Ag Outlook 2010

Amanda Nolz

sdsa This week, I’m planning to attend Ag Outlook 2010 in Sioux Falls, S.D. at the Ramkota Exhibit Hall. The theme for this year’s conference and trade show is, “Meeting the demands of the future,” and I’m excited to listen to the great lineup of speakers that the conference has to offer.

Speakers include: Matt Utterback, an ag commodity market analyst; Don Reynolds, futurist and real world economist; and Al Ambrose, VP of Risk Management for Oil Processing, a division of CHS, Inc. These three will be discussing the state of the economy, where its headed and how producers can develop a strategy to survive in the upcoming years.

This convention is hosted by the South Dakota Soybean Association, and there are over 600 people already planning to attend. I hope you’re one of them, and that I’ll run into you while I’m there. Are you going to Ag Outlook 2010?

Ag Groups, Education, Soybean

Fluidigm System Work Flow

Chuck Zimmerman

In this latest edition of the stories about Fluidigm Corporation you’ll get to meet Amy Hamilton, Technical Support Specialist. Amy works in the lab at Fluidigm headquarters. She walks us through a workflow of the Fluidigm System.


As you’ll see in the video, the size and scale of equipment needed for the Fluidigm System to conduct many different simultaneous samples in a project is much smaller than you would normally find in a research lab today. This is why the company would like to talk to ag bio researchers since the system is more efficient and can produce big savings in the long run.

Agribusiness, Biotech, Research

PRRS Control Progress

Cindy Zimmerman

Boehringer Ingelheim PRRSLast year when we interviewed Dr. Bob Morrison with the University of Minnesota at the first PRRS control seminar sponsored by Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica (BIVI) he said they were “just at the beginning of this process to create area and regional PRRS control.”

At the second seminar held last week, Morrison said, “We’re one year further ahead, one year more experience. Really it’s like a snowball moving down a hill in terms of momentum and knowledge.” Morrison reviewed the progress made in trying to control PRRS (porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome) since 2002 when the concept was first introduced.

Listen to or download my interview with Bob Morrison here:

Audio, Boehringer Ingelheim, Swine

Renewed Optimism for PRRS Control

Cindy Zimmerman

Boehringer Ingelheim PRRSOptimism was the key word at the Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica (BIVI) “Area Regional Control of PRRS” seminar in Chicago Friday, which was held prior to the start of the 2009 International PRRS Symposium.

“There is a renewed optimism in our ability to put together area regional control and hopefully eradication programs for this disease and it’s an optimism I haven’t seen in the 20 some years I have been working with this disease,” said Dr. Scott Dee with the Swine Disease Eradication Center in Minnesota. He says the Minnesota project has gotten off to a good start and there is interest from other states in expanding the effort.

Listen to or download my interview with Scott here:

Audio, Boehringer Ingelheim, Swine

Moroccan Market

Chuck Zimmerman

Only the seasoned professional agriblogger can handle taking photos, conducting interviews and shooting video clips, then editing them, uploading them and getting them posted, especially in a foreign country. Video is the toughest part.

Listen to the muezzin call during midday prayers while the U.S. Grains Council Corn Mission walked through a market in Casablanca, Morocco.

USGC, Video

Improving Feedgrain Access In Egypt

Chuck Zimmerman

Corn MissionIn Egypt, the Agricultural Minister Counselor for the United States is Jonathan Gressel (pictured center). He met with the U.S. Grains Council Corn Mission team today at a late lunch and we really appreciate him taking time for the visit.

John says his primary mission is market access and development for U.S. products. He says that currently Egypt is an excellent, growing market and not just for corn but for ddgs and corn gluten. He says that when more corn moves into the market it helps American corn growers while also helping build new industry in Egypt. One of the challenges in the market is poultry industry which was hit hard by avian influenza but is coming back.

When it comes to the work of the USGC he says that Dr. Hussein Soliman, USGC Country Director, is one of his “go-to” people and that companies and the government respect him as well. He points to the successful Egyptian Cattlemen’s Bank as one of the projects that was founded with support of USGC. He says that the USGC “has a good team working here and is one of your best programs.”

You can listen to my interview with Jonathan below:

USGC Corn Mission In Egypt Photo Album

Audio, Corn, International, USDA, USGC

Egypt Grain Inspection Lab

Chuck Zimmerman

Corn MissionThe Executive Director of the Regional Center For Food and Feed is Dr. Mohamed F. Emara. He was our host this morning for a tour of their Grain Inspection Lab. I remember touring the lab on my trip here with USDA back in 1999. RCFF operates three regional feed grain laboratories, one in the Giza headquarters, one at EI-Oekheila Port in Alex­andria, and one in Port Said.

Dr. Emara says they’re responsible for quality control of ingredients imported from outside Egypt and produced inside the country. About 85 percent of the yellow corn they inspect is imported from the U.S. He says that since they started testing over 10 years ago, rejected shipments have decreased significantly which means Egypt is receiving better quality grain. The U.S. Grains Council was instrumental in helping get this lab established by providing technical assistance during the original development process.

You can listen to my interview with Dr. Emara below and watch a portion of our presentation in the video:

USGC Corn Mission In Egypt Photo Album

Audio, Corn, Grains, International, USGC

Corn Mission In Egypt

Chuck Zimmerman

Corn MissionThe U.S. Grains Council Corn Mission team moved from Morocco to Egypt this weekend. We’re now in Cairo and spent the morning at the Regional Center For Food and Feed.

Our primary focus was on their grain inspection service which I’ll have more information about in an upcoming post. In the meantime I have a new photo album started for Egypt which shows you what we saw today.

USGC Corn Mission In Egypt Photo Album

USGC

54.9 Million Acres Irrigated, Says USDA

Amanda Nolz

usda-logo As a livestock producer, I like to follow the trends as pastures are converted to cropland. In many places, pastures will always be there, as the land is too steep, hilly or rocky for modernizing or farming. However, the low profit margins in the livestock industry are pushing many farmers and ranchers to expand their crop enterprise and decrease their cowherds. On another note, it seems that water is in short supplies these days, and an increasing number of acres are being irrigated. Since we have had such a wet, cold year here in South Dakota, I can only imagine the troubles those are experiencing in places of drought. Check out the statistics from the USDA as printed by the Delta Farm Press.

In 2008, farmers and ranchers spent $2.1 billion on expenses related to irrigation equipment, facilities, land improvements and computer technology. USDA’s 2008 Farm and Ranch Survey has found that farmers and ranchers are now irrigating 54.9 million acres farmland across the United States, an increase of nearly 5 percent since 2003. USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) collected the data for the Irrigation Survey earlier this year.

“Water is the most critical, limited resource for our nation’s farmers and ranchers,” said Molly Jahn, USDA Deputy Under Secretary for Research, Education, and Economics. “For farmers and ranchers who are looking for more efficient ways to irrigate their land and ways to reduce their expenses, the results of the Farm and Ranch Irrigation Survey provide a valuable tool to help them make informed decisions about the future of their operations.”

Research, Sustainability

House Passes Permanent Estate Tax Relief Bill

Amanda Nolz

Kisses If you’re like me, then you have been watching closely the progress of the Estate Tax Relief Bill. As the average age of the American farmer or rancher nears 60, agriculture businesses will start switching hands, and unfortunately, poor succession planning can result in the end of a long-standing family tradition. Here is a release that was published in Hoosier Ag Today about this estate tax relief bill…

H.R. 4154, the Permanent Estate Tax Relief for Families, Farmers, and Small Businesses Act of 2009, passed in the House of Representatives Thursday by a vote of 225 – 200. Introduced by North Dakota Representative Earl Pomeroy, the bill would permanently extend the death tax. It would exclude amounts up to 3.5-million single and 7-million married, and permanently set the death tax rate at 45 percent. Under current law the death tax would expire in 2010. According to Palmeroy, “This bill will provide full and permanent estate tax relief for 99.75 percent of families, farmers, and small businesses in this country, who would not have to pay any estate tax.” Pomeroy adds, this bill will, “Provide the stability families need to make long-term decisions and avoid the estate planning roller coaster that will result from current law.”

Livestock