fertilizer costs likely to drop - grand forks...
TRANSCRIPT
Extension News.org
URBANA, Ill. – Ex-pected lower fertilizerprices in 2009 may lead toan increase in corn prof-itability relative to soy-bean profitability, said aUniversity of Illinois Ex-tension farm financialmanagement specialist.
“Difficulties within thefinancial sector becameapparent last fall. The fi-nancial meltdown, alongwith public perceptions ofeconomic problems, hasled to concerns that adeep, world-wide reces-sion is occurring,” saidGary Schnitkey. “As a re-sult, prices of many com-modities have declineddramatically in the belief
that demands for thosecommodities are being re-duced.
“Among those commodi-ties seeing declines arewholesale fertilizerprices.”
Schnitkey’s report, “Fer-tilizer Prices Likely to De-cline in 2009,” can befound online(http://www.farmdoc.uiuc.edu/manage/newsletters/fefo09_02/fefo09_02.html) on Uof I Extension’s farmdocWeb site.
“As of yet, prices farm-ers pay for fertilizers havenot decreased as much asdeclines in wholesaleprices,” Schnitkey said. “Infact, retail prices have notdeclined much at all in
many areas of Illinois. “Non-declining prices
are attributed to large un-sold fertilizer inventoriesheld by many retailers.”
Retailers will losemoney on those invento-ries if they follow whole-sale prices down, he noted.
“While retailers will suf-fer financial losses, thereare incentives for farmersto delay purchasing fertil-izers, waiting for fertilizerprices to decline,” he said.“Waiting to purchase fertil-izer poses some risks tofarmers.”
Among these, he said, isthe possibility supplies be-come limited if supplierscurtail production. Geopo-litical events may also im-
pact prices. “The point is not that
these or other events willoccur, but that there re-main risks for higher fertil-izer prices,” he said.
“As farmers make plant-ing decisions, up-to-datefertilizer prices should beused in calculating rela-tive profitability.”
Ag Day.orgBelow are some interest-
ing facts about agriculturetoday. These points justscratch the surface of theadvancements being madein agriculture on a dailybasis. All Americans areasked to enjoy and admirethe wonders of Americanagriculture as NationalAgriculture Day is cele-brated on March 20.
General statistics:■ Today’s average farm
is 441 acres compared to147 acres in 1900.■ Today’s farmer feeds
about 144 people in theUnited States and abroad.In 1960 that number was46.■ 41 percent of U.S. total
land area is farmland.■U.S. Farmers account
for 46 percent of theworld’s soybean produc-tion, 41 percent of theworld’s corn production,20.5 percent of the world’scotton production and 13percent of the world’swheat production.■Almost 99 percent of
U.S. farms are operated byindividuals or family cor-porations.■Nearly 22 million peo-
ple are employed in farmor farm-related jobs.■U.S. consumers spend
roughly 10 percent of theirincome on food comparedwith 22 percent in theUnited Kingdom, 26 per-cent in Japan, 28 percentin South Africa and 51 per-cent in India.■ Farmers and ranchers
provide food and habitatfor 75 percent of the na-tion’s wildlife.
Productionimprovements:■ Farmers and ranchers
are producing meat lowerin fat and cholesterol. Thishas resulted in retail cutsthat are 15 percent leaner,giving consumers bettervalue for their dollar. Forexample, a pork tenderloinnow has only one moregram of fat than a skinlesschicken breast, one of thetrue fat “lightweights.”Also, much leaner beefcuts are being producedthan 20 years ago, resulting
in 27 percent less fatreaching the retail casethan in 1985.■ Biotechnology has re-
sulted in better tastingfruits and vegetables thatstay fresh longer and arenaturally resistant to in-sects.■ Plant breeding has re-
sulted in crops better ableto handle the environmen-tal affects of drought anddisease and insect infesta-tions resulting in higheryields at harvest and lowercosts to the consumer.
Technology/equipmentadvancements:■As the amount of
mechanization and horse-power in farm machineryhas increased, the timeneeded to complete taskshas decreased. Combines,huge machines used to har-vest grains such as corn,soybeans and wheat, havedramatically changed agri-culture. In the 1930s, be-fore the machines wereavailable, a farmer couldharvest an average of 100bushels of corn by hand ina nine-hour day. Today’scombines can harvest 900bushels of corn per hour –or 100 bushels of corn inunder seven minutes!■ Precision farming
using satellite maps andcomputer models enablesfarmers to use less produc-tion inputs to produce ahigher quality, higheryielding crop.■ Technology products
improve farming effi-ciency, reduce operator fa-tigue and help keep thecost of food down for U.S.consumers.■A growing number of
farmers and ranchers areusing computers and mod-ern technology; 90.7 per-cent use a computer, 87.4percent own a cellulartelephone, 51.3 percentcommunicate by fax, 72.2percent have access to theInternet and 24.5 percentmake online purchasesusing e-commerce.
New uses■ Ethanol accounts for
the largest industrial useof any commodity crop.
■With a record produc-tion of 2.81 billion gallonsof ethanol in 2003, 1 billionbushels of corn and 12 per-cent of the grain sorghumcrop were used to producefuel for our vehicles. In2003, 73, ethanol plantswere in operation in theUnited States, with 14 newplants under construction.■ Biodiesel made from
soybeans is one of many re-newable fuels. Renewablefuels contribute to acleaner environment, re-duce pollution and re-
liance on foreign oil, andcontribute to the stabilityof the rural farm economyby creating commercialmarkets for crops. ■ Soybeans are used in
the five major markets cur-rently dependent on petro-leum products including:plastics, coatings and ink,adhesives, lubricants andsolvents.■ Corn also is used in
place of certain petroleum-based products in indus-trial applications.
Ag Day.org
What Is Ag Day?It’s a day to recognize
and celebrate the abun-dance provided by agricul-ture. Every year,producers, agricultural as-sociations, corporations,universities, governmentagencies and countlessother across America jointogether to recognize thecontributions of agricul-ture.
When Is Ag Day?Ag Day is celebrated on
March 20, 2009 - the firstday of spring. National AgDay falls during NationalAg Week, March 15-21,2009.
Who hosts AgDay?
The Agriculture Councilof America hosts the cam-paign on a national level.However, the awareness ef-forts in communitiesacross America are as in-fluential - if not more -than the broad-scale effort.Again this year, the Ag DayPlanning Guide has beencreated to help communi-ties and organizationsmore effectively host AgDay events.
What is Ag Day allabout?
Ag Day is about recog-nizing - and celebrating -the contribution of agricul-ture in our everyday lives.The National Ag Day pro-gram encourages everyAmerican to: ■Understand how food
and fiber products are pro-duced. ■Value the essential
role of agriculture in main-taining a strong economy. ■Appreciate the role
agriculture plays in pro-viding safe, abundant andaffordable products.
Why CelebrateAgriculture?
Agriculture provides al-most everything we eat,use and wear on a dailybasis. But too few people
truly understand this con-tribution. This is particu-larly the case in ourschools, where studentsmay only be exposed toagriculture if they enrollin related vocational train-ing.
By building awareness,the Agriculture Council ofAmerica is encouragingyoung people to considercareer opportunities inagriculture.
Each American farmerfeeds more than 144 people... a dramatic increase from25 people in the 1960s.Quite simply, Americanagriculture is doing more -and doing it better. As theworld population soars,there is an even greaterdemand for the food andfiber produced in theUnited States.
What can I do tohelp?
Put simply, get involved!Your participation in AgDay is critical in helpingus spread this positivemessage about agriculture.If you are interested inplanning an event, down-load your Planning Guidetoday. Of course, there areother ways you can lendyour support, includingsending a letter to yourlocal newspaper, callingyour Congressional repre-sentatives or simply shar-ing information aboutagriculture with young-sters in your community.
Where can I findmore information?
Contact the AgricultureCouncil of America at (913)491-1895. Or use our onlinecontact form.
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Fertilizer costs likely to drop
Grand Forks Herald/Sunday, March 15, 2009 3
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