Our 10th Farm Photo Friday!
Thanks to our fans for submitting to this week’s Farm Photo Friday!
King's County from 3,000 Feet
On the field
Levelland Texas Sunset
Got farm photos that you’d like to share? Send them to nyfea.agspromise@gmail.com for our Farm Photo Fridays!
Guest Blog Post by Kelly Rivard: What the Tweet is SXSW?
Well, you see…
I may be a farm geek. But I’m just as much a communications geek. It wasn’t until a year or so ago that I bridged the gap between my roots (ag) and my future (communications). Since then, I’d say I’ve gotten pretty involved in the progressive use of Internet communications in the agriculture world. After all, I run a blog and Twitter account completely devoted to agriculture. I spend a great deal of time volunteering with the AgChat Foundation. I’m attending a conference in two weeks to better equip myself for online agvocacy. I’m digging up internship applications and recommendations to try and break further into the professional world of ag comm.
It’s only natural for me to leap at an opportunity to positively represent agriculture. When I was approached about brainstorming ideas for a major interactive communications conference known as South By Southwest (SXSW), I threw myself into it.
Granted, I was approached by LavaRow founder Nathan T. Wright just a few days before I was leaving for vacation, the same week that proposals were due. I didn’t have a lot of time to do it, and I had no experience to make sure I did it right. However, I took the chance. With the guidance of Nathan, Becky McCray, and some of the media-savvy folks at the AgChat Foundation, my proposal got turned in in the nick of time. And, it was only natural for my proposal to focus on something which I’m passionate about: the AgChat Foundation.
Well, the proposal, “Agvocacy 2.0: Adding a Human Voice to the Farm” made it through initial review. Now, it’s in the public voting stage. Now, ACF needs YOU to help it get to SXSW. Making it onto the agenda for this conference would be a huge step forward for agriculture, and a major milestone in agvocacy’s recognition as a true, valuable cause.
For more information regarding SXSW, how to help, and why this is so important, check out this post on the AgChat Foundation blog. In a few easy steps, you can play your part in helping the AgChat Foundation work its way towards SXSW!
Source: http://www.midwesterngold.com/2010/08/what-tweet-is-sxsw.html
USDA Predicts Nebraska’s Second-Largest Corn Crop
LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — The USDA predicted Thursday that Nebraska farmers will harvest their second-largest corn crop ever this year.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture said the state’s corn crop is expected to yield 1.54 billion bushels. That would be 2 percent smaller than last year’s record crop.
The corn yield is predicted to hit a record high of 180 bushels per acre, which is 2 bushels above last year’s high.
“Above normal rainfall throughout much of the growing season has benefited dryland areas, resulting in excellent yield prospects,” said Joseph Parsons, director of the USDA’s Nebraska field office.
The USDA said Nebraska farmers planted 8.55 million acres of corn — 3 percent fewer acres than in 2009.
Nebraska’s soybean crop is forecast to grow 9 percent over last year, to a record 284 million bushels. Soybean yield is expect to be 53 bushels per acre, which is the second-highest ever.
Farmers in the state planted 12 percent more acres of soybeans this year, so the crop is on 5.35 million acres in Nebraska.
The state’s winter wheat crop is now expected to produce 68.4 million bushels. That’s 2 percent less than last month’s forecast and 11 percent below last year. Winter wheat yield is expected to be 45 bushels per acre.
The USDA is predicting a sorghum crop of 6.1 million bushels. That’s 53 percent less than a year ago because fewer acres were planted.
About 2.1 million bushels of oats are expected to be harvested. That would be a 1 percent increase over 2009.
More acres of dry edible beans were planted, so production is expected to grow 48 percent in Nebraska.
Sugar beet production is down 13 percent from 2009.
Source: http://www.capitalpress.com/content/AP-crop-report-nebraska-081210
When Will The Cattle Herd Rebuilding Start?
During the last week in July, joint annual meetings of the Agricultural and Applied Economics Association and the Western Agricultural Economics Association and annual meetings of the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association and the Livestock Marketing Information Center Technical Advisory Committee were all held in Denver, Colorado. All four authors of the In The Cattle Market columns and many of our counterparts from around the country attended at least parts of these meetings.
A topic of conversation, both formally and informally, at those meetings was what has happened to the traditional cattle cycle and when will beef herd rebuilding begin. The following comments are points from some of those discussions and come from many different sources.
The traditional supply driven, approximate 10-year cattle cycle usually included 6 to 8 years of increasing numbers followed by 3 to 4 years of liquidation. However, in the past decade beef cow numbers only increased in 2005 and 2006. And, on July 23, the Friday before all the meetings, USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) released the semi-annual cattle inventory report. NASS reported beef cows and heifers that have calved 31.7 million head on July 1, down 500,000 head from last year. The number of beef heifers over 500 lbs kept for replacement was down 2.2 percent at 4.4 million head. So, with both fewer beef cows and replacements, beef herd expansion will likely not take place this year.
Of course, the past decade was marred with a variety of unexpected events, some catastrophic, that forced cattle producers to crisis manage from one event to the next. Some of these events include starting the decade with the 9-11-2001 terrorist attack and subsequent decline in beef demand and prices. Then the discovery of BSE in Canada and the U.S. in 2003 followed with major disruptions in international beef trade. Major droughts in several important cattle regions also materialized. Corn-based ethanol for fuel increased from the mid-decade on which caused increased demand for corn and increasing and volatile feed grain prices. 2008 saw an extreme escalation of all commodity and input prices followed by a severe decline by the end of the year. The U.S. and world economic crisis and the unfortunate misnaming of the H1N1 virus negatively impacted all livestock and meat demand in 2009.
Other points brought up included the increasing average age of cow-calf producers, the relatively large number of small farms/ranches with cattle, historically high cull cow and bull prices, loss of pasture and range to crops and other uses, more cautious lending practices, and severe winter weather in the Northern Plains the last two years and throughout the country last year. There are other reasons as well, but with all the uncertainty and volatility in prices it is no wonder why producers have been reluctant to increase beef herds.
Will the next decade be different? No one knows that answer but there are some encouraging signs in 2010. Although there are a few dry pockets, many cattle producing regions in the U.S. are experiencing the best pasture and range conditions in the past decade. The export demand for beef is improving with U.S. beef sales up about 25 percent from last year. The domestic economy is still struggling but improvement should take place in the next few years. Cow, bull and feeder cattle prices have improved and the cow-calf sector should see better profitability. And lower beef production is likely for the next couple of years which should be supportive to cattle prices. Producers are showing renewed interest in replacement heifers and bred cows and heifers as those prices have been stronger in 2010.
The Markets
Fed cattle prices were unchanged for the week with light to moderate movement and demand. Across the 5-area market, live prices averaged $93/cwt, 12 cents higher than the previous week. Dressed prices declined 33 cents to average 147.54. Wholesale beef prices lost ground as the U.S. economy continues to struggle and lackluster summer beef demand continued to be affected by very hot temperatures in parts of the country. Choice boxed beef prices declined $3.17 for the week and closed at $150.84. A lower undertone was noted in much of the feeder cattle complex as high heat indexes stymied some of the aggressiveness of feedlot buyers. The 700-800 lb steers were $1-4 lower in Montana, Nebraska and Oklahoma. The 500-600 lb steers were also lower in Montana and Oklahoma, but advanced nearly $15 on strong demand and limited numbers in Nebraska. Corn prices rallied on drought news from the Black Sea region, and increased 20 cents to close at $3.64 in Omaha on Thursday. Distillers grain prices also followed corn upward.
Source: Tim Petry, Livestock Economist, North Dakota State University Extension Service
80-year-old farmer says ‘this is worst drought I ever saw’
This summer’s dry skies and excessive heat have combined to create conditions that one local farmer said are unlike anything he can recall.
“I think this is the worst drought I ever saw, and I’ll be 80 years old in a couple days,” said Roy Byers, whose family owns a dairy farm and orchard off Downsville Pike.
The Interagency Drought Information Center has categorized conditions as a “severe drought” in Washington County and the eastern half of West Virginia’s Eastern Panhandle, according to a drought information statement from the National Weather Service
The conditions are the result of Bermuda high pressure that has kept a dry weather pattern across the area since the beginning of June, the NWS statement said.
According to the website of Hagerstown weather observer Greg Keefer, the city received 1.61 inches of rain in June, 1.53 inches in July and .01 inches in August as of Wednesday afternoon, for a summer total of 3.15 inches.
The driest summer on record in Hagerstown was 1966, with a three-month precipitation total of 4.48 inches, Keefer’s records show. A normal summer precipitation total is 10.48 inches, his site says.
Byers said he bought his farm in 1959 and remembers a series of bad droughts from 1961 to 1966, but those started later in the season and corn stalks had some green on them, Byers said.
“This year, everything’s going to be just fodder feed for cattle,” he said, explaining that the drought’s early start in June prevented corn from pollinating.
Jeff Semler, extension educator with the University of Maryland’s agricultural extension office on Sharpsburg Pike, called the combination of heat and dry weather a “double whammy.”
Summer crops like corn can withstand heat, but not the dryness that this summer’s heat has exacerbated, Semler said.
“Any moisture we do get is followed by such heat that it dries out almost as fast as we get it,” he said.
As a result of the drought, farmers have had to harvest corn solids earlier than usual and the crop, which is chopped and preserved for livestock feed, is yielding lower quantities as well as lower quality, Semler said.
Corn solids typically yield more than 20 tons per acre, but a typical yield this year has been 6 tons to 8 tons per acre, he said.
As a result, farmers are likely to need to buy feed and to add supplements to the feed they do harvest to improve its nutritional qualities, he said.
Buying that extra feed will hurt farmers financially, particularly coming on the heels of last year’s low milk prices.
“It’s going to affect everybody’s bottom line, whether it’s adding to debt or taking away profit,” Semler said.
Byers said not only would his family’s farm have to buy grain this year that is normally raised on the farm, but electricity bills would be higher because of the number of fans running to help keep cattle cool and the cold storage that has been needed for fruit.
Reached Wednesday afternoon, Semler said he had just gotten off the phone from a 45-minute conversation with a farmer about how to get through the drought.
“We’ve had droughts before and we’ve always coped with droughts, but it’s always good to try to bounce ideas,” he said.
Semler said many farmers plan to plant oats, a fast-growing crop that, if planted in August, can be harvested for feed before winter sets in. Rather than be harvested for grain, the oats will be harvested for forage, which means the crops will be mowed like a lawn and the leafy part used as feed for animals to supplement the poor corn harvests, he said.
“My prediction is there’s going to be more oats planted in Washington County this fall than probably has been planted since the turn of the century,” Semler said, referring to 1899-1900.
The dry weather also will affect fruit production, yielding fewer and smaller apples and peaches, and less sweet corn, among other crops, Semler said.
“People have probably already noticed there’s less of everything,” he said.
Some rain might be on the way over the next week, National Weather Service meteorologist Jared Klein said Wednesday.
A chance of showers or thunderstorms is in the forecast for the Hagerstown area “pretty much every day” from Thursday into the middle part of next week, Klein said.
Semler said scattered showers might do some good, but their effects probably will be noticed only in the spots where water drains or pools.
“We need rain to come in and set in and rain. I’m talking days at a time, at this point,” he said.
Source: http://producejournal.com/80-year-old-farmer-says-%E2%80%98this-is-worst-drought-i-ever-saw%E2%80%99
Guest Blog Post: Improving Consumer Perception of Beef
From: Jen Gillespie
I love the website http://www.meatingplace.com/ – if you are an agriculturalist, livestock producer, or even just an interested consumer, I definitely recommend signing up on this website where you can find daily news, webinars, industry blogs, and many more industry resources. Every day I get an e-mail with a NewsMakers report that provides me with the daily headlines where I can read the latest news in the beef, pork, and poultry industries. Yesterday, one of the articles featured was ‘Five ways beef should be market to consumers’ written by Rita Jane Gabbett. This article talks about what consumers are looking for when they buy meat—specifically beef. Research funded with beef checkoff dollars revealed several things about consumer perception that can help those in the beef industry better promote their product. Here’s what the study found:
- Focusing on the “lean” attributes of beef improves consumer perception and rating of beef products—most consumers are seeking out sources of lean protein as they scan the various options available in the meat case at their local grocer. It is important that we educate these consumers on the health benefits of lean beef!
- Consumers want quick and easy ways to prepare their beef—this goes for both ground beef and whole muscle cuts. This “convenience factor” stems from our fast-paced, on-the-go lifestyles which don’t always provide a lot of time for the preparation and cooking of meals.
- Consumers want to know about the sustainability of raising beef—in fact, as stated by the article “81 percent of consumers surveyed said that they knew little to nothing about the beef industry.” Patti Brumbach, executive director of the Washington State Beef Commission, warns that the beef industry must not let other interest groups fill this gap in the “information void” faced by consumers. We must speak up and talk to people about beef production, and how producers work to provide not only a sustainable but also a safe beef supply.
- Social media is a great way to reach “Millennials”—these are consumers born between 1977 and 1998 who value convenience and don’t spend as much time cooking as earlier generations. Because these consumers get their information largely though social media (i.e. twitter, facebook, blogging, etc.), the beef industry needs to reach out to them through this medium.
- Finally, Brumbach reminds us that it is important to remember the basics—consumers rated taste as their No. 1 concern, followed by good value, safety, and consistency of quality. This one should be easy, as we know that our producers not only provide a safe and high quality product, but one that tastes great, too!
As we work to “agvocate” and get the word out about agriculture, livestock production, and farming it is always important to remember what the consumers are saying. At the end of the day, they are the ones buying the products our farmers and ranchers produce. Demand will always be driven by the opinions and beliefs of consumers—we can help influence consumer attitudes about beef through education and outreach, telling consumers our story.
The opinions expressed in the above post represent the thoughts and feelings of the guest blogger, and not necessarily NYFEA as a whole.
Our 9th Farm Photo Friday!
Thanks to Wes Underwood from Lubbock, Texas for today’s Farm Photo Friday submission! Enjoy!
Texas Sunset
Old Church Sunset
Wild Sunflowers
High Power
Got farm photos that you’d like to share? Send them to nyfea.agspromise@gmail.com for our Farm Photo Fridays!
The EPA is Out of Control
The Environmental Protection Agency is waging an unprecedented battle to end U.S. farming as we know it. Wielding regulation like a scythe, on the books or proposed, EPA is trying single-handed to make farming obsolete.
The EPA’s proposal to reduce the allowed amount of particulate matter (commonly known as ‘dust’ outside the Washington beltway) is blowing up a controversy in farming states.
The EPA Draft Policy Assessment released last month would set the most stringent regulation of dust in U.S. history. The latest proposal would reduce the acceptable amount of dust to a level twice as stringent as the current standard, which, for agriculture, is already very difficult to attain.
The EPA proposal has created a flurry of protests from farmers as well as 21 U.S. senators who say the proposed standard would be “extremely burdensome” for farmers and livestock producers. In an appeal for common sense, the senators sent a letter to Lisa Jackson, EPA Administrator.
Farmers not complying with the proposed stringent regulations could be fined. U.S Senator Mike Johanns, (R-Neb.), warns that the new EPA standards would be devastating for Nebraska agriculture.
Is common sense now extinct at EPA? “Why do they do these wacky things and then claim that we are the ones being alarmists?, Johanns said. “They are a federal department that just is out of control.”
It does not require a meteorology expert to know that in times of lower rainfall and increased winds, more dust is often produced. Will EPA take weather conditions and local rainfall amounts into consideration before slapping fines on farmers?
According to Kris Lancaster, EPA official, Region 7, “EPA does not have any plans to focus on regulating dust from farm fields or gravel roads.” If that were true, why put agricultural regulations in the proposed assessment policy, Johanns asks.
We would all be happy to live our lives going barefooted on dew-covered grass smelling roses and lilac whenever we are outdoors. But we must live in a practical world – at least those of us who live outside of Washington, D.C. To feed millions of Americans and many others throughout the world, U.S. farmers cannot live in a dream.
Why does the EPA insist on making farming next to impossible? It is as if the EPA, with its growing burdensome regulation, is saying, “Just try to raise food for us. We’ll fine you!”
The Weather Channel recently aired a special program on the infamous Dust Bowl that ravaged the Plains states during the 1930’s. Photographs and film footage documented the clouds of wind-blown dust towering thousands of feet high. Some who experienced the horror thought it was the end of the world.
Such an event would cause considerable consternation among EPA officials. Certainly it would warrant EPA’s biggest fine ever. But, who would they fine?
The next thing EPA will demand is that farmers pave all gravel roads in U.S. rural settings. Or maybe not pave, after all, that would require petroleum products and fuel to operate machinery. No, maybe all rural roads should be re-surfaced with brick and stone, laid in place by human labor alone. Yes. Perfect.
Better yet, EPA should simply mandate that people really don’t need to eat anymore. This way, farmers won’t have to till that pesky soil, the source of all that dust which is suddenly, after 200+ years of American agriculture, going to get us all.
By Rick Jordahl, Associate Editor, Pork Magazine
Farming critical to Michigan recovery
U.S. Sec. of Agriculture Tom Vilsack
Today, 306 million Americans have food on their table thanks to a small and noble group of professional gamblers: America’s farmers and ranchers.
Only about 1 percent of Americans operate a farm or ranch and these hardworking few not only help provide the rest of us with three meals every day, but they also form the foundation of the agricultural sector of our economy that generates one in every 12 jobs and a $20 billion trade surplus.
They do so in the face of enormous business and personal risk.
Farming requires intensive capital investments, helping make agriculture the second largest industry in Michigan. To start, buying or renting land is no cheap task, and farm equipment can run up to $500,000 for one machine. Many farmers finance these investments the way most small business owners do, by applying for credit assistance and dutifully paying it off over the years.
Once a farmer invests in the input (seed) and operating costs (equipment, irrigation, fuel) for his or her business, he or she has to wait for the crops to grow before seeing a profit. And in those months, any chance of profit is subject to the uncertainties of Mother Nature.
These brave business minds are the stewards of 922 million acres, or 40 percent of American land. They provide all of us with an affordable and secure food system, so that when we go into our local grocery store we have so many food options to choose from.
But don’t just take it from me, you really ought to go out and get to know your local farmer.
For many, the easiest way to meet your farmer is through a visit to a pumpkin patch or apple farm, a purchase from a roadside stand or farmers market. While only 4 percent of farmers sell through direct contact with their consumers, these folks put a face on farming for the rest.
During my time as secretary of agriculture, I’ve gotten to know folks like Michael and Kathy Fusilier from Manchester, a town with a population of 2,100. Mike is a sixth-generation farmer and, along with Kathy and four children, manages 1,500 acres of working lands in southern Michigan.
When Mike took over the family farm he specialized in row crops and livestock, but in 1996 he started a greenhouse and since then has expanded his fruit and vegetable production to sell at local farmers markets.
What do the residents of Manchester learn from Mike and Kathy? Well, for one, that fresh, wholesome produce can come from right around the corner. Second, how the products, their growing seasons and the care and transport moves from farm to plate.
This past September, the Fusilier Family began selling their produce to local schools. Mike proudly provides nutritious, affordable food to his neighbor’s kids; and school officials are able to invest their dollars back into the community where these kids will grow up and hopefully raise families one day.
USDA’s Economic Research Service has found that expanding local food systems increases employment and income within that community. Researchers at Michigan State University agreed, concluding that if Michigan residents were to meet the USDA dietary guidelines for fruits and vegetables by eating seasonally available, Michigan-grown produce, an estimated 2,000 jobs and $200 million in new income would be generated in-state.
I encourage you to start thinking about the farmers who serve you. Go purchase one item from a local farm or famers market and ask that farmer a few questions.
I have a feeling that such an act won’t just stop at one purchase or one conversation. It’s the beginning of a much-needed revival of our rural communities and rural economies.
While not every family may need a lawyer or an accountant, every family needs a farmer. Do you know yours?
Tom Vilsack is secretary of agriculture. E-mail comments to letters@detnews.com.
From The Detroit News: http://www.detnews.com/article/20100805/OPINION01/8050359/1008/OPINION01/Farming-critical-to-Michigan-recovery#ixzz0wJ5nmwXZ
Le Grand teacher bridging agriculture and technology
Local educator off to London to attend Google Teacher Academy.
Today, Danny Silva, the high school’s regional occupation program agriculture teacher, will fly to London to be one of six presenters at the Google Teacher Academy at Google headquarters, a professional development program for K-12 educators emphasizing the use of technology in school.
“You’d think (agriculture and technology) have nothing in common, but there’s so much technology in agriculture now,” he said. “There’s computers in tractors, so technology plays a big role.”
Silva said he plans to discuss how he uses free technology in his classes, such as various Google applications.
“One example is Google documents. You could have two or three students working in collaboration on a project at the same time,” he said. “(Google calendar) can be used as a communication tool as well as an organizational tool.”
Google has been holding Teachers Academies since 2006, but this is the tech-giant’s first international program, Silva said.
Computer Using Educators (CUE), a California-based nonprofit dedicated to improving student achievement through technology, funded Silva’s trip to London. Roughly 52 teachers from various countries will attend the daylong event.
Mark Wagner, professional development coordinator for CUE, said typically 300 people apply for each academy and roughly 50 are selected to participate.
The Madera resident first heard about the program last year from other teachers. He sent off an application to Google that included a one-minute video comparing agriculture and technology.
“Agriculture is hands-on education, and sometimes that can be dirty,” Silva said. “That’s the same as technology, because sometimes technology can malfunction, but that’s when the real learning happens.”
In December, he was picked to attend the the Google Teachers Academy in Washington, D.C., with 51 other educators.
Afterward, he became a Google Certified Teacher, meaning he could make presentations at future Google Teachers Academies.
In addition to these academies, the 36-year-old has been promoting the use of technology in classrooms through his own blog, http://iteachag.com, and a podcast he co-produces with Andrew Schwab, the Internet technology director at Le Grand High School, http://smallschoolsbigtech.com.
Silva’s blog is a forum where he explores the technologies he uses in class, such as Twitter and Facebook.
“If I’m going to teach it, I should test it out,” he said.
Silva and his co-producer started the podcast two months ago as a way to share information about using technology in the classroom with other teachers and students.
Hopefully, he said, it will also inspire his students to start their own podcasts, something he plans to teach students this fall.
Another reason his blog and podcast are crucial is because his own classroom will go from desks to desktops this fall.
Roughly two-thirds of the students have computers at home, Silva said.
“For some of our students, this is one their only times using technology,” he said. “That’s why they should get used to using it at school.”
Google’s motto is “Don’t be evil.” Here is a clear-cut case of doing well by doing good — for a Merced County teacher.
Reporter Jamie Oppenheim can be reached at (209) 385-2407 or joppenheim@mercedsun-star.com
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