China buys US corn
Cattle and grain markets ended last week near the highs for the week. Perhaps some traders thought the grains would see weakness ahead of a three-day weekend, but the story was different.
RELATED CONTENTBismarck, ND, sale barn to close
FARGO, N.D. — Arlon Voge publicly announced his retirement and the shuttering of his Farmers Livestock Exchange in Bismarck, N.D., on his 65th birthday.
A wave of export sales
The corn market gained 10 cents last week. The futures came under pressure mid-week with larger acreage and production estimates for 2012. Buying interest did resurface late last week with fresh export sales.
RELATED CONTENTSize of the prize
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. — The U.S. dairy industry seems to have a bigger opportunity in expanding world markets than it did two years ago, but the window of opportunity is temporary.
RELATED CONTENTWho are the Baers?
The Baer brothers are major players in a shrinking livestock sector in the Red River Valley region.
UEP defends deal with HSUS
Will Wal-Mart-style marketing be the reason if a proposed standard on laying egg cages becomes federal law, and part of the farm bill? Gene Gregory, president and CEO of United Egg Producers, says yes, eggs are a commodity and large producers that sell to big customers such as Wal-Mart need to move across state lines without a patchwork of rules.
Livestock Liberty?
LAKE PARK, Minn. — Amon Baer has one thing to say about amendments to the 2012 farm bill where Congress would dictate exactly — to the square inch — how big his egg laying cages must be. It is part of a deal brokered by the United Egg Producers leaders and the Humane Society of the United States, ostensibly to prevent state-by-state laws that undermine the egg industry. “Kill it,” Baer says of the proposed law.
RELATED CONTENTLatest News
Funds available for specialty crop projects
Seller beware
BISMARCK, N.D. — We’ve cautioned readers in the past to tread carefully when entering into grain purchase contracts because of the grain market’s entrance into the big business world.
RELATED CONTENTBig farm show set
Think “Big Iron in the winter” with emphasis on small grains, potatoes, soybeans and dry beans. The 11th annual International Crop Expo will be held Wednesday and Thursday, Feb. 15-16, at the Alerus Center in Grand Forks, N.D.
Preserving dairy's 'healthy halo'
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. — Today’s dairy checkoff spending is “consumer-driven,” and more heavily involved in driving industry partnerships than it was before 2006.
RELATED CONTENTWeather patterns
A chunk of the Midwest (especially west of the Mississippi River) is dry all the way to the Canadian border. What a change from last year, when it was so wet in North Dakota and northern Minnesota that farmers who had intended to plant corn had to switch to soybeans. What will this spring and summer be like?
RELATED CONTENTUSDA report offers little surprise
The corn market lost 10 cents last week as there were no big surprises in the U.S. Department of Agriculture supply and demand report. Traders were expecting tighter stocks and an increase in exports, which did materialize and was built into the market.
RELATED CONTENTPublic versus private
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — The National Association of Farm Service Agency County Office Employees is contending that the government could save up to $2.5 billion per year by taking the crop insurance program away from insurance companies and agents and turning it over to the county offices, but the American Association of Crop Insurers says the private delivery system works fine and that it will fight the proposal.
No beef with prices
SHARON, N.D. — Veteran rancher Keith Johnson has lived through droughts, blizzards and long stretches of poor prices. That makes him appreciate this winter even more. Beef prices have soared to record highs, reaching levels he describes as “unimaginable, the highest we’ve seen in our lifetime.”
RELATED CONTENT
RSS Feeds