R.F.D. NEWS & VIEWS

By Tim Alexander for Chronicle Media

The Cook County Farm Bureau is partnering with Illinois ag organizations to allow Chicago fourth-graders to take field trips to a pig farm in Fair Oaks, Ind., to learn about modern pork production. (Photo courtesy of Fair Oaks Farms)

The Cook County Farm Bureau is partnering with Illinois ag organizations to allow Chicago fourth-graders to take field trips to a pig farm in Fair Oaks, Ind., to learn about modern pork production. (Photo courtesy of Fair Oaks Farms)

In this week’s roundup of news bits for Illinois farmers and rural dwellers, an economist at the U of I predicts that prospects for U.S. crop prices for the 2016-17 marketing year may hinge on the weather and economy in foreign nations. Another U of I economist predicts more planted acres may shift to soybeans in the U.S. in 2017. In addition: News about pigs and schoolkids, drones in agriculture, and more. Please read on … .

Crop futures could swing favorably, if…

URBANA — The prospects for major price changes in corn and soybean markets for the 2016-17 marketing year are linked to South American production outcomes and the U.S.’s ability to export both commodities into foreign markets, says University of Illinois Department of Agricultural and Economic Sciences (ACES) economist Todd Hubbs. Hubbs issued his remarks following the Oct. 12 issuance of the USDA World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates (WASDE), which showed U.S. corn ($3.54./bu.) and soybean ($9.62/bu.) futures had rallied modestly. However, WASDE projections for both crops moved lower due to projected U.S. production numbers.

“Pricing opportunities can occur as South American crop conditions change and export markets respond to importer demand and prices,” the U of I economist noted in an essay published Oct. 17 on farmdocDAILY.com. “Since the South American planting season is off to a good start and current U.S. export levels are significantly higher than in the 2015-16 marketing year, poor weather in South America or strong economic growth indications in major importer markets (columnist note: such as China) should provide pricing opportunities for this record crop in the next few months.”

A permalink to Hubbs’ essay has been established online at www.farmdocdaily.illinois.edu/2016/10/large-corn-soybean-crops-emphasis-foreign-markets.html.

ISA eyes 100 bushel yields; more soybeans in 2017?

BLOOMINGTON — The Illinois Soybean Association is gathering input from their checkoff-funded 2016 Yield Challenge and 100-Bushel Challenge as farmers return from their fields with anticipated record-breaking soybean harvests. The possibility of a new state record holder is very possible, with more than 100 farmers signed up for the ISA 100-Bushel Challenge. In 2014, Dan Arkels produced 104-bushel beans in north central Illinois, while Jason Lakey, a central Illinois grower, attained 108 bu./acre in 2015. Winners will be posted at www.ilsoy.org.

Meanwhile, University of Illinois agricultural economist Gary Schnitkey found that corn has been less profitable than soybeans to Illinois farmers in recent years. Though total corn and soybean acres have been relatively steady since 2000, more acres may shift to soybeans in 2017, Schnitkey recently projected. (ISA news)

Farmdoc breaks into social media

URBANA — Agricultural reporters such as yours truly rely greatly on input from ag economists and experts from the University of Illinois (see prior two news items), and now anyone with a smartphone can receive virtually the same university-issued information and projections at literally the same instance as the press. Thanks to Keith Good’s hiring as the first social media manager for the “farmdoc” team, tweets from his existing Farm Policy Twitter account, farmdocDAILY articles, and other tools, data and research from the farmdoc team will begin to be disseminated in the near future.

Subscribers to Good’s daily www.FarmPolicy.com website will be automatically added to the new farmdoc email subscription list and will receive famdocDAILY email updates, as well as future email updates for the new blog site. Good has provided succinct recaps of U.S. ag policy developments and current issues since 2003, and has a daily readership of around 5,000. (famdoc news 10-17-16)

Illinois Farm Fact:

Pigs eat 74 percent of all soybean meal fed to animals in Illinois. (IPPA)

Chicago fourth-graders visit pig farm

SPRINGFIELD — The Illinois Pork Producers Association (IPPA), along with the state’s corn and soybean checkoff organizations and the Cook County Farm Bureau Association, sponsored a trip to a working hog farm for fourth-graders from Chicago schools in late September. A new grant program funded the excursion to Fair Oak Farms in Fair Oaks, Ind., for “pig and crop adventures” at the education and entertainment-oriented farm. Through tours, the 300 students and teachers learned about farming, the environment and the modern methods of sustainability on hog and pig farms.

“We want students to understand the connection between crops, pigs and their food,” noted John Hagenbuch, a crop and pork producer from Utica who is marketing committee chairman for the Illinois Soybean Association, in a news release following the event. Diane Chathas, a teacher at Walker School in Bedford Park, said the field trip was the “best” her students had ever experienced. “Especially for my students (who have never been exposed to farm life), the impact was incredible,” she said.

The students learned facts such as what a pig eats, how sharp a piglet’s teeth can be, and why a farmer must shower before going into a barn to protect pigs from disease. Students reported the highlight of the trip was witnessing the birth of a piglet.

Hands-on drone seminar coming to Peoria

PEORIA — A drone workshop for farmers hosted by Chad Colby of Central Illinois Ag will be held at two locations in Peoria on Nov. 4. Beginning at 9:30 a.m. at the Peoria County Farm Bureau auditorium, Colby, an agricultural technology expert, will lead an instructional workshop on drone operation, safety and regulations. After an 11:30 pm BBQ pork lunch, attendees will depart for a local farm located one mile west of the Princeville-Jubilee blacktop for a drone demonstration beginning at 12:45 pm. There, Colby will offer demonstrations of agricultural applications for unmanned aerial vehicles, or drones, such as crop scouting or drought assessment. Admission to either the morning or afternoon portions of the event is free to farm bureau members and $20 for non-members. More info at (309) 686-7070.

–R.F.D. NEWS & VIEWS–