FarmWeek December 19 2011

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Monday, December 19, 2011 Two sections Volume 39, No. 50

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

Farm INcome this year isprojected to set new records in Illi-nois and nationwide, but a declineappears in the cards for 2012. .....10

the IFB board this week willreview applications for 16 spots onthe Market Study Tour to Cubascheduled for March. .....................5

Farmers aNd otherinterstate truck drivers as of Jan. 3 nolonger will be able to use hand-heldcell phones while driving. ...................3

No FarmWeeknext week

There wil l be no Farm-Week pub lished next week.

FarmWeek is published 50times a year, with no issueson the Mondays fol lowingThanksgiving and Christmas.

The next issue you receivewill be dated Jan. 2.

New tax package raises estate tax exemptions

BY KAY SHIPMANFarmWeek

Three special sessions andmonths of negotiations later,the General Assembly is send-

ing a tax package to Gov. PatQuinn.

“I feel a real weight is offmy back,” Rep. John Bradley(D-Marion), one of the spon-sors, told FarmWeek. “I wasproud and honored to workwith Farm Bureau in craftingand passing this significanttax relief for family farmers.This legislation is a victoryfor the Illinois FarmBureau.”

The legislation passedlast week increases theestate tax exemptionfor individualsfrom $2 millionto $3.5 millionin 2012 and to$4 millionthe nextyear.

Theincrease inthe estatetax exemp-tion “is a

benefit to any farmers whowant to pass their farms alongto their children,” said Rep.David Harris (R-ArlingtonHeights).

The bill also extends thestate sales tax incentives forethanol and biodiesel for fivemore years to 2018, avoidinga 2013 expiration.

“This is great news forIllinois soybean farmers andthe biodiesel industry,” saidMatt Hughes, Illinois SoybeanAssociation chairman and aShirley farmer. “The exten-

sion will help maintain Illi-nois as the nation’s leadingbiodiesel producer. The

state tax credit is trulyvital to our industry and

our farmers.”IFB had asked

its members tocontact their leg-islators in sup-

port of thetax package

proposals,and FarmBureau

membersresponded,

according to Kevin Semlow,IFB director of state legisla-tion.

“Their contacts wereinstrumental in getting theestate tax exemptionincreased and the sales taxincentives for ethanol andbiodiesel extended,” Semlowsaid.

As important as what wasincluded in the legislationwere the proposals thatweren’t in the final version,Bradley pointed out.

“We got the decoupling ofdepreciation out, whichwould have devastated someag businesses (if it hadpassed),” said Bradley, HouseRevenue Committee chair-man. The General Assemblyconsidered, but didn’t include,decoupling from the 2011federal bonus depreciation

schedule and making itretroactive to Jan. 1, 2011.

Beyond the immediate taxpolicy, the legislature’s actionsends a message about thefuture of the state’s businessclimate, Bradley and Harrissaid.

“It sends a significant mes-sage that the State of Illinoisis serious about a climatewhere businesses can func-tion and thrive, including agbusinesses,” Bradley said.

Harris added: “Peopleunderstand this bill alone willnot solve the state’s problems... This is a way to take steps(toward) a good business cli-mate and provide relief toindividuals and some busi-nesses..”

Renewable fuels taxincentives extended

FarmWeekNow.com

Go to FarmWeekNow.com.to v i ew Governor Qu inn ’sc o m m e n t s a b o u t t h e t a xpackage.

JUDGES REJECT MAP CHALLENGE — A panel offederal judges last week upheld the Democrat’s redrawn map ofIllinois congressional districts and rejected a Republican chal-lenge, according to the Associated Press.

Republican leaders indicated they were reviewing the decisionand options for future action. Gov. Pat Quinn signed the mapinto law in June.

ETHANOL READY FOR CHANGE? — Expiration ofthe 45-cent-per-gallon federal ethanol tax credit Dec. 31 couldaffect ethanol industry corn consumption, according to USDAchief economist Joe Glauber.

Renewable Fuels Association President Bob Dinneennonetheless remained confident about the industry’s momentum,noting “the marketplace has changed.”

Average U.S. ethanol production was 938,000 barrels per daythe first week in December, down 1.7 percent from the previousweek’s record output, the U.S. Department of Energy reported.Domestic supplies declined by 4.9 percent to 17.1 million bar-rels, the biggest drop since Aug. 20, 2010, and production ofethanol-blended gasoline fell 0.7 of a percent. Ethanol industrydemand for corn in the 2011-2012 marketing year is projected tobe 5 billion bushels, down slightly from the previous year,according to USDA’s latest supply-demand report. But Dinneenanticipates sustained growth despite shifts in federal ethanol pol-icy.

“We’re now looking at $85-100-a-barrel oil on a sustainedbasis, so it’s difficult to go to the taxpayer and ask them to pro-vide an incentive when the marketplace is already providing theincentive,” he said. “We’re the lowest-cost liquid transportationfuel in the world today.”

ASA LIKES TPP — The American Soybean Association(ASA) is pushing Congress to support U.S. engagement in ongo-ing Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade negotiations. TheHouse Committee on Ways and Means trade subcommittee helda hearing last week to assess TPP status and the agreement’spotential benefits for farmers, workers, and U.S. companies.

TPP talks include nine countries — Australia, Brunei, Chile,Malaysia, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, the U.S., and Vietnam.Others countries such as Japan, Mexico, and Canada haveexpressed interest in joining the negotiations, and the Office ofthe U.S. Trade Representative is accepting public commentsthrough Jan. 13 on their acceptance.

“Especially in these challenging economic times, achieving acomprehensive agreement that provides full reciprocal marketaccess and does not exclude any sector, sub-sector, product, orservice from the market-access provisions or core trade andinvestment rules of the final TPP is vital,” ASA told Ways andMeans members.

TIGER FUNDS FOR 3 ILLINOIS PROJECTS — U.S.Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, Gov. Pat Quinn, andChicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel last week announced the statewill receive more than $44 million in TIGER (TransportationInvestment Generating Economic Recovery) grants for threeprojects in the Chicago area and Alton.

The grants will fund: $20 million for the Chicago TransitAuthority’s Blue Line/Chicago Bike Share Program that willrepair 3.6 miles of track and jumpstart the city’s bike-sharingprogram; $10.4 million for the Illinois Department of Trans-portation’s reconstruction of two miles of Ill. Route 83 in Chica-go; and $13.85 million for a multimodal transportation center inconjunction with the new High-Speed Intercity Passenger Railstation in Alton.

FarmWeek Monday, December 19, 2011

(ISSN0197-6680)

Vol. 39 No. 50 December 19, 2011

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

FarmWeek is published each week, except theMondays following Thanksgiving and Christmas, by theIllinois Agricultural Association, 1701 Towanda Avenue, P.O.Box 2901, Bloomington, IL 61701. Illinois AgriculturalAssociation assumes no responsibility for statements byadvertisers or for products or services advertised inFarmWeek.

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

Address subscription and advertisingquestions to FarmWeek, P.O. Box 2901,Bloomington, IL 61702-2901. Periodicalspostage paid at Bloomington, Illinois, andat an additional mailing office.

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© 2011 Illinois Agricultural Association

STAFFEditorDave McClelland ([email protected])

Legislative Affairs EditorKay Shipman ([email protected])

Agricultural Affairs EditorMartin Ross ([email protected])

Senior Commodities EditorDaniel Grant ([email protected])

Editorial AssistantLinda Goltz ([email protected])

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Director of News and Communications

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

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Quick TakesSTATE

Jim Hankes, left, owner of Thrushwood Farms Quality Meats, Galesburg, shows a smoked beef round to cus-tomer Brian Davison of Galesburg last week. Thrushwood Farms is part of the Illinois Department of Agricul-ture’s marketing campaign to promote the purchase of local foods for the holidays. The Illinois Beef Associa-tion is contributing a $75 Thrushwood Farms gift certificate as a prize for participants in the marketing cam-paign. (Photo by Ken Kashian)

IDOA launches market promotionfor 12 days of buying local foods

The Illinois Department of Agriculture(IDOA) is having its first 12 Days of Christ-

mas contest to raise aware-ness and purchases of Illinoisfood products and businesses.

Acting Illinois AgricultureDirector Jim Larkin said thegoal is to raise awareness ofIllinois food products.

“I want to encourage con-sumers, whenever possible, tobuy locally and support Illi-nois businesses this holiday

season,” Larkin said.Through Dec. 25, a daily winner will be

selected at random from IDOA’s Facebookand Twitter fans. Winners will receive an Illi-

nois product donated by several Illinois com-panies and organizations and assorted cook-ing supplies donated by the American EggBoard.

To be eligible, individuals must join theIDOA’s Facebook page or follow the agencyon Twitter. Individuals must be at least 21years old to win gifts donated by Illinois winecompanies.

To sign up, visit and “like” IDOA’s Facebookpage at {www.facebook.com/IllinoisDepart-mentofAgriculture} or sign up to follow IDOAon Twitter at {https://twitter.com/#!/ILAg-Markets}.

For more information, call Jennifer Tirey,IDOA head of marketing and promotion, at217-782-8146.

Jim Larkin

Illinois farms receiving grantsfor energy-efficient grain dryers

Eighteen Illinois farm oper-ations are among the recipientsof USDA Rural Develop-ment’s Rural Energy for Amer-ica Program (REAP) grantsannounced last week by Agri-culture Secretary Tom Vilsack.

Vilsack announced loansand grants for agricultural pro-ducers and rural small busi-nesses to implement renewableenergy and energy efficiencymeasures in their operations.

The Illinois farms willreceive a total of $616,744 in

grants to upgrade to moreenergy efficient grain dryersystems.

On average, the improve-ments will cut energy con-sumption by 40 percent.

With the announcement ofthe latest recipients, Illinoishas received 59 REAP grantawards in 2011.

“This investment will have aconsiderable impact on theenvironment and profitabilityfor agriculture and small busi-ness,” said Colleen Callahan,

state director for Rural Devel-opment in Illinois.

REAP, authorized throughthe 2008 farm bill, providesloans and grants for farmers,ranchers, and rural small busi-ness owners to buy and installrenewable energy systems andmake energy-efficiencyimprovements. Grants canfinance up to 25 percent of aproject’s cost, not to exceed$500,000 for renewable energyor $250,000 for energy effi-ciency.

StAte

Monday, December 19, 2011 FarmWeek

Bus, large truck drivers face ban on hand-held cellular phonesBY KAY SHIPMANFarmWeek

U.S. Transportation SecretaryRay LaHood recently announceda final rule prohibiting interstatetruck and bus drivers from usinghand-held cell phones whiledriving. The rule, published Dec.2, takes effect Jan. 3.

The Federal Motor CarrierSafety Administration (FMCSA)and the Pipeline and HazardousMaterials Safety Administrationissued the rule.

“When drivers of largetrucks, buses, and hazardousmaterials take their eyes off theroad for even a few seconds, the

outcome can be deadly,”LaHood said.

As a rule of thumb, the banapplies to farmers who have aU.S. Department of Transporta-tion number, or should havesuch a number, according toKevin Rund, Illinois FarmBureau senior director of localgovernment.

Rund noted it also appliesdirectly to drivers involved inintrastate commerce if the vehi-cle they drive is required to beplacarded. Because Illinois gen-erally incorporates federal truck-ing regulations, this means theban also will be applied to all

other intrastate drivers.The rule prohibits those

commercial drivers from using a

hand-held mobile telephonewhile driving a commercial truckor bus.

They may use a hands-freedevice, such as one equippedwith Bluetooth technology.

Rund reminded farmers thatgenerally any farm truck ortruck-trailer combination of10,001 pounds or more is con-sidered to be a commercialvehicle, and most farmers areconsidered to be interstate car-riers.

Drivers face federal civilpenalties of up to $2,750 foreach violation and disqualifica-tion from operating a commer-

cial motor vehicle for multipleoffenses.

Additionally, states will sus-pend a driver’s commercial dri-ver’s license (CDL) after two ormore serious traffic violations.

Commercial truck and buscompanies that allow theirdrivers to use hand-held cellphones while driving willface a maximum penalty of$11,000.

“It’s just too dangerousfor drivers to use a hand-heldcell phone while operating acommercial vehicle,” saidFMCSA Administrator AnneFerro.

First Farm Credit Services Agricultural Scholarship —Twenty four $1,000 scholarships are available for graduating highschool seniors who’ve been accepted at a university, college, orcommunity college into an ag curriculum or a career area thatcontributes to the quality of rural life.

Recipients must either live in or attend high school in the 1stFarm Credit Services’ service territory of 42 counties in thenorthern half of the state.

Applications are due by Feb. 15 and are available from the 16local offices or online at {www.1stfarmcredit.com}.

Completed applications including high school transcripts, atyped essay, and a recent photo for publication may be sent to alocal 1st Farm Credit Services office or mailed to: 1st Farm CreditServices Scholarship Program, Attn: Karen Blatter, 2000 Jacob-ssen Drive, Normal, Ill., 61761.

Recipients will be chosen based on their academic achieve-ment, community and ag youth organization involvement, and theessay. Applications will be judged by a panel of independentagribusiness, education, youth, and farm group leaders.

Ag Scholarship Digest

The Natural Resources Con-servation Service (NRCS) lastweek announced Jan. 13 will bethe cutoff date for conserva-tion stewardship program(CSP) applicants to be consid-ered for the first funding peri-od.

Interested farmers shouldsubmit applications to theirlocal NRCS office by that date.

CSP offers many conserva-tion benefits includingimprovement of water and soilquality, and wildlife habitenhancements. Eligible landsinclude cropland, pastureland,rangeland, and non-industrialprivate forest land.

A self-screening checklist is

available on the NRCS websiteand from local NRCS offices tohelp farmers determine if CSPsuits their operations.

The checklist covers basicinformation about eligibilityrequirements, contract obliga-tions, and potential payments.

As part of the applicationprocess, farmers will work withNRCS staff to complete aresource inventory using a con-servation measurement tool.That will determine the conser-vation performance of existingand new conservation activities.

Applicants’ conservationperformances are used to deter-mine eligibility, ranking, andpayments.

NRCS announces CSP signup date

A Clinton County manwhose company operated fourelevators in Clinton and Marioncounties pleaded guilty to twocounts of mail fraud and facesup to 20 years for each offense,according to the AssociatedPress (AP).

Last week, John Kniepmann,47, Breese, entered his plea inU.S. District Court in East St.Louis for defrauding and with-holding information from theIllinois Department of Agricul-

ture (IDOA) and the First StateBank of Eldorado, according tothe AP.

Kniepmann was the formerowner and president of GrainExchange LLC and Consolidat-ed Exchange Inc. that operatedelevators in Carlyle, Bartelso,Germantown, and Sandoval.

He admitted that inDecember 2006 he falselyincreased a fire insuranceclaim by $34,400 and alsodefrauded the bank by selling

grain valued at $87,161.76 thatwas collateral for a businessloan and then hiding the salefrom the bank.

The Grain Exchange closedin February 2008. IDOA liqui-dated its grain assets of nearly$1.2 million and used an addi-tional $900,000 from the stateGrain Insurance Fund to com-pensate farmers who were owedmoney.

Sentencing is scheduled forlate March.

Central Illinois man pleads guilty in elevator case

Nearly two years after acontroversial law authorizingnew cemetery regulations waspassed, the Illinois Senate lastweek concurred with theHouse and provided some reg-ulatory relief for smaller ceme-teries.

The measure, supported byIllinois Farm Bureau, will besent to Gov. Pat Quinn for hisconsideration.

It relieves many of thestate’s smaller, rural cemeteriesfrom higher fees and tougherregulations.

The changes stemmed fromcontinued discussions amongthe Illinois Department ofFinancial and ProfessionalRegulation, which oversees therules, and the cemetery indus-try.

The newly passed legisla-tion would fully exempt fromnew regulations cemeteriesthat are family or religiousburial grounds; have not hadan internment, inurnment, orentombment in 10 years; orare less than three acres insize.

It would provide a limitedexemption for a cemetery thathas had 25 or fewer burialsfor each of the preceding twoyears, operates as a publiccemetery, or operates as a

religious cemetery. The changes also would

remove the license require-ment for volunteer cemeterymanagers and customer serv-ice employees.

Cemeteries with partialexemptions would continue tohave to comply with rules forreasonable maintenance,record keeping, and otheractions. — Kay Shipman

State Senate passes cemetery rule changes; measure sent to governor

government


Johnson hopes for ‘expeditious, balanced’ 2012 farm bill debateBY MARTIN ROSSFarmWeek

U.S. Rep. Tim Johnson sees his House AgCommittee moving in an “expeditious but bal-anced manner” toward a 2012 farm bill thatallows for a downturn in the ag sector.

In an RFD Radio-FarmWeek interview lastweek, the Urbana Republican anticipated aseries of committee farm bill hearings earlynext session. Meanwhile, Illinois Farm Bureauwill argue for a focus on a strong crop insur-ance program and revision of the ag revenuesafety net during American Farm Bureau Feder-ation debate in Hawaii next month.

Johnson is encouraged by “the stewardshipof House Ag Committee Chairman FrankLucas” (D-Okla.) and the ability of House andSenate ag committee leaders to cooperate on anag spending blueprint for the now-defunctdeficit “super committee.”

However, Johnson, who chairs the commit-tee’s rural development, research, and foreign agsubcommittee, has reservations about someproposals put forward by Senate Ag CommitteeChairman Deb Stabenow (D-Mich.) as part ofthat plan. He suggests farm lawmakers willmove “a little further back to the drawingboard” in refining ag program specifics.

“Crop insurance is absolutely critical, and some

form of a safety net, realizing that we all have toengage in shared sacrifice,” Johnson stressed.“And then, obviously, there are the components— rural development, research, and others — thatdon’t make the headlines right now but that areextraordinarily important in the process.

“What affects the farmer indirectly affectsAmerica. These are good grain prices right now;times are good. But they ain’t gonna be that wayalways. The things that we build in now, includ-ing Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)restrictions, excessive USDA oversight, andelimination of essential programs are likely tobe permanent. High grain prices may not be.”

While farm direct payments have amply“provided a safety net for bad times,” Johnsonwarned that given budget pressures, they “per-haps are at a terminal state.”

Meanwhile, despite growing congressionalscrutiny of and efforts to rein in the EPA andother federal agencies, Johnson argued “we’re notwinning the battle.” The House has approvedmeasures aimed at blocking potential farm dustrules and holding EPA accountable for regulatorycosts, and lawmakers continue to push to blockduplicative federal pesticide application permits.

But Johnson insists “those bills aren’t goinganywhere in the Senate, and the presidentwouldn’t sign them if they did.”

Lawmakers direct sights at MF Global debacleBY DANIEL GRANT AND MARTIN ROSSFarmWeek

Congress wants answers, and “we may want prosecution” in theMF Global case to protect the interests of “a co-op in Gifford or afarmer in Taylorville,” according to House Ag Committee memberRep. Tim Johnson, an Urbana Republican.

Last week, some farmers affected by MFGlobal’s collapse called on lawmakers to tightenfutures industry regulations to better ensure pro-tection of their funds.

Possibly $1.2 billion in client funds disap-peared when the derivatives broker filed forbankruptcy on Oct. 31; former MF Global CEOJon Corzine stepped down from his position lastmonth.

Appearing before House lawmakers Thurs-day, the former Democrat senator and New

Jersey governor insisted he did not authorize lending customerfunds to MF Global or its affiliates or otherwise misusing them.

Customer assets in the futures industry are protected by a regimeknown as “segregation,” in which customers’ money is held in anaccount separate from a clearing firm’s own funds.

CME Group Executive Chairman Terrence Duffy told a Senatepanel Corzine may have known about a $175 million loan of clientfunds to a European affiliate.

Corzine says he learned of a shortfall in customer accounts onOct. 30. But given evidence MF Global may have “invaded” segre-gated funds, Johnson sees “potential certainly for civil liability andpotential for criminal liability on top of that.”

The congressman cited accounts from Central Illinois con-stituents whose income or land, equipment, or seed purchases havebeen impacted by the MF Global episode and related losses in mar-gin accounts.

“It’s unacceptable that an individual entrusted with funds fromordinary individuals who try to live their lives and make their planstakes those funds and converts them to investments on the Euro-pean market,” Johnson said in an RFD Radio-FarmWeek inter-view.

“At the end of the day, it’s going to cause dramatic ramificationsand repercussions for individuals in terms of making plans nextyear.”

According to Jeff Hainline, chairman of Advance Trading inBloomington, a key issue in sorting out the MF Global debacle iswhether customers with segregation funds will receive 100 percentof their money. He spoke about the issue at a recent DTN/TheProgressive Farmer Ag Summit in Chicago.

Hainline believes customers with segregation funds shouldreceive their money before creditors. “If full restitution hap-pens, I expect credibility and trust to come back to the CMEGroup,” he said. “If there’s not full restitution, I expect fall-out.”

Hainline suggested banks in the future may be leery of makingloans to farmers and elevators if funds tied up in the markets areviewed as unsafe.

“It could have a chilling impact on the availability of credit toanyone using risk-management products,” he added.

Rep. Tim Johnson

The fact that Congress recently lifted a 5-year-old ban on funding for horse meat inspectionseventually could help strengthen the equine market— if slaughterhouses begin operations in the U.S.

But removal of the ban may not lower the ship-ping costs of animals from Illinois as there still isa statewide ban on slaughter of horses here.

“In the two states where horse processingtook place prior to the congressional ban, Illinoisand Texas, there are laws in place prohibiting theslaughter of horses,” Phil Derfler, deputy adminis-trator for Food Safety and Inspection Service,stated on a USDA blog.

So Cavel International will not be reopeningits horse slaughter facility in DeKalb. In fact, as of lastweek, there had been no requests for USDA to initi-ate the authorization process for any horse process-ing facility in the U.S. since the ban was lifted Nov. 18.

“While Congress technically lifted the ban,horse processing will not resume any time in thenear term,” Derfler said.

Under the Federal Meat Inspection Act, hors-es are an amenable species, which means horsemeat can’t be shipped or sold for human con-sumption without inspection.

Brenda Matherly, assistant director of localgovernment for the Illinois Farm Bureau, believesthe most likely locations for a possible opening of

a horse slaughter facility are the western U.S.,possibly the Dakotas.

“I would anticipate the western states to consideropening a facility before anybody else,” Matherly said.“According to reports, they’re dealing with a lot ofissues of (equine) abandonment” in the western U.S.

There are an estimated 9 million horses in theU.S. About 138,000 horses were transported lastyear to Canada and Mexico for slaughter.

If a facility is opened in the U.S., Matherlybelieves it would boost an otherwise stagnantmarket for unwanted horses.

The end of the nationwide ban “doesn’t openthe door for us in Illinois (to slaughter horses forhuman consumption),” Matherly said. “But, over-all, an improvement in the market nationwidewould benefit Illinois.”

Many animal sanctuaries in recent years havereached capacity for horses.

“I’ve heard of people putting padlocks on theirtrailers (at auction barns), pastures, and barns,because they don’t want people dropping off(unwanted) horses,” said Matherly, who this weekwill update the IFB board on the current situation.

If a horse slaughter facility is opened in the U.S.,it is believed most of the meat would be shipped tocountries in Europe and Asia, where horse meat isa common source of protein. — Daniel Grant

End of ban could boost equine market

Markets


Ag economist: Commodity markets in state of transitionBY DANIEL GRANTFarmWeek

The commodity price outlookprovided last week at the IllinoisFarm Economics Summit byDarrel Good, University of Illi-nois ag economist, offered bothgood and bad news for farmers.

Most of the good news wasfor livestock producers. Good pre-dicted hogs prices in 2012 shouldhold steady at profitable levelsaround the mid-$60 range whilefed cattle prices could increasefrom this year’s average ofabout $114 per hundredweight.

Crop farmers, on the otherhand, were dealt some badnews: Good predicted cornprices in 2012 could decline by

$1 per bushel, compared to2011, to around $5 or less whilesoybean prices (which declinedabout $2 per bushel in recentmonths) should be able to holdsteady next year at current levelsin the high $10 to $11 range.

“We’re transitioning from peakprices to lower prices for grain(and oilseeds), and conversely Isee continued higher prices forlivestock in 2012,” Good said.

Good predicted strong live-stock prices next year due inpart to thin herd numbers, par-ticularly of beef cattle, andincreased meat exports.

“Unless the economy col-lapses, consumers next yearcould face a tighter beef supply

and higher prices,” he said.Crop prices could decline

next year due to the possibility of

steady-to-increased productionand waning demand prospects.

Good predicted U.S. farmers

next year could plant 2 millionadded acres of corn while areturn of trend-line yields wouldincrease production by 13 bushelsper acre compared to 2011.

Elsewhere, South Americanfarmers are on pace to produce theirthird-straight record soybean crop.

“I think we’ll see a significantincrease in production,” Good said.

Meanwhile, feed use of U.S.corn is at its lowest level since1995, Good predicted the amountof corn used for ethanol will flat-ten out as the ethanol blenders’credit expires at month’s end, andsoy exports have slipped from 1.5billion bushels last year to 1.3 bil-lion bushels this year.

“We’re not looking for a lotof demand growth,” Good said.“That suggests we’ll be lookingat lower prices (in 2012).”

On the bright side, Goodbelieves crop prices will remainat profitable levels, and he seesno signs that prices will drop tothose of a previous era.

Crop prices from 1947 to 1968averaged $1.28 per bushel forcorn and $2.63 for beans beforeincreasing to averages in the nextera (1973 to 2003) of $2.42 forcorn and $6.15 for beans.

The U of I calculated long-term crop prices for the currentera to average $4.60 per bushelfor corn and $10.58 for beans.

Darrel Good, University of Illinois ag economist, center, discusses his out-look for commodity prices and the farm economy with Joe Higgs, left, andKevin Sprecher, both of the Bank of Farmington, last week during the Illi-nois Farm Economics Summit in Galesburg. (Photo by Daniel Grant)

Board to pick Cuba tour participantsGroups combat ‘counterproductive’ policies

BY MARTIN ROSSFarmWeek

The U.S.’ longstanding Cuban policy has left it the “isolated play-er” in numerous areas and Cuba’s regime virtually untouched.

So says Mavis Anderson, senior associate with the Latin AmericanWorking Group (LAWG), who sees a potential reversal in recentstrides toward productive U.S.-Cuban relations.

The Illinois Farm Bureau Board of Directors this week willreview applications for 16 spots on IFB’s Market Study Tour to Cubascheduled for mid- to late March. The tour will include cultural,

farm, business, andgovernment visits,with a focus on prod-ucts Illinois farmershope someday to sellto the island nation.

Last week, LAWGfought successfully todefeat a spendingamendment from

Cuban-American U.S. Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart (R-Fla.) that wouldhave tightened Cuban travel restrictions and financial “remittances”between Cubans and their relatives in the U.S.

LAWG also seeks Cuba’s removal from a U.S. list of “state spon-sors of terrorism,” citing a recent U.S. State Department report thatnoted “the government of Cuba maintained a public stance againstterrorism and terrorist financing in 2010.”

Meanwhile, Anderson was uncertain about the fate of Senate pro-posals designed to “fix” existing restrictions on Cuban payment forU.S. goods and direct U.S.-Cuban “bank-to-bank” transactions.

“The evidence that all this is counterproductive is that we’ve beendoing it for 50 years with no result,” Anderson told FarmWeek.“The goal of our (existing) policy and the goal of the Cuban-Ameri-can legislators is regime change, and that hasn’t happened.

“It’s time to try something different if we want to have anykind of presence in Cuba. As Cuba has changed tremendously inthe last couple of years, the United States has been out of it. Weare missing in action — we are the isolated player in this game.That needs to change.”

A decline in U.S. sales to Cuba has accelerated since 2004, whenthe Bush administration imposed “cash-in-advance” requirementsfor Cuban import purchases, Anderson said.

The U.S. Grains Council reports U.S. market share in theCaribbean Basin continues to suffer as South America’s advantage inthe Colombian corn market has spilled over into other regional mar-kets including Venezuela, Panama, and Cuba.

Today, Cuban payment is required prior to export shipment, andunder U.S. regulations, buyers often must wire payments throughEuropean or other banks. U.S. producers hope to regain market sharein Colombia and Panama through newly approved trade agreements,but current financing provisions leave the U.S. at an export disadvan-tage and Cuban buyers exposed to seizure of goods in U.S. ports.

Current Senate measures would allow transfer of title for U.S.exports once they arrive in Havana, to prevent seizure by parties witha legal claim against Cuba.

President Obama has made some recent regulatory strides, partic-ularly in the travel arena, easing channels for family, religious, educa-

tion, and cultural “people-to-people” travel.However, the imprisonment of U.S. government contractor Alan

Gross “has put a freeze on any new initiatives either by the Congress— which isn’t inclined to do anything, anyway — or the administra-tion,” Anderson said.

Gross is serving a 15-year sentence for supplying a satellite tele-phone to members of Cuba’s Jewish community seeking improvedInternet access.

And Anderson questions prospects for Cuban reforms in whatpromises to be a heated 2012 election year.

“The Cuban-Americans in south Florida who are in Congress(such as Diaz-Balart) will never let up, election year or non-electionyear,” she warned. “They are like bulldogs on this issue.”

NATIONAL AFFAIRS


USGC chairman: Export picture looks bright long-termBY DANIEL GRANTFarmWeek

The crop markets receivedbearish news earlier this monthwhen USDA raised its esti-mates for world corn produc-tion and ending stocks of cornand beans in the U.S.

World cornproduction inparticular re-ceived a majorboost fromprojections ofa record har-vest in China,where produc-tion was pro-jected to grow8.2 percent

from last year to 191.8 milliontons (nearly 7.5 billionbushels).

“China is the No. 2 cornproducer in the world (behindthe U.S.),” said Wendell Shau-man, chairman of the U.S.Grains Council (USGC), afarmer from Western Illinois,and former Illinois Farm Bu-reau board member.

However, even with recordcorn production this year,China still is unlikely to pro-duce enough grain to keep upwith surging domestic demand.

“The last three years Chinahas used more corn than itproduced,” Shauman said dur-

ing a recent presentation at theIllinois Farm Bureau annualmeeting in Chicago. “(Chinese)demand is exceeding their abil-ity to produce it.”

Tom Mueller, director of theIllinois Corn Marketing Board,recently heard a similar messageduring a USGC leadership mis-sion to Guangzhou, China.

“The (Chinese) governmentwants to keep farmland pro-ducing food,” Jorge Sanchez,director of USDA’s ag trade of-fice in Guangzhou, told partici-pants of the USGC mission.

“But the government alsoknows there never will be near-ly enough land to meet de-mand, and I don’t see yieldsgrowing or more farmersgoing into production.”

Shauman and Sanchez pre-dicted China over the longhaul will import more U.S.corn and eventually could be-come one of the top markets,which would be a major shiftas China until recently was amajor exporter of corn.

China this year is expectedto import nearly 120 millionbushels of U.S. corn. Sanchezpredicted Chinese corn im-ports could grow annually by157 million to 394 millionbushels.

The demand growth is ex-pected to be fueled by a boom-

ing Chinese population withmore spending power.

About 234 million peopleare projected to move into themiddle class in China by 2020,the USGC chairman noted.

“It’s a significant market andit’s only going to expand,”Shauman said. “We need tocapitalize on that.”

China also is expanding itsproduction of livestock, whichis expected to increase Chinesedemand for corn, soybeans,distillers grains, and otherfeedstuffs.

The portion of hogs incommercial facilities inChina increased from 35 per-cent in 2004 to 65 percent in2010. That number is pro-jected to reach 80 percent by2014, according to Shauman.

“There’s been tremendous

movement (in China) awayfrom backyard (livestock)operations to commercialproduction facilities,” saidShauman, who noted Chi-

nese imports of U.S. dis-tillers grains increased fromminimal sales four years agoto 3 million metric tons thisyear.

Wendell Shauman

Elections offer producersimmigration reform platformBY MARTIN ROSSFarmWeek

The 2012 elections couldoffer producers a crucialforum on the need for federalimmigration reform.

This year has seen littleprogress toward an accord be-tween fervent border security

advocates and interests seekingkey “guest worker” reformsaimed at ensuring an adequateag labor force.

American Farm Bureau Fed-eration (AFBF) policy team di-rector Paul Schlegel noted im-migration already has becomea hot-button topic in campaignprimary debates.

At Illinois Farm Bureau’s an-nual meeting, U.S. Sen. MarkKirk, a Highland Republican,argued a valid guest worker pro-gram is “doable.” But he sees “acommon sense solution” com-ing only after border securitymeasures are passed and conser-vative lawmakers “see there isno political agenda.”

House leaders recognize anyserious immigration debate willinclude proposals for mandato-ry electronic verification ofworker documentation (E-Veri-fy), potentially alienating votersin heavily ag districts, Schlegeltold FarmWeek.

At the same time, Democratcandidates may wish to keep theissue “alive” to court Latino andother voters who support someform of “normalization” forundocumented workers, but re-alize Congress at this juncturewould reject any legislation thatdoes not “couple” worker re-forms with heightened security.

Thus, “I don’t think anythingsignificant is going to happen— not before the presidentialelection,” Schlegel said. Thatdoesn’t mean producers can’tmake inroads.

“These will be the first majorelections in states like Georgiaand Alabama where they’veadopted state-based E-Verifyprograms that are detrimentalfor ag,” Schlegel said. “In Ala-bama, they’re starting to makenoises that maybe they need tolook at (requirements) again.

“In Georgia, if acreage is

down, if people aren’t plantingbecause they don’t think they’llhave workers, that’s going toplay out in fall elections.”

The sponsor of Georgia’snew law recently toured southGeorgia with state Ag Commis-sioner Gary Black to fieldfarmer immigration concerns.

A Georgia AgribusinessCouncil survey indicated 46percent of respondents wereexperiencing a labor shortage,with 24 percent of those em-ployers reporting fewer work-ers applying for available jobs.Thirty-seven percent of surveyparticipants cited worker con-cerns with the new law.

Alabama’s E-Verify mandategoes into effect April 1. Ala-bama Farmers Federation horti-culture program director MacHigginbotham noted “a lot ofunknowns” about both workerverification requirements and“the availability of a labor pool”next season, especially amongthe state’s tomato growers.

As a result, fruit and veg-etable acreages and consumersupplies could drop significant-ly, Higginbotham said. New re-quirements place Alabama pro-ducers at a competitive disad-vantage relative to neighboringstates, he argued.

While the prospect of a nation-al E-Verify debate isn’t appetizing,AFBF’s Schlegel hopes it might atleast drive home “the need to giveus a (worker) program thatworks.” Mandatory E-Verifyimposes an added burden on asector already hard-put to findlocal laborers willing to acceptwork of a “seasonal and tempo-rary nature,” Higginbotham said.

“Those farmers who do nothave a reliable labor force goinginto 2012 are going to be thefarmers who just aren’t going toplant next year,” Higginbothamtold FarmWeek.

livEsTOcK


The Illinois Equine Industry Research &Promotion Board (EPB) is seeking Illinoishorsemen to apply for two seats on its boardof directors.

The EPB is charged with selecting recipi-ents for grants funded by the Illinois equinecheckoff program.

The application deadline is Jan. 31. Theboard is seeking applicants from Southern Illi-nois in particular, according to Karen Freese,board chairman.

The board is comprised of Illinois horse-men who represent a cross section of the

industry by geography and segment. Application forms are available online at

{www.HorsemensCouncil.org}. Clink on theEPB logo, then find “Board Applications”under the index for Directors & Committees.

Applications also are available from theboard’s Springfield office. A resume or briefbiography should accompany an application.

Send applications to: Illinois Equine Indus-try Research and Promotion Board, 3085Stevenson Drive, Suite 200, Springfield, IL62703. The phone number is 217-529-6503and the fax number is 217-529-9120.

Applicants sought for state equine promotion board

Modest break in cattle market expected to continueBY DANIEL GRANTFarmWeek

USDA surprised the tradein its December cattle on feedreport Friday with estimatesshowing a larger-than-expectedsupply of market-ready cattle.

Placements in feedlots dur-ing November (2.04 millionhead) were up 4 percent com-pared to last year. The averagetrade guess predicted a half-percent decline in placements.

Meanwhile, marketings offed cattle during Novembertotaled 1.77 million head,down slightly from a year ago.Traders expected a 1.5 percentdecline.

“Marketings were a littlebetter than expected,” saidRich Nelson, director of

research for Allendale Inc. inMcHenry. “(The report) willnot stop the cash cattle marketfrom breaking.”

The cash cattle market hasexperienced a modest down-trend since it peaked inNovember at $127 per hun-dredweight. Cash cattle priceson Friday were around $118.

Nelson viewed the recentprice action as a normal, sea-sonal decline. The industryoften experiences slaughterdisruptions in Decemberwhich temporarily reduce cat-tle demand.

“This is a normal decline inDecember,” he said. “(Cattleinventory) numbers will startto decline and prices will startrallying” in 2012.

“This report simply pushesback by another couplemonths when the (supply)

deficits will start.”USDA on Friday estimated

cattle and calves on feed in theU.S. as of Dec. 1 totaled 12.08million head, up 4 percentfrom last year.

“We’re still seeing liquida-tion in numbers off the South-

ern Plains,” Nelson noted.He said he still foresees a

major meat deficit next yeardespite the surprisingly higherinventory numbers in the latestcattle report. He predictedbeef production next yearcould decline 3 percent whilechicken production could slipby 2 to 3 percent.

The possibility of tightermeat supplies combined withincreased exports is expectedto drive beef prices highernext year. The U.S. currently ison track to be a net exporterof beef for the first time in

more than 40 years, accordingauthors of the CME GroupDaily Livestock Report .

“Cattle prices may have achance or two to hit $136 (perhundredweight) next year,”Nelson said.

Retail beef prices the first 11months of this year were up 10percent, according to the Daily Live-stock Report. It was the largestincrease since beef pricesjumped 11.5 percent in 2004.

FarmWeekNow.com

Go to FarmWeekNow.com toview complete details of thecattle on feed report.

Farmers and landowners in awe of booming land prices inIllinois should take a look at what’s happening across the Missis-sippi River in Iowa.

The annual Iowa Land Value Survey released last week by IowaState University estimated the average cost of farmland in theHawkeye state this year shot up 32.5 percent compared to 2010.

“This is the highest percentage increase recorded by the sur-vey (which dates back to 1941),” said Mike Duffy, Iowa Stateeconomist. “And the average land value of $6,708 per acre, whenadjusted for inflation, is at an all-time high.”

The previous inflation-adjusted high occurred in 1979.An increase in gross farm income has been a major factor

behind the jump in farmland values, according to Duffy. Cropprices in Iowa in 2005 averaged $1.94 per bushel for corn and$5.54 for beans compared to estimates this year of $6.05 forcorn and $11.40 for beans.

The Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago recently reported thirdquarter farmland values in its district (which includes parts ofIllinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, and Wisconsin) were up 25 per-cent from a year ago, which was the largest jump since 1977.Farmland values in Illinois in the third quarter were up 23 per-cent from a year ago.

For more information about the Iowa Land Value Survey,including video footage, visit the website{www.farmweeknow.com}.

Farmland values set record in Iowa

Traders surprised

DATEBOOK

Jan. 10University of Illinois corn and soybean classic, Mt.

Vernon Holiday Inn.Jan. 11U of I corn and soybean classic, Crowne Plaza,

Springfield.Jan. 12 U of I corn and soybean classic, I Hotel and Confer- ence Center, Champaign.Jan. 16U of I corn and soybean classic, Double Tree Hotel,

Bloomington.Jan. 17U of I corn and soybean classic, Kishwaukee College,

Malta.Jan. 18U of I corn and soybean classic, I Wireless Center,

Moline.Jan. 19U of I corn and soybean classic, Holiday Inn, Quincy.

Jan. 24-25University of Illinois crop management conference,

Gibby’s on the Green Conference Center, Whittington.

Markets


More farmers exploring, entering new commercial markets BY KAY SHIPMANFarmWeek

Farmers — from those withcommercial market experienceto those investigating the idea— last week heard increaseddemand for locally producedfoods is expanding theiropportunities.

There is “not a size that fitsall situations. There’s opportu-nities for all types of opera-tions,” said John Pike, a Uni-versity of Illinois local foodsspecialist, who taught a mar-keting workshop last week inGalesburg.

MarketReady is a curricu-lum-based program designedto help farmers understandbest marketing practices andassess whether they are readyto sell to wholesalers, gro-ceries, restaurants, and othercommercial markets. Theinformation is geared towardsmall and mid-sized farms.

Each participant received abinder of information thatcovered various factors andchecklists to ensure farmerswould meet any marketrequirements. The material was

developed based on surveyresponses from 70 buyers rep-resenting a variety of food sec-tors.

Pike outlined several pointsfarmers need to considerbefore they attempt to sell tocommercial markets. Hispoints included:

• Meet commercial buyers’requirements. The Market Readytraining information coveredspecific needs of restaurants aswell as grocers, wholesale buy-ers, and food service providers.

• Cover liability insuranceneeds. “Anytime you’reinvolved in a business opera-tion there are risks,” Pike said.He advised farmers to let theirinsurance provider know aboutany commercial marketing they

are considering and “makesure you have enough insur-ance to protect your assets.”

• Develop a good marketingstrategy. The strategy will dif-fer, depending on the area,demographics, potential mar-ket outlets, the food product,and the farmer’s personalityand ability to develop andmaintain relationships withbuyers. “You need to be ableto evaluate your personalityand what you’re suited for,”Pike noted.

• Assess all related costs andunderstand the market’s pric-ing structure. Typically, a gro-cery price margin rangesbetween 33 and 50 percent,according to Pike. Likewise, afarmer needs to consider all

IFB, partners collaboratingon farmer-buyer meetings

Illinois Farm Bureau and several entities are collaboratingon several farmer-buyer meetings next year.

“The main focus is to assist farmers and help them becomemarket ready, link them with buyers, and to help them formrelationships or strengthen existing relationships. The groupsare collaborating to maximize our resources,” said CynthiaHaskins, IFB manager of business development and compli-ance.

A two-day meeting is being planned for early April in South-ern Illinois, according to Haskins. The program will includepresentations on food hubs and Market-Ready, a curriculum-based program dealing with best marketing practices.

In breakout sessions, a wide variety of buyers will discusstheir procurement requirements. There will be opportunitiesfor farmers to chat with buyers one on one.

“There will be opportunities for farmers to meet buyers aswell as learn how to be market ready,” Haskins said.

In late March, a one-day meeting is being planned with theChampaign County Farm Bureau and county Extension. It willbe geared to those growers interested in doing business in Cen-tral and West-Central Illinois.

Haskins said other meetings are being planned for South-eastern Illinois, West-Central Illinois, and two meetings inNorthern Illinois. Each meeting will include presentations byUniversity of Illinois Extension local foods educators.

Additional information and details will be published inFarmWeek when they become available. — Kay Shipman

costs to his operation, includ-ing extra equipment or timeneeded to meet the market’srequirements.

• Develop and maintainproper business forms, prefer-ably electronic ones. Thoseinclude invoices, bills of lad-ing, and sales receipts.

• Practice good agriculturalpractices to minimize foodsafety problems. Pike advisedfarmers to learn a buyer’s spe-cific requirements for foodsafety. Some buyers wantthird-party audits of safetypractices; others want a copyof a farm’s food safety prac-tices. Some buyers want a let-ter denoting the farmer’sattendance at a food safetyworkshop.

“Food safety is rising to thetop as a big issue,” Pike said.“It’s just as important for a

farmer selling at a farmers’market as it is for a commer-cial lettuce farm to use foodsafety procedures.”

Presentations and exhibitsabout commercial marketingand related programs, includ-ing the MarketMaker data-base, will be offered Jan. 11-13 at the Illinois SpecialtyCrops, Agritourism, andOrganic Conference in theCrowne Plaza, Springfield.

Last week’s MarketReadyworkshop and an earlier onein Benton were sponsored bythe North Central Sustain-able Agriculture Researchand Education Program andthe U of I Extension. FirstFarm Credit sponsored theGalesburg workshop, andFarm Credit Services of Illi-nois sponsored the one inBenton.

‘You need to be able to evaluate yourpersonality and what you’re suited for.’

— John PikeUniversity of Illinois local foods specialist

The Illinois Farm Families(IFF) is a coalition of com-modity groups for beef, corn,soybeans, pork, and the IllinoisFarm Bureau. It is acceptingconsumers’ questions andposting answersto those ques-tions on itswebsite{www.watchus-grow.org}.

FarmWeekis publishing thequestions andanswers to share informationand better prepare farmers thenext time they are asked aprobing question.

Question: Do cows contin-ue to produce milk after their

calf has been taken away? Atwhat age are cows first bred?

Dale Drendel, Hamp-shire: Dairy cows are amazinganimals. They can turn grassand grains into milk. Heifers

are female dairy cat-tle and after twoyears they usuallygive birth to theirown calves.

All female dairycows must have acalf to produce milk.

The cow will con-tinue to produce milk forabout 305 days.

The gestation (pregnancy)period for cows is ninemonths. Newborn calvesweigh 80 to 100 pounds.

IFF answering consumers’ questions

from tHE couNtIEs


EDGAR — The YoungLeaders committees

from Champaign, Douglas,Edgar, and Vermilion CountyFarm Bureaus will sponsortheir annual Illini Farm ToyShow Jan. 6-8 at the UrbanaHoliday Inn. Show hours are 5to 9 p.m. Friday; 9 a.m. to 5p.m. Saturday; and from 9 a.m.to 2 p.m. Sunday. Specialevents at 9 a.m. Saturdayinclude a farm toy consign-ment live auction and a pedaltractor pull at noon. ContactKurt Wolken at 217-202-2730for exhibitor or auction infor-mation and Zack Witvoet at217-304-7395 to enter a toy inthe auction.

MONTGOMERY —Montgomery County

Farm Bureau Foundation willaward six $1,500 scholarships.Deadline for applications isnoon Monday, March 12. Toqualify, the student’s parents orthe student must be a FarmBureau member and the studentmust be pursuing an agriculturalfield of study. Visit the website{www.montgomerycountyfb.com}or call the Farm Bureau office at217-532-6171 for more informa-tion.

MOULTRIE — FarmBureau will sponsor an

on-the-road seminar at 3 p.m.Wednesday at the Farm Bureau

office. Kevin Rund, IllinoisFarm Bureau senior director oflocal government, will be thespeaker. Trucking laws will bediscussed. Call the Farm Bureauoffice at 217-728-4214 for reser-vations or more information.

PEORIA — The countyplat books are available at

the Farm Bureau office. Town-ship aerial maps are included inthe book. Farm Bureau mem-bers will receive a 40 percent dis-count. Call the Farm Bureauoffice for more information.

STEPHENSON — Taskforce meetings will be

Wednesday, Jan. 4, at the FarmBureau office. Those willinclude 7 p.m., Farm Business;7:30 p.m., Government andLocal Affairs; 8 p.m., MembersServices and Outreach; and 8:30p.m., Education. Call the FarmBureau office for more informa-tion.

• Applications are availablefor the assistant position for acollege student for the summerprogram from June 1 throughmid-August. Visit the website{www.stephensoncfb.org} or callthe Farm Bureau office at 815-232-3186 for more information.

• The Northern Illinois FarmBureau bowling tournament willbe at 2 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 21, atForest Hills Lanes, Loves Park.Registration information is avail-

Emergency tube key to lifesaving data accessBY MARTIN ROSSFarmWeek

A Farm Bureau-supportedcampaign hopes to put poten-tially lifesaving farm resourcesliterally at the fingertips ofrural emergency responders.

The Emergency ActionTube, a waterproof thermo-plastic pipe mounted on afarm’s primary power pole,contains diagrams and infor-mation that can prove crucialin the event of a fire or pro-ducer injury.

Carle’s Center for RuralHealth and Farm Safety pro-vides tubes at no cost to East-Central Illinois farm residents,in partnership with countyFarm Bureaus and other localgroups. Carle safety specialistAmy Rademaker anticipates asharp upswing in programsignup in 2012 and hopes theeffort eventually will expandwell beyond the region.

The Urbana-based centerhas worked with the nearbyThomasboro Fire Departmentto develop a practical systemaimed at ensuring a speedy, safeemergency response in thefield, at the bin, or in the con-finement building. On-farmmaps and data also are beingsupplied to local fire/rescueagencies for pre-planning pur-poses.

Global positioning system(GPS) technology has helped

that may be on fire,’” she said.Carle has fielded calls from

across the U.S. and even fromCanada regarding the Emer-gency Action Tube. Rademak-er and company are develop-ing a general “toolkit” thatwould enable emergency

departments to establish theirown program.

For program information,call 217-383-4606, or [email protected]. Carle isaccepting donations to offsetthe cost of tubes and accompa-nying reflective labels.

take the guesswork — guess-work that can steal crucial min-utes from a farm accident vic-tim — out of a project that’sbeen in the works for nearly adecade.

“When the project startedin 2002, the whole conceptinvolved having to hand-drawmaps,” Rademaker toldFarmWeek. “We knew at thatpoint that it would be next toimpossible to sit down, takethe time, get it done, get itaccurate.

“Things kind of sat in lim-bo until 2009. I was at a con-ference where a group saidthey were doing these tubesusing GPS and computer soft-ware. Since then, our project’sevolved: We are using aerialshots, having (farmers) labelbuildings and what’s in thosebuildings. Then I’m digitizingthem. It’s a lot easier; it’s a lotmore accurate.”

To be eligible for a tube,applicants must live in East-Central Illinois, own or rentfarm property, be willing toprovide basic information foran emergency response planand farmstead map, and allowon-farm installation.

The farmer interview itselftakes an average five to 10

minutes, Rademaker said. Car-le recently collected producerdata during a local fire depart-ment pancake breakfast, andRademaker used Illinois FarmBureau’s recent annual meet-ing in Chicago to updateChampaign County maps.

Beyond providing a generallayout and a guide to onsitechemical or fire hazards andemergency resources, real-world mapping identifiesfence lines, trees, power lines,and other features that mayaffect emergency access, effi-ciency, and safety. For exam-ple, Rademaker notes activa-tion of an auto-start generatorcould endanger responderswho assumed they’ve success-fully cut power to a piece ofequipment.

Carle and Thomasborofirefighters have charted dis-tances from rural roads tocentral points within eachproperty, enabling respondersto calculate how much hosethey may need to fight a blazein the event farm lanes areinaccessible.

Rademaker urges localdepartments to collect farmtube information for on-boarduse en route to a fire or acci-dent. “They’ll be able to pullthe farm map out and say,‘OK, we’re 300 feet from theroad. We have five fuel tanksin a row next to the building

LENDING A HAND

Neil Fearn, Edwards County Farm Bureau vice president, helps a student in Gina Salinas’ second gradeclass at Portage Park School in Chicago complete his “Field to Table” activity. The Edwards County Boardof Directors had adopted Salinas’ class as part of the Adopt a Classroom program, and three boardmembers and their spouses visited with the students in early December. Miss Salinas gave the boardmembers the entire day with her students. During the day, students heard about livestock and grain farm-ing, made pumpkin pie in a plastic bag, discovered the process that corn takes “From Field to Table,” andplayed food bingo. (Photo courtesy of Edwards County Farm Bureau)

able at the website{www.stephensoncfb.org} or atthe Farm Bureau office. Dead-line to register is Friday, Jan. 13.

• Farm Bureau night atthe Rockford Ice Hogs hock-ey game is at 7:05 p.m. Satur-day, Feb. 11. A block of tick-ets has been reserved for $12each. Call the Farm Bureauoffice at 815-232-3186 or go

to the website {www.stephen-soncfb.org} for more infor-mation.

VERMILION — TheYoung Leaders commit-

tees from Champaign, Douglas,Edgar, and Vermilion CountyFarm Bureaus will sponsor theirannual Illini Farm Toy Show Jan.6-8 at the Urbana Holiday Inn.Show hours are 5 to 9 p.m. Fri-

day; 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday;and from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sun-day. Special events at 9 a.m. Sat-urday include a farm toy con-signment live auction and a pedaltractor pull at noon. ContactKurt Wolken at 217-202-2730for exhibitor or auction informa-tion and Zack Witvoet at 217-304-7395 to enter a toy in theauction.

profitability


Export inspections(Million bushels)

Week ending Soybeans Wheat Corn12-08-11 29.7 16.5 35.712-01-11 32.0 14.6 38.9Last year 47.8 19.4 35.0Season total 458.9 550.1 436.7Previous season total 686.8 594.8 480.8USDA projected total 1300 925 1600Crop 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. $35.00-$60.40 $44.9040 lbs. $57.00-$62.90 $60.8450 lbs. n/a n/aReceipts This Week Last Week 31,614 29,597*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 $83.17 $80.75 2.42Live $61.55 $59.76 1.79

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

Steers 122.26 122.28 -0.02 Heifers 122.00 121.46 .54

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 $144.24 144.86 -0.62

CME feeder cattle index — 600-800 Lbs.

Lamb prices

n/a

(Thursday’s price)

Looking ahead to the new yearBY JOHN CRIPE

The year 2011 will go downas one of record volatility incommodity prices. They near-ly doubled, and record dailyprice moves were breathtaking.

It also wasthe year theCardinals de-fied all oddsand won theWorld Series.But enoughabout that.As a Cubs fan,I don’t live in

the past. It’s always on to anew year.

Ending stocks for grains are

still tight, but we have learnedto live with the numbers.Ethanol’s effect on corn priceshas been swift and powerful,and the usage a real boost forthe rally.

However, the RFS (renew-able fuel standard) which man-dates the ethanol sector toproduce 15 billion gallons by2015, is a target now nearlyreached at 13.5 to 14 billiongallons.

That should help to calmthe markets for 2012, as well asincrease wheat feeding andcorn acres next spring.

The story for next year willbe the growing economic crisis

in Europe. While it probablywill take a Christmas break, ex-pect it to return full force tothe headlines in 2012.

Volatility in credit, banking,and who ultimately gets tan-gled in the debt crisis in Eu-rope will be the real story.

Markets don’t like uncer-tainty and the whole situationin Europe acts like a wet blan-ket on them. Even if Euro-pean leaders could agree onfiscal union and joint debt is-suance, which they cannot,such long-range changes can-not solve the immediate crisisat hand.

They owe $2 trillion they do

not have, and spending cutshave been unpopular, causingriots in some countries. Soundfamiliar?

With the Christmas holidayscoming up, I don’t want tosound like a complete scrooge,so let’s leave the dark side andgo to the light.

One needs to rememberthat there are trillions of dol-lars sitting on the sidelines innear 0 percent short-term gov-ernment paper waiting for the“all clear” to expand back intocommodity risk assets.

Let’s assume the Europeandebt crisis is solved or a leastthe can gets kicked down the

road. World demand for foodand feed is still hummingalong. It’s estimated that Chinawould consume at least 169million metric tons of feed, up4 to 9 percent from last year’srecord.

Surging animal numbers arebehind the sharp rise in con-sumption. Therefore, worlddemand led by Asia and Indiacontinues to point to a bullishagriculture picture despitewhat might be a quiet winterprice-wise.

John Cripe is director of MID-CO Commodities Inc. His e-mailaddress is [email protected].

John Cripe

Decline coming in 2012?

Farm income projected to set record in 2011BY DANIEL GRANTFarmWeek

Farm income this year isprojected to set new records inIllinois and nationwide asmany farmers reaped the bene-fit of record-high commodityprices.

USDA last week project-ed U.S. farm income thisyear will total $100.9 bil-lion, up 28 percent from2010.

If realized, U.S. farm in-come this year would be 50percent higher than the 10-

year average of $67.4 bil-lion from 2001-10.

“A period beginning in 2006and ending sometime in the fu-ture likely will be viewed as a‘golden age’ for crop farm in-comes,” said Gary Schnitkey,University of Illinois Exten-sion farm management special-ist.

In Illinois, Schnitkey saidfarm income this year couldaverage as much as $200,000-plus, a record-high, althoughincomes will be quite variableacross the state due to wide

yield swings caused by tremen-dous variability in growingconditions.

Many of the highest farmincomes in the state this yearwill be in Northern Illinois,where heat and dryness gener-ally weren’t as severe as whatoccurred in much of Southernand Central Illinois in July andAugust.

“Farm income will vary a lotaround the state depending onyields,” Schnitkey said lastweek at the Illinois Farm Eco-nomics Summit in Galesburg.“Timing of grain sales also willimpact incomes.”

USDA predicted crop pricesfor 2011 will average $6.04 perbushel for corn, $12.89 perbushel for soybeans, and $7.43per bushel for wheat, all ofwhich would be well aboveprevious averages.

This year’s farm income,though, was projected to bethe peak and not the norm forfuture years.

Long-term, the U of I pro-jected crop prices will averagecloser to $4.50 for corn and$10.50 for beans and, com-bined with higher input prices,farm incomes would drop backto levels recorded from 2001-06 (an average of about$66,000.

Near-term, the decline infarm income won’t be as sharp.Schnitkey predicted farm in-come in the state next yearcould average $153,000.

“We see incomes goingdown (in 2012), but it still isprojected to be a good incomeyear,” he said.

Problems could surface,though, if crop insuranceprices are adjusted down-ward and if farmers contin-ue to pay higher cash rents.

“If crop prices are lowernext year, crop insuranceprices set in February 2013

will be much lower, whichwould reduce the safety netfor farmers,” Schnitkey said.

Meanwhile, the averagecash rent in the state from2010 to 2011 jumped from$169 to $183 per acre.

“Cash rent farms are

more at risk of (commodity)price declines,” Schnitkeysaid.

He encouraged farmers tostress-test their operationsnow to prepare for possiblepressure to returns in the fu-ture.

Auction Calendar

Mon., Dec. 19. 10 a.m. Land Auction.Diane G. Atkinson, RANTOUL, IL.Gordon Hannagan Auction Co.www.gordyvilleusa.com

Mon., Dec. 19. 10 a.m. Marshall Co.Farmland. Donald Hattan, Dianna Kolb,Duane Cremer and Diane Cremer,TOLUCA, IL. Terry Wilkey AuctionService. www.terrywilkey.com

Wed., Dec. 21. 10 a.m. Farm machin-ery and eq. David and Sharon Sager,SPEER, IL. Rediger Auction Service.

www.rickrediger.comThurs., Dec. 22. 10 a.m. 40 Ac.Cumberland Co. Marilyn Brown,CASEY, IL. Stanfield Auction Co.www.stanfieldauction.comThurs., Dec. 29. 10 a.m. Farm

machinery. Zielke Farms, OQUAWKA,IL. Van Adkisson Auction Service, LLC.

www.biddersandbuyers.comFri., Dec. 30. 10 a.m. Will Co. LandAuction. Myers Family, MANHATTAN,IL. Richard A. Olson & Assoc., Inc.

richardaolson.comWed., Jan. 4. 10 a.m. Land Auction.Martha Arnold Estate, DANVILLE, IL.

Jim Clingan Auction & Realty.www.jimclingan.com

Wed., Jan. 11. 10:30 a.m. WinnebagoCo. Land Auction. Homer F. GreenTrust, PECATONICA, IL. LennyBryson, Auctioneer. www.lenny-

brysonauctioneer.comThurs., Jan. 12. 9 a.m. 115 Ac.

Bureau Co. Farmland. Marion MeyersTrust, BRADFORD, IL. John Leezer,Broker. 222.illinoisfarms4sale.comThurs., Jan. 12. 10 a.m. 93.58 Ac.Knox Co. Sylvia A. Thompson Trust,GALESBURG, IL. Van Adkisson

Auction Service, LLC. www.bidder-sandbuyers.com

Sat., Jan. 14. 10 a.m. 67 Ac. Will Co.WILMINGTON, IL. Richard A. Olson &

Assoc. Inc. richardaolson.comSat,. Jan. 14. 10 a.m. 204.4 Ac.Warren Co. Anna Ruth Oaks Trust,MONMOUTH, IL. Van Adkission

Auction Service, LLC. www.bidder-sandbuyers.com

Sat., Jan. 14. 1 p.m. 146 Ac. Will Co.WILMINGTON, IL. Richard A. Olson &

Assoc. Inc. richardaolson.comTues., Jan. 17. 10 a.m. ProductiveFarmland & Rolling Woodlands. LAPORTE, IN. Colliers Auction Services.

www.IN.gov/idoa/surplusThurs., Jan. 19. 10 a.m. ProductiveFarmland & Rolling Woodlands.ANDERSON, IN. Colliers Auction

Services. www.IN.gov/idoa/surplusThurs., Feb. 2. 158 Ac. Kankakee. SoyCapital Ag Services. www.soycapita-

lag.comTues., Feb. 21. 160.87 Ac. McLeanCo. Soy Capital Ag Services.www.soycapitalag.com

Wed., Feb. 22. 207 Ac. McLean Co.Soy Capital Ag Services. www.soy-

capitalag.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: The Marchcontract is positioned to test$5.50-$5.60. Don’t sell weak-ness, but wait for a rebound toprice corn again. Still, pricesmay not get to an acceptablesales level until sometime in thenew year. Hedge-to-arrive(HTA) sales for spring/earlysummer delivery are the bestmarketing strategy for farm-stored grain, especially withfutures spreads widening.Commercial storage is a closercall, depending on your storagerate. Compare your optionswith those inventories.

ü2012 crop: Hold sales at 20percent. Depending on howdeep prices decline in the shortterm, we could recommend acall option buying strategyagainst sales on the books.HTA contracts are still the besttool for making sales at thistime, but we’d use forward con-tracts if the basis is good.

vFundamentals: Corn islacking fresh fundamentals.The persistent decline in wheatprices is the key factor draggingprices lower. There’s little hopefor export business to pick upanytime soon.

Soybean Strategyü2011 crop: March needs to

close above $11.60 to end theshort-term trend lower. If youneed to make sales, use abounce to $11.50 on March.But even though prices mightdrop lower in the short term,there should be better sellingopportunities later this winter.A HTA sale for spring deliveryfor farm-stored soybeans hasbecome more attractive withthe spread widening. Compareyour alternatives for commer-cial storage.

ü2012 crop: Even thoughnew-crop prices might droplower in the short term, wethink there will be better sellingopportunities this winter. Fornew-crop sales, we prefer HTAcontracts, but would use a cashcontract if the basis level isgood.

vFundamentals: Exportinterest continues to underminethe soybean complex, alongwith the persistence of poorcrush margins. Soybean exportsales and shipments lack theneeded pace to reach the cur-

rent USDA forecast. And theNovember crush estimate camein below forecast. But the drierpattern that has emerged acrossArgentina and southern Brazilshould be watched.

Wheat Strategyü2011 crop: The short-term

trend remains down, especiallyafter the Chicago March con-tract dropped to a new low.Still, we don’t want to sell weak-ness, seeing a better opportunityfor making sales sometime afterthe first of the year. The carryin futures still pays for commer-cial storage, making spring HTAcontracts the best tool.

ü2012 crop: Use a reboundto $6.40 on Chicago July futuresto make catch-up sales.

vFundamentals: The traderemains focused on lacklusterdemand for U.S. wheat, as inter-national competitors continueto undercut our prices. Weeklyexport sales, 318,300 metrictons, were within trade expecta-tions. But they continue to fallshort of the pace needed toeven reach the lower forecast onthe recent USDA supply/ -demand estimates. At the sametime, the Southern Plains con-tinues to pick up beneficialmoisture.

Cents per bu.

Soybean supplies more balanced

Cash Strategist sales recommendationsBeans Corn Wheat

'11 '12 '11 '12 '11 '12

Prices are new cropor nearby futures

7/13/10 10% 6.00

7/21/10 15% 6.60

7/30/10 10% 6.98

8/6/10 15% 7.35

8/8/11 10% 6.68

11/17/11 20% 6.343/49/13/10 10% 4.61


10/11/10 10% 5.28

1/24/11 10% 5.87

4/25/11 10% 6.76

5/31/11 10% 6.79

8/1/11 10% 6.771/2

11/15/11 10% 6.45

11/15/11 10% 5.671/2

9/13/10 10% 10.27

30% unsold


10/11/10 10% 11.54

1/31/11 10% 13.31

4/25/11 10% 13.76

5/26/11 10% 13.75

8/1/11 10% 13.7111/15/11 10% 11.99

11/15/11 10% 11.99

8/29/11 10% 6.65

30% unsold20% unsold

8/29/11 10% 13.50

80%unsold

80% unsold80% unsold

11/17/11 20% 6.30


levels. That’s 220 million to290 million bushels below theofficial forecasts. If those lev-els prove to be realistic, theywould shift demand to the U.S.to fill the shortfall, lifting oursoybean exports.

Because the current 1.123-billion-bushel world shortfall isbelow USDA’s current 1.3-bil-lion-bushel export forecast, itdoesn’t necessarily imply adecline in South Americanproduction would lift ourexports a like amount. But wewould expect to see exportsincrease 100 million to 150million bushels above the cur-rent forecast.

However, if these occa-sional bouts of dry weatheronly prove to be “weatherscares,” there could be nega-tive repercussions as well. Ifproduction comes close tothe current 75 mm for Braziland 52 mm for Argentina,demand to fill the worldshortfall will remain belowUSDA’s current U.S. exportforecast. That fits with thecurrent trajectory of exportsales and shipments that lagthe pace needed to reach the1.3-billion-bushel export esti-mate.

As we implied at the start,the situation is “balanced” atpresent. But, it easily couldslip into one that justifies high-er prices, or lower ones.Traders will continue to watchthis situation closely.

As we indicated last week,the world oilseed/soybean sit-uation is a little more balancedthan it is for grains. The soy-bean market’s response lastweek to the drying patternacross Argentina and southernBrazil illustrated the sensitivitybuyers and sellers have to thefundamental structure.

The chart accompanyingthis week’s article goes a longway toward illustrating the del-icateness of the current bal-ance. The supply shortfall ofoilseeds outside of the U.S. isjust above 30 million metrictons (mm). That is equivalentto 1.123 billion bushels, imply-ing the U.S. needs to at leastexport that amount for theworld to have adequate sup-plies to meet its needs.

The estimated shortfall isbuilt upon Brazil producing a75 mm crop and Argentina a52 mm crop. Recent privateestimates out of those coun-tries already have started toscale back their potentialbecause of the recent dryingtrend, especially the one inArgentina.

Over the past week, we’veseen some private estimatesthat are 3-4 mm below those

pERSpEcTIvES


Illinois residents who rememberthe winters of 2006 through 2010can state they experienced wintersof record — and there is proof.

The winters ofthose four yearscaused high lossesand were the onlysequence of foursevere winters sinceeconomic lossrecords began to bekept in 1949. Thewinters of 2006through 2010 wereclimate anomalies,

potentially reflecting a shift in cli-mate.

Property losses for the four win-ters totaled more than $702 million.The causes of loss varied frommajor storms to extreme cold toheavy winter snowfall.

The winter loss data came fromthe insurance industry and includedall the insured property losses tohomes, vehicles, and buildings.

All four winters had above nor-mal numbers of storms, above nor-mal snowfall amounts, and belownormal temperatures. Two wintershad extensive ice storms and twohad none.

The severity of each is illustratedthrough closer examination.

The winter of 2006-2007 wassevere largely because of majorsnowstorms and ice storms thatcaused $118 million property losses.However, Illinois wasn’t alone. Thatwinter brought several major winterstorms across the United States.

In Illinois, an early damagingwinter storm on Nov. 30-Dec. 1caused $54 million in losses. Overthe three winter months, moremajor storms occurred. The nation’s29th largest snowstorm on recordhit Feb. 12-15.

This storm brought heavy snow-fall, thick ice, and extremely highwinds across Central Illinois. Poweroutages and damage to telephonesystems caused sizable losses andrepair costs of $175 million. Proper-ty damage totaled $350 million.

The state’s third bad storm ofthe winter came on Feb. 22-26. Inthe northern third of the state, theresulting total winter snowfall wasmore than 10 inches. A major icestorm also hit Northern Illinois andproduced property losses of $29million.

The winter caused power outagesover several days for thousands ofhomes. The insurance industry clas-sified the losses of $118 million ascatastrophic.

Illinois received no respite in thewinter of 2007-2008. From Decem-ber 2007 through February 2008,Illinois was pummeled by a near-record number of 14 winter storms,plus a record number of rainstorms,several tornadoes, and every otherform of severe weather that occursin the state.

As a result, the state experienced26 weather-related deaths — doublethe normal number — and excessivedamage to vehicles, homes, and

businesses. Communities and gov-ernments faced costly repair efforts,and people lost their homes tomajor flooding from melting show.

The unique array of numerousstorms, plus the extremes of tem-perature and frequent fogs, resultedin losses and costs in Illinois totaling$1.66 billion.

The following winter of 2008-2009 brought nine severe winterstorms and many extremely low dai-ly temperatures. Normally, the statehas four severe winter storms in awinter. December through Februarywas the fifth coldest since 1890.

Snowfall totals for 2008-2009ranged from 50 inches in theextreme north to less than 5 inchesin the extreme south, revealing alarge contrast across the state.Northern sections had snowamounts from 10 to 25 inches abovenormal, while Central Illinois snow-fall totals were near normal. South-ern sections recorded below normalsnowfall amounts.

The winter of 2008-2009 createdmyriad impacts in eight sectors fromagriculture to retail business. Thebad weather led to 16 deaths andinjuries to 1,800 people.

Local and state governments suf-fered high costs to remove snowand repair damaged roadways. Theinsured property losses totaled $172million, and the winter’s total lossesand costs were an estimated $1.4 bil-lion.

The winter of 2009-2010brought six severe snowstorms, butno ice storms. The winter’s totalsnowfall ranged from 8 inches atCairo to more than 50 inches inChicago. All parts of Illinois hadsnowfall totals well above normal.Amounts in Northern Illinoisranked as the eighth largest in thepast 125 years.

Due to continuous low tempera-tures, the snowcover in Central andNorthern Illinois lasted for morethan two months. Monthly tempera-tures were below normal all threewinter months.

The impacts of storms, cold, andsnowcover led to $159 million inlosses to houses, vehicles, and busi-nesses. The heavy snow, numerousstorms, low temperatures statewide,and long-lasting snowcover in Cen-tral and Northern Illinois resulted inmany impacts; some serious. Theseincluded power outages, transporta-tion problems, and costly efforts todeal with weather problems. Anoth-er problem was flooding from themelted snow.

In ranking the winters of 2006-2010 based on loss, three of thosefour winters had extremely highlosses and rank among the top eight.In fact, the winter of 2007-2008ranks first with losses of $253 mil-lion. Clearly the winters of 2006-2010 were unique in timing and inthe magnitude of their damages.

Stanley Changnon, Mahomet, is chiefemeritus of the Illinois State Water Surveyand a geography professor at the Universityof Illinois.

Time to glean chafffrom IFB policy bookEditor:

After attending the IllinoisFarm Bureau annual meetingDec. 5, I have to write toexpress my great concernthat issues having nothing todo with agricultural businessare muddying our writtenpolicy and risk alienating ourelected officials.

There are very few IFBpolicy goals that will beaccomplished without legisla-tive or agency action. There-fore, IFB invests heavily invery accomplished legislativedirectors at all levels of gov-ernment.

As a member who fre-quently meets with electedofficials on behalf of FarmBureau, I appreciate howmuch we need access toelected officials in whose dis-tricts we have few, if any,constituents.

The more controversialpolicy positions we have thathave nothing to do with agri-cultural profitability or stabil-ity, the greater risk we takethat these elected officialswill use those policies as awedge and limit, if not elimi-nate, our access and influ-ence.

How many members ofthe Illinois General Assemblyreally need IFB support?About one-third. If weoffend the northeastern legis-lators with these policies, wehave done serious damage toour ability to protect ourfarm businesses and invest-ments.

I urge the policymakers tospend time before next year’sannual meeting trying toglean the policy book of anypolicies that do not meet thefollowing test: Does this issuehave the potential to impact afarmer’s balance sheet orincome statement?

In Dr. Tom Berger’sagronomy class, I learnedthat the definition of a weedis a plant out of place. Someof these policies should beaddressed in our churchesand not by IFB. In our policybook, they threaten to chokeout what’s really important toour bottom line.KIM A. MORTON,Chicago

Choice beef producedin less than 20 monthsEditor:

The Illinois Beef Associa-tion would like to correctsome misstatements printedon the Perspectives page ofthe Dec. 5 FarmWeek.

Misstatement: “Choicecattle are 3.5 to 4 year old.”

Fact: Almost all (80 to 90percent) cattle harvested forsteaks and roasts in the U.S.fall within the “A” maturityrange (cattle less than 30months of age), with themajority under 20 months ofage. In reality, steers andheifers harvested for Selectand Choice beef range in agefrom 14 to 18 months.

Misstatement: “Select cutscome from animals as youngas 30 months.” Fact: Cattlethat are 30 months or oldercannot have a quality gradeof Select. In 1997, USDArestricted Select to “A” matu-rity to ensure a satisfactoryeating experience. Conse-quently, beef labeled Selectshould always be youngerthan 30 months of age.

Misstatement: “While cer-tainly acceptable, it ‘Select’ isconsidered less juicy and lesstender than Choice becauseit is leaner.” Fact: Generally itis true that cattle with moresubcutaneous rib fat tend tohave carcasses with moremarbling. Marbling, knownas the “taste fat,” accountsfor only about 3 to 7 percentof the total carcass fat per-centage.

Consumers can confident-ly choose lower-priced Selectbeef or higher-priced Choicebeef knowing that both cutscome from cattle harvestedyoung enough to providetender, flavorful beef withminimal fat.

The great variety of beefcuts and quality grades avail-able to consumers satisfies avariety of tastes. Cattle pro-ducers have made greatprogress using genetics andimproved nutrition to pro-duce great tasting, nutritiousbeef from cattle that areyounger, resulting in a small-er environmental footprint.

To learn more about qual-ity grades and maturity, checkout the website{http://meat.tamu.edu/beefgrading.html}.

Cooking tip: Be careful notto overcook Select steaks asthey will cook more quicklythan Choice.MARALEE JOHNSON,Executive vice presidentIllinois Beef Association

Europe, U.S. havemuch in commonEditor:

Europe and the USA havemany things in common, oneof which noted currently isthe massive debt crisis bothare experiencing because ofpoliticians who fail to learnfrom history.

George Santayana notedthat those who fail to learnfrom the mistakes of the pastare doomed to repeat them.

In both Europe and theU.S., power-hungry politicianshave been trying to buy voteswith money we don’t have,taxing not only this genera-tion but every generation inthe future, guaranteeing alower standard of living forour children, grandchildren,and great-grandchildren.

These short-sighted politi-cos, thinking only of the pres-ent, seem to think they can goon forever, steadily increasingthe public debt, by just print-ing more and more moneywithout an equal increase ingoods and services, hoping tofind someone to buy our lessand less valuable bonds.

As history has repeatedlyshown us, this does not work.Every society that has triedthis has collapsed. A primeexample is the Soviet Union.

If socialism were a bettersystem, we would all bespeaking Russian.

Previously democratic civi-lizations and nations thathave tried this have collapsedinto dictatorship. Some note-worthy examples are theGreeks, the Romans, and thepost-World War I WeimarRepublic of Germany. Thelatter printed so much moneythat its currency became vir-tually worthless, bankruptingthe country, and resulting inthe establishment of Hitler’sNazi (National Socialist) par-ty dictatorship that broughton the horrors of World WarII.

It is time to rid ourselvesof such history-ignoring,out-of-touch-with-reality,power-mad politicians, oust-ing them from power, andnever letting them in officeagain.HAROLD ‘BOB’ JONES,Blair, Okla.

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LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

STANLEYCHANGNON

State’s 4 consecutive severe winters a record

FarmWeek December 19 2011

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Transcript of FarmWeek December 19 2011