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Agriculture News

Iowa State University- “Financial stress in Iowa farms: 2014-2016”

Iowa State University | Posted on October 5, 2017

Iowa farm financial conditions have deteriorated since 2012, but average indicators of liquidity and solvency remain close to their long-term levels. This publication examines the financial well-being of 273 Iowa farms, detailing their average net income, net worth, debt-to-asset ratio, liquidity rating, solvency rating and working capital per acre.


Nevada marijuana sales hit $27 million in first month

Reno Gazette Journal | Posted on October 5, 2017

Nevada took a gamble on recreational marijuana, and it’s paying off.  Dispensaries sold $27.1 million of pot in Nevada, in July alone. That's almost double what both Coloradoand Oregon sold in their first months. It's almost seven times what Washington sold. Banking on weed, Nevada made $10.2 million off the fledgling industry during the first month of sales in July, according to the Nevada Department of Taxation. Of that, $6.5 million came from industry fees and $3.68 million came from tax revenue.Gov. Brian Sandoval projected that, between its two-year old medical marijuana industry and the now upright recreational marijuana industry, the state could pull in approximately $100 million over the next two fiscal years from both taxes and fees.


Government jobs sprouting as legal pot looms in California

AP | Posted on October 5, 2017

Scientists. Tax collectors. Typists. Analysts. Lawyers. And more scientists. Recreational marijuana use becomes legal in California in 2018, and one of the things to blossom in the emerging industry isn’t green and leafy - it’s government jobs.The state is on a hiring binge to fill what eventually will be hundreds of new government positions by 2019 intended to bring order to the legal pot economy, from keeping watch on what’s seeping into streams near cannabis grows to running background checks on storefront sellers who want government licenses. Thousands of additional jobs are expected to be added by local governments. The swiftly expanding bureaucracy represents just one aspect of the complex challenge faced by California: Come January, the state will unite its longstanding medical cannabis industry with the newly legalized recreational one, creating what will be the United States’ largest legal pot economy.


New Road Bump for US, Cuba Relations Puts Louisiana Trade Ambitions on Hold

Voice of Louisiana | Posted on October 5, 2017

Louisiana leaders see great possibility – and lots of money – in potential trade with Cuba. However, a new wedge between the U.S. and the island nation has put that dream in jeopardy. “It's a little bit distressing to see that we are now de-evolving in our relationship,” said Mike Strain, commissioner of the Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry.


Censky, McKinney Confirmations Praised

National Hog Farmers | Posted on October 5, 2017

USDA’s offices continue to fill up as two more key leadership positions were confirmed by the U.S. Senate last night. Stephen Censky was confirmed as USDA’s deputy secretary and Ted McKinney as undersecretary of trade and foreign agricultural affairs. USDA Secretary Sonny Perdue praises the Senate’s confirmations, issuing the following statement.“I commend the Senate for confirming these two experienced, prepared and capable nominees, who will provide the steady leadership we need at USDA. Steve Censky will help us be responsive to producers reeling from the effects of multiple hurricanes and also offer prudent counsel as Congress continues work on the 2018 farm bill. Ted McKinney will take charge of the newly created mission area focused on trade, and wake up every morning seeking to sell more American agricultural products in foreign markets. We eagerly await their arrival at USDA, and urge the Senate to continue to act on other nominees who are awaiting confirmation.”


Farmers for America Documentary

Leave it Better | Posted on October 5, 2017

The documentary traces the extraordinary changes coming to America’s food system as more and more consumers flock to farmers’ markets, embrace farm-to-table lifestyles and insist on knowing where their food is coming from. At the center of the film are the farmers, young and old, who provide the spirit and energy to bring urban and rural America together over what both share in common:  our food. These farmers reflect nothing less than the face of America. With the average age of today’s farmer at 60, and rural America losing population as the cost of land and equipment soars, this film reveals the people waiting to take their place, the practices they’re championing and the obstacles they must overcome. 


2016 National Beef Quality Audit shows room for improvement

High Plans Journal | Posted on October 5, 2017

After years of trying to improve beef cattle, have we made enough progress yet? That question was asked and answered in the 2016 National Beef Quality Audit, the most recent since 2011.For those waiting for the answer, it’s still “no,” Mark McCully said. The Certified Angus Beef brand’s vice president of supply grants cattle are better, but there’s plenty of room for improvement. The NBQA cites a lost opportunity of $15.75 per head in quality grade alone. A glance at actual beef grades vs. the NBQA targets of 5% Prime, 35% Premium Choice, 35% Low Choice, 25% Select and no Standards could lead some to proclaim, “Mission accomplished.” McCully sees more to achieve and said ranchers have the tools and beef genetics to do it.“We can still get better,” he said.Breeding time sets up the most marbling improvement, but that’s only potential.“Anything throughout the management of that animal that sacrifices quality grade is an economic loss to the whole beef enterprise,” McCully said. That’s an opportunity, McCully said, for seedstock producers to use selection tools available to maintain upward pressure on marbling while creating more value down the line. “As genetic designers of the cattle and as the people who manage them, we need to keep yield grade and cutability in mind. Same with carcass weight,” he said.McCully suggests multi-trait selection to produce cattle that capture more of all the money left on the table.


WI:Proposed changes offer a soul-searching moment for co-ops

Wisconsin State Farmer | Posted on October 5, 2017

A packed legislative hearing in Madison last week was a good reminder of what is beautiful about cooperatives. It also revealed a lot about what is broken. The topic of that hearing was Assembly Bill 353, a bill that would allow co-ops to make some fairly un-democratic changes to their bylaws – provided that co-op members vote democratically to do so. If the bill (and its Senate companion SB 281) passes, co-ops will be able to change their bylaws to give non-members voting rights on the board and limit members’ access to financial and other records of the co-op.In addition, one co-op in the state – Cooperative Resources International, with subsidiaries Genex and Agsource – would be allowed to award voting rights based on patronage rather than one member, one vote.   Cooperative Network, Foremost Farms, and of course CRI lined up to testify in favor of these new freedoms, emphasizing that the bill simply seeks to give co-ops more "flexibility."  Taking a different perspective were nearly a dozen farmers, representing operations of all different sizes and types, who thought that having non-members voting on their cooperative boards sounded like a terrible idea. They similarly panned the portion of the bill that would allow CRI to distance itself from the one member, one vote principle.


Producer optimism about the future wanes in September report

Purdue | Posted on October 5, 2017

Producers’ optimism about the future of the agricultural economy fell in September, according to the Index of Future Expectations, a sub-index of the Purdue University/CME Group Ag Economy Barometer. The overall barometer held steady from August to September with a reading of 132 as its two sub-indices – the Index of Future Expectations and the Index of Current Conditions – shifted in opposite directions. The Index of Future Expectations fell seven points to 130 in September, while the Index of Current Conditions climbed from 122 in August to 135 in September. The Ag Economy Barometer is based on a monthly survey of 400 U.S. agricultural producers.“Although the decline in the Index of Future Expectations was modest, it could be an indication that some of the optimism that surfaced among producers in late 2016 and early 2017 is eroding,” said Jim Mintert, director of Purdue’s Center for Commercial Agriculture and principal investigator for the barometer. “One of the drivers of the jump in producer sentiment after the 2016 U.S. presidential election was a sharp increase in expectations about the U.S. economy. But the last two times the barometer survey has posed questions about the overall economy, respondents were noticeably less optimistic.”


Goodlatte Officially Introduces the Ag Guestworker Act

Growing Produce | Posted on October 5, 2017

On Monday, Rep. Bob Goodlatte (R-VA) introduced his Agricultural Guestworker Act of 2017 Bill, which would replace H-2A with an H-2C program. Rep. Goodlatte introduced the bill to the House Judiciary Committee, which he chairs. During his address at United Fresh Produce Association’s Washington Conference in mid September, Rep. Goodlatte said he intends to move the bill through on a tight timetable. And that is exactly what he is doing. Rep. Goodlatte introduced the bill Monday night during a dinner with President Trump, House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, Senate Majority Whip John Cornyn and other key Republicans, according to New Food Economy.The committee vote was originally scheduled for Wednesday, Oct. 4, a mere day after most committee members had a chance to review the 49-page document. But the vote has been postponed, according the Judiary Committee page. At press time, the vote had not yet been rescheduled. Initial revisions to the bill has been posted, however, and as the bill moves forward, more may be added.


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