Corn and Ethanol Advocates Tweeting #RFSWorks

Cindy Zimmerman

Today from 7-10 AM central time agriculture and ethanol advocates will be participating in a Twitter Townhall, prior to the scheduled meeting today at the White House regarding the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS).

The effort grows out of news last week that EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt, already under fire for getting a sweet condo deal from the wife of an oil lobbyist, has been handing out dozens of small refiner hardship waivers to allow them out of their RFS obligations.

The National Corn Growers Association (NCGA) is calling on members to take action. “While the White House weighs options, the EPA continues to undermine and mess with the RFS, granting questionable RFS waivers to refiners with no transparency and failing to provide regulatory parity for higher blends of ethanol. The EPA continues to check-off the items on Big-Oil’s wish list while gutting corn and ethanol demand and undermining the President’s commitment to the RFS in the process.”

Advocates will be using the hashtag #RFSWorks, tweeting to @realDonaldTrump and/or @POTUS, @EPAScottPruitt and members of Congress this morning. The president is expected to meet this morning with Pruitt and Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue to discuss the issue again. The industry is encouraging the administration to consider real solutions, including RVP parity that would allow year-round sales of ethanol blends greater than 10 percent.

NCGA notes that since discussions about appeasing oil interests by capping Renewable Identification Number (RIN) prices started in January, RIN prices have fallen 50 percent.

Biodiesel, Biofuels, Corn, Ethanol, NCGA

Animal Ag Bites 4/9

Carrie Muehling

  • The National Pork Producers Council offers two tour packages prior to World Pork Expo. On June 4-5, a two-day Midwest tour travels across Iowa, Illinois and northern Indiana, providing perspectives on pork production, feed processing, agricultural shipping and more. On June 5, a one-day tour focuses on Central Iowa agri-businesses and pork production. Registration is available online.
  • Papillon Agricultural Company has hired Tricia Wolfswinkel, PhD, as Northwest Regional Sales Manager. Wolfswinkel will be responsible for educating dairy consultants and producers about the opportunities for increased feed efficiency with Papillon nutritional products.
  • The Angus Journal® redesign has extended to a new format for the digital edition, and it’s now available to subscribers through their AAA Login. The new flipbook format will provide a better reading experience online for the new Angus Journal. A print subscription gives you complementary access to the digital edition, which is available before the magazine hits your mailbox and includes digital add-ons such as videos and extended photo galleries, or digital-only subscriptions also are available.
  • Nick Gales has joined NutriQuest as Director of Finance. He will be responsible for providing leadership to the NutriQuest accounting & finance group.
  • The National Corn Growers Association partnered with the USA Poultry and Egg Export Council to conduct a study on the benefits of poultry exports to corn. The study, conducted by World Perspectives, Inc., entitled “Corn and Poultry: A Great Partnership,” outlined the benefits realized by America’s corn farmers from exports of poultry and eggs.
  • The National Milk Producers Federation expressed thanks to Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue for his agency’s prompt implementation of changes in the dairy Margin Protection Program (MPP), and urged dairy producers to review the new coverage options available under the improved program, which will have a new enrollment window from April 9-June 1, 2018.
  • The global regional finalists have been selected for the 2018 Alltech Young Scientist (AYS) program, the world’s largest agriscience competition for university students. Now in its 13th year, the program’s pool of nominees represents 83 universities from 28 countries. The regional finalists will attend AYS Discovery Week, held in conjunction with ONE: The Alltech Ideas Conference (ONE18), May 20–22 in Lexington, Kentucky, to present their research to a panel of international judges. The prizes include a fully funded Ph.D. position for the global undergraduate winner as well as $5,000 USD, and a fully funded postdoctoral position and $10,000 USD for the global graduate winner.
  • The National Corn Growers Association is stepping up to support the education of U.S. beef producers in states around the country. The assistance is being provided through a grant program offered to state affiliates of the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association that conduct Cattlemen’s Education Series events. The Cattlemen’s Education Series is a collaborative effort to advance grassroots education on topics that improve cattle production efficiency, profitability and sustainability.
  • Merck Animal Health is excited to increase availability of PORCILIS™ ILEITIS this month. PORCILIS ILEITIS is the first injectable vaccine that offers a 20-week duration of immunity (DOI) for control of ileitis caused by Lawsonia intracellularis.
  • Ty Ragsdale of Franklin, Tenn., joined the Certified Hereford Beef team April 3 as a regional brand manager. Ragsdale will work with clients across the United States to expand the availability of CHB products and promote the CHB brand.
AgWired Animal, Animal Bites

USFRA in USA Today

Chuck Zimmerman

The U.S. Farmers and Ranchers Alliance is showcased in a special edition of USA Today, their annual U.S. Department of Agriculture Special Edition. This one is titled, “Seeds of Change: Cultivating the Next Generation.” You’ll find USFRA on pg. 85. The full page showcases USFRA’s efforts to promote agriculture through Discovering Farmland, Straight Talk on Sustainability, Faces of Farming & Ranching and its digital and social media footprint.

This is a 100-page publication to commemorate agriculture’s myriad of achievements, as it remains a bright spot in the U.S. economy. The issue looks at how the USDA expands economic opportunity through innovation, promoting agricultural sustainability and conserving our nation’s natural resources.

You can contact USFRA about obtaining a copy of the edition or you can also click here to access to digital version.

USFRA

Zimfo Bytes 4/6

Carrie Muehling

  • A new children’s book called Look, See the Farm! seeks to not only promote curiosity in children about the natural world around them, but also to establish the universal quality of having a connection with nature. Look, See the Farm! is the heartwarming story of two sisters visiting their grandparents’ organic farm during each of the four seasons, discovering the many interesting creatures that make the farm their home. Young readers will gain a look at farm life and the animals living on the farm, as well as discovering the wild birds that thrive there.
  • Brownfield Ag News, the largest agricultural radio network in the country, is growing. Already this year, Brownfield has enjoyed a 5% increase in the number of affiliate radio stations in its 10-state footprint. The most notable growth is a nearly 12% increase in the number of affiliates in Nebraska and a 21% increase in Ohio.
  • The Agricultural Relations Council (ARC) will present a webinar on Wednesday, April 18, 2018 from 12:30 PM to 1:30 PM (EDT) on the development Of The Levesol Promise Campaign. David Erickson, VP, Online Marketing, at Karwoski & Courage, shares how their Levesol Promise Campaign was developed and submitted for a Golden ARC award. Click here for more information.
  • Several digital marketing professionals have joined Two Rivers Marketing. Jennifer Ruggle has been named managing director of digital services. Hanna Plants is a senior digital strategist and Stephanie Bidney joins the agency as a senior digital project manager. Erin Fry and Ashley Bash are social media specialists, and Justin Lobaito joins the team as a digital creative lead in a digital design and front-end development role.
  • Earl Sears, a former executive vice president of the National Cotton Council, passed away April 3.
  • The Finding Farmland Calculator, developed by the National Young Farmers Coalition (NYFC) and Fathom Information Design, brings together innovative design and practical resources to help farmers overcome two top obstacles to starting a farm—access to land and capital.
  • Iowa Farm Bureau Federation has announced that Joe Johnson has been named the new executive director and secretary-treasurer of the organization. Johnson assumes his new position on April 20, 2018. He succeeds Denny Presnall who will retire after 36 years with Farm Bureau.
  • Passion for Progress is the theme for the 2018 Women’s Agricultural Leadership conference, which is celebrating its 20th year. This annual conference, coordinated by Minnesota District 11 Agri-Women, includes presentations on a wide variety of topics, including agriculture policy, advocacy, technology, professional development, and marketing.
  • The National Cotton Council is concerned that China’s announcement of significantly higher proposed tariffs on U.S. raw cotton shipped to that country would significantly harm the economic health of the U.S. cotton industry. For the current 2017 crop year, China stands as the second largest export market with purchases of approximately 2.5 million bales of U.S. cotton.
  • The Kentucky State Fair Board has named the Kentucky Farm Bureau Federation’s top executive as its new President and CEO. David S. Beck, 63, has served as CEO of Farm Bureau since 1995, and brings over 40 years of experience in agriculture and governmental affairs to Kentucky Venues. The State Fair Board is the governing body for Kentucky Venues, which manages the Kentucky Exposition Center and Kentucky International Convention Center, which hosts the annual National Farm Machinery Show
Zimfo Bytes

Outrage Grows Over EPA RFS Waivers

Cindy Zimmerman

Farm and biofuels groups are saying “enough is enough” as outrage grows over the Environmental Protection Agency granting numerous small refinery hardship waivers, combined with the approval of the Philadelphia Energy Solutions bankruptcy agreement absolving the oil refiner of the majority of its Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) obligations.

The National Corn Growers Association (NCGA) and state corn growers sent a letter to EPA this week demanding full transparency for small refiner exemption evaluations and an end to “backdoor reductions to the RFS.”

The Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) submitted Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests this week to both EPA and the Department of Energy to learn more about compliance exemptions granted to dozens of oil refineries. “We want to know how many (refineries) and how many gallons are impacted by these small refiner exemptions,” says RFA President and CEO Bob Dinneen. “And more importantly, what these companies had to demonstrate in order to claim a unique hardship under this program.”

Dinneen commented on that and other issues surrounding the waiver scandal in this edition of The Ethanol Report: Ethanol Report on EPA Small Refinery Waivers

Growth Energy sent a letter to EPA this week demanding a moratorium on waivers being issued. Growth Energy CEO Emily Skor says the increasing number of waivers corresponds to a decrease in demand for both ethanol and corn, and undermines the entire RFS. “You add on waiver after waiver, and the amount of applications being considered, you are looking at upwards of 1.5 billion gallons in cut ethanol demand, a reduction of 500 million bushels of corn demand,” said Skor.

In this interview, Skor also discusses the organization’s objections to the bankruptcy settlement with Philadelphia Energy Solutions. Interview with Growth Energy CEO Emily Skor

The White House is reportedly holding another meeting on the issue Monday.

Audio, Corn, EPA, Ethanol, RFA

Credenz Soybeans Building on Strong History

Carrie Muehling

Bayer CropScience is seeing rapid growth in the use of its Credenz soybean varieties. In 2018, Credenz sales broke into the top ten out of more than 150 soybean brands available in the United States.

The strength of the Credenz soybean brand continues to be the fact that it is based on the LibertyLink system, which is outstanding for both weed control and elite genetics, according to Bayer agronomist Monty Malone.

“Going forward, Credenz will remain the same focus of being grower choice. Any trait platform that is in need that can serve as a tool to a grower, we will definitely try to provide that within the Credenz brand,” said Malone, who noted that over 90 percent of the Credenz portfolio is enabled by Liberty.

Malone was at the 2018 Commodity Classic in Anaheim.

Listen to Jamie’s interview with Monty here: Interview with Monty Malone, Bayer - Credenz History

Bayer at 2018 Commodity Classic Photo Album

Photos, video, and audio interviews from Bayer at Commodity Classic Bayer sponsor logo

AgWired Precision, Audio, Bayer, Commodity Classic, Soybean

The U.S. Soybean in Southeast Asia

Jamie Johansen

USDA Foreign Agricultural Service’s Chris Rittgers has called Jakarta, Indonesia home for nearly a year, but is a veteran when it comes to the role of agricultural counselor. Prior to this three-year position, Rittgers worked for the USDA in the Dominican Republic, Haiti, Malaysia, Iraq, Egypt and Spain. Naturally, he was the perfect person to share the role of Indonesia in the global marketplace during the 13th SE Asia Soy Food Symposium and Ag Supply Chain Asia 2018 events in Surabaya, Indonesia.

“Indonesia is unique. They import soybeans primally for food use. The objective of these events is to provide technical information for Southeast Asia on the quality characteristic of U.S. soybeans, our infrastructure, marketing system and how it’s produced. They are also getting information about our supply chain and no one can explain it better then our U.S. producers themselves. They are our best ambassadors for our sector and many are here from various states in the Midwest,” Rittgers said.

As an advocate for U.S. soybean in the southeast Asian market, Rittgers continually shares the advantages of U.S. soybeans. He said U.S. beans come with a transparent price, systematic infrastructure, consistent quality and stable supply.

Rittgers also said the history and relationship between the Indonesian buyers and the U.S. exporters is a big contributor. “It’s been several decades they have had hard, concrete and successful economic relationships,” Rittgers said.

Listen to my complete interview with Chirs to hear his overall views on the future of the Southeast Asian market beyond soy: Interview with Chris Rittgers, USDA FAS Indonesia

View and download images from the event here: USSEC SE Asia Buyers Conference Photo Album

Ag Groups, Audio, Exports, Soybean, USDA, USSEC

China Adds Tariffs on Beef and Soybeans

Cindy Zimmerman

More U.S. agricultural products are on the second list of retaliatory tariffs from China, including both soybeans and beef, of 25 percent.

Kent Bacus, Director of International Trade and Market Access for the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA), calls the action unsettling but not surprising. “This is a battle between two governments, and the unfortunate casualties will be America’s cattlemen and women and our consumers in China,” said Bacus.

Listen to Bacus in this special edition of Beltway Beef – Beltway Beef report with Kent Bacus

American Soybean Association treasurer Bill Gordon, a grower from Minnesota, says the move has already cost them. “We had a 30-40 cent drop in our soybean price this morning,” said Gordon. “So just on the speculation alone of a tariff, we lost 1.7 billion.”

However, Gordon is optimistic that the situation could turn into a positive. “If it gets both countries to the table, it could create a positive trade balance, with soybeans and other ag products,” he said. “We have the products that China wants.”

Get more details from Gordon in this interview – Interview with ASA treasurer Bill Gordon, Minnesota soybean farmer

Also included on the second list of 25% tariff items are corn, cotton, and frozen orange juice.

AgWired Animal, ASA, Audio, Beef, Soybean, Trade

2018 Ag Media Summit

Chuck Zimmerman

Just in case you didn’t get the memo, this year’s Agricultural Media Summit will be August 4-8 in Scottsdale, AZ.

In case you don’t know what this is then read on.

This is the largest gathering of agriculture’s top writers, editors, photographers, publishers and communication specialists in the U.S. This year the Association for Communication Excellence (ACE) in Agriculture, Natural Resources and Life and Human Sciences will join the American Agricultural Editors’ Association, Livestock Publications Council and the Connectiv Agri-Media Committee. With the addition of ACE, more than 850 media and communications professionals are expected to attend.

This industry-wide gathering of agricultural communicators offers one of the best opportunities for professional improvement and industry networking. The InfoExpo (trade show) annually exceeds 75 booths and provides the best place to promote your company or organization’s products and services. Sign up for your booth here.

HOTEL HEADQUARTERS:

The Westin Kierland Resort & Spa
6902 E. Greenway Parkway
Scottsdale, AZ 885254
480-624-1000
kierlandresort.com

To book your room, click here. Room rate: $149

ACE, ACN, Ag Media Summit, LPC, Media

Nebraska Water for Food at 8th World Water Forum in Brazil

Cindy Zimmerman

The 8th World Water Forum, held in Brazil last month, drew more than 20,000 participants from 170 countries to focus on the challenges and solutions to ensuring water security around the world. The Robert B. Daugherty Water for Food Global Institute at the University of Nebraska (DWFI) coordinated the Water for Food track of sessions with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.

The institute organized a High Level Panel on Water for Food, moderated by DWFI executive director Peter G. McCornick, featuring international leaders who shared their views and experiences on ways organizations and nations can work together to improve food security and successful farming production, conserve natural resources and mitigate the effects of climate variability.

“We are building awareness of the urgent importance of looking at water issues differently, especially when it comes to agriculture,” said McCornick. “If we’re not including agriculture in the water security challenge, we’re ignoring 70 percent of the equation, and missing the opportunity to increase resilience in our food systems. Nebraska has a lot of expertise to share, as well as a lot to gain through our involvement with the many partners participating in the World Water Forum – developing potential projects that will further our goal of ensuring water and food security.”

DWFI also held a side event to discuss ways in which organizations can support farmer-led agricultural production, including access to irrigation for small-scale farms.

Listen to my interview with McCornick here: Interview with Peter McCornick, Daugherty Water for Food Global Institute

AgWired Precision, Audio, International, Irrigation, Water, Water for Food