Twelve percent of the nation’s corn crop remained in the fields as of Sunday, as USDA promised to continue crop progress reports for yet another week. “This is the second slowest corn harvest on record,” said USDA’s Brad Rippey. “The only other slower year by December 6th was 1992, when 83 percent of the corn was harvested by that date.”
Only southern states like Texas and North Carolina are reporting a complete corn harvest at this point. North Dakota remains the furthest behind with only just over half of the crop combined. Most states did make good progress during mostly dry weather last week, but a new round of really bad weather this week will mean more delays.
USDA Meteorologist Eric Luebehusen says the storm system heading across the country this week means the harvest season may be over at this point. “Whatever corn is left standing will likely stay in the fields for quite some time and there is a risk of lodging for any remaining corn due to strong winds,” he said.
What that will mean for the forecast of a near record corn crop this year remains to be seen. Nebraska farmer Alan Tiemann, chairman of the Nebraska Corn Board, noted that the old adage in agriculture “never count your chickens until they’re hatched” also goes for corn farmers – “never count your bushels until they’re in the bin.”
“Corn has been standing well, and some corn producers have already tolerated three different storms, but time and weather can still take its toll. It sure appears not all of this crop will be harvested in 2009, and it has been a long time since we have seen harvest on that many acres carry into the next year,” said Tiemann.
Nebraska has exactly the same amount of corn harvested as the nationwide percentage – 88 percent – which leaves 12 percent in the fields, or approximately 180 million bushels with a farm-gate value of more than $630 million.
The Morocco portion of the U.S Grains Council Corn Mission has concluded and the team is now in Egypt. While in Morocco, the group toured a cattle feedlot, poultry operation and shipping port, and met with many government and agricultural representatives. Among them was Abdelali Aziz, General Director for the Moroccan Office of Cereals, who is pictured here on the right next to Wisconsin corn grower Joe Zenz.
Agwired’s Chuck Zimmerman, who has been blogging the trip, interviewed Joe when they were leaving Morocco to get his impressions about what they saw and heard as it relates to the potential for U.S. corn exports. Joe says he sees great potential in the Morocco market, but he thinks producers still have a lot to learn about production and the USGC is playing a key role in providing educational resources. In the future, Joe thinks there’s a lot of market potential with DDGs by setting up some trials to show producers how well it can perform.
Listen to Chuck’s interview with Joe here:
Chuck is also taking numerous photos on the Corn Mission and putting them in separate Flickr photo albums for each country, which can be viewed by clicking on the links below.
The Environmental Protection Agency’s decision last week not to decide on a waiver that would allow up to 15 percent ethanol blends in regular gasoline leaves the ethanol industry in limbo for at least another six months. While the agency seemed to indicate that it will approve the waiver, once they “have all the necessary science to make the right decision,” they only said it would apply to year 2001 and newer vehicles. That would mean only 60 percent of American cars and trucks could use the fuel, which sounds like the making of a nightmare for fuel retailers.
According to Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) President Bob Dinneen, “Such a bifurcation would create unnecessary and burdensome requirements for fuel retailers, as well as confusion for consumers. It is unlikely that retailers would be willing to offer both an E15 blend for newer model vehicles and E10 or less for older models. This scenario could effectively result in no increase in ethanol use, despite an approval of higher level blends.”
The RFA has written to EPA administrator Lisa Jackson questioning this potential limitation and asking for their rationale. The organization also continues to request that the agency immediately allow up to 12 percent ethanol in gasoline. “That would open up a market for an additional 20 percent ethanol demand,” said Dinneen.
Dinneen says the reason EPA can approve 12 percent immediately is because gasoline is currently allowed to contain up to ten percent ethanol AND up to two percent MTBE. He asks, “If it’s okay to blend two percent MTBE on top of ten percent ethanol, what in the world difference does it make if you have 12 percent of a single oxygenate?”
Both ethanol and MTBE are classified as oxygenates that raise the octane of gasoline. The main differences between them are that MTBE is made from fossil fuel and is hazardous to the environment. Seems like a decision that would be easy for EPA to make.
Wake up world! 160 bushels per acre! That is the 2010 national average yield being predicted by IA St. meteorologist Elwynn Taylor. In 1980 family farmers produced 80 bushels an acre. That’s a “holy cow” statistic if there ever was one.
Taylor, quoted in the farmgate blog today says there is a 23 percent chance of more than 173 bu. and a 17 percent chance of below 142 bu., but he says consistent yields since 1996 reduces the chances of those. Adoption of technology and innovation by farmers are tilting the odds in our favor.
What does all this mean for consumers? America’s family farmers are growing more corn today than at any previous time in history and the trend is accelerating. And they are doing so with less everything…fuel, water, chemicals, fertilizer, etc…Corn production has nearly doubled since 1980.
This amazing accomplishment has occurred during some very rough growing seasons like 2009. This year’s wet conditions have farmers still in the field but when they are done they will harvest about 13 billion bushels of corn.
This is simple math; a growing volume of corn + a 27percent reduction in water use + a 30 percent reduction in greenhouse gases + a 37 percent reduction in land required + a 37 percent reduction in energy required and a 69 percent reduction in soil loss = A MONSTER ECONOMIC ENGINE.
Corn is arguably the most versatile commodity on the planet and can be used for food, feed, fuel, fabrics, biodegradable plastics, cosmetics, fireworks, batteries, and on and on for thousands of uses. None grows corn better than American family farmers. There is a not so subtle message here if we are willing to listen. As my old man used to say, “If you want to succeed, go with your strengths.”
A team of corn growers on a mission in Morocco this week heard from Kurt Shultz, Director for the Mediterranean and Africa for the U.S. Grains Council (USGC), about the agriculture industry in Morocco and the potential it holds for U.S. grain producers.
Chuck Zimmerman, who is blogging the trip on Agwired and The Grain Board, reports that Kurt told them the USGC became involved in Morocco about 15 years ago when corn imports were low and there was a huge duty of about 75 percent. USGC formed a relationship with livestock producers and the government that has led to the reduction of those duties to about 35 percent, which has driven growth tremendously, as has an increase in poultry production.
Kurt says that the USGC helped form a poultry organization that provides members with educational materials so that it can compete on a global level. He says that investment has paid off big dividends over the years. Besides corn, he says they are seeing a growth in the imports of dried distillers grains. Kurt says that imports in Morocco could double in the next five years, especially with developments in the ruminant sector.
Beloved American author Samuel Clemens, known to the world as simply Mark Twain, led a storied, colorful and sometimes dangerous life. It was one of these near misses with catastrophe that led to the now famous line “The reports of my death have been greatly exaggerated.”
This quote seems to ring very true for ethanol fuel today as well. To read the volume of tripe being spread about by certain anti-ethanol factions in the grocery, environmental and big oil industries you would think ethanol is dead indeed.
Thank goodness the truth is much like Mr. Twain and proves to be pretty resilient over time. In the petroleum world there is one particular publication, albeit published only once a year, that is known for putting the spin aside and addressing energy issues in a realistic and truthful manner.
ExxonMobil’s “Energy Outlook,” the company’s annual forecast about the industry, which is set to be released any day, points to increased adoption of wind, solar and biofuels. Exxon executive Andrew Swiger stripped off the rhetoric regarding alternative energy sources at a recent conference while giving a sneak peak of the “Energy Outlook.”
In his comments he reported biofuels are expected to grow at a rate of 9.6 percent from 2005 through 2030. Up from 9.3 percent a year ago, and this at a time when overall energy demand is as flat as breakfast at IHOP. While wind and solar also grow, oil and coal are on the decline.
The next time a naysayer tells you ethanol is dead or alternative energy supporters are crack pots, remind them of these other words of wisdom from Mr. Twain: “A person with a new idea is a crank until the idea succeeds.”
The first ever AGMasters Conference is being held this week at the University of Illinois in Champaign-Urbana and a good crowd was on hand for the first day on Tuesday, despite the fact that many farmers who might have attended are still out harvesting corn. The conference format, location and date is new, but it is built upon a long history of conferences by the University Extension service that once upon a time were known simply as “Spray School.”
One presenter at the new and improved version of the conference was well-known Illinois agronomist Emerson Nafziger who talked about the potential for 300 bushel corn in the future. Below is a part of a post from the conference blog, which was updated today mostly by student bloggers, with some help from me. They included both ag comm and crop science majors and they did an amazing job – check out the blog here.
Looking back, Dr. Nafziger says that if someone would have told him Illinois corn yield averages for 2004 would be 180 bu/ac, he would have been fairly skeptical. Now looking into the next two decades talk of 300 bu/ac corn is an image, once not imaginable, has become a possibility. The development of new genetics presents this possibility, however other factors might restrain corn acres from reaching 300 bu/ac.
One need of 300 bushel corn that Dr. Nafziger addressed is that of more water. 200 bushel corn requires about 22 inches of annual rainfall, compared to 300 bushel needing 33 inches. The need for increased amounts of water could play a major role, but like most things in agronomy, it depends on the weather. Dr. Nafziger reported that Nitrogen rate does determine corn yields because the organic matter in the soil provides nitrogen. Yet, there is no good way to determine how much nitrogen the soil will provide. Dr. Nafziger also spoke on the topic of corn and soybean rotation. Many reports reveal that the advantages to field rotation are not as spectacular as they used to be. Dr. Nafziger predicts that corn fields in 2030 will look fairly similar to those of 2009. He expects complete canopies, adequate nutrition, and moderate tillage. As for predicting actual yields for 2030, that is a little more challenging: after all, corn yields will always be dependent on the weather.
Listen to an audio interview with Nafziger by crop science major Ross Recker.
The concept of higher ethanol blends is alive and in the game in the wake of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s announcement yesterday that they will delay a final ruling on allowing up to 15% ethanol in each gallon of gasoline. The decision is a mixed blessing and a missed opportunity.
The positive tone from EPA and the acknowledgement that newer vehicles are likely to accommodate higher blends bodes well for the future and is a big step. However, the promise of real progress toward reducing our reliance on foreign oil remains elusive. One recent study found the U.S. could produce enough ethanol to displace nearly a third of all gasoline use by 2030 but this will only occur if we send the right signals to the domestic energy industry.
Business decisions are currently being put on hold that would provide much needed economic stimulus at a time that it is sorely needed, and these would be long term-jobs.
Investments in research that will increase ethanol production efficiencies are being delayed. We continue to export U.S. dollars for more than 60 percent of the petroleum we consume at a time when our national debt and balance of trade are grim.
While world leaders point fingers are each other, and especially the U.S., wondering who is going to take responsibility for greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs) we missed a real opportunity. Using E15 instead of unleaded gasoline will reduce GHGs by 60 million tons – the equivalent of removing 10.5 million cars from our roads. Modern corn-based dry mill ethanol plants produce 59 percent fewer GHGs when compared to gasoline.
Corn production is on the rise, providing ample evidence what a national strength our corn productivity could be with the right steps being taken by business and government. Farmers are doing their part producing record after record or near record crops in recent years despite terrible planting, growing and harvest conditions. The recent unveiling of the completion of the corn genome boggles the mind in terms of how corn productivity will accelerate.
For nearly three years, big oil and food processors have spent millions of dollars to circulate bogus information regarding corn and food prices and automotive capabilities regarding ethanol fuel , all with the intent of bringing America’s quest for a renewable alternative to oil to an end.
So when EPA makes the right decision, it will be a moral victory for society as well as an economic and environmental win.
The 2009 U.S. Grains Council (USGC) Corn Mission team landed in Casablanca today for the first leg of a trip that includes Morocco, Egypt and Jordan. Blogging for the team is Chuck Zimmerman (far left in the photo) of ZimmComm New Media who already has interviews with the entire team posted for your listening pleasure here on Agwired.
The team includes – William “Sparky” Crossman representing the Virginia Corn Board, Jim Stuever with the Missouri Corn Merchandising Council, Bob Timmons of the Kansas Corn Commission, Darren Armstrong with Corn Growers of North Carolina, Jerry Griffith representing the Kentucky Corn Promotion Council, Joe Zenz with the Wisconsin Corn Promotion Board – and USGC Director of Membership Shannon Schaffer. That is not in any particular order, since Chuck didn’t identify them from left to right in the photo. I only know him because we’ve been married for almost 30 years! Oh – and Shannon is the guy in the middle.
USDA Meteorologist Eric Luebehusen says the storm system heading across the country this week means the harvest season may be over at this point. “Whatever corn is left standing will likely stay in the fields for quite some time and there is a risk of lodging for any remaining corn due to strong winds,” he said. 
The Morocco portion of the U.S Grains Council Corn Mission has concluded and the team is now in Egypt. While in Morocco, the group toured a cattle feedlot, poultry operation and shipping port, and met with many government and agricultural representatives. Among them was Abdelali Aziz, General Director for the Moroccan 
The Environmental Protection Agency’s 
A team of corn growers on a mission in Morocco this week heard from Kurt Shultz, Director for the Mediterranean and Africa for the 
known to the world as simply Mark Twain, led a storied, colorful and sometimes dangerous life. It was one of these near misses with catastrophe that led to the now famous line “The reports of my death have been greatly exaggerated.”
The first ever 
Looking back, Dr. Nafziger says that if someone would have told him Illinois corn yield averages for 2004 would be 180 bu/ac, he would have been fairly skeptical. Now looking into the next two decades talk of 300 bu/ac corn is an image, once not imaginable, has become a possibility. The development of new genetics presents this possibility, however other factors might restrain corn acres from reaching 300 bu/ac. 
The 2009 