Top Headlines

By Jon Scheve, Superior Feed Ingredients, LLC

This past week many funds exited their long grain positions. Some in the market were concerned over a worldwide economic recession and the two-week weather forecast that suggests widespread good growing conditions. 

Basis and spreads

Record basis levels throughout the western Corn Belt suggest farmers are not selling cash corn. That’s why end users are increasing bids because they likely do not have all their July needs covered. The July corn futures spread between September and December also increased, indicating strong demand for the immediate shipment of corn. 

Both factors have likely forced commercial facilities to sell out of all remaining grain ownership, which means any grain still left in the U.S. is likely owned by farmers who have not priced corn stored in the bins. 

Farmer vs. end user

Farmers who still have unpriced grain are telling me they are not selling anything until they know more about weather conditions in mid-July.… Continue reading

The Dean’s Charity Steer Show, an event that benefits Ronald McDonald House Charities (RMHC) of Central Ohio, returns to the Ohio State Fair in 2022 after a two-year hiatus. Hosted by The Ohio State University College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences (CFAES), it will be held from 2–4:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Aug. 2, in the Cooper Arena at the Ohio Expo Center and State Fair.

“This exciting event brings together our community to celebrate agriculture and children, both for our 4-H youth as well as children benefiting from the Ronald McDonald House,” said Cathann A. Kress, Ohio State vice president for agricultural administration and dean of CFAES. “Every dollar we raise means families can stay together only steps away from their hospitalized child during one of the most stressful times of their lives.”

Each year, more than 82,000 nights of rest are provided to families of seriously ill children by the Columbus Ronald McDonald House, the second largest Ronald McDonald House in the world.… Continue reading

By Mark Loux, Ohio State University Extension herbicide specialist

It’s been a tough summer in parts of Ohio to do anything on a timely schedule and there are some weedy fields. The best advice we have for big weeds in full-season soybeans is to increase rates and the complexity of POST herbicide applications, while still adhering to cutoffs for the application of certain herbicides as much as possible. Dicamba products, XtendiMax, Engenia, and Tavium, cannot legally be applied to Xtend and XtendiFlex soybeans after June 30. This cutoff date pertains to use in double-crop soybeans also. 

If you are planning on planting Xtend or XtendiFlex soybeans in double-crop fields and using dicamba as a burndown, apply before Friday. There isn’t a cutoff date for most other POST soybean herbicides — it’s based on either crop stage (eg R1) or days before harvest. 

Double-crop soybeans usually need some type of weed control program, although how weedy they get depends upon weeds surviving down in the wheat that can take off once they receive light; how much rain we get in July, which drives additional weed emergence and rate of soybean growth; and how fast the soybeans grow and develop a canopy.… Continue reading

Matt, Kolt, and Dusty catch up with Jordan Hoewischer of the Ohio Farm Bureau Federation to discuss water quality within Ohio’s bodies of water. Dale chats with Mike Steenhoek, Executive Director of the Soy Transportation Coalition, to discuss the Senate infrastructure bill passage. All this and more thanks to AgriGold!

00:00 Introduction and OCJ/OAN Staff Update

29:13 Mike Steenhoek from Soy Coalition on infrastructure bill

36:49 Closing

… Continue reading

The average cost of a summer cookout for 10 people is $69.68, which breaks down to less than $7 per person. The overall cost for the cookout is up 17% or about $10 from last year, a result of ongoing supply chain disruptions, inflation and the war in Ukraine.

Farmers are feeling the price-point pain too, like the people they grow food for, according to AFBF Chief Economist Roger Cryan.

“Despite higher food prices, the supply chain disruptions and inflation have made farm supplies more expensive; like consumers, farmers are price-takers not price-makers,” Cryan said. “Bottom line, in many cases the higher prices farmers are being paid aren’t covering the increase in their farm expenses. The cost of fuel is up and fertilizer prices have tripled.” 

Cryan also pointed to the cascading effects of the war in Ukraine, as that country’s contributions to global food security are cut off, Russian and Belarusian fertilizer exports are constrained, and some other countries pull back exports to protect their domestic supplies. … Continue reading

Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost recently joined 25 other attorneys general in an amicus brief urging the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn a lower court ruling that allows California to impose its animal-farming regulations on other states.

States are responsible for protecting the health and safety of their residents and for regulating animal farms within their own borders.

“The West Coast can’t seem to understand that this is not the ‘United States of California’ and that farmers in Ohio and other states don’t need to be told how to raise animals,” Yost said. “California imports most, if not all, of its meat, whereas Ohio is known for its agricultural production. It’s best to leave regulation to the experts.”

California’s Proposition 12 bans the confinement “in a cruel manner” of egg-laying chickens, mother pigs and veal calves, and likewise prohibits the sale within California of pork, eggs and veal products from such animals, regardless of the state of origin of the meat.… Continue reading

Driven by dry weather, crop conditions declined slightly from the previous week, according to Cheryl Turner, State Statistician, USDA NASS, Ohio Field Office. Topsoil moisture conditions were rated 4% very short, 35% short, 57% adequate, and 4% surplus.

Statewide, the average temperature for the week ending June 26 was 73.2 degrees, 2.5 degrees above normal. Weather stations recorded an average of 0.16 inches of precipitation, 0.72 inches below average. There were 6.2 days suitable for fieldwork during the week ending on June 26.

Reporters indicated that producers took advantage of the past week’s dry weather to wrap up planting activities. Farmers across the State reported that limited recent precipitation has translated into early signs of crop stress. Livestock were in good condition. Corn was 95% emerged, behind last year but slightly ahead of average. Soybean planting progress was 96% complete, while 85% of seedlings were emerged. Oats were 67% headed, behind last year and average.… Continue reading

Ryan Hiser

We are getting things wrapped up with planting. We managed to get all of the corn in we were planning on planting. We were able to get the corn spotted in that we needed to get done, though it was probably in vain because we got a rain on June 6 that turned the ground to cement. A lot of our beans have spots in them too because of that rain. For the most part, we are alright where we are at, but it wasn’t the best situation this spring. We are still looking at replanting a couple places in the beans. We finished planting beans on June 20 and we replanted up to 2 days ago and we still may still touch up a couple of places. We replanted about 15 acres of corn. One field in particular, we thought about ripping up, but it turned out to be a really nice stand.… Continue reading

By Brian Ravencraft

Some of the most basic terms you will hear while interacting with an accountant may sound confusing to you. Not to worry, I understand. I thought I would use this month’s article to review some of the most commonly used accounting terms. Here it goes:

Accounting — the process of recording, assessing, and communicating financial transactions that helps individuals and organizations understand their financial health. Accountants do this work by keeping track of expenses, profits and losses, making use of this accounting formula: Assets = Liability+Equity. 

Assets — Assets help communicate how much your business is worth and are made up of items your business owns, as shown on your balance sheet. For example, land, buildings, cash in bank accounts are all assets. They are broadly two types of assets: current asset and fixed asset.

Liabilities — A liability is when someone owes someone else money.… Continue reading

By Laura Akgerman, Disability Services Coordinator for Ohio AgrAbility

Everyone wants a garden to be welcoming, beautiful, and safe. If we add accessible to the list, there is a better possibility the garden meets the gardener’s needs no matter their age or ability level. Several key areas can be incorporated into a garden to make it accessible.

Raised beds or containers

If it is difficult to bend or kneel, and reach plants in the ground, consider a raised bed, a container garden, or a wall hanging garden. If you don’t have the option of a raised bed or container garden this year, think about taking a chair or bench into the garden so you can sit instead of kneeling or stooping. When you are done working, you can sit on the bench and enjoy your garden.

If you like the idea of a container garden but don’t want to buy containers, look around your home and garden and see what items can be repurposed to serve as containers.… Continue reading

The Ohio Forestry Association Foundation concluded its annual Camp Canopy and presented graduation awards on June 17, 2022, at Ohio FFA Camp Muskingum. This year, 8 scholarships were awarded to campers with a total of $7,750 by the following entities:  

• Bryce Papp – $1,000, Ohio Forestry Association Foundation 

• Lily McGraw – $1,250, The Ohio State University 

• Aaron Sweitzer – $1,000, The Ohio State University 

• Sam Cox (highest exam score) – $1,000, Hocking College 

• Devin Lanave – $1,000, Hocking College

• Alex Bzdafka – $1,000; Zane State College

• Addison Woerner – $1,000, Zane State College 

• Adam Burse – $500, North East Ohio Forestry Association

Campers learned forestry and wildlife skills like tree identification, wildlife management, silviculture, ecology, and forestry forensics. Exams were administered Friday morning and the highest scores received college scholarships if they wish to pursue a degree in forestry, wildlife, or environmental science.… Continue reading

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) has announced a second round of funding through the Environmental Quality Incentives (EQIP) Cover Crop Initiative. Agricultural producers across the state of Ohio are eligible to apply for financial and technical assistance to plant cover crops. Interested participants must apply by the July 5, 2022 deadline. 

“Cover crops provide producers with a flexible conservation tool to address multiple natural resource concerns including water quality, soil health and carbon sequestration,” said John Wilson, NRCS Ohio State Conservationist. “This initiative supports widespread practice adoption to accelerate those benefits on the landscape.” 

The EQIP Cover Crop Initiative was first announced on Jan. 10, 2022. The program provides an investment of $38 million to 11 states, including Ohio, to help agricultural producers mitigate climate change through the adoption of cover crops. Though initially only available to producers in the Ohio Western Lake Erie Basin, this second round of funding expands program eligibility to all state producers.… Continue reading

By Don “Doc” Sanders

The good old U.S. of A. is blessed with lots of alternative options for energy. However, I believe that these opportunities must be developed slowly and thoughtfully like the steady forward progress of the tortoise, as opposed to the undisciplined pace of the hare, in Aesop’s fable.

Currently, our government is playing its political cards on energy utilization like the speedy, erratic hare, not the methodical tortoise. If you remember Aesop’s tale, you know that the tortoise won the race. And the impulsive hare got waylaid by distractions.

Let’s take a look at what’s being bandied about regarding traditional and alternative energy sources.

Coal is problematic. An estimated 470 years of coal resources are available. While lots of coal is available, true clean-burning coal technology isn’t. The coal industry and coal-fired generating plants are behind the energy power curve with regards to reducing their carbon footprint and environmental impact.… Continue reading

By Dan Armitage, host of Buckeye Sportsman, Ohio’s longest running outdoor radio show

Angler surveys are underway at many of Ohio’s popular public inland waterways and Lake Erie, information from which is crucial to maintaining and improving the quality of Ohio’s public fisheries and angling opportunities.

Eighteen creel clerks are gathering information this summer; six are based on the shore of Lake Erie, two on the Maumee and Sandusky rivers, five on the Ohio River, and five at inland reservoirs. Lake Erie surveys are ongoing until October; surveys at inland reservoirs run until November, and along the Ohio River until the end of the year. Historical surveys reveal that Ohio’s most popular species to target include walleye, yellow perch, largemouth bass, smallmouth bass, trout, saugeye, sunfish, crappie, and catfish.

Division of Wildlife creel clerks collect information directly from anglers to generate estimates of fishing effort, catch rates, and harvest rates.… Continue reading

Voters in rural areas across the country heavily rely on alternative ways to vote, including voting

by mail and in-person early voting, and newly proposed state legislation would restrict their

ability to cast a ballot, according to a new report by the nonpartisan election policy group Secure

Democracy USA. The report, The Forgotten Voters: How Current Threats to Voting Hurt Rural

Americans, found that nearly half of all rural voters in the United States voted by mail or voted

early in-person in the 2020 election.

“Nothing should restrict an American’s ability to make their voice heard and vote, regardless of

where you live or what method you use to cast your ballot,” said Daniel Griffith, Senior Policy

Director at Secure Democracy USA who helped author the report. “Rural voters are often

forgotten in policy debates around election changes, but this report shows that voters in rural

areas are often most at risk when our freedom to vote is restricted.”… Continue reading

The Ohio Poultry Association (OPA) is accepting suggestions for nominations to serve on the 2023-2024 American Egg Board (AEB), which is U.S. egg farmer’s link to consumers in communicating the value of the incredible egg. AEB is seeking an ethnically diverse group of candidates. Appointed members will serve a two-year term.

“Board members serve an important role in assisting AEB’s mission to increase demand for egg and egg products on behalf of U.S. egg farmers,” said Jim Chakeres, OPA executive vice president. “It is a pleasure to work with other professionals on a national level in order to guide the egg community and further our commitment to providing safe and affordable eggs for our Ohioans and the rest of the world.”

To be eligible for nomination, individuals must be producers or representatives of producers and they must own 75,000 or more laying hens. Producers who own less than 75,000 hens are eligible provided they have not applied for exemption and are paying assessments to AEB.… Continue reading

From trends in soil tests that show marked improvement in water quality over the last 20 years, to the ongoing on-farm best practices research being done in northwest Ohio to help farmers find the best nutrient management solutions for them, water quality is always a literal work in progress for the Ohio Farm Bureau.

The 2022 Water Quality Status Report highlights how signature water quality initiatives and partnerships such as the Blanchard River Demonstration Farms Network along with H2Ohio, and its farmer certification piece the Ohio Agriculture Conservation Initiative, have had major roles improving and protecting clean water, one of the state’s most valuable resources.

However, further work is done quietly behind the scenes by Ohio Farm Bureau staff and volunteers to help guide the state and region to a healthier future. Ohio Farm Bureau members are represented on multiple advisory boards and committees by staff that ensure the voices of farmers, landowners and agriculturalists are heard.… Continue reading

By Matt Reese and Dale Minyo

For generations, Ohio agriculture has recognized the valuable learning opportunities for young people who grow up on farms. The vast majority of Ohio’s children, though, do not get that opportunity.

This fact has extensive implications. In the late 90s, Ohio’s soybean growers recognized those implications and decided to try to bring lessons from the farm to Ohio’s young people.

“About 25 years ago, I was at home with my young sons and writing curriculum for Upper Arlington schools with a friend of mine who was also writing curriculum for Worthington schools. We both were educators with years of experience in the classroom,” said Jeanne Gogolski, CEO of Education Projects. “We got a call from a local marketing firm who said, ‘Hey, we have a client who’s interested in a curriculum writer. Can you come and talk with them?’ And we said, ‘sure.’ So we went to the meeting, and it turns out that it was the Ohio Soybean Council (OSC) with their checkoff dollars beginning to explore how to educate students in Ohio about modern agriculture, and in particular, soybeans.”… Continue reading