The recent wave of mergers and acquisitions in the agriculture and chemical businesses won't raise prices for farmers or stifle innovation, industry executives told the Senate Judiciary Committee. Of the top six U.S. and European agribusiness companies, five are in talks for a merger or a buy-out. [node:read-more:link]
As was forecast, working capital on farms decreased during 2015. Given 2016 income prospects, further decreases in working capital should be expected. At the end of 2016, most of the working capital reserves built during high-income years from 2007 to 2013 will be gone. Working capital levels will again be at levels comparable to 1996 through 2006. In 2015 and 2016, working capital reserves were used to fund cash flow shortfalls coming from operations. If prices remain low through 2017, means other than reducing working capital likely will be needed to address cash shortfalls. [node:read-more:link]
Big corporations are having a hard time competing. And it’s costing them money. Now they need to consolidate. I feel so bad for them. Speaking as a farmer I know how tough it can be when returns don’t total enough to pay expenses. And I know Monsanto, Syngenta, Dow, DuPont, BASF, and Bayer have my best interests at heart. That’s why they kept raising prices on their patented seeds and pesticides even after prices of wheat corn and soybeans had sunk below green into red. Perhaps it was meant to give me hope–and some heavy expenses I could write off my taxes. [node:read-more:link]
The U.S. [node:read-more:link]
Bayer AG Chief Executive Werner Baumann defended the company’s planned $66 billion acquisition of U.S. seed maker Monsanto Co. to a gathering of investors and analysts, while laying out increased midterm sales and earnings targets for the crop and pharmaceuticals businesses. “There was a perception that this was something that came out of the blue and was completely off strategy,” Mr. [node:read-more:link]
Ohio's Republican voters and conservative independents are greener than state politicians might have believed. [node:read-more:link]
Louisiana's Shelter at Home program is a key component of the housing recovery plan for flood victims, but it may not apply to potentially thousands of people because mobile homes are automatically excluded. The quirk in the program has prompted angry calls to state lawmakers and others in recent weeks as the program, which provides up to $15,000 for homeowners to be able to quickly get back into their flood-damaged homes, begins to ramp up. "I've watched people repair manufactured homes," said state Sen. Bodi White, a Central Republican who is running for mayor of Baton Rouge. [node:read-more:link]
FIGHT has erupted over the health claims behind the A2 protein in milk. The a2 Milk Company’s claim that its product is easier to digest because it contains only the A2 protein will be tested in court after it lodged a “misleading and deceptive” case against Lion Group in June for advertising on packaging that Pura and Dairy Farmers-branded milk “naturally contains A2 protein”. Lion launched a cross-claim last month alleging a2 had engaged in “misleading and deceptive conduct” and that its claims that consuming milk with only the A2 protein was beneficial “cannot be substantiated”. [node:read-more:link]
Is it really possible that New York State will ban school kids from eating sweet corn grown almost completely without insecticides and free from brain-damaging mycotoxins? From time to time, elected boards of education and similar organizations have proposed some science-defying stances; resolutions against teaching evolution and accepting climate change stand out historically. Now, the New York State Parent Teacher Association (NY PTA) has earned an “F” in science 101 with proposals that would ban foods made using genetically engineering or that contain GE ingredients. [node:read-more:link]
The Association of Equipment Manufacturers (AEM) and the Equipment Dealers Association (EDA) have released the results of surveys each organization conducted with their members about the levels of new and used agriculture equipment inventory currently on the market. AEM's data results revealed that, since 2014, the ag equipment manufacturers surveyed believe that new and used inventory levels are decreasing overall. This trend is consistent with EDA's ag equipment dealer survey results for the second quarter of 2016. [node:read-more:link]
