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Monday, October 5, 2009 Two sections Volume 37, No. 40

FarmWeek on the web: FarmWeekNow.com Illinois Farm Bureau®on the web: www.ilfb.org

IMPROVEMENTS TO THEIllinois and Mississippi River lockscame a step closer to reality Fridaywith action in the U.S. House. .......4

ILLINOIS FARMERS eachyear harvest 13,679 acres of pump-kins on 502 farms, according to the2007 Census of Agriculture. .........9

WAL-MART WILL LINK itscustomers with the Illinois farmerswho grow their produce at a mid-October farmers’ market. ..............4

BUCKING BALES

Bill Wey, left on hay rack, and his grandson, Jared Wey, last week were bucking bales of hay fromthe third cutting of alfalfa on an eight-acre field near LeRoy in McLean County. The hay crop onWey’s farm produced 900 square bales and 115 large round bales this year. Wey produces cornand soybeans and has 10 quarter horses. Jared works for Mark Wade, LeRoy, in tractor, who doescustom baling. (Photo by Ken Kashian)

U.S. Senate climate bill lacks farmer carbon offsets

State Senate Ag Committee hears pesticide drift issues BY KAY SHIPMANFarmWeek

Communication was thewatchword at last week’s Illi-nois Senate Agri-culture and Con-servation Com-mittee hear-ing on pesti-cide drift.Later, aSenate fer-tilizers and chemicals sub-committee was named to

address drift concerns.Over four-plus hours of

testimony and questioning,several senators, farmers, andrepresentatives of ag industryand farm groups agreed thatcommunication would helpaddress some pesticide driftissues.

“We have good communica-tion with our neighbors,”Adam Watson, a ChampaignCounty Farm Bureau member,told the senators. “Communi-

cation is going to be vital onboth sides of the fence,” Wat-son said. “I want to know ifan organic” field is nearby.

Illinois Farm Bureau Direc-tor Bill Olthoff of Bourbon-nais testified that his familycommunicated with neighbor-ing farmers by posting signsaround tomato fields and ask-ing them to use less volatileherbicides near those sensitivecrops. “They complied,” headded.

an assault on farmers andranchers in an economic way,and when they are hurt, ourrural and small towneconomies are very directlyhurt because they depend uponthe farmer and rancher for thesuccess of Main Street.”

The Boxer-Kerry proposalwould seek to achieve a 20 per-cent reduction of 2005 levels

of carbon dioxide emissions by2020, compared to a 17-per-cent reduction goal in theHouse bill.

Both the House and Senatebills feature a long-term targetof an 83-percent reduction incarbon dioxide emissions by2020.

Boxer said she wants herSenate Environment and Pub-

The climate change billintroduced in the U.S. Senatelast week lacks many of theprovisions sought by farmgroups to ensure that growerscould get paid for carbon-stor-ing practices and is vehementlyopposed by Farm Bureau andother ag groups.

Farm Bureau will work todefeat the measure — intro-duced by Sens. Barbara Boxer(D-Calif.) and John Kerry (D-Mass.) — in the upper cham-ber.

It was reported last weekthat others in the Senate areworking on provisions for agri-cultural offsets to climate legis-lation.

The Boxer-Kerry proposalwould leave the decision of off-

sets oversight to the president,while the earlier House-passedbill gives that authority toUSDA.

The Senate draft also wouldestablish a new independentOffsets Integrity AdvisoryBoard to help the presidentdetermine what projects shouldbe eligible and assure that theyrepresent “verifiable, additional,and permanent” reductions ingreenhouse gas emissions.

Rick Krause, AmericanFarm Bureau Federation seniordirector of congressional rela-tions, called the Senate bill a“step back” from the House billon credits for farmers.

Krause said he expects theSenate Agriculture Committeeto try to rewrite the credit pro-visions.

Dissatisfaction with the billwas voiced by Sen. Pat Roberts(R-Kan.), who said he would“continue to fight against suchproposals that ship jobs over-seas, ration domestic energy,and result in greater govern-ment bureaucracy.”

“It is not in the best interestsof the United States to unilater-ally undertake mandatory car-bon reductions until developingcountries like China, India, andBrazil agree to the same,” saidRoberts, a member of the Sen-ate Ag and Finance committees.

Former ag secretary andnow a Republican senator fromNebraska, Mike Johanns, alsovoiced his displeasure:

“This kind of legislation,beyond a shadow of a doubt, is

lic Works Committee (whichshe chairs) to begin hearingson the 801-page bill on Oct.20.

There is, however, stilldoubt on Capitol Hill that theBoxer-Kerry bill will make it toa Senate vote this year, and themeasure is said to lack the 60votes needed to avoid a fili-buster.

See Pesticide, page 3

Several organic farmers tes-tified they could lose theirorganic certification — andpremium prices — for severalyears if pesticides drift overtheir fields and crops. Twogrape growers who use pesti-cides testified their grapes andvines were harmed by driftand described potential prob-lems from pesticide use alongroad and railroad rights ofway.

According to the Illinois

Department of Agriculture(IDOA), total pesticide-usecomplaints, including thosefrom non-farm uses, have var-ied between 87 to 117 annual-ly. Only a small portion ofthose complaints, about 11 outof 117, involved aerial applica-tions, said Warren Goetsch,IDOA bureau chief of envi-ronmental programs. About60 percent of pesticide-usecomplaints are agriculture

TRUSTEES TO DISCUSS U OF I PRESIDENT— The University of Illinois Board of Trustees wasexpected to take up the matter of President B. JosephWhite’s resignation and possibly name an interim presi-dent in an emergency meeting held last Saturday.

New trustees chairman Christopher Kennedy called aspecial meeting “to act upon items which cannot waituntil the next regular (Nov. 12) meeting.” The meetingagenda included an executive session and presentationsfrom search firms that may be hired to locate a perma-nent president.

White is to step down at the end of December.

FARMERS FEATURED ON NCGA VIDEO — Anew video that focuses on increasing sustainability in agri-culture debuted last weekend on the television program“This Week in Agribusiness.”

The short video produced by the National Corn Grow-ers Association (NCGA) features farmers telling the storyof how better management and modern technology isgood news for consumers and the environment.

“The only thing as important as growing a crop andgetting a fair price is doing so in a way that is sociallyresponsible and assures opportunities for the next genera-tion of farmers and consumers,” said Darrin Ihnen,NCGA president.

The video on sustainability was aired over the weekendand will be shown today (Monday) on RFD-TV, which isavailable on Direct TV and Dish Network.

The video, features Donna Jeschke of Mazon, formerchairman of the Illinois Corn Marketing Board (ICMB)and a current director on the ICMB board, and also canbe viewed online at {http://ncga.com/sustainability}.

AMERICANS NOT EATING ENOUGH FRUIT,VEGETABLES — Americans have yet to achieve therecommended consumption levels of fruit and vegetables,according to a report issued last week by the Centers forDisease Control and Prevention (CDC).

The Department of Health and Human Services’ goalis for at least 75 percent of Americans to eat two or moredaily servings of fruit and for at least 50 percent ofAmericans to eat three or more servings of vegetableseach day.

However, the CDC reported only 33 percent of adultsare eating enough fruit and only 27 percent are consumingenough vegetables. Teenagers are doing worse than theirelders. Only 32 percent of high school students eat therecommended servings of fruit, and only 13 percent eatthe recommended servings of vegetables.

“A diet high in fruits and vegetables is important foroptimal child growth, maintaining a healthy weight, andprevention of chronic diseases such as diabetes, heart dis-ease and some cancers, all of which currently contributeto health care costs in the United States,” said Dr. WilliamDietz, director of CDC’s division of nutrition, physicalactivity, and obesity.

FarmWeek Page 2 Monday, October 5, 2009

(ISSN0197-6680)

Vol. 37 No. 40 October 5, 2009

Dedicated to improving the profitability of farm-ing, and a higher quality of life for Illinois farmers.FarmWeek is produced by the Illinois FarmBureau.

FarmWeek is published each week, except theMondays following Thanksgiving and Christmas, by theIllinois Agricultural Association, 1701 Towanda Avenue, P.O.Box 2901, Bloomington, IL 61701. Illinois AgriculturalAssociation assumes no responsibility for statements byadvertisers or for products or services advertised inFarmWeek.

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© 2009 Illinois Agricultural Association

STAFFEditor

Dave McClelland (dmcclelland@ilfb.org)Legislative Affairs Editor

Kay Shipman (kayship@ilfb.org)Agricultural Affairs Editor

Martin Ross (mross@ilfb.org)Senior Commodities Editor

Daniel Grant (dgrant@ilfb.org)Editorial Assistant

Linda Goltz (Lgoltz@ilfb.org)Business Production Manager

Bob StandardAdvertising Sales Manager

Richard VerderyClassified sales coordinator

Nan FanninDirector of News and Communications

Dennis VerclerAdvertising Sales RepresentativesHurst and Associates, Inc.P.O. Box 6011, Vernon Hills, IL 600611-800-397-8908 (advertising inquiries only)

Gary White - Northern IllinoisDoug McDaniel - Southern IllinoisEditorial phone number: 309-557-2239Classified advertising: 309-557-3155Display advertising: 1-800-676-2353

Quick TakesEXPORTS

Taiwan delegation pledges to purchase Illinois grainBY DANIEL GRANTFarmWeek

Corn and soybeans produced in the U.S., par-ticularly in Illinois, should continue to flow inlarge quantities to the island nation of Taiwan.

A 17-member Taiwanese delegation last week,during a ceremony at the Abraham Lincoln Pres-idential Library in Springfield, signed letters ofintent to purchase in the next two years as muchas 531 million bushels of U.S. corn and soybeans.

A large portion of those purchases is expect-ed to be sourced from Illinois. Overall, theintended sales of both crops to Taiwan couldtotal an estimated $3.5 billion.

“Exports are absolutely vital to Illinois’ agindustry,” said Tom Jennings, director of the Illi-nois Department of Agriculture (IDOA). “Theseagreements represent jobs in Illinois.”

Taiwan is the fourth-largest export destinationfor U.S. corn and beans, according to IDOA. Itimports about one-third of all its food needsfrom the U.S., and in 2008 it was the top cus-tomer of Illinois agricultural products with pur-chases of more than $955 million.

“The sale of Illinois corn and corn productsto the Taiwanese is great news for Illinois grow-ers as we prepare to harvest another large crop,”said Jim Rapp, chairman of the Illinois Corn

Marketing Board. “Taiwan continues to be a val-ued customer while Illinois growers remain reli-able producers of corn.”

USDA last month estimated U.S. farmers thisyear will harvest the largest soybean crop andsecond-largest corn crop on record. Productionin Illinois was projected to total 2.17 billionbushels of corn and 398.2 million bushels ofbeans.

Paul Sun, former ag minister of Taiwan wholed the delegation to the U.S., said Taiwan buysthe bulk of its ag products from the U.S. becauseof the quality of the crops and the reliability ofU.S. as a supplier.

“Despite the economic downturn, Illinoisexports to Taiwan last year were up 8.8 percentfrom 2007,” Sun said. “The signing (of the let-ters of intent to purchase grain) helps solidifythis mutually beneficial relationship.”

The Taiwanese also have become large buyersof U.S. distillers dried grains (DDGs) since theU.S. Grains Council (USGC) in 2002 initiatedfeeding trials with the hog, poultry, and dairyindustries in Taiwan, according to Clover Changof the USGC Taiwan office.

Taiwan last year imported 250,000 metric tonsof DDGs from the U.S. and should purchasemore this year, according to Chang.

Pockets of grain quality issuesnot a concern for importers

Pockets of grain quality issuesreported so far this harvest shouldnot affect U.S. crop exports.

In fact, representatives of aTaiwanese trade delegation inSpringfield last week praisedmembers of the Illinois CornGrowers and Soybean Associa-tions for the quality of theirproducts.

“The quality of Americanag products always has beenappreciated by Taiwaneseimporters and consumers,”said Paul Sun, former ag minis-ter of Taiwan, who led the 17-member delegation to the U.S.

The Taiwanese delegationtoured agribusinesses and farms inIllinois, and Sun said after the tourhe has no concerns about thequality of grain this year despitereports of white mold in soybeansand ear rot in corn due to the cool,wet growing season.

“We heard the productionlevel of soybeans (3.25 billionbushels) is supposed to break arecord,” Sun told FarmWeek.“That gives us confidence” toremain major buyers of U.S. agproducts, he said.

Taiwan in 2008 was the topcustomer of ag products fromIllinois with purchases ofmore than $955 million,according to the IllinoisDepartment of Agriculture.Overall, Taiwan is the fourthlargest export destination forU.S. corn and beans.

“The price is reasonable andthe U.S. is a reliable supplier, whichis very important,” said Yau-Kuen

Hung, chairman of the TaiwanFeed Industry Association.

The downturn in crop pricessince last year and large crop pro-duction potential in the U.S., com-bined with the fact that corn pro-duction in China and soybean pro-duction in South Americadeclined this year due to weatherissues, should help build exportdemand for the U.S., according toRon Moore, chairman of the Illi-nois Soybean Association.

“There are opportunities tocapture market share we’ve lost (inthe past) based on cheaper prices(that were available in other mar-

kets),” said Moore, who believesthe grain quality issues in the U.S.are confined to “isolated areas.”

The U.S. Grains Councilreported last week corn prices inChina are as high as $5 to $6-plusper bushel compared to U.S. priceswhich are about half those levels.

“Buyers always prefer a low-er price,” Sun added.

USDA last month projectedU.S. soy exports for 2008/09will set a record of 1.28 billionbushels and raised its projec-tion for U.S. corn exports by100 million bushels. — DanielGrant

GOVERNMENT

FarmWeek Page 3 Monday, October 5, 2009

Continued from page 1related, Goetsch noted.

IDOA routinely distributes information about its toll-freecomplaint hotline, recently updated its website information,including bee hive locations, and is seeking avenues to provideother information, Goetsch reported.

Rep. Don Moffitt (R-Gilson) told committee members andthose testifying about the need for emergency information tobe available during non-business hours.

Goetsch said IDOA is working with the Illinois EmergencyManagement Agency (IEMA), which has an emergency tele-phone number manned around the clock. The two agencies areexploring whether IEMA could forward after-hours pesticide-related emergency calls to the IDOA employee on call, heexplained.

Jean Payne, president of the Illinois Fertilizer and ChemicalAssociation, encouraged people to report suspected cases ofpesticide drift and to have those incidents investigated byIDOA.

Payne told Moffitt the agrichemical industry is willing towork with him to better inform the public about who to call inan emergency.

Sen. David Koeller (D-Peoria) will chair the new fertilizersand chemicals subcommittee. Subcommittee members include:Sens. Michael Frerichs (D-Champaign), Linda Holmes (D-Aurora), Gary Dahl (R-Granville), and Tim Bivins (R-Dixon).

Pesticide

ROOFTOP GARDENER

Senyah Haynes, left, the special events and program coordinator for Chicago’s Gary Comer YouthCenter on Chicago’s south side, describes the center’s rooftop gardening program for urban teens toHamilton County Farm Bureau leaders and their “adopted” legislator, Rep. Will Burns (D-Chicago).Burns hosted Farm Bureau leaders for a tour of his district. Looking on left to right are: Hamilton Coun-ty Farm Bureau manager Chris Bunting, Burns, Illinois Farm Bureau Director J.C. Pool, and RandyKirsch, Hamilton County Farm Bureau board member. The students raise and sell about 2,000 poundsof produce on a third of an acre on the center’s roof. (Photo by Christina Nourie, Illinois Farm Bureau)

Eric Mennenga, in combine, opened a small portion of a field south of LeRoy in McLean County last week tomake final adjustments on a new combine. Assisting Mennenga was Don Copley, LeRoy, in tractor with augerwagon, and Adam Murray, LeRoy, in semi. Mennenga, who farms with his father, Dennis, said slightly betteryields than last year are expected despite a two-week delay in planting last spring. (Photo by Ken Kashian)

IDOA fielding typical requests for temporary storageBY KAY SHIPMANFarmWeek

The Illinois Department ofAgriculture (IDOA) is receiv-ing the typicalnumber ofrequests fromlicensed eleva-tors and ware-houses for tem-porary storage,according toStuart Selinger,head of IDOA’swarehousebureau.

Selingeranticipated adecrease in theusual number ofemergency stor-age requestsbecause harvest2009 is expect-ed to be drawnout enough to provide eleva-tors time to move the grain.

Temporary storage struc-

tures must have a permanentbase; hot-spot detectors, aera-tion fans, and ducts; rigid side-walls; and a waterproof cover-

ing. Emergencystorage require-ments are lessstrenuous.

Given theconcerns aboutthe quality ofthis year’s crop,farmers needto be sure theyreceive anaccurate repre-sentation ofany grain deliv-ered, Selingerstressed.

“The mostimportantthing whenfarmers delivergrain is (that)

they receive a scale ticket rep-resentative of the quality ofgrain they’ve delivered,”

Selinger said. “Once they’vedumped it and left with a scaleticket, that’s what it (the quali-ty) is as far as the department’s

concerned,” he added.In recent years, IDOA has

approved temporary storageranging from 107 million to

152 million bushels. Theapproved emergency storagevaried widely from 12 millionto 36 million bushels.

‘The most impor-tant thing whenfarmers del iverg r a i n i s ( t h a t )t h ey r e c e i ve ascale ticket rep-r e s e n t a t i ve o ft h e q u a l i t y o fgrain they’ve de-livered.’

— Stuart SelingerIllinois Department

of Agriculture

Library card not needed to use the National Ag LibraryInfo and newsfrom all over

One of USDA’s best-kept secrets is a treasuretrove of information.

The National Agricul-

tural Library with loca-tions in Beltsville, Md.,and Washington, D.C.,offers a wide variety ofinformation and news“from all over,” M. LouiseReynnells, a l ibrary infor-

mation specialist, toldFarmWeek .

“Anybody can use us,” saidReynnells, who works in thelibrary’s Rural InformationCenter in Beltsville.

Requests for specific

information may be submit-ted by e-mail, by calling 800-633-7701, or through aninterlibrary loan programwith a local library.

In addition to helpingsomeone locate information,librarians also may matchindividuals with experts orother resources that may pro-vide additional information,Reynnells explained.

For example, the NationalAg Library’s rural informa-tion center focuses, not sur-prisingly, on rural issues. Thewebsite is{http://ric.nal.usda.gov}.

The center offers a specialpage for farmers and ranch-ers.

It includes information ona variety of farm programs,reports, and funding sources.

Information also is divid-ed among several topics,including rural health, ruraleducation, rural populations,funding resources, and ruralhousing.

Each topic provides linksto related agencies, reports,and studies.

“We’re a great resource,”Reynnells said. — Kay Ship-man

GOVERNMENT

FarmWeek Page 4 Monday, October 5, 2009

House OK’s funds for Illinois, Mississippi River projects

COMBINE DISCUSSION

Clark County Farm Bureau President Brad Daugherty, right, discusses his farm near West Union withstate Rep. Lisa Hernandez, left, (D-Cicero) during her recent visit with her “adopted” county Farm Bu-reau. Looking on is Clark County Farm Bureau manager Tony Trimble. Hernandez and her legislativeassistant, Griselda Delgado, toured Daugherty’s grain farm and the Clover Field Farm livestock oper-ation. They also toured the LincolnLand Agri-Energy ethanol plant in Palestine and Yargus Manufac-turing, Marshall, which makes fertilizer blenders and material-handling equipment. (Photo by Christi-na Nourie, Illinois Farm Bureau)

Legislation that includes money forIllinois and Mississippi River projectspassed the U.S. House Friday.

The fiscal year 2010 Energy andWater Development Act, HR 3183,passed by a vote of 308 to 114. It willbe voted on in the Senate this week.

The legislation includes $24.15 mil-lion for Illinois, including the river pro-jects, funding for pennycress develop-ment, and the Illinois Community Col-lege Sustainability Network.

The legislation contains funding forthe Upper Mississippi River Restora-tion Program, money to design themodernization of the locks on therivers (officially called the Upper Mis-sissippi River — Illinois Waterway Sys-tem), and the Upper Mississippi RiverComprehensive Plan.

“By funding for these importantecosystem, lock modernization, and

flood-control projects, Congress willprovide for simultaneous improve-ments in the ecological and economichealth of the Mississippi and Illinoisrivers while also protecting riversidecommunities from devastating flood-ing,” said U.S. Rep. Aaron Schock, aPeoria Republican, who voted for themeasure.

A partial breakdown of the funding:• UPPER MISSISSIPPI RIVER

RESTORATION: $16.4 million. Funding will be used for the construc-tion, design, and evaluation of environ-mental restoration projects along theIllinois and Mississippi Rivers. TheU.S. Army Corps of Engineers also willuse the funding to conduct long-termresource monitoring and a publicinvolvement program.

• ILLINOIS RIVER BASINRESTORATION: $336,000.

Funding will be used to continue thedesign and planning of ecosystemrestoration projects along the IllinoisRiver.

• EMIQUON FLOODPLAINRESTORATION: The funding willbe used to restore the Illinois Riverfloodplain to its natural state within theThompson Drainage and Levee Dis-trict.

• PEORIA RIVERFRONTDEVELOPMENT: $45,000. Goal of the project is to enhanceaquatic habitat in Peoria Lake by dredg-ing approximately 200 acres and con-structing three islands.

• DEMONSTRATION PLANTFOR BIODIESEL FROM LOW-IMPACT CROPS: $500,000. Fundingfor construction of a biodiesel plantusing pennycress as a feedstock. Penny-cress is a winter crop, which would

allow producers to work it into theircrop rotations.

• UPPER MISS RIVER COM-PREHENSIVE PLAN: $269,000. Funding will be used to complete plansfor a comprehensive flood control sys-tem along the Mississippi and IllinoisRivers.

• UPPER MISSISSIPPI RIVER-ILLINOIS WATERWAY SYSTEM:$6.28 million. The funding will be usedto continue pre-construction engineer-ing and design for new locks along theMississippi and Illinois Rivers.

• ILLINOIS COMMUNITYCOLLEGE SUSTAINABILITYNETWORK: $250,000. The IllinoisCommunity College Sustainability Net-work strengthens Illinois communitycolleges’ capacity to promote and pro-vide energy education and sustainablepractices across Illinois.

byville, and Vandalia. Making the connection

between Wal-Mart and agri-culture is a priority forLane, who has done pro-motions at the Illinois StateFair and next year is plan-ning promotions at countyfairs.

This summer, Lane andfive other regional Wal-Mart managers toured sev-eral Central Illinois farms.Illinois Farm Bureau, alongwith Prairie Farms Dairyand the Tazewell CountyFarm Bureau, helpedarrange the tours.

State Fair visitors ques-

tioned Lane about why Wal-Mart is interested in agri-culture. “We have a lot todo with agriculture,” shesaid. “We want local farm-ers to produce for ourstores.”

Lane added she also isinterested in working withfuture farmers. “We want tooffer the opportunity to theFFA,” she said. “We’realways looking for newitems for them to grow. Ithink that’s a missed oppor-tunity to not pull them intoit. They’re the future.”

Lane said she also hasworked with the Illinois

Department of Agricultureand its marketing bureau tofind new growers.

Farmers who supply Wal-Mart may grow for onestore or for many, accord-ing to Lane. A farmer sup-plier must complete anapplication and meet cer-tain standards, she said.

Interested farmers may goonline to {http://walmartstores.com/suppliers/}, talk tothe manager of their local Wal-Mart store, or call 1-800-925-6278.

“There’s a lot of potential,”Lane said. “We want to be outthere on the forefront.”

BY KAY SHIPMANFarmWeek

Linking customers withthe Illinois farmers whogrow their produce will beone benefit of a mid-Octo-ber farmers’ marketplanned at 12 South-Cen-tral Illinois Wal-Martstores.

“Wal-Mart is very com-mitted,” said Doris Lane,marketing grocery managerfor the 12 stores. “I don’tthink farmers get enoughrecognition, and I want to

make sure they get recogni-tion.”

From Oct. 15-17, herarea’s stores will host an“old-fashioned farmers’market with everything outthere produced on Illinoisfarms,” Lane said. The onlyexception may be thebananas offered at a fewlocations, she added.

The stores are located inCarlyle, Centralia, Effing-ham, Fairfield, Flora,Lawrenceville, Olney, Pana,Robinson, Salem, Shel-

Illinois growers focus of Wal-Mart regional farmers’ markets

Illinois avoids first frost;more cool weather expectedBY DANIEL GRANTFarmWeek

The cloud cover that hung over Illinois much of last weekmay have been somewhat dreary, but it apparently also savedthe state from its first widespread frost of the season.

Low temperatures last week in most portions of the statemanaged to remain above 40 degrees despite a frost advisory

that was issued last Wednesday.“We managed to avoid (frost)

this time around, although wegot close at a couple locations”in Northeast Illinois, said MattBarnes, meteorologist with the

National Weather Service officein Lincoln. “The cloud cover helped keep temperatures warmerthan we thought they’d get.”

The fall freeze map updated daily on the Midwest RegionalClimate Center’s website {http://mrcc.isws.illinois.edu} as ofThursday showed no official reports of frost in the state.

Pockets of frost, however, were indicated in Iowa, and Indi-ana and Wisconsin had frost in numerous locations.

Temperatures this week are expected to remain well belowaverage, according to Barnes. But he believes the threat of thefirst frost this season in Illinois for the time being remains low.

Daytime highs in large portions of the state this time ofyear typically reach the lower 70s, but highs this week mayreach only the 50s and 60s, according to Barnes.

“It looks like we’re going to keep this cool fall weather goingthrough (this) week,” he said.

The forecast as of Friday also showed the possibility ofmore rain across the state early this week, creating more har-vest delays.

FarmWeekNow.comCheck out the latest harvestweather outlook by going toFarmWeekNow.com.

PRODUCTION

FarmWeek Page 5 Monday, October 5, 2009

U of I researchers testing natural filter on swine odorBY KAY SHIPMANFarmWeek

Two University of Illinoisresearchers are reducing theodor comingfrom swinebuildings on thecampus farm bysending theexhaust airthrough in-groundbiofilters.

“We know the thing isworking. We think it’s some-thing anybody could build,”Ted Funk, U of I agriculturalengineer, told livestock pro-ducers.

Funk described his projectduring a recent manure man-agement workshop on the Illi-nois State University research

farm near Lex-ington.

Funk andMatt Robert, Uof I researchengineer, are

testing the effectiveness ofone biofilter filled with woodchips and hay and another fil-ter filled with tree bark bio-mass.

Their biofilter is a shallowpit with a bottom layer ofsand covered by a ground

cloth then filled with organicmaterial. Funk and Robertlined the pit sides with con-crete and included a sumppump to remove excess water.

To be effective, the biofil-ter material must be moist,but not wet, and porousenough to allow air move-ment. The filter also needs tobe the right size to retain theexhaust air for about five sec-onds, Funk added. Organisms

in the filter material break-down odor components in theexhaust air.

The cost for a U of I biofil-ter system was $3,836 andtook 62.5 man-hours for con-struction. Funk noted a farmerwouldn’t need a $99.95 watermeter included in the U of Icost.

Farmers could furtherreduce construction costs byusing recycled materials, such

as recycled silo material,Robert added.

Annual operating cost esti-mates range from $5 to $15per 1,000 cubic feet per meterof airflow.

The most effective use ofthe filters, Funk said, would befor producers to send buildingexhaust air through biofiltersduring times when air is stabi-lized — a time when mostcomplaints are registered.

University of Illinois research engineer Matt Robert adds wood chips and other materials to an experimentalair biofilter beside a swine building on the U of I research farm. Ductwork (shown in the inset) links air fromthe building’s exhaust fan to the biofilter and reduces odor from the exhaust air. (Photos by Ted Funk, U of Iagricultural engineer)

FarmWeekNow.comCheck out our photo galleryon in-ground biofilters atFarmWeekNow.com.

Harvest window opens briefly between periods of showersBY DANIEL GRANTFarmWeek

Harvest activity intensified in many parts of Illinois at leastfor a few days early last week before another round of showersrolled into the state on Thursday.

Ross Prough, a farmer from Greenfield in Greene County,reported moisture readings as of Sept. 30 in some cornfields inhis area were down to the upper-teens.

Farmers in some cases were able to shell corn, and early yieldreports were encouraging as some 200-plus-bushel corn was har-vested, according to Prough.

Elsewhere, Roger Reynolds, a farmer from Middletown in LoganCounty, early last week cut his first 60 acres of soybeans of the season.

“I thought the damage from the wet weather would be worse thanit was,” Reynolds said while taking a break from harvest in a field nearElkhart. “I am pleasantly surprised (with bean yields) so far.”

Reynolds as of last week had not found white mold in his soy-beans, but Diplodia ear rot was present in some of his cornfields.

Farmers still have a long way to go this season as just 2 per-cent of the corn crop and 1 percent of soybeans were harvestedas of the first of last week, according to the National Agricultur-al Statistics Service state office.

Harvest in the state already is 26 percent behind the averagepace for corn and 20 percent behind for soybeans.

“The biggest problem is waiting for the corn to get dryenough to harvest,” Prough said. “I’ll be tickled to death if I’mdone by Thanksgiving.”

Jeff Adkisson, executive vice president of the Grain and FeedAssociation of Illinois, said reports around the state indicate it’sa “slow dry-down year” for corn. He said the industry will do itsbest to get all the wet bushels through dryers.

“It’s been a challenge all year,” Adkisson said. “It was a chal-lenge to get (the crop) planted, it will be a challenge to get it out,and it will be a challenge to get it priced at a profitable level.”

Prough and Reynolds both reported that despite recent har-vest activity a large number of green fields existed as the calen-dar flipped to October.

“There still are a number of fields susceptible to frost,”Reynolds added.

Roger Reynolds, a farmer from Middletown, makes some minor adjust-ments to his combine. Reynolds last week cut his first 60 acres of soy-beans of the season before more showers rolled into the state. He be-lieves harvest will last until at least Thanksgiving, as evidenced by theimmature soybean field in the background. (Photo by Daniel Grant)

Bernie Walsh, Durand, Winnebago County: Harvest start-ed in a very small way here inWinnebago County. Three differ-ent farmers I know of were ableto combine some beans onTuesday and Wednesday. Wehad a small field that averaged12.2 percent moisture and yield-ed in the upper 40s. Thursday

the rain came back, and we ended up with1.25 inches by Thursday night. We don’tneed anymore this time of year. Corn is notdrying down very fast. One farmer tried tocombine some early corn but decided towait when the moisture averaged 35 per-cent.

Pete Tekampe, Grayslake, Lake County: We got threequarters of an inch of rain lastweekend and a little more thanan inch Thursday night. Cornand beans are turning, but stillneed time. Some beans in thearea probably will be cut thisweek with some dry weather.Unfortunately, rain is forecast

every other day this week. Not much silagehas been cut. Everyone is waiting for cropsto mature. Hopefully, the weather man iswrong and we will have a sunny week. Bepatient.

Leroy Getz, Savanna, Carroll County: September’s raintotaled 1.35 inches — the driestmonth this year. Oct. 1 brought1.2 inches of rain. No frost yeteven though we’ve had very coolmornings. Only a few acres ofcorn have been combined. Testweight is reported to be low.Insurance adjusters are check-

ing yields on fields that are being choppedfor silage. Soybeans need more time to drydown and very few have been combined.

Ron Frieders, Waterman, DeKalb County: I have not seenany corn being harvested. Thereare still lots of green leaves andvery high moisture. Wednesday,a few people had some beansthat were fit and they started. Ihave not heard how the yieldswere, though. Heavy rainsThursday and more forecast for

most of this week will keep fieldworkstopped.

Larry Hummel, Dixon, Lee County: Harvest in Lee Countyofficially started, although I’veonly seen one corn field andone soybean field harvested.The one yield report that I haveis a 102-day corn averaging 208bushels an acre at 23 percentmoisture. A good yield for thatearly of a variety. After the

recent rain dries up, there should be a lot ofcombines running in soybeans. Most fieldsare right on the edge of being ready. It is alate start this season, and the pressure willbe on to hurry through harvest, but remem-ber to put safety on the top of your prioritylist.

Joe Zumwalt, Warsaw, Hancock County: There has beensome harvest activity in theimmediate area, but for the mostpart Western Illinois is still aweek away from full-swing har-vest. The producers who aregoing are mainly in corn, butthere are a few fields of soy-beans that have been cut. Yields

for both corn and soybeans have been quitegood given the conditions this year. Weeven got a little wheat planted. RainsThursday halted harvest activity, but thatshouldn’t be for long. I expect we will beback in the field by the time you are readingthis.

Ken Reinhardt, Seaton, Mercer County: I had 1 inch ofrain Thursday. Soybean har-vest had gotten going onGroup II soybeans. A few yieldsI heard were in the mid-50sand one in the 60s. It is inter-esting driving around seeingtotally green, later-plantedbeans sometimes next to fields

of fully mature ones. There is quite a con-trast in corn, too, between completelybrown and green. Most who have triedcorn have found 30 percent or more mois-ture unless it was a pretty short-seasoncorn planted early.

Ron Moore, Roseville, Warren County: We received0.5 of an inch of rain lastThursday. We started harveston Monday (Sept. 28). The cornwas testing 25 percent andyielding in the 200-bushelrange. We only had 40 acresthat was that moisture, so wemoved to soybeans before the

rain. They appeared to be in the mid-50s.Much of this crop is still not mature, sothis will be another challenging season.

Tim Green, Wyoming, Stark County: We had some cooldays with highs in the low 60sand some even in the 50s, sowe didn’t get many drying dayslast week. Beans are continu-ing to drop their leaves but stillquite a ways off. Someearly-planted beans havebeen cut and yields have been

all over the board. One person I talked tosaid the field that didn’t have white mold init had pretty good beans and the fieldsthat did have white mold in them werepretty disappointing — he thought proba-bly a 40 percent yield reduction. Corn isstill not drying down. The people whopicked a little stopped and came back fourto six days later to find it had dropped onlyhalf a point or so. Have a safe harvest.

Mark Kerber, Chatsworth, Livingston County: Manyfarmers started harvestingsoybeans before we gotrained out. Early reports onyields are great. The soybeanswe harvested were very largein size. My neighbor triedsome April-planted 104-daycorn, and it was still 30 per-

cent moisture. What will 113-day cornplanted May 22 be like? It’s the first weekin October and much of the corn is notblack layered yet. Markets are up anddown.

Ron Haase, Gilman, Iroquois County: Soybean harvestbegan but was stopped by rainThursday. We received a rangeof 0.45 to 0.6 of an inch on ourfarms. Most soybean fields arein the full maturity growth stage(R8). Some fields have beenharvested while the rest are atR7. From what little I have

heard, farmers have been happy with theearly soybean yields. The majority of corn-fields in the area are still in the dent stage(R5). The milk line in our corn is anywherefrom 50 percent to all the down the kernelor at black layer (R6). Most of our cornwould have the milk line from 50 percentto 80 percent of the way down the kernel.I did hear of some hand samples of corntesting from 21 percent to 24 percentmoisture. The local closing prices for Oct.1: nearby corn, $3.15; nearby soybeans,$9.06.

Brian Schaumburg, Chenoa, McLean County: As I“twitter” away, we are gettingas much done in a week as weoften get done in a day. Mostof the crop is close to beingsafe from a freeze. Lighter testweights, stalk quality, andDiplodia damage are con-cerns. Corn yields are about

where they yield-checked a month ago.Soybeans are a pleasant surprise. Jokesabout spending Christmas at the elevatorare getting less funny. Corn, $3.22;January $3.34; soybeans, $8.98; January,$9.01; wheat, $3.97.

Steve Ayers, Champaign, Champaign County:Combines rolled last week inboth corn and soybeans untilrain began Thursday morning.So far we have had 0.35 of aninch with 1 inch or so predict-ed. More rain expected todayand Tuesday. The big news willbe low temperatures in mid-30s

on Oct. 8–11 that may bring a little frost tothe pumpkin. Area yields from AmyBrammer’s Topflight Grain commentshave beans from 52-69 bushels per acreand corn 185 to 220 dry at 27 percentharvest moisture. Concern remains aboutDiplodia in corn and one farmer reportedthat quality and yield improved as hemoved away from a neighboring cornfield.Think safety!

Wilfred Dittmer, Quincy, Adams County: Hello again fromour little corner of Illinois wherethe moon was absolutely beauti-ful Friday morning. So big! Itmust be the Harvest Moon.Anyway, it is clear after a rainyThursday which put 0.45 of aninch in the gauge and brings thetotal for September to 1.9 inch-

es. Total for the year comes in at 36.75 inch-es since March 1 at our place. Corn harvestis picking up a little in some areas with goodyields reported and most soybeans are stillstanding. Stay safe!

Harry Schirding, Petersburg, Menard County: Harvest gotunder way last week as produc-ers searched for fields that wereready. From the producer to theelevator manager, everyone isnervous about the effects dam-aged kernels will have. Somehave been able to find corn test-ing in the high teens but most is

in the low 20s. It is too early to get a trend, butI think most producers are pleased withyields in both corn and soybeans. Soybeanswill be the priority thus allowing corn to con-tinue to dry down. The slow soybean harvestis impacting wheat seeding, which is just get-ting started. Corn nearby, $3.23, same as lastweek; corn for January, $3.19, up 3 cents;soybeans nearby, $9.03, down 17 cents; soy-beans for January, $9.18, down 2 cents.

Tom Ritter, Blue Mound, Macon County: Rain on Thursdaymorning put a halt to all field-work, but harvest was not quite infull swing. A number of farmershave been trying corn. There aremany who have started andstopped and some who are con-tinuing to go. Only 5 percent ofthe corn that was planted in April

has been running anywhere from 18 percentup to 28 percent. Corn planted early May,which was very little, is running in the upper20s, and the vast majority of the corn is stillwell above 20 percent. Yields, though, havebeen very good, but there also is a fairamount of white mold damage on the ker-nels, which will be tough to control in on-farmstorage as well as at the elevators. No realyield reports on soybeans that have beenharvested, but quality of the soybeans looksexcellent. There will be a fair number of acresready for harvest, probably more acres ofbeans than corn, whenever weather permitshere through the week. Forecast wise, beancutting may be very difficult.

Todd Easton, Charleston, Coles County: The waitinggame lingers on here in ColesCounty as corn and soybeancrops seem to be approachingharvestability very slowly.Farmers quickly ran out of April-planted corn to harvest, if theyeven had any, and still found it tobe above 20 percent moisture

over the last week of September. Abnormallyhigh amounts of damage (10-20 percent)from disease made for an ugly surprise formost producers who had early corn. May-planted corn is far from ready for harvest. Icould not help but try some of my May 11corn and found it to be a very wet 34 percent.The later-May, early-June fields look muchworse. As for the soybeans, ripe fields seemto be few and far between. Farmers are cut-ting them as fast as they become ready.Bean yields so far are in the 50s and 60s —much better than many were thinking theywould be. I will be surprised if the later beanscan sustain these levels. All we can do ishave patience and clear our November cal-endars.

Jimmy Ayers, Rochester, Sangamon County: We had 1inch of rain this past week. Wehad a lot of cold nights and somefog much of the week. The beansare starting to come around realwell. There have been severalfields cut. The earlier varietiesproduced pretty decent yields. Iwouldn’t say fabulous, by any

means, but most of them are better thanexpected. A few people are shelling corn.Some early-planted 110-day variety fieldshad moisture down to 19 percent. Many areshelling it at 22-25 percent, but nobody is hit-ting it very hard, just spots here and there.Some whole fields are gone. Need to becareful because your family and friends needyou.

CROPWATCHERS

FarmWeek Page 6 Monday, October 5, 2009

Ken Taake, Ullin, Pulaski County: After rains onSept. 27, we finally had anopen week last week. Weshelled corn on Monday (Sept.28) and cut beans on Tuesday,Wednesday, and Thursdaybefore showers moved in onThursday afternoon. We hadabout 0.04 of an inch of rain

Thursday afternoon and evening.Hopefully, we’ll be able to be back shellingcorn on Saturday. We’ve been prettypleased with the yields on the corn andbeans we cut last week. Remember to becareful during this busy harvest season.

Bob Biehl, Belleville, St. Clair County: Missed out on therain again, but cool weather per-sists. Forty-one degrees was thecoldest temperature last weekwith a few other days in the 40s.Little activity for the week, just acouple of farmers shelling someearly corn and a few isolatedbean fields being cut. Group III

beans planted in mid- to late March are turn-ing fast now. Hopefully, more to report nextweek.

Rick Corners, Centralia, Jefferson County: We had anice little shower Thursdayevening. We didn’t really needit, but what the hay. Harvest isslowly beginning. A few patchesof beans have been cut, and alittle corn has been shelled.

Kevin Raber, Browns, Wabash County: Another month isgone. It seems like we shouldhave more harvest done for thistime of year. We had a smallshower Thursday, so that mayslow harvest. Corn yields aregood. Some damage in my whitecorn. I have shelled some yellowcorn and it looks OK. There have

been some beans cut, but I haven’t heard anyyields. The ground is a little too wet to sowwheat, but I am anxious to get some sown assoon as the ground will allow it.

David Schaal, St. Peter, Fayette County: We received 0.08 ofan inch of rain on Saturday,Sept. 26 and another shot of raincame through on Thursdayevening. It has been a long timecoming. We have been wanting itto rain for weeks. It is little too latefor most things, but will helplate-crop beans or double-crop

beans that are still green. Not too much harvestis going on in this neck of the woods. A fewguys who planted beans early or in place ofcorn are harvesting some. Yields are 38 to 53bushels per acre, but every producer cuttingearly beans says yields will be down hill fromhere on. Harvest for most, including me, is 10days to two weeks off. Corn planted May 20 isstill testing above 25 percent moisture. We willget combines and heads looked over andmaintained this week and get ready to roll.

Dan Meinhart, Montrose, Jasper County: Spotty showersmoved through the area onSaturday, Sept. 26, and again onThursday, leaving little or no pre-cipitation. The temperatures havebeen very cool, leading to slowmaturation of the crop. Most ofthe corn is still too green to chopfor silage. A very few fields of

beans have been harvested; a few more areturning. The vast majority or beans are stillvery green. Some harvest could take placethis week, weather permitting. More coolweather and a chance of showers are expect-ed, which will not help the crops mature.

CROPWATCHERS

FarmWeek Page 7 Monday, October 5, 2009

Reports received Friday morning.

Numerous diseases showing up in Illinois crop fieldsBY DANIEL GRANTFarmWeek

Many Illinois farmers whohave conducted pre-harvestfield checks or fired up thecombine in recent weeks havediscovered quite a variety ofcrop diseases.

Kevin Black, insect andplant disease technical manag-er for GROWMARK, lastweek told FarmWeek thatoutbreaks of Diplodia ear rotin some areas are the “worstI’ve ever seen.”

“In some cases it’s severeand in some spots it’s theworst I’ve ever seen,” Blacksaid. “But it’s not universal.”

Ross Prough, a farmerfrom Greenfield, reporteddamage from some initialloads of corn in his arearanged from 5 percent to 15

Fortunately, the soybeancrop is far enough along thatrust no longer poses an eco-nomic threat, according toPrough, who is on the IllinoisSoybean Association board ofdirectors.

Elsewhere, a disease inbeans typically more prevalentin the South (Cercospora leafblight) has been found in anumber of Illinois fields.

“We’re trying to determinehow it will affect yields,”Black said of the disease thatgives beans a yellow-orangetint. “There are many otherthings out there because ofthe (cool, wet) weather we hadthis year.”

In some cases, leaf blightmay occur late enough that ithas no impact on yields, Blackadded.

percent. The dock at an eleva-tor for the most severely dam-aged load of corn ranged from$1.25 to $1.50 per bushel.

“You take that off $3.50corn and it really hurts,”Prough said.

Roger Reynolds, a farmerfrom Middletown, recentlyscouted some of his corn-fields and said of Diplodia,“it’s in there. No questionabout it.”

So far the Diplodia out-break seems to be most severein earlier-planted varieties. JeffAdkisson, executive vice presi-dent of the Grain and FeedAssociation of Illinois, saidthat fits a typical pattern.

“A lot of times we’ll seeproblems with the crop at thebeginning stages, but as we getfurther into harvest, it’s not as

big of problem,” Adkissonsaid. “We certainly hope thatis the case this year.”

Farmers who have con-firmed the presence of Diplo-dia ear rot should attempt toharvest those fields first anddry the corn down as quicklyas possible, Black noted. Healso suggested farmersincrease the air output oftheir combines when harvest-ing moldy corn.

Meanwhile, Black recentlyalso found soybean rust in afield in Pulaski County indeep Southern Illinois. Thefinding as of press time hadnot been confirmed byUSDA, but as soon as it is, itwill be posted at the website{www.sbrusa.net}. Soy rustwas confirmed recently in afield in Posey County, Indiana.

BY KEVIN BLACKGrain bin preparation ahead of harvest

Stored grain insect pests are active as long as thegrain temperature is above 50 degreesFahrenheit, and insect activity increas-es as temperatures increase.

The best time to deal with storedgrain pests is before they infest thegrain. With warm-weather harvest ofwheat or other grains, this is some-times impossible because the grain isinfested in the field. Still, advancepreparation is always better than tryingto correct a problem after it develops.

Strategies for managing stored grain include some basic, com-mon sense practices:Sanitation:

• NEVER put new grain on top of old.• Thoroughly clean inside the bin and consider an

empty-bin insecticide treatment.

• Clean up spilled grain around bins, mow weeds,apply an insecticide perimeter treatment.

• Clean out augers and other grain-handling equip-ment.Harvest:

• Eliminate crop debris during harvest or clean thegrain as it goes into the bin.

• Avoid binning moldy or chaffy grain.• Set the combine for minimal damage to grain.

Protection: • Spray approved insecticides inside the empty bin,

including under the drying floor.• Spray around the outside of bins to prevent infesta-

tion from these areas.• Apply protectant insecticide to grain that will be

stored more than a few months.• Consider treatment of at least the first and last few

loads to create top and bottom barriers.• Use “no pest” strips in bin head spaces to prevent

insect entry at the top of the grain.

Remediation:• Check grain often for signs of insect activity. Use a

grain probe and check the surface. Draw grain off thebottom for examination. Place traps to help monitorinsects.

• Fumigate as infestations develop.• Re-apply topside insecticide barriers any time this

layer is disturbed.• Market infested grain early, as contracts allow,

before serious damage develops.The important thing is to recognize the need to

spend time cleaning and getting ready for harvest.Grain in the bin is like money in the bank. Stor-age molds and grain insects are like tiny robbers.It’s been said that “grain never improves in stor-age.”

We have one chance to get this right — or pay later.

Kevin Black is GROWMARK’s insect and plant diseasetechnical manager. His e-mail address is kblack@growmark.com

Kevin Black

Kevin Black, insect and plant diseasetechnical manager for GROW-MARK, inspects corn infected withDiplodia ear rot. The samples werecollected last week in Central Illinois.(Photo by Daniel Grant)

EXPORTS

FarmWeek Page 8 Monday, October 5, 2009

Drought shrinks Chinese corn crop: U.S. exports could growBY DANIEL GRANTFarmWeek

U.S. corn exporters in thecoming year may see increasedmarketing opportunities inAsia as China likely will not bea major player in that market,based on recent yield and pro-duction forecasts for thatcountry.

The U.S. Grains Council(USGC), which last weekcompleted its annual Chinacorn tour, projected Chinesecorn production this yearcould shrink by 9.7 percentcompared to last year.

Corn production in Chinathis year was projected byUSGC to total 5.58 billionbushels compared to China’sNational Grain and Oils

caused corn prices to spike ashigh as $6.95 per bushel inSouth China — where there isstrong feed demand — whileprices in production areas ofnortheast China have reached$5.58 per bushel.

“The prices we see today(in China) are too expensive tocompete with the U.S.,” Sif-ferath said last week. “South

Korea traditionally is a bigcorn market (for China) butwe’re seeing South Korea buymuch more corn from theU.S.”

Meanwhile, USGC project-ed U.S. exports of ethanol by-product distillers dried grainsto China could jump from8,000 tons last year to as muchas 350,000 tons this year.

Information Center(CNGOIC) production esti-mate last year of 6.53 billionbushels.

“Drought and drynessaffected the crop. It definitelyis not as good as last year(when China harvested arecord-large crop),” Cary Sif-ferath, USGC senior directorin China, told FarmWeek.

The drought in China hasbeen ongoing since July, it dis-rupted corn pollination, and itwas particularly severe in someof China’s major corn-produc-ing regions such as the westernparts of Jilin and Liaoningprovinces and eastern portionsof the Inner Mongoliaprovince, according to Sifferath.

“In some areas (corn pro-

duction) is down as much as30 to 50 percent,” he said.

USGC projected China’snational corn yield this yearwill average 79 bushels peracre compared to theCNGOIC estimate last year of88.5 bushels per acre.

Chinese yields typically aremuch less than those in theU.S. due to lower plant popula-tions (about 90 percent of thecrop is harvested by hand) andless productive hybrids, Sif-ferath noted.

China is not expected tobecome an importer of corn,at least through the end of theyear, as the government lastyear established a strategicreserve of 1.4 billion bushels.

However, the situation has

Drivers can list emergency contacts via licenses

Illinois drivers may haveemergency contact informa-tion linked to their driver’slicenses in case of a crash orsome other emergency. The

new service became availablein August.

Illinois residents may list upto two family members orfriends, their addresses, andtelephone numbers anywherein the United States. Secretaryof State Jesse White said hisoffice pursued the legislationto ensure a family member orfriend is notified if someone isinjured and incapacitated.

To enter information, goonline to{www.cyberdriveillinois.com}.Individuals who don’t haveaccess to a computer areencouraged to use a computerat their local library.

Any state resident who hasa driver’s license, instructionpermit, or identification cardqualifies for the program. Res-idents may list anyone in theUnited States as an emergencycontact.

Only law enforcement offi-cers will be able to access theemergency contact informa-tion once it has been enteredinto the system. Informationabout the new program isavailable at public libraries andlaw enforcement agencies.

Auction Calendar

Sat., Oct. 10. 9 a.m. Land Auction.Robert Seed, CHAUNCEY, IL. Parrott

Real Estate & Auction Co.Sat., Oct. 10. 9 a.m. Real estate andpersonal property. U Ralph GallowayTrust, SESSER, IL. Jamie Scherrer

Auction Co.Sat., Oct. 10. 9 a.m. Real Estate and

machinery. Harold and ShirleneThoman, RAMSEY, IL. Langham

Auctioneers.Mon., Oct. 12. 9 a.m. Farm machin-ery. Howard E. Foster Trust, ELM-

WOOD, IL. Col. Gail Cowser and Col.John H. Bliss, Auctioneers.

Mon., Oct. 12. 7 p.m. Land. VanKalker Family, L.P. Gordyville Auction

Arena, GIFFORD, IL. GordonHannagan Auction Co.

Sat., Oct. 17. 10 a.m. Tools, cars andcollectibles. Marianne Schwahn, PON-TIAC, IL. Immke and Bradleys’ Auction

Service.Fri., Oct. 23. 10 a.m. Estate land

auction. Ruth B. Hamm Trust, HUD-SON, IL. Haycraft Auction Co.

Sat., Oct. 31. 9:30 a.m.Consignment Auction. N.I.T.E.Equipment, PECATONICA, IL.

Sat., Nov. 14. 8 a.m. Machinery con-signment auction. Route 9 Auction

Co., CANTON, IL.Sat., Nov. 21. 10 a.m. Real Estate.

Charles Lukas Trust/Mary Lukas Trust,COLLINSVILLE, IL. Ahrens and

Niemeier, Auctioneers.

FROM THE COUNTIES

FarmWeek Page 9 Monday, October 5, 2009

ACTION TEAM PROJECT

Above: Audrey Sirles, 13, atleft, Alex Remsey, 8, and his sis-ter, Abby, 5, munch apples atRendelman Orchards, Alto Pass.The sign in the foreground, pro-viding information about Illinois’specialty crop industry, wasdeveloped by the Illinois FarmBureau Education Action Team.Betty Sirles, an orchard co-owner, called the informationalcampaign “a great program,”adding that many customershave noticed it.

Right: Karen Hand, vintner withBlue Sky Vineyard, Makanda,shows another of the ActionTeam’s informational signs.Signs were posted at SouthernIllinois wineries and orchardsthis summer. Future plans includeposting the signs at locations inNorthern and Central Illinois.(Photos by Ken Kashian)

LEE — Lee County platbooks are available at

the Farm Bureau office. Costis $30. Call the Farm Bureauoffice at 857-3531 or visit thewebsite {leecfb@comcast.net}for more information.

• Custom candle orders aredue Friday, Oct. 16, to theFarm Bureau office. Paymentis due with the order. Deliverywill be Friday, Nov. 20, to theFarm Bureau office. Call theFarm Bureau office at 857-3531 or visit the website{leecfb@comcast.net} formore information.

Want to stand out

You can, with ALOT!

More than 950 men and women have graduated from this dynamic program. This year’s sessions will be held at Best Western Timber Creek Convention Center and DeKalb County Farm Bureau. Classes begin January 21.

Harvest Your Success. Enroll in ALOT today! Applications must be submitted to your County Farm Bureau by November 16. Applications are available at www.ilfb.org.

T052C9

STARK — The PrimeTimers annual Antique

Road Show will be at 9 a.m. Fri-day, Oct. 23, at the Farm Bureauoffice. Bring one or two itemswhich Jim Folger, Folger Auc-tion Services, will appraise. Alight breakfast will be served.Call the Farm Bureau office at286-7481 for reservations ormore information.

“From the counties” items aresubmitted by county Farm Bureaumanagers. If you have an event oractivity open to all members, contactyour county manager.

Knox County Young Farmers donateGPS units to emergency personnelBY KRISTI LANGE

The Knox County Young Farmers recently made a contribu-tion to the county’s emergency services providers that will bene-fit the entire community and especially those who live in ruralareas.

Through a grant the Young Farmers received from the Gales-burg Community Foundation and a donation from YoungFarmer Justin Moffitt of Gilson, the group was able to donate$5,500 worth of global position system (GPS) navigational units(40 in all) to 32 emergency providers in the area.

The money was a result of a $4,000 grant from the founda-tion and $1,500 that Moffitt received for being named ProctorHospital’s Outstanding Young Farmer and then donated to thecommittee.

Fire trucks, rescue squads, and law enforcement vehiclesthroughout the area will now be equipped with the latest GPStechnology to help them respond even more rapidly in emer-gency situations.

A number of the GPS recipients said the technology will aidthem in finding locations, particularly those in rural areas, thatthey may otherwise have had difficulty locating.

The Young Farmers’ donation permitted the emergencyresponders to move closer to their requested goal of receiving127 GPS units.

Kristi Lange is manager of Knox County Farm Bureau. She can bereached at 309-342-2036.

Illinois, the nation’s No. 1 pumpkin produc-ing and processing state, increased pumpkinacreage in recent years, according to the IllinoisDepartment of Agriculture (IDOA).

Annually, Illinois farmers harvest 13,679acres of pumpkins on 502 farms, according tothe most recent Census of Agriculture in 2007.That compared to 12,296 acres and 475 farmsin 2002.

Illinois also leads the nation in pumpkin pro-cessing, which is done primarily at Libby’s inMorton and Seneca Foods in Princeville. Of thestate’s 13,679 acres of pumpkins, 9,749 ofthose acres are harvested for processing.

Last year, Illinois pumpkins had a “field val-

ue” of more than $22 million dollars. Some Illi-nois pumpkins are sold locally, while many aresold to such national retailers as Wal-Mart.

“Our specialty crop producers are workinghard to meet the increasing demand for Illinois-grown produce,” said Illinois Agriculture Direc-tor Tom Jennings.

IDOA is promoting the specialty crop indus-try at an Illinois Products Farmers’ Market onthe Illinois State Fairgrounds.

Through Oct. 22, the market will be held from4 to 7 p.m. each Thursday in the CommoditiesPavilion. A pumpkin-carving contest will mark thefinal market of the season. For more information,call Kristi Jones at 217-725-4873.

$22 million cropIllinois tops in pumpkin production

PROFITABILITY

FarmWeek Page 10 Monday, October 5, 2009

Feeder pig prices reported to USDA*

Weight Range Per Head Weighted Ave. Price10 lbs. $20.00-$32.04 $29.1140 lbs. n/a n/a50 lbs. n/a n/aReceipts This Week Last Week

12,031 22,946*Eastern Corn Belt prices picked up at seller’s farm

MARKET FACTS

Confirmed lamb and sheep salesThis week 544 Last week 873 Last year 939Wooled Slaughter Lambs: Choice and Prime 2-3: 90-110 lbs, $98. Good andChoice 1-2: 60-90 lbs., $109. Slaughter Ewes: Utility and Good 1-3: $28-$30. Culland Utility 1-2: $28.

Lamb prices

Eastern Corn Belt direct hogs (plant delivered)(Prices $ per hundredweight)

This week Prev. week ChangeCarcass $45.44 $47.54 -2.10Live $33.63 $35.18 -1.55

Export inspections

(Million bushels)Week ending Soybeans Wheat Corn09-24-09 7.4 24.0 29.609-17-09 0.7 25.5 40.9Last year 8.4 23.9 41.8Season total 26.0 272.5 139.3Previous season total 20.9 427.0 129.5USDA projected total 1280 950 2200Crop marketing year began June 1 for wheat and Sept. 1 for corn and soybeans.

(Thursday’s price)This week Prv. week Change

Steers 82.78 84.37 -1.59Heifers 82.87 84.38 -1.51

USDA five-state area slaughter cattle price

This is a composite price of feeder cattle transactions in 27 states.(Prices $ per hundredweight)

This week Prev. week Change95.36 96.87 -1.51

CME feeder cattle index — 600-800 Lbs.

Nutrient outlook: Lots of needs, but lots of nervousnessBY JOE DILLIER

Economics is the study ofhow limited resources are allo-cated against unlimited wantsand needs for those resources.

The limit-ed resourcesin questioncould betime, money,electricity,gasoline,corn, beef,computers, orwhatever.

Price, ofcourse, is what does the allo-cating of resources, matchingsupply with demand. Some-times it does a better job ofmatching these than at other

times. (And sometimes gov-ernment regulations and non-market factors limit its abilityto adjust and be effective.)Housing prices are having atough time finding muchdemand in my neighborhood.

This brings us to the great,global market for fertilizercommodities, the supply ofwhich is being shipped everyday from places such as theMiddle East, the Baltic Sea,western Canada, Florida, orthe Caribbean, to meetdemand which ultimately willmaterialize in places such asIllinois, Indiana, and Iowa —or India, Australia, or Indone-sia.

Similar to housing, but for a

different reason, price current-ly is struggling to work its“equilibrating” magic in fertil-izer markets. The reason isrisk.

There is simply overwhelm-ing caution on the part of fer-tilizer dealers, distributors, andmanufactures to hold invento-ry after having been torched inlast year’s great fertilizer pricemeltdown. And it’s a globalphenomenon.

Seems everybody, under-standably, is skittish aboutbeing wrong (read: “long”)this year.

The U.S. seems very shortof urea fertilizers and willneed to import large quantitieswell prior to spring to meet

expected demand. Ditto forUAN solutions.

But to date we are moreexporters than importers. Fallphosphate inventories held bymanufactures are the lowestseen in several years.

Ammonia supply for falland the potash supply look tobe in relatively good shape,although recent plant outages— should they persist —could tighten up the ammoniasituation if demand is largethis fall. And after two verywet, very delayed springs, it’shard to estimate how high falldemand will be.

Uncertainties always haveplayed a big role in fertilizermarkets. Now, however, each

uncertainty is a reason formore caution.

This caution, at some point,could limit availabilities oflocal supply, and we may be atthat point for fall phosphatenow.

Don’t panic, but be awareof what’s going on and keeplots of discussion going withyour local FS retailer. Andon phosphate specifically, itlooks like a good idea fromboth a price and supplystandpoint to lock in themajority of your fall needsnow.

Joe Dillier is GROWMARK’sdirector of plant food. His e-mailaddress is jdillier@growmark.com.

Joe Dillier

High input costs still a major concern for farmersPrices for many energy-

related products, ranging fromnatural gas and diesel fuel tofertilizer, have softened sincereaching historic highs in thepast year.

But the concern farmers haveabout high input costs has notpassed as they prepare to harvestwhat likely will be the mostexpensive corn and soybeancrops ever produced in the state.

Central Illinois farmerssince 2002 have absorbed a 35percent increase in fuel and oilprices, a 65 percent increase inland prices, a 68 percentincrease in pesticide costs, a360 percent boost in seedprices, and as much as a 300 to

400 percent increase in fertiliz-er costs, according to IllinoisFarm Bureau.

The rapid rise of input costshas had a detrimental effect onfarmers’ balance sheets, accord-ing to the IFB ProfitabilityAdvisory Team (PAT). Andmany producers this year maysee their bottom line shift fromblack to red ink.

The University of Illinoisrecently projected crop returnsin Illinois this year will averageminus-$8 per acre for corn andminus-$15 per acre for soy-beans despite the fact the aver-age prices were estimated at$3.25 per bushel for corn and$9.40 per bushel for beans.

Those crop prices are highfrom a historical perspectivebut when compared to inputcosts in recent years, they nolonger produce even abreakeven year.

Meanwhile, losses in thelivestock industry have beeneven more severe and sus-tained for a longer period oftime, due in large part to high-er input costs.

Philip Nelson, IFB presi-dent and a grain and hogfarmer from Seneca, reportedhe currently loses about$6,000 on every load of hogsshipped from his family farm.

“Farmers will face difficultdecisions in the months aheadas we try to operate in an envi-ronment where the cost to putnext year’s crop in the groundexceeds what we are projectedto receive when we sell whatwe produced,” Nelson said.

Kent Schleich, PAT chair-man and a farmer from FultonCounty, has felt the pinch ofhigher input costs and lament-ed the idea that some inputmanufacturers have added tothe decline of farmer profits.

“Major seed companies, forexample, often price theirproducts based on the poten-tial for yield increases attribut-able to genetic traits,” Schleichsaid. “In the real world, farm-ers assume 100 percent of the

risk for weather, disease, andother perils affecting yield.”

PAT in recent months metwith representatives of theseed, fertilizer, and chemical

industries with the goal ofunderstanding supply anddemand issues and to chal-lenge input manufacturersabout the perceived “imbal-ance in profit margins betweenthe producer and agribusi-ness,” according to IFB.

Farmers can learn moreabout the situation during the2009 Illinois Farm EconomicsSummit meetings that will beheld Dec. 14 in Champaign (IHotel); Dec. 15 in Bloomington(Interstate Center); Dec. 16 inGalesburg (Best Western PrairieInn); Dec. 17 in Rochelle (Hick-ory Grove); and Dec. 18 in Mt.Vernon (Holiday Inn).

More information about themeetings is available online at{www.farmdoc.uiuc.edu}.

Milk price posts a strong gainThe Class III price for milk adjusted to 3.5 percent butterfat

for the month of September was $12.11 per hundredweight.This is a 91-cent increase from the previous month, and consec-utive-month increases totaled more than $2.

School children returning after their summer break, plus ageneral optimism that the economy is slowly showing signs ofrecovery, has helped milk prices.

Prices are near break-even levels, and producers are hopingthey continue to move in the right direction.

PROFITABILITY

FarmWeek Page 11 Monday, October 5, 2009

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CASH STRATEGISTCorn Strategy

�2008 crop: We’re stillinclined to hold inventoriesuntil after harvest, or use amarketing strategy that wouldkeep pricing open until laterthis year.

�2009 crop: We areinclined to think we’vereached a seasonal low. How-ever, upside momentum isgoing to be hard to achievewith the threat of frost dimin-ishing and harvest quicklyapproaching. Use rallies to$3.40 on December to get atleast half of the bushelspriced you need to move atharvest. We don’t plan addi-tional sales until later this year.

�Fundamentals: Funda-mentals are not changingmuch. The trade is mostlywaiting on the October cropreport. Weekly exports salescontinue to be very good withlast week’s 1,223,500 metricton (46.8 million bushel) salesagain coming in above expec-tations. The trade will contin-ue to keep an eye on weatherwith rains slowing early har-vest activity.Soybean Strategy

�2008 crop: The soybeanmarket continues to act like it’sputting in its “harvest” low. Ifyou still have old-crop inven-tory, we think there will bebetter prices to wrap up salesthan those offered today.

�2009 crop: The marketwill continue to build a baseto rally from over the nextnumber of weeks. Nearbyfutures continue to hold keysupport at $8.81-$9. If youneed to price soybeans forharvest delivery, use rallies onNovember futures to $9.45.But if you can store soybeans,plan to hold them at least intowinter.

�Fundamentals: Theforced liquidation of someinvestment money from com-modities is helping keep soy-beans on the defensive. “Big”yield talk is the key fundamen-tal keeping a lid on prices.Still, we believe the nextUSDA report has a betterchance of reducing produc-tion than increasing it. Weath-er is slowing the harvest paceenough to keep new-crop

supplies from weighing onprices, too.Wheat Strategy

�2009 crop: Wheat tracedout a fresh contract low withprices still struggling withlarge international supplies.We have a short-term upsidetarget at $4.60 on the Decem-ber contract, the current 20-day moving average. The mar-ket needs to close and holdabove this resistance for con-secutive days to signal a possi-ble bottom. Still, we adviseholding off sales, expectingbetter pricing opportunities

later this fall or winter. Evenbefore advising catch-up sales,we’d wait to see if ChicagoDecember futures can attemptto rally back above $5.

�Fundamentals: Thenotion of abundant suppliesagain was confirmed in theSeptember USDA numbers.USDA increased 2009 wheatproduction by 36 millionbushels due to a larger thanexpected spring wheat crop.This increased the total wheatoutput to 2.22 billion bushelsvs. the previous forecast of2.184 billion.

Once new supplies start tocome into the pipeline in rea-sonably good quantity, the offtake is going to be largeenough to easily absorb sup-plies entering the pipeline. Thelarge new-crop soybean exportsales have been well discussed,but the size of product salesand the need for an aggressivecrush pace have not.

Soybean meal and oilexport sales are equally asrobust as those for soybeans.While the sales don’t guaran-tee an aggressive shippingschedule, the short-term worldfundamental structure indi-cates that product shipmentsshould be very good as well.

A strong export pace forproduct exports indicates thepace of soybean crush shouldbe very good as well. Given thecomfortable stocks of soybeanoil, the industry will continue tocrush soybeans for meal.

Basis charts

Other than when soybeanprices surged at the end ofJuly because of huge Chinesesoybean purchases, the new-crop crush margin has beenvery good. Even in that shortwindow, the November soy-bean/December productcrush margin didn’t dropbelow 60 cents per bushel. Atthis writing it’s at 79 cents.Since spring, it mostly hasbeen above 70 cents a bushel.

Even applying reasonablyconservative basis levels forsoybeans and products againstthe futures crush margin,processors should still makegood money crushing soy-beans for the next few months.

If export and crush demandmatch the pace of 2003/2004over the next six months, themonthly demand for the twoprimary uses could reach a sus-tained 350 million bushels.

The question that’s going todog the industry is whether theinfrastructure has the ability tomove those quantities whileshipping other goods. Thesluggish pace of wheat ship-ping offers some room, butthat may be offset by largercorn exports.

The other feature that couldbe impacted by this potentialdemand is the basis for soy-beans, and possibly meal. Thelower soybean and meal pricesslip, and the longer theyremain at relatively low levels,the stronger the cash pricesand basis levels should be.

This could be especiallytrue for soybean basis levelswith farmers only meteringout sales as they need money,unless prices at least movemoderately higher after har-vest.

Cents per bu.

Soybean demand will be robust

PERSPECTIVES

FarmWeek Page 12 Monday, October 5, 2009

Offers another takeon Block commentsEditor:

I am a Warren Countyretired farmer/landowner.

In defense of former Agri-culture Secretary John Block, Iwould like to give “my take”on what he was saying in theAug. 31, 2009, issue ofFarmWeek.

Eldon McKie, in responseto former Agriculture Secre-tary Block in his Letter to theEditor on Sept. 14, 2009, stat-ed that “constructive analysisof government spending isalways appropriate. But Secre-tary Block’s article doesn’t dothat. It simply quotes thecliché “spend, spend, spend.”

Mr. McKie went on to enu-merate benefits of past gov-ernment spending (i.e. RuralElectrification, Farm CreditSystem, infrastructureimprovements, etc.).

I felt Secretary Block wasnot addressing the past but thepresent financial situation inthis country. And that theagriculture/rural segment ofthis nation has “had its fiscalhouse more in order” and hasnot been much of a contribut-ing factor in this country’s cur-rent financial dilemma.

I hear him saying:• Government cannot be all

things to all people.• That Congress cannot

“spend, spend, spend” as asolution to our fiscal debacle.

• That this nation cannotlive beyond its means withoutjeopardizing its financial stabil-ity.

To me, one could take themost prominent businessmenin any agriculture communityin this nation and they couldmake more sound fiscal poli-cies/decisions than most ofthose currently serving in thisadministration/Congress.

We’re losing the way of lifewe’ve had, as well as our pre-sent liberties. And Americansdon’t like it!

I understand what SecretaryBlock is trying to say.

There is no one in my circleof agriculture friends whowould disagree with him inwanting less government andmore individual entrepreneur-ship which has made thiscountry great.

Yes, Mr. McKie is right,“constructive analysis of gov-ernment spending is alwaysappropriate!”TED TINKHAM,Cameron

Is the recession over?

ECONOMIC REPORT CARD

Is the recession over? FederalReserve Chair Ben Bernanke saysthat it very likely is.

And I can almost hear the complaints: “Sure,Bernanke has a job! What about the 15 millionpeople who were unemployed in August? Betthey don’t think the recession is over!”

What Chairman Bernanke — and most econ-omists — means when he says thata recession is over, is that the econ-omy has stopped declining.

A recession is when the produc-tion of goods and services isfalling, when the number of jobs isdecreasing, and when retail sales areless than they were before.

The recession is over when pro-duction, jobs, and sales start risingagain. But that means the last day

of recession is the worst day of all.What most people probably mean by reces-

sion is a less-than-satisfactory level of economicactivity. We could have an unemployment rate of5 percent, but instead it’s 9.7 percent.

Economists recognize this as a problem, too.It’s an economy operating at less than capacitywith unemployed resources. We could producemore, but we’re not.

Bernanke agrees that even with the recessionover, unemployment will stay up, and the econo-my will feel weak for some time to come.

For economists, the end of a recession does-n’t mean that everything is all right. It just meansthat things aren’t getting worse anymore.

The National Bureau of Economic Research(NBER) in Cambridge, Mass., is the quasi-offi-cial umpire of recessions and expansions. It‘sthe one who marked December 2007 as thebeginning of this recession. That month markedthe peak of economic activity. It’s been downhillsince then.

The NBER made that call in December 2008,which let the news media to have fun writing,“This just in, recession began a year ago.” TheNBER wants to be absolutely sure of dates, so ittakes its time.

How do we know if a recession is over? TheNBER’s economists look at four indicators: totalpayroll employment, personal income less trans-fer payments adjusted for inflation, manufactur-ing and trade sales adjusted for inflation, and theFederal Reserve’s industrial production index.All of these indicators started dropping between

October 2007 and January 2008.Total payroll employment peaked in Decem-

ber 2007. Since then, almost seven million jobshave disappeared, and, as of August, payrollemployment had not stopped falling. The onlygood news — and this is a stretch — is that therate of decrease is decreasing.

From November to April, employers cutalmost 650,000 jobs a month, on average. Sincethen, they’ve cut “only” 315,000 a month.

Personal income adds up what people earn.Part of income is transfer payments, such asSocial Security, unemployment insurance, andwelfare. Transfer payments tend to rise in reces-sions, so when they are subtracted from person-al income, what’s left is a better measure of eco-nomic activity. They take out the influence ofinflation for good measure.

Personal income increased in July andAugust, after falling in 18 of the previous 21months. This indicator may have turned thecorner.

Inflation-adjusted manufacturing, wholesale,and retail trade sales also appear to have stoppedfalling. May marked the low point for sales, sofar. They grew in June, July, and August. Theindustrial production index hit a low point inJune and then increased in July and August.

So, of the four indicators that the NBER usesto mark recessions and expansions, one contin-ues to decline; two “troughed” in June and haveincreased in the two months since then; and onehit its low point in May and has increased forthree months since then.

Is that enough to declare the recession over?Not according to the NBER, of course. Thosecareful observers probably will wait until themiddle of next year to make their call.

Conveniently, these four indicators make upthe “Index of Coincident Indicators”announced each month by the ConferenceBoard. That index is up (a little) since June.

My guess is the NBER will end up markingthe end of the recession sometime from May toAugust 2009.

The recession probably is over. But, remem-ber, that doesn’t mean that everything will soonbe OK. The first day of recovery feels a lot likethe last day of recession.

Larry DeBoer is an agricultural economics professor atPurdue University, West Lafayette, Ind. His e-mailaddress is ldeboer@purdue.edu.

LARRYDEBOER

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Look who has a milk mustache now.