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The recent posting by Yahoo!, listing agriculture, horticulture and animal science as three of the five most useless college degrees, has resulted in a firestorm of responses from agricultural professionals, students and supporters. For those who are interested in knowing more about the industry and careers in agriculture, many of the responses include some excellent statistics from around the country, as well as some opportunities to blog on the subject and links to other resources. Here are a few:
International Floraculture Beef Magazine Huffington Post Capital Press Illinois Farm Bureau Delta Farm Press A historic gathering of former Secretaries of Agriculture will occur at the 2012 Agricultural Outlook Forum on February 23-24, 2012. Secretary Tom Vilsack will moderate a panel of at least six of the last eight former Secretaries of Agriculture. There will also be 25 breakout sessions with more than 80 speakers who will focus on a broad range of topical issues related to agriculture and global food security. USDA has hosted the Outlook Forum since 1923 to provide farmers and ranchers, government, and agribusinesses with sound information for decision-making. Attendees are expected to include members of farm organizations, food and fiber firms, academia, foreign governments, and the news media. Further information and registration. Duck populations are high now, but Dr. Frank Rohwer warns that conditions that produced the remarkable fall flights of recent years won't last forever, and that means fewer ducks down the road. If the Conservation Reserve Program's nesting cover is lost and the prairie breeding grounds go dry, duck numbers will plunge. Read more. With the current global uncertainty driving volatility in the grain markets and continued dry conditions in much of the U.S., smart planning and input purchases might determine profit potential in the next year. Most university 2012 crop input guides are already available, so now is the time to focus on input categories and set grain production goals. Crop Inputs for 2012 As USDA approaches its 150th anniversary, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced that USDA has streamlined a host of programs and processes in an effort to help farmers, ranchers and businesses continue to drive America's productive agricultural economy. Summary of Improvements Announced Managing a profitable farm takes specialized skills. The 2012 Farm Futures Management Summit, slated for January 5 & 6, 2012 in St. Louis, provides a series of tracks you can choose to enhance your knowledge with specific, hands-on training. Details For the first time, the number of U.S. weather-related disasters in one year causing $1 billion or more in damage has reached 10. The previous record of 9 was recorded in 1980. Drought, floods and tornadoes have taken their toll on families, communities and farms across the nation, causing hundreds of fatalities and an estimated $35 billion in weather-related damage the director of public affairs at NOAA's National Weather Service. Details - 2011 Weather-Related Disasters Delta Waterfowl celebrates 100 years. The site summarizes the story of 10 decades of hard work toward its mission which has always been to enhance the future of waterfowl and waterfowl hunting. A tough growing season in 2011 won’t dim the hopes of U.S. farmers, who plan to increase production of major crops in the coming year, according to Farm Futures magazine’s first survey of 2012 planting intentions. Survey Summary To feed 3 billion people by 2050, we will need to use no more land and less water than we use now. Up to 40% crop production currently lost worldwide due to weeds, pests, and disease, modern agriculture will need to continue to be abundant, affordable and safe. This animated video illustrates the fundamentals of Modern Agriculture. On September 22, America’s farmers and ranchers – in an effort to lead a conversation and answer consumer questions – kicked off The Food Dialogues, the launch of a new effort to bring together different viewpoints on farming and ranching and the future of food. Video Highlights Worldwide Commodity Overview. This is a PowerPoint presentation at the CAPS Midwest Landowner Seminar by Daniel Basse, president of AgResource Company, Chicago, Illinois. (3.9MB File) Supply Not Keeping Up with Demand - The Risks for U.S. Agriculture. This is a PowerPoint presentation by Daniel Basse, president of AgResource Company, Chicago, Illinois. (3.4MB File) Farmers across the country are scratching their heads over an acreage report released recently by the Agriculture Department showing a whopping 92.3 million acres of U.S. corn plantings this year. Most expected less acreage due to adverse weather conditions that delayed planting over much of the Corn Belt, according to the American Farm Bureau Federation. Duck hunters will find plenty to cheer about in the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s (USFWS) annual breeding population and habitat survey, released in early July. Conducted each May by USFWS and the Canadian Wildlife Service, this year’s survey reveals the second-highest pond count and a record 45.6 million ducks, the most since the survey was started in 1955. Article. The EPA has full slate of projects that could affect your farming operation. Dust is typically thought of as a Western issue. But the EPA is thinking about cutting by half the national standard for airborne particulate matter, which could draw more regions into the battle against dust. "Agriculture will bear the brunt of this devastating rule," predicts Tamara Thies, chief environmental counsel for the National Cattlemen's Beef Association. Alan Kemper, who farms in Indiana, has calculated how regulation already affects his farm. New research indicates that routine weather events such as rain and cooler-than-average days can add up to an annual economic impact of as much as $485 billion in the United States. The spring of 2011, particularly April, brought extreme weather and climate conditions to many parts of the U.S. This website summaries those events and provides links to more details on each of them, most of which broke long-standing records. Link. Ethanol, made from corn, is going to face market forces without price supports by the end of this year, maybe sooner. The budget battle has made the ethanol subsidy so painful that it will almost surely be eliminated, but what a decade of growth and change for grain and livestock prices. This article provides a history of ethanol use in the U.S. Notice from AgriCharts on Weather and Markets Feed: PDF When the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers blasted a hole through the Birds Point Levee in Missouri to save the town of Cairo, Ill., the blast blew a two-mile hole in the levee and turned 130,000 acres of farmland into a muddy lake. These photos show how that once-productive farmland looks now. The American Farm Bureau Federation estimates that 3.6 million acres in the south have been impacted by this year's flooding disaster: The Voice of Agriculture message Dr. Roger McEowen, Director of the Iowa State University's Center for Agricultural Law and Taxation, recently released his list of the top 10 ag-related legal and tax items in 2010. View the list and explanation for each. American farmers and agribusinesses receive just 11.6 cents of every dollar spent on food in the U.S., according to a recent analysis from the USDA. "American farmers continue to produce more and more food and feed, yet they are ceceving less and less of each dollar spent a the retail leve," said Geoff Cooper, Renewable Fuels Association Vice President of Research and Analysis. Read more. The US Grains Council reports the Japanese industry has been making significant strides to regain its normal feed mill production capacity within the next few months. Four of Japan’s major importing facilities and attached feed mills were severely damaged by the earthquake and subsequent tsunami that struck Japan on March 11. Update on Japan Grain Trade According to a statement released by the National Corn Growers Association, comments made by the chairman of Nestle during the March 22 meeting of the Council on Foreign Relations about the use of corn for biofuels production were "not only wrong but dangerous.” NCGA President Bart Schott states, “It is scandalous, ludicrous and highly irresponsible for the chairman of a global conglomerate that tripled its profits last year to talk about higher corn prices forcing millions into starvation." Details Hold the Thin Green Line is a commentary on the importance of agriculture to national security written by Wesley Clark who was general of the United States Army and Supreme Allied Commander of NATO. In his article, originally published in the “Kansas City Star,” Clark asked America to "think of the 210,000 farms that produce 80 percent of the country's agricultural output as a thin green line standing between prosperity and disaster.” Article Check out this site for a list of annual farm, agricultural and rural trade shows across North America. Browse the options by date, state or province, or name. Each farm show entry gives current and future dates and locations, as well as contact information. List The Renewable Fuels Association has introduced a new Flex-Fuel Station Locator App for phones using the Android system. It is a free download from Android and also at the Choose Ethanol website. Details and Free Download The "farm doc" segment of the University of Illinois site offers updated calculator tools for estimating crop insurance premiums, payments, historical data and the like for spring and fall crops. iFarm Tools According to two Purdue University Extension specialists, farmers will spend more to produce their 2011 crops but are likely to make that up due to higher grain prices. An updated Purdue Crop Cost & Return Guide outlines those higher cost projections. Online Resource-Free Download The USDA’s 2011 Farm Sector Income Forecast, updated February 14, predicts net farm income at $94.7 billion in 2011, up 19.8 percent from the 2010 forecast. The 2011 forecast is the second highest inflation-adjusted value for net farm income recorded in the past 35 years. Read More First Hunt is Delta Waterfowl’s comprehensive program to recruit and retain waterfowl hunters in the United States and Canada, where waterfowl-hunter participation has been declining for years. “If hunter numbers continue to decline, the funding that protects and restores wildlife habitat in and outside the duck factory will also disappear,” said Delta Waterfowl President Rob Olson. Full Story and Program Materials Wind turbines in Midwestern farm fields may be doing more than churning out electricity. The giant turbine blades might also help corn and soybean crops fend off fungal infestations and improve their ability to extract growth-enhancing carbon dioxide from the air and soil. Full Story / Link to Video Clip Discussion American Farm Bureau Federation Public Policy Director offers insights on the impact of the 112th Congress on U. S. Agriculture. Full Interview Farm Progress has announced the launch of its industry-first Growing Degree Days (GDD) App for Android smartphone and iPhone, which is available at no charge. Free app A global boom in commodities gives farmers plenty of choices as they finalize planting choices for 2011. But the latest Farm Futures survey shows long-term agronomic concerns may outweigh "the invisible hand of the market" when all is said and done this spring. Survey Details The latest ERS Agricultural Income and Finance Situation and Outlook was published December 15, 2010. Topics include: December Net Farm Income Forecast Up 31 Percent in 2010, Livestock and Cotton Receipts Expected To Bounce Back in 2010, and Crop Farms To Contribute 64 Percent of U.S. Agriculture’s Net Value Added in 2010. Link to Outlook November 30, the U.S. Senate passed legislation that would allow the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to enact food product recalls in the case of tainted food that might be seen as a health threat. The same legislation is expected to be considered in the U.S. House of Representatives in early December. What are the ramifications of food traceability, product recalls, industry reputation and food safety legislation? Read article in Corn & Soybean Digest. Farmers who favor continuation of federal commodity payments should come away from the November 2 election feeling good, a Purdue University agricultural economist said. While Republicans regained control of the U.S. House of Representatives and Democrats held onto the majority in the Senate, the new agricultural committees in each chamber aren't likely to touch farm subsidy programs, said Otto Doering, a farm policy specialist. Read his analysis The mid-term election results will change House / Senate Ag Committee leadership. Jason Vance at Farm Progess states that the political shift will lead to new chairs. Read story In a soon-to-be published paper, researchers at the Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory conclude that indirect land use change (ILUC) resulting from expanded corn ethanol production over the past decade has likely been "minimal to zero." "The most recent work on ILUC is showing that ethanol expansion in the U.S. simply isn't incurring the type of land use changes that were originally hypothesized," said Renewable Fuels Association vice president for research and analysis Geoff Cooper. "The initial results recently presented by the Department of Energy are further proof that America can continue to meet its global responsibilities to provide food and feed, while simultaneously providing a cleaner, domestic alternative to petroleum -- all without needing to bring new lands into agriculture." Read more of what Cooper has to say on this issue. Achieving greater energy security by reducing dependence on foreign petroleum is a goal of U.S. energy policy. The Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 (EISA) calls for a Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS-2), which mandates that the United States increase the volume of biofuel that is blended into transportation fuel from 9 billion gallons in 2008 to 36 billion gallons by 2022. Long-term technological advances are needed to meet this mandate. This report examines how meeting the RFS-2 would affect various key components of the U.S. economy. State information. How North American farm equipment dealers’ view prospects for increasing sales in the coming year is in stark contrast to what they anticipated just a year ago. As they look ahead to 2011, nearly half of farm equipment dealers see sales revenues for new machinery improving by at least 2 percent. That’s a nearly 180-degree turn-around from dealers’ sentiments a year ago at this time. Read more... Agriculture remains a bright spot in the economy, according to one agricultural economist. Terry Barr, a senior director at CoBank, who spoke June 28, to the American Seed Trade Association's 127th Annual Convention, said agriculture is a robust economy and acres are certainly not coming down. Synopsis of Barr's Presentation The BP Gulf oil spill is an ever-changing situation, with fishing closures and openings happening sometimes hourly. LouisianaSportsman.com is monitoring the situation, and providing updates as new information comes to light. This dedicated page is home to all news articles, forum reports, photos and videos related to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill off the mouth of the Mississippi River. The Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago has published its May 2010 Agricultural Newsletter which offers details on the Seventh District farmland cash rental rates, farmland values and credit conditions. Newsletter The agricultural, food, and renewable natural resources sectors of the U.S. economy will generate an estimated 54,400 annual openings for individuals with baccalaureate or higher degrees in food, renewable energy, and environmental specialties between 2010 and 2015. Full Report With 96 percent of the corn crop planted and 78 percent emerged by mid-May, there should be a lot of joy about the 2010 Illinois corn crop. Instead, many farmers are discussing the need to replant and other woes. Most have observed that the crop is not growing well, and that it has poor color. So, is the crop off to the great start discussed several weeks ago or not? May 20 Article The Agriculture Confidence Index, launched April 19, aims to take the pulse of the agricultural economy. It’s based on a survey of 500 producers picked at random to reflect the demographic makeup of the 2007 USDA Ag Census. The survey will be conducted three times a year -- before planting, before harvest and at year's end. Confidence Results NEW FEATURE ON REAL ESTATE PAGES Newsletter
A new feature on the CAPS website gives users the opportunity to subscribe to new listings and listing updates on the real estate pages. This will bring links to new or updated postings directly to the subscriber's e-mail in box or to the "feeds" tab of the user's browser.
Those who are interested in real estate information for only one or two particular regions, can subscribe at the regional level. Those who are interested in nationwide listings can subscribe at the All Listings page. The RSS subscription links for the regions can be found at the top of each of the respective pages. (Mid-South, Midwest, West, Southeast) If users have questions they can call CAPS toll free at 800-243-2060 or send an e-mail to CAPS at capital.ag@prudential.com.
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Economist Mike Duffy of Iowa State University used a January 2010 newsletter to compare farmland versus the stock market as potential wealth-building choices. He concludes that timing is important to the results. Depending upon the year when an initial investment is made, farmland might outperform the stock market, and in other years, the stock market would be a better place to invest than farmland. He also notes that, in the future, farmland prices will depend on crop income, which is dependent upon many factors. South Dakota farmers and Ag Ph.D. hosts, Brian and Darren Hefty answered growers' top 10 questions during educational sessions held at the Case IH booth during the recent Ag Connect Expo in Orlando. Prior to the show, event sponsor Case IH had invited farmers to post their questions on www.caseih.com. The Heftys compiled the submissions and chose the 10 most common questions - which ranged from agronomic inquiries to future production speculation. Agricultural legal and tax developments continued to impact the agricultural sector in 2009. Here's the list of what the Iowa State University Center for Agricultural Law and Taxation believes to be the "Top Ten" developments in 2009 based on their impact to agricultural producers and rural landowners nationwide. The one-year lapse of the Federal Estate Tax is number one on the list. The CAPS website is offering a new weather and markets information section provided by AgriCharts. Clicking on the Weather & Markets tab on the main menu will take users to the Market Center where all market details and complete weather forecasts are totally accessible via the menu bar down the left-hand side of the page. No registration is required to use any of this information. However, if users wish to fully customize the information provided they should follow the link to the registration page. Once registered, the user's preferred commodities and stocks will automatically appear. "I hope that all of our clients and users will find this improvement to our website beneficial," states Mid-South Regional Vice President Royce Bryant, AFM. Most farmers prefer to apply fertilizers in the fall because they are not as busy as in the spring planting season and soil conditions are more favorable for avoiding compaction. However, this year, the late harvest and wet conditions have worked together to make nutrient applications a challenge. The University of Illinois Extension offers its thoughts and suggestions for farmers. According to the December issue of "Amber Waves,"The debt landscape for U.S. farms has shifted. ...Disruptions in U.S. credit markets have heightened concerns about the level of farm debt and the financial structure of U.S. farm businesses." The article states that debt is only part of the story. "To assess potential problems that farmers might confront from the use of debt financing, debt has to be examined in terms of its level, the leverage position of farms, and in light of the debt repayment capacity available to meet debt service and other payment obligations." Full article on debt and repayment concerns Under present law, 2010 is the final year in which capital gains and qualified dividends will not be subject to tax in the hands of certain individual taxpayers. This zero percent rate became available in 2008, and raises significant planning questions and opportunities for lower-income taxpayers, and other taxpayers that can utilize tax management strategies to minimize income to take advantage of the zero percent rate.What about farmers? Shifting and massaging farm income to utilize the zero rate is an option. Ideally, for active farmers that are planning on triggering capital gain income in 2010, the best tax strategy is to minimize taxable income in 2010. The goal is to try to keep the income within the top end of the 15 percent bracket. Complete Report from the Univeristy of Iowa Center for Agricultural Law and Taxation A new feature on the CAPS website gives users the opportunity to subscribe to new listings and listing updates on the real estate pages. This will bring links to new or updated postings directly to the subscriber's e-mail in box or to the "feeds" tab of the user's browser. Fall 2009 Farm & Ranch Survey: Rabobank recently launched a survey to gauge farmer’s confidence, and found that, while farmers’ outlook on the economy generally mirrors that of the overall population, more than half of farmers surveyed are employing risk management strategies to help navigate this difficult economic climate.Nearly two thirds of farmers continue to be concerned about the overall agricultural economy and their farm's outlook. W. Keith Duncan of Sikeston, MO, has been appointed by Missouri Governor Jay Nixon to serve on the Missouri Real Estate Appraiser's Commission. His term will end September 12, 2012. The Missouri Real Estate Appraisers' Commission licenses and regulates persons who engage in real estate appraisal business as set out by statutes. |
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