Nebraska crop progress report from Monday

Agricultural  Summary:  For  the  week  ending  September  13,  2009,  a  relatively  warm  week  resulted  in most soybeans  turning  color  and  corn  moving  toward  maturity according  to USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service, Nebraska Field Office.  These conditions also helped push dry bean  and millet  harvests  in  western  counties.  High moisture corn harvest began  in a  few areas but generally  the  crop was more  than  a  week  behind  average.  Producers  continue  to prepare equipment and grain bins for harvest and are attending crop and livestock tours.
 
Weather  Summary:    Temperatures  averaged  1  degree above normal across the state and ranged from the low 90’s for highs  to  near  40  for  lows.   Widespread  precipitation  fell  but was  limited  to  less  than  one  half  inch  in  most  districts.  Locally, heavy  rains of over  five  inches were  recorded  in  the extreme northeast.  Topsoil moisture:  2 percent surplus, 73 percent adequate, 24 percent short, 1 percent very short.  Subsoil moisture:  1 percent surplus, 79 percent adequate, 18 percent short, 2 percent very short.  GDD Concord 2281, -630 from normal,  West Point 2450, -542 from average, and Mead 2546, -527 from average.  
 
Livestock,  Pasture  and  Range  Report:    Pasture  and range  conditions  rated  2  percent  very  poor,  5  poor,  20  fair,  56 good, and 17 excellent, above  last year’s 59 percent good or excellent condition.    

Field Crops Report:   Corn conditions rated 2 percent very poor,  5  poor,  14  fair,  51  good,  and  28  excellent,  above  last year’s  77  percent  good  or  excellent  rating.    Irrigated  fields rated 82 percent good or excellent, near year ago levels while dryland  fields  rated  73,  above  year  ago  levels.    Corn  in  the dent stage was 85 percent, ahead of last year’s 83 but four days behind  the 89 average.   Corn mature was 9 percent, near  last year’s 8 but nine days behind the 25 average.   
 
Soybean conditions rated 2 percent very poor, 4 poor, 16 fair, 57 good, and 21 excellent, above  last year’s 69 percent good or excellent condition.  Soybeans turning color was 70 percent, ahead  of  last  year’s  51  and  near  the  69  average.    Soybeans dropping  leaves was  14  percent,  ahead  of  last  year’s  12  but behind the 22 average.
 
Alfalfa  conditions  rated 1 percent very poor, 4 poor, 20  fair, 57 good, and 18 excellent, above  last year’s 67 percent good or excellent condition.  Third cutting was 94 percent complete, behind  last year’s 96 and  the 97 average.   Fourth cutting was 25  percent  complete,  ahead  of  last  year’s  17  but  behind  the  33 average.   

 Sorghum conditions rated 0 percent very poor, 3 poor, 24 fair, 54 good, and 19 excellent, near last year’s 74 percent good or excellent  condition.    Sorghum  turning  color was  53  percent, behind last year’s 65 and eleven days behind the 81 average.   
 
Dry bean conditions rated 2 percent very poor, 8 poor, 21 fair, 62 good, and 7 excellent, above last year’s 66 percent good or excellent condition.   Dry beans turning color were 87 percent, ahead of  last year’s 78  and 83 average.   Dry beans dropping leaves was 44 percent,  ahead of  last year’s 29 and even with the  average.   Dry beans harvested were 21 percent complete, ahead of last year’s 6 and 14 average.
 
Wheat  seeded was  30  percent  complete,  ahead  of  last  year’s  16  and  26  average.  Winter  wheat  emerged  was  6  percent complete, ahead of last year’s 0 and the average of 4.
 
Proso  millet  was  16  percent  harvested,  ahead  of  last  year’s  14 but behind the 24 average.
 


Nebraska Weather & Crops County Comments

BOONE
Producers are preparing combines for harvest, cleaning out bins, etc.

CASS
A few people are trying out their combines with corn testing in the upper 30's. Beans went from almost 100% green to mostly turning colors in just one week but harvest is still off a ways. Soybean stalks and pods are still very green.

CEDAR
Another week of good weather for maturing crops, nearly all beans turning and corn is showing signs of maturity. Corn silage is being harvested.

DODGE
Warm weather made the beans turn this week. Corn fields are also beginning to fire up at the bottom. Seed corn is beginning to be harvested. That is several weeks behind normal.

SAUNDERS
Producers think soybean harvest on the early planted beans will start by the middle of next week sometime. We continue to have good to excellent crops in much of the county. Corn is still very high moisture in most areas.

THURSTON
One-half to five inches of rain fell in Thurston County on Friday. Some lowland flooding occurred. However, no damage to crops has been reported. Some crops still need at least 2-3 weeks before they will be ready for a freeze. Warm temperatures predicted for this week are positive for the maturity of the crops.

Click here for the latest national numbers...  http://usda.mannlib.cornell.edu/usda/current/CropProg/CropProg-09-14-2009.txt



Renewable Fuels Month proclamation at Husker Harvest Days

To celebrate renewable fuels like ethanol and soy biodiesel – and everything renewable fuels contribute to Nebraska and the country as a whole – Nebraska Governor Dave Heineman will declare September Renewable Fuels Month at Husker Harvest Days this week.

Who:    Gov. Dave Heineman, Nebraska Corn Board, Nebraska Soybean Board
What:    Renewable Fuels Declaration
When:    Wednesday, September 16, 10:30 a.m.
Where:    In front of the Commodities Building on Husker Harvest Days Main Street
Why:    To celebrate all the benefits renewable fuels bring to Nebraska

Governor Heineman will make a few remarks, as will members of Nebraska commodity organizations, including the Nebraska Corn Board and Nebraska Soybean Board.  "Corn ethanol and soy biodiesel are home-grown, clean burning renewable fuels that provide tremendous benefits to rural communities across Nebraska, and to the state as a whole,” said Alan Tiemann, chairman of the Nebraska Corn Board and a farmer from Seward. “We are excited that Governor Heineman will highlight the benefits of renewable fuels and declare September as Renewable Fuels Awareness Month at Husker Harvest Days this year.”




Iowa Crop Production Forecast Up 2 Bushels

The Iowa September 1 corn yield forecast of 187.0 bushels per acre is up 2 bushels from the August 1 forecast.  Production is forecast at 2.50 billion bushels for the state, up 14 percent from last year. Iowa's corn plant population per acre, at 29,500, and number of ears per acre, at 29,250, are at record high levels. If realized, Iowa's corn yield and production would be record highs.

The September 1 soybean yield forecast of 52.0 bushels per acre is unchanged from the August 1 forecast but up 6 bushels per acre from 2008.  If realized, soybean production would be 506 million bushels, up nearly 14 percent from last year's 445 million bushels.



USDA Announces Implementation of Livestock Disaster Assistance Programs
Beginning Today, Producers May Sign Up to participate in these Programs

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack today announced that producers may begin applying for benefits under the provisions of the Emergency Assistance for Livestock, Honeybees, and Farm-Raised Fish Program (ELAP) and the Livestock Forage Disaster Program (LFP). These permanent disaster programs, authorized in the 2008 Farm Bill, replace previous ad-hoc disaster assistance programs and are funded through the Agricultural Disaster Relief Trust Fund.

"President Obama and I are committed to meeting the needs of those producers who have suffered devastating losses from natural disasters," said Vilsack. "These programs ensure that producers who have suffered agriculture losses receive the critical disaster assistance needed to remain financially solvent and help them continue on in their operations."

LFP provides payments to eligible livestock producers who have suffered livestock grazing losses due to qualifying drought or fire. For drought, the losses must have occurred on land that is native or improved pastureland with permanent vegetative cover or a crop planted specifically for grazing for covered livestock due to a qualifying drought during the normal grazing period for the specific type of grazing land in the county. For fire, LFP provides payments to eligible livestock producers that have suffered grazing losses on rangeland managed by a federal agency if the eligible livestock producer is prohibited by the federal agency from grazing the normal permitted livestock on the managed rangeland due to a qualifying fire.

Eligible livestock under LFP include beef cattle, alpacas, buffalo, beefalo, dairy cattle, deer, elk, emus, equine, goats, llamas, poultry, reindeer, sheep and swine. For losses due to drought, qualifying drought ratings are determined using the U.S. Drought Monitor located at www.drought.unl.edu/dm/monitor.html .

ELAP provides emergency assistance to eligible producers of livestock, honeybees and farm-raised fish that have losses due to disease, adverse weather or other conditions, including losses due to blizzards and wildfires. ELAP assistance is for losses not covered under other Supplemental Agricultural Disaster Assistance programs established by the 2008 Farm Bill, specifically LFP, the Livestock Indemnity Program (LIP) and the Supplemental Revenue Assistance Payments Program (SURE). ELAP is being implemented to fill in the gap and provide assistance under other conditions determined to be appropriate.

For both programs, producers must have suffered losses that occurred on or after Jan. 1, 2008, and before Oct. 1, 2011. There is a total $100,000 limitation per crop year that applies to payments received under ELAP, LFP, LIP or SURE. For the 2008 crop year, the $100,000 limitation is per "person" as defined and determined under payment limitation rules in effect for 2008. For crop years 2009 through 2011, the $100,000 limitation applies to payments received, both directly and indirectly, by a person or legal entity. Furthermore, individuals or entities are ineligible for payment under ELAP or LFP for 2008 if their average Adjusted Gross Income for 2005, 2006 and 2007 exceeds $2.5 million. For 2009 through 2011, an average adjusted gross nonfarm income limitation of $500,000 applies and is determined using the three taxable years that precede the most immediately preceding complete taxable year (for 2009, the applicable years are 2005, 2006 and 2007).

For more information or to apply for ELAP or LFP and other USDA Farm Service Agency disaster assistance programs, please visit your FSA county office or www.fsa.usda.gov .



Nobel Peace Prize Winner, Norm Borlaug, Passes Away

Norman E. Borlaug, the 1970 Nobel Peace Prize winner for developing high-yielding, disease-resistant wheat used to prevent famine in developing countries throughout the world died Saturday in Dallas, Texas. Considered by many to be the father of the green revolution, Dr. Borlaug is an Iowa native who is credited with saving a billion lives.

Borlaug, whose career was dedicated to employing science to combat international hunger, was Distinguished Professor of International Agriculture in Texas A&M University’s Department of Soil and Crop Sciences. He was 95.

In 2007, he accepted the Congressional Gold Medal, the highest civilian honor of the United States. This capped a string of major awards and honors throughout his scientific and humanitarian career. In fact, Borlaug was one of only five people to have won the Nobel Peace Prize, the Presidential Medal of Freedom and the Congressional Gold Medal. He was also a recipient of the Padma Vibhushan, India's second-highest civilian honor.

"We all eat at least three times a day in privileged nations, and yet we take food for granted," Borlaug said in recent interview. "There has been great progress, and food is more equitably distributed. But hunger is a commonplace, and famine appears all too often." Even at age 95, Borlaug still traveled internationally working tirelessly for improvements in agricultural science and food policy. He regularly could be found in his office on campus in College Station advising students and providing counsel to fellow faculty members on research and scholarship.

Borlaug received his Ph.D. degree in plant pathology and genetics from the University of Minnesota in 1942. He took up an agricultural research position in Mexico, where he developed semi-dwarf high-yield, disease-resistant wheat varieties.

During the mid-20th century, Borlaug led the introduction of these high-yielding varieties combined with modern agricultural production techniques to Mexico, Pakistan, and India. As a result, Mexico became a net exporter of wheat by 1963. Between 1965 and 1970, wheat yields nearly doubled in Pakistan and India, greatly improving the food security in those nations. These collective increases in yield have been labeled the Green Revolution, and Borlaug is often credited with saving over a billion people from starvation. He was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in recognition of his contributions to world peace through increasing food supply.

Later in his life, he helped apply these methods of increasing food production to Asia and Africa. Borlaug continually advocated the use of his methods and biotechnology to decrease world famine. His work faced environmental and socioeconomic criticisms, including charges that his methods have created dependence on monoculture crops, unsustainable farming practices, heavy indebtedness among subsistence farmers, and high levels of cancer among those who work with agriculture chemicals. He emphatically rejected many of these as unfounded or untrue. In 1986, he established the World Food Prize to recognize individuals who have improved the quality, quantity or availability of food around the globe.



Dairy Imports Down 5% in Volume, 9% in Value

Dairy imports from October 2008 through July 2009 totaled $2.384 billion dollars, a 9% decrease from the same period one year earlier. The value of cheese imports was down 11%. On a volume basis, imports were down 5% to 254,000 metric tons.  U.S. dairy exports were also down 43%—to $1.957 billion in the October-July period. Non-fat dry milk exports declined 41% from 362,000 metric tons to 215,000 metric tons.



Northeast Nebraska RC&D to Host Organic Farm Tour

The Northeast Nebraska RC&D is sponsoring a no-fee organic farm tour on September 24th at the Kim and Terry Mosel farm, located 2 miles south of Page, Nebraska at 86536 State Hwy 45A.

Beginning at 10 a.m., the tour focus will be on growing organic corn.  Terry is affiliated with Blue River Hybrids and has a test plot of 10 different varieties.  The Mosels also grow alfalfa and millet to supplement the feed needs of their beef cow herd.  The Mosel children are also growers and marketers of chickens and potatoes.

Lunch will be own-your-own at the Kountry Korner Café in Page at 12:30.

The afternoon program at the café will feature an organic certification specialist to answer questions on what is needed to meet the National Organic Program standards.  A marketing representative from will provide some insight into the current marketing options for grains.   A discussion of the new USDA Organic Transition Program is also planned for the afternoon.

For more details contact the Mosels at 402-338-5321, Northeast Nebraska RC&D 402-582-4866, or Martin Kleinschmit 402-254-3310.  Martin is the project coordinator

The tour is a chance for experienced growers to share ideas and practices, while those thinking about becoming organic growers can hear first-hand how farmers in the area meet the challenges and receive the rewards of organic agriculture.   This is part of a three year project that coincides with the 36-month history of chemical-free production needed to qualify for the Natural Organic Program certification.  Working with the local RC&D Council gives new organic producers a place to turn to for continued networking and moral support.  The project is funded in part by the Nebraska Environmental Trust.



Volunteer Stream Monitoring Opportunity

The Northeast Nebraska RC&D Council is conducting a stream monitoring project and volunteers are needed to participate.  It will be Friday, September 25th with a rain date of Friday, October 2nd.  The site is Bazile Creek near Center - the same site that was sampled in 2004.

Volunteers are asked to meet at the south side of the Knox County Courthouse in Center at 2:15 p.m.  The afternoon activity will end at approximately 5:00 pm.  At least 5 volunteers are needed, but any and all are welcome.

Water quality data to be collected includes dissolved oxygen, turbidity, conductivity, nitrates and pH.  Data will also be gathered to calculate discharge and sediment load, assess habitat and to do a simple on-site macroinvertebrate assessment.  This event will be included in activities for the World Water Monitoring Day (http://www.worldwatermonitoringday.org/).

Volunteer Steam Monitoring is a way for citizens living on or near a stream to assess the health of their stream and to monitor it for any changes for the better due to conservation efforts or for any impairment from changes in land use.  Monitoring efforts may connect people to their landscape and enrich their appreciation of local habitats and ecosystems.  Bazile Creek, in Northeastern Nebraska, is a beautiful sandy bottom stream that drains the hills lining the southern banks of the Missouri River.

Contact the Northeast Nebraska RC&D office at 402-582-4866 or Associate Professor Barb Hayford of Wayne State College at 402-375-7338 for more information.



Ethanol boosts Nebraska economy

While much of the nation is struggling to regain economic growth and employment, ethanol is strengthening Nebraska's economy.

According to research compiled by NPPD, the ethanol industry in Nebraska has created over $3 billion in economic activity and over 3,000 jobs, when accounting for the indirect effects of the industry.

The Nebraska Ethanol Board recently found through an industry survey that ethanol plants in Nebraska now have more full time employees than during 2008.

"Aside from saving drivers money at the pump, ethanol is creating new jobs and economic activity right here in Nebraska," said Ethanol Board Chair Mike Thede. "Plants that were closed have reopened, other plants are producing at a higher rate, and that means more economic activity for Nebraska and more ethanol for the U.S."

NPPD estimates that the ethanol industry and its indirect effects have added $2.13 million to household income and generated over $63.3 million in new tax revenues.

"Ethanol has been a boon to the drivers, farmers, and communities of Nebraska" said Ethanol Board Administrator Todd Sneller. "Ethanol proves again that it's a cheaper, cleaner, renewable alternative to gasoline."



Global Farmer-To-Farmer Roundtable Planned During World Food Prize Symposium October 13-14, 2009

Approximately 17 farmers from around the world are being invited to gather in Des Moines Oct. 13-14 for the fourth annual Global Farmer-to-Farmer Roundtable. The Roundtable is organized by Truth About Trade and Technology (TATT), and will coincide with The World Food Prize and Borlaug Symposium, also held in Des Moines Oct. 12-16.  The farmers at the Roundtable will share their personal experiences as they discuss
current issues in agriculture, including access to technology, trade barriers and other matters relating to the future of international food production.  

"Many of the problems are political as well as scientific," says Dean Kleckner, the Iowa farmer who is chairman of TATT. "As world population grows, we simply must produce more food." Kleckner says the Roundtable gives farmers a chance to share ideas on how they might accomplish that in an environmentally sustainable way while also addressing political pressures.  The Roundtable complements the Borlaug Symposium, which will focus on what scientists and policy makers around the world can do to ensure adequate access to food and nutrition for all people.   

The international farmers at the Roundtable will represent a variety of farm sizes and commodities, but social media and the Internet are increasing their abilities to stay in touch and provide support to each other long after the meeting in Des Moines ends. In past years, farmers at the Roundtable have discussed how they can work together to overcome both production and political challenges.  

Also at the Roundtable, the TATT board will present the 2009 Kleckner Trade & Technology Advancement Award. The award recognizes a farmer for "exemplary leadership, vision and resolve in advancing the rights of all farmers to choose the technology and tools that will improve the quality, quantity and availability of agricultural products around the world." Previous winners include Rosalie Ellasus of the Phillipines (2007), and Jeff Bidstrup, Australia (2008).