FarmWeek March 19, 2012 edition

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Monday, March 19, 2012 Three sections Volume 40, No. 12

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

WHeTHer you Spell iTsyrup or sirup, it’s time to turnmaple sap into the sweet stuff at thehistoric Funk Farm near Shirley, justas has happened for decades. .........5

THe AMericAn FArMBureau Federation hailed inclusionof amendments in a highway billthat would extend ag truckingexemptions. .......................................4

SeriouS DiScuSSionlaced with laughter was evidentwhen I l l i no i s Fa r m Fami l i e s“field moms” visited a hog farmearlier this month. ......................3

Jake Lieb, Ivesdale, left, and his brother, Josh, of Hammond made last-minute adjustments to their equipment inan 80-acre field near Monticello last week before they began fieldwork for the year. They farm with their father,Terry Lieb, president of the Piatt County Farm Bureau. The brothers were a little concerned about a lack of soilmoisture since there has been no water in their tiles since June of 2011. The Liebs also have 22 head of bison,which they raise to sell for meat. Their website is {liebfarms.com}. In some parts of Illinois, farmers last weekwere putting corn in the ground. (Photo by Ken Kashian)

‘Deep loss’ farm program prospects dimming? BY MARTIN ROSSFarmWeek

Given current indications,Congress may prove reluctantto “go deep” in devising rev-enue protections in the 2012farm bill.

American Farm BureauFederation (AFBF) PresidentBob Stallman testified lastweek at a Senate Ag Commit-tee hearing that focused onthe farm bill commodity titleand producer risk manage-ment.

He reiterated AFBF sup-port for a strong crop insur-ance program and a new“deep loss” revenue programthat would provide protectionfor disaster or near-disasterlevel farm losses.

That program proposes“f l ipping the government’srole in terms of a safetynet,” covering seriousarea-wide losses in anyprogram or federally in-

sured crop, Stal lman said.According to Stallman, the

deep loss proposal is aimed atreducing budget costs and ad-dressing growing skepticismtoward “annual income pay-ments” such as direct or fre-quent countercyclical pay-ments.

AFBF’s plan emerged lastfall as ag committees assem-bled a farm bill proposal for acongressional deficit “supercommittee.”

AFBF since has awaited aCongressional Budget Office(CBO) “score” of the propos-al’s projected long-termcost — a prerequisite to leg-islative consideration — andStallman said AFBF was opento “discussions in some otherareas” if CBO could not deliv-er “in time.”

Several commodity groupshave come out in favor of a“shallow loss” program, whichwould supplement crop insur-

ance withcoverage ofmore minorlosses. Fur-ther, AFBF’splan has re-ceived amixed recep-tion evenwithin FarmBureau.

Though the deep loss con-cept was approved by AFBFdelegates in January, Arkansas,Louisiana, and MississippiFarm Bureaus since have offi-cially dissented from the orga-nization’s farm bill policy pro-posal.

Illinois Farm Bureau neverconsidered dissenting fromAFBF policy, IFB NationalLegislative Director AdamNielsen said.

However, efforts since lastsummer’s final IFB Farm Poli-cy Task Force report have fo-cused on building support for

a farm bill that centers oncrop insurance and includes animproved revenue-based safetynet, he said.

“After a year and a half ofstudy and after taking into ac-count the current budgetarysituation, our leaders told usclearly and unequivocally whatthey wanted to see in the nextfarm bill,” Nielsen said.

“We’ve been active in thefarm bill debate since last Au-gust, when the farm bill wasbeing written, and we will con-tinue to be engaged until a newbill is written and passed.”

Stallman conceded the deeploss concept is “somewhat rev-olutionary compared to themore evolutionary changesthat normally occur in farmpolicy.” University of Illinoisag economist Nick Paulsonagrees — and that may be thehitch.

A shallow loss programwould provide more “supple-

mental” protection with cropinsurance as the “baseline pro-gram,” while a deep loss pro-gram likely would overlap withexisting insurance coverage,Paulson said.

He sees a broad producer“consensus” toward farm billprotection of crop insurance.

“Politically, for better orworse, moving toward whatpeople are calling a shallowloss program probably is likelyto be more acceptable —something that will work withthe programs we actuallyhave,” he told FarmWeek.

“I think the (deep loss pro-gram) is arguably a better idea,if we could start over fromsquare one.

“But given the fact that wehave an established crop insur-ance program, it would be a lottougher sale to have a (deeploss) program and then re-design crop insurance aroundthat.”

Unseasonably warm weather could have some drawbacksBY DANIEL GRANTFarmWeek

Many Illinoisans welcomedthe blast of unseasonably warmair last week as temperatures atmany locations neared or ex-ceeded 80 degrees.

Jim Angel, climatologist withthe Illinois State Water Survey

(ISWS), reported high tempera-tures last week set new recordsat numerous locations aroundthe state, including Champaignwhere the mercury the middleof last week hit 80 degreescompared to the normal highof 51.

In Alton, the temperaturereached an early-summer-like85 degrees.

“For the state in general, theaverage high in March usually isin the 60s in Southern Illinois,the low- to mid-50s in CentralIllinois, and upper 40s inNorthern Illinois,” Angel toldFarmWeek. “That tells youhow far off we are from nor-mal for this time of year.”

The warm trend was project-ed to continue as the NationalWeather Service outlookthrough the end of this monthcalled for a much greaterchance of above normal tem-peratures.

The unseasonably warmtemperatures accelerated thedevelopment of plants, includ-ing winter wheat, grass, andtrees, and raised the soil tem-

perature by nearly 10 degreeslast week.

There were scattered reportsof farmers around the stateplanting corn Friday.

Topsoil temperatures at late

week averaged between 61 and64 degrees in Southern Illinois,54 and 59 degrees in CentralIllinois, and 52 and 55 degreesin Northern Illinois, accordingto ISWS.

However, Angel last week saidhe was concerned the early heatwave could have some negativeconsequences down the road.

Bob Stallman

See Weather, page 6

LIGHTSQUARED PETITION — In a filing with theFederal Communications Commission’s (FCC) InternationalBureau last week, American Farm Bureau Federation(AFBF) and others argued that “high-precision GPS (globalpositioning system) technology is vitally important toAmerican agriculture, and would be gravely harmed byLightSquared’s plans.”

The groups urged FCC “to adopt without delay” FarmBureau proposals to withdraw a conditional waiver itrecently granted LightSquared allowing it to develop aground-based wholesale 4G wireless broadband communi-cations network integrated with satellite coverage across theU.S.

The FCC petition was also signed by the American Soy-bean Association, Association of Equipment Manufactur-ers, National Association of Wheat Growers, National CornGrowers Association, National Council of Farmer Cooper-atives, and a variety of other grower groups.

The petition cited an economic study which showed thatGPS increased 2007-2010 crop yields by about $20 billionin value per year. “We remain strong supporters of expand-ed broadband access in rural America,” it stated. “However,expanded broadband access cannot come at the expense ofdegraded access to high-precision GPS for U.S. farmers.”

ILLINOIS FARM FAMILIES, IHSA BASKETBALL— Fans of Illinois High School Association (IHSA) statebasketball games saw more than dunks and rebounds whenthey tuned in to watch their favorite teams compete at state.

Commercials promoting farming and Illinois Farm Fami-lies (IFF) were aired during the televised games. Countrydonated spots for the IFF commercials.

The commercials feature Aledo farmer Matt DeBlockwho tells how his children love growing up on a farm, andMazon farmer Donna Jeschke who discusses the importanceof producing safe food. The commercials were filmed lastyear by the Illinois Farm Bureau audio visual department.

H A P P Y 1 S T A N N I V E R S A R Y FA R M D O CDAILY — The University of Illinois’ farmdoc daily, a web-site designed to focus on Corn Belt farm economics, hasmarked a unique milestone.

The fledgling website, directed at the commercial agricul-ture sector, has published an original article of research-based analysis and information every business day since itwas launched on March 17, 2011.

The goal was to complement the original farmdoc and tofit modern technology, according to Scott Irwin, farmdocdaily team leader.

Farmdoc daily marries the “blog revolution” with the ideaof a daily newspaper.

“We wanted to use the blog format because it’s simple,and it presents information the way people are used to see-ing it electronically now,” Irwin said.

“But we didn’t want to do a blog in the conventionalsense of an opinion journal. So we came up with an ideathat was closer to a newspaper that published one article aday — an original piece of analysis directed at a farm-levelaudience.”

FarmWeek Page 2 Monday, March 19, 2012

(ISSN0197-6680)

Vol. 40 No. 12 March 19, 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.

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

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

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© 2012 Illinois Agricultural Association

STAFFEditorDave McClelland ([email protected])

Legislative Affairs EditorKay Shipman ([email protected])

Agricultural Affairs EditorMartin Ross ([email protected])

Senior Commodities EditorDaniel Grant ([email protected])

Editorial AssistantLinda Goltz ([email protected])

Business Production ManagerBob Standard ([email protected])

Advertising Sales ManagerRichard Verdery ([email protected])

Classified sales coordinatorNan Fannin ([email protected])

Director of News and Communications

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

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

Quick TakesAROUND IllINOIs

BY KAY SHIPMANFarmWeek

Friday morning capped the latest actionto obtain federal disaster aid for tornado-damaged counties in Southern Illinois.

Gov. Pat Quinn appealed the FederalEmergency Management Agency’s (FEMA)denial of federal disaster assistance for fivecounties.

It capped a roller coaster week for stateand local officials who marshaled Illinois’formidable congressional power to chal-lenge FEMA’s decision.

U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin, a SpringfieldDemocrat, took his concerns directly toFEMA Administrator Craig Fugate.

Durbin later reported the federal agencywould allow the state to recalculate theamount of damage from the Feb. 29 stormsthat killed seven people in Harrisburg.

The EF-4 tornado that hit Southern Illi-nois “was the biggest, meanest, mostdestructive tornado in our history,” Durbinsaid during a news conference.

In addition to Durbin, Illinois’ effortswere aided by the staff of Sen. Mark Kirk,

a Highland Park Republican, and U.S. Reps.Jerry Costello (D-Belleville) and JohnShimkus (R-Collinsville).

The state’s appeal included additionalinformation on damages to homes as wellas socioeconomic information that willillustrate why recovery would be difficult,if not impossible, for many people withoutfederal assistance, according to Quinn.

On Thursday, personnel from the Illi-nois Emergency Management Agency(IEMA) and FEMA returned to Harrisburgand Ridgway to visit homes recently identi-fied as being damaged by the tornadoesand to gather more damage information.

The original assessment documentedthat 104 homes in Gallatin, Randolph,Saline, Union, and Williamson countieshad been destroyed, 50 homes had majordamage, and 272 others also were damaged.State officials were notified March 10 thatFEMA had denied the request.

If the state’s appeal is approved, a feder-al disaster declaration would make assis-tance available to those affected by the tor-nadoes and storms.

State appeals FEMA aid denial

University of Illinois Exten-sion offices will serve as pollinglocations for the Illinois CornMarketing Act referendumMarch 28.

Illinois producers activelyengaged in the production andmarketing of corn are eligibleto cast ballots in the referen-dum, which seeks to increasethe voluntary corn checkoffrate by a quarter-cent perbushel.

Voting will take place duringnormal business hours. A com-plete list of polling locations is

available online at{http://web.extension.illin-ois.edu/state/}. Click on “Findan Office” on the left side ofthe homepage.

The referendum was sched-uled by the Illinois Departmentof Agriculture (IDOA) at therequest of the Illinois CornMarketing Board.

A favorable vote wouldresult in increasing the vol-untary corn checkoff ratefrom 3/8 of a cent perbushel to 5/8 of a cent.Corn farmers still would

have the right to a fullrefund.

Eligible voters who cannotbe at the polls on March 28may cast an absentee ballot.Absentee ballots must berequested in writing fromIDOA and are due no later thanthis Friday, March 23.

Requests for absentee ballotsshould be sent to: Director, Illi-nois Department of Agricul-ture, Attn: Bureau of Marketingand Promotion, State Fair-grounds, P.O. Box 19281,Springfield, IL 62794-9281.

Corn referendum vote March 28 at Extension offices

March 22 On-the-Road seminar, 6 p.m., Cass-Morgan FarmBureau, Jacksonville.

March 27Meet the buyer meeting, 8:30 a.m., Champaign CountyFarm Bureau, Champaign. March 22 registration dead-line. Call 217-352-5235.

March 28Agriculture Legislative Day, State Capitol,Springfield.

March 29East-Central Illinois Regional Water Conference, 8a.m., Holiday Inn, Urbana. Call 217-493-7407.

On-the-Road seminar, 9:30 a.m., University ofIllinois Extension office, Hardin.

On-the-Road seminar, 7 p.m., Livingston CountyFarm Bureau, Pontiac.

April 4Meet the buyer meeting, 8:30 a.m., John LoganCommunity College, Carterville. March 30 registra-tion deadline. Call 618-993-2609.

May 12IAA Foundation 5K Grow and Go, Illinois FarmBureau headquarters, Bloomington.

DATEBOOKRegional water conference set

New information aboutthe Mahomet Aquifer andimplications for water supplyplanning in East-Central Illi-nois will be presented March29 from 8 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. ata regional water stakeholders’conference.

The event will be in theHoliday Inn, Urbana.

The registration fee is $30for adults and $20 for stu-dents. The fee includes lunchand refreshments.

Checks should be madepayable to Mahomet AquiferConsortium.

Registration informationalong with the fee should bemailed to: Earth Partners,Robbie Berg, 801 N. CountryFair Drive, Champaign, Ill.61821.

For more information, con-tact Berg at [email protected] or call 217-493-7407.

Conference information isavailable online at {www.mahometaquiferconsor-tium.org}.

CONSUMER OUTREACH

Page 3 Monday, March 19, 2012 FarmWeek

A nearby sow chewing on a metal bar wasn’tbored, but was doing something that came nat-urally, Janeen Salak-Johnson explained last weekto Pilar Clark as the two women strolledbetween pens on Eldon Gould’s hog farm nearMaple Park.

The hog buildings became an impromptuclassroom for Salak-Johnson, a University ofIllinois scientist who specializes in animalbehavior and well being, during a tour by Clarkand her fellow Illinois Farm Families (IFF) fieldmoms. The field moms are urban mothers whohave questions about food, farmers, and farm-ing.

“I’ve been really impressed. They’re (thefield moms) asking questions, and the rightquestions. I’m a big advocate that they are yourtarget audience,” Salak-Johnson said after sheand six field moms toured a couple of hogbuildings.

During her noon presentation, Salak-John-son, a national expert in swine housing and wellbeing, gave the women a crash course on Euro-

pean Union rules that require group swinehousing, despite no scientific evidence provinganimal health would improve in group pens.

She continued that human perceptions andemotions are being applied to U.S. hog housingsystems, and her goal is to improve animals’well being.

“It (gestation stalls) can be improved, but wehave to base it on science,” Salak-Johnson said.

The researcher’s comments made an impacton some of the field moms.

Before Salak-Johnson spoke, a couple of themoms told FarmWeek they had been botheredby the amount of space in a gestation stall andthe sows’ inability to turn. After listening toSalak-Johnson, the same women acknowledgedthey had applied their own perceptions to whatsows would want.

“It seems like they are a more delicate animaland that they have very specific needs,” Clarksaid. “The (animal) activists forget these aredomesticated animals, and they depend onus.” — Kay Shipman

U of I scientist helps moms understand hog care

Janeen Salak-Johnson, right, an animal science profes-sor at the University of Illinois, answers a question aboutswine housing from Pilar Clark, an Illinois Farm Families“field mom” from Lisle, during a tour of the Eldon and

Chris Gould farm near Maple Park in Kane County.(Photo by Ken Kashian) To view additional photos online,visit “Ken Kashian’s Photo Gallery” located under theElectronic Media & Publications tab at {www.ilfb.org}.


In-depth questionsand answers aboutsow behavior andcare were punctuat-ed by laughter when

six non-farm mothers touredthe Eldon and Chris Gouldfarm near Maple Park in KaneCounty.

The “field moms” partici-pated in a tour earlier thismonth that focused on swineand was sponsored by Illinois

Farm Families (IFF). TheGould families have a 750-sow breed-to-wean opera-tion.

IFF is a coalition of com-modity groups for beef, corn,soybeans, pork, and the Illi-nois Farm Bureau.

The visitors watched asow give birth and cuddledbaby pigs. They gasped at thesize of a huge boar and pep-pered Eldon and SandyGould and their children,Chris and Lynda, the latter aveterinarian, with questions.

“We treat each sow as anindividual and give them allthe TLC (tender loving care)so they are the most pam-pered pigs you can imagine,”Eldon Gould told the moms.

Chris Gould added: “Wehave no incentive to mistreatour animals. We have everyincentive to take care ofthem as well as we can.That’s when they produce thebest.”

Some questions werefielded by Janeen Salak-John-son, a University of Illinoisanimal science professor who

specializes in animal behav-ior and care.

During a discussion ofhierarchy within a group ofhogs, Salak-Johnsonexplained sows may choosenot to interact with their penneighbors “like a womanwho may not like the womanon the left.”

Her response and otherlight-hearted banter illustrat-ed the field moms felt com-fortable asking a variety ofquestions, including someabout gestation stalls.

After the tour, BetsieEstes, a field mom from ElkGrove Village, toldFarmWeek she wasimpressed by the animals’cleanliness.

“From what we saw, thesows are comfortable,” addedFarrah Brown, a field momfrom Glendale Heights. “Idon’t see it as being inhu-mane. They are comfortableand well cared for ... I don’tsee the big deal.”

“I was surprised by theTLC and how they treat eachanimal as an individual eventhough there were so many,”said Pilar Clark, a field momfrom Lisle.

“It makes the best sense

for you guys to take care ofyour animals the best youcan,” Jenn Weis, a field momfrom Big Rock, told theGoulds. Weis acknowledgedshe hadn’t thought previouslyabout what is involved withraising hogs or their needs.

“That’s why it’s so power-ful for us to come here andto learn and know,” she con-tinued. “I’ll be out there andsay, ‘I know the facts.’”

Hogs, humor highlight ‘field moms’ farm tour

Above: Kane County farmer Chris Gould holds anewborn pig wrapped in a towel as Illinois FarmFamilies “field moms” snap photos during theirMarch 10 tour of the Maple Park hog operation. Thewomen watched as the sow gave birth and recorded

the event. Upper left: Illinois Farm Families “fieldmoms” Farrah Brown, left, of Glendale Heights, andJenn Weis of Big Rock reassure a baby pig during atour of the Eldon and Chris Gould farm near MaplePark in Kane County. (Photos by Ken Kashian)

FarmWeekNow.com

Check ou t our la tes t pho togallery and the IFF website atFarmWeekNow.com.

In the opinion of Springfield Democrat U.S.Sen. Dick Durbin, the Senate has completedthe long-awaited new federal highway bill — ifthe House will sign off on it.

House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) haseffectively “removed” House Transportationand Infrastructure Chairman John Mica (R-Ohio) from the highway bill process followingrecent failure of two “politically controversial”variations of Mica’s hybrid energy-transporta-tion plan, Durbin told FarmWeek last week.

“They couldn’t pass the House, let alone theSenate,” the Senate majority whip argued. “Thebest thing the House can do is pick up the billthe Senate just passed.

“The overwhelming (Senate) vote in favorof this bill (74-22) tells you we have a goodbipartisan effort here. If they bring that to thefloor of the House, I think they have a goodchance of passing it.”

In addition to Farm Bureau’s support forthe bill’s ag trucking provisions (see accompa-nying story), American Trucking AssociationsCEO Bill Graves praised the package’s pro-posed $2 billion a year in funding for highwayfreight-specific projects, measures aimed atspeeding project approvals, and avoidance of“the tempting but ill-advised use of tolls onexisting interstates.”

Further, individual states would be givengreater discretion in how and where they spendfederal highway funds.

However, key differences remain betweenSenate and House proposals.

The Senate passed a two-year, $109 bil-lion transportation package that includesmass transit spending, well below the fund-ing level proposed under a five-year HouseRepublican plan that omits transit projects.— Martin Ross

GOVERNMENT


Durbin: Senate bill best House option

Ag trucking exemptions clear Senate

Federal lawmakers reject highway bill energy amendments BY MARTIN ROSSFarmWeek

Faced with an administrationcall for an “all-of-the-above”domestic energy strategy, theSenate last week opted essen-tially for none of the above.

Biodiesel interests blastedSenate rejection of separateproposals by Senate Ag Com-mittee Chairman DebStabenow (D-Mich.) and Sen.Pat Roberts (R-Kan.) to extendan expired $1-per-gallonbiodiesel tax credit as part ofthe Senate highway bill.

Nearly 90 lawmakers com-bined voted along party linesfor one of the two amend-ments, but neither Stabenow’srenewables-focused measurenor Roberts’ otherwise fossilfuel-oriented proposal couldmuster the 60 votes needed forinclusion in the highway bill.

The failed Stabenow amend-ment also would have extendedwind energy incentives. Sena-tors nixed proposals forAlaskan oil drilling, construc-tion of a proposed Canada-to-Texas Keystone oil pipeline,and support for natural gasvehicles.

“I think they wanted to keep

the bill tied to transportation,”American Farm Bureau Federa-tion (AFBF) policy specialistAndrew Walmsley toldFarmWeek.

AFBF hailed inclusion ofamendments that would extendag trucking exemptions. Sens.Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) andRoberts proposal to exemptfarm, co-op, or agribusinesses

drivers from “time card-type”hours-of-service requirementswhen they move goods or farmsupplies within 100 air-miles.

A second bipartisan amend-ment would exempt farm vehi-cle drivers from obtaining acommercial driver’s license andfrom regulations aimed at thelong-haul trucking industry.

The House now must take

up the highway bill debate.House Transportation Chair-man John Mica (R-Fla.) favors alonger five-year bill and hasspearheaded a marriage ofenergy and transportation pro-posals — Walmsley notedMica’s indication that he “wantsto leave his touch” on Senateproposals.

Renewable energy interests

blasted Senate actions. Ameri-can Wind Energy AssociationCEO Denise Bode argued“tens of thousands of Ameri-can jobs are being put in perilby partisan gridlock in Wash-ington.”

National Biodiesel Board(NBB) Vice President AnneSteckel sees “the very real pos-sibility that biodiesel plants willgo out of business.”

Walmsley stressed theimportance of U.S. energysecurity, through petroleumand renewables development.But he noted Democrat resist-ance to new drilling and a vocalconservative “anti-green energybandwagon.”

NBB spokesman Ben Evansnonetheless argues bipartisanbiodiesel credit support “sendsa really strong message” to law-makers amid public frustrationover “oil price spikes.”

“There’s really no reasonwhy something like this shouldget caught up in these largerpartisan issues,” Evans toldFarmWeek. “We’re going tokeep asking Congress to find away to pass it, whether in this(highway) bill or in somethingelse that comes along.”

Tractor firms strive to meet emission rules without sacrificing horsepowerBY DANIEL GRANTFarmWeek

Two of the top manufacturers oftractors and combines, John Deere andCase IH, this month at the CommodityClassic in Nashville assured farmersnew engine technology will meet emis-sion regulations without sacrificinghorsepower.

In fact, in many cases farmers canexpect more horsepower and improvedfuel efficiency in new model machines.

“We’re taking a right technology,right now approach,” said GeoffStigler, manager of worldwide market-ing support for John Deere Power Sys-tems. “We can deliver on emission stan-dards plus the performance our cus-tomers expect.”

John Deere is using an Integrated

Emissions Control (IEC) system tomeet new emissions standards. The sys-tem features a diesel oxidation catalyst,a diesel particulate filter, and a selectivecatalytic reduction system.

There currently are about 20,000John Deere engines in the field thatmeet Tier 4 emissions regulations. Theengines have accumulated roughly 2million hours of use.

“The performance of those engineshas been very good,” Stigler said.“They’re even better than the enginesthey replaced (in terms of durabilityand reliability) and the fuel economyproved to be excellent.”

Case IH uses selective catalyticreduction engines to meet Tier 4requirements.

At the Commodity Classic, it pro-

moted its new 30 series combines andMagnum tractors with increased horse-power.

The 30 series combines “haveincreased horsepower and about 10percent better fuel savings,” said CyWerda, Case IH marketing manager.

The new combines also featurehigh-capacity unloading systems toimprove harvest efficiency.

Final Tier 4 emissions regulationsfor off-highway diesel engines beganthis year for engines with 50 to 74horsepower. Regulatory dates forengines with 25 to 49 horsepower andall engines 75 horsepower and largerwill be implemented in stages from2013 through 2015.

The regulations and increasedengine modifications are expected to

increase the price of farm machinery.In other machinery news, Calmer

Corn Heads of Alpha promoted itsnew BT Super Chopper, which is a 10-blade knife roll that can be installed onall John Deere corn heads and someCase IH and New Holland heads.

The Super Chopper is designed toreduce the size of crop residue so itcan more easily be turned into organicmatter.

“The name of the game is to getresidue broken down so it can be usedfor future crop production,” said AllenBerry, a crop specialist with CalmerCorn Heads and a farmer from West-ern Illinois.

The new Super Chopper does notrequire any additional horsepower,Berry added.

Futures industry seeks to protect its customers’ fundsJoe Vaclavik, a former com-

modities broker with MFGlobal, said he wasn’t too wor-ried about his ability to find ajob after the firm filed forbankruptcy on Oct. 31.

His biggest concern sincethe meltdown is making suresuch violations don’t occuragain in the futures industryand assuring customers thattheir money is safe.

“Firms have gone bankruptin the past, but we never hadcustomers lose money (in seg-regated fund accounts),”Vaclavik, who now works forStraits Financial in Chicago,said at the recent WILL AM

580 ag outlook meeting inCovington, Ind.

“I always told customerstheir money is safe, it’s in seg-regated funds,” he continued.“But on Oct. 31, everythingchanged.”

Vaclavik said he wasunaware MF Global trans-ferred customer segregatedfunds and was caught offguard by the firm’s ultimatecollapse.

MF Global prior to itsbankruptcy held about $6.9billion in customer funds.About $1.6 billion of thosefunds was missing after thebankruptcy.

As of March 6, about 72percent of balances had beenreturned to customers, accord-ing to Fred Seamon, associatedirector of commodityresearch and product develop-ment at CME Group.

But many in the industrydoubt whether all of the miss-ing funds ever will be returnedto the rightful owners. A fed-eral investigation is ongoing.

“MF Global’s transfer ofcustomer segregated funds wasa serious violation of our rules(at CME Group) and the Com-modity Exchange Act,” Sea-mon said.

CME Group established a

$550 million financial guaran-tee to trustees to expedite theprocess of returning funds toformer MF Global customers.CME Group also is in theprocess of returning ware-house receipts to customers,Seamon reported.

CME Group, in an effortto provide future assurances,established a $100 millionfarmer protection fund toprotect customer’s funds.

“We need to focus on solu-tions to protect customer seg-regated funds at the firm lev-el,” Seamon said.

Stephen Platt, a brokerwith Archer Financial Servic-

es in Chicago, believes theindustry should be regulatedmore tightly to avoid futureviolations.

“(The MF Global bank-ruptcy) shook the wholeindustry in terms of customerconfidence,” he said. “Weneed to be vigilant. Peopleshouldn’t be reluctant to putin more regulations.”

The MF Global bankruptcyis creating additional prob-lems for customers this taxseason. Many farmers whodid business with MF Globalare waiting for 1099 forms inorder to file their taxes. —Daniel Grant

production


End of winter triggers beginning of syrup seasonBY DANIEL GRANTFarmWeek

Snowfall was scarce inMcLean County this winter,but conditions triggered a gen-erous flow of sap from nearly3,500 maple trees on the his-toric Funk Farm in Shirley.

Members of the Funk fami-ly for nearly a century havecollected sap everywinter/spring and converted itinto the tasty topping foreverything from flapjacks towaffles. Hazel Funk Holmes startedthe operation in the 1920s.Mike and Debby Funk, andtheir nephew currently run theoperation after taking over forMike’s parents, Stephen andGlaida Funk, who ran thesyrup business from 1947 to1989.

“It’s always been a family-type thing,” Mike toldFarmWeek.

The Funks this year collect-ed sap from about mid-Febru-ary through the first week ofthis month. The flow of maplesap is triggered by a freeze-thaw cycle that occurs duringthe transition between seasons.

“Our success or failuredepends on the weather,” Funksaid. “The weather at the endof winter, with temperatures inthe 20s at night and the 40sduring the day, are a perfectscenario for sap to flow.”

The Funks use about 4,000buckets to collect the sap. Itthen is boiled and convertedinto Funks Grove Pure Maple

Sirup. “Sirup” is the family’s pre-ferred spelling of the product.

Collection of the saprequires quite a bit of handlabor, but the Funks have beenable to simplify the processover the years by implementinga pipeline system and pumpsthat mechanically does someof the work.

The Funks also have refined

the boiling process by usingreverse osmosis that removessome of the water from the

sap, which saves time and ener-gy required to make the syrup.

“Our syrup operation is justlike you’d see in the northeastor Canada,” Funk said.

Maple sap is 2.5 percentsugar. So it takes about 40 gal-lons of sap to make one gallonof syrup, Funk noted.

The sap is boiled to about219 degrees, or about 7degrees hotter than the pointwater boils, to achieve the per-fect consistency for the syrup,according to Funk.

This year’s harvest shouldprovide enough syrup for theFunks to sell until aboutAugust.

“We do some mail-orders,but primarily we retail every-thing from our farm,” Funkadded.

More information is at thewebsite {www.funkspuremaple-sirup.com}.

B.J. Farmer, back left, Joe Caslow, front left, and Jacob Walker empty maple sap into a transport containeron the Funk Farm in Shirley. Maple sap consists of about 2.5 percent sugar. It takes about 40 gallons of sapto make one gallon of syrup.

Levi Kirby of McLean, right, changes the filters on a machine used tocollect maple sap and convert it to syrup. Mike Funk, who runs the op-eration with his wife, Debby, assists Kirby at the Funk Farm in Shirley.

Above: Mike Funk, who operates the Funks Grove Pure Maple “Sirup” Farm with his wife, Debby, in McLeanCounty, describes the process of boiling maple sap into syrup to children from the Oasis Home School Net-work of Peoria during a farm tour. The Funk family has been producing “sirup” on the farm since the 1920s.Below: Funk adjusts a sap collection pipeline that pumps sap from many of the 3,500 maple trees on thefarm. The pipeline was implemented to reduce labor, although the Funks still collect much of the sap in bucketsand dump it by hand. (Photos by Cyndi Cook)

During a mild spring, farmers’thoughts often turn to early planting. Butplanting too early can prove a costlymove for Illinois growers.

Because of early spring weather risks, noproducer replanting payments will be madeon acreage initially planted prior to USDA’searliest crop insurance planting date.

That’s April 6 for corn in most of Illinoisand April 21 for soybeans planted in thesouthern two-thirds of Illinois.

Exceptions include Alexander, Hardin,Johnson, Massac, Union, Pope, Pulaskicounties, where producers “totally void”replant coverage if they plant corn priorto April 1, Illinois Farm Bureau riskmanagement specialist Doug Yoderwarned.

Plus, roughly two dozen Northern Illi-nois counties have an April 16 initial soy-bean planting date. For specific countydates, contact a crop insurance agent.

Insurance plant dates potentially crucial

Weather


Continued from page 1The last time temperatures were this warm this soon, 2007,

Angel noted numerous crops developed early and were damagedor destroyed by the infamous Easter freeze on April 8 of thatyear. Easter is on the same date this year.

“That was a billion dollar disaster (that damaged fruit crops,first-cut alfalfa, and wheat across numerous states),” Angel said.“If you look at the apple and peach industries, there could besignificant losses with this type of set-up.”

Farmers who are considering planting also should bear inmind no crop insurance payments for replanting will be issuedfor fields that are planted prior to the earliest planting date —April 6 for corn and April 21 for beans — according to the RiskManagement Agency. (See story above)

Angel noted the average date of the last frost is around thefirst week of April in Southern Illinois, mid-April in Central Illi-nois, and late-April in Northern Illinois.

“We’ve still got several weeks to go before we’re out of thewoods,” he added. “Beyond the (favorable) 14-day forecast, wecould have something sneak in and change the picture in ahurry.”

Weather

Spring forecast favorable for planting in MidwestFarmers in a large portion

of the Midwest this year won’thave to battle widespreadspring floods to plant theircrops if a recent forecast iscorrect.

The National Oceanic andAtmospheric Administration

(NOAA) last week projected alow risk of flooding thisspring in the central U.S.

The forecast, however, wasnot as favorable in Southeast-ern Illinois, southern Indiana,and northern Kentucky, wherethere is an increased risk offlooding this spring.

“We’re not forecasting arepeat of recent historic andprolonged flooding in the cen-tral and northern U.S., andthat is a relief,” said LauraFurgione, deputy director ofNOAA’s National WeatherService. “The severity of any flood-ing this year will be driven byrainfall more so than the melt-ing of the current snowpack.”

The forecast is favorablefor farmers in many areas toincrease their plantings ofcorn.

U.S. farmers last year plant-ed 91.1 million acres of corn,

wheat is in substantially bettershape than a year ago at thistime,” USDA noted last week.

In Illinois, 81 percent ofthe wheat crop was rated good

to excellent at the end of Feb-ruary compared to last yearwhen just 36 percent of thecrop was rated good to excel-lent at that time.

but USDA last month project-ed farmers this spring willplant 94 million acres of corn.Last week, Allendale Inc. esti-mated farmers will plant 95.01million acres of corn, whichwould be the most since 1944,based on its 23rd annual pro-ducer survey.

Allendale projected soy-bean plantings will slip from74.9 million acres last yearto 74.5 million acres thisspring. USDA last monthprojected farmers this yearwill plant 75 million acres ofbeans.

A reduced chance of springfloods also is favorable for

development of the winterwheat crop.

“In the soft red wheatstates (including Illinois) thatreport monthly conditions,

FarmWeekNow.com

View an Allendale video on thelatest planted acreage fore-casts at FarmWeekNow.com.

U.S. ag exports to Vietnam on upward trajectoryBY DANIEL GRANTFarmWeek

It seems Asian markets thattypically garner the most atten-tion from U.S. ag exporters areChina, Japan, and South Korea.

And for good reason. Japantraditionally is one of thelargest buyers of U.S. grainsand meat, China last year wasthe largest foreign buyer of allU.S. ag products, and sales toSouth Korea are expected toexplode with the implementa-tion of a new free trade agree-ment there.

But one country with agrowing population and econo-my, which sometimes is over-looked as a blossoming trade

about 90 million people. Foot and mouth disease

recently affected about 150,000cattle in Vietnam while a lack ofland resources there limitsopportunities to expand cropproduction.

Vietnam also has the third-largest aquaculture industry inthe world and will need toimport more soybeans and soymeal for feed, according to RoyBardole, chairman of the U.S.Soy Export Council.

“Aquaculture has phenome-nal potential worldwide,” Bar-dole said. “The wild catch isgoing down while demand is isincreasing. The only way we’llhave enough fish to eat isthrough aquaculture.”

The annual growth rate ofVietnam’s aquaculture industryaveraged 16.4 percent from 1990to 2008.

partner, is Vietnam.U.S. ag export leaders this

month at the Commodity Clas-sic in Nashville projected largegains in sales of U.S. ag productsto the Asian nation situatedbetween Laos, Cambodia, China,and the South China Sea.

“There are huge opportuni-ties for U.S. feed products (inVietnam),” said Tom Dorr, pres-ident and CEO of the U.S.Grains Council.

Vietnam is the eighth largestmarket for U.S. feedstuffs andthe fourth largest market for U.S.distillers grains, Dorr reported.

Corn use driven by feeddemand is growing in Vietnamat an annual clip of about 30

percent. And most of theincreasing demand for corn like-ly will be satisfied by outsidemarkets, including the U.S.

“Domestic production ofcoarse grain (in Vietnam) con-tinues to fall short of consump-tion, which is being driven by anincrease in meat consumption,”Dorr said.

Since 2005, beef consump-tion in Vietnam has grown 108percent and pork consumptionhas increased 17.3 percent,according to Mark Jagels, vicechairman of the U.S. MeatExport Federation.

“The No. 1 market is thegrowing middle class,” Jagelssaid. “Vietnam is one of thefastest-growing food servicemarkets in the world.”

And that market likely willcontinue to rely more onexports to feed its population of

CRP signup ends April 6Farmers and landowners interested in enrolling land in the

Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) have a little less than threeweeks to do so for the current signup period.

The Farm Service Agency’s (FSA) current CRP general signupperiod opened March 12 and ends April 6.

To submit CRP offers, producers must visit their local FSAoffice. FSA will accept offers only during the signup period.

ethanol


Ethanol industry expanding its global reachBY MARTIN ROSSFarmWeek

The U.S. ethanol industryis ringing up sales across theglobe, from the heart of Mid-dle East oil country to Brazil-ian sugar cane territory.

National Renewable FuelsAssociation (RFA) CEO BobDinneen deems exports “acritically important marketfor our industry and, proba-bly, key to our profitability.”Ethanol exports reached 76.3million gallons in January, up33 percent from a year earlierand the highest ever for themonth.

Major buyers includedBrazil, at 26.4 million gallons;Canada, at 23.4 million gal-lons; and The Netherlands, at4.9 million gallons. Exportsof distillers dried grains(DDGs) reached 606,643metric tons in January, up 7percent from the previousmonth and the highest levelsince September.

Brazil, which had been theU.S.’ major ethanol competi-

changed a little bit” for theexport picture. Domestic andglobal customers stocked upon supplies prior to Januaryto take advantage of the U.S.’now-expired fuel blenders’Volumetric Ethanol ExciseTax Credit (VEETC), and henoted the U.S.’ major “drivingseason” is at least two monthsaway.

Thus, “demand’s probablyat its low of the year rightnow,” Marquis said. A thirdquarter rally is likely, depend-ing on Brazil’s 2012 sugarharvest and its will to re-enterthe global market, he said.

The loss of VEETCshould not damage U.S. cost-competitiveness abroad, hesaid. The strength of the U.S.dollar vs. the Brazilian real isa more significant factor:Marquis noted a strengthen-ing of the dollar last week,“which does hurt our abilityto export a little bit.”

Another concern is theEU’s two-pronged “investiga-tion” alleging U.S. companieshave “dumped” low-pricedethanol into Europe aided by

federal and state incentives.ePURE, Europe’s associationof renewable ethanol produc-ers, claims a 500 percent risein U.S. ethanol importsbetween 2008 and 2010.

Marquis is not unduly con-cerned by the EU anti-dump-ing probe –- he toldFarmWeek “we wouldn’t beselling to the export market ifwe were getting a lower priceand were trying to ‘dump’ thatproduct onto the market.”

RFA’s Dinneen called theEU’s overall complaint a“straw house,” arguing itscase effectively vanished inJanuary with elimination ofVEETC and an accompany-ing tariff on foreign ethanolimports.

“Trade law certainly is veryclear on this point: If theoffending incentive is nolonger around, then the tradecase is moot,” Dinneen said.“I think that’s what’s going tohappen in this case.”

tor in international markets,has become a key U.S. cus-tomer with a recent lag insugar cane production and alack of new investment insugar-based biofuels process-ing.

European demand also hasbeen growing, largely as aresult of the shortfall inBrazilian supplies and despitea European Union (EU) tradecomplaint focusing on U.S.ethanol subsidies. RFA and itsmember companies have theireyes set next on Asia, whererising populations and middle-class growth are expected tostoke energy demand in allforms.

“The world’s looking forlower-cost liquid transporta-tion fuels,” Dinneen toldFarmWeek. “Ethanol today

is $1 less than gasoline in theU.S. We’re the lowest-cost liq-uid transportation fuel on theplanet. Without a doubt, newmarkets are going to open up.

“When the United ArabEmirates is the fifth largest(ethanol) export market forthe United States, I think thatspeaks volumes. If the MiddleEast is reaching out for ourproduct, I think you’re goingto see market opportunitiesopen up in all corners of theworld.”

Hennepin-based MarquisEnergy exported perhaps 80-90 percent of its 2011 pro-duction to Europe, Brazil,and some African and Asianmarkets. It’s exported a grow-ing volume of DDGs toEurope, Africa, and Asia, inbulk and by container.

Marketing Director TomMarquis noted “things haveE15 ‘getting really close’?

E15 has cleared key regulatory hurdles. But prospectiveE15 marketers acknowledge they must win over consumersbefore they can knock down the ethanol “blend wall.”

Illinois Corn Growers Association Technology and Busi-ness Development Director Dave Loos suggested “we’re get-ting really close” to a retail rollout for 15 percent ethanolblends. The industry is rapidly approaching domestic marketsaturation with standard E10 gasoline.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) now isallowing fuel marketers to register the blend for sale, and wasexpected last week to begin responding to applicants.

While formal registrations may be held until details of anindustry E15 “misfueling” prevention-mitigation plan are inplace, marketers notified by EPA “can start figuring out how(E15) can work for their particular business,” Loos said.

Chronister Oil Co. chief Grady Chronister is cautious inhis approach to unveiling E15 at his company’s Central Illi-nois Qik-n-EZ food marts, arguing consumers “first andforemost” must recognize that “this is a quality product.”

He noted there is a difference between offering E85 forthe limited “flex-fuel” vehicle fleet and marketing E15,which EPA has approved for model year 2001 and later vehi-cles.

“There are benefits to the consumer to buy E15, for 65percent of the population out there,” Chronister said. “Butthis has to be a convenient purchase for that consumer. Itneeds to be as available as our other main grades of fuel.”

He sees likely public support for E15 not only among pro-ducer and biofuels groups but also from “clean air” groupssuch as the American Lung Association, because of its higheroctane (fuel oxygen) level.

Chronister stresses the need to offer E15 at each of the 16fueling “sites” at each of his outlets, and is eyeing near-termoptions such as replacing existing mid- or premium-grade gaswith the new blend. Kansas-based Zarco 66 already has“pulled” premium blends in favor of blender pumps that dis-pense a variety of ethanol fuels.

Chronister sees potential for blender pumps at new sta-tions. But currently, his ethanol fuels are “splash-blended” —delivered in specific formulations, likely meaning higher E15transportation costs.

In Zarco 66 President Scott Zaremba’s view, consumereducation is “on the forefront” of E15 adoption, and todayis ethanol’s educable moment, as standard gas prices contin-ue to rise relative to the cost of advanced ethanol blends.

“We can educate the public when it’s paying attention,” heargued. — Martin Ross

AROUND ILLINOIS


ExplorACES connects studentsMore than 2,000 students, teachers, and parentstoured the University of Illinois College of Agricultur-al, Consumer, and Environmental Sciences (ACES)during the ExplorACES event March 9-10. A studentsteering committee planned and organized theevent for prospective and incoming students. Stu-dents toured college facilities, watched and partici-pated in activities, and spoke with faculty and cur-rent students. Above: U of I agriculture researchspecialist Pam Utterback shows a Plymouth RockColumbian hen to a group of fourth-graders who

vis i ted the s tock pavi l ion. Upper left : KimmySchwar tz, a junior at Rantoul Township HighSchool, colors a landscape design at one of themore than 125 exhibits that showcased academics,research, and student activities. Lower left: RebeccaRies, right, of Waterloo precipitates butter fromcream with help from her mother, Tammy, as part ofa lesson about milk in the animal sciences laborato-ry. Ries will study animal sciences next fall at the Uof I. (Photos by David Riecks and Joyce Seay-Knoblauch, University of Illinois)


U.S. and European scien-tists have identified expo-sure to corn and soybeaninsecticide coating as a con-tributing factor in honeybeedeaths from colony collapsedisorder (CCD).

However, Kevin Black, aGROWMARK Inc. special-ist, suggested CCD may bethe result of multiple fac-tors, and the insecticide seedcoatings may be one part.

The neonicotinoidsinsecticides are used both asseed treatments and as foliarsprays. The primary prod-ucts used as seed treatmentsare Poncho, Cruiser, andGaucho.

Purdue University scien-tists Christian Krupke, anentomologist, and GregHunt, a behavioral geneti-cist, analyzed bees from sev-eral Indiana apiaries andfound the presence of theinsecticides.

Their research showedhigh concentrations of theinsecticides were present inwaste talc that is exhaustedfrom machinery duringplanting.

The sticky coatings aremixed with talc to keep seedflowing during planting.

Excess talc used in theprocess is released duringplanting and routine plantercleaning.

Hunt said no single factoris to blame, but scientistsbelieve a combination offactors, including mites andinsecticides, are involved.

In Europe, Italian scien-tist Andrea Tapparo and col-leagues recently publishedresearch that showed wide-spread use of neonicotinoidinsecticides occurred aboutthe time beekeepersobserved large numbers ofhoneybee deaths. They spec-ulated the deaths may be dueto airborne particles of theinsecticides that are expelledduring planting.

The main symptom ofCCD is no or a low numberof adult honeybees presentwith a live queen; however,no dead honeybees arefound in the hive.

Black, an insect and plantdisease technical manager,said farmers should beaware of the situation andmay even help find ananswer.

Noting farmers’ ingenuityin improving equipment,Black said farmers “have anopportunity to be part ofthe solution.”

He challenged farmers todevelop a good system tofilter the talc particles thatare leaving the planter.

Researchers link bee deathsto seed insecticide exposure

from the counties


COOK — FarmBureau has printed

“business cards” for mem-bers that outline basic infor-mation about farmer-relatedtransportation issues. Thecards are free to membersand are designed to serve asa quick reference guide dur-ing traffic stops and othersituations. Call 708-354-3276 for a copy.

• Send in your favoritefresh fruit and vegetablerecipes to be published inthis year’s recipe collection.Commodity Team memberswill choose 15-20 differentrecipes. Send submissionsto Cook County FarmBureau, Attn: Recipes, 6438Joliet Road, Countryside60525.

• The Illinois AgriculturalAuditing Association againwill be providing income taxreturn services for members.Call the Cook County FarmBureau office at 708-354-3276 to set up an appoint-ment.

• Farm Bureau is sponsor-ing a workshop on finan-cial/legal tools. “Your Per-sonal Financial Plan, Prepar-ing Wills and Trusts andTransferring Non-titledProperty” will be held from7-9 p.m. Wednesday, April18 at Chicago Loop CountryFinancial, 55 West MonroeStreet, Suite 3150, Chicago.The workshop is free tomembers and will featurespeakers on wills, trusts,personal financial plans, andtransferring non-titled prop-erty. Call 708-354-3276 toregister. Deadline for regis-tration is April 6.

• Farm Bureau will hold a“High 5 Illinois” Ag Dayevent Thursday at the Chica-go High School for Ag Sci-ences. More than 400 thirdgrade students are signed upto attend the fifth annualevent in which they willrotate through eight stationsin two hours to learn aboutIllinois agriculture. Stationswill include pork, corn, soy-beans, dairy/beef, animals,farm stands, and two sta-tions on horticulture.Teachers will be given lessonplan booklets with activitiesto take back to their class-rooms. Children will receivea bag of items includingdairy coloring books, andsoybean crayons. An addi-tional two-day Ag Day eventwill take place on April 19and 20 at Wagner Farm inGlenview.

FORD-IROQUOIS

— Applications forthe Ford-Iroquois FarmBureau Foundation scholar-ships are available at theFarm Bureau office, fromguidance counselors, andfrom FFA advisers. Dead-

Patron to Agriculture. Highschool essay winners willread their essays during theaward presentation. SarahD. Culbertson MemorialHospital will conduct bloodlipid tests.

STARK — FarmBureau will sponsor an

informational meeting at 6p.m. Thursday, March 29, atthe Farm Bureau office forthe Jan. 22 through Feb. 7trip to Australia and NewZealand. The trip also isopen to non-Farm Bureaumembers. Call the FarmBureau office at 309-286-7481 for more information.

STEPHENSON — Asecond bus trip to

John Deere HarvesterWorks, John Deere Pavilion,and Kinze Manufacturing onWednesday, March 28, stillhas seats available. Call 815-232-3186 to reserve yourseat.

• The Defensive Drivingclass on April 17-18, taughtby Doug Sommer, is nearlyfull. Call 815-232-3186 toregister.

VERMILION — FarmBureau will distribute

28,000 placemats to more

than 35 restaurants across thecounty. The placemats focuson myths and facts about agri-culture and is sponsored by 17agribusinesses within thecounty.

• The Young Leaders willcollect groceries for theOakwood area food pantryat the Catlin and OakwoodIGA stores this week.Shoppers may leave dona-tions in marked shoppingcarts at either location.

• Vermilion County FarmBureau Foundation isaccepting applications forthe Andrews-Brumett schol-arship through Wednesday,April 4. The scholarship isopen to any VermilionCounty high school graduat-ing senior who will beattending Danville AreaCommunity College nextfall. An application form isavailable at the Farm Bureauoffice or online at{www.vcfb.info}.

“From the counties” items aresubmitted by county FarmBureau managers. If you havean event or activity open to allmembers, contact your countyFarm Bureau manager.

line to return applications isApril 2.

GRUNDY — Grundyand Kendall County

Farm Bureaus will sponsor aMaster Grain Agreementprogram at 10 a.m. Wednes-day, March 28, at the FarmBureau office, Morris. JerryQuick, former Illinois FarmBureau legal counsel, will bethe speaker. Call the FarmBureau office at 815-942-6400 for reservations ormore information.

LASALLE –- FarmBureau has discount-

ed the price of the SMVdecals to $2.

• Check out the March 5issue of Agrisource for specialdiscounts from local busi-nesses in honor of NationalAgriculture Week.

• Farm Bureau will havean agriculture display thisweek in the center court ofthe Peru Mall.

LEE — District 4Young Leaders from

Bureau, LaSalle, and LeeCounty Farm Bureaus willhave a pizza and bowlingparty Thursday, March 29.Pizza will be at 6:30 p.m. atMama Ciminos, with bowl-ing to follow at Plum Hol-low Family Center, Dixon.Call the Farm Bureau officeat 815-857-3531 or [email protected] forreservations or more infor-mation.

MCLEAN –- FarmBureau is teaming

up with Cub Foods for ameat donation drive throughSaturday. Customers maypurchase donation couponsat the store’s checkout. Alldonations will go to benefitthe Midwest Food Bank.Farm Bureau will match alldonations up to a total of$500.

MONROE — TheAgriScience Expo

open house and awards pres-entation will be from 10:30a.m. to noon Saturday,March 31, at the MonroeCounty Annex. Seventhgrade students will conducttheir own AgriScience inves-tigation as part of the Agri-Science Roadshow, which isfunded by Monsanto’s“America’s Farmers GrowCommunities” program.Call the Farm Bureau officefor more information.

MONTGOMERY —The Prime Timers

will sponsor a bus tripWednesday, April 18, toHighland. The group willtour the Louis Latzer home-stead and the Pet Milk muse-um. Lunch will be at theFarmer’s Restaurant. Fol-lowing lunch, members willvisit the Palace Theatre formusical entertainment. Costis $43. Call the Farm Bureau

office at 217-532-6171 byFriday, April 13, for reserva-tions or more information.

PEORIA — A defen-sive driving course

will be from 9:30 a.m. to2:30 p.m. Wednesday andThursday at the FarmBureau office. Cost is $10,which includes materials andlunch. Call the Farm Bureauoffice for more information.

• A “Farmers’ Marketing— Rise of the Peoria Loca-vore” session will be from6:30 to 8 p.m. Tuesday,March 27, at the FarmBureau office. DeborahCavanaugh-Grant, Universityof Illinois extension, will dis-cuss “The Art and Science ofa Farmers’ Market Display”and ElevatePR will discusssocial media fundamentals.Call the Farm Bureau officefor more information.

SCHUYLER — FarmBureau and the

Schuyler County Ag DayCommittee will sponsor afree Ag Day breakfast from6 to 8 a.m. Friday at theRushville Phoenix OperaHouse. Awards will be pre-sented for Young Farm Fam-ily, Master Farm Family, and

profitability


Export inspections(Million bushels)

Week ending Soybeans Wheat Corn03-08-12 26.2 31.6 36.203-01-12 32.9 17.4 31.1Last year 34.1 28.6 39.5Season total 934.3 774.6 871.9Previous season total 1214.8 912.7 889.7USDA projected total 1275 1000 1700Crop marketing year began June 1 for wheat and Sept. 1 for corn and soybeans.

Feeder pig prices reported to USDA*Weight Range Per Head Weighted Ave. Price10 lbs. $33.08-55.10 $42.3140 lbs. $69.72-77.46 $71.2950 lbs. no longer reported by USDAReceipts This Week Last Week 88,144 126,294*Eastern Corn Belt prices picked up at seller’s farm

MARKET FACTS

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

This week Prev. week ChangeCarcass $83.81 $84.85 -1.04Live $62.02 $62.79 -0.77

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

Steers 126.19 125.65 0.04 Heifers 126.18 125.00 1.18

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 155.71 156.36 0.65

CME feeder cattle index — 600-800 Lbs.

Lamb prices

(Thursday’s price)

Slaughter Prices - Negotiated, Live, wooled and shorn 100-170 lbs. for143.29-185.50 $/cwt. (wtd. ave. 155.13); dressed, no sales reported.

Crop marketing more difficult due to price volatilityBY BRYCE STREMMING

When presenting marketingoutlooks to producers, I usedto ask if anyone rememberedthe idea of a new price plateauthat was prevalent for a shortperiod of time during the mid-1990s.

I soon put this question torest as no one would admit toremembering the enthusiasmthe market experienced in the

summer of 1996 due to dwin-dling corn supplies. Rebuild-ing of ending stocks tookplace, enthusiasm quicklywaned, and commodity pricesretreated.

Other than some intermit-tent rallies over subsequentyears, futures traded in a rela-tively sideways path until 2006.

The fall of 2006 ushered innot only new levels of com-

modity prices but also new lev-els of volatility. Causes forthis increase in price levels andvolatility are many and include:

• World andU.S. endingstocks-to-useratios forcorn, beans,and wheatmoving to lev-els thatdemand atten-tion;

• The con-tinued increase in the percent-age of U.S. corn used in theproduction of ethanol (cur-rently at 40 percent);

• Adverse weather eventsaround the world when pro-duction hiccups are not easilyignored;

• Large increases in moneyinvolved in the markets, bothspeculative and investment; and

• Perceived discrepancies inquarterly stocks, especially incorn.

While all of these issueshave helped produce veryattractive futures prices overthe past five-plus years, theyalso have made marketingmore difficult due to pricevolatility.

A private analyst estimatedthat from 2000 through 2005,daily price ranges for corn andbeans on non-report days aver-aged nearly 4 and 12 cents, andon USDA report days, theprice range increased to 6 and17 cents.

The 2006 through 2011price ranges on non-reportdays were 14 and 25 cents andon report days were 18 and 33cents for corn and soybeans,respectively.

So far in 2012 these rangesare 12 and 20 cents, and on

report days they are 33 and 44cents. This has made “pullingthe trigger” on pricing opportu-nities even more difficult, espe-cially on an emotional level.

With this in mind, it is help-ful to evaluate pricing oppor-tunities by comparing whereprices have been since thejump to the higher levels thatbegan in 2006. The twographs shown reflect the week-ly closes for nearby futures forcorn and soybeans over thepast five calendar years. Theseare useful guides when gaugingpricing opportunities while atthe same time attempting tolessen the emotion of market-ing grain in these volatiletimes.

Bruce Stremming is MID-COCOMMODITIES’ commodityrisk consultant. His e-mail addressis [email protected].

Bryce Stremming

Watch for and treat noxious weed, but bewareWild parsnipburns skin, tooBY KAY SHIPMANFarmWeek

Farmers should be on thelookout for giant hogweed, anoxious weed, but they need tobe careful when treating it, saidBen Dolbeare, invasive speciesproject manager with the Illi-nois Department of NaturalResources (IDNR).

If juice from a giant hog-weed gets on skin that isexposed to sunlight, the com-bination causes severe blister-ing and permanent scars with-in 24 to 48 hours, Dolbearesaid. If sap gets into an eye, itmay lead to temporary or per-manent blindness.

The juices from anothercommon invasive weed, wildparsnip, also causes burns andblisters under similar circum-stances.

Giant hogweed is similar tosuch non-native plants as poi-son hemlock and wild carrot.Another weed, cow parsnip,which is common in the Illi-nois River bottom area andelsewhere, easily may be mis-taken for giant hogweed.

The giant hogweed maygrow up to 12 feet tall with ahollow stem that is 2 to 4 inch-es in diameter with purplespots and bristles. It has large,compound leaves and producesclusters of small, white flowersfrom June through July.

A brochure with photos isavailable online at{http://mipn.org/MDA_Hog-weed_Brochure.pdf}.

Currently giant hogweedsare not widespread in Illinois,but the weed has been foundin the Chicago and Peoriaareas, according to Dolbeare.The plants probably are not

growing in corn and soybeanfields, but are more likely to befound growing around oldfarmsteads or old implements.

Small numbers of the plantmay be dug by hand, but Dol-beare warned farmers to weargloves and protective clothingand to protect their eyes fromthe plant’s sap.

Giant hogweed is a nativeof Eastern Europe and wasintroduced as an ornamentalplant in the United States in

the early 1900s. The plantspreads naturally by wind-blown seeds or those carriedby water.

Farmers and landownerswho suspect they may havegiant hogweed may contactDolbeare for control informa-tion at IDNR, 1 NaturalResources Way, Springfield,Ill., 62702-1271. His telephonenumber is 217-785-8688 and e-mail address [email protected].

Giant hogweed has large clusters of white flowers and lobed leaves.The plant’s juice causes severe burns and blistering after it gets on skinand is exposed to sunlight. (Photo courtesy USDA, Michigan plant pro-tection and quarantine)

The wild parsnip flowers from June through September. Juice from theperennial plant may cause blistering and burns on skin that is exposedto sunlight. (Photo by Kevin Black, GROWMARK)

PROFITABILITY

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AgriVisor LLC1701 N. Towanda Avenue

PO Box 2500Bloomington IL 61702-2901

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CASH STRATEGISTCorn Strategy

ü2011 crop: Upsidemomentum remains intact withMay futures moving to anothernew short-term high. Impor-tant resistance is layered from$6.72 up to $6.87. Make catch-up sales on strength. Under theright circumstances, we mighteven recommend wrapping upsales in the next few weeks.

ü2012 crop: Use ralliesabove $5.70 on Decemberfutures to make catch-up sales.We could add another sale atany time; check the Hotlinedaily.

vFundamentals: Thestrength in corn continues tobe fueled on speculation aboutChina potentially needing tobecome a significant buyer.This notion was fueled by talkthe Chinese governmentdidn’t buy much corn fromproducers this winter. Goodweekly export sales added tobuying interest. Nearbyfutures are leading the way onideas of snug old-crop sup-plies and tight producer hold-ing. Upward momentum isbeing limited somewhat byexpectations for large plant-ings and reports of planting inthe southern Corn Belt.

Soybean Strategyü2011 crop: Persistent talk

about Brazil and Chinese buyingis guiding prices higher. Techni-cal indicators suggest this moveis getting overdone. We couldrecommend wrapping up old-crop sales at any time. The mar-ket will have little fundamentalsupport unless weather becomesan issue this summer.

ü2012 crop: Use rallies tomake catch-up sales. WithNovember futures near a keyobjective, we could recom-mend another sale at any timebut may wait to see the March30 USDA reports.

vFundamentals: Privateanalysts in Brazil keep reduc-ing forecasts, the latest being aprojection for a 67.1-million-metric-ton crop. Some thinkit could be even smaller, butwith harvest more than 50percent complete, we doubtestimates change much more.Chinese buying persists, eventhough supplies are adequateto get the world to our newcrop. And even though sales

remain strong, it’s important toremember they can be canceledor rolled into the next market-ing year.

Wheat Strategyü2011 crop: The short-term

trend in wheat has again turnedhigher. A Chicago May futuresclose above $6.62, opens thedoor for a test of $6.70. Use ral-lies above $6.60 on Chicago Mayfutures to wrap-up old-cropsales. With the end of the mar-keting year approaching, use thecash market to make sales unlessbasis is unusually wide, but don’tcarry inventories beyond April.

ü2012 crop: Use rallies to$6.70 on Chicago July futures

to make catch-up sales. Pro-ducers selling 100 percent offthe combine need to beaggressive in making sales onrallies. Plan on making a 10percent new-crop sale withChicago July futures trading at$6.85. That will boost new-crop sales to 45 percent.

vFundamentals: Theoverall fundamental structure inwheat remains weak unlesssomething happens to the cropthis spring. Our new crop looksgood, and forecasts indicate theGreat Plains should receivesome rains in the near-term.World traders are watching thedry pattern in Europe closely.

Cents per bu.

Ethanol train wreck ahead?


tion of blending credits. That,lower ethanol prices, andfirmer corn prices pushed pro-cessing margins mostly intonegative territory this year.

An apparent large supply ofRenewable IdentificationNumbers (RINs), a “certifi-cate” that accompanies eachgallon imported or produced,potentially adds to demandproblems. RINs can be usedby a company to achieve itsethanol mandate in lieu of theethanol itself.

Some estimates put the“supply” of RINs at the endof 2011 near the equivalent of2.5 billion gallons. If they areused in lieu of the actualethanol, ethanol demandpotentially could be cut from13.2-billion-gallon mandate to10.7 billion gallons.

That’s the equivalent of cur-tailing the corn grind as muchas 925 million bushels (at 2.7gallons/bushel) over the year, or462 million bushels over theremainder of this marketingyear. That’s 11.7 million metrictons of corn, more than themost optimistic numbersregarding Chinese corn imports.

A 925 million reduction incorn grind is an extreme, but itunderscores potential implica-tions of the current negativeenvironment in the industry.Even a reduction of one-quar-ter to one-third that amountchanges the landscape for cornprices.

Amid the focus on events inSouth America and China, thetrade mostly has forgotten aboutdomestic demand. With thelooming March 30 USDA grainstocks report, the trade will getbetter insight into how domesticdemand may be evolving.

The weekly Department ofEnergy ethanol productionand stocks reports may beoffering important clues todevelopments in a sector thathas become a major consumerof corn.

Since the end of the year,ethanol production has steadilydeclined from 963,000 barrelsper day to 892,000 last week.At a 2.7 gallons/bushel yield, itrepresents a weekly decline ofcorn processing from 105 mil-lion bushels to 97 million, apace that’s still large enough toachieve USDA’s use forecast of5 billion bushels.

Some use an ethanol yieldas high as 2.77 gallons perbushel. That reduces theweekly corn grind by 2.5 mil-lion bushels, dropping it belowthe needed pace. Ethanolstocks have risen while produc-tion has declined, adding todemand uncertainty.

The decline in output hasbeen triggered by the elimina-

pERSpEcTIvES


LETTERS

TO THE EDITORPut gray wolves, feral hogs togetherEditor:

In the March 5 edition of FarmWeek,Marc Miller of Illinois Department ofNatural Resources (IDNR) notes that fer-al hogs (an invasive species) are nowoccurring in 17 Illinois counties.

In an IDNR press release, dated Jan.23, 2012, it was noted that gray wolves inIllinois north of I-80 are listed as threat-ened under state law. Wolves that havemigrated to Illinois from Wisconsin arenow under State of Illinois wolf manage-ment responsibility. Wolves have the “fullprotection of the State of Illinois’ Endan-gered Species Protection Act.”

Because of recent sightings of wolves,both day and night, livestock, domesticanimals, and other wildlife are now threat-ened in Northern Illinois counties. Thisclearly indicates that these wolves arebecoming acclimated to people and aremoving from Wisconsin looking for food.

Would the IDNR considered movinggray wolves (an invasive species) fromNorthern Illinois to counties where feralhogs (also an invasive species) currentlyexist in order to solve two problems forIllinois farmers with one action?I. RONALD LAWFER,Stockton

Opposes increase in corn checkoffEditor:

I am opposed to the rate increase forthe corn checkoff. The markets are con-trolled by supply and demand. As a pro-ducer, I look at what commodity will bemost profitable.

The seed industry does the research todevelop new products. The money takenfrom us for the checkoff is “fun money”used for a few high-paying jobs, a fewadvertisements, and trips around theworld for a few executives.

But the worst thing about checkoffs isthat my hard-earned money is taken with-out my permission. This is un-American.Checkoffs are a waste of money. Theydon’t put more money in the producer’spocket. I urge producers to vote “no” onthe referendum.RICHARD WOESSNER,Pearl City

Editor’s note: Illinois corn checkoff contri-butions are refundable upon request of the pro-ducer. The rate of refunds averages about 3 per-cent annually.

Letter policyLetters are limited to 300 words and must

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All letters are subject to editing, andonly an original with a written signatureand complete address will be accepted.

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Gestation stall ban would jeopardize hogs, farmers

Baby pigs rest under heat lamps beside their mothers on the Eldonand Chris Gould farm near Maple Park in Kane County. These far-rowing stalls allow the little pigs to nurse and move around while pro-

tecting them from being crushed by the sows. Gestation stalls, inwhich the mother sows are kept before giving birth, have come underincreasing scrutiny. (Photo by Ken Kashian)

I had to cull sows after two orthree litters because they were toofat, too thin, or injured by othersows. I used to struggle to give indi-vidual veterinary care to animalseven to the point of risking person-al injury to administer treatments orvaccinations.

Perhaps I could understandMcDonald’s actions if it had sci-ence, research, or experience toback its stance. However, there isno evidence that there is any betterway to care for a sow than what iscurrently being used in most mod-ern production systems.

Unfortunately, the decisionseems to be driven by emotion andperception regarding what makesfor a “happy” pig while ignoringwhat research and experience tellus is truly in the animal’s bestinterest.

Perhaps what saddens me themost is I know the end result of aneffective ban on gestation stalls ismore animal suffering and more riskto producers’ health and safety.

For more than 40 years I’ve doneeverything within my control to givemy animals the best care possible. Igive thanks to our Creator each dayI’m able to participate in this won-derful calling of livestock produc-tion.

To now be told to do somethingthat I know brings harm to the ani-mals under my care is indeed atough pill to swallow.

Ultimately, my hope is that thevoices of the people with experi-ence and expertise are heard andprevail on this issue so my dad’sgrandchildren will be able to carefor their animals using what theyknow are the best tools available.

Brian Duncan and his family operate adiversified grain and livestock farm northof Polo. He currently serves as presidentof the Ogle County Farm Bureau.

From the time I could walk, I’veworked with hogs. As I grew up at

my father’s side, Ilearned the joys andfrustrations of porkproduction and thesubtle nuances ofcaring for what cansometimes be a can-tankerous animal.

Dad is gone now,but his farm contin-ues on — though a

lot has changed. Open lots and pastures have

been replaced by environmentallycontrolled, protective housing.Gone are the days of tossing feedto pens of animals hoping that thestrong ones didn’t eat too muchand the weak ones could somehowsurvive.

Gone are the days of rummagingthrough piles of straw each morn-ing to find the little pigs that had

been crushed by their mothers. I no longer need to shovel a path

through the snow to reach feedersand hope the temperature getswarm enough for the animals tocome out and eat.

I’m part of an industry that hasspent literally billions of dollarsover recent decades improving thetools we use to produce pork.These changes were made with onegoal in mind: providing better carefor our animals.

Perhaps that’s why I’m so frus-trated by McDonald’s recentannouncement that it wouldrequire its pork suppliers to outlinetheir plans to phase out the widelyaccepted sow housing practice ofgestation stalls.

I used to keep my sows in penslike those McDonald’s and otherfolks wish us to use. I couldn’tcontrol individual diets like I donow.

BRIANDUNCAN

FarmWeek March 19, 2012 edition

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