Dairy Industry Loses Leader

Cindy Zimmerman

TomMemorialFrontPageThe nation’s dairy producers are mourning the loss of an industry leader, Dairy Farmers of America Chairman Tom Camerlo, who passed away December 3 after a courageous battle with cancer. Tom served as DFA’s chairman since 2003.

“Tom’s commitment to the dairy industry ran deep, and was second only to his devotion to his family,” said Rick Smith, DFA president and CEO. “The entire DFA family extends our heartfelt sympathy to the Camerlos. We share in grieving the passing of our colleague, a dear friend and a man whose lifetime commitment and leadership made an everlasting difference in the dairy industry.”

A scholarship to honor Tom’s legacy – the James P. “Tom” Camerlo, Jr. Memorial Scholarship – has been established at Colorado State University, his alma mater. Contributions in Tom’s name can be sent to the Colorado State University Foundation at P.O. Box 1870, Fort Collins, CO 80523-1870. Checks should mention the James P. “Tom” Camerlo, Jr. Memorial Scholarship in the memo line.

Dairy

Egytian Dairy Tour

Chuck Zimmerman

The final visit for the U.S. Grains Council Corn Mission team was a dairy farm in Egypt. This is the Mirhom Farag Farm, owned by Suzanne Basilios. In the video we walk through the dairy with the farm manager so you can see how the animals are kept in open lots. They are feeding hay and a lot of corn mixed with ddgs.

USGC Corn Mission In Egypt Photo Album

Dairy, USGC, Video

Alltech Goes Green in Serbia

Cindy Zimmerman

AlltechAlltech has opened a state-of-the art energy generation facility in Senta, Serbia.

According to the company, the new plant encompasses many cutting edge technologies and instead of using conventional fuel, it uses the waste from the yeast factory as a raw material. This waste is converted into biogas which is used to power the new co-generation plant, which is the first of its kind in Serbia and one of the first in Europe.

Pictured celebrating the opening of the plant in Serbia are Dr. Bojan Pajtić, current prime minister of the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina, Serbia; Dr. Pearse Lyons, President of Alltech and Mr. Zoltan Pek, Mayor of Senta.

Alltech

Producer Thoughts On Egypt

Chuck Zimmerman

Corn MissionThe U.S. Grains Council Corn Mission Team has concluded visiting Egypt. Tomorrow it’s on to Jordan. Before finishing today we sat down for our debrief which includes documenting our observations and making recommendations based on what we saw. Those will be provided to USGC in the form of a final report. I have updated the Eqypt photo album from our visits today.

To get some producer feedback on our time in Egypt I interviewed Darren Armstrong, North Carolina. Darren says the biggest thing you see immediately is the potential. He says that in just a couple of years we should see significant growth. He says we need to keep our quality up and take care of the market by supporting Dr. Soliman, USGC Country Director. He thought the feedlots we visited were well taken care of and are becoming more efficient. He’s glad to see how ddgs have been so well accepted here and that is good for American producers. He says it’s, “been like a look back in history.” He compares where a lot of the Eqypt countryside is with where we were at in America not that long ago.

You can listen to my interview with Darren below:

USGC Corn Mission In Egypt Photo Album

Ag Groups, Audio, Corn, Grains, USGC

Dr. Soliman Is Face of USGC In Egypt

Chuck Zimmerman

Corn MissionThe face and voice of the U.S. Grains Council in Egypt is Dr. Hussein Soliman pictured in the center of our Corn Mission group while visiting our last stop in the country. He has been working on behalf of U.S. grain producers for almost 20 years and has not only seen Egypt become one of our top importers but can take a lot of the credit for helping make it happen. You won’t find anyone more passionate about what he does. All of us on the team are very appreciative of his assistance and guidance while visiting this week.

I spoke to Dr. Soliman while we were at one of the Mirhom Farag Farms, owned by Suzanne Basilios, also in center of the photo. She treated us to a wonderful meal at her dairy and I’ll have a video clip of it coming up soon.

Dr. Soliman provides a very good summary of the work the USGC has done in Egypt and the results he’s seen over the years. The market is far from mature and in fact will grow tremendously, especially when the poultry sector gets back to normal. In the meantime, the biggest opportunities lie in beef and dairy production.

You can listen to my interview with Dr. Soliman below:

USGC Corn Mission In Egypt Photo Album

Ag Groups, Audio, Corn, Grains, International, USGC

Mixing His Own Buffalo Feed

Chuck Zimmerman

Corn MissionNow that the modern form of open feedlot management has come to Egypt there are an increasing number of producers using the system. One of them is Ashraf Taha, pictured on the right.

The U.S. Grains Council Corn Mission visited the El-Amel Feedlot this morning to see his operation. He had very few animals left after having just sold most of them at market. He was actually using this time to do maintenance work on his feedlot facilities. Besides raising buffalo Ashraf is very particular about the feed he provides and invested in the equipment to mix his own which includes a healthy portion of ddgs.

You can listen to my interview with Ashraf below:

USGC Corn Mission In Egypt Photo Album

Audio, Corn, International, USGC

Will Agriculture Benefit From Climate Change Legislation?

Amanda Nolz

Stock-dam Will Agriculture Benefit From Climate Change Legislation? That’s the question that Hoosier Ag Today asked recently after the USDA released its final analysis of the Climate Change legislation that is currently making its way through Congress. As we looks at the pros and cons of this legislation, I think it’s safe to say that things are changing in the agriculture industry today, and we are going to have to be proactive instead of reactive when it comes to taking care of the environment.

Gary Truitt writes, According to Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack, “The report sees extraordinarily small increase in food prices. Somewhere between point one percent and point two percent in the short run and between one percent and two percent by the year 2050.”

He told reporters during a national teleconference on Wednesday that increases in fertilizer and energy costs will be minimal and that farmers will be able to more than offset those higher costs by trading in the carbon market. The Secretary says the conservative study, which assumed no technological progress, found that over the medium- and long-term, carbon offsets will “overwhelm” any increased production costs. Vilsack had tough words for those who advocate more study and a slower approach to dealing with climate change, ”The climate is changing and we have to deal with this change now.”

As the “original environmentalists,” farmers and ranchers should keep a close eye on this legislation. What are your thoughts on Climate Change legislation? How will it affect your segment of the agriculture industry?

Uncategorized

South American Soybean Expert

Cindy Zimmerman

USB websiteThe United Soybean Board Expert Advice column this week features an update on South America from Pablo Adreani of AgriPAC Consulting. Pablo is an agronomist, journalist and trade consultant from Buenos Aires, Argentina who just happens to be in the United States this week for the American Seed Trade Association meeting in Chicago.

USB Pablo AdreaniIn this week’s column, Pablo talks about the impact of this year’s weather in South America. Here’s a sample:

The last rains of the middle of November did not reach Cordoba, and the drought continues to affect more than 50 percent of the province. This is the province with the greatest soybean growing area in the country, producing 11 million acres. The first crop of soybeans has already been delayed for a month. According to a report by the Buenos Aires Grain Board Exchange, 3.2 million acres have been planted; this equals 28 percent of the whole province acreage.

I called Pablo yesterday at his hotel in Chicago and talked with him about why it is important for soybean growers in the United States to keep abreast of developments in South America. You can listen to my interview with Pablo below.

The USB Expert Advice tool features a weekly column rotating between four industry experts: Pablo on South American markets, David Asbridge on U.S. markets, John Baize on soybean and soybean oil industry news and Michele Payn-Knoper on using social media in agriculture. The columns can be accessed on the USB website under the “community” tab. Farmers are encouraged to ask questions and post comments after each new article and to engage the industry experts.

Now, here is that interview with Pablo and if you have any questions, just ask the expert after you read his column on the soybean checkoff website:

Audio, International, Soybean, USB

Rainbow Over Desert Buffalo

Chuck Zimmerman

Desert Rainbow in EgyptIt is very rare to see a rainbow in the desert according to the people the U.S. Grains Council Corn Mission team was meeting with at the time.

We were on location at the water buffalo feedlot and dairy when we saw this storm on the horizon. It arrived just as we were ready to leave and this was what we saw. It also poured rain as we drove away. In fact, as the storm moved over us the rainbow moved all the way through a full arc but never made a complete arch.

We took it as a good sign. Those are pens in the foreground with baby buffalo in them. There are additional photos of the buffalo and the rainbow in the photo album.

USGC Corn Mission In Egypt Photo Album

USGC

Ag Credit Will Get Tighter

Amanda Nolz

Pasture-Overlooking Looking at the dollars and cents of the agriculture industry today can be tough at times. With sky-rocketing input costs and low-profit margins, producing food has become an even more challenging “game” than ever before. Because of the struggling economy and decreased consumer spending, there are less dollars to go around, and that means ag lenders are having to tighten their pocketbooks, as well.

According to Ag Weekly Online, Ag Credit Will get Tighter. Cindy Snyder, Ag Weekly correspondent writes, Nationally farm income topped $87 billion in 2008, but it is projected to fall to $54 billion this year. If farm income stays below $60 billion in 2010, farmers will find credit more difficult to arrange. If farm income drops below $50 billion, the situation will become markedly more difficult, he said.

A drop in land values of 10 percent would be manageable and not affect ag credit much, Klinefelter said. With a 20 percent devaluation some stress will be felt, but a drop of 30 percent will cause major problems because nearly all real estate loans are secured by real estate.

Agribusiness