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USDA: Macro picture could be worse …

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Although it’s cold comfort if your corn is dying or you’ve been feeding hay to grass fed beef for 6 weeks this summer, the USDA released this infographic to basically say: “It could be worse.”

The department says this is the greatest environmental challenge to U.S. agriculture since 1988, but that advances over the ensuing years have made the industry more resilient. Perhaps this message is aimed more at consumers. Leave a comment and tell us your thoughts in the comments. (Click the graphic for a full-size, pdf version.)

 

Wise, Zumbrink speak out on Farm Bill & drought

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Ohio Farmers Union President Roger Wise and longtime member James Zumbrink were quoted in the Columbus Dispatch today regarding the drought and Congress’ inattention to the Farm Bill.

This year’s drought, affecting a huge swath of the United States is severely disrupting agriculture from corn to livestock grazing. Here’s a bit of the Dispatch coverage – click the link at the end to read the whole story at their website:

[Read more…]

Emergency haying and grazing for CRP participants in Ohio

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COLUMBUS –  Ohio Farm Service Agency (FSA) State Executive Director Steve Maurer announced additional drought relief for Ohio’s livestock producers today. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack authorized the release of emergency haying and grazing lands for all Ohio counties for certain practices and acres enrolled in the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP).

USDA will allow acres under CRP to be used for haying or grazing under emergency conditions. This will allow lands that are not yet classified as “under severe drought” but that are “abnormally dry” to be used for haying and grazing. This will increase available forage for livestock.

Under emergency haying at least fifty percent of each field or contiguous fields must be left unhayed for wildlife. Under emergency grazing at least twenty-five percent of each field or contiguous CRP fields must be left ungrazed for wildlife, or graze not more than seventy-five percent of the stocking rate as determined by NRCS.

Under emergency haying and grazing CRP participants will be assessed a payment reduction based on the number of acres actually hayed or grazed times the CRP annual rental payment times ten percent.

Participants may sell hay harvested under emergency provisions. CRP participants who do not own or lease livestock may rent or lease the haying or grazing privilege to an eligible livestock producer.

CRP is a voluntary program that provides producers annual rental payments on their land in exchange for planting resource conserving crops on cropland to help prevent erosion, provide wildlife habitat and improve the environment.

Producers must notify their local FSA office and file a request and receive approval before starting this emergency haying and grazing activity.

U.S. Drought Facts and Resources

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According to the USDA’s Economic Research Service, 62 percent of U.S. farms are now affected by drought conditions which stretch across the country from Rhode Island to California in the continental U.S. and includes most of Hawaii.

In Ohio there are currently four counties in the state’s northwest corner with USDA drought designation: Williams, Defiance, Paulding and Van Wert. Ohio’s four counties are listed as “contiguous designations” as they are adjacent to four counties in Indiana which are counties with “primary” designations.

The ERS says on its website that it’s impossible to say exactly how much food prices will be impacted by the drought, but does say based on past experience and how inputs move through our system of food that consumers can expect the following:

  • Beef, pork, poultry and dairy prices will likely begin to be impacted in two months. Packaged and processed foods with corn and soybean inputs could take 10 to 12 months for full price impacts.
  • When herds are culled during droughts, there could be some short-term price reductions in certain meat products due to increased short-term supply.
  • Historically, if the farm price of corn increases 50 percent, then retail food prices as measured by the Consumer Price Index (CPI) increases by 0.5 to 1 percent. More generally, as an overall commodity price index increases, about 14 to 15 percent of that increase is passed on to retail prices for products that use that commodity as an ingredient.
  • Based on 2010 data 2/3 of U.S. crops and 2/3 of U.S. livestock are in drought areas.

A few online resources

  1. The USDA’s Drought Page – contains the latest news releases and other information from USDA focusing on agency actions and farmer assistance due to the drought.
  2. The U.S. Drought Monitor – is a multi-agency effort focused on recording the drought levels and severity across the U.S. The map on this page is related the severity of drought, not whether a particular county has been designated by USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack or any other official as in an emergency or other special status.
  3. The National Drought Mitigation Center – focuses on drought impacts and the science of droughts.
  4. The Office of the State Climatologist for Ohio – contains many links to climate and weather-related information regarding Ohio.
  5. Ohio Dept. of Agriculture Drought Information Page – contains links to information including SBA loan information for those affected by the drought.
  6. OSU Extension – Managing the Drought of 2012 – tons of information and links covering farm and home topics.

Obama Admin details new efforts to assist farmers and ranchers affected by drought

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USDA Secretarial Drought Designations by County, July 20, 2012

With 62 percent of U.S. farms currently affected by nationwide drought conditions, USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack announced today several ways in which the agency is attempting to make it easier for farmers and ranchers to get help.

“President Obama and I are committed to getting help to producers as soon as possible and sustaining the success of America’s rural communities through these difficult times,” said Vilsack. “Beginning today, USDA will open opportunities for haying and grazing on lands enrolled in conservation programs while providing additional financial and technical assistance to help landowners through this drought. And we will deliver greater peace of mind to farmers dealing with this worsening drought by encouraging crop insurance companies to work with farmers through this challenging period.”

The assistance announced uses the Secretary of Agriculture’s existing authority to help create and encourage flexibility within four USDA programs: the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP), the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP), the Wetlands Reserve Program (WRP), and the Federal Crop Insurance Program.

[Read more…]

NFU: House Farm Bill draft’s cuts worrying

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WASHINGTON  – National Farmers Union  President Roger Johnson issued the following statement in response to the release of the discussion draft of the Federal Agriculture Reform and Risk Management (FARRM) Act today by U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Agriculture Chairman Frank Lucas, R-Okla., and Ranking Member Collin Peterson, D-Minn.:

“NFU is pleased to see the House Agriculture Committee begin to move a 2012 Farm Bill. This is a critical step toward ensuring that a farm bill is passed before the current legislation expires on Sept. 30.

“NFU is also pleased that the House discussion draft contains provisions to address a long-term market collapse – a very critical part of any safety net.

“The FARRM Act also has a number of areas concerning to NFU. The $35 billion in cuts are deeply disproportionate and far larger than agriculture should have to bear, given its share of the federal budget. The nutrition title in particular takes a big hit. In these economically difficult times, millions of Americans depend on nutrition programs to put food on the table, and now is simply not the time to be making deep cuts to these programs.

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As House takes up Farm Bill, Midwest farmers say conservation is key

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Farmers in the U.S. ‘heartland’ value the conservation programs funded under the current Farm Bill and do not want to see cuts in conservation as Congress debates changes to this cornerstone agricultural legislation, says a poll done on behalf of the National Farmers Union and Cultivate Impact.

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NFU praises biofuels investment for U.S. military

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WASHINGTON  – National Farmers Union President Roger Johnson issued the following statement after U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack, joined by Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus and Deputy Assistant to the President for Energy and Climate Change Heather Zichal, announced the availability of up to $30 million in funding for commercial scale advanced drop-in biofuels both through the Defense Production Act and the Department of Energy.

“Today’s announcement is a very positive step as the U.S. military continues to increase its use of biofuels, decreasing its reliance on foreign oil. As a matter of national security, it simply makes sense to utilize home-grown fuel rather than relying on foreign oil. Increasing the use of biofuels also helps to moderate fuel costs. A small increase in the price of crude oil means a big jump in fuel costs for our armed forces.

“This initiative is also great for rural America, because it helps to create more jobs and keeps more money here in the United States rather than sending it overseas. These jobs help ensure a thriving rural America, which is good for everyone.”

 

National Farmers Union urges Dept. of Justice trust busting

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The National Farmers Union encouraged the United States Department of Justice (DOJ) on Friday to follow through on its recent pledge to provide “vigorous antitrust enforcement” in the agricultural sector.

DOJ released its findings on competition and agriculture stemming from the joint workshops held by DOJ and the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) in 2010. The report included the statement that “(t)he sessions confirmed that a healthy agricultural sector requires competition and, consequently, vigorous antitrust enforcement.”

“NFU has long been a proponent of fair markets and competition, so it is good to see the DOJ act on the results of the DOJ-USDA workshops in 2010.” said NFU President Roger Johnson. “The workshops in 2010 offered hope that this administration would reverse the decades of under-enforcement of antitrust laws. Economic studies have shown that the top four beef and pork packers dominate their sectors, so it’s clear that oversight is needed to make our markets competitive.”

The long-awaited document summarizes the discussion that took place at the five workshops, which were held around the country and focused on various sectors of the agricultural economy. The report also highlights some of the enforcement actions that have taken place in recent years to address the continued consolidation of agriculture.

The report included statements about DOJ’s new priorities: “as a result of the workshops, the (Antitrust Division of DOJ) has redoubled its efforts to prevent anticompetitive agricultural mergers and conduct. The workshops have enhanced the Division’s efforts to enforce the antitrust laws.”

The report further noted several instances in the last five years of DOJ action on acquisitions in the agriculture sector. Most of these, however, occurred before the 2010 series of workshops.

“This is a positive step toward ensuring that farmers and ranchers have an opportunity to succeed, but much more work remains to be done,” Johnson said. “I look forward to the Antitrust Division of DOJ following through on the statements in the report.”

Read the DOJ Report Here

 

NFU says Strategic Petroleum Reserve must be preserved

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WASHINGTON – National Farmers Union President Roger Johnson sent a letter today to leadership of the U.S. House of Representatives expressing concern regarding the Strategic Energy Production Act of 2012.

“NFU members are concerned that the Strategic Energy Production Act of 2012 calls for a plan to increase domestic petroleum and natural gas upon drawdown of the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SRP),” said Johnson. “We view this as a means to discourage use of the SPR for its intended purposes. We instead support continued development of renewable energy as our main priority in reducing our dependence on fossil fuels. Domestically produced renewable fuels are good not only for farmers, but also for consumers. For example, ethanol produced by American farmers and ranchers already saves consumers nearly $1 per gallon.”

In the letter, Johnson also supported amendment #15 by Rep. Ed Markey, D-Mass., and amendment #26 by Reps. Rosa DeLauro, D-Conn., Markey and Barney Frank, D-Mass.

“Amendment #15 would prohibit oil and gas produced under new leases authorized by this legislation from being exported to foreign countries,” said Johnson. “Amendment #26 would require certain funds received from the sale of new leases to be made available to fully fund the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) to limit speculation in energy markets. As the agency that has been tasked with increased authority over agricultural, energy and financial markets as part of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, the CFTC needs significantly greater resources in order to help guard against economic crisis.”

 

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Ohio Farmers Union
P.O. Box 363
1011 N. Defiance Street
Ottawa, Ohio 45875
Phone: (419) 523-5300
Toll Free: (800) 321-3671