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Monday, October 1, 2012 Two sections Volume 40, No. 40

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

“ThIs BrIdge needsMore Support” is the slogan for acampaign kicked off by the Ill-inois Soybean Association lastweek. .............................................5

IllInoIs graIn companieslast week received Food and DrugAdministration approval to blenda f l a tox in - con tamina t ed co r nthrough Dec. 31. .............................3

36 DAYSREMAIN UNTIL THE NOV. 6 ELECTION

Farm bill expires — what lies ahead?BY MARTIN ROSSFarmWeek

Given prospective budgetimpacts and a looming deadlinefor whopping federal budgetcuts, Congress is unlikely toturn back the clock to 1940s-style farm programs, a Chica-go-area economist maintainedlast week.

Congressional ag committeeleaders nonetheless are racingthe clock to beat forced spend-ing cuts that could remove wig-gle room from House-Senatefarm bill negotiations. The2008 farm bill officially expiredtoday (Monday) amid a Housestalemate over passage of pro-posed 2012 ag legislation.

That’s accelerated the pushby Farm Bureau and othergroups for post-election lameduck farm bill passage.

Technically, farmers revertto “permanent authority” —provisions of the AgricultureAdjustment Act of 1938 andthe Agricultural Act of 1949— if a farm bill expires with-out a new one in place.

That would mean a returnto significantly higher “parity”price supports and acreageallotments, and, given height-ened budget-deficit concerns,“that’s simply not going to hap-pen,” policy consultant andformer American Farm BureauFederation (AFBF) economist

(CR) that would extend current-year ag spending levels throughMarch 31. January sequestrationwould supersede the CR.

“You have things that arefunded through March 31 butthat are not reauthorized by anew farm bill,” Korves said.“That’s where life gets crazy.

“Congress could vote not tohave sequestration, allow thecontinuing resolution to contin-ue to operate, and then pass adifferent spending reductionprogram by April 1.

“But that would give you

only six months (of extendedspending). This is just gettingincredibly murky. We need reso-lution to all this, because it’s justgetting way too complicated.”

For example, federal cropinsurance itself would not beaffected by sequestration, butUSDA’s Risk ManagementAgency, which oversees cropinsurance at an estimated $75million annual cost, would besubject to cuts in January.

Further, without a new farm

See Farm bill, page 2

Ross Korves told FarmWeek.Under the 2008 farm bill,

permanent authority would notkick in for the major commodi-ty programs until the end ofthe current crop year, notedKorves. Current program bene-fits and requirements thuswould remain in force for cornand soybeans through Aug. 31,2013, and June 1, 2013, forwheat, oats, and barley.

The bigger issue, in Korves’view, is the impact of pendingbudget “sequestration” —automatic fiscal 2013 spending

cuts Congress must make if itcan’t reach budget agreementby Jan. 1. The new fiscal yearbegan today (Monday).

Key ag programs could sus-tain up to an 8.2 percentsequestration cut if a post-elec-tion farm bill deal isn’t struck.“That would be a real bear,”warned Korves, who sees littlepossibility of Congress granti-ng a sequestration exemptionfor agriculture.

Further complicating theissue is a current six-monthcontinuing budget resolution

Everett Severson of rural Campus in Livingston County watches as corn destined for a local elevator is loadedonto a truck. Severson’s son, Nathan, is in the combine. They were working in a 160-acre field, which wasyielding 47 to 128 bushels per acre with an average moisture content of 16 percent. They hoped to finishcombining corn last Friday. (Photo by Ken Kashian)

BY DANIEL GRANTFarmWeek

Old-crop stocks of corn,soybeans, and wheat as of Sept.1 were down compared to thesame time a year ago, USDAreported Friday.

Corn stocks totaled 988 mil-lion bushels (down 12 percentfrom last year), soybean stockstotaled 169 million bushels(down 21 percent), and all wheatin storage was pegged at 2.1 bil-lion bushels (down 2 percent).

Old-crop stocks of corn andwheat were a little less thantraders anticipated prior to thereport while the bean estimatewas larger than expected.

“All in all, it was a friendlyreport for corn and wheat and alittle bit negative for beans,”Brad Paulson, president ofNorthern Crops Marketing andInvestments, said during a tele-conference hosted by the Min-neapolis Grain Exchange.

Crop prices jumped Fridaybut Paulson believes the marketswill remain range-bound.

“I think we’re in a tradingrange,” he said. “I’d view decentrallies as a selling opportunity.”

Paulson predicted USDAthis month could raise its pro-duction estimate for soybeansand possibly corn.

“The good ground that caughta little rain is yielding better (corn)than people thought it would(particularly in Iowa and thenorthern Corn Belt),” Paulson

said. “It could make up for someof the real low yields in Missouriand South-Central Illinois.”

The ending stocks estimatefor soybeans, which was 37 mil-lion bushels higher than expect-ed by the trade, implies USDAcould raise its production esti-mate, Paulson noted.

Overall, harvest continues toprogress well ahead of the aver-age pace. The U.S. harvest as ofthe first of last week was 39 per-cent complete for corn, com-pared to the five-year average of13 percent, and 22 percent com-plete for beans, compared to theaverage pace of 8 percent.

Harvest in Illinois as of the firstof last week was 54 percent com-plete for corn. But just 8 percentof beans were in the bin statewide.

Rain showers, including vio-lent storms east of St. Louis inWashington and Clinton coun-ties, delayed harvest the middleof last week.

Topsoil moisture the first oflast week in the state was rated51 percent short or very short,

48 percent adequate, and 1 per-cent surplus.

The driest portion of the statelast week was Northwestern Illi-nois, which remained locked inextreme drought, according tothe U.S. Drought Monitor.

Elsewhere, portions of West-ern and deep Southern Illinoiswere in a severe drought lastweek while the majority of thestate was in a moderate droughtto a rating of abnormally dry.

The epicenter of the droughtnow is west of the MississippiRiver, with a large pocket ofextreme drought in Oklahoma,Kansas, and Nebraska.

Stocks down from year ago; harvest progresses

FarmWeekNow.comCheck out details of the latestg r a i n s t o c k s r e p o r t a tFarmWeekNow.com.

RFS DEFENDERS — The National Corn GrowersAssociation (NCGA) last week joined forces with tradi-tional and advanced renewable fuel interests to launch anew coalition, Fuels America, aimed at defending the fed-eral Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) and “domestic ener-gy supply and national security.” The coalition includesagricultural, national security, renewable energy, and oth-er stakeholders.

“Corn farmers support ethanol and other biofuels notonly because they are essential to the continued growthof rural economies but also because they play an essen-tial role in ensuring the future of our nation,” saidNCGA President Garry Niemeyer, a farmer fromAuburn.

“Renewable fuels are a win-win solution to many ofthe energy problems facing our nation, and we believethat it is our duty to bring this truth to our representa-tives in Washington and to citizens across the country.”

The launch comes as the U.S. Environmental Protec-tion Agency considers a request to waive corn ethanolrequirements under the RFS, a move coalition memberswarn would have serious consequences for America’srural communities, “renewable technology innovators,”and energy independence.

GRAIN TOUR SPARKS ILLINOIS EXPORTS —Illinois agribusinesses anticipate more than $52 million insales following a recent state grain industry tour.

Over five days, 22 international buyers toured a farm,an ethanol plant, a grain bin manufacturer, and a grainprocessor. Bob Flider, acting Illinois agriculture director,called the results encouraging and noted the three previ-ous tours resulted in combined export sales of $25 mil-lion.

In addition to buyers’ missions and tours, the IllinoisDepartment of Agriculture (IDOA) participates in inter-national and domestic trade shows, facilitates buyer-sellerintroductions, and disseminates trade leads to Illinoiscompanies.

Last fiscal year, IDOA’s activities generated $71 millionin sales and another $763 million in projected sales forIllinois food companies and agribusinesses.

ESTATE TAX AID — Farm Bureau supports theKeep the Forest and Farm in the Family Act, whichwould help farmers and other qualifying small businessowners reduce or eliminate estate tax liability by usingInternal Revenue Service Code Section 2032A special usevaluation, American Farm Bureau Federation PresidentBob Stallman wrote in a letter to the bill’s authors, Reps.Diane Black (R-Tenn.) and Mike Michaud (D-Maine).

The legislation would increase the amount that prop-erty value can be reduced under Section 2032A, from $1million to $5 million. In addition, the bill eliminatesrecapture taxes when timber is harvested using soundforest management practices.

FarmWeek Page 2 Monday, October 1, 2012

(ISSN0197-6680)

Vol. 40 No. 40 October 1, 2012

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.

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© 2012 Illinois Agricultural Association

STAFFEditorDave McClelland (dmcclelland@ilfb.org)Legislative Affairs EditorKay Shipman (kayship@ilfb.org)Agricultural Affairs EditorMartin Ross (mross@ilfb.org)Senior Commodities EditorDaniel Grant (dgrant@ilfb.org)Editorial AssistantLinda Goltz (Lgoltz@ilfb.org)Business Production ManagerBob Standard (bstandard@ilfb.org)Advertising Sales ManagerRichard Verdery (rverdery@ilfb.org)Classified sales coordinatorNan Fannin (nfannin@ilfb.org)Director of News and CommunicationsMichael L. OrsoAdvertising Sales RepresentativesHurst and Associates, Inc.P.O. Box 6011, Vernon Hills, IL 600611-800-397-8908 (advertising inquiries only)

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Quick takeseducation

Tuesday:• Bryce Anderson, DTN chief agmeteorologist• Michelle Damico, Michelle DamicoCommunications

Wednesday: • Tim Guinan, site manager forLincoln’s New Salem State Park• Tim Schweizer, Illinois Departmentof Natural Resources• Rupert Borgsmiller, executivedirector for the Illinois State Boardof Elections• Melanie Acklin, director of market-ing for Specialty Fertilizer Products

Thursday:• Illinois Soybean Association repre-sentative• Bonnie McDonald, president ofLandmarks Illinois

Friday:• Sara Wyant, AgriPulse publisher• Mike Doherty, Illinois Farm Bureausenior economist• Alan Jarand, director of RFD Radio

Large fall freshman classboosts U of I ag enrollmentBY KAY SHIPMANFarmWeek

Undergraduate enrollment grew 7.4 percentthis fall at the University of Illinois College ofAgricultural, Consumer, and Environmental Sci-ences (ACES).

Laurie Kramer, asso-ciate dean for academicprograms, pointed to afreshman class of 483students and 168 trans-fer students, which alsois an increase. The grad-uate student enrollmentof 668 includes studentsenrolled in the college’sfour online master’sdegree programs.

A strong job market for ag graduates andACES’ nationally ranked academic programs aredrawing students, according to Kramer.

Recently, the department of agricultural andbiological engineering was ranked first in thenation by U.S. News & World Report. That depart-ment also experienced a large gain in freshmenstudents this fall. Engineering is particularly

attractive to some students because of the manyopportunities to study abroad, she said.

In addition to engineering, student enrollmentalso is strong in agricultural and consumer eco-nomics, animal sciences, and food science andhuman nutrition.

The demand for ACES graduates is demon-strated by the more than 100 companies that willattend the college’s career fair on Thursday. Stu-dents will be interviewed for internships andpositions.

Recently, company recruiters surveyedby The Wall Street Journal ranked the U of Ithird nationwide as a top university forrecruiting, according to Kramer. “We’regetting the word out. This is a placerecruiters like to come,” she said.

The strong interest from recruiters is reflectedin the placement rate of ACES’ graduates. Withinsix months of graduation more than 80 percentof ACES graduates have jobs, according toKramer.

Kramer encouraged prospective students andtheir families to contact the college and arrange avisit. She said interested students should contactAssistant Dean Jason Emmert at 217-244-4540.

University of Illinois agriculture students listen as agricultural economics professor Rob Hornbaker discussesapplied statistical methods last week. Student interest is strong in agricultural and consumer economics cours-es. (Photo by Kay Shipman)

Farm billContinued from page 1

bill, land comes out of Conserva-tion Reserve Program (CRP) con-tracts that expired Sept. 30 with-out provisions for new enroll-ments. The CRP is exempt fromsequestration, but a lack of pro-gram authorization could meanmore lands permanently leavingthe program, AFBF senior econo-mist Bob Young warned.

Wheat would be the firstmajor crop affected if perma-nent authority were activated.Under ‘38/’49 provisions, an$18 per-bushel wheat price andpossibly higher consumer pricescould result, Korves said.

Dairy producers would beaffected far more immediately:The Milk Income Loss Contract(MILC) price safety net programexpired on Sept. 30, and absentnew legislation, existing dairyprice supports end Dec. 31.

A ‘38/‘49 snap-back to “pari-ty-based” price would nearlytriple existing dairy price supports

at levels more than double cur-rent market prices, said PatrickWesthoff, director of the nationalFood and Agricultural PolicyResearch Institute (FAPRI) at theUniversity of Missouri.

Young noted likely lowgrower eligibility for parity-based corn or wheat supports,as program allocations would bebased on ‘70s planting levels,and pointed out soybeans wouldnot be covered at all. Dairy is “adifferent story,” Young cau-tioned: As a “named, non-basiccommodity,” all milk would beeligible for ‘38/’49 supports.

“Essentially, you’d have anincredibly high percentage of thenation’s milk products going intogovernment storage, at least onpaper,” Westhoff told FarmWeek.

“The government wouldhave a commitment to buy allthe butter, all the powder, all thecheese that would be requiredto support milk prices, at some-thing over $30 per hundred-

weight (compared to the currentless than $18 per hundred-weight.)”

production

Page 3 Monday, October 1, 2012 FarmWeek

New soy virus spreads to 13 states; yields unaffectedBY DANIEL GRANTFarmWeek

A soybean virus relativelynew to the Midwest, soybeanvein necrosis virus (SVNV),spread this season to yet anoth-er state.

A field infected by SVNVrecently was confirmed in Indi-ana, bringing the total numberof states with a confirmed out-break of the virus to 13.

SVNV was discovered inArkansas by a University ofArkansas professor in 2008 andsince then has been confirmedin Delaware, Illinois (in 2009),Kentucky, Kansas, Maryland,Missouri, Mississippi, NewYork, Pennsylvania, Tennessee,

The virus can lead to tissuedeath, which would leave ascorched appearance on severe-ly affected plants.

“It’s something growersneed to be aware of,” Wise said.“The symptoms are very wide-spread and some growers areconcerned because it’s some-thing they haven’t seen before.”

Overall, foliar diseases insoybeans haven’t been a majorproblem this year, with theexception of scattered pocketsof sudden death syndrome.

“Most foliar diseases thisyear were at lower levelsbecause of the hot, dry condi-tions,” Wise said. “Diseaseswon’t be the limiting factor foryields this year.”

This year soybean aphidsalso have been light in numbersdue to environmental and bio -tic factors, according to DavidVoegtlin, former Illinois Natu-ral History Survey entomolo-gist.

“A fungus effectively elimi-nated many of the fall migrantsonce they reached their over-winter host, buckthorn, in 2009and 2010,” Voegtlin said. “Den-sities of soybean aphids, asmonitored by suction traps dur-ing the fall flights in 2011 and2012 have been extremely low.”

In fact, soybean aphids thisyear had the lowest impact onthe crop since the insect cameto prominence in Illinois a littlemore than a decade ago.

and Virginia.“SVNV is one of our newer

viruses we’ve confirmed in soy-beans,” said Kiersten Wise, Pur-due Extension plant patholo-gist.

The good news is it appearsthe virus won’t affect beanyields, at least this year. “It came in so late, I don’texpect it to impact yields,” Wisesaid. “But we don’t know how itcould impact yields in thefuture.”

SVNV is spread by thrips,insects that infest a variety ofplant species.

The spread of the virus andits impact on soybean plants,therefore, is dependent each

year on the environment, insectpopulation, and growth stage ofinfected beans.

“It may not be economicalto invest in an insecticide” tocontrol thrips in an attempt tothwart SVNV, Wise said.

At this point, growersshould be aware of the SVNV’sarrival to the area, Wise said. Itcauses foliar symptoms similarto herbicide injury.

Growers should be on thelookout for a yellowing in plantveins and light green patches ormottled green and brown speck-led areas associated with veins.Leaves will display a blotchier,scorched appearance in shadesof orange and yellow, accordingto the plant pathologist.

Pork Board respondsto production issues,HSUS’ USDA lawsuit

The National Pork Board (NPB) is taking a more aggressiveapproach when it comes to issues involving the use of gestationstalls.

NPB plans to increase direct communication with decision-makers at the top food retail chains nationwide to help themunderstand modern pork production methods.

Numerous foodservice agencies and retailers in recent monthsannounced plans to source pork from producers who do not usegestation stalls.

Many of those decisions were made without sufficientresearch into pork production or consideration of the conse-quences of such actions, according to Jarrod Sutton, vice presi-dent of foodservice and retail marketing at NPB.

“We want to make sure our customers understand the factsand potential consequences of any marketing decisions,” Suttonrecently told the Illinois Farm Bureau Board of Directors.

Many in the industry are concerned about supply issues thatmight occur with a gestation-stall-free pork industry. At themoment about 83 percent of sows in the U.S. spend a portion oftheir lives in gestation stalls, according to an industry survey con-ducted by Ron Plain, economist at the University of Missouri.

The cost to change the system over to group or other types ofhousing has been estimated at between $3.9 billion and $5.8 bil-lion. Annual operating costs could increase by an estimated $1.1billion nationwide.

“Everybody knows it’s a frustrating time for producers,” Sut-ton said. “There are a lot of negative things being done byactivist groups with an agenda.”

The Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) helpeddrive many of the decisions by food retailer corporate boards toattempt to source gestation-stall-free pork.

“We view it as an opportunity to determine how to bestengage our customers,” Sutton said of the recent public spotlighton gestation stalls. “They (retailers) clearly don’t have an under-standing” of the consequences of their marketing decisions.

In other pork industry news, HSUS this month filed a lawsuitagainst USDA alleging that when NPB purchased the trademarkto the slogan “Pork: The Other White Meat” from the NationalPork Producers Council (NPPC), it violated a checkoff law.

NPB manages the checkoff, which collects 40 cents for every$100 of swine sold. USDA has oversight responsibilities of theboard’s management of the checkoff. “It appears there is no legal merit to this (HSUS) claim,” saidNeil Dierks, CEO of NPPC. “And it is another desperateattempt by the radical activist group to severely curtail animalagriculture and take away consumer food choices.”

HSUS in recent months threatened NPPC with a FederalTrade Commission complaint; filed notice of its intent to sue anumber of hog operations over alleged emissions reporting vio-lations; and charged that NPPC was responsible for the deaths ofhogs in barn fires because the organization asked to give input onnational fire standards for ag facilities. — Daniel Grant

FDA OKs Illinois blendingof aflatoxin-contaminated cornBY KAY SHIPMANFarmWeek

Illinois grain companies last week receivedFood and Drug Administration (FDA) approvalto blend aflatoxin-contaminated corn throughDec. 31 — if they meet specific requirements,the Illinois Department of Agriculture (IDOA)announced.

IDOA officials informed licensed grain eleva-tors, handlers, feed mills, and ethanol plants aboutthe blending waiver and compliance requirements,Gerald “Jerry” Kirbach, acting bureau chief ofIDOA’s agricultural products inspection bureau,told FarmWeek. Ethanol plants were notifiedbecause of their dried distillers grain production.

Blending is not permitted without FDAapproval. The federal agency determines rulesand sets guidelines for allowable aflatoxin levelsin livestock feed.

“Now that FDA has granted Illinois the abil-ity to blend corn with aflatoxin, each grain com-pany will assess its current situation and willindividually decide whether or not it will enterinto this compliance certification,” said JeffAdkisson, executive vice president of the Grainand Feed Association of Illinois (GFAI).

“If it does, it will still have to meet certaintesting and handling requirements.”

An entity that intends to blend corn mustfirst supply IDOA with a certification form thatlists requirements for blending. One require-ment is that corn with aflatoxin levels above500 parts per billion cannot be blended.

Entities may blend corn after certifying theywill comply with the requirements and havereceived in written notification from IDOA,according to Kirbach.

“We (IDOA) were approached by (the grain)industry to apply for the (blending) waiver. Weapplied Friday (Sept. 21) and received concur-rence and acceptance Monday (Sept. 24). Wewere very pleased,” Kirbach said.

Illinois joins Iowa and Nebraska, both ofwhich requested and received FDA approval forblending aflatoxin-contaminated corn. Indianarequested a blending waiver and anticipated adecision within a few days, according to theIndiana State Department of Agriculture.

“We are hopeful this will help the situationand really appreciate the patience and under-standing of producers as we all work throughthis harvest together,” GFAI’s Adkisson said.

BY MARTIN ROSSFarmWeek

A modern inland navigation system is a matterof “significant national interest,” U.S. Sens. DickDurbin and Mark Kirk told leaders of the Sen-ate’s major infrastructure committee last week.

The respective Springfield Democrat and High-land Park Republican joined colleagues in a letterasking the Senate Environment and Public WorksCommittee to support a long-term strategy to speedconstruction and operation of critical lock and damprojects along the Mississippi River system.

The committee recently began work on anew Water Resources Development Act(WRDA) bill designed to authorize key water-way projects. Durbin and Kirk joined Sens.Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.), Roy Blunt (R-Mo.),Tom Harkin (D-Iowa), and Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) in the appeal for lock funds.

Shipping and barge industry interests sup-port a proposal to increase barge fuel taxes as away of replenishing the Inland Waterways TrustFund. Trust fund revenues are needed to matchfederal lock rehab/construction funds.

The senators noted much of the current UpperMississippi lock system was built 70 years ago andthat many older locks are only 600 feet in length— half the length of modern barge tows. “Thatmeans these goods take twice as long to get downriver and into the marketplace,” they advised.

Durbin and company noted the recent tem-porary shutdown due to failure of a protectingwall at Lock 27 near Granite City that paralyzedMississippi River traffic for several days. Similarshutdowns could impact the “the overall relia-bility and timeliness of using the inland water-ways system,” they warned.

Fithian grower and Illinois Soybean Associa-tion district director Mike Marron noted “prettymuch a statewide problem with our roads, ourrail, our locks and dams.”

Marron cited congressional failure to fundlock improvements — including constructionof seven new 1,200-foot locks at five UpperMississippi and two Illinois River locks author-ized in 2007.

“Our transportation infrastructure as awhole needs an update,” he told FarmWeek.

Durbin, Kirk push lock improvements

Natural resources

FarmWeek Page 4 Monday, October 1, 2012

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Scientists found more pollution-sensitivefish than they could count living in a CentralIllinois stream in the midst of the 2012drought.

Not only are fish thriving in a restoredstretch of Kickapoo Creek, but quality of thewater improves as the stream flows through an88-acre floodplain/wetland park in eastBloomington, participants of the Illinois WaterConference heard last week.

Don Roseboom, a stream restoration spe-cialist with the U.S. Geological Survey,described the impact of a restored stream thatdrains 9,000 farmland acres near Bloomington.

“We converted a drainage ditch into a mean-dering stream,” Roseboom said. “We’re tryingto treat nutrients (in the stream) and move sed-iment through (so it doesn’t fill in thestreambed).”

Researchers are collecting myriad data fromthe stream project built beside a 450-acre ruralsubdivision. Roseboom reported nitrogen lev-els in the stream are reduced and oxygen levelsare higher after water flows through therestored area.

He showed a video of the stream flowingover an undulating mass of plants and creditedthe in-stream vegetation for helping toimprove the water quality.

“We think the water is flowing through somuch (plant) surface area” those plants aretaking up some of the nutrients, Roseboomsaid.

“We want to learn the process of nitrogenremoval,” he said. “We’re out to find somesolutions that work in a rural area. There aredarters (small perch-like fish) which are sensi-tive in that stream.” — Kay Shipman

Restored stream surfaces tools to improve water

Nutrient goals remain elusive despite recent progress BY KAY SHIPMANFarmWeek

Despite a massive effort toreduce nutrient levels in Illi-nois’ rivers, lakes, and streams,a solution remains elusive.

Last week scientists, gov-ernment officials, water treat-ment professionals, and farm-ers discussed water research,conservation efforts, andpotential technology and prac-

tices during the Illinois WaterConference at the Universityof Illinois.

Nutrient-reduction ideassurfaced, but none was sug-gested as the silver bullet.

“The environment is veryvariable . . . that makes it difficultto generalize across large land-scapes,” Greg McIsaac, a U of Iecosystem management profes-sor, said during a panel discus-

sion of bioenergy crop buffers.“There are challenges when

you introduce (farm crop) sys-tems. We need to continue col-lecting data, testing, andadjusting those systems. Andit’s not just about the environ-ment and water, it’s about theeconomics of producing acrop,” McIsaac added.

Phosphorous levels in waterillustrate the challenge.

In 2011, Illinois agriculturaluse of phosphorous wasreduced yet crop yieldsincreased, meaning more phos-phorous was removed thanapplied, said U of I scientistMark David.

Farmers also applied lessphosphorous-containing live-stock manure to fields, Davidnoted.

Illinois farmers “are takingaway more phosphorous thanthey’ve been adding,” he said.“It shows we’re doing a betterjob overall in how we’re han-dling phosphorous.”

Yet, phosphorous levels inMidwest rivers remain a prob-lem and contribute to highphosphorous levels in the Gulfof Mexico, according to David.

“It’s a real challenge toreduce phosphorous loads (inrivers). It just takes a couple ofstorm events” to negativelyimpact 49 weeks of phospho-rous-reduction practices, he said.

Water treatment effluentalso adds phosphorous to Illi-nois rivers.

Chicago water officials report-ed they continue to learn aboutphosphorous sources whilesearching for new treatment

methods to remove the nutrient.The Metropolitan Water

Reclamation District ofGreater Chicago (MWRD)learned food and beverageindustries, metal manufactur-ers, and chemical industriesuse much phosphorous in theirprocesses, reported KulipKumar with MWRD.

Storm water runoff isanother major contributor ofphosphorous. Human waste,however, contributes less thana third of the area’s phospho-rous, he noted.

MWRD is researching alter-natives to phosphoric acidused by manufacturers, usingalgae to remove phosphorousfrom recycled materials andimplementing best manage-ment practices for stormwater.

It would cost $23 millionannually to buy chemicals toremove the phosphorous fromwater treated at MWRD’s sev-en plants and an additional $3million annually to dispose ofthe excess sludge, saidMWRD’s Heng Zhang.

“We can really reduce it(phosphorous levels) if wefind an alternative to phos-phoric acid,” Kumar said.

A preliminary regional water plan estimates existing watersources should meet the Kaskaskia River region’s future needsfor several decades, a hydrologist reported last week.

“The (regional supply) planning committee feels there isenough water to supply the needs through 2050,” said VernonKnapp of the Illinois State Water Survey. Knapp spoke duringthe Illinois Water Conference at the University of Illinois.

The southern regional water plan is the third funded by thestate. Similar plans for Northeastern and East-Central Illinoishave been completed.

The Kaskaskia planning area covers a 22-county region whosenorthern area extends from Douglas County west to MacoupinCounty, south to Randolph County, and east to Richland County.

The region’s main water features are the Kaskaskia River andtwo federal reservoirs, Carlyle Lake, and Lake Shelbyville. Theregion has limited groundwater resources, and those are locatedalong the river.

Although Clay, Cumberland, Jasper, and Richland countiesare located outside of the Kaskaskia watershed, Knapp saidwater from the river watershed supplies portions of Clay Countyand the potential exists for the other three counties to receiveKaskaskia water in the future.

Twenty-nine communities rely on surface water supplies,nearly all from reservoirs. Scientists and planners have confi-dence in the sustainability of the two federal reservoirs as watersupplies, Knapp said.

Three communities’ water supplies were classified as inade-quate and would not be sufficient during a drought of the mag-nitude of that which occurred in 1954, according to Knapp.However, those towns — Altamount, Coulterville, and Farina— did not go dry during this year’s drought, he said.

All the region’s community water supplies are dwarfed by thetwo federal reservoirs, whose combined capacities nearly equalthat of all the communities’ supplies together.

The state controls about 14 percent of the water in the tworeservoirs, and 100 percent of the state’s portion has been allo-cated for designated uses, Knapp said. Eighty percent of thatallocation is for two power plants, he added.

“None of these allocations needs water unless there is really abad drought like in 1954,” Knapp explained. “It’s possible therewill be no release of the lake (water) unless a really bad droughtcomes.” — Kay Shipman

Water sources expected to meetKaskaskia region’s needs

transportation

Page 5 Monday, October 1, 2012 FarmWeek

Soybean growers stress local bridges need supportBY MARTIN ROSSFarmWeek

They connect Illinois farm-ers and the rural communitiesthey help support. They arecrucial links in moving Mid-west commodities to marketsaround the globe.

And when township orcounty bridges crumble, close,or become inaccessible tofarm traffic, farmer margins,elevator profits, and even agexport potential are hurt.

So warns the Illinois Soy-bean Association (ISA), whichkicked off a “This BridgeNeeds More Support” cam-paign in Iroquois County lastweek to raise awareness ofrural bridge deteriorationthroughout the state that ISAAssistant Secretary-TreasurerMike Marron says is “deterio-rating our advantage.”

The effort is the result of arecent “critical bridge assess-ment” compiled for ISA andtargeting 12 bridges in Adams,Bureau, Clinton, DeKalb, Iro-quois, Macoupin, McLean,Peoria, Shelby, and Waynecounties. Those counties rep-resent each Illinois cropreporting district plus Peoria, acentral point for grain origina-tion and Illinois River staging.

The checkoff-funded analy-sis focused on bridges in“local markets” that are in thegreatest need of repair orreplacement, Marron toldFarmWeek. Stockland’s one-lane township bridge — thesite of ISA’s announcement —is a key point of access to

The Iroquois Countybridge, built in 1907, servesmore than 30,000 farm acres.Langllier reported the bridgehas seen no real maintenancein his 24 years as road com-missioner. Bridge restorationwould provide a “20-to-oneeconomic stimulus” for thearea, ISA director of issuesmanagement and analysis MikeLevin suggested.

The Illinois Department ofTransportation calculates anddictates load postings forbridges without consideringspecific bridge users, accordingto the ISA study.

“Public safety and schools”— access by emergency equip-ment and school buses — rou-tinely are the priorities forcounty officials consideringroad and bridge spending,Levin said.

The largest school busweighs 36,000 pounds. ISAseeks development of bridgesthat can handle 80,000 to100,000 pounds.

If federal transportationfunds are available to help bol-ster local bridges, “we and thecounty have not found it out,”Langllier mused. One solution,in the commissioner’s view, isan increase in area propertytaxes.

Marron stressed that “asfarmers, that’s something we’renever in favor of seeing.”

“This is a state and anational problem — it affectsour ability to function as aneconomy,” he emphasized.“It’s definitely in the bestinterests of our elected offi-cials on a state and federallevel to address this prob-lem.”

Stockland Grain Co. Inc. facili-ties, “and the local farmers arevery dependent on this infra-structure to move their grain,”the Fithian grower noted.

In 2010, 15.4 percent of thestate’s 26,000-plus bridgeswere classified as deficient andobsolete. More than 1,200 areposted for lower weight limitsor have been closed, the ISAstudy reported.

The Stockland bridge isposted for 22 tons — wellbelow the state’s 80,000-pound(40-ton) truck weight limit.Township Road CommissionerRonald Langllier cited anotherarea bridge posted for a mereeight tons of weight.

Stockland TownshipTrustee Roger Ball stressed theimportance of local bridges“to be able to get trucks to theelevators, to get Illinois cornand beans on train cars andsend them worldwide.” Henoted general deterioration oflocal roads amid meager coun-ty funding and a lack of whathe deemed state or federalattention to needs within “thehinterlands.”

“We’re going to drop atruck into this ravine,” hewarned at the bridge site. “Youand I can walk across thisbridge, but a semi carryingyour food can’t. There’s a lotof money wrapped up in fueland equipment and so forth toproduce (crops). If we can’tget them to export, that’s nothelping the State of Illinois orthe United States.”

The ISA report concluded

that on average, every $1invested in bridge constructionor rehabilitation would return$10.24 to local economies. Insome areas, bridge closures orweight limits may necessitate a20-mile harvest detour forfarmers during harvest.

According to Marron, that’sa 5-cent-per-bushel cost.

A 50-mile detour raisesfarmer delivery costs by nearly11 cents per acre, Marronmaintained. Stockland GrainPresident Sonny Metzinger Jr.argued the Stockland bridge iscrucial for his company “to becompetitive with the ADMsand the other big majors,” interms of loading multi-unittrains.

That rail access enablesStockland Grain to offer farm-ers “a little better price,” Met-zinger said.

Stockland Township Trustee Roger Ball and his wife, Carol, an area producer, look on as a semi crosses theone-lane community bridge that connects farmers and major area elevator facilities. Inset is an Illinois Soy-bean Association banner highlighting the need for statewide bridge improvements. (Photos by Martin Ross)

Transportation law in place; exemption rules notBY KAY SHIPMANFarmWeek

A law exempting farmersfrom certain trucking regula-tions takes place today (Oct.1), but the rules implementingthose exemptions are not yetin place, said Kevin Rund, Illi-nois Farm Bureau director oflocal government.

In June, Congress passedthe Moving Ahead forProgress in the 21st CenturyAct, also known as MAP-21.For farmers, the law includeda set of five exemptions frommotor carrier safety regula-tions (MCSR).

“Farmers likely will not seethe full effect of the exemp-tions for months,” Rund saidlast week.

“Farmers who can qualifyfor the MAP-21 exemptionswill find additional relief fromthe rules and a lot more terri-tory in which to operate —once the exemptions kick in,”Rund said. “How long it willtake before things settle out isanyone’s guess.”

in which the exemptions apply,Rund said. The new exemp-tions will apply anywherewithin the state in which thevehicle is registered and 150miles from the farm, even out-side of Illinois.

Previously, exemptionsapplied within a 150-mileradius of the farm and gener-ally not outside a farmer’s basestate. For trucks 26,001pounds or less, the exemp-tions will apply anywherewithin the U.S.

On the flip side, farmerswill have more difficulty quali-fying for some exemptions,and some will lose exemptionsthey have enjoyed, Rundwarned.

Previously, a qualifiedfarmer generally was limited tohauling only for his or herown farm and staying withinspecified geographic limits.Under the new law, similarlimitations apply along withnew ones, Rund noted.

To qualify for the newexemptions, the vehicle will

need farm license plates orsome other form of state-issued farm documentation,and the vehicle must not besubject to placarding require-ments under U.S. Departmentof Transportation hazardousmaterials rules, Rund said.

“Those new conditions canpose a significant hurdle forIllinois farmers,” he said.

Illinois limits the numberof farm plates each ownermay have and the smallest“farm” plate available is forvehicles weighing 16,000pounds. The state offers noother form of farm vehicledocumentation.

The placard restriction willbe a problem because placardsare required on many farmvehicles, such as anhydrousammonia nurse tanks andvehicles hauling diesel fuel incontainers of more than 119gallons, Rund noted.

Portions of the MCSRremain in place for farmers,and Illinois vehicle code lawsstill apply in the state.

Neither federal nor stateimplementation rules havebeen written, and Illinois willnot be able to draft its own reg-ulations until the federal rulesare finished, Rund explained.

Once the rules are written,government agencies’ enforce-ment policies likely will evolvethroughout the early phases ofimplementation, Rund said.

Illinois farmers already havemost of the exemptions, headded.

For example, two of theexemptions would excusefarmers from needing to

obtain commercial driver’slicense (CDL) and from drugand alcohol testing. Thoseexemptions already exist inIllinois, although the new lawextends them to all farmemployees — even those whodrive semis.

Relief from the medicalcard requirement is a thirdexemption. While this alreadyis available to many farmers,the new law extends theexemption to those who oper-ate combination vehicles, suchas a truck and trailer.

A farmer hours-of-servicerule exemption will change lit-tle from the existing one.

A fifth exemption would benew for farmers. It waives thefederal requirements of equip-ment inspection, repair, andmaintenance. But some antici-pate that Illinois maintenancelaws will fill much of the voidcreated by the federal exemp-tion, Rund said.

Under the new law, Illinoisfarmers’ greatest gains will bean expanded geographic area

Bernie Walsh, Durand, Winnebago County: Soybean har-vest was full steam ahead inNorthern Illinois last week with allthe warm, dry, sunny days. Yieldsare all over the board, from hail-damaged fields that don’t aver-age 10 bushels per acre (bpa), toexcellent yields in the high 50s infields with the better soil types.

Beans are 6 inches tall on the drier soils towaist high and averaging 60 bpa on the bet-ter ground. Winter wheat seeding is wellunder way even though the ground is verydry. We had only about 1.5 inches of rain herein September so our soil moisture is still veryvery dry. Corn harvest should be in full swingthis week when everyone wraps up the beanharvest.

Pete Tekampe, Grayslake, Lake County: It was a cloudyFriday in Lake County. No rain felllast week and none is predictedfor this week. Most have startedbeans, but we are still leaving thelow spots because they aregreen. Yield is not what weexpected; we have a lot of pods,but the beans are small. Not

much corn has been picked, mostly becausepeople are too busy cutting beans. Take yourtime and be safe.

Leroy Getz, Savanna, Carroll County: September raintotaled 1.3 inches. April throughSeptember rainfall totaled 14.95inches. Corn is drying down fast. Itis as low as 14 percent. Combinesare going to soybeans, which alsoare very dry. Yields on soybeansare running in the 40-bushel-per-acre range. Livestock producers

are baling cornstalks and some still are bal-ing hay. We just couldn’t resist doing a fifthcutting, which we have never been able to dobefore.

Larry Hummel, Dixon, Lee County: Harvest is starting topick up steam here. Soybeanshave moved to the forefront asmost beans have matured natu-rally. Yields have been what weexpected, ranging between 40 to60 bushels per acre. In differentareas around the county, yieldshave suffered more than that, but

I have not heard of any reports yet. Cornyields are more variable and in comparisonare lower than soybeans. I have heard ofinsurance-adjusted corn as low as 7 bpa andalso some 200-plus bpa corn across thescale. We have had neither so far, but I thinkthere is a possibility that we could averagesomewhere around 5 percent of our five-yearaverage.

Joe Zumwalt, Warsaw, Hancock County: Corn harvest isnearly a memory. Ninety-five per-cent of the corn is harvested andmany are beginning soy-beans. While corn yields wereslightly better than expected,early soybeans seem to be aver-age at best, with most rangingfrom the mid-30s to the mid-

40s. The stems are green, but the beans aredry. Tillage work and shredding is in fullswing. At least the temps have cooled andthere is a hint of fall in the air. Too bad thedays have to get shorter! Enjoy the fall andstay safe in the fields.

Ken Reinhardt, Seaton, Mercer County: Another nice har-vest week with no rain. Corn har-vest is close to half done whilesoybeans are just beginning. Thesoybeans I have started on are inthe 50s. I’ve had some good corn-on-corn at 200 bushels per acrebut most has yielded less. Be safeout there.

Ron Moore, Roseville, Warren County: No rain again lastweek. Corn harvest is about 75percent complete in thisarea. Most farmers seem to beconcentrating on corn har-vest. The stalk quality is not verygood now and the moisture isdown to 14 percent on some vari-eties. Yields are still better than

we expected, even on the later-plantedcorn. Soybean harvest has started with greenstems and dry beans making harvest slow. Ifthe drought persists into October, we shouldbe finished with harvest the earliest that mostpeople can remember.

Jacob Streitmatter, Princeville, Peoria County: It wasanother great week for harvest.The crops are rapidly disappear-ing across the country. I have notseen yields vary so much fromone end of the field to the other.

Tim Green, Wyoming, Stark County: Quick harvest hereand bean cutting has reallypicked up. Yields probably arewhat was expected, maybe just alittle below. You hear of a badfield now and then in drier areas.Corn harvest has slowed downdue to bean cutting. Corn yieldscontinue to be in the 80- to 120-

bushel-per-acre range. A shortage of lime isbeing reported.

Mark Kerber, Chatsworth, Livingston County: Most of thedrought-plagued corn is harvest-ed. Yields followed soil types andthose who caught a shower insome parts of the county. Onecan’t base too much hybrid selec-tion for next year on this year’sresults. It is time to move on.Soybean harvest has started on

earlier maturities. Soybeans in the same fieldare either dead ripe or testing 10 percent togreen beans with the leaves still on them. It’salmost like parts of the field were replanted.There will be some elevator dockage on thesegreen beans. Fall tillage is going well where itdoes some good. Fertilizer applications arestarting to pick up as crops disappear.Markets have been in a technical downtrend.

Ron Haase, Gilman, Iroquois County:We started harvest-ing corn last week. Some farmersare done with corn. Frost hit ourarea last week and helpedremove the green foliage left inthe fields. The frost arrived threeweeks ahead of average for ourarea. Soybean harvest has start-ed, but many soybean fields

remain standing. There are many cornfieldsaround where I live that are still standing. Asyou drive farther away, most cornfields havebeen harvested. The local closing bids forSept. 27 were: nearby corn, $7.19; fall 2013corn, $5.76; nearby soybeans, $15.59; fall2013 soybeans, $12.84.

Brian Schaumburg, Chenoa, McLean County: Corn har-vest is 90 percent complete andsoybeans are maybe 20 percentdone as good autumn weatherpersists. Yields on soybeans arebetter than many expected, most-ly in the 35- to 50-bushel rangebut some are in the mid-60s. Fertilizer, lime applica-

tions, and tillage are getting a good start, too.Soil type and productivity index again tell thetale of the season.

Steve Ayers, Champaign, Champaign County: Har-vest–o–meter is pegged at 53percent corn harvested and 9percent soybeans harvested asof Sept. 24. Rain slowedprogress last week with 0.38 ofan inch falling during the week-end (Sept. 22-23) and 0.31 of aninch on Tuesday. Hail hit some

areas on Friday afternoon (Sept. 21). Somecrop damage was reported and one farmerdescribed the hail as being like shaved ice.The sky was white with the torrential rain andhail combination. Farmers are maintainingequipment and preparing for this week’s dryspell. Beans are dropping leaves and drying,but lots of green stems remain. Think safety!

Tom Ritter, Blue Mound, Macon County: Corn harvest iscomplete in this area. Soybeanharvest started on Monday (Sept.24). An inch of rain took farmersout until Friday. Hopefully, there isgood weather this week and week-end and will be a lot of soybeansharvested. Initial yields seem to beabove expectations considering

the dryness of this year. Many yields are beingreported in the 50-bushel range. Isolated fieldsof lighter ground or early-maturing varietiesdefinitely will take a hit. Not a lot of field activityfor the week with the showers and the dampconditions. There has been some tillage goingon, but for the most part farmers are geared upand will be able to move right through soy-beans with good weather.

Wilfred Dittmer, Quincy, Adams County: The drought isn’tover, but we did get another 1.72inches of rain last week, whichbrings it up to 6.6 inches for themonth. Most of the cornfields arehistory, but very few beans havebeen cut. Some tillage and mow-ing have been done. Have a safeweek.

Todd Easton, Charleston, Coles County: As the last of thisyear’s corn crop trickled into ele-vators, producers began workingon bean fields last week. Coolertemperatures last weekend(Sept. 22-23) brought a light frostthat helped knock some of thegreen out of the stubborn soy-beans. Two inches of rain on

Tuesday and Wednesday curtailed harvest.That’s precipitation everyone wished hadcome a couple months earlier. If the weatherforecast holds true, soybean harvest soonshould be in full swing and we will learn whatthose fields make after the stressful growingseason.

Jimmy Ayers, New City, Sangamon County: We receivedclose to 0.75 of an inch of rain acouple different times last week.South of us received quite a bitmore — upwards of an inch and ahalf. Those farther north receivedless. We had frost Monday morn-ing (Sept. 24). The beans that aretough to cut likely will flow right

through the combine now. The leaves are offmost of the beans that I have seen. The littlebit of corn we had left got frosted. Marketswere on quite a ride. Corn probably is 98 per-cent done in Sangamon County and beansare somewhere around 50-60 percent com-plete. This week we will really change thatnumber. Be careful, your family needs you.

Doug Uphoff, Shelbyville, Shelby County: We finishedpicking our replant corn lastMonday (Sept. 24). We had to dryit down as it was still 29 percentmoisture. We are about two-thirdsdone chiseling cornstalks. Thereis still some corn in the area topick, but the county is 90 percentdone. A few beans have come

out. Haven’t heard enough to determine yieldsyet, but I’d say they will be average to aboveaverage. I do know that they look very greenbut are testing 10 to 12 percent and some arepopping out. We had 1.6 inches of rain herelast week, but I have heard of amounts rang-ing from 1 inch to 5 inches. The 5 inches wasnear Salem. Not much field activity last weekexcept for corn picking Thursday. Prices atFindlay elevator: fall Corn, $7.23; fall Beans,$15.54; January corn, $7.27; January beans,$15.76. Processor bids add approximately 20cents to corn and 25 cents to beans.

David Schaal, St. Peter, Fayette County: Storms rolled inhere Tuesday morning about 3a.m. It rained some during theday, and on Tuesday night itstormed all night long. Rain totalsfor the area were 2 to 3 inches.Corn harvest in the area probablyis about 75 percent complete.Some are done shelling, some

quit and are disking it down, and some havecorn they are still planning to shell. This weekthere will be some soybeans cut if the weath-er clears up and the forecast is favorable. Youlook across some bean fields and the beanslook dead ripe. But if you look down the rows,there is a lot of green in them. I heard somebean yields in the northern part of the countywere in the mid- to upper 30s. With all thegreen stems and leaves in beans, cuttingcould be slow and tough and very discourag-ing. Happy harvest.

Jeff Guilander, Jerseyville, Jersey County: With a littleluck corn should be doneFriday. We could have waited,but the late corn had someissues (standability, yield, drydown, disease) and it seemedlike time to just get it out of theway. The weather has not beenhelping the beans, so now there

is more concern with the pods splitting. Withthe majority of the corn out of the way, itcould be a rapid bean harvest with somebright, sunny days that may be here thisweek. With more of the leaves falling off,there looks to be some potential there.Hope we get the chance to find out.

FarmWeek Page 6 Monday, October 1, 2012

CROPWATCHERS

Randy Anderson, Galatia, Saline County Bean harvestwas the main activity last week ifyou could get them through thecombine. Green leaves and greenstems are in every field. Yields aredisappointing, with half to onefourth of normal production.Quality is poor. The beans looklike a bunch of dried raisins and

butter beans in the grain tank. The only thingI look forward to is the last field to harvest toput this crop behind us and look forward tonext year. Armyworm is the insect of theweek. Some alfalfa fields were hurt, and theydestroyed some cover crops that were plant-ed in cornstalks. The Chicago Board of Trademust think that when you harvest this “bin-buster” crop it adds bushels sitting in the binor at the elevator.

Ken Taake, Ullin, Pulaski County: Harvest is continuinghere in deep Southern Illinois. Weare continuing with soybean har-vest, but with the stress they wereunder, the soybeans are notripening evenly. There are beanswith green pods that are poppingout. Like everything else, it seemsas though soybean harvest is

also going to be a challenge this year. Wehave cut a little more than two acres ofbeans, and yields so far probably average inthe low 30s. We had half an inch of rain onWednesday night and another half inchThursday night. That means we will be out ofthe field at least through the weekend.Please take the time to be careful while inthis busy season.

Rick Corners, Centralia, Jefferson County: I don’t think Iwas meant to raise anything thisyear. Now we are flooded. Placesaround Centralia had 7 inches ofrain Tuesday evening, andWashington County had majorstorm damage from a tornado.Lots of beans will be ready whenit ever dries up.

Kevin Raber, Browns, Wabash County: Heavy rainsstopped all field activity. Idumped more than 3 inches ofrain from my gauge. Somereports totaled 6 inches or more.Corn harvest is almost complete.Yields are from 0 to 160 bushelsan acre. A few beans were har-vested before the rain. Wheat

sowing probably will start when the soil driesout.

Dean Shields, Murphysboro, Jackson County: The weath-er last week was rainy, with abouttwo to three days of light showerswhich didn’t amount to much. Alot heavier rain fell to the north ofJackson County. I am done withcorn harvest and am going tostart soybean harvest as soon asit dries up. The trouble with the

bean harvest this year is that we haveregrowth and now the beans are dry but theleaves are green. It is going to be a difficultharvest this year. Some wheat has beensown, although not much.

Dan Meinhart, Montrose, Jasper County: Showers movedthrough the area Friday morn-ing. It rained almost every day lastweek. Locally, the amounts variedfrom 1.25 to 1.75 inches. The far-ther south you went, the more itrained. Areas in Clay Countyreceived up to 7 inches. Therewas light frost one morning last

week. The only fieldwork done was overthe weekend of Sept. 22-23. Bean harvest is aweek to 10 days out. There is still some April-and May-planted corn to be harvested ordisked under. This week is expected to be dryand mild with temperatures in the 70s.

Dave Hankammer, Millstadt, St. Clair County: Harvestactivities came to a halt afterstorms moved through the areathis past Tuesday leaving up to 3-plus inches of rain. Tornadoswere reported in neighboringcounties to the east causing dam-age to farmsteads and otherstructures near Okawville.

Overcast skies and light rain kept fields andcrops too wet to work. Some farmers startedsoybean harvest last week with reports ofnear-average yields. Corn harvest continuesas farmers start to work on cornfields plant-ed or replanted in the first half of May.Progress in these fields is slow due to thehigh grain moisture and farmers opting towait for additional field drydown. Double-cropped soybeans and milo continue todevelop and are benefiting from the late-summer rains. Local grain bids are: corn,$6.60; soybeans, $15.56; and wheat, $8.03.Have a safe week.

Page 7 Monday, October 1, 2012 FarmWeek

CROPWATCHERS

Reports received Friday morning. Expanded crop and weather infor-mation available at FarmWeekNow.com

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Livestock producer: Corn supply/quality a challenge, bean harvest promisingBY DANIEL GRANTFarmWeek

David Hartke, a crop andlivestock producer from Teu-topolis (Effingham County),like many farmers is dealingwith a double whammy when

i t c o m e s t ot h i s y e a r ’scorn crop.

Yields notonly are downsignif icantlyd u e t o t h edrought, butqua l i t y a l sohas been anissue at some

locations due to the presenceof aflatoxin in the grain.

Hartke relies on a steadysupply of corn and soybeansfor the family’s livestock oper-ations. The Hartkes have aherd of 150 Holstein steersand a 6,000-head, wean-to-fin-ish swine operation.

“We’re in the process ofbuying af latoxin (infected)corn,” Hartke said. “It’s a chal-

L ives tock p roducer s a tmany locations have had to getcreative with feed rations todeal with a short corn supplyand high prices of corn andsoy meal.

“A lot of producers arelooking at different rationsand other ways around thedrought issue,” said Dereke

Dunkirk, a grain and porkp r o d u c e r f r o m M o r -risonvil le and president ofthe Illinois Pork ProducersAssociation.

“But ult imately, the hogproducer wants that corn andsoy meal diet (for swine),” headded. “That’s where we seethe best performance.”

lenge pricing the stuff,” he toldFarmWeek.

Corn with aflatoxin levels ofno more than 300 parts per bil-lion (ppb) can be fed to thesteers and levels of 250 ppbcan be used in feed rations forhogs, Hartke said.

He expected to finish cornharvest Saturday. He said yieldsth i s year averaged jus t 11bushels per acre in Clay Coun-ty, 29 bushels in EffinghamCounty, and 50 to 60 bushelsin Cumberland County.

He was more optimist icabout soybean yields.

“We haven’t started cuttingbeans,” he said. “But, I feelthat it will be a good harvest.”

Hartke recently was reap-pointed by Ag Secretary TomVi l sack to se r ve a secondthree-year term on the UnitedSoybean Board (USB) . Heserved as chairman of the Illi-nois Soybean Association in2007/08.

“Being a l ivestock pro-ducer, I know how impor-

t an t h i gh -qua l i t y p ro t e inis,” he said, “I’m going tokeep that in the forefront(of issues at USB).”

Hartke in his next term atU S B a l s o h o p e s t o b u i l ddemand for soy oil and bringvalue back to the soy industry,he told the RFD Radio Net-work.

David Hartke

Conservation, energy on tap for expoConservation and energy efficiency will be featured at the

2012 Sustainable Living Expo Oct. 27 at the Dixon Springs AgCenter, Simpson. The program will run from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.and is offered free.

Programs and demonstrations on energy, conservation, andlocal foods will be offered throughout the day. Based on the pop-ularity of last fall’s expo, a large turnout is expected in the event’sthird year.

Sponsors include the Shawnee Resource, Conservation, andDevelopment Area, Connect SI, University of I l l inois,Shawnee Communications, Natural Resources ConservationService, Forest Service, USDA Sustainable Ag Research andEducation, Southeastern Illinois College, Shawnee College,John A. Logan College, Rend Lake College, and WSIU PublicBroadcasting.

More information is available online at {www.SLExpo.org}and on Facebook at {www.facebook.com/SLExpo}.

the planet

FarmWeek Page 8 Monday, October 1, 2012

Water issues on rise; crop insurance key tool?BY MARTIN ROSSFarmWeek

Andrew Bell recognizesthere are no one-size-fits-allsolutions to global drought/-water availability issues.

But the International FoodPolicy Research Institute (IFPRI)researcher sees one crucial toolfor U.S. farmers coping withdrought and heightened watercompetition: crop insurance.

IFPRI has studied conditionsin 126 global watersheds. Bell not-ed there is serious “water stress”

in South Asia, North Africa,India, and “bits of China.”

In 2010, a third of theworld’s population, 40 percentof grain production, and 20 per-cent of world gross domesticproduct (GDP) were prone towater-related risks, he said.

Rising energy prices and

hydropower development chal-lenge small farmer-irrigators inlow-income regions, even as morediversified diets related to incomegrowth promise to fuel greaterwater dependency, Bell said. Manyareas expected to experience adrop in precipitation in comingdecades also anticipate higher agwater demand, he related.

Further, Bell cites continuedwater concerns in parts of theU.S. Southwest, the recentimpact of “a few really bigdroughts” in the Southeast, and

a current “40-year high” inNortheast drought anxieties.

By 2050, under current IFPRIprojections and “independent of(potential) climate change,” waterissues could jeopardize 52 percentof the world’s population, nearlyhalf of the global cereal cropproduction, and perhaps 45 per-cent of the international GDP.Serious water concerns likely willspread in Europe, South America,and the eastern U.S., Bell said.

Technologies needed to helpfarmers adapt to water con-

Help fuel ‘power of soy’Despite what promises to be a light harvest, Illinois soybean

growers this fall can help feed children and nurture economicgrowth worldwide.The World Soy Foundation (WSF) has launched the Acre

Challenge, according to Executive Director Nathan Ruby, an invi-tation for farmers to donate proceeds from an acre of beans to“reduce malnutrition through the power of soy.”Ruby was on hand at the recent national Soy and Grain Trade

Summit to solicit support from commercial ag interests. Soyatech,an industry research/consulting firm and summit sponsor, provid-ed $20,000 to spur corporate donations.“We received our first gift from South Africa a few weeks ago,”

Ruby told FarmWeek. “We’ve received funding from Guatemala,from the (soybean) growers association in Brazil. We’d love tohave more farmers participate.”WSF estimates an acre of beans (roughly 42 bushels) can

meet the caloric needs of 80 people for a month.Farmers can make a direct, tax-deductible soybean donation at

their elevator or contribute the cash equivalent of an acre’s produc-tion. Visit WSF’s website {worldsoyfoundation.org} for information.The non-profit WSF addresses nutritional needs through:• Distribution of soy foods donated by manufacturers.• Aid to global small businesses across the soy “value

chain.” The idea is to deliver local products such as soy flour orsoy milk to needy populations and generate “micro-enterprises”that stimulate economic growth.Projects often focus on childhood/school nutrition. WSF is

kicking off efforts to supply “soy cows” to schools in Guatemala,where 54 percent of children are developmentally stunted as aresult of chronic malnutrition.The soy cow uses four pounds of beans and four gallons of

water to produce nearly four gallons of soy milk. Beyond thechance to boost protein intake among Central American stu-dents, “this becomes an opportunity to teach kids business, math,economics — to teach job skills,” Ruby said.Further, while soy cows have proliferated around the world,

Ruby cited no central source of training or business-technicalexpertise. WSF is eyeing an online solution for international idea-sharing. • Nutritional research focusing on soy’s impact on bodily

development and “brain growth.” A new focus of research isGhana, a West Africa nation with a stable government “that’sreally on an upward track,” Ruby said.• Soy nutrition education for young mothers, children, and

other groups that distribute soy products.As soy becomes a dietary staple and a commercial opportunity,

developing nations may build or expand crushing facilities, thusboosting demand potentially for U.S. beans. “Our core purposeis reducing malnutrition, whether through U.S. soy, Brazilian soy,whatever,” Ruby stressed. “But a rising tide lifts all ships.” — MartinRoss

Acknowledging a worldwhere water has become a pre-cious commodity, “micro-irriga-tion” pioneer Daniel Hillelargues less is proving to providemuch more.

Hillel, adjunct senior scientistat Columbia University’s EarthInstitute, has been awarded the2012 World Food Prize for pro-moting water-saving methodsand increasing crop productivityon arid lands in 30 countries. Hewas an innovator of micro-irri-gation — drip/trickle technolo-gy that feeds crops small, finelycalibrated amounts of water vs.what he deems traditional cycli-cal “flooding” of fields.

Working initially with farmersin Israel’s desert region in the1950s, Hillel helped foster low-volume, high-frequency irriga-tion to Jordan, Egypt, Sudan,Pakistan, and Turkey. The Unit-ed Nations Food and Agricul-ture Organization adopted hisconcepts in its sustainability ini-tiative, which has been imple-mented in Africa, Asia, Aus-tralia, and the Americas.

Expanded use of drip irriga-tion could reduce current globalag water use by 30 percent,according to Andrew Bell, seniorresearcher with the InternationalFood Policy Research Institute,which oversees corn, rice, and

‘Micro-irrigation’ re-examined to address worldwide water concerns

straints are “highly location-specific,” he stressed. Bellbelieves water management/-water use efficiency policies canhave as significant an impact inreducing ag water stress.

Bell urged continued supportfor investment in crop produc-tivity, crediting a nearly threefoldincrease in Illinois’ “rain-fed”corn yield from 1955 to 2008 toag research and development.

He recommends “greaterattention to risk management”as a way of sustaining produc-tion through high-stress peri-ods, and applauds House-Sen-ate farm lawmakers forattempting to bolster cropinsurance protections.

“I think the move in the(proposed 2012) farm billtoward crop insurance is goingto be really helpful in makingfarms more climate-resilient,”Bell told FarmWeek.

“At the same time, I thinkwe’re seeing a lot more flexibili-ty and adaptive behavior inwater management. I thinkwe’re seeing some innovationalthinking about water especiallyin the Southwest and South-east.”

other key research centers withWorld Bank support.

Potential for future global cli-mate extremes and variability,coupled with continued popula-tion growth, intensify the needfor optimal water use, Hillel toldFarmWeek.

“Urban areas have their ownenvironmental problems thatneed to be addressed, and, ofcourse, the issue of food sup-plies for cities — maintainingthem as the population increas-es,” Hillel said.

“We need to supply the foodand the fiber that agricultureproduces, and we need to pro-tect the environment. All this

requires much more precisionand cooperation — coopera-tion across farms and industriesand countries.”

“Precision irrigation” offerspotential to improve overall pre-cision farming in developingcountries, Hillel said.

Incorporating pesticides andfertilizers into water used for irri-gation can provide effective low-footprint protection in regionswhere water contamination is anissue. Bell reported precisionagriculture has shown distinctyield benefits in global wheatproduction. — Martin Ross

FaRM bUREaU NEwS

Page 9 Monday, October 1, 2012 FarmWeek

LIVINGSTON — FarmBureau, Livingston

County Soil and Water Con-servation District (SWCD),and the University of IllinoisExtension will sponsor theConservation and Ag Expofrom 9:30 a.m. to 2 p.m.Thursday at the LivingstonCounty 4-H Park, Pontiac.More than 1,600 students ingrades 1-5 will attend. Hands-on activities in stations willinclude forestry, water qualityand conservation, and farmsafety. Call Debbie Ruff atthe SWCD office at 815-844-6127, ext. 3, for more infor-mation.

STARK — The annualAntique Road Show will

WESALUTEAmerica’sYouth National

4-H Week & PAS WeekOctober 7-13, 2012

Illinois Farm Bureau®

Youth Education Committee:®

® Financial Services

MY7

69T2

Hodge named to head IFB member services Mark Frels to end36-year IFB career

Mike Hodge of Salem,currently a regional managerfor Illinois Farm Bureau, has

been namedIFB’s execu-tive directorof memberservices andpublic rela-tions (MSPR)effective Feb.1.

He willreplace Mark

Frels, who will retire Jan. 31after nearly 36 years withFarm Bureau.

Hodge will assume theposition of executive assis-tant at IFB beginning Nov. 1and serve in that role untilFrels retires.

Hodge began his career in1986 as a county FarmBureau manager trainee. Hewas named Boone CountyFarm Bureau manager in1987 and served there until

1989. He then served as Ran-dolph County Farm Bureaumanager through 2004.

In January 2005 heassumed his current role asmanager in Region 3, whichis comprised of 29 countiesin the center of the state.

Hodge earned a bachelor’sdegree in agribusiness eco-nomics from Southern Illi-nois University in 1986. Healso holds the certified asso-ciation executive designationfrom the American Societyof Association Executives.

Frels began his career withFarm Bureau in 1977 as theorganization’s youngest-evertrainee and manager (inKnox County). In 1986, hewas named Region 1 manag-er, and in 1993 he was pro-moted to executive directorof the field services division,which later became theMSPR division.

During his time as execu-tive director, IFB member-ship grew from 264,000 tomore than 400,000.

be at 9 a.m. Friday, Oct. 26, atthe Farm Bureau office. Bringone or two of your posses-sions for Jim Folger, FolgerAuction Service, to appraise.A light breakfast will beserved. Call the Farm Bureauoffice at 286-7481 for reserva-tions or more information.

VERMILION — FarmBureau, Vermilion

Advantage, and Neuhoff Mediawill sponsor a candidates’ forumat 7 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 11, atthe Farm Bureau auditorium.Candidates who represent Ver-milion County in the 15th Con-gressional District and IllinoisGeneral Assembly have beeninvited. The event will bestreamed live on 1490AM

WDAN and online at {www.ver-milioncountyfirst.com}.

CHECKING ON YIELDS

FROM THE COUNTIES

Mike Hodge

Cook County Farm Bureau Vice President and grain farmer Mike Rauch chats about his soybean crop withJapanese trade officials on his farm in Tinley Park. The officials are, from left, Masahide Horota, a repre-

sentative of the agriculture, forestry, fisheries, and food researchdivision of the Japan External Trade Organization; Ko Hikasa,consul for the consulate general of Japan in Chicago; and DaisukeKojo, director of agriculture for the Japan External Trade Organi-

zation. The Japanese were interested in learning how the drought impacted Rauch’s soybean yield. (Photoby Bona Heinsohn, Cook County Farm Bureau)

proFitability

FarmWeek Page 10 Monday, October 1, 2012

Export inspections(Million bushels)

Week ending Soybeans Wheat Corn09-20-12 12.1 22.4 24.209-13-12 10.0 29.4 28.3Last year 10.0 21.7 34.8Season total 34.8 331.0 61.9Previous season total 34.6 372.0 82.5USDA projected total 1055 1200 1250Crop 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. $16.11-$46.50 $37.7740 lbs. n/a n/a

Receipts This Week Last Week 119,826 104,790*Eastern Corn Belt prices picked up at seller’s farm

MARKET FACTS

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

This week Prev. week ChangeCarcass $74.39 $70.19 4.20 Live $55.05 $51.94 3.11

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

Steers 122.39 125.92 -3.53 Heifers 122.46 125.92 -3.46

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 143.05 142.37 0.68

CME feeder cattle index — 600-800 Lbs.

Lamb prices

(Thursday’s price)

Slaughter Prices - Negotiated, Live, wooled and shorn 130-180 lbs. for94.34-118 $/cwt. (wtd. ave. 108.30)

Aglime demand, supplies varyBY KAY SHIPMANFarmWeek

After harvest, many farmers’ thoughts turn to lime.Across Illinois, demand for and supplies of ag limestone

vary, depending on whether crops remain in the fields and thepH levels of the soils, according to aggregate suppliers.

“Demand is very high. We typically have high demand aslong as the weather holds,” said Jim Sergent of Hanson Materi-al Service, which has several locations around the state.

Sergent sells lime across a wide swath of Central Illinoisfrom the Illinois-Indiana border to just west of Springfield andfrom Bloomington south to Effingham.

Currently, high demand is coupled with tight supplies, Ser-gent noted. “We have farmers and aglime folks come from faraway to get it,” he said.

Larger customers have started stockpiling supplies in antici-pation of long waits at quarries, Sergent said.

Demand is not as high in Southern Illinois. “We don’t haveall the crops out,” explained Scott Robertson with Anna Quar-ries and Kinkaid Stone. Robertson sells aglime in six of thesouthernmost Illinois counties.

“Right now there is plenty (of supply) to meet demand,”Robertson said.

Over the last four years, Robertson said he has seen a steadyincrease in farmers’ use of aglime. However, those uses don’tcompare with more dramatic applications during the 1970s and1980s when many farmers were refurbishing pastures, he added.

Considerations for managing fertility following a droughtBY SID PARKS

Most of Illinois faced a verychallenging year with the 2012drought. Yield results are highlyvariable, and while some pro-ducers will still have a good yearresulting from higher commodi-ty prices or carryover stocks,many are justifiably cautious.

As harvest progresses to itsconclusion, thoughts will movetoward planning for next year.Here are several considerationsyou should factor in before

heading to the field in 2013:• A good approach to fertili-

ty management, regardless ofthe drought, is using yield mapsgenerated from global position-ing system-equipped yield mon-itors. That way, we can replacewhat actually was used by thecrop rather than estimatingyield levels or using averages.

• A current soil test (withinthree years). That is importantfor correctly assessing nutrientlevels and developing potential

fertilizer plans. This providesthe user a basis from whichrecommendations can be cre-ated. Unfortunately, someproducers have neglected thisarea in recent years.

If you need to update yoursoil tests, should you do it nowor wait until spring? Changingtime of year for the rest caninfluence nutrient levels, soconsistency is encouraged.However, the drought maycompromise getting accurateresults in several ways.

First, extremely dry, hard, orcompacted soils make probinga full seven inches more diffi-cult; shallow sampling can leadto biased results. Late-summerrainfall in some areas may havealleviated this concern forsome, but it could still be anissue for others.

Second, rain is needed toleach nutrients from cropresidue back into the soil pro-

file. Samplingimmediatelyafter harvestand beforerain performsthis functionmeans soilanalysis willnot measureplant-heldnutrients.

There also are challengeswith some nutrients beingmore tightly bound to soil sur-faces or trapped within claylayers. Excessive dryness mayaffect results.

In my experience, producerswhose fields did better than theyexpected or compared to someof their neighbors generally

managed for optimum fertility,and plant roots had an easiertime finding needed nutrients.

If fertility is neglected, andan environment short on mois-ture or other plant stressesappears as we saw in 2012,inadequate plant nutrition mayhave a direct negative effect onyour 2013 yields.

Your FS crop specialist hasmany tools available to helpmake sound agronomic recom-mendations. Good representa-tive soil testing and variable-rate nutrient management aretwo important methods formaximizing grower profitabili-ty while reducing risks.

Sid Parks is GROWMARK’smanager of precision farming. Hisemail address is sparks@grow-mark.com.

Sid Parks

BY DANIEL GRANTFarmWeek

The inventory of all hogs and pigs in theU.S. on Sept. 1, 67.47 million head, was upslightly from a year ago, USDA said Friday.

But that likely will change in comingmonths. Livestock economists Friday predictedthe swine industry will go through a contrac-tion phase, based on herdnumbers released in USDA’sSeptember hogs and pigsreport.

“We’ve made a U-turn,”Altin Kalo, chief economistwith Steiner Consulting Group,said during a teleconference hosted by theNational Pork Board. “In May and June pro-ducers were looking to expand the herd, butwith the latest numbers, we’re looking at adramatic reduction in the breeding herd.”

The breeding inventory, at 5.79 million head,decreased 1 percent from the previous quarter.

And, looking ahead, hog producers intend tofarrow just 2.85 million sows from Septemberthrough November (down 3 percent) and 2.82million sows from December through February(down 1 percent).

“The industry obviously is moving into acontractual phase,” said Dan Vaught, presi-dent of Vaught Futures Insight.

“It’s not surprising given the big surge incorn prices. It looks like that (higher cornprices) will continue to be the case (based onUSDA’s smaller-than-expected corn stocksestimate released Friday).

“I look for a smaller hog and pork supply bynext spring/summer and higher prices,” Vaughtsaid.

Kalo and University of Missouri ag econo-

mist Ron Plain projected carcass prices to aver-age between $76 and $79 per hundredweight inthe fourth quarter.

The economists projected carcass priceranges of $83 to $93 per hundredweight in thefirst quarter of next year, $93 to $97 in the sec-ond quarter, $93 to $99 in the third quarter,and $84 to $87 in the fourth quarter.

Hog prices recently plummeteddue to a massive run-up in slaugh-ter, which for the last seven weekswas 5.3 percent higher than thesame time last year, Plain reported.

Hog prices subsequentlydeclined from $90 per hundred-

weight in August to $63 by mid-September.“We had a tremendous increase in slaughter

and a tremendous drop in hog prices,” Plainsaid. “It looks like producers were respondingto red ink.

“The good news the rest of the quarter isslaughter should drop off and give an oppor-tunity for prices to rebound a bit,” Plain not-ed.

A reduction of breeding sows likely won’tmake a major dent in total pork supplies,though. Plain noted hog weights typicallyincrease about a half percent per year.

Meanwhile, the average pigs-saved-per-litternumber from June through August was arecord-high 10.03 head.

“Whatever cuts producers make in sowsand farrowing, it doesn’t translate to nearly asbig a cut in pork on the market due to produc-tivity gains,” Plain said.

In Illinois, the inventory of all hogs andpigs (4.65 million head) and market hogs (4.16million head) as of Sept. 1 was down 1 percentfrom a year ago.

Economists: Swine industry headed for contraction

Grain traders don’t see benefit of extended hoursGrain and oilseed traders

last week circulated a petitionasking the CME Group toreduce trading hours at theChicago Board of Trade(CBOT).

The CME Group, whichowns the CBOT, earlier thisyear expanded its trading hoursto compete with Interconti-nental Exchange Inc., whichoffers similar wheat, corn, andoilseed contracts with longertrading hours.

The CME Group recently

expanded its trading period from17 hours to 21 hours per day.

Some traders believe thelonger hours have spread outtrading volume, cut liquidity inthe markets, and increasedvolatility, the Chicago Tribunereported.

The CME Group as of latelast week had not responded tothe petition.

The expanded trading hoursalso prompted USDA tochange the release times ofsome of its key reports,

including its crop production,acreage, and grain stocksreports.

As of Jan. 1, key cropreports will be released at 11a.m. Central time instead ofthe current release time of7:30 a.m., USDA announcedlate last month. The change inreport release times was madeto allow for the greatest liquid-ity in the markets and providethe greatest access to reportsduring working hours in theU.S., USDA reported.

FarmWeekNow.com

Go to FarmWeekNow.com tolisten to analysts’ outlook forhogs this winter.

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CASH STRATEGISTCorn Strategy

ü2012 crop: The declineoff the August high has cometo an end. The unknown ishow far this move up mightextend. But because the 40-week cycle bottomed with lastweek’s low, you should be con-tent to give the market time.For now, we’d be patient tosee if December futures mightchallenge the 50-day movingaverage currently at $7.89 withmajor resistance at $7.95. Giv-en quality issues and cropinsurance regulations, careful-ly consider whether to storeany corn on the farm.

ü2013 crop: Use rallies to$6.44 on December 2013futures for catch-up sales.

vFundamentals: TheUSDA Sept. 1 stocks, 988 mil-lion bushels, were well belowexpectations. While manyuncertainties surround thestocks number, it will re-ignitethe argument that supply has-n’t been adequately rationed.But that could be counteredby supplies coming fromSouth America late this win-ter. Argentine farmers alreadyhave nearly 10 percent oftheir corn planted.

Soybean Strategyü2012 crop: Even though

the soybean stocks were a lit-tle higher than expected, aslong as there’s little reason todoubt demand, prices shouldmove higher after harvest.Last week’s low also was ideal-ly timed to be a cycle low, aswell as a seasonal low. Waitfor a move back to $16.90before making catch-up sales.

ü2013 crop: Use ralliesabove $13.70 on November2013 futures for catch-upsales.

vFundamentals: Eventhough the Sept. 1 stocksnumber “padded” the supplya little, there’s still reason tothink prices could move to anew high. The industry isgoing to need to see indica-tions that demand is fallingshort of current expectationsto diminish its bullish attitude.It may take until middle tolate November before there isgood insight on demand forthis year’s crop. Planting hasstarted in northern Brazil. Itis said to already be 10 days

ahead of last year, with pro-ducers said to be plantingmore short-season varieties.

Wheat Strategyü2012 crop: The friendly

USDA wheat stocks numbershould turn the short-termtrend from down to up. It stillis unlikely wheat will test highsin the near-term, but Decem-ber futures could probe the$9.25-$9.50 resistance again.Use rallies above $9.25 onChicago December futures forcatch-up sales.

ü2013 crop: Make catch-up sales with Chicago Julyfutures trading above $8.65.

Check the Hotline; we couldadd a sale at any time.

vFundamentals: USDAestimated the Sept. 1 wheatstocks at 2.104 billion bushels.The trade was looking for2.281 billion. This suggeststhe amount of wheat fed inthe summer quarter was signif-icantly larger than everyonehad anticipated. Exportdemand continues to be soft, asituation brought on by U.S.prices still at a premium toother exporting countries.Unless the pace picks up thiswinter, it may be difficult toreach the current USDAexport estimate.

Cents per bu.

Corn stocks tighter than expected

Page 11 Monday, October 1, 2012

Meanwhile, red meat andpoultry output this summerwere nearly 1 percent belowlast year. If poultry is elimi-nated because the birds con-sume a high-protein ration, redmeat output this summer wasonly a half percent above lastyear. Clearly that doesn’t fitwith feed consumption being20 percent larger than a yearago. It’s even larger than it wastwo years ago.

In the end, the corn stocksnumber is friendly because itwas below expectations. Butwith the uncertain statisticalfit, there’s enough uncertaintythat it may not be able todrive prices to new highsunless the crop is significantlysmaller than currently fore-cast.

The soybean stocks numberpresented quite the oppositepicture. The 169-million-bushel Sept. 1 inventory was35 million to 40 million aboveexpectations. USDA revisedlast year’s crop up 38 millionbushels to counter the shift, anormal practice.

More important, the largerinventory is the equivalent toadding a half bushel to theyield for the new crop. That’simportant with the talk circu-lating over the last week thatthis crop’s yield could berevised upward. Some talk hasbeen the hike may be as highas 3 bushels, but we doubt itwill be much more than 1 to1.5 bushels higher, if there isan increase.

Even with the boost instocks and potential forincrease in production for thisyear, the supply/demand tablestill will be relatively tight.Until signs of rationing sur-face, prices should have a posi-tive bias. It could bemiddle/late November beforea reliable sign of rationingmight surface.

While few in the farmcommunity will argue withUSDA’s Sept. 1 corn stocksnumber, it still leaves morequestions than answers. Mostnotably, what happened to the1.2 billion bushels of newcrop that was estimated tohave been harvested beforeSept. 1.

The past couple of years,those supplies were thought tohave displaced old-crop sup-plies, boosting the supply ofold-crop corn in inventory onSeptember 1.

The supply of new cropharvested in August this yearwas 700 million bushels larg-er than it was last year. Whilenot all of that would havemade it into the pipeline,we’d estimate that as much as400 million bushels of itmight have, especially giventhe high prices. That wouldsuggest ending stocks wouldhave been 588 millionbushels had new crop notbeen available.

Further muddying the pic-ture was the Sept. 1 wheatstocks number. It impliessomething near 425 millionbushels could have been fed inthe summer quarter. That’smore than double last year,and the largest summer wheatfeeding since 1988.

After distillers’ grains areadded in, the implied sum-mer corn feeding was aslarge as last year. But afteradding implied wheat feed-ing, the amount ofcorn/wheat/distillers’ grainequivalents comes in 225million bushels higher thanlast year. That’s more than a20 percent jump.

pERspEcTIvEs

FarmWeek Page 12 Monday, October 1, 2012

Don’t blame employeesfor state’s fiscal woesEditor:

After reading the Sept. 3FarmWeek about lack of pen-sion reform, I had to write andput in my 2 cents worth.

I worked for the State of Illi-nois for 34 years (many of theseissuing food stamps to those inneed). During that time I alsopaid into the state pension plan,hoping to have a comfortable,

not rich, pension when I retired.In the meantime, our politi-

cians in Springfield mishandledour pension funds and spentthem on other things over sev-eral years, creating the crisis.

Many reports make it soundas though the retirees are toblame for the money problem.

I am also aware that the fed-eral government hasn’t passedthe agriculture bill, wanting towait until after the election.

That is not a help to farmers,which includes me.

Those bills also cover thefood stamp programs whichthey wish to slash big timewhen folks are really in need.

So don’t pick on the stateretirees as the reason our stateis broke. We worked darn hardunder many conditions thatothers wouldn’t.NANCY JOHNSON, Rockford

Letter writing policyLetters are limited to 300 words and must include a name and

address. FarmWeek reserves the right to reject any letter andwill not publish political endorsements.

All letters are subject to editing, and only an original with awritten signature and complete address will be accepted.

A daytime telephone number is required for verification, butwill not be published. Only one letter per writer will beaccepted in a 60-day period. Typed letters are preferred.

Send letters to: FarmWeek Letters

1701 Towanda Ave.Bloomington, Ill., 61701

LETTER TO THE EDITOR

Unfortunately, the economicoutlook has not changed muchin the last month.

Europeanshave come backfrom theirAugust vaca-tions but stillnot made anydecisionsregarding theirsovereign debtproblems.

On Sept. 12,the German

Federal Constitutional Courtruled Germany can participatein the European Central Bank(ECB) bond buying program,the purpose of which is to helpkeep interest rates lower in theperipheral countries of Spainand Italy.

Since Germany is the lynch-pin in helping to finance theECB on this venture, if theGerman courts had ruled it ille-

gal, it would certainly under-mine the efforts of the ECB tosupport the bonds of Spainand Italy. Even though buyingthe bonds of Spain and Italyhelps reduce their borrowingcosts, it’s not sustainable anddoes not solve their main prob-lem — too much debt for thesize of their economies.

The action buys some time,but the countries still mustreduce their debts or face eco-nomic stagnation similar towhat Japan has experienced for20 years.

In the U.S., all eyes were onthe Federal Reserve.

Based on the very pooremployment report released onSept. 7, the Fed was expectedand did embark on anotherround of quantitative easing,which would be known asQE3, because this is the thirdtime the Fed has done thissince 2008.

While each round had a posi-tive effect on the financial mar-kets, the impact has decreasedwith each subsequent round.

We also worry about the factthat QE is even necessary in aneconomy that allegedly has beenout of recession since June of2009. We can’t remember anytime when the Fed was still try-ing to stimulate the economythree-plus years into a recovery.

There is very little going onin the real economy. Employ-ment is weak, industrial produc-tion is declining, and the U.S.has sovereign debt problemsonly slightly better than those ofthe Europeans.

On the plus side, earnings onthe Standard & Poor (S&P) 500continue to advance, but mostlybecause of cost cutting by com-panies with wage cuts being thebiggest driver.

Corporate America is gener-ating large amounts of cash,

which it then stockpiles. Divi-dends have increased and com-panies continue to invest intheir plants and equipment butnot at the pace expected basedon earnings. We believe thestockpiling is due to fear aboutthe lack of demand and uncer-tainty about future costs ofdoing business.

The S&P 500 is up about14.3 percent year-to-date, notcounting dividends. It isapproaching the all-time highslast seen in the fall of 2007when the index hit 1460. Itseemed back then that the stockmarket was making new highseven though the economy wasstalling.

The situation today lookseerily similar, except interestrates are a lot lower today.Stocks seem to be the only assetin which investors feel they canmake money.

Treasury bonds due in 10

years yield about 1.6 percent,which is not very attractive.Money market rates are evenworse, returning about 0.15 of apercent.

Some investors are consider-ing high-yield bonds and othervery risky assets in an effort toboost returns. The prices ofthese assets also are rising dueto investor demand and theFed’s easy-money monetarypolicies.

Our fear is that investors donot understand the increasedrisks they are taking with theirhard-earned money and that theunderpinnings of the increasesin asset prices are gettingstretched.

We would like to get morepositive on the financial mar-kets, but rational thought pro-hibits it.

Bruce Finks is the vice president forinvestments at Country Financial.

The Fourth of July began asyet another hot summer day forme this year. What would I do?

Confirm our plans for theday. Get some things donearound the house and farm. Par-ticipate in a local parade. Dust

off the oldtrombone forthe band con-cert that night,and, followingthat, watch fire-works withfriends andfamily.

Almost aroutine withoutthought or con-

cern for the significance of thathistoric day back in 1776, nor thejoys, sorrows, and turmoil ourdear country and its citizens haveendured since then.

But as often happens, some-thing changed the routine: Dur-ing the parade, a small brassband a couple units behind usbegan playing some patrioticsongs.

We all know them: the simple,easy ones that put a spring inyour step. As they played “You’rea Grand Old Flag” and “YankeeDoodle Dandy” I couldn’t helpbut smile and think of James

Cagney starring in the role ofGeorge M. Cohan, tap-dancing,singing, and wearing hisunabashed and unwavering patri-otism on his sleeve.

That evening as our smallmunicipal band performed musicof “The Blue and the Gray,” Ithought of the one-half millionmen who died and more thanone million casualties in thebloody Civil War.

Later as we played “Tribute toAmerica’s Finest,” a medley ofsongs for our armed services, Iscanned the audience for thosewho stood to be recognized fortheir service: some older, somemiddle-aged, and yes, someyoung.

The audience robustlyapplauded them as they stood.They have earned no less. We fin-ished the concert in proper fash-ion: John Philip Sousa’s “Starsand Stripes Forever” with thefireworks beginning as we played.

As we viewed the fireworks, Ireflected on the events of the dayand how fortunate I was to havebeen born in this country and theresponsibilities I have to her.

Of these there is one that ismost precious: the right to vote.This, of course, brings me to thepurpose of this column and why

I gladly accepted the invitation towrite it.

The Illinois Farm Bureau hasmade it a priority to encourageour members to “Get Out theVote” for this November’s elec-tion.

In 2012, we Americans andparticularly we in agriculture haveas much at stake in this generalelection as any in recent memory.

Pollsters continue to noteincreasing trends over manyyears, not just recent polls, whereAmericans say they have lessconfidence in their governmentor they say our country or theirstate is “on the wrong track.”

My advice to those givingpollsters those answers: Vote —elections matter.

There are many consequencesto this year’s election, includingthe role and size we want in ourgovernment. How do we addressnational and state debt, pensionobligations, entitlements, servicesto senior citizens and those onwelfare? What is the bestapproach to revive our economyand create jobs? What is theproper level of taxation?

In agriculture, we specificallyhave issues and concerns thatonly elections can address: thefreedom to operate our farms

safely and efficiently withoutonerous and intrusive regulation.

Should special-interest groupsdictate which foods are betterthan others or what determinesthe best animal husbandry prac-tices?

On these and other issues weneed to ask candidates for theirpositions. Being informed is thefirst step toward motivatingyourself and others to go to thepolls.

If I have convinced you tovote in November, I’ve onlyachieved the first of three partsof my goal. I now want toencourage you to get yourfriends and family out to vote onelection day.

Election history is filled withstories of how a few or even onevote has turned an entire elec-tion. We all need to make a dif-ference.

What’s the final mission ofthis column?

To urge you to join in to helpyour candidate or candidates intheir campaigns.

Farmers have plenty ofprime real estate for campaignsigns. Consider volunteering toput up signs on your farm andseek other desirable places fromyour neighbors. Attend candi-

date forums and other eventssuch as fundraisers.

There is no better time or wayto begin a relationship with yourcurrent or future legislator.

Mission accomplished? Am Iasking too much of myself orothers to “Get Out the Vote” orto join in support of a candi-date?

My only response is to readfrom the Declaration of Inde-pendence signed that day inPhiladelphia, where those patri-ots signed under the words,“...we mutually pledge to eachother our Lives, our Fortunesand our sacred Honor.”

Asking too much? Not forme. I’m going to support mycandidates and vote. You should,too.

Chuck Cawley, Illinois Farm Bureaudirector from Rochelle, chairs the IFBBoard Illinois Government Committee.

World’s economy not showing improvement, remains in the doldrums

BRUCEFINKS

CHUCKCAWLEY

Show your patriotism: Exercise your right to vote