USDA: Farmers making big planting strides

This spring’s roller coaster ride of corn and soybean planting took a huge step toward completion over the last week, as farmers made major progress getting their corn and soybeans in the ground, according to Tuesday’s USDA-NASS Crop Progress report.

U.S. farmers made a 21% gain planting soybeans over the last 7 days, up to 74%. Though that’s still 1% off the previous average, farmers in many large soybean-growing states made some of the largest strides. In Missouri, 48% of the crop was in the ground as of Sunday, compared to 22% a week ago and, in Illinois, 73% of the beans are sown compared to 47% a week ago.

After starting off on a brisk pace, corn planting was slowed by moisture through much of May. But, the last week of the month treated farmers better, allowing many to see the finish line. Farmers in all 18 of the major corn-growing states saw progress advance into the 90s, with those in Minnesota and North Carolina finished planting. Emergence is ahead of the normal pace thus far, with 85% of the crop poked through compared to the 80% previous 5-year average. Soybean emergence, at 46%, is just ahead of the normal clip.

But, the numbers don’t tell the whole story. There’s a lot more variability in planting progress than what USDA reported Tuesday, farmers say. “Crop conditions vary a lot around here as well. Some of us were able to get corn in around the 20th of April and that corn looks good for the most part. Corn that was planted after the rains started setting in seem a little stunted,” says Agriculture.com Marketing Talk member BKsandFarmer. “I was hoping it would stay dry another day so I could replant some bean acres flooded out a couple weeks ago, but it’s raining now. If the weather pattern stays the same, it may be a challenge to spray this year. Like most guys, I won’t curse the rain just yet.”

Replanting soybeans is also on Marketing Talk member jdmcfarm1’s schedule after he had 600 acres get nipped by frost and flooded out. “Unless they were planted way too early, the cold and wet of early May destroyed them here,” he says.

New methods developed to detect, measure potato phytonutrients

Potatoes come in all shapes, sizes and colors-including tubers with red, yellow, orange and purple flesh. This diversity also applies to phytonutrients, Agricultural Research Service (ARS) scientists in Prosser, Wash., are discovering. Together with colleagues, they’ve devised new analytical procedures for rapidly detecting and measuring phytonutrient concentrations in the tubers. Phytonutrients are plant compounds that are of particular interest for their potential to help diminish the risk of cardiovascular disease, respiratory problems and certain cancers, note Roy Navarre and Chuck Brown, geneticists with the ARS Vegetable and Forage Crop Research Unit in Prosser.

DJ UPDATE: Chinas Cofco May Import More Corn If Local Prices Remain High

SINGAPORE (Dow Jones)–China’s state-run Cofco Ltd. may import more corn if local prices remain high, as it has already obtained a quota from the government to buy up to 500,000 metric tons, a person familiar with the developments said Tuesday.

“So far, Cofco has bought six cargoes, but if the need arises, they can buy a couple more cargoes from the remaining (import) quota allocated to the company,” said the person, who declined to be named.

In China, the government allocates quotas to companies planning to import corn. China’s current corn imports are only a tiny part of global trade, but that could change if the size of the next crop there is small, leading to a greater drawdown of stocks and increasing the need for imports.

The country’s corn output fell to 155 million tons in 2009-10 from 166 million tons a year earlier due to a drought, and there are worries that ongoing delayed planting may affect the next crop as well.

Cofco has in the last few weeks purchased six cargoes of U.S. corn totaling around 360,000 tons for shipment between July and September.

The person said Cofco also has an option to buy out and use import quotas of other companies or get an additional allocation from the government.

China is importing U.S. corn for the first time in many years and the government is auctioning local reserves to cool down local prices. Corn prices in China are hovering around the equivalent of $7-$8 a bushel compared with U.S. prices of around $3.50 a bushel.

Feedmillers snapped up almost 800,000 tons of corn that the government offered at an auction Tuesday in the country’s northeast at prices above $255/ton but much lower than market prices.

Imports are taking place at prices less than $240/ton.

It is now cheaper to import corn in southern China than to move large volumes of domestic corn from northern parts of the country, as is the usual trend every year.

It’s possible that around 15 U.S. cargoes totaling 825,000-900,000 tons have been sold to China, Thomas C. Dorr, chief executive of the U.S. Grains Council, said in a recent statement.

Exporters in the U.S. aren’t under obligation to reveal the names of buyers until the time of loading of the cargoes. Traders said some companies want to keep sales to China low-key because a sharp rise in international prices on news of sales to China could discourage further purchases.

Cofco’s current quota of 500,000 tons isn’t too large and indicates that China’s government wants to go slow on imports, at least for the time being, said a Singapore-based commodities analyst.

He said China is currently not facing any dearth of supplies but is still importing the grain because local prices are high amid strong demand.

China’s closing stocks this year are projected at 53 million tons, while its annual consumption is 155 million tons.

EPA Finalizes CO2 Reduction Rule

　　The Environmental Protection Agency released its final regulation to require power plants, oil refineries, chemical companies, and a broad range of other manufacturers to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions under the Clean Air Act. Environmental groups are cheering the move as industry groups question its legality and scope of coverage.

　　The regulation, announced on May 13, is another step on a path EPA Administrator Lisa P. Jackson embarked upon last year when she determined that the agency will regulate carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases as air pollutants under the Clean Air Act (C&EN, Dec. 14, 2009, page 7).

　　In this final version of the rule, EPA raises the emissions level that triggers Clean Air Act permit actions significantly from the 25,000 tons per year level that EPA had originally proposed.

　　Beginning in January 2011, if companies modify their operations and increase emissions of other pollutants covered by the Air Act as well as increase greenhouse gas emissions by 75,000 tons per year, they will be required to install best available control technologies (BACT) to reduce greenhouse gas emissions (C&EN, May 17, page 24). And starting in July 2011, all newly built facilities that emit more than 100,000 tons per year of greenhouse gases will come under the requirements of the Clean Air Act for those greenhouse gas emissions.

　　EPA estimates that approximately 900 companies will come under review in the first year of this rule.

　　Complicating all of this is the fact that EPA has not determined what BACT is in order to reduce CO2 and other greenhouse gas emissions. BACT will be determined on a case-by-case basis, EPA says, considering cost and effectiveness of the different control options. The agency is now developing these BACT guidelines.

　　EPA will also begin another rulemaking process next year to address smaller CO2 sources, but will not require permits for small emitters until at least April 30, 2016, the agency notes.

　　The final regulation was blasted by the National Petrochemical & Refiners Association and a host of other industry groups as “unlawful” and “a regulatory mess.” The association noted that the permitting threshold set in the Clean Air Act for other pollutants is 250 tons annually and EPA cannot shift this to 75,000 or 100,000 tons per year without turning to Congress to change the law.

　　The American Chemistry Council also warned that the 250 ton threshold will result in some 6 million restaurants, hotels, and other small business being covered by the regulation. And the chemical trade association added that the rule will create “uncertainty” for manufacturers with the result that companies will be less willing to invest in capital projects, including energy efficiency improvements.

　　However, environmental groups, such as Environment America, applauded the announcement as a step that will lead large greenhouse gas emitters to reduce those emissions when building new plants or upgrading existing ones.

　　EPA made its announcement the day after the release by Sens. John F. Kerry (D-Mass.) and Joseph I. Lieberman (I-Conn.) of their CO2 cap-and-trade bill. Kerry in a statement urged Senate members to support his and Lieberman’s climate change, cap-and-trade bill, and said, “The Obama Administration has again reminded Washington that if Congress won’t legislate a solution, EPA will regulate one.”

Talking inflation and TLBs

Lot of talk about inflation these days.

As in, with these super high levels of sustained government spending and rising debt, eventually we’ll see the inflation monster return. Remember the late 1970s? Eighteen percent interest again? Time will tell.

Of course we’ve already seen forms of inflation here in the ag economy the last few years. How have land values been doing in your neck of the woods? Bet they haven’t exactly been going down since 2007. I don’t compile auction prices on land sales like I do for equipment, but I do always try to ask my auctioneer contacts around the country what ground has been going for in their area.

Cattle research examines impact of winter coats

　　MISSISSIPPI STATE — Imagine the misery of wearing a winter coat outside in Mississippi as late as May, June or even July.

　　People would want to stay in the shade or in cool water. Eating a big meal would not be very appetizing. Cattle may feel the same way, especially if they are from the longhaired breeds of cattle including Angus, Charolais and Hereford.

　　Mississippi State University researchers are taking part in a joint research project with North Carolina State University to establish an evaluation system for cattle hair shedding. Additionally, they are looking for performance differences among cattle that shed their winter coats earlier than others.

　　“Our first objective was to develop a scoring system to assess the animal’s ability to shed in the spring,” said Trent Smith, assistant professor of animal and dairy sciences in MSU’s College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. “We score animals on a monthly evaluation on a scale of 1 to 5, with 1 being 100 percent shed or slick and 5 indicating no shedding at all. A score of 2 is 75 percent shed, 3 is 50 percent shed, and 4 represents 25 percent shed.”

　　Researchers have evaluated more than 1,000 cattle over the last three years including many from N.C. State and MSU herds as well as several private herds. Scoring is conducted by two researchers monthly from March through July, and average scores are recorded on each animal.

　　“Our second objective is to determine if producers should care about how fast a cow sheds its winter coat,” Smith said. “We want to see if reaching their comfort zone quicker improves their productivity.”

　　Some of the production factors the researchers are considering include calf weaning, reproduction status as related to fertility, and ability to stay in good body condition, particularly throughout the warm months.

　　“If we see a link between slow hair loss in the spring and negative performance in production, producers may want to consider keeping the cattle with the desirable shedding rates,” Smith said. “Initial results suggest that shedding tendencies are heritable.”

　　MSU researchers with the Mississippi Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station are expanding their information gathering beyond the hair-loss scoring system.

　　“We’ve carried our research a bit further. We are also evaluating hair lengths, thermal images and have taken skin biopsies for estimation of hair follicle numbers,” Smith said.

　　This research could be especially important to breeds of dark color including Angus cattle, whose solid black coats provide additional heat units to their bodies. Funding for a large portion of this research is from the American Angus Association.

　　Sally Northcutt, genetic research director for the American Angus Association, said the research could have a significant impact on breeders across the nation.

　　“Angus cattle are raised in a wide variety of environments from Montana to Florida,” Northcutt said. “In some areas, hair retention might be more important than hair loss.”

　　The geneticist said about 50 percent of the registered Angus cattle in the country are produced through artificial insemination. Angus bloodlines are evaluated on 21 genetic values including temperament, carcass quality, calving ease and weaning weights. It is possible hair shedding could become another one of the values that impact breeders’ selections.

　　Jack Evans of EE Ranches in Winona said he has seen a connection in performance and hair loss in cattle for years.

　　“I’m very glad someone in a university setting and breed association are looking into the connection,” Evans said. “In the Southeast, shedding is an economically important trait.”

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