farmweek september 14 2009 issue

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Monday, September 14, 2009 Two sections Volume 37, No. 37

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

AG SECRETARY Tom Vilsackis frustrated that some media con-tinue to mislabel the H1N1 virus as“swine flu.”.......................................2

PROSPECTS FOR cap-and-trade legislation to come out of theSenate appeared less likely lastweek, but the fight isn’t over. ........4

THE POPULAR herbicideatrazine poses no threat to the safe-ty of drinking water, according toits manufacturer, Syngenta. .............3

RIDING FOR AG EDUCATION

Riders leave Sullivan Elementary School last week during the IAA Foundation-hosted 14th annual bike ride toraise funds for Illinois Agriculture in the Classroom (IAITC). Through rider fundraising and sponsorships, theride was on track to raise $35,000. Fifty cyclists traveled routes through Clark, Coles, Cumberland, Douglas,Edgar, Effingham, Jasper, Moultrie, and Shelby counties. Along the way, riders visited 25 schools to sharethe message of agriculture and to highlight bike safety. See more on page 2. (Photo by Ken Kashian)

BY MARTIN ROSSFarmWeek

While President Obama did not retreat fromsupporting a controversial “public option” beforeCongress last week, he stressed budget-responsi-ble health measures and hinted he was open tolegal reforms that could reduce patient costs.

Critics of Obama’s plan — seen by some as athreat to the existing private health care system— were further heartened to learn influentialU.S. Senate Finance Chairman Max Baucus (D-Mont.) has rejected including a government-managed insurance option or mandatedemployer insurance coverage in his committee’sdraft health proposal.

At the same time, Republicans such asCollinsville’s Rep. John Shimkus are touting“market-based” alternatives to help the unin-sured. And Sen. Tom Harkin’s (D-Iowa) movefrom Senate Ag Committee leadership to chairthe Senate Health Committee has spurred hopesfor a greater rural health focus.

“It seems like all things are possible this weekin Washington,” American Farm Bureau Federa-tion analyst Pat Wolff said in an RFDRadio/FarmWeek interview last week.

She said Obama’s promise to reject any planthat would contribute to the federal deficit and“new” recognition that medical malpractice liabil-ity has prompted doctors to “cover all theirbases” through extra tests and proceduresaddressed “two Republican concerns.” She fur-ther noted the White House is maintaining an

“open line” with key Senate Republicans.Obama indicated his plan — tagged at a possi-

ble $900 billion — would have to be financed byincreasing taxes or by squeezing savings fromexisting federal spending.

Baucus wants the Finance Committee torelease a plan this week in order to allow time for“serious discussions necessary to get a bill byyear’s end,” Wolff said. Because it holds the pursestrings for health initiatives, she sees that commit-tee as being “on the forefront” of debate.

That’s potentially crucial because Shimkusanticipates “limited debate” once proposals reachthe full Senate.

He noted alternatives to the public option,such as one offering the uninsured the type ofmenu-driven coverage plan members of Con-gress enjoy are being discussed.

Wolff cited further proposals to “trigger” pro-grams that fill specific health care gaps or offerfederal funds for cooperatives that provide theself-employed, small businesses, and othersaffordable coverage.

Shimkus is generally in favor of co-op-styleproposals but fears co-op pooling could be usedas a “wolf in sheep’s clothing” to promote a pub-lic “single-payer” system.

“(Obama) might hold out medical liability as acompromise ‘big’ movement, but I don’t thinkthat gets him there,” he told FarmWeek. “He hasto walk away from this public option. For us toreally believe (Obama), he needs to look at solv-ing the problem through the private sector first.”

Are signs pointing to a fallhealth care compromise?

Crop estimates rise,price forecast lowerBY DANIEL GRANTFarmWeek

USDA on Friday raised itprojection for corn and soy-bean production due in part toa continuation of the mildsummer weather pattern.

Now it’s a “race to the finish”to determine if the crops canmeet their yield potential beforethe first frost ends the growingseason, said Don Rosse, marketanalyst with U.S. Commodities,during a teleconference hostedFriday by the CME Group.

Crop production this monthwas projected at 12.95 billionbushels for corn (up 2 percentfrom the August estimate) and3.25 billion bushels for soybeans(up 1 percent from last month).

If realized, the soybeancrop would be the largest onrecord and the corn cropwould be the second-largestever harvested behind only therecord crop of 2007.

“Big crops typically get big-ger,” Rosse said. “We expectedthat to happen.”

USDA boosted yield projec-tions by 2.7 bushels for beansand 8 bushels for corn comparedto last year. Yields for this seasonwere pegged at 42.3 bushels per

acre for beans and a record161.9 bushels per acre for corn.

Yields in Illinois were pro-jected to average 179 bushelsper acre for corn (up 4 bushelsfrom last month) and 44bushels for soybeans(unchanged from last month).

But while the trade generallyexpected the big production esti-mates, farmers and traders are“weary of a potential early frost,”according to Jim Bower, marketanalyst with Bower Trading.

“There is still an element ofconcern. A lot of corn, partic-ularly to the north, is notmature,” Bower said. “We mustrealize these are not the final(production) numbers.”

The large production esti-mates for now could keep a lidon crop prices.

USDA lowered its estimatesfor the average farm price inthe 2009/10 marketing year by25 cents per bushel for corn (toa current range of $3.05 to$3.65), 30 cents per bushel forbeans (to a current range of$8.10 to $10.10), and 20 centsper bushel for wheat (to a cur-rent range of $4.70 to $5.50).

But there was some friendlynews Friday as USDA’s 2009/10ending stocks projections of1.63 billion bushels for corn and220 million bushels for beanswere below trade expectations.

Meanwhile, the value of theU.S. dollar last week plunged tonew lows. “As we go lower (inprice) what we’ve been able todo is buy demand,” Rosse said.“And the U.S. dollar is key. That’sreally what started the previouscommodity price advance.”

USDA on Friday projectedsoy exports will set a newrecord at 1.28 billion bushelsand it raised corn exports by100 million bushels.

FarmWeekNow.comView the latest supply-de-mand and crop report infor-mat ion onl ine by v is i t ingFarmWeekNow.com.

MONSANTO CUTS JOBS — Monsanto Co.announced last week it is eliminating another 900jobs to reduce costs amid slower-than-expected salesof Roundup, the St. Louis Post Dispatch reported.

The company in June announced plans to cut 900jobs, so the latest round of cuts would bring a totalto 1,800, about 8 percent of Monsanto’s workforce.

The job cuts are part of a broad restructuringplan aimed at saving as much as $250 million peryear.

Monsanto reportedly expects to earn as much as$6.3 billion in the 2010 fiscal year, but the averageper share of stock was projected to drop from $4.08to as low as $3.10.

Monsanto still is on track to double its 2007 grossprofit by 2012, the newspaper reported.

U OF I TRUSTEE CHAIRMAN ELECTED— Chicago businessman Christopher Kennedy waselected chairman of the University of Illinois Boardof Trustees last week. Kennedy, who recently wasappointed to the board, defeated reappointedtrustee Edward McMillan of Greenville, who laterwas elected to the Executive Committee.

Gov. Pat Quinn seconded Kennedy’s nominationfor chairman. “We have a great group of trustees,”Quinn said in a news conference. “Today was alandmark day.”

Quinn stressed the importance of having trusteeswith business and economic backgrounds. “ThisUniversity of Illinois system is a gigantic corpora-tion — one of the largest in the state,” he said.

The board unanimously passed a resolution onadmission reforms and an administrator code ofconduct. The governor said the goals are openness,fairness, and integrity for considering admissions tothe university.

KRAFT TO CUT SUPPLIER BASE — Chica-go-based Kraft Foods Inc. announced plans to cutits supplier base in half, which would impact morethan 30,000 companies, according to Reuters.

The food manufacturer will consolidate pur-chases of everything from ingredients to packaging.The review and potential cost savings would occurbefore Kraft attempts to buy the British candy com-pany Cadbury.

An executive said Kraft is taking a holistic viewof its suppliers, existing and future company needs,and the potential for each supplier to meet thoseneeds.

FarmWeek Monday, September 14, 2009

(ISSN0197-6680)

Vol. 37 No. 37 September 14, 2009

Dedicated to improving the profitability of farm-ing, and a higher quality of life for Illinois farmers.FarmWeek is produced by the Illinois FarmBureau.

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FarmWeek is published by the Illinois AgriculturalAssociation for farm operator members. $3 from the indi-vidual membership fee of each of those members go towardthe production of FarmWeek.

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© 2009 Illinois Agricultural Association

STAFFEditor

Dave McClelland ([email protected])Legislative Affairs Editor

Kay Shipman ([email protected])Agricultural Affairs Editor

Martin Ross ([email protected])Senior Commodities Editor

Daniel Grant ([email protected])Editorial Assistant

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Dennis VerclerAdvertising Sales RepresentativesHurst and Associates, Inc.P.O. Box 6011, Vernon Hills, IL 600611-800-397-8908 (advertising inquiries only)

Gary White - Northern IllinoisDoug McDaniel - Southern IllinoisEditorial phone number: 309-557-2239Classified advertising: 309-557-3155Display advertising: 1-800-676-2353

Quick TakesLIVESTOCK

Vilsack vilifies media for H1N1 confusion

USDA prepares for possibleoutbreak in U.S. swine herd

BY DANIEL GRANTFarmWeek

Ag Secretary Tom Vilsack last week saidUSDA is taking steps to prepare for the possi-bility this fall of H1N1 infecting a portion ofthe nation’s swine herd.

USDA established a flu surveillance programand developed a master seed virus so privatecompanies can produce a vaccine.

“Should there be any of this detected in theswine herd, we want to respond quickly to avoidthe spread of the virus,” Vilsack said.

H1N1, which is a novel strain that containscomponents of human, avian, and swine virus-es, so far has not been detected in the U.S.swine herd, but a few cases have been con-firmed in the Canadian herd.

The virus currently circulating in humans ispassed from person to person and cannot becontracted by eating or handling pork.

Vilsack expressed frustration about the con-stant media use of the term “swine flu” todescribe the novel strain and urged members ofthe media to refer to the virus more accuratelyas H1N1.

“By continuing to mislabel this virus, it caus-es undue and undeserved harm to America’s agindustry, especially to pork producers,” he said.

Vilsack displayed some of his frustration withthe situation when a media member during a tele-conference last week said the pork industry

already was in financial trouble prior to the H1N1outbreak in April, and suggested the confusioncreated by the term “swine flu” did not necessari-ly add to economic losses in the industry.

“Every time this flu is mislabeled and mis-represented, it makes it that much more diffi-cult for us to climb out of these difficult eco-nomic times for pork producers,” Vilsack said.“It’s frustrating and upsetting.”

Vilsack noted 38 countries banned importsof U.S. pork, although most markets have beenreopened with the exception of China; schoolshave been hesitant to purchase pork for lunchprograms; and consumers generally have beenmore “squeamish” about purchasing pork sincethe H1N1 outbreak.

The National Pork Producers Councilrecently estimated additional market losses tothe pork industry due to confusion about H1N1this year could total $1.2 billion.

“It’s not fair and it’s not right,” said Vilsack,who recently met with IFB President PhilipNelson and other Farm Bureau leaders to dis-cuss the situation.

USDA this month purchased $30 million ofpork products to support the industry, assistvarious federal food programs, and to set anexample that it believes pork is safe.

USDA likely will make more pork purchasesafter Oct. 1 when it receives more federal fund-ing, Vilsack added.

TALKING CAREERS

Don Bergfield, left, agriculture program director at Parkland College in Champaign, talks with stu-dents at Okaw Valley High School in Bethany in Moultrie County about agricultural educational op-portunities available at a junior college. He was one of a number of speakers who participated inlast week’s bike ride for Agriculture in the Classroom and talked with students about careers in agri-culture. (Photo by Ken Kashian. Additional photos appear at {www.ilfb.org}. Click on Ken Kashi-an’s Photo Gallery.)

ENVIRONMENT


FARMLAND FOREVER

Bruce and Jennifer Stennerson, left and center, look over a sign heldby Richard Gadke of the Boone County nonprofit group “The Farm-

land Protection Project” which denotes theStennerson farm as being the first in thecounty on which an agricultural conserva-tion easement has been placed. The Boone

County Board created a farmland protection committee, currentlychaired by Gadke, to encourage farms to be conserved for agricul-ture only. The 260-acre Stennerson farm has been in the family for157 years. The easement allows the Stennersons and future ownersto change the type of farming on the land, to add or change farmbuildings, or to sell the property. What they or future owners cannotdo now is subdivide the land into a residential development. (Photoprovided by Boone County Farm Bureau manager Ann Marie Cain)

Illinois watershed effortsshow success on atrazine BY KAY SHIPMANFarmWeek

Voluntary efforts, best management practices, and watertreatment technology are handling Illinois water quality issuesrelated to atrazine successfully.

“Keep up the good work,” said Roger Selburg, manager ofIllinois Environmental Protection Agency’s (IEPA) publicwater supply. Since 2006, Illinois has had no violations ofquarterly public water standards for atrazine, according to Sel-burg.

It was different in the early ‘90s when IEPA reported about40 community water supplies exceeded water standards foratrazine, Selburg said. IEPA enforced regulations, and watersupplies started treating water to remove the herbicide.

In response, several local watershed groups were formed byfarmers, agrichemical dealers, conservation agencies, countyFarm Bureaus, and community water supplies.

The Lake Springfield watershed is a prime example. Thecity’s water treatment facility once spent from $6,000 to$143,000 a year on powdered activated charcoal to removeatrazine from untreated water, said Tom Skelly, water divisiondirector for City Water, Light, and Power (CWLP).

To address the issue, CWLP worked closely with a water-shed group, agrichemical dealers, and watershed farmers,according to Skelly. The best management practices employedin the watershed included reduced rates, split applications, anduse of alternate products.

“They did a very good job of reducing atrazine,” he said.The group’s efforts were so successful CWLP spent no

money for atrazine removal in 2004 through 2007. However,last year and this year have been more problematic, and thecity is spending money on atrazine treatment for the first timein five years, Skelly noted.

Farmers and agrichemical dealers faced a tough challengethis year in the Lake Springfield watershed, said Dick Stiltz,agronomy manager for Lincoln-Land FS.

Given the frequency of rainstorms, the application oppor-tunity was squeezed into a shorter-than-usual period of time,and buffers and fields lacked the normal amount of vegetationto slow and catch storm runoff, Stiltz explained.

“To me this was probably a weather phenomenon — and aone-year phenomenon,” Stiltz added.

Atrazine application rates continue to decrease, and farmersand agrichemical dealers continue to use best managementpractices, Stiltz said. “I think they’re (farmers) all quite aware,and definitely the retailers are,” he added.

Skelly is optimistic about the future: “The Lake Springfieldfarming community has shown that atrazine can be dealt with,but vigilance is important or we can go backward.”

IEPA’s Selburg attributes the success to “a combination ofwork done by watershed groups and the surface water suppli-ers.

“Keep up the good practices to control atrazine on site tothe fullest extent possible,” Selburg advised farmers.

“We’ll continue to see less atrazine used,” Stiltz concluded,“but we don’t want to lose it, either, because it’s cost effective.”

Syngenta ‘stands behindsafety’ of atrazine productBY DANIEL GRANTFarmWeek

The popular herbicideatrazine does not pose a threatto the safety of drinking waterdespite recent claims to thecontrary, according to officialsat Syngenta.

And consumers and farmerswould face some serious con-sequences if the herbicide,which has been in use for 50years, were not on the market,the company said.

Syngenta officials believecrop productivity could declineand soil erosion could increaseif farmers lose their ability touse atrazine.

Syngenta, a major manufac-turer of atrazine, reported in anews release that 40 percent ofthe world’s food supply wouldnot exist without productssuch as atrazine.

Sherry Duvall Ford, head ofexternal communications forSyngenta America, toldFarmWeek during the FarmProgress Show in Decatur thatatrazine is used to controlweeds nationwide on morethan half of the corn crop,about two-thirds of sorghumacres, and 90 percent of sugarcane.

A recent risk assessment ofatrazine and simazine conduct-ed by the Environmental Pro-tection Agency (EPA) conclud-ed that “cumulative exposuresto these pesticides throughfood and drinking water aresafe and meet rigorous humanhealth standards set forth inthe Food Quality ProtectionAct.”

But some recent news sto-ries that made national head-lines questioned whether tem-porary spikes of atrazine inwater pose a threat to humanhealth. The Natural ResourcesDefense Council even accused

• 1958 — Atrazine is registered in theU.S.

• 1959 — Atrazine is used on a com-mercial basis for the first time in U.S.cropping systems.

• 1993 — Sampling of Illinois publicwater supplies show atrazine levelsexceed water standards. Local water-shed groups form.

• 1994-1995 — U.S. EnvironmentalProtection Agency (EPA) conducts spe-cial review of triazines, which includeatrazine. Farmers and Illinois FarmBureau submit comments.

• 1999 — Illinois Environmental Pro-tection Agency reports water violations

dropped from 53 to 1 for 1998.• 2003 — EPA completes special

review, imposes no additional restric-tions after it found no studies thatshowed atrazine exposure is a potentialcancer risk.

• 2005 — Madison County communitysanitary district files lawsuit contendingany amount of corn herbicide in drinkingwater is potentially harmful. The case isstill pending.

• 2006 — EPA re-registers atrazineand concludes triazine herbicides pose“no harm that would result to the gener-al U.S. population, infants, children, orother major identifiable subgroups ofconsumers.”

Atrazine milestones

EPA of ignoring contamina-tion in surface and drinkingwater.

The legal annual average foratrazine levels in water is threeparts per billion. Duvall Fordsaid to put that measurement inperspective a part per billion“would be like one blade of

grass in a football field.”And she claimed EPA takes

into account any temporaryspikes of atrazine, which oftenare caused by rainy conditionsafter application, in its riskassessments.

“Those spikes are veryshort-term and EPA hasaccounted for those,” DuvallFord said. “And the spikes fallwell within health advisory lev-els. Anybody exposed to waterat those levels are not at all in

harm’s way.” Meanwhile, farmers have

become much more efficientusers of the herbicide, accord-ing to David Flakne, managerof government affairs at Syn-genta.

“Producers are doing a phe-nomenal job today usingatrazine more efficiently andeffectively,” Flakne said. “Rateshave come down from two tothree pounds per acre to a half-pound per acre.”

At the same time, atrazine isan important component ofweed control and slowing therate of weed resistance to thehighly popular glyphosate,according to Chuck Foresman,manager of weed resistancestrategies at Syngenta.

“Syngenta estimates thereare eight to nine million acresof row crops infected withglyphosate-resistant weeds,”Foresman said. “It’s importantwe keep (herbicide) rates at rec-ommended levels” and useproducts such as atrazine tovary the modes of action usedagainst weeds.

Atrazine also is a vital com-ponent of reduced tillage/no-till systems which have beenshown to reduce sedimentrunoff by as much as 90 per-cent, Foresman added.

‘Producers aredoing a phenom-e n a l j o b t o d ayus ing a t raz i nemore efficientlyand effectively.’

— David FlakneSygenta governmental

affairs manager

Biobased labeling rulekey to biofuels revitalization?

Sept. 29 is the deadline for comments on the USDA BioPre-ferred program’s proposed voluntary label for biobased consumerproducts. The label could appear on more than 15,000 products.

The BioPreferred program was created under the 2002 farm bill toboost purchases and use of biobased products by federal agencies.The 2008 farm bill expanded the program to promote private sectorsale of products made using agand ag-related materials.

The proposed label wouldinform consumers a product is“USDA Certified” and identifythe percentage of biobasedmaterials used to manufacture it.

Biobased market development could mean revitalization for thebiofuels industry as well as new outlets for producers. DennisMiller, Michigan State University researcher, is eyeing ethanol as a“building block” for making chemicals as well as fuel.

Chemical products typically command higher prices than fuelethanol, and Miller sees “co-product” development helping theindustry expand production while addressing the limitations of anexisting 10 percent ethanol/gasoline “blend wall.”

“We’re looking at diversifying the product slate so these ethanolplants aren’t so dependent on fluctuations in the ethanol price,” hetold FarmWeek. “We want to develop technologies so they’re avail-able for plants to evaluate and then hopefully incorporate into theirprocess.We get competitive as petroleum prices get higher. We douse petroleum to make chemicals. About 8 percent is used to makechemicals — the rest is used for fuel. So we could have an impact.”

Particularly promising are ethanol-derived esters — industrialsolvents that can be used in inks, paints, and coatings. Ethyl lactateis a blend of ethanol and lactic acid — “both prototypical green‘biomass products” — is used commonly in pharmaceuticals, foodadditives, and fragrances. — Martin Ross

GOVERNMENT


‘No way’ for Senate cap-and-trade passage?BY MARTIN ROSSFarmWeek

Arguing “cap-and-trade” leg-islation is in a politically vulner-able position, CollinsvilleRepublican and U.S. HouseEnergy and Commerce Com-mittee member John Shimkusrecommends shifting the debatetoward use of cleaner, domesticenergy to address environmen-tal and economic concerns.

The Senate last weekresumed debate over proposalsto regulate greenhouse gas(GHG) emissions and generatea prospective market for emis-sions reductions.

During a Senate Ag Commit-tee hearing on the issue, FredYoder, National Corn GrowersAssociation past president arguedagriculture “must be a significantpart of the broader solution as weevaluate ways to reduce green-house gas emissions.”

Illinois Soybean AssociationChairman Ron Moore seessome potential positives inHouse climate proposals, but is

economy, then it’s a no.”The Senate passed a limited

energy measure earlier this year.In June, Shimkus and Rep.Aaron Schock (R-Peoria)unveiled a comprehensiveAmerican Energy Act reflectingShimkus’ aforementioned “all-of-the-above” approach, but thebill remains idled in the House.

The road to passing cap-and-trade legislation could proverougher with Sen. Blanche Lin-coln (D-Neb.) taking over as chairof the Senate Ag Committee.

She warned input costs wouldbe “far more than any kind ofcredits they’re going to be able toget out of the program,” andsaid she would not back a cli-mate package “if it’s anywhereclose to what the House did.”

Lincoln’s predecessor as agchair, Sen. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa), has been more favorabletoward cap-and-trade, thoughwhile presiding at last week’scommittee hearing, he stressed“we must get the trading partright.” Harkin was concerned

speculation in the carbon mar-ket could distort the value ofagricultural emissions credits.

Commodity Futures TradingCommission (CFTC) ChairmanGary Gensler told the commit-tee a successful carbon marketmust include uniform standards,stringent recordkeeping, over-sight of trades, and strong fraudprevention measures.

CFTC already has experiencemonitoring trading of sulfur diox-ide (SO2) offsets under coal indus-try regulations designed to reducepotential acid rain, he testified.

According to Daryl Donjon,president of the Wayne-WhiteCounties Electric Cooperative,any attempt to base carbontrading prospects on the recog-nized success of SO2 cap-and-trade “couldn’t be more wrong.”

“Technology was available,proven, and affordable for SO2(reduction and storage), while itis not for carbon,” Donjonargued during the recent EnergyCitizens anti-cap-and-trade rallyin Springfield.

concerned that cap-and-tradecould “dramatically increase ourcosts of production with some-what skeptical benefits throughcarbon sequestration offsets.”

Shimkus told FarmWeeksome of his colleagues alreadysee “no way they can pass acap-and-trade-type bill in theSenate.” He said both Househealth care and cap-and-tradeproposals are “examples ofthis administration trying tograb major portions of thiseconomy,” and argued a majorDemocrat defeat on one issuelikely would topple the other.

He envisions continuedefforts toward emissions capsinto 2010. However, Shimkussaid he doubts moderate “Blue

Dog” Democrats would haveany desire to push cap-and-trade in an election year.

Illinois Farm Bureau urgesCongress to focus instead on com-prehensive energy policy, includingexpansion of renewable energyand nuclear power to “wean theeconomy from carbon.”

“If they want to get off thecap-and-trade debate and talkabout what we’d like to talkabout — energy security andefficiency, an all-of-the-abovestrategy promoting renewablefuels, solar, wind, nuclear, coal,throwing in (offshore oil explo-ration), bringing on more sup-plies at lower costs to keep uscompetitive around the world— that’s a playing field we canplay on,” Shimkus said.

“But if we’re wedded to thisidea of carbon dioxide as a tox-ic emittant, and we’re going tohave to raise the cost of carbonfuel use and move into non-carbon-based fuels, thusincreasing the cost of energy toeverybody and hurting our

Labor chief averse to ag guest worker reforms?The Senate focus on health

care and 2010 election con-cerns have cast doubt on near-term immigration debate,while the U.S. Department ofLabor (DOL) has proposedchanges in the federal H-2A agguest worker program thatwould appear to be a stepbackward for farm employers.

DOL is accepting commentsthrough Oct. 5 on proposals toreverse recent Bush administra-tion H-2A revisions. The Amer-ican Farm Bureau Federation(AFBF) supported Bush effortsto streamline the H-2A processfor employers enacted inDecember, and warned pro-

which they need workers; the 50Percent Rule requires employersto hire newly available qualifieddomestic workers for the firsthalf of that period even if guestworkers are en route to the U.S.

“You’re paying transportationexpenses for that worker to gethere, and now he doesn’t have ajob,” Gaskill said. “There’s noattempt to straighten out the H-

2A program here whatsoever.It’s a clear intent to make it thatmuch more difficult to use.

“We’ve got a secretary oflabor (Hilda Solis) whoabsolutely detests the H-2Aprogram. She’s the daughterof farm workers, and shedetests anything that wouldmake that program easy touse.” — Martin Ross

posed rules published Sept. 4“conceivably will underminesome of the improvementsmade to the program.”

DOL maintains wages forfarm workers have been affect-ed to a more significant extentthan it had anticipated by 2008rules, arguing Bush reformsreduced wages by an average$1.44 per hour. But AFBF poli-cy analyst Ron Gaskill toldFarmWeek new rules “send avery, very bad message to agri-culture,” which shares manyimmigration reform goals withthe Obama administration.

Bush changes allow employersto prove they’ve tried to find qual-

ified domestic workers beforeseeking foreign labor, bypassingwhat Gaskill terms a “rather cum-bersome” two-stage DOL certifi-cation process necessary first toqualify for the H-2A program andthen to secure worker visas.

Proposed DOL changes alsowould revert from existingregional “prevailing” wages forworkers under H-2A back to“adverse effect” wages. Thatcould mean an immediate $1.50-to $2-per-hour wage hike forproducers to absorb, he warned.

And the new proposal wouldreinstate the so-called “50 Per-cent Rule.” H-2A applicantsmust specify the period during

Agriculture could see some unusual alliesand unexpected opposition in the next roundof “guest worker” debate.

With health care and cap-and-trade debatedominating the fall congressional agenda,American Farm Bureau Federation analystRon Gaskill sees immigration debate delayeduntil late 2009 or even early 2010.

However, Gaskill noted warnings thatdebate in 2010 would be necessary no laterthan Easter before congressional re-electioncampaigns kick into high gear.

The best hope for initiating reform appearsto be U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.),who indicated he realizes “there needs to besome sort of a future (labor) flow fix for agri-culture,” Gaskill told FarmWeek. Unfortunately,Schumer sees “AgJOBS” as “the fix,” he said.

That bipartisan measure would offer“earned legalization” for many undocumentedworkers currently in the U.S. But it seeks rela-tively minor changes in the H-2A ag guestworker program.

“What we need is comprehensive reform,and we need comprehensive reform on an

agricultural guest worker program that works,”Gaskill said. “While the only legislation outthere right now is AgJobs, we’ve not jumpedon the AgJobs bandwagon. We don’t opposeit, but we haven’t endorsed it because it does-n’t fix what’s already a bad program.

“The general public believes we do needforeign workers to come in and work agricul-ture. They’re not as convinced that other sec-tors such as hotels and construction necessar-ily need foreign workers.”

Organized labor, a key Democrat con-stituency, opposes guest worker liberalization,but Gaskill noted union support of amnesty foror “normalization” of the roughly 12 millionundocumented workers now in the U.S. Thoseworkers could be prime candidates for unionmembership, he suggested.

Gaskill said labor interests have “eased up”somewhat on H-2A but favor creation of a reg-ulatory commission to limit the number ofworker visas issued each year, based on eco-nomic circumstances. “We want the market tobe able to determine how many (visas) wehave or don’t have,” he said. — Martin Ross

Unexpected allies, adversariesin immigration debate ahead?

EDUCATION


“America’s Heartland,” anationally broadcast week-ly program on agriculture,started its fifth season onRFD-TV last Wednesday.

It is to be shown onPublic Broadcasting Sys-tem stations throughout

Ill inois this fall and winter.Check local l istings fordetails.

The series’ reportingstaff travels the country tomeet farmers, ranchers,and growers.

Each broadcast offers sto-

ries with personal insightson life in the rural heartland.

The series is produced byKVIE Public Televisionwith support from the Mon-santo Co. and the AmericanFarm Bureau Federation.

GROWMARK helps

sponsor the program on Illi-nois public television sta-tions, while the Madison andSt. Clair County FarmBureaus plan to sponsor theprogram on St. Louis publictelevision.

“America’s Heartland” has

expanded its networkingoutreach with new onlinefeatures at {www.americasheartland.org}, Facebook,Twitter, and YouTube.

One recent story has beenviewed more than a milliontimes.

Left photo: College of Agricultural Sciences Dean Gary Minish, right,welcomes new Southern Illinois University agriculture students andprospective ones to the college’s annual barbecue. The activity show-cases the ag college and its student organizations. Above: Sherri Wurtzel, right, a junior from Pecatonica and president ofthe Saluki Heritage Interpreters, discusses her club with Jessica Smith, asenior from Chicago, at the student barbecue. (Photos by Steve Buh-man, university photocommunications)

SIU enrolls bumper crop of ag students

BY KAY SHIPMANFarmWeek

Southern Illinois Universi-ty (SIU) experienced anincrease in agricultural stu-dents for a third consecutiveyear, while the College ofAgricultural Sciences rebuildsfrom a May 8 storm thatcaused more than $1 milliondamage, primarily to its farm.

“That 2,000-acre universityfarm is the hub of our teach-ing. We had 23 buildingsdamaged and seven totallydestroyed, including the feedmill and the beef barn,” said

Dean Gary Minish. “We’re doing well,” Minish

added. “Our faculty, staff,and farm crew — every-body’s adjusted and pitched

in.” With support from the

university and possibly theFederal Emergency Manage-ment Agency (FEMA), the

Ag Sciences College isrebuilding, Minish said.

However, the storm didn’tslow the Ag Sciences Col-lege’s momentum in studentrecruitment.

Fall enrollment increased7.1 percent for a total of 880undergraduates.

Nearly all the college’sareas of study, except foragricultural systems, attractedmore students.

Among new students, agreater number are freshmenand those who transferredfrom community colleges,which ran counter to SIU’soverall decrease in transferstudents, said Charlotte Gib-son, assistant dean of acade-mic affairs.

Minish attributed the

increases to his college’s“aggressive recruiting strate-

gy” that locates high schooland community college stu-dents through many sources.

For example, ag adminis-trators gathered some 500names of prospective stu-

dents at the recent FarmProgress Show and another6,000 from college aptitudeexams.

Each student will be con-tacted, Minish said.

The Ag Sciences Collegealso is attracting more minori-ty students, especially in thenutrition and hospitality-tourism programs, Gibsonsaid.

The college also is keepingmore of its current students.The ag student retention rateis about 83 percent, which isthe highest on campus, Min-ish said.

He pointed out his collegehas implemented a programfor mentoring of undergradu-ates as one means of helpingkeep students in school.

College regroupingfrom storm damage

‘ O u r f a c u l t y ,s ta f f , and fa r mc r ew — eve r y -body’s adjustedand pitched in.’

— Gary MinishDean College of Agricultural

Sciences

FarmWeekNow.comTo see what else is happen-ing at the SIU College ofAgricu l ture, go to Farm-WeekNow.com.

Debut on RFD-TV, public television

America’s Heartland program on agriculture starting fifth season

Telephone conference to deal with abandon horse issueThe University of Illinois

Extension will have an Oct.6 telephone conference onthe growing problem ofabandoned horses.

The activity, available forparticipants to listen fromhome or their stables, will befrom 6:30 to 8 p.m.

“Horses and other animalsare suffering from the eco-nomic downturn right alongwith their owners. Across

the country, horses are beingabandoned at boarding facil-ities, sale barns, and ridingvenues,” said Ellen Phillips,U of I Extension educator.

The telephone conferencespeakers include Dr. YvonneBellay, a Wisconsin statehumane officer, who willtalk about the prevalence ofthis problem, issues facingboth animals and people,and what to do with an

abandoned horse or otheranimal.

Yvonne Ocrant, an attor-ney specializing in equineissues, will walk through thelegal aspects that arise forstable owners or othersfaced with this problem.

The issues include obtain-ing legal ownership, sellingabandoned animals, andwriting boarding contractsthat include language to dealan abandoned animal.

Teleconfer-

ence registration is $5 perperson.

Online registration is avail-able at {http://webextension.uiuc.edu/lake/}.

Upon registering, dial-ininformation and referencematerials will be e-mailed toparticipants on Oct. 1.

For a brochure or moreinformation, contact Phillips at708-352-0109 or e-mail her [email protected].

‘ H o r s e s a n do t h e r a n i m a l sa r e s u f f e r i n gf r o m t h e e c o -nomic downturn.’

— Ellen PhillipsU of I Extension educator

Bernie Walsh, Durand, Winnebago County: Warm weatherand no rain, just what the doctorordered for our corn and beansthis time of year. The early-plant-ed corn and beans are both start-ing to turn color, and there is ahint of fall in the air. Final hay-making for the year is wrappingup with the drier weather of the

last two weeks. There also is plenty of workbeing done to get ready for harvest — sweep-ing bins out and getting combines tuned up.The corn crop still looks good with almost allof it denting, and some of the fields are reach-ing black layer. The soybeans still have to getthrough some problems such as white mold,sudden death syndrome, and brown stem rot.

Leroy Getz, Savanna, Carroll County: Fifteen days with norain and still counting. Wet areasare drying on top, but don’t befooled, there may still be mudbelow. Corn is maturing nicely,and I have found the milk linehalf way down on some 108-dayvarieties. This puts moisturelevel at 35 to 40 percent. Beans

vary anywhere from golden yellow to grassgreen. Lawns still need to be mowed weekly.

Ron Frieders, Waterman, DeKalb County:The warm weather ofthe last two weeks has helped cropsmature. Most corn is in the dentstage. A good friend of mine hassome 108-day corn firing up, and heis going to chop some silage thisweek. Soybeans also are maturing.Several early fields are now yellow,and many are starting to turn. The

big problem with beans is disease. Most fieldshave large areas of white mold and suddendeath. Fields that looked beautiful one week, lookterrible the next. I have never seen so much dis-ease damage. Aphids are thriving in the warmth.Populations have literally exploded, and thesepests are hurting the beans.

Larry Hummel, Dixon, Lee County: Soybean aphid popula-tions took a dramatic jump higherthis past week, surpassing eco-nomic threshold levels. Luckily lastweek’s warm weather helpedpush the crop close enough tomaturity that we are going to leavethem alone. I was fairly optimisticabout our yield potential after polli-

nation was over, but this summer’s cool, wetweather has not been conductive to seed fill.Kernels are shorter than normal, and ear tipshaven’t filled out like I expected.

Ken Reinhardt, Seaton, Mercer County: No rain again,well maybe a couple of drops onWednesday. It was the most daysin a row without precipitationsince 2006. Seed corn harvest isjust starting. Late-May-plantedcorn is at the early dent stage.Early Group II soybeans plantedthe first of May are turning; a few

others are just on the verge of turning. Theharvest of a couple of early corn hybrids at aplot dinner had extremely good yields, butthe corn was extremely wet. With fog aboutevery morning, leaf diseases are doing welleven in corn treated with fungicide.

Ron Moore, Roseville, Warren County: We did not receiveany rain last week. Just lots of fogin the morning. That is moremoisture for the sudden deathsyndrome and white mold to con-tinue to grow and rob yield fromour soybeans. I have seen onlyone field of beans that turned allyellow and started to drop

leaves. Most fields are still green or showingsigns of disease. We started chopping cornsilage on Wednesday. It was a little too wetfor an upright silo, so we will wait until thisweek to really work at it. This fall’s harvestappears to be a later start than last year.Let’s hope that the yields turn out as good aslast year.

Jacob Streitmatter, Princeville, Peoria County: It is hardto believe that it is almost the mid-dle of September and the corn isstill very green and has a longway to go around here. Soybeanswere changing last week.Unfortunately, it was caused bysudden death and white mold.The worry of frost is getting clos-

er as the corn and beans both stand a greatchance for good yields.

Tim Green, Wyoming, Stark County: A dry week — veryfoggy, with disease prone morn-ings. Fog didn’t burn off untilmid- to late-morning. People arewondering how bad the whitemold really is. Drive by differentfields, and it is obvious. Differentvarieties are doing better thanothers. Some fields have 50 per-

cent affected badly. It didn’t look good.Otherwise, people are getting ready for thelate fall.

Mark Kerber, Chatsworth, Livingston County: Foggymornings last week. Some soy-beans were starting to turn.There has been some sprayingfor aphids which are very thick insome areas, mostly in the latersoybeans. Corn has a way to gobefore the milk lines get down toblack layer. Farmers are working

on combines, augers, trucks, bins, and figur-ing out how to handle a wet crop duringThanksgiving. Fall corn is under $3 and soy-beans are close to $9.

Ron Haase, Gilman, Iroquois County: There was a vari-able shower on Tuesday evening.We received anywhere from 0.1to 0.25 of an inch of rain. Most ofthe cornfields in the area are inthe dent stage (R5) while someremain in the dough stage (R4).The milk line is about 50 percentof the way down the kernel on

the most mature corn. In that situation, thekernel is close to 88 percent of the final drymatter accumulation while the corn in doughstage has not reached 60 percent yet. Somefields are showing death of the upper part ofthe plant due to anthracnose. Most soybeanfields are in the full seed growth stage (R6)with some areas or a few fields entering intothe beginning maturity growth stage (R7).Some are turning naturally, while diseasesare causing premature maturity to others. Afew soybean fields in the area were sprayedfor soybean aphids this past week. The localclosing prices for Sept. 10 were: $2.97 fornearby corn, $2.89 for new-crop corn,$10.15 for nearby soybeans, and $9.10 fornew-crop soybeans.

Brian Schaumburg, Chenoa, McLean County: Hand sam-ples from our first plantings are31 percent moisture with sur-prisingly good test weight. Stalkquality is compromised as theplant starts to cannibalize itselfto put all its energy into the ear.Anthracnose and diplodia arepresent. Several soybean fields

have been sprayed for aphids as populationsincreased dramatically. Corn, $2.99; fall,$2.90; soybeans, $10.26; fall, $9.01; wheat,$3.41.

Steve Ayers, Champaign, Champaign County: Anotherweek of good crop development.Premier Co-op hosted a crop tourthat averaged a whopping 194.4bushels per acre with a range of169 near Galesville to 212 atDewey and Thomasboro. North ofI-74, the average was 199.4 andsouth was 190.4. Last year, the

tour averaged 180.3. Seed corn harveststarted last week. This week looks to havetemperatures ranging from 55 to 80 with a 40percent rain chance late Wednesday. Somebeans and corn are yellowing. I’m hearinglimited reports of ear rot, ear worm, whitemold, and soybean aphids north and southof us. I monitor Grand Forks, N.D., weatheras my nephew attends the University ofNorth Dakota. Forecast for there indicates a32-degree low on Sept. 23, so stay tuned!

Wilfred Dittmer, Quincy, Adams County: Another ideal fallFriday morning with temps at 60degrees and clear except forscattered fog. Hardly any rain inthe gauge either since last weekother than a couple tenths lastSunday morning (Sept. 6).Crops have come a long way inthe last week, especially the

early corn to the south of here. A lot of it isreally brown. In fact, I saw one fellow actual-ly picking some the first of the week with apull-type picker. Soybeans still have a waysto go. Some fields have yellow spots appear-ing but the beans are still green. It will still bea while before much machinery gets mov-ing.

Harry Schirding, Petersburg, Menard County: Rainfall lastweek, 1.7 inches. Total rainfall forSeptember, 1.7 inches. Normalrainfall for September, 3.3 inch-es. Rain Saturday night andSunday (Sept. 5-6) totaled 1.7 to3 inches. Historically, Labor Dayhas been the target harveststarting date. Immature crops

and the economics of harvesting wet corn willkeep most out of the field for a couple moreweeks this year. Early-morning fog and highhumidity are creating a perfect environmentfor the continued development of leaf dis-eases in both corn and soybeans. Aphids stillare easily found in many soybean fields, butlevels have not reached the threshold fortreatment. Most input prices are significantlylower than last year as are grain prices.Producers will be trying to spend dollars inareas that produce the greatest benefit. Cornnearby, $3.04, up 1 cent; soybeans nearby,$10.17, down 28 cents; corn January, $2.97,unchanged; soybeans January, $9.23, down29 cents.

Tom Ritter, Blue Mound, Macon County: Another pleasantweek of working conditions, butstill a little cooler than we need tobring this late-planted cornalong. Earliest we will probablysee corn picked will be sometimein the next couple weeks, butvery limited. Most corn will beanother four to five weeks before

it’s far enough along to be harvested, espe-cially if it is going to the local elevators withthe higher drying rates. A couple fields ofbeans are turning pretty dramatically, butthey still are possibly two weeks off. Themajority of the beans are still very green orjust starting to dull down. Overall, farmersseem optimistic that corn yields will be goodeven with the late planting and the stuntedspots caused by heavy rainfall last spring.Soybeans are really too early to determine atthis point.

Todd Easton, Charleston, Coles County: Finally somewarmth last week bringing usanother 150 growing degreedays, putting the total at 2,350for late-May-planted corn, butwe are still 150 units behindnormal. The few acres of late-April-planted corn looks like itcould be harvested, but I’m

sure those growers will let some naturaldrying occur before they start picking. Therest of our corn is showing quite a bit ofvisual improvement, but it is still more thantwo weeks from physiological maturity. Theearly third of area soybeans is finally start-ing to turn yellow, which should mean acouple more weeks before cutting begins.The later beans are still very green andreally need an extended growing season.All but the earliest beans could use a rainvery soon to ensure good pod fill, but noth-ing seems to be in the forecast so we arehoping for a surprise.

Jimmy Ayers, Rochester, Sangamon County: We had 3inches of rain this past week.Crops are beginning to showsigns of maturing. A few havestuck the corn head into theircornfields and finding corn atabout 25 percent moisture.There have been somechanges in the drying sched-

ules at the some of the elevators. You maywant to check around before you take off.The Young Farmers in Sangamon Countyput together a yield check. The overallaverage for the county was 181.6 bushelsper acre. That came from a low of 148.5 toa high of 214.1. Twenty-five different town-ships were checked in. They did an excel-lent job of giving us a snapshot of ourcounty.

David Schaal, St. Peter, Fayette County: On Saturday(Sept. 5) we had light rain mostof the day. We ended up with0.75 of an inch. It was notenough to wash the aphids away,but greatly appreciated.Producers continue to spraybeans for these pests. Someplants are covered with heavy

infestations. Corn has done all it is going todo with some of the early-planted corn start-ing to dry down. Soybeans, on the otherhand, could use more water to help fill thepods.

CROPWATCHERS


Rick Corners, Centralia, Jefferson County: I had 0.4 of aninch of rain during the Labor Dayweekend. A few miles in somedirections had up to 3 inches. Ohwell. A few fields of very earlybeans are starting to get someyellow leaves, but most aroundthis area are still blooming.

Ken Taake, Ullin, Pulaski County: We had some lightshowers this past week. Weended up with about 0.8 of aninch total. Nearly everybody inthe area received something. Itwas sure good for thelate-planted soybeans. A fewfarmers are starting to harvest.I’ve heard of moistures ranging

from 17 to 25 percent. I have not heard anyyields yet. We planned to open up a fewfields Friday. I’ve heard quite a few reportsof poor stalk quality. It will be interesting tosee what our corn looks like. Early soy-beans are starting to drop leaves in the thinspots. There are a lot of yellow fields. A fewpeople are spraying for aphids in somelate-planted soybeans. Again, please taketime to be careful during this busy harvestseason.

Kevin Raber, Browns, Wabash County: Rainfall for theweek was from 0.75 of an inch to1.25 inches. Some places gotmore, and some a lot less. Themoisture was welcome for thebeans and late corn. Some cornwas shelled and a lot of handsamples were taken last week.The harvested corn I’ve heard

about has been from 23 to 27 percent mois-ture. The hand samples have been from25 percent on up. There are few fields ofbeans with yellow leaves, so soybean harvestis a long way off.

Dean Shields, Murphysboro, Jackson County: Wereceived a little rain in JacksonCounty, but the counties to theeast of us received heavy rain. Iheard as much as 4 inches insome areas. My area had 0.2 to0.3 of an inch. Crops are stillgrowing and looking good. Westill have cooler-than-normal

weather. All the corn, beans, and milo arecoming along and maturing. The big questionis how they will yield. There is mold in someof the corn. We have been spraying foraphids. That is the first time Jackson Countyhas had much of an aphid problem. Whenyou drive around, everyone keeps askingwhere all the pigweed and water hemp havecome from. We have them popping throughthe beans now and thought we had themtaken care of. We will try again next year.

Ted Kuebrich, Jerseyville, Jersey County: Corn harvest isjust around the corner in JerseyCounty. A couple of farmers haveshelled a couple of loads just toget their drying equipment ready.The driest corn sample thatJersey County Grain had testedwas in the low 20s. If the rain holdsoff, by the middle of this week they

will start to shell corn. The early-planted beansare still a couple of week away from harvest.Soybean aphids are in many of the bean fields.The crop specialist said the early-plantedbeans are mature enough and that no sprayingis necessary. In the later beans, it might beworth the cost to spray, he said. Cash corn,$3.09, basis 0; new corn $2.97, basis minus 18cents; January 2010 corn, $3.09, basis minus20 cents; June 2010 corn, $3.30, basis 16cents; cash beans, $9.72, basis a penny; newbeans, $9.15, basis minus 11 cents; January2010 beans, $9.34, basis a penny; June 2010beans, $9.18, basis minus 24 cents.

Dan Meinhart, Montrose, Jasper County: Aphids are preva-lent in the area. Pesticides wereapplied to bean fields by land andby air. Beans are still bloomingand setting pods. Some pods arestarting to fill. Showers were in thearea on Saturday (Sept. 5). Somereceived up to 0.4 of an inch whilemost received little or no rain. A

large area is in desperate need of rain, havingreceived only 0.5 of an inch or less in the lastsix weeks. The temperature high was in thelower 80s this past week while the lows were inthe lower 60s. More of the same is expectedthis week with no rain in the forecast.

CROPWATCHERS


Reports received Friday morning.

Rural Development urges farmers to apply for value-added grantsIllinois State Rural Devel-

opment Director ColleenCallahan is urging agriculturalproducers to apply for about$18 million available nation-wide in value-added producergrants.

Rural Development willaward planning grants up to amaximum $100,000 and work-ing capital grants up to maxi-mum $300,000. Applicants areencouraged to propose pro-jects that use existing ag prod-ucts in non-traditional ways orthat creatively merge ag prod-ucts with technology.

Businesses of all sizes mayapply, but priority will be giv-en to operators of small tomedium-sized farms operatedas a family farm (those withaverage annual gross sales ofless than $700,000).

anaerobic digesters.Applicants must provide

matching funds equal to thegrant amount requested. Tenpercent of funding nationwideis reserved for beginning andsocially disadvantaged farmers.

An additional 10 percent isreserved for projects involvinglocal and regional supply net-works that link independentproducers with businesses and

cooperatives that market val-ue-added products.

The application periodcloses Nov. 30. Paper applica-tions must be submitted to theRural Development stateoffice. Electronic applicationsmust be submitted through{www.Grants.gov}.

For additional help, [email protected] call 217-403-6211.

“These grants can help pro-ducers and farm organizationstest the viability of their con-cept with a feasibility studybefore a lot of money isinvested,” Callahan said. “Itcan help them fund the plan-ning and start-up costs thatimprove the likelihood of suc-cess.”

Examples of eligible activi-ties include changing a com-modity physically, such asmaking fish fillets, diced toma-toes, ethanol, biodiesel, andwool rugs. Other eligibleexamples include uniquelyproducing or harvesting prod-ucts, physical segregation,using a commodity or productto generate renewable energyon a farm, and locally pro-duced ag food marketed with-in 400 miles of the farm.

Since the program’s incep-tion, Illinois producers, farmcooperatives, and ag producergroups have been awarded $4million in value-added produc-er grants.

The grant project includedhandling of identity-preservedproducts, agritourism, market-ing, processing of raw com-modities into finished prod-ucts, organic composting, and

U of I forecastingnegative crop returns

Net operator returns in Illinois for 2009 last week were pro-jected to average minus $8 per acre for corn and minus $15 peracre for soybeans.

The projections, released last week by the University of Illi-nois at {www.farmdoc.uiuc.edu}, were the lowest estimates dur-ing either of the past two decades.

The low returns were attributed to high costs and decliningcommodity prices. Non-land costs for corn this year were pro-jected at $517 per acre, compared to $428 last year, while theaverage corn price this year was projected at $3.25 per bushel,compared to $4.05 a year ago.

After the losses this year, net returns were projected toreturn near levels experienced from 2003 to 2005. Net operatorreturns for 2010 were projected at $94 per acre for corn and $84per acre for beans.

The rebound next year was based on the expectations of aslight improvement in commodity prices and a modest declinein non-land costs.

FROM THE COUNTIES


DE W I T T — Getready for a safe har-

vest by having your fireextinguisher checked from8 a.m. to noon Monday,Sept. 21, at the FarmBureau office. Call theFarm Bureau office formore information.

• The Prime Timers willsponsor a trip Friday, Sept.25, to Rockome Gardens,Arcola. The group willcarpool from the FarmBureau office at 9 a.m.Cost is $6. Call the FarmBureau office for moreinformation.

LE E — The District4 Young Leaders pic-

nic will be at 4 p.m. Satur-day at Lake Mendota.Games will be played. Callthe Farm Bureau office byMonday (today) for reserva-tions or more information.

• Lee County FarmBureau Foundation has itscookbook “CountryKitchen Delights” availablefor $15 at the Farm Bureauoffice. Proceeds will benefitthe Foundation to fund agliteracy programs.

MO N TG O M E RY— The Prime

Timers will meet at noonWednesday at the FarmBureau office. A barbequepork loin dinner will beserved. Cost is $8. DarleneSpears will provide theentertainment. Call theFarm Bureau office at 217-532-6171 for more informa-tion.

• The Prime Timers willsponsor a bus trip Sundayto Conklin’s Barn II DinnerTheatre, Goodfield. Thegroup will see “Rumors” byNeil Simon. Cost is $50.The bus will leave at 8:50a.m. from the formerKroger parking lot, Litch-field; at 9:05 a.m. from theFarm Bureau office; and at9:30 a.m. from theNokomis park. Call theFarm Bureau office at 217-532-6171 for more informa-tion.

ROCK ISLAND —Gary Wilhelmi,

DTN, and Rick Lohman, amarket expert, will be thespeakers at a market out-look meeting at 6:15 p.m.Thursday at the MolineViking Club. An updatefrom a local industry panel— Mike Schaver, GoldStarFS, and Ray Wolf, National

Weather Service, will be giv-en. Dinner will be served.Cost is $18. Call the RockIsland County Extensionoffice at 756-9978 for reser-vations or more informa-tion.

• The annual AgXPeri-ence for first and secondgrade students will beThursday at the Rock IslandCounty Fairgrounds. A tripto the John Deere Pavilionand a presentation fromKWQC’s Gary Metivierfrom his book, “A Hog AteMy Homework” also will beincluded.

“From the counties” itemsare submitted by county FarmBureau managers. If you havean event or activity open to allmembers, contact your countymanager.

Auction Calendar

Wed., Sept. 16. 251 AcresMcLean County. Soy Capital Ag

Services.Tues., Sept. 22. 80 Acres EdgarCounty. Soy Capital Ag Services

Sat., Oct. 3. 10 a.m. LandAuction. Kenneth and Sam

Gehant, MENDOTA, IL. EspeAuctioneering.

APPRECIATION DAY ATTENDEES

From left, Kenton Thomas of Thebes, president of the Pulaski-Alexander County Farm Bureau; KenTaake, Ullin; Robert Inman, Grand Chain; and state Sen. Gary Forby, a Democrat from Benton, chatduring the recent legislator appreciation day sponsored by several Southern Illinois county Farm Bu-reaus. In all, 131 persons attended, including 11 state legislators and a representative from U.S.Rep. John Shimkus’ (R-Collinsville) office. Also attending was Illinois Farm Bureau President PhilipNelson. This was the first time in five years the county Farm Bureaus held the appreciation day, butplans are to conduct such an event every other year in the future. (Photo by Ken Kashian)

GROWMARK


Illinois Wesleyan UniversitySarah Micale, daughter of

Col. Peter and Diane Micale ofMinot Air Force Base, N.D., ismajoring in accounting.Murray State University

Jordan Timberlake,daughter of Ed and DoloresTimberlake of Mt. Carmel, ismajoring in agribusiness.

Southern Illinois UniversityLeslie Frost, daughter of

Terry and Sandy Frost ofLouisville, is majoring in plantand soil science.

Mary Kate Huebener,daughter of William and GayleHuebener of Brighton, ismajoring in agribusiness eco-nomics accounting.

Sarah Jo Timmons, daugh-

ter of Randall and RhondaTimmons of Seneca, is major-ing in agricultural systems.

Kristen Woods, daughterof Paul and Laura Woods ofNewton, is majoring inagribusiness economics.

University of IllinoisMitch Heisler, son of

Mike and Diane Heisler ofWarsaw, is majoring in agricul-tural and consumer econom-ics. He is the recipient of theHerndon Scholarship, estab-lished to honor Fred E. Hern-don, president of a GROW-MARK predecessor companyfrom 1931-1959.

Chelsi Rhodes, daughterof Lonnie and Kristy Rhodesof Thomasboro, is majoring

in agri-accounting.Mark Smith, son of Roger

and Carol Smith of Earlville,is majoring in crop sciences.

Dorothy Spencer, daughterof Brad and Prudence Spencerof Yale, is majoring in agricul-tural communications.

Adam Tallcott, son ofWayne and Deb Tallcott ofMendon, is majoring inagribusiness markets and man-agement. He is the recipient ofthe Jonathan Baldwin TurnerScholarship. GROWMARKsponsors the scholarship tohonor Melvin E. Sims, presi-dent of GROWMARK Inc.from 1959-1980.University of Wisconsin –Platteville

Carlee Bocker, daughter

of Terry and Vicki Bockerof Lanark, is majoring inagribusiness.

Curtis Goeke , son ofDavid and Valerie Goekeof Dakota, is majoring inagricultural business.

Drew Nesemeier , sonof John and Jan Nesemeierof Milledgeville, is major-ing in soil and crop sci-ence.Western Illinois Universi-ty

Jake Bonnell , son ofJan and the late Jeff Bon-nell of Amboy, is majoringin agricultural business.

Bryan Schullian , son ofDan and Beth Schullian ofQuincy, is majoring in agri-culture education.

Twenty-two college stu-dents from Illinois will contin-ue their education with helpfrom GROWMARK.

They are recipients ofGROWMARK-sponsoredscholarships aimed at promot-ing higher education in agri-culture and business.

“GROWMARK investsmore than $47,500 annuallyon scholarships. We’re invest-ing today for a return tomor-row,” said Steve German,GROWMARK university rela-tions and member employ-ment manager. “There’s aneed for agriculture business-es to support formal educa-tion to strengthen agricul-ture.”

GROWMARK has beensupporting college studentswith scholarships since theearly 1960s.

Each educational institu-tion is responsible for theselection process and award-ing scholarships. Universityscholarship recipients arehonored each year at theGROWMARK annual meet-ing in Chicago.

Students receiving scholar-ships are:Illinois College

Heather Miller, daughterof Robert and Kathi Miller ofBloomington, is majoring incommunications and politicalscience.

Illinois State UniversityTyler Lyons, son of Steve

and Sandy Lyons of Sidell, ismajoring in agribusiness andanimal science.

Calahan Mallaney, son ofJames and Rosemary Mallaneyof Kankakee, is majoring inagribusiness.

Katie Miller, daughter ofTim and Becky Miller of Mor-ton, is majoring in finance andaccounting.

Heather Pierson, daughterof Dale and Tina Pierson ofElburn, is majoring inagribusiness.

Sarah Siefker, daughter ofDarrell and Susan Siefker ofMonee, is majoring inagribusiness and animal indus-try management.

GROWMARK announces Illinois scholarship winners

PROFITABILITY


Feeder pig prices reported to USDA*

Weight Range Per Head Weighted Ave. Price10 lbs. $11.00-$32.64 $23.8340 lbs. $15.00-$18.00 $15.1050 lbs. n/a n/aReceipts This Week Last Week

19,948 19,091*Eastern Corn Belt prices picked up at seller’s farm

MARKET FACTS

Confirmed lamb and sheep salesThis week 768 Last week 814 Last year 695Wooled Slaughter Lambs: Choice and Prime 1-2: 90-110 lbs, $100. Choice andPrime 2-3: 110-130 lbs., $93.50-$93.75. Good and Choice 1-2: 60-90 lbs.,$110.Slaughter Ewes: Utility and Good 1-3: $27-$30. Cull and Utility 1-2: $27.

Lamb prices

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

This week Prev. week ChangeCarcass $47.76 $45.09 2.67Live $35.34 $33.37 1.98

Export inspections

(Million bushels)Week ending Soybeans Wheat Corn09-03-09 9.5 17.0 43.108-27-09 17.7 16.7 36.4Last year 3.0 25.0 22.2Season total 4.6 199.7 22.7Previous season total 1.2 351.7 12.6USDA projected total 1210 980 1700Crop marketing year began June 1 for wheat and Sept. 1 for corn and soybeans.

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

Steers 84.17 83.52 0.65Heifers 84.48 84.00 0.48

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 Change98.63 98.95 -0.32

CME feeder cattle index — 600-800 Lbs.

Managing diesel fuel in cold temperaturesBY MARK DEHNER

Cooler months are comingand now is the time to thinkabout a fuel management plan

to avoid theunexpectedsurprise ofdiesel fuelgelling whentemperaturesdrop.

Heavy,straight chainhydrocarbons(n-paraffins)

prevalent in today’s diesel fuelhave low solubility and pre-cipitate out in the form ofwax crystals as fuels cool dur-ing the colder months. Thesewax crystals can plug dieselfuel filters and restrict the

CFIs are designed tomodify the size and shape ofwax crystals in order toallow the treated fuel toflow through a vehicle’s fuelsystem, including the fuelfilter, allowing vehicles tooperate at temperatures wellbelow the diesel fuel’s cloudpoint.

The FS System strives toprovide effective solutions.To address this issue, FSintroduced SURE-FLOULS. SURE-FLO ULS isspecially formulated withunique wax modifyingchemistry to provide out-standing low temperatureperformance over a widerange of fuels.

In addition to providingexcellent wax modifying

performance, it is also for-mulated to prevent waxcrystals from settling to thebottom of the tank.

In addition to outstandingwax modifying and wax anti-settling performance, SURE-FLO’s deicing and lubricitychemistry make it an excel-lent overall solution for win-terizing diesel fuel.

Your FS energy salesper-son is an excellent sourceof additional informationand can assist you in devel-oping a plan for operatingyour diesel equipment dur-ing cold temperatures.

Mark Dehner is GROW-MARK’s marketing managerof r efined and r enewable fuels.His e-mail address is [email protected].

fuel flow to an engine, result-ing in loss of power, enginestalling, or the inability tostart.

The traditional fix for waxprecipitation was to blendconventional No. 2 diesel fuelwith a less dense No. 1 dieselfuel to diffuse the wax andlower the operability range.

With recent changes inregulations and the introduc-tion of ultra low sulfur dieselfuel (ULSD) (≤15ppm sulfur),the blended No. 1 diesel fuelmust conform to ULSD sulfurrequirements.

Not only does overallreduced supply put limita-tions on using No. 1, butdilution of No. 2 diesel fuelwith No. 1 diesel fuel results

in lower energy contentcausing decreased fuel econ-omy.

Also, the cost differentialbetween No. 2 diesel fueland No. 1 diesel fuelincreases substantially dur-ing the winter demand peri-od.

A solution to reducing oreliminating the use of No. 1diesel fuel blending duringcold temperatures is to treatdiesel fuel with Cold FlowImprover (CFI) additivechemistry.

CFI additives can be veryeffective at improving lowtemperature operabilitywithout reducing the fuel’senergy content and decreas-ing fuel economy.

Mark Dehner

Economic downturn blamed for equipment sales dropBY DANIEL GRANTFarmWeek

Many farmers at the FarmProgress Show were eager totest drive new equipment, butfewer apparently are willing tobuy machinery this year com-pared to a year ago.

Sales of all farm tractorsfor the first seven months ofthe year declined 21 percentcompared to the same timelast year, according to theAssociation of EquipmentManufacturers (AEM).

Exports of U.S. farmequipment didn’t fare much

AEM reported salesthrough July of four-wheel-drive tractors were up 10 per-cent while combine salesincreased 30 percent in theU.S. compared to the sametime last year.

“Equipment purchaseshave always been tied to thefarm economy, and the ageconomy is still pretty posi-tive” compared to other sec-tors, Bohnker noted.

However, U.S. farm incomefor the current year is project-ed to decline by 38 percent

compared to last year.Equipment manufactur-

ers at the Farm ProgressShow responded by rollingout new products andupdates to existing equip-ment lines that provideincreased efficiency and insome cases more horse-power while creating a “lit-tle lighter footprint,”Bohnker added.

Many of the new tractorsdisplayed at the show, forinstance, feature improvedfuel economy.

better as sales for the firsthalf of 2009 dropped 20 per-cent compared to the sametime a year ago.

Markets in which U.S. salesof farm equipment took thegreater dive so far this yearare Europe (down 35 per-cent) and South America(down 22 percent), accordingto AEM (see graph).

Representatives of theag equipment industry dis-cussed the situation withFarmWeek during theFarm Progress Show.

“Overall, sales this year

look to be less than last year,”said Ben Craker of AGCO.“Agriculture was goingstrong, but I think we’re get-ting a delayed reaction” tothe current economic reces-sion.

John Deere recently report-ed worldwide sales the firstnine months of this year weredown 15 percent compared tolast year.

Eric Hodson, senior pub-lic relations writer for JohnDeere’s ag and turf division,said John Deere’s sales are“not as good” this year butnoted the company is com-ing off record sales from ayear ago.

The equipment operationsfor John Deere reported anoperations profit of $1.38billion the past nine monthscompared to $2.37 billionduring the first three quarterslast year.

John Bohnker, marketingmanager for Magnum/-Steiger tractors at Case IH,said tractor orders this yearhave remained strong but“farmers have been cau-tious the last few months”due to lower commodityprices.

“But they also are lookingat a big crop,” he noted.

Harvest safety includes equipment fire extinguishersAmid the stress of harvest, farmers need to

be aware of fire safety when it comes to com-bines and tractors, according to Matt Mont-gomery, University of Illinois Extension MasonCounty director.

Stalks, husks, straw, and grain are susceptibleto combustion. Add gas and oil to the list ofpossible combustibles, and a stray spark, hotbelt, or other source of heat can start a firewithout warning.

Equipment fires probably will happen out inthe middle of a field away from an immediatesource of water, so producers need to be pre-

pared, Montgomery said.Multi-purpose extinguishers, which offer

protection from oil and gas fires and give sometype of moderate help with fires from straw andother materials, need to be readily available toequipment operators, he noted.

Producers need to show each equipmentoperator where extinguishers are located andhow to use them properly by aiming at the baseof the fire.

Before harvest begins, all fire extinguishersneed to be checked and charged as recommend-ed by the manufacturer, he said.

PROFITABILITY


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CASH STRATEGISTCorn Strategy

✓2008 crop: We still areinclined to hold inventoriesuntil after harvest, or use amarketing strategy thatwould keep pricing openuntil later this year on exist-ing inventories.

✓2009 crop: Corn pricesonce again dipped to thedownside, but we see limitedrisk past $3. Action mayremain choppy until the 20and 40-week cycle lows canbe confirmed. We see noreason to make additionalnew-crop sales until later thisyear.

❖Fundamentals: Corncontinues to feel the repercus-sions of generally non-threat-ening weather throughout theMidwest — especially with theabsence of any frost or freezethreat. The implications ofthe USDA report will be themost important short-termmarket feature. Soybean Strategy

✓2008 crop: The old-crop premium continues todisappear. If you chose tohold inventories, youunderstood the risk of los-ing that premium. If thepremium has disappearedand you still have soybeans,plan to hold them intopost-harvest.

✓2009 crop: The recentlow traced out on the Novem-ber could be the 8- to 9-weekcycle bottom, but we’ll haveto wait for confirmation.However, unless the USDAreport is a huge negativeshock, we’d expect to see atleast a short-term rebound.The current supply/demandsheet leaves little room forerror. Hold off on makingadditional sales until this fallor during the early wintermonths.

❖Fundamentals: Soybeansremain the most affected byshort-term weather condi-tions, as the lag in maturity hasleft a significant portion of thecrop vulnerable to some dam-age even from a normal frost.At the same time, the cashtrade soon will start to gear upfor an aggressive fall and win-ter export campaign.

Wheat Strategy✓2009 crop: Wheat prices

remain in a steady decline,with fresh contract lows onceagain traced out in the charts.We still advise holding offadditional sales; better pricingopportunities should comelater this fall or winter.Before advising even catch-up sales, we’re going to givethe market an opportunity toattempt for Chicago Decem-ber futures to rally backabove $5.

❖Fundamentals: Spring

wheat harvest is finallystarting to progress inNorth Dakota, a key statefor that crop. Early reportshint a record crop still couldbe realized despite the sig-nificant reduction in plantedacres there caused by thewet April and May that keptfarmers from getting thecrop planted on time. Someexpect the crop has poten-tial to come in above lastyear’s 246 million bushels.USDA will release its nextproduction report on Sept.30.

It seems all but a handful ofanalysts expect this year’s cornand soybean yields to be recordor near record. In some cases,a large part of that opinionappears based on the relativelyhigh USDA crop condition rat-ings, as well as this year’s rela-tively mild summer.

Therein lies a potential pit-fall that could trip up traders.While the weekly USDA cropratings provide a guideline forwhat is happening with thecrops, by their very naturethey cannot fully explain whatis going on in the field.

They are a subjective look atthe crop by trained observersbut do not include any “hard”data. Maybe more important isthat this year, just like last,there’s no way to easily adjustthese ratings for the extremelag in maturity of the crops.

While the generally mildsummer weather pattern is ben-eficial, when combined withthis year’s extremely late planti-ng, it potentially shortens thewindow for the plants to accu-mulate dry matter in the seeds.

Even if the growing seasonis extended like it was lastyear, the later days of the sea-son have dwindling daylighthours, reducing the timeplants devote to convertingsunlight into yield.

A number of analysts point

Basis charts

to years with mild summersand record yields such as 1994and 2004 as reason to thinkthere’s exceptional yield poten-tial this year. But in those twoyears, planting was normal toearlier than normal, allowingfor a longer growing seasondoes than this year’s extraordi-nary late planting.

A Chicago-based consul-tant, Lanworth, is bucking thewisdom of expecting higheryields. It uses a combinationof satellite images, analyticalsoftware, and on-groundreports to project crop sizes.

This past week, Lanworthissued yield forecasts for thisyear’s corn and soybean cropsof 153.8 bushels and 39.9bushels, respectively, well belowpopular trade wisdom. Thecompany’s track record the pasttwo years has been very good.

The major feature Lanworthsees limiting yield potential,along with the ramifications oflate development, is the short-age of sunshine this summer.So far this growing season,solar radiation in most CornBelt states has been 10 to 15percent below last year. EvenIowa solar radiation has been 5to 10 percent lower.

That reminds us of a year inthe early 1990s when corn yieldsin Iowa were universally disap-pointing, yet the crop lookedconsistently good through thegrowing season. In the end, alack of sunshine that summerwas deemed the reason for thedisappointing performance.

Still, the use of satelliteimagery is a relatively moderntechnology and one that mayhave its own pitfalls. But we’ddeem them no more of a prob-lem than the subjective nature ofUSDA’s weekly condition reports.

Still, the weekly conditionreport does tell us somethingabout the crops and theirpotential. We simply thinkmany analysts aren’t usingthem wisely, leading them toerroneous conclusions aboutproduction potential.

If that’s the case this year, itmay end up as an important“teaching moment” for manyanalysts.

Cents per bu.

Key test for USDA crop ratings

8/18/08 11/20/08 3/2/09 6/5/09 9/10/09 12/15/09

8/18/08 11/20/08 3/2/09 6/5/09 9/10/09 12/15/09

8/18/08 11/20/08 3/2/09 6/5/09 9/10/09 12/15/09

PERSPECTIVES


Government spending brings many benefitsEditor:

As a Farm Bureau member owning farmland, Iam concerned about former Agriculture SecretaryJohn Block’s article in the Aug. 31 FarmWeek.

Constructive analysis of government spending isalways appropriate. But Secretary Block’s articledoesn’t do that. It simply quotes the cliché “spend,spend, spend.”

Both Illinois agriculture and our nation benefitfrom government investments in alternative energy,university research, soil conservation, food securityprograms, lock and dam improvements, townshipand county upgrades of roads and bridges to carryour heavy grain trucks ... and on and on.

That’s true historically, too. The precursor of theFarm Credit System was a government-sponsoredenterprise (GSE) formed in the early 1900s whenbanks wouldn’t lend to farmers. Farm families weredeprived of electricity until the Rural ElectricAdministration fostered outreach into rural areas.

The Commodity Credit Corp. rescued a Depres-sion generation of youth who built lasting soil con-servation and transportation infrastructure. Ienjoyed an easy drive to the Farm Progress Showon interstate highways built by government funds.

And it’s not just conservatives who sustain fiscalresponsibility. In the affluent suburban area inwhich I live (which voted “liberal” in 2008), notone of the four banks with which my family deals

has needed any “bailout” money.I endorse personal responsibility and self-

reliance, and share such values with my children andgrandchildren.

However, it’s easy for those of us who have hadgood parents, a great tax-financed education, andconsistent farm support programs to point the fin-ger at those who have missed these advantages.Government should serve them, too.

And North Dakota has low unemployment part-ly because its weather, sparse population, and lackof community services deter people from movingthere. I prefer Illinois.ELDON C. MCKIE,St. Louis, Mo.

Use care in treadingon carbon footprints

In his beautiful poem “A Psalm of Life,” HenryWadsworth Longfellow wrote that we should leavebehind “footprints on the sands of time” as we departthis world. If Longfellow were writing today, he mightadmonish us not to leave any carbon footprints behind.

A carbon footprint is the total amount of green-house gases produced to directly or indirectly supporthuman activities, usually expressed in equivalent tonsof carbon dioxide (CO2).

Carbon dioxide emissions are linked to global cli-mate change, and unless you lived before the discoveryof fire, theoretically you are responsible along with therest of humanity for global warming.

The bigger your carbon footprint,the greater your contribution to car-bon emissions and climate change.

The idea in a nutshell is to makepeople feel guilty about energy useand personally responsible. If youwant to do your part to stop globalwarming, you should constantly cal-culate and monitor your personal car-bon footprint — or so the theorygoes.

We can all agree on reducing ener-gy use, using clean, renewable fuels,

conserving scarce resources, and being good stewardsof the environment. No one wants to be stomping allover Mother Earth with big carbon feet, but the wholeidea of monitoring carbon footprints can be taken totroubling extremes.

An Oregon State University study concluded that ahypothetical American woman who drives a fuel-effi-cient car and saves energy in her home would still leavebehind a big carbon footprint by giving birth to twochildren. Does this mean a carbon tax should beimposed on parents, or that they should be limited to acertain number of offspring?

There already are warnings of a massive increase inthe federal bureaucracy and regulations if the House-passed climate change bill is enacted, but there is notelling where carbon foot-printing will ultimately leadus.

One extension of it is Life-Cycle Assessment whichhas already been embraced by the Environmental Pro-tection Agency (EPA). The assessment goes beyondthe carbon footprint to determine the full-range ofsocial and environmental consequences in the thingswe buy, including food and other agricultural products.

Whether it’s administered by government or in thehands of activist groups, the whole notion that weshould live our lives according to what our carbonfootprints tell us is deeply concerning.

The calculations necessary to do that are exceedinglycomplex and subject to much interpretation. Carbonfootprints could prove to be a foot in the door for hid-den agendas.

Stewart Truelsen is a regular contributor to the Focus on Agri-culture column series and an author about Farm Bureau history.His e-mail address is [email protected].

STEWARTTRUELSEN

The U.S. pork industry is facing some real chal-lenges — a stronger dollar and broadly weaker global

demand have combined to create adifficult economic environment.

Pork exports have declined nearly40 percent over the past 12 months.The Canadian pork industry also isin serious difficulty.

A major problem facing the Cana-dians is a sharp drop in their exportsto the U.S. — a key market. Canadi-an hog exports to the U.S. have fall-en almost 50 percent from theirhighs of the past year.

It is believed one of the reasonsfor the export decline is recently implemented U.S.labeling regulations. The regulations are known asCountry of Origin Labeling (COOL).

COOL requirements basically mandate that wherecertain products were grown, or born, in the case ofhogs, must be identified and labeled for the productsto be sold at the retail level.

If a hog was born in Canada and then shipped tothe U.S. for finishing and eventual sale, the label onthe product would indicate “Product of Canada andthe U.S.” If the hog’s entire life cycle was in the U.S.,the label would indicate “Product of the U.S.”

The meat processing industry’s initial response toCOOL was to label most pork as being a “Product ofCanada and the U.S.” That was easy, and the industrydid not need to keep track of which pigs were nativesand which were not.

Over the past several months, that pork label hasbeen mostly replaced by “Product of the U.S.” asCanadian hogs were removed from processing and,eventually, from the retail supermarket shelf.

At least that is what I heard. So I went to two localbusinesses to check on COOL and pork.

A small tip: If you wish to check packaged meatfor the country of origin labeling, take your glassesalong.

The information is not easy either to find or to see.At one regional food retailer, the majority of the porkwas labeled as being exclusively from the U.S.

I also went to the local super-store, which has itsheadquarters in Arkansas. The pork there was labeledas a “Product of the U.S. and Canada.” And oneexpensive pork cut at that location did not appear tohave its country of origin identified. At least a helpfulmeat department employee and I were not able tolocate it, even with glasses.

For a long time, some businesses have viewedwhere their particular product was made as an impor-tant part of their marketing strategy. These food geo-graphical indicators, as they are called, includeRoquefort cheese, Florida oranges, Vidalia onions,and Idaho potatoes.

Not all exporters want to link together the productand its origin. In 2008, China exported half a billiondollars of meat products to the U.S. One would behard pressed to know where those products ended up— apparently the country of origin was not seen as apositive piece of information.

While it is not completely clear that consumersavoid Canadian pork, it does seem the “Made inCanada” label for hogs is not a significant food geo-graphical indicator. Not like Good Hope tomatoes orSouthern Illinois peaches.

William Bailey is director of the Western Illinois Universityschool of agriculture. His email address is [email protected].

WILLIAMBAILEY

COOL, hogs, and the pork industry’s challenges

Letter to the editor

READ IT AND EAT Graphic by Sharon Newton

farmweek september 14 2009 issue

Documents

health initiatives

ble health measures

key senate republicans

critics of obamas plan

greater rural health

finance committee torelease

illinois agriculture

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