Agriculture

We must do more to reassure society about the safety of agricultural innovation. The public is frequently bombarded with negative and misleading information about our food supply system. Even though we know advances in farming have increased safety and sustainability, it’s not enough to say “trust me.” Many people don’t trust the integrity of privately funded research, perhaps fearing that the industry may be hiding something from them. To address this misperception, Bayer has taken steps to allow public access to safety-relevant crop protection study information. [node:read-more:link]

Three Kansas communities have been identified as possible sites for a new Tyson Foods broiler complex that was originally planned for the Leavenworth County community of Tonganoxie, in the northeastern part of the state. [node:read-more:link]

Michigan leaders today announced formation of a unique new coalition working to improve water quality in the Western Lake Erie Basin. The Michigan Cleaner Lake Erie through Action and Research (MI CLEAR) Partnership includes farmers, agricultural and environmental leaders, universities, conservationists, landscape professionals, energy leaders, tourism and economic development interests, and more. [node:read-more:link]

State Sen. Gerald Dial of Lineville announced today he will run for commissioner of the Alabama Department of Agriculture and Industries. Dial will run for the Republican nomination in hopes of succeeding Commissioner John McMillan. He said he would emphasize job creation."I have a reputation of rocking the boat, stepping on the status quo," said Dial, a retired brigadier general in the Alabama National Guard. [node:read-more:link]

Lending at agricultural banks appeared to stabilize in the third quarter of 2017, but risks in the sector have remained alongside a persistently weak agricultural economy. After declining in the winter months, the volume of loans used to finance non-real estate farm purchases rebounded in the third quarter to a level similar to a year ago. Despite the rebound in lending activity, however, risk ratings on new farm loans have increased somewhat, interest rates have edged higher and loan-to-deposit ratios—a key measure of bank liquidity—also have increased. [node:read-more:link]

A new analysis by Farm Policy Facts reveals that the USDA’s projected Net Farm Income (NFI) increase is not exactly what it seems.In fact, according to our analysis, the major takeaway from the report should not be the increase projected for 2017, but the downward adjustment to the 2016 number.The ERS had projected 2016 NFI to be $68.3 billion, but the August 30 update reduced it by 10% to $61.5 billion. [node:read-more:link]

In our 2017 Agribusiness Wage + Land Rent Survey, farmers expressed their top concern about the future of their businesses: the uncertainty surrounding their labor supply. This year’s survey data showed that 41% of respondents had 25 or more employees during peak employment, down from 57% in the prior year. Forty-nine percent of respondents employed seasonal workers for 12 or more weeks, down from 52% the prior year. It was a tough year for business and a tough year for finding workers.This trend is nothing new. U.S. [node:read-more:link]

Producing economically viable biofuels from biomass other than corn, however, is more complicated. Many biofuels researchers, including those at the Great Lakes Bioenergy Research Center (GLBRC) based at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, are now focused on making biofuels from low-input crops such as switchgrass and poplar. [node:read-more:link]

Survey Results at a Glance: The overall index sank to itslowestlevelsinceDecember 2016,and remained below growth neutral. For the 46th straight month, average farmland prices declined across the 10 state region. For the 49th straight month, the agriculture equipment sales index fell below growth neutral. As a result of falling farm income, more than 51 percent of bank CEOs, reported restructuring farm loans, and approximately 18.6 percent indicated increasing collateral requirements. Bank CEOs reported only a 2.1 percent increase in farm loan defaults over the past year [node:read-more:link]

Survey Results at a Glance: The overall index sank to itslowestlevelsinceDecember 2016,and remained below growth neutral. For the 46th straight month, average farmland prices declined across the 10 state region. For the 49th straight month, the agriculture equipment sales index fell below growth neutral. As a result of falling farm income, more than 51 percent of bank CEOs, reported restructuring farm loans, and approximately 18.6 percent indicated increasing collateral requirements. Bank CEOs reported only a 2.1 percent increase in farm loan defaults over the past year [node:read-more:link]