corn is planted and growingwell after we got some warmer weather.I told my son-in-law to remember thisyear’s corn planting season as it was aonce-in-a-lifetime experience. OurUSDA crop reporting district reports 91percent of the corn is planted and 38percent has emerged. Beans are 10 per-cent planted with 1 percent emerged.

Ron Haase, Gilman, Iroquois County: I farm on thewestern side of IroquoisCounty near La Hogue with mybrother, David. We are thefourth generation of farmers inour family and the third gener-ation at this location. My familyhas rented the farm I live onsince 1932. Over the winter we

were able to purchase the 80 acres withthe home and buildings from the only fam-ily that has owned the land since it wassold to build the railroad. That was a majordecision for both parties involved. Weplanted all corn on our farms. The last yearwe planted soybeans was in 2003. As forplanting, last year we did not have any-thing planted at this point. This year, wehave 33 percent of our corn planted whileclose to 80 percent of the corn is plantedin the area. A few fields were planted atthe end of March, but most were plantedbefore April 15 or the week of April 23through April 28. The corn planted beforeApril 15 has emerged and some is at the V-2 growth stage. Some soybean fields havebeen planted, but many farmers were wait-ing for moisture. That rain arrived on April28, and we have not been able to return tothe field since then. We have received atotal of 1.35 inches. New-crop prices are$1 lower than a year ago for corn and 30cents higher for soybeans. The local clos-ing bids for May 3 were: nearby corn,$6.29; new-crop corn, $4.99; nearby soy-beans, $14.61; new-crop soybeans,$13.34.

Brian Schaumburg, Chenoa, McLean County:Northeastern McLean Countyhas experienced its fastest cornplanting completion date inmemory. Soybean seeding is juststarting but is 20 percent com-plete. Corn development isbetween VE and V-3 and beansplanted April 25 are emerging.

Crop ratings are excellent and GDU’s are at238, similar to 2010. We are at 50 percent ofnormal rainfall for the year and will need time-ly rain to achieve maximum production.Prices at Prairie Central Co-op: Corn, $6.41,fall, $5.03; soybeans, $14.61, fall, $13.33;wheat, $5.69.

Wilfred Dittmer, Quincy, Adams County: It still is relativelydry here despite receiving 3.4inches of rain in April. Planterswere running everywhere theweek before and after Easter,and I’m quite sure all corn near-by is in the ground and has goodstands. Soybeans, though, are adifferent story. A few went in, but

for the most part, most are waiting for theseason to get aligned with the calendar.Herbicides are working fairly well after therecent warm-up and lawns are growingalmost too fast to keep up with.

Todd Easton, Charleston, Coles County: I am glad tobe back and reporting theprogress of our crops here inColes County. I’m still here inthe southwest corner of SevenHickory Township stirring upthe dust alongside Grandpa,our two dedicated hands, and,of course, my wife, Kelly, 3-

year-old Maddison, and 1-year-old Case.As far as crop progress, we are in anotherspring of extreme but totally the oppositeof last year. Perfect, and I mean perfect,planting conditions from the middle ofMarch on had producers in a knot overwhether to plant corn when conditions saygo but the calendar says no. Someextreme early birds planted while most ofus finished fertilizer applications and madeearly tillage trips. But in the last week ofMarch, a lot of corn was planted before itbegan to dry out. We finally got rain, one Iwould call a truly million dollar rain. Shortlyafter, corn planting resumed and is now allbut complete in this area. Currently, areacornfields are somewhere in the V-1 to V-3stages with very good stands, except forsome low-lying areas. A few beans wereplanted in the middle of April before moresteady rains set in along with much coolertemperatures. Luckily, frost damage wasminimal in our area and warmer weatherlast week really perked up the young cornplants. Hopefully, fieldwork can resumesoon and when it does, remember safetyfirst.


CROPWATCHERS* New Cropwatcher this year

Rick Corners, Centralia, Jefferson County: Let thejourney begin! Well, it’salready begun. Corn is prettywell all planted. Some has justbeen planted. Some was plant-ed a month ago and there stillis a little bit left to plant. Northof where I live, it’s been a littletoo wet and south of here, a

rain is needed. I was near St. LouisSunday (April 29) and they have a realmess. With a terrible hailstorm and 4 to 5inches of rain, you can imagine the situa-tion. Looks like the wheat crop is going tobe 2 to 3 weeks early this year.

Kevin Raber, Browns, Wabash County: The last fewseasons, my first report of theseason is a little slim on field-work progress. Not this year.Corn planting started in lateMarch and finished quickly inthe first half of April. Warmdays early in April helpedemergence, but cooler days

and nights the second part of April slowedcorn growth. Soybean planting is probably75 percent or more done in WabashCounty. The warmer days and nights spedemergence of the soybeans. Wheat looksgood, and we probably are looking at anearly June harvest.

Dean Shields, Murphysboro, Jackson County: I’mglad to be back and I enjoydoing this. In Jackson County,we are a little dry, which isironic when a year ago theyblew up the Bird Point levee atCairo, because of a high river,and we had some localizedflooding that was pretty bad a

year ago. This year, all of our corn is pret-ty well planted. A lot of fellows have start-ing planting soybeans. Because of it beingon the dry side, the ground is workingpretty well for this river bottom area. Also,because of the weather, the wheat crop islooking good, and I expect we will havegood wheat crop if things stay the waythey are.

Randy Anderson, Galatia, Saline County: What ayear so far, to say the least,with the mild winter we had.Spring started early with somebad storms and followed bydry conditions. That allowedmost producers to get a realjump start on planting. Somestarted around March 20 with

corn. I would say corn planting is donehere. Bean planting is all over the board— some done, some half done, and afew not even started. The main problemis some places are running short onmoisture. Rainfall has been very spotty.A nice shower would be appreciated.Some hay has been cut, and it looks likethe quality is good. Wheat is starting toturn. I hope to cut some at the end of themonth or first week of June. The majorproblem I see for this growing season isweeds, weeds, and more weeds.Chemicals are not working well from thelack of rain. The weed of choice is pig-weed, water hemp, or marestail — takeyour pick.

Ken Taake, Ullin, Pulaski County: I farm with two broth-ers in the rolling hills 20 milesnorth of Cairo, so we are reallyin extreme Southern Illinois. InPulaski County, April was aninteresting month. We had only1 inch of rain for the wholemonth. With that, corn plantingstarted extremely early this

year. We finished planting on April 14. Theweather then turned cool and we held offawhile. We just started planting soybeanson April 30, and we are in the process ofplanting soybeans now. A lot of peoplehaven’t started beans yet. It’s been so dry.Soil conditions are not very conducive toplanting beans. Otherwise, we are tryingto sidedress our corn. Most of the corn isup and looking pretty good. Sure doesneed a rain.

Doug Uphoff, Shelbyville, Shelby County: I am a 50-year-old fourth generationfarmer and a grandfather. Westarted planting corn on March28 and finished on the April 11(we usually don’t start untilthen). The corn planted early isat V-2. The last corn we plant-ed into timber soils was hit with

2.5 inches of rain on April 14-15. It hasnow emerged after three weeks in theground and much concern from coldweather that lowered soil temps thatslowed crop progress dramatically. Somebeans were planted in the county, but weare waiting for warmer soil temps. Soiltemps that were 65 degrees in March hadcooled to 40s and 50s. Wheat is showingsigns of striped rust. We sprayed ours witha plane April 19, but it didn’t seem to helpbecause the rust has spread to the flagleaf in some of the wheat. Corn planting is90 percent done in the northern part of thecounty. Soybeans are 3 percent planted.Rainfall: March 1, .05 inches, April, 5.7inches; May, 0.7 of an inch. Findlay corn:May 2012, $6.39, fall, $5.07; January$5.17; beans, May 2012, $14.58, fall 2012,$13.38; January 13, $13.18.

*Jeff Guilander, Jerseyville, Jersey County: When I tookover for Ted (Kuebrich), I did notrealize I was going to have suchbig shoes to fill. It’s been a wild2012, and we’ve only been at it alittle over a month. Looking back,I guess we should have planteda lot more corn in March. It looksto have weathered the cold

temps fairly well and is finally poised to takeoff. The April-planted corn is a different story.Two weeks ago, everyone thought replantwould be around 50 percent; 10 days ago itwas 25 percent, and now most of it looksgood enough to keep (minus the areas theducks are still swimming in), throwing theidea of uniform emergence out the window.That’s what 5 to 7 inches of rain over twoweeks will do for you, besides putting a lot ofbottom ground under water. Maybe we willhave an easier time trying to plant soybeans.Looks like it’s going to be another wild ride,remember to enjoy it.

Dan Meinhart, Montrose, Jasper County: This year is start-ing out completely different thanwhat we experienced the lastfour years. We farm in variouslocations in the northwest quar-ter of Jasper County. We signedup for MyRainScout.com andhave 10 sites where the rainfall ismeasured by Doppler radar.

Rainfall since March 1 ranged from 5.2 inch-es to 7.5 inches. The last five days, the areahas received 1.5 to 2.5 inches. Hail the sizeof quarters fell on April 28 in some areas. Alot of corn has gone into the ground. Someare finished with corn while most still havecorn to plant. A few have planted beans.Quite different from last year when nothingwent into the ground until the last week ofMay. More rain was on the radar for lastFriday. Wheat looks good.

Dave Hankammer, Millstadt, St. Clair County: With themild weather conditions of thispast winter, these crop reportsseem long overdue. These condi-tions allowed farmers to do sometillage, apply fertilizer and cropprotectants, perform mainte-nance on conservation structuresand drainage channels, and build

new conservation structures in fields thatwere in need of the erosion protection. Onour farm, it gave us time to clean up andreplace a machine storage buildingdestroyed in January by a tornado thatcaused property damage for our neighborsand us. Fortunately, there were no injuries.Some farmers started planting corn inMarch despite concerns of a late killingfrost. Plantings cautiously increased as therecommended April planting dateapproached and the threat of frostdecreased. In the last half of April, someparts of the county received 6-8 inches ofrainfall cumulatively, which slowed plantingprogress. Near the end of April we experi-enced damaging hail that caused somedamage to the wheat crop. First-cuttingalfalfa hay and wheat silage were made inmid to late April, about three weeks earlierthan last year. Local grain bids: corn, $6.45;soybeans, $14.71; wheat, $6.03.

Carrie Winkelmann, Tallula, Menard County: This is mythird year as a Cropwatcher forbeautiful Menard County. I am anew mother to a 4-month-old girlwe named Lydia Mae (our first),who is apparently as stubborn asher mother and refused to comeout in time to be my little taxdeduction. But let’s get on to busi-

ness. We are growing corn and soybeansagain this year and, luckily enough, nowheat. The early-warm weather in Marchcombined with the hard frost in April seemsto have put an end to several wheat fields inthe county, although some later-plantedwheat of the same variety seems to havefared better. We started planting corn onEaster weekend and are finished. We putsome beans in the ground last week inbetween spraying, but then the rain started.We received 2.1 inches last weekend (April28-29). We have been trapping black cut-worms for the last month and have caught 25in the last two weeks, but we have seen nodamage so far in corn. I look forward to read-ing my fellow Cropwatchers across the statethis year with hope for timely rain and goodweather for all.

Tom Ritter, Blue Mound, Macon County: Corn planting isvirtually completed in this area.Planting started as early as mid-March but the majority of thecorn was planted after April 6.Early corn is at the 6-inch stage.Some of it got dinged with theearly freezing and frost, but themajority of it has come out of that

and is looking pretty decent. Farmers havetheir planting strung out well over a month’speriod. Many started and stopped due to dryconditions, cool temperatures, and partiallyjust waiting on the calendar. Soybean plant -ing at this time is approaching 20 percentcomplete. Many people were waiting formoisture. We were damp the past week andmost farmers, as soon as weather permits,will be back in planting soybeans. Overall,crop prospects look good, but we are in amoisture-deficit situation and our tiles notrunning at all. We will need periodic showersthroughout the growing season.

Jimmy Ayers, New City, Sangamon County: My wife,Sidney, and I live in New City justsoutheast of Springfield with ourson, Cameron. He is in his sec-ond year at LincolnlandCommunity College studying ag.Our daughter, Kathryn, is finish-ing her third year in the Collegeof ACES at the University of

Illinois. This year, we will be planting almost900 acres of corn and more than 300 acresof beans. We also custom farm 300 to 400acres for a couple of our neighbors. We havea small trucking outfit that runs locally. It’sraining as I write this report on Friday. Lastweek, we had 3 inches of rain. Corn plantingbegan on Feb. 28 this year on a few acres. OnMarch 13, planting season was off and going.Sangamon County has about 98 percent ofthe corn planted and possibly 15 percent ofthe beans. Some of the corn was damagedby frost and has been replanted. A lot of thecorn has been yellow for quite some time. I’mnot sure it is short of nitrogen yet. This year,we are going to be trying several fertilizer tri-als and some soil amendments, with somegrowth regulators, and many side-by-side tri-als. We are looking forward to sharing ourcrop year with you and hope your seasonstarted out well.

David Schaal, St. Peter, Fayette County: I farm in southernFayette County. The corn crop isall over the board here. Somethat was planted back in Marchor before the insurance date(April 6) is up and growing andlooking good. A lot of corn in theimmediate area went in theground the week of April 9. The

temperature got really cool and then the raincame. It took 18-21 days for some of thatcorn to emerge. Some of it will be left, somewill be spotted in, and the rest will be a totalreplant. On the evening of April 28, weencountered a hailstorm that left damage tovehicles, roofs, siding on houses, and alsoplayed havoc with the wheat fields. It hasdried out a lot here in the last couple of days,but we are still a day or two away from return-ing to the fields. Some farmers are aboutdone with corn and some don’t have muchplanted.


CROPWATCHERS

Reports received Friday morning.Expanded crop and weather information available at www.ilfb.org

production


EQIP, research funding hailed

Cattle group pleased by what’s not in Senate planBY MARTIN ROSSFarmWeek

One of the high points ofthe Senate farm bill proposal iswhat isn’t in the measure — aheavier federal footprint inlivestock marketing.

So says National Cattle-men’s Beef Association(NCBA) Washington represen-tative Mike Deering, who callsthe Senate Ag Committee’splan “a good foundation” forfuture ag policy. Deering hails proposals tobolster conservation fundingfor livestock farms that areunder the regulatory gun andrecognize the continued needfor animal disease research.The bill offers farmers “thefreedom to operate” by omit-ting the livestock title createdwith the 2008 farm bill, hesaid.

That inclusion led to pro-posed Grain Inspection, Pack-ers and Stockyards Administra-tion (GIPSA) rules challengedby NCBA.

value of ongoing veterinaryresearch, he said. The “phe-nomenal” body of BSE datathat’s emerged since 2003(when the first case was detect-ed) “has really helped us naildown this issue,” Deering held.

Dual-track funding for ani-mal health and public safetyefforts is crucial to preventingor controlling future outbreaks,he said. In a letter to Houseand Senate AppropriationsCommittees, the American

Farm Bureau Federation urgedsupport for funding of a newNational Bio- and Agro-Defense Facility in the fiscal2013 homeland security spend-ing bill.

The state-of-the-art facilitywould be equipped to developvaccines and antiviral therapiesand train veterinarians andpublic health officials to identi-fy and respond to foreign ani-mal and zoonotic diseases thataffect multiple species.

While he believes Congress’intent in elevating livestockissues was “overall good,” the“GIPSA rule” has raised con-cerns about restrictions thatcould limit profitable marketarrangements between produc-ers and packers.

NCBA’s current goal is “tostay as far out of the farm billas possible and reduce federalinvolvement in the business offarming and ranching,” he toldFarmWeek.

“We feel this particular farmbill does that,” Deering said.“It does not include the live-stock title, but it does restorefunding for programs thatform a partnership betweengovernment and cattlemen, like(the Environmental QualityIncentives Program) in theconservation title.

“That allows farmers tomake improvements on theirown property to protect naturalresources and for overall sus-tainability.

“Research also is extremely

important to us, and we werepleased to see research funded,as well — research to preventanimal diseases, research toprotect public health. Researchhas continued to be less andless important, financially, overthe past seven farm bills.”

Deering was optimistic thatthe House Ag Committeewould follow suit and strip outthe livestock title.

Recent detection of a BSEcase in California highlights the

A Black Baldy cow and her calf pose for a portrait in their Pike County pasture. Cattle producers are pleasedwith provisions that are not in the Senate-proposed farm bill. (Photo by Ken Kashian)

Landowners alerted to wildlifeacre program expansion

An additional 400,000 acres nationwide may be enrolled inthe State Acres for Wildlife Enhancement (SAFE) programthrough USDA this year. SAFE is a special ConservationReserve Program (CRP) initiative.

Currently, Illinois has four SAFE project areas: • Mercer County upland habitat restoration project;• Western Illinois pheasant habitat restoration project in

parts of Fulton, Henderson, Henry, Knox, Mercer, Peoria,Stark, and Warren counties;

• Sangamon County northern bobwhite quail conservationinitiative; and

• Illinois grassland/wetland habitat restoration in prairielandscapes, covering parts of 33 counties — go online to{www.dnr.state.il.us/orc/safe/}.

Under SAFE, farmers may install conservation practicesthat meet the specific needs of high-value wildlife species withhigh-quality habitat. Sign-up is offered continuously.

Interested farmers may contact their local USDA ServiceCenter to learn if their land is located within a project area orto obtain more information about the program.

Summer horticulture dayset June 14 at Kuipers farm

Kuipers Family Farm nearMaple Park will host the 2012Summer Horticulture FieldDay from 8:30 a.m. to 2 p.m.Thursday, June 14.

Wade and Kim Kuipers andtheir three children, Tess, 19,Joe, 16, and Will, 14, operatea 230-acre entertainmentfarm.

The Kuipers began oper-ations in 1998 with a 71-acre pumpkin patch. Short-ly thereafter, they boughtan orchard across the roadand later added severalbuildings for the manyentertainment and hands-on activities.

Activities include a cornmaze, hayrides, a farm animalpetting zoo, pony rides, ahaunted forest, a tractor-tiremountain, a pedal-tractor der-by, a nature walk, and jump-ing pillows.

An orchard shop and bak-ery offer many foods, includ-ing apple-cider doughnuts,home-baked pies, fudge, pas-teurized apple cider, andhand-spun caramel apples.The Barn Store offers giftitems.

The field day will concludeat the Aquaviva winery, vine-yard, and restaurant, located

a short distance fromKuipers.

Aquaviva is an award-win-ning winemaking productioncenter and Neapolitan-stylepizza bistro.

For more information,contact Don Naylor, execu-tive secretary of the IllinoisState Horticulture Society,15962 Old Orchard Road,

Bloomington, Ill., 61705. Thetelephone number is 309-828-8929 and e-mail address [email protected]

Online go to {www.kuipers-familyfarm.com} or{www.specialtygrowers.org}for more information.

For reservations, [email protected] orcall 309-828-8929.

Assessment IDs savingsfor community, county

The Smart Energy Design Assistance Center (SEDAC)recently estimated Fulton County and the Town of Cuba couldsave a combined $20,000 annually in energy bills for the commu-nity center and county nursing home.

SEDAC provides free energy assessments and technical assis-tance to Illinois public facilities, not-for-profits, and businesses. Theprogram is sponsored by the Illinois Department of Commerce andEconomic Opportunity (DCEO) and public-owned utilities.

After SEDAC representatives surveyed the county’s andtown’s buildings and collected information about the energyusage, they presented recommendations to cut energy uses aswell as ways to improve energy efficiency at both facilities.

In addition, SEDAC also identified grants and incentives thatcould be used to help pay for the improvements.

“They didn’t just tell us what to do; they helped show us howto get it done. They helped make the physical plant recommen-dations a fiscal reality,” said Martha Danielson, administrator ofthe county’s Clayberg Nursing Home in Cuba.

For more information about SEDAC program, go online to{www.sedac.org} or call 800-214-7954.

rural health


Providing more:

Telehealth offers more patient, less ‘windshield’ timeBY MARTIN ROSSFarmWeek

Got physician roundsTuesday morning in Aledo,Gibson City, Centralia, andCarrolton, but have to be backat the hometown hospital fora 1 p.m. meeting?

Don’t warm up the chopper.Go with technology.

The SouthernIllinois Universi-ty School ofMedicine hashelped developcomputer video-conferencingcapabilities forlargely rural hos-pitals, mentalhealth and devel-opmental centers, and otherproviders.

Glenn Groesch, director ofthe School of Medicine’s tele-health networks and programs,notes a growing lack of medicalspecialists in rural communities.As fuel costs rise, so does thecost of driving to a rural hospi-tal, and use of remote technol-ogy thus is “the next bestthing,” he said.

Springfield’s St. John’s Hos-Groesch cites continued

advances in time- and cost-sav-ing technologies: Doctors nowcan videoconference on the flyvia a smartphone. Groesch hasan app for that — within sec-onds, he connects to his ownoffice cam on his iPad.

Specialized video capabilitiesallow for remote, high-defini-tion examination of moles,lesions, and other physicalsymptoms. “I can hear heartsounds, see inside an ear, seedown a patient’s throat,”Groesch told FarmWeek.

pital routinely hosts pediatric“grand rounds” for an houreach Thursday morning,addressing child health issuesand possible treatments viavideoconference with doctors inCarroll, Christian, Crawford,Effingham, Ford, Madison,Mason, and Mercer counties.

Additional video grandrounds, withadditional hospi-tals, cover inter-nal medicine (8-9a.m. Tuesdays),psychiatry (noonto 1 p.m. Fri-days), and neurol-ogy (3-4 p.m.Tuesdays). Fur-ther, technology

has enabled regional medicalspecialists to replace “wind-shield time” with computerscreen time, thus expandingrural patient access, telehealthprogram IT technical associateDavid White told FarmWeek.

“We’re starting to focus nowon the actual telemedicine area,”White said. “You have a clinician,a psychologist, or a neurologistwho can consult with patients atfar distances, connecting on a

desktop computer, with a web-cam and a software program.

“Instead of his having todrive to Havana, or the patienthaving to drive into Springfield,he’s able to see a number ofpatients in the course of anafternoon, just like he would in aregular (on-site) clinical setting.”

Telehealth offers severalbeneficial side effects beyondpatient/physician convenience.Electronic patient records nowcan be shipped securelybetween hospitals, accordingto White, a vast improvementover past FAX transmissionsin terms of information confi-dentiality and “legibility.”

Videoconferencing is an ide-al option for smaller hospitalswith limited resources. Startupcosts are reasonable, little spe-cial equipment is needed, andnurses, physician’s assistants,and others can administer careunder a doctor’s direction evenwhen one isn’t available on site.

Patient confidentiality hasbeen a key concern in telehealthdevelopment. Grand roundsoften cover general topics, butwhen details of specific casesarise, they are offered understrict anonymity.

Medical technologyproviders are economicallymotivated to build adequatedata safeguards and firewallsinto medical software and sys-tems, White said.

Clogged arteries?Amid evolving communication technologies, growing

demand for wireless bandwidth, and even the occasional ill-parked van, building a better telehealth system is a challenge.

Increased rural broadband deployment is “vital for economicdevelopment, distance learning, telemedicine, for health careproviders in rural areas,” argues American Farm Bureau Federa-tion policy specialist R.J. Karney.

Concerns about bandwidth have heightened with a proposalby mobile carrier LightSquared to build an expansive new 4Gwireless communications network. The Federal Communica-tions Commission (FCC) revoked a conditional waiver thatwould have allowed LightSquared to immediately proceed withthe project, but the carrier continues to seek FCC approval.

Farm Bureau fears the project could interfere with high-techprecision farming. Southern Illinois University (SIU) informa-tion technology specialist David White acknowledges issuesahead as the public jostles for cyberspace access.

“It’s interesting, the demand for network accessibility andhow much that’s changed just over the last 10 years,” White toldFarmWeek. “We as consumers are demanding to have theseincredible network speeds wherever we are, even in the middleof nowhere. It’s how we’ve evolved in our businesses.”

Bandwidth competition can be fierce even within a hospital.Internet lines dedicated to medical video conferencing offer atempting option for radiologists seeking higher speed in trans-mitting images, forcing either internal conflicts or the need for asecond line, White said.

The non-profit Illinois Rural HealthNet is helping movesmaller hospitals to higher-capacity, low-cost 100-megabyte- to1-gigabyte-per-second networked connections. Healthnet’sDoug Power argues that “any way bandwidth can be improvedcan help telemedicine applications.”

But Power notes transmission of computer scans or digitalmammograms requires high bandwidth, and high-capacity com-peting uses can affect hospital systems. The quality of a hospi-tal’s network services or providers also can impact the effective-ness of telehealth capabilities, White said.

White recalls problems that occurred one day when SIU’sstaff attempted repeatedly to establish a video conferencing linkwith an Illinois mental health health center. “A UPS deliverytruck had parked right in front of their receive antenna, andboop, no more network,” he said. — Martin Ross

Telehealth services coordinated by the Southern Illinois University Schoolof Medicine have provided considerable mutual reach for medical spe-cialists and rural hospitals and health providers. Seen here are hospitalsacross the state that participate in weekly videoconferences with internalmedicine, psychiatric, neurological, and pediatric specialists.

AROUND ILLINOIS


The Class III price for milkadjusted to 3.5 percent but-terfat for the month of Aprilwas $15.72 per hundred-weight, unchanged from theprevious month.

Prices have declinedabout $1.25 since the first of

the year, but they have settledin the past couple of monthsas milk supplies slowly werebuilt with higher productionlevels

The early spring hasbrought more milk and earlyhay harvests.

Milk prices remain unchanged

because the mini-bulk is beingused for the sale or distribu-tion of the pesticide. Theretailer is refilling the farmer’smini-bulk.

Q: If a portable refillablecontainer is delivered to afarmer and the farmer fills asecond portable refillable con-tainer with the product, whattanks need to comply with thePCC regulations?

A: The first refillable con-tainer that is delivered to thefarmer must comply with thePCC regulations because it isbeing used for the sale or dis-tribution of the pesticide.

However, if the farmertransfers the pesticide from thecompliant portable refillablecontainer to a second tank andthen takes the second tank tothe field to aid in the applica-tion of the pesticide, the sec-ond tank is considered to be aservice container.

That meets the workingdescription of a service con-

tainer — “an applicator trans-fers a pesticide into a containerfor the purposes of that appli-cator applying the pesticide.”Therefore, the second tankdoes not have to comply withthe PCC regulations.

Q: What is the definition ofa service container?

A: A service container isdefined as “any container usedto hold, store, or transport apesticide concentrate or a pesti-cide use-dilution mixture, otherthan the original labeled con-tainer in which the product wasdistributed or sold, the measur-ing device, or the applicationdevice.”

A working description is: Ifan applicator transfers a pesti-cide into a container for thepurposes of that applicatorapplying the pesticide and theownership of the pesticide doesnot change during the time thepesticide is in the container, thecontainer is considered to be a“service container.”

The U.S. EnvironmentalProtection Agency (EPA)recently supplied general infor-mation about federal require-ments for portable, refillablepesticide containers, common-ly known as mini-bulk tanks,and related pesticide contain-ers. The requirements tookeffect last August. Below is Illi-nois Farm Bureau’s interpreta-tion of the EPA information.

Q: If a farmer owns a mini-bulk container and takes it intoan ag retailer and the ag retailerrefills the tank, does thefarmer as the applicator haveto comply with the PesticideContainer and Containment(PCC) regulations? (The tank

will be used to fill the farmer’ssprayer out in the field ofapplication).

A: Yes, in this situation thefarmer’s mini-bulk must com-ply with the PCC regulations

EPA answers questions about mini-bulk tank rules

SIU Carbondale names new agricultural sciences dean

so-called “soft fat” inhogs, especially as itrelates to the quality of

bacon and bratwurst.For Purdue’s distance

learning, Latour oversawmaster’s degree programs inagriculture and management,technology master’s degreeprograms, online veterinari-an technology degrees, andteaching certificates.

The distance-learningprogram brought in $10 mil-lion for the colleges anddepartments that providedthe courses.

He also led an expansionof online access to coursesthat increased enrollment indistance-learning courses

and programs.Todd Winters has served

as interim dean of the col-lege since the 2010 retire-ment of former Dean GaryMinish.

Winters will return to hispost as an associate dean inthe college.

Mickey Latour, a PurdueUniversity administrator andresearcher, has been nameddean of the College of Agri-cultural Sciences at SouthernIllinois University (SIU)Carbondale. Latour willbegin his new position onJuly 1, pending approval bythe SIU Board of Trustees.

Latour is a professor inPurdue’s College of Agricul-ture, the associate dean forPurdue Extended Campus,and the chief director ofPurdue’s distance learningprogram.

Latour earned both hisdoctorate in animal physiol-ogy and his master’s degreein physiology at MississippiState University.

He earned his bachelor’sdegree in animal science atSoutheastern Louisiana StateUniversity.

He joined the Purdue fac-ulty in 1997.

His research has focusedon lipid manipulation inmeat products, and heplayed a role in identifying


Funded by the Soybean Checkoff

“It’s been a great experience for me. I’ve been able to interact with a lot of producers from around the state who are the best at what they do and learn from them.” Mike Marron, Soy Ambassador

“The Soy Ambassador program is a great way for the next generation of farmer-leaders to follow the Illinois Soybean Association board through the process of building relationships and building coalitions.”

Jerry Gaffner, Soy Ambassador

“I think it is an excellent program for younger farmers like me. It exposed me not only to farming in Brazil, but also how the Illinois Soybean Association board of directors and staff work together to improve our industry.”

Sean Kinsella, Soy Ambassador

“The Soy Ambassador program has been unique, especially for the all varied experience we have gained, whether it was traveling to Chicago or learning about aquaculture. It’s sort of like being part of the board, without having to make decisions yet.”

Rob Prather, Soy Ambassador

iaa foundation


IAA Foundation names 2012-2013 scholarship winnersThe IAA Foundation has

awarded 52 college studentsscholarships for the 2012-2013school year based on their aca-demic ability, leadershipinvolvement, professionalcareer goals, and financialneed.

Through contributors andfunds set up to honor lovedones and leaders committed toagriculture, a sum of $88,900will be invested throughtuition assistance for theupcoming school year.

“The IAA Foundation hasa long history of assisting stu-dents with the ever-mountingexpenses of higher educa-tion,” said Susan Moore, IAAFoundation director. “We takegreat pride in supporting thesestudents, many who comefrom farm backgrounds andmany who are seeking a careerin an agriculture-relatedfield. We are truly investing inthe future of agriculturethrough these brightscholars.”

Students receiving IAAFoundation general scholar-ships worth $3,000 and theircurrent or planned majors are:

mann scholarship are:Bradley Braddock, Patoka,

son of Harry and Angie Brad-dock, Kaskaskia College, ag com-munications/ag law.

Amy Alsip, Vienna, daughterof Richard and Janet Alsip,Southern Illinois University(SIU), English-19th centuryBritish literature.

Erin Furmanek, Belleville,daughter of Phil and Celeste Fur-manek, U of I, pre-nursing.

Gary Newell, Lawrenceville,son of Rodney and EvelynNewell, Rose-Hulman Instituteof Technology, mechanical engi-neering.

Mary Becker, Carlyle, daugh-ter of Steve and Amy Becker,ISU, secondary education-math.

Kelcie Woker, Greenville,daughter of Craig and Jan Woker,U of I, ag communications.

Caroline Bremer, Metropo-lis, daughter of Jeff and Lisa Bre-mer, Oklahoma State University,ag economics/agribusiness.

Faith Wendte, Altamont,daughter of Roy and ChristineWendte, undecided, ag econom-ics/agribusiness.

Emily Tanner, Stonefort,daughter of Brian and TempaTanner, St. Louis College ofPharmacy, pharmacy.

Luke Rincker, Strasburg, sonof Otto and Lisa Rincker, U of I,ag accounting.

Tamar Adcock, Assumption,daughter of Jim and Jan Adcock,Kansas State University, animalscience.

Austin Pavlak, Belleville, sonof Thomas and Christine Pavlak,undecided, engineering.

Olivia Geiger, Alhambra,daughter of Steven and DenaGeiger, U of I, ag engineering.

Kari Weis, Highland, daugh-ter of Richard and MargaretWeis, University of Missouri-Columbia, ag journalism.

Katelyn Fryman, Ellery,daughter of Wesley and KellyFryman, SIU Edwardsville, phar-macy.

Evelyn Epplin, Cutler,daughter of David and SusanEpplin, SIU Carbondale, ag edu-cation.

Courtney Gerstenecker, Car-lyle, daughter of Robert andTamra Gerstenecker, KaskaskiaCollege, ag economics/agribusi-ness.

Amanda Barr, Altamont,daughter of Clyde and BarbaraBarr, Lake Land College, ag busi-ness management.

Theresa Reinhardt, Alham-bra, daughter of Dawn and GregReinhardt, SIU Carbondale, cropand soil science.

Allie Malone, Galatia, daugh-ter of Mark and Angie Malone,Union University, nursing.

Recipients of the Fletcher A.Gourley, Leonard Southwell, andRoger Capps Memorial scholar-ships, awarded to children ofemployees of Prairie FarmsDairy in the amount of $2,000each are:

Daniel Delaney, Carlinville,son of Joseph and Mary LouDelaney, Eastern Illinois Univer-sity, psychology.

Taylor Fassbinder, Gutten-berg, Iowa, daughter of Tom andSue Fassbinder, University ofIowa, nursing.

Stevi Short, Farmington, Mo.,daughter of Robin and SteveShort, University of Missouri (Uof M) Kansas City, epidemiology.

Sydney Schmidt, Carlinville,daughter Michael and LoriSchmidt, U of I, crop sciences.

John Donoghue, Carbondale,son of James and CynthiaDonoghue, U of I, general engi-neering.

David Phaup, Newburgh,Ind., University of Mississippi,biochemistry/pre-med.

Recipients of the Fletcher A.Gourley, Leonard Southwell, andRoger Capps Memorial scholar-ships, awarded to children ofpatrons of Prairie Farms Dairy inthe amount of $2,000 each are:

Jenny Eichhorn, Altenburg,Mo., daughter of John and RevaEichhorn, U of M Kansas City,medicine.

Hilary Charlet, Kewanee,daughter of Kevin and DawnCharlet, Illinois Wesleyan Univer-sity, communications.

Alexis Lintker, Venedy,daughter of Carl and Lisa Lintk-er, Illinois College, chemistry.

Ryan Meinhart, Wheeler, sonof Richard and Nancy Meinhart,undecided, agriculture.

Morgan Aprill, Greenetown,Ind., daughter of Tim and GraceAprill, Ball State University, jour-nalism.

Dayne Voelker, Perryville,Mo., son of Charles and NancyVoelker, U of M Kansas City,medicine.

Students receiving a $4,000Illinois Soybean AssociationCrop Science scholarship include:

Philip Dreste, Washington,son of Mike and Kathy Dreste, Uof I, crop science.

Greg Guest, Nashville, son ofGlen and Debra Guest, SIU Car-bondale, crop and soil science.

Logan Rehberg, Newark, sonof Randall and Stacy Rehberg, Uof I, crop science.

Daniel Fulton, Lincoln, sonof John and Sherry Fulton, U ofI, crop science.

Ashley Helmers, Chester,daughter of Randy and KathyHelmers, SIU, crop production.

Kurtis Wilke, Okawville, sonof David Wilke and Karen Pacha,SIU, plant and soil science.

Since 1989, the IAA Founda-tion has awarded 677scholarships. Applications for the2013-2014 school year will beavailable on Dec. 1. Specificdetails and eligibility requirementsmay be found online at{www.iaafoundation.org}.

The mission of the IAA Foun-dation, Illinois Farm Bureau’s char-itable foundation, is to fund educa-tion, research, and charitable activi-ties that benefit Illinois farm fami-lies and agriculture. Learn moreabout the IAA Foundation and theefforts it supports online at{www.iaafoundation.org}. Individ-uals interested in contributing tothe scholarship program may callthe foundation at 309-557-2230.

William “Billy” Hatfield,Dahlgren, son of Richard andPaula Hatfield, University of Illi-nois, ag and biological engineer-ing.

Amelia Martens, Orion,daughter of Patrick and AnnetteMartens, U of I, ag communica-tions.

Erin Salz, Tonica, daughter ofJon and Jolene Salz, U of I, pre-veterinary.

Receiving the $1,100 IAAFoundation general scholarship inthe name of Robert F. Rouse isBlaine Melody, Naperville, sonof Dawn and Richard Melody, Uof I, animal science/production.

Receiving the $1,000 IAAFoundation general scholarship inthe name of Fletcher A. Gourleyis Austin Ashby, Savanna, son ofFay James and Lisa Marie Ashby,U of I, agribusiness management.

Receiving the $1,000 IAAFoundation general scholarship inthe name of Leonard Southwell isAmie Burke, Fithian, daughter ofDebbie Burke and Virgil Burke,Illinois State University (ISU), agcommunications/leadership.

Receiving a $1,000 William J.Kuhfuss Memorial scholarship isBriana Grymonprez, Port Byron,daughter of Tim and Shelly Gry-monprez, U of I, pre-veterinary.

Receiving a $1,500 Greg Car-

ney scholarship is Kyle Hadden,Taylorville, son of Kenny andSusan Hadden, U of I, pre-veteri-nary.

Receiving a $1,000 Dale E.Butz scholarship is GracieWeinzierl, Stanford, daughter ofRodney and Kathy Weinzierl,ISU, ag education.

Students receiving the RobertF. Rouse scholarship worth$1,100 and their current orintended majors are:

Theresa Rodriquez, Gurnee,Chamberlain College of Nursing,master’s of nursing.

Ingrid Brauer, HawthornWoods, daughter of Marilee andTerry Brauer, U of I, humannutrition/pre-med.

Laura Micksch, Wadsworth,daughter of Dale and DebraMicksch, Northern Illinois Uni-versity, nursing.

The recipients of the Heart-land NAMA, Steven Hammer-schmidt scholarship in theamount of $1,000 are:

Daniel Herriott, Sidney, sonof Steve and Diana Herriott, ISU,ag business/agronomy manage-ment.

Kiersten Kasey, Ashmore,daughter of Nels Kasey and AnnRobinson, U of I, ag education.

Students receiving a $1,000Dorothy and Wilhelmine Rater-

from the counties


BUREAU — FarmBureau is sponsoring a

free portrait session for mem-bers from 3 to 8 p.m. Tuesdayand Wednesday, June 12-13, atthe Farm Bureau office. Onefree portrait per family orhousehold is allowed. Appoint-ments are on a first-come,first-served basis. Call theFarm Bureau office at 815-875-6468 for reservations ormore information.

• Nominations are beingaccepted to honor individualswho give leadership and serv-ice to agriculture and farmersin Bureau County and sur-rounding areas. A nomineemust be a resident of Bureaucounty. Nomination forms areavailable at the Farm Bureauoffice. Deadline to return theform to the Farm Bureauoffice is Friday, June 1.

• Bureau, Lee, and White-side County Farm Bureaus willsponsor the Summer Ag Insti-tute II for teachers June 26-27.Cost is $25 for members and$40 for non-members. Certifi-cation units may be earnedupon completion of thecourse. Call the Farm Bureauoffice at 875-6468 for an appli-cation form.

CHAMPAIGN — TheChampaign County

Farm Bureau Foundation willorganize the Countryside 10Kand two-mile walk Saturday,June 2, beginning at Witt Park,Sidney. Cost is determined ifparticipating in the 10K run ortwo-mile walk. Online regis-tration is available at {cccfb-foundation.com} or forms areavailable at the Farm Bureauoffice. Register by Friday andreceive a hat and goodie bag.Call Debby Rehn at 217-352-5235 for more information.

KNOX — Henry, Knox,Mercer, Stark, and War-

ren-Henderson County FarmBureaus will sponsor three “Agin a Day” teacher workshops atthe following dates and places:June 11, Galesburg; June 12,Alpha; and June 13, Kewanee.

Workshops will include hands-on activities, grants for class-rooms, kit give-aways, andfarm tours. There is no chargeto attend. Deadline to registeris May 15. Call the MercerCounty Farm Bureau office at309-582-5116 for reservations.Visit the website at{www.knoxcfb.org} for moreinformation.

LASALLE — FarmBureau will sponsor a

bus trip June 27 to see theChicago Cubs vs. the NewYork Mets game at WrigleyField. Cost is $75 for mem-bers and $85 for non-membersif paid by May 25. After May25, the cost is $85 and $95,respectively. Tickets are on afirst-come, first-served basis.Call the Farm Bureau office at815-433-0371 for reservationsor more information.

MONTGOMERY —The Prime Timers will

meet at noon Wednesday, May16, at the Lion’s Club, Hillsboro.A beef and noodles dinner willbe served. Cost is $8. MikeMeier, managing director fromFocused Pursuit LLC and authorof A Focused Pursuit in China, willbe the speaker. Deadline to reg-ister is Friday. Call the FarmBureau office at 217-532-6171for more information.

• The Prime Timers willtake a bus trip Sunday, July 1,to see “Nunsense A-Men!” atConklin’s Barn II Dinner The-atre, Goodfield. Cost is $56.Call the Farm Bureau office at217-532-6171 by Thursday,May 31, for reservations ormore information.

STARK — The PrimeTimer’s picnic will be

from noon to 2 p.m. Wednes-day, May 16, at the FarmBureau office. A barbecuepork meal will be served. Anupdate on upcoming trips willbe given. Call the FarmBureau office at 286-7481 byMonday, May 14, for reserva-tions or more information.

VERMILION — Ver-milion and Champaign

County Farm Bureaus willsponsor a landowner rightsmeeting at 5:30 p.m. Wednes-day at the Champaign CountyFarm Bureau, 801 N. CountryFair Drive, Suite A, Cham-paign. An Illinois FarmBureau legal team will discusslandowner rights, contractsand leases, and guidelines tofollow if approached by a min-eral company representative.Call the Farm Bureau officefor more information.

“From the counties” items aresubmitted by county Farm Bureaumanagers. If you have an event oractivity open to all members, contactyour county Farm Bureau manager.

Ag Day NorthStudents experience farming through field trip

BY BONA HEINSOHNThrough hands-on activities

and demonstrations, more than500 third grade students fromthroughout Cook Countylearned about Illinois farmersand the importance of healthyand nutritious food at an AgDay North event sponsored bythe Cook County Farm BureauFoundation and Wagner Farm.

For two hours, students,parents, and teachers learnedabout the state’s top farmcommodities, including cornand soybeans as well as thefarm-to-table process.

Students rotated thougheight stations presented by vol-unteers and staff from Her-itage Farm in Schaumburg,Ted’s Greenhouse in TinleyPark, Wagner Farm, University

of Illinois Extension, Nutri-ents for Soil, and the CookCounty Farm Bureau.

Topics covered included:horticulture, dairy, corn, soy-beans, pork, farm-to-table, andfarm technology.

Participating schools includ-ed: Oakhill Elementary School,Streamwood; St. Francis Ele-

mentary School, Chicago; Lin-coln Elementary School, Pala-tine; Rhodes ElementarySchool and St. Vincent Ele-mentary School, River Grove;Robinson Elementary School,Lyons, Betsy Ross ElementarySchool, Prospect Heights;North Elementary School, DesPlaines; and Park View Ele-mentary School, MortonGrove.

Cook County Commission-er Timothy Schneider andBoard of (Tax) Review Com-missioner Dan Patlak joined

the students. Schneider’snorthwest district includesStreamwood and Oakhill Ele-mentary, and Patlak’s districtincludes most of suburbanCook County.

The event was made possi-ble by the Cook County FarmBureau Foundation and Wagn-er Farm.

Bona Heinsohn is the director ofgovernment affairs and public rela-tions for the Cook County FarmBureau. Her e-mail address [email protected].

Cook County Commissioner Timothy Schneider (on tractor ladder) listens asTodd Price, far right, farm director for Wagner Farm of Glenview and amember of the Cook County Farm Bureau Ag Literacy/Public RelationsTeam, explains advances in farm technology. He was addressing thirdgrade students from Oakhill Elementary School in Streamwood during a re-cent Ag Day North event. (Photo courtesy Cook County Farm Bureau)

Auction CalendarMon., May 7. 1 p.m. Brown Co. LandAuction. Doris Bates Estate, MT. STER-LING, IL. Sullivan Auctioneers, LLC.www.sullivanauctioneers.com

Thurs., May 10. 7 p.m. Christian Co.Farmland. EDINBURG, IL. Cory Craig,Auctioneer. www.auctionillinois.netSat., May 12. 9 a.m. Consignment Auc.TREMONT, IL. Cal Kaufman and BrentSchmidgall, Auctioneers. calkaufmanauc-

tion.com or brentschmidgall.comSat., May 12. 10 a.m. Southern IL LandAuc. Larry “Hokey” Kelley, MACEDONIA,

IL. Barnard Auctions.www.auctionzip.com ~ id #2008Sat., May. 12. 9 a.m. Consignment

Auction. TREMONT, IL. Cal Kaufman andBrent Schmidgall, Auctioneers. kauf-

[email protected] [email protected]

Tues., May 15. 11 a.m. DeKalb Co LandAuc. Robert and Rita Brown Estate,MALTA, IL. Almburg Auctioneering.www.alumburgauctions.com

Tues., June 5. McLean Co. FarmlandAuc. Steinlicht & Baker Farms, COLFAX,IL. Soy Capital Ag Services. www.soy-

capitalag.comWed., June 6. 10 a.m. Ford Co.

Farmland Auc. GIBSON CITY, IL. BuseyFarm Brokerage.

profitability


Export inspections(Million bushels)

Week ending Soybeans Wheat Corn04-26-12 15.5 19.8 24.904-19-12 12.7 25.2 31.1Last year 8.4 36.8 37.7Season total 1089.1 916.3 1079.7Previous season total 1358.9 1130.4 1160.5USDA projected total 1275 1000 1700Crop marketing year began June 1 for wheat and Sept. 1 for corn and soybeans.

Feeder pig prices reported to USDA*Weight Range Per Head Weighted Ave. Price10 lbs. $31.58-46.00 $39.3140 lbs. $61.92-61.92 $61.9250 lbs. no longer reported by USDAReceipts This Week Last Week 84,929 126,725*Eastern Corn Belt prices picked up at seller’s farm

MARKET FACTS

Eastern Corn Belt direct hogs (plant delivered)(Prices $ per hundredweight)

This week Prev. week ChangeCarcass $74.81 $79.32 -4.51Live $55.36 $58.70 -3.34

(Thursday’s price)This week Prev. week Change

Steers n/a 119.52 Heifers n/a 119.30

USDA five-state area slaughter cattle price

This is a composite price of feeder cattle transactions in 27 states.(Prices $ per hundredweight)

This week Prev. week Change 147.85 148.85 -1.00

CME feeder cattle index — 600-800 Lbs.

Lamb prices

(Thursday’s price)

n/a

USDA

Farm ServiceAgency

2012 DCP/ACRE sign-up — The 2012 Direct andCountercyclical Program(DCP) enrollment will endJune 1.

Farmers need to rememberthe following:

All farmers with an interestin DCP-base acres must beincluded on the DCP/ACREcontract and receive a propor-tionate share of DCP/ACREpayment for the farm.

All farmers receiving ashare greater than zero on theDCP/ACRE contract mustsign the contract no later thanJune 1.

After enrolling June 1 inDCP/ACRE, changes must bereported to the local FSAoffice. These include owner-ship changes, farmer changes(individuals and entities), andchanges in crop share arrange-ments. Changes cannot bemade after Sept. 30, 2012.

TAP eligibility require-ments — Orchardists andnursery tree growers whoexperienced losses from natu-ral disasters that occurredfrom Jan. 1, 2008, throughSept. 30, 2011, may still be eli-gible for the Tree AssistanceProgram (TAP).

Farmers who experienced aloss from a natural disasterthat occurred before Sept. 30,2011, must report the losswithin 90 calendar days ofwhen the loss was first appar-ent (for fruit trees, the damagemay not be apparent until thisspring). The applicant mustprovide evidence to FSA of

when the loss is first apparent.The local county committeewill determine if the evidencesupports that the loss occurredfrom an eligible disaster andwas reported timely.

Contact your local FSAoffice for questions and addi-tional eligibility requirements.

Beginning farmer loans— Farm Service Agency (FSA)has a program to help begin-ning farmers and/or membersof socially disadvantagedgroups to finance agriculturalenterprises. Under these desig-nated farm loan programs,FSA can provide financing toeligible applicants throughdirect or guaranteed loans.

FSA defines a beginningfarmer as someone who:

• Has operated a farm forless than 10 years,

• Will materially and sub-stantially participate in theoperation of the farm,

• Agrees to participate in aloan assessment, borrowertraining, and financial manage-ment program sponsored byFSA, and

• Except for operating loanassistance, does not own farmacreage in excess of 30 percentof the county’s median size.

Each member of an entitymust meet the eligibilityrequirements. Loan approval isnot guaranteed.

More information, loanapplications, and other materi-als are available at the localUSDA Service Center oronline at {www.fsa.usda.gov}and {www.nrcs.usda.gov}.

Headlines play key role in energy marketsBY BRIAN HARTMAN

A plethora of reasons cancause energymarket volatil-ity; however,here are thetop issues cur-rently affect-ing the oilmarkets.

Sanctionsagainst Iranhave caused alot of uncer-

tainty with oil investors, andthe possibility of a supplydisruption puts even morefear into the equation.

Iran threatened to shutdown the Straits of Hormuz,through which roughly 33 per-cent of the world’s oil passes.Fortunately, Iran has enteredinto constructive multilateraldiscussions over its nuclearprogram which will continuethis month.

Political instability is the

overarching problem whendealing with Middle Easternsuppliers.

The Seaway pipeline, a 500-mile pipeline carrying crude oilfrom Freeport, Texas, to Cush-ing, Okla., will come onlineMay 17. Cushing is the pricingpoint (benchmark) for oil trad-ed on the NYMEX.

This pipeline will help easethe bottleneck of oil caused bythe lack of transportationbetween the middle part of theU.S. and the Gulf Coast. Thisexcess of oil is partiallyresponsible for oil prices beingso cheap compared to interna-tional prices.

Once the ownersannounced the pipeline, earlyWest Texas Intermediate(WTI) prices increased. Theprice difference or “spread”between WTI and EuropeanBrent oil narrowed.

Moreover, the relationshipor “spread” between WTI vs.gasoline and WTI vs. diesel hasnarrowed.

The markets already havethe perception that inventorieswill be reduced, and as a result,we have witnessed increasedoil prices.

Once we start seeing actualresults, oil could go higher, butfor now we will have to wait tosee how much inventories willbe affected.

The European debt crisishas been taunting us for morethan two years.

Spain is now taking Greece’splace in the headlines andthreatens to re-ignite the crisis.Interest rates on Spanish debtare now above 6 percent,which most market analystsfeel is unsustainable.

However, investors wereeager to scoop up Spanish debt

in April. So far, Spain is ontrack to correct the problem,but another debt crisis couldsend shockwaves through thefinancial and energy markets.The energy markets see anykind of crisis as bearishbecause fuel demand is inquestion when these types ofissues arise.

The media grabbed every-one’s attention earlier thisspring with $5 gasoline head-lines, which seems unlikely(except for metropolitanareas).

Typically we peak out in ear-ly May when the driving seasonkicks off. Let’s see if typicalseasonal patterns hold trueagain!

Brian Hartman is GROW-MARK’s energy analyst. His e-mail address is [email protected].

Brian Hartman

Prairie Bounty now available onlinePrairie Bounty of Illinois, a

directory of direct-from-the-farm sellers, farmers’ markets,and agritourism businesses, isnow available online at{www.specialtygrowers.org/prairie-bounty.html}.

Provided by Illinois FarmBureau and the Illinois Spe-cialty Growers Association,the directory contains contactinformation and locations formore than 900 individualgrowers of fruits, vegetables,and herbs throughout Illinois.

The directory also providesconsumers with the farms’contact information, productsavailable, methods of sale,and a complete list of farm-ers’ markets and agritourismbusinesses in Illinois, search-able by city, county, or ZIPcode.

“As consumers become

more involved in how theirfood is produced, they oftenbecome more interested insupporting local farms bypurchasing locally grownfood,” said Diane Handley,IFB affiliate association man-ager.

“This directory helps con-sumers do just that — sup-port local farmers and buyfarm-fresh produce and prod-ucts at farms and farmers’markets across the state.”

Growers interested inadding their names and busi-nesses to Prairie Bounty of Illi-nois may contact Handley at309-557-3662 or via e-mail [email protected].

They also may visit the Illi-nois Specialty Growers websiteat {www.specialtygrowers.org}for instructions on how to reg-ister.

New grain terminal to be constructed in Morgan County

Barlett Grain Co., KansasCity, recently announced itplans to begin constructionthis summer on a major newgrain terminal in SouthJacksonville in MorganCounty.

The new terminal willhave storage capacity for 2million bushels of grain andoilseeds, the SpringfieldState Journal-Register report-ed.

Barlett also plans to addrail access to accommodate100-car shuttle trains at thenew facility.

Truck access will comefrom Illinois 267.

Proximity to grain pro-duction and truck and railaccess were key factors inthe selection of the SouthJacksonville site, the news-paper reported.

WIU horticulture professor starts blog

Mari Loehrlein, a WesternIllinois University (WIU) pro-fessor of horticulture andlandscaping in the School ofAgriculture, has started a newblog that highlights the inter-actions of people and plants.

Loehrlein’s first blog post,“To Bee or Not to Bee,” cov-ers the plight of bees, as wellas the intersection of bees aspollinators in the agricultureindustry and the effects ofhuman impact, such as pesti-cides and habitat loss, onbees.

Her “Garden Gate” blog isonline at {http://mloehrlein.blogspot.com}.

PROFITABILITY

AgriVisor Hotline Number

309-557-2274

AgriVisor endorsescrop insurance by

Policies issued by COUNTRYMutual Insurance Company®,

Bloomington, Illinois

AgriVisor LLC1701 N. Towanda Avenue

PO Box 2500Bloomington IL 61702-2901

309-557-3147

AgriVisor LLC is not liable for any damageswhich anyone may sustain by reason of inac-curacy or inadequacy of information providedherein, any error of judgment involving anyprojections, recommendations, or advice orany other act of omission.

CASH STRATEGISTCorn Strategy

ü2011 crop: Market actionstill hints the 20-week low maylie ahead. Given currentprices, and the approachinglow, we’d put off making anycatch-up sales until after thatlow is hit. Even if prices droplower in the short term, theyshould be able to reach theselevels again.

ü2012 crop: Use rallies to$5.35 on December futures tomake catch-up sales. Saleswere increased to 40 percentwhen the fail-safe was trig-gered four weeks ago. Weprefer hedge-to-arrive con-tracts for making sales, butplan to tie up the basis bymid-summer.

vFundamentals: Recentweekly export sales were thebiggest since January 1991 andincluded nearly 2 million tons(78 million bushels) to China.However, upside potential hasbeen capped due to theaggressive pace of corn plant-ing throughout the Midwest.Some regions experiencedplanting delays due to wetweather, but the extendedforecast looks more conducivetoward further plantingprogress.

Soybean Strategyü2011 crop: The market

has been giving some poten-tial signs the upside momen-tum may have been exhausted.We continue to advise sellingremaining inventories unlessyou want to hold “gamblingstocks” into summer. Thefirst break could be brutalwhen it comes, with therecord long position held bytrading funds.

ü2012 crop: New-cropsales should have been pushedup another 10 percent, liftingthe total to 40 percent.

vFundamentals: Chinacontinues to be an aggres-sive buyer of U.S. corn withthe majority of sales beingnew-crop business. Soybeanplanting has been outpacingthe five-year average, but itwas recently slowed becauseof wet weather throughoutthe Midwest. However, thecurrent maps are calling forabove-normal temperaturesand average rainfall for thefirst half of May, whichshould allow for aggressive

planting progress. ûFail-safe: If November

futures fall below $13.45,make the new-crop sale.

Wheat Strategyü2011 crop: The wheat

market recently shifted lowerand will be vulnerable to fur-ther weakness with seasonalpressure and impending har-vest a drag on prices. Userallies to wrap-up old-cropsales. Use the cash market tomake sales. Don’t carryunhedged inventories beyondApril.

ü2012 crop: Use rallies to$6.33 on Chicago July futuresto make catch-up sales. Pro-ducers selling 100 percent offthe combine need to be

aggressive in making sales onrallies.

vFundamentals: Themajority of the wheat funda-mentals are taking on a bearishtone. The Kansas wheat tourrecently took place, and scoutsreported generally favorableconditions and expectationsfor solid yields. In addition,the winter wheat crop is fur-ther along in development dueto warm temperatures in themonth of March. This shouldresult in an early harvest andbring supplies into thepipeline ahead of schedule.Export business has beensteady, but supplies are morethan adequate to meetdemand.

Cents per bu.

Soybean shipments holding pace


pace expectations. Demand forU.S. corn is starting to demon-strate signs of picking up, asChina has recently re-enteredthe market and made severalpurchases of both old- andnew-crop corn. However, cornstill has to contend with com-petition from feed wheat andthis likely will keep a lid ondemand to a certain degree.

Soybean shipments are final-ly starting to track USDA pro-jections. Much of the demandhas come from the Chinese asthey recently stepped back intothe market. In addition, thesmaller South American crophelped push a portion of theexport business back to the U.S.

Wheat shipments continueto track slightly above projec-tions but still lag below the pre-vious year. The trade remainshopeful demand will start topick up, as sales have beensteady. However, both domes-tic and international supplies ofwheat remain ample, and com-petition is going to be tough.

Corn exports brieflydropped below USDA projec-tions, but now are on track to

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LETTERS TO THE EDITOROrganic farming can feed the worldEditor:

In the commentary by CarolKaiser of the Truth AboutTrade & Technology(FarmWeek, April 2) aboutorganic farming, she expressesan opinion on behalf of herorganization that organic can’tfeed the world.

Now I realize that the Per-spectives page is a column ofopinions. Everyone has a rightto his own opinion, even if itis wrong.

However, Ms. Kaiser’s mix-ing of facts with this popularmyth about organic farming isdoing a real disservice to yourreaders, most of whom, I sus-pect, don’t know very muchabout organic agriculture.

In fact, organic can feed theworld. A 30-year farming sys-tems trial report by RodaleInstitute of Emmaus, Pa.,found that:

a. Organic yields matchconventional yields in long-term trials.

b. Organic outperformsconventional in drought years.

c. Organic farming systemsbuild rather than deplete soilorganic matter, making it amore sustainable system.

d. Organic farming uses 45percent less energy and ismore efficient.

e. Conventional systemsproduce 40 percent moregreenhouse gases.

f. Organic farming systemsare more profitable than con-ventional.

For more about thisresearch, go to {www.rodalein-stitute.org/fst30years}.

A 13-year study at IowaState University found similarresults in yields, improved soilquality, lower expenses, andbetter returns to management.You can learn more aboutIowa State’s long-term agroe-cological research at {www.leop-pld.iastate.edu/pubs}.

The above information isan overly brief summary from“The Facts about OrganicAgriculture” fact sheet pub-lished by the Midwest Organicand Sustainable EducationService (MOSES), and avail-able at P.O. Box 339, Spring

Valley, Wis. 54767 or via at e-mail [email protected].

MOSES is an excellentsource for up-to-date, accurateinformation on organic agri-culture.

Considering that Rodaledoesn’t get any governmentfunding, and I am reasonablysure that the ag chemical com-panies don’t give it any money,and Iowa State’s informationagrees with Rodale, I wouldbelieve Rodale/MOSESinstead of Truth About Trade& Technology.ROBERT A. SAYRE,Dundas

Legislation a positive for livestock operationsEditor:

As a farmer and a FarmBureau member, I was so gladto see that the Illinois FarmBureau and Illinois Pork Pro-ducers Association compro-mised with the Illinois EPA(IEPA), the environmentalcommunity, and others on theClean Water Funding FairnessAct (HB 5642).

The bill establishes a fee

for concentrated animal feed-ing operations (CAFOs) thathave National Pollutant Dis-charge Elimination System(NPDES) permits to dischargepollution into the waters ofthe U.S.

The annual fees, thoughvery minimal, are needed tofund the IEPA’s permittingprogram, which is required byfederal law.

All other regulated indus-tries, such as municipal sewageplants and industrial process-ing facilities, already pay per-mit fees. To date, they havebeen paying for the CAFOprogram because livestockoperations have always beenexempt from paying fees.

However, numerousCAFOs have been found dis-charging, and they should con-tribute to the cost of regulat-ing their own pollution.

Permits are beneficialbecause they prevent pollutionand create greater accountabil-ity. HB 5642 has passed theHouse and recently the SenateEnvironmental Committee.The full Senate will vote next

and, if the bill passes, Gover-nor Quinn will sign it into lawthis session.CINDY BONNET,Lena

The Illinois Soybean Association(ISA) has a long history of activelyhelping to build markets and maintainmarket access for Illinois soybeansaround the world. In March, I traveledwith a group of fellow Illinois soybeanfarmers to open doors to greater salesin Cuba.

I traveled on this first-ever Illinoissoybean mission to the island nationwith ISA board members Doug Winter,Dan Farney, and Tim Seifert, and ISAstaff member Mark Albertson.

The goals of our mission, which wasfunded with ISA membership dollars,were to build relationships and lay thegroundwork for future visits with thosewho buy and use soybeans.

We wanted to gain intimate knowl-edge of the supply anddemand dynamics inCuba. Ultimately, as Illi-nois soybean farmers,we would like to be thepreferred soy supplier.

Our trip came at agood time.

While the UnitedStates is the primarysupplier of whole soy-beans to Cuba, which

purchases some five million bushels peryear, U.S. soybean farmers are losingsoybean meal and oil market share inCuba to competitors who are geo-graphically more distant.

In 2006, the U.S. had more than 75percent of the market share of Cuba’ssoybean meal and oil imports. Today,Brazil has more than 75 percent of themarket.

According to William Messina Jr., aUniversity of Florida agricultural econ-omist, Brazil overtook the U.S. in 2008to become Cuba’s leading supplier ofsoybean meal. By 2010, Brazil suppliedclose to 90 percent of imports.

Sharply higher imports of soybeanoil from Brazil in 2011 are a large rea-son that Brazil overtook the U.S. asCuba’s largest food and agriculturalimport supplier.

Brazil also issupplying tech-nology andknowledge thatwe are not.

We learnedCuba typicallyproduces only aminimal amountof soybeans buthas joint ven-tures withBrazilians forlocal soybeanproduction.They are grow-ing soybeans inCuba whereother cropscannot grow.

About 1.2million acres of biotech soybeans arebeing grown with Brazilian technolo-gy. Brazil is investing in Cuba’s poul-try industry and providing fundingfor port refurbishments and foodpurchase credits.

Cuba has one soybean processingplant that is a joint venture with a

Canadian firm. The state-of-the-art,500 metric-ton-per-day soybean-based food-processing plant report-edly produces texturized soy protein,soy flour, soybean meal, and crudesoybean oil, as well as lecithin.

I believe Brazil and Canada seeCuba as a stepping stone to gainentrance into Latin American mar-kets, as we see them increase their

presence in key U.S. markets such asMexico.

Messina predicts Cuba will not beable to grow the food its peopleneeds because it lacks technology,faces operational constraints, and isnot economically able to be totallyfood self-sufficient.

Yet, consumers must be fed andthe growing tourism industry sup-ported.

That’s where Illinois soybean farm-ers plan to make a difference.

ISA’s mission is to ensure Illinois soyis the highest quality, most dependable,sustainable, and competitive in theglobal marketplace. To help achievethat mission, we favor immediate

removal of agricul-tural trade restric-tions for Cuba andurge Cuban eligibil-ity for various gov-ernment credit pro-grams.

Illinois is wellpositioned to beCuba’s best supplierof soybeans andsoy products, givenlogistical advan-tages, and a com-mitment to quality.We don’t want tolose the opportuni-ty.

Illinois soybeanfarmers need apresence in Cuba toincrease our expo-

sure and work with key industry play-ers.

There is much to be gained, and ISAis at the forefront opening marketdoors in Cuba.

Matt Hughes of Shirley is chairman of theIllinois Soybean Association.

First-ever Illinois soybean mission opens doors in Cuba

MATTHUGHES

MARKETING WITH A MISSION

FarmWeek May 7 2012

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Transcript of FarmWeek May 7 2012