It’s refreshing to be greeted on a sunny Friday morning with two pieces of good news.
First off, The Wall Street Journal’s editorial pages, often so wrong on ethanol, have a great opinion piece today by Norman Borlaug on how better seeds and fertilizers — “not romantic myths” — can help feed the world. Borlaug is a professor at Texas A&M University who won the 1970 Nobel Peace Prize for his contributions to the world food supply. He writes:
“Of history, one thing is certain: Civilization as we know it could not have evolved, nor can it survive, without an adequate food supply. Likewise, the civilization that our children, grandchildren and future generations come to know will not evolve without accelerating the pace of investment and innovation in agriculture production.”
Secondly, we have an article in The American, the magazine of the American Enterprise Institute, that takes the Food Inc. crowd to task. It’s by someone who has also contributed to world food supply, Missouri farmer Blake Hurst.
“On the desk in front of me are a dozen books, all hugely critical of present-day farming. Farmers are often given a pass in these books, painted as either naïve tools of corporate greed, or economic nullities forced into their present circumstances by the unrelenting forces of the twin grindstones of corporate greed and unfeeling markets. To the farmer on the ground, though, a farmer blessed with free choice and hard won experience, the moral choices aren’t quite so easy. Biotech crops actually cut the use of chemicals, and increase food safety. Are people who refuse to use them my moral superiors? Herbicides cut the need for tillage, which decreases soil erosion by millions of tons. The biggest environmental harm I have done as a farmer is the topsoil (and nutrients) I used to send down the Missouri River to the Gulf of Mexico before we began to practice no-till farming, made possible only by the use of herbicides. The combination of herbicides and genetically modified seed has made my farm more sustainable, not less, and actually reduces the pollution I send down the river.”
Corn cobs aren’t just for pipes anymore. Now we’re seeing some real interest in utilizing them for a variety of purposes and for farmers that could mean extra income. You might think cellulosic ethanol production first but look at this list of other uses for cobs:
livestock feed supplement for mixed rations, livestock and pet animal bedding, blending cobs with coal to co-generate electricity, gasification to create several types of energy for industrial processes, and other industrial applications including construction materials, abrasives and absorbents
Harvesting corn cobs take some specialized equipment like this new cob harvester from Vermeer. It’s actually a system that tows behind a corn harvesting combine to collect and unload the cobs.
Farmers today are becoming more and more efficient and finding ways to better utilize our natural resources including the ones they grow.
This is the time of year when many agricultural groups provide some subtle education on our profession in the form of feeding the public. While many environmental groups, animal rights groups, global petroleum interests and others spread misinformation about family farmers, maybe the best answer is to simply “spread the table.”
Just this morning one of these breakfasts was held and the intent is to charge the attendees only the amount of money the farmer receives for producing the bounty on their plate. This year a hefty plate of eggs, bacon (both corn-fed no doubt), pancakes and milk cost a whopping .45 cents.
A dollar on the table covered this unbelievable breakfast for two people. Keep the tip! Given the high quality, safety, selection, and abundance of food in this nation it makes one wonder what critics of agriculture really want, when a thank you and perhaps an antacid would seem the appropriate response.
Today, it takes 25 cents of corn to produce a pound of beef; 32 cents to produce a pound of pork, and 36 cents for a dozen eggs.
In the case of American corn farmers, we are five-times more productive today than we were in the 1930s (on 20% less land), and worldwide farmers are producing enough crops to feed twice as many people as they did in 1950 on the same amount of land. All this is being done thanks to an environmentally friendly combination of technology and innovation.
Agriculture may be the greatest story never told. Ok, some people are trying to tell it, but good luck bringing a good news story to the attention of the American public. Cutting through the information clutter and getting the attention of a public worried by the economy and health care seems nearly insurmountable, especially when the vast majority of citizens are still seeing full shelves and paychecks sufficient to put food on the table.
At least today, in a small corner of the world dozens of well fed citizens in one city started their day knowing more about farmer’s true contribution to our food supply and quality of life. Let’s hope the message sticks and they become evangelists who take the time to educate their urban cousins.
No, it wasn’t a larger demand for ethanol that drove up corn prices last year. It was commodity market speculators. Further evidence is on the front page of today’s Wall Street Journal, where a story reports that the Commodity Futures Trading Commission “plans to issue a report next month suggesting speculators played a significant role in driving wild swings in oil prices — a reversal of an earlier CFTC position that augurs intensifying scrutiny on investors.”
When you compare the surge in price for corn with that of oil, you can easily sense a trend and see the connection.
Here’s one case in point. This provocatively posed porker is part of an ad campaign by Rachachuros Seasoning that also includes similar sexy shots of a duck and a chicken.
Another case in point: Top Chef ’s Padma Lakshmi steamy Carls Jr. burger commercial that got quite a bit of attention when it came out earlier this year. Before that it was Paris Hilton soaping up and wolfing down a hot and spicy burger for Carls Jr. Then came the controversy a few weeks ago over Burger King’s racy ads in Singapore.
Laurie Johns with the Iowa Farm Bureau did a great commentary column last week titled “Meat is Sexy.” Here’s a little taste:
“Young Idols With Cleavers Rule the Stage” screamed a recent New York Times headline. Apparently, in places where customers are not likely to ever see a cow or farm in their lives, meat is cool and the men who serve it up, sexy.
Maybe it’s a ‘New York Thing’ I thought as I finished the article which described the virtuosity of their butchers’ chosen profession: the heavy lifting and swinging scabbards which brought them rippled forearms and an indie band, cult-like status. But, there’s no denying it; our nation is in the middle of a ‘meat renaissance’.
No longer confined to the footnotes or Lifestyle sections of the newspapers, there’s plenty of ink for steak-grilling, rib-eating and barbeque festivals—not to mention, glowing testimonials for candied bacon ice cream, bacon brownies, even bacon martinis.
She concludes that places like New York, as well as Los Angeles, “birthplace of PETA protests and purse dogs, is clearly starving for something to really sink their teeth into; thank goodness, nothing satisfies like meat.”
The comment period for the proposal to allow up to 15 percent ethanol blends in regular gasoline ended last week, now the EPA has until December 1 to make a final decision. But, something could be done sooner than that to boost the ethanol industry.
According to the Renewable Fuels Association,EPA has authority to define E12 (12% ethanol/88% gasoline) blends as “substantially similar” to fuels used in certified motor vehicles. The basis for this conclusion is that the weight percentage of oxygen that EPA allows in oxygenated gasoline actually equates to an oxygen percentage that would be present in 12% ethanol blends. Ethanol as a fuel additive is an oxygenate. Including ethanol raises the oxygen content of gasoline, causing for a cleaner, more complete combustion of gasoline.
“We need not wait until EPA decides on the formal E15 waiver request to increase the amount of ethanol we use,” said RFA President Bob Dinneen. “This interim and legally supported step of approving E12 blends would provide an immediate boost to America’s ethanol producers and provide gasoline marketers the flexibility they need to meet the requirements of the Renewable Fuels Standard and capitalize on the cost savings associated with increased ethanol blending.”
RFA supports the move to E15 and notes that the science also supports it, but waiting until December to make a decision means that blend wall just keeps getting closer and closer. EPA can and should move now to put the brakes on before we hit it.
Nearly 70 local business and community leaders around Marshall, Missouri learned more about the state’s corn industry during a Lunch and Learn program last week sponsored by most of the ag groups in the Show-Me state.
Missouri Corn Merchandising Council (MCMC) board member Billy Thiel hosted the educational luncheon to highlight agriculture’s important contribution to communities.
“Missouri’s farmers are working hard to produce feed, fuel and food for the world,” said Thiel. “Not only are producers meeting today’s global demands, but many don’t realize agriculture is helping sustain our local economies. Farmers and the agribusiness industry are putting dollars back into local businesses and contributing tax revenue to our schools, roads and communities.”
Following the informational luncheon, attendees were invited to tour Mid-Missouri Energy, a farmer-owned ethanol plant located three miles from Thiel Farms. While visiting the local biorefinery, participants were able to see firsthand the process that converts corn to ethanol and distillers grains. This additional market adds value to Missouri’s corn crop and generates a quality feedstock for livestock producers.
“Every 56-pound bushel of corn used in the ethanol process yields 18 pounds of distillers grains, a good source of energy and protein for livestock and poultry,” said Thiel. “Missouri’s farmer-owned ethanol plants depend on a strong livestock industry to utilize ethanol’s valuable co-product. Cattle, hogs and corn are intrinsically linked and programs like today’s Lunch and Learn work to convey that message.”
The Thiel luncheon was one of eight events scheduled this summer that take place on various agricultural operations around Missouri.
USDA is doing a double-check on the corn crop before issuing the next crop report.
In response to variable weather conditions in key crop-growing regions, the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) is collecting updated information on 2009 acres planted to corn and sorghum prior to the August Crop Production report.
The June 30 Acreage report included estimates of 2009 planted area for principal crops, based on data collected from producers in early June. To ensure that the August forecasts accurately reflect any changes in planted acreage since June, NASS will expand its routine data collection activities in late July and early August. The agency will ask growers to update their reported acres planted to corn in seven states: Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Missouri, North Dakota, Ohio and Pennsylvania. Growers in Illinois and Missouri will also be asked to update their reported acres planted to sorghum.
The forecast now is calling for the second biggest corn crop, but there are some in the industry who think we may well be on the way to a record breaker if the weather cooperates. We shall see. The August crop report will be released at 8:30 a.m. EDT on Wednesday, August 12.
A coalition of groups sent letters to the Senate Environment and Public Works and Appropriations Committees last week advocating “scientific integrity in federal ethanol policy.” Seems they don’t like the five year delay in implementation of the land-use analysis for biofuels that was adopted in the House-passed climate bill. The groups include the same folks who have been attacking corn ethanol for the past several years, including the National Petrochemical and Refiners Association, Environmental Working Group, Friends of the Earth, Grocery Manufacturers Association, Snack Food Manufacturers, etc.
According to a press release, “the letters to Senate committee leadership urged them to oppose legislation that would prohibit the inclusion of greenhouse gas emissions from market-induced deforestation in the lifecycle account for biofuels. Similar attempts were successful in the House’s recently passed climate bill. Biofuels that cause these types of greenhouse gas emissions are also the same biofuels that contribute to increased food prices around the world.”
The release also includes a couple of choice quotes from the various groups: “It makes little sense to increase the already lavish federal support for corn ethanol, a fuel that has failed in its promise to help the environment and make America energy independent.”
“As we learn more about the impacts of biofuels, it has become clear that today’s biofuels take us backwards in terms of global warming, while increasing global hunger.”
“Sound, verifiable science should always guide the crafting and implementation of environmental and energy policy.”
Problem here is that they are making claims that are NOT backed by science and urging Congress to rush into using unproven methodology to measure environmental effects.
The usual suspects are guilty once again of spreading misinformation and continuing attacks on ethanol for their own self interest.
If you are looking for yet another reason why U.S. consumers should demand more aggressive action on the development of domestic fuels like ethanol it came out today with energy news from Texas.
Once a huge contributor to the nation’s energy needs, its contributions are in decline. In fact, the drilling rig count in Texas is down to 329 from 958 in August 2008, and employment dropped from 240,000 to 206,200.
Need more evidence? Oil production in Mexico has declined 12.8% in just one year, led by decline in heavy crude of 24,000b/d from April 182,000b/d from May 2008.
China’s oil demand up for 3rd month in June as latest data adds evidence that growth is resuming in the world’s second-biggest oil consumer. Chinese steel producers, which are energy intensive, are now operating at full capacity too so China may be on the verge of setting off another run-up in world oil prices.
Did anyone not see this coming? If we were playing Jeopardy the answer would be: “What are death, taxes, and higher gasoline prices?” Question: What are three things you can’t avoid? Unless of course we embrace alternative solutions like renewable ethanol.
Corn cobs aren’t just for pipes anymore. Now we’re seeing some real interest in utilizing them for a variety of purposes and for farmers that could mean extra income. You might think cellulosic ethanol production first but look at this list of other uses for cobs:
This is the time of year when many agricultural groups provide some subtle education on our profession in the form of feeding the public. While many environmental groups, animal rights groups, global petroleum interests and others spread misinformation about family farmers, maybe the best answer is to simply “spread the table.”
Here’s one case in point. This provocatively posed porker is part of an ad campaign by Rachachuros Seasoning that also includes 
According to the 
In response to variable weather conditions in key crop-growing regions, the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) is collecting updated information on 2009 acres planted to corn and sorghum prior to the August Crop Production report.
The usual suspects are at it again.
If you are looking for yet another reason why U.S. consumers should demand more aggressive action on the development of domestic fuels like ethanol it came out today with energy news from Texas.