Excitement was felt through West College Corner on Dec. 6 during the ground-breaking ceremony for Apple Farm Service. The official announcement was made and Apple Farm Service Inc. is expanding in West College Corner.
“We love this community and can’t wait to continue to bring growth and employment to College Corner, Union County, and the surrounding areas!” said Matt Apple, vice president of Apple Farm Service.
Apple Farm Service employees, local officials, and associates were present to help celebrate the special occasion.
“We want to thank Apple Farm Service for their belief in Union County. Rather than building a new store in a new location, they decided to extend their roots even deeper and make this large investment to our community,” said Melissa Browning, director of the Union County Development Corporation.
Justin Moorman from Game Construction explained the scope of the project and stages of construction.
“Apple Farm Service will be more than doubling their current size with this project.… Continue reading
Two individuals who have made significant contributions to agriculture and Farm Bureau were honored by the Ohio Farm Bureau Federation. The 2022 Distinguished Service Award recipients are Judy Loudenslager of Marion County and Terry McClure of Paulding County.
Both honorees were recognized for lifetime achievements that benefited Ohio’s farming community. The awards were presented Dec. 8 in Columbus at the 104th annual meeting of Ohio Farm Bureau. Candidates for the awards are nominated by Farm Bureau volunteers, county organizations and state leaders.
Judy Loudenslager (posthumous)
The family of Judy Loudenslager was recognized at the meeting, including her husband Roy.
A native of Marion County, Judy Loudenslager and her husband, Roy, are well known in the community where the family farm continues to thrive. Many remember Judy from her term on the Ohio Farm Bureau board of trustees, where she represented the Northwest Region from 2005 to 2012. In addition to being a state Farm Bureau trustee, she was a former Marion County Farm Bureau president.… Continue reading
Farm equipment in our connected world means immediate data availability, a focus of Case IH in their latest line. Now that we have that information, what do we do with it? Ben Carlisle of Case IH talks with Ohio Ag Net’s Dale Minyo at the 2022 NAFB Trade Talk about the latest updates from Case IH, including data availability, implementation, and more.… Continue reading
U.S. numbers highlights: corn exports down 75 million bushels, corn ending stocks up 75 million bushels.
World numbers highlights: Brazil soybean production unchanged. Brazil corn production unchanged. Russia wheat production unchanged.
Following the noon report release, corn was up 1 cent, soybeans down 5 cents, and wheat down 6 cents. Prior to the report, corn was up 3 cents, soybeans down 2 cents, and wheat down 6 cents.
Typically the December WASDE Report does not see changes from the November WASDE Report for U.S. corn and soybean production and yields. Last month U.S. corn production was 13.930 billion bushels with a yield of 172.3. Last month U.S. soybean production was 4.346 billion bushels with a yield of 50.2 bushels.
U.S. 2022-2023 ending stocks: corn 1.257 billion bushels, last month 1.182 billion bushels; soybeans 220 million bushels, last month 220 million bushels; and wheat 571 million bushels, last month 571 million bushels. … Continue reading
By Joel Penhorwood and Dusty Sonnenberg, Ohio Ag Net
Good yields and dry conditions were the theme of this year’s series of the harvest Cab Cam video series, available at ocj.com. Here are some highlights from the videos offering insights into Ohio’s 2022 harvest.
Tim Everett, Shelby County
Tim Everett farms alongside his family in Shelby County. They enjoyed a solid, early start to April-planted corn. Tim said the crop was drier than it initially looked with good yields in their area, thanks in part to well-drained fields.
“We are running about 230 bushels per acre,” he said. “You can tell where we had a lot of rain there later on and it stunted the corn a little bit. Up on the higher grounds, it’s pretty good.”
Green spots throughout the field would have led you to believe it was wetter than initially looked, but not so according to the moisture meter. … Continue reading
By Dusty Sonnenberg, CCA, Ohio Field Leader, a project of the Ohio Soybean Council and soybean check-off.
Most family farms do not last for five generations without a willingness to change and adopt new technologies. For Keith and Chad Kemp, (4th and 5th generation farmers), that technology is in all aspects of their operation. The Kemp’s grid soil sample all their fields in ½ acre grids. They utilize various seed technology platforms. They have the latest technology on their John Deere high-speed planter, and they are constantly paying attention to what is new in the industry, particularly with soybean oil.
The details matter on successful farms. It starts with well drained and healthy soil. Keith Kemp has been no-tilling for 30 years and says it all starts with good drainage. “Drainage tile is one of the most important things on our land,” said Kemp. “When we take on a new farm, the first thing I want to do is tile it before I put money into fertilizer or anything else.… Continue reading
By Peggy Kirk Hall, Associate Professor, Ohio State University Agricultural & Resource Law
Direct food marketing in Ohio is hot. The latest USDA survey identified 7,107 Ohio farms with direct food sales–third highest in the nation. That might be why our program receives more legal inquiries about food sales than any other area of law. And that is also why we’re hosting a three-part webinar series on “Starting a Food Business,” providing an introduction to what a producer needs to know about selling home-based and farm-raised foods directly to consumers and retailers.
The free webinar series will be from 7—9 p.m. on Jan. 24, Feb. 28, and March 28 in 2023, with these different topics each night:
January 24: Start-up basics. What do you want to sell? We’ll review initial considerations for selling your food product. We’ll cover food safety, licensing, legal, and economic considerations for starting up a food business.
Syngenta’s Dean Grossnickle meets with Ohio Ag Net’s Dale Minyo on weed management in the future. He says a higher focus on pre-emergence weed control is the key. An ideal sequence is planting, immediate pre-emergence application, followed by post-emergence depending on rain timing. Grossnickle says to keep in mind that multiple modes of action means weeds are 83 percent less likely to develop resistance.… Continue reading
By Robert Moore and Peggy Kirk Hall, Ohio State University Agricultural & Resource Law
Farmland can be a family’s most important asset, recognized for both its heritage and financial value. Here’s some proof: over 1,900 historic farms in Ohio have been in the same family for over 100 years. And 130 of those farms have been in the same family for over two centuries — testaments to the importance of farmland to Ohio families.
But there are threats that can cause farmland to leave a family despite its value to family members. Long-term care costs, divorce, debt, co- ownership rights, poor estate planning — these are situations that can put family farmland at risk. The good news is that legal strategies can counter these threats.
In our new publication, Keeping Farmland in the Family, we offer five legal tools that can help keep farmland in a family:
This year’s winners of the prestigious Charles Boyles Master Shepherd Award are no strangers to the betterment of the world around them. Whether it’s the quality of their chosen breed, the community in which they live, or the simple gift of a delicious apple pie, the world is undoubtedly a better place having been graced by Carroll and Marilyn Fogle.
Marilyn Fogle
Marilyn and her late husband Carroll are well-suited to the Master Shepherd Award — presented each year to Ohio sheep producers who have made substantial contributions to the industry through volunteer commitment and service.
“Not only have they been leaders in the Ohio sheep industry, but they’ve also been producers of very high-quality sheep for many years,” said Roger High, Executive Director of the Ohio Sheep Improvement Association and Ohio Sheep and Wool Program, which administers the award. “I’ve known the Fogle family for several decades through raising sheep and leadership activities.… Continue reading
Harvest for many producers went well into the second week of November, longer than normal. Numerous rain delays were not the cause. Instead, it was the late planting window of corn and soybeans this spring which went into mid-June or even later across Ohio. It was a common occurrence for corn planting to halt mid-May and not resume again until June due to frequent rains. A rare occurrence when soybeans, replanted soybeans, and double-crop soybeans were planted the same week in June was very commonplace across the state.
The moving parts in the grain markets continue to be ever increasing. Volatility remains high and looks to linger. Huge price swings coming out of nowhere are tiresome. Grain settlement prices on any day are moving multiple dimes up or down for soybeans and wheat, with corn not far behind. Single words, both nouns and verbs which seem so innocent, simple, and short can streak into the forefront at a moment’s notice, haunting the psyche of the staunchest of traders and producers alike.… Continue reading
The Ohio Sheep Improvement and Ohio Sheep and Wool Program present distinguished service awards to people who have served the Ohio sheep industry. This year the groups recognized 3 people who have term-limited in 2022 on the Ohio Sheep and Wool Program Board of Directors and deserve recognition for their contributions to the Ohio Sheep Industry. They are:
• Scott Peters, Darke County — Peters has served on the Ohio Sheep and Wool Program Board of Directors for the past 9 years, and is term-limited as of the end of 2022.
• Dale Duerr, Tuscarawas County — Duerr has served on the Ohio Sheep and Wool Program Board of Directors for the past 9 years and is term-limited as of the end of 2022.
• Ross Larue, Pickaway County — Larue of Ashville, Ohio has served on the Ohio Sheep and Wool Program Board of Directors for the past 9 years, and is term-limited as of the end of 2022. … Continue reading
Farm Credit Mid-America’s “Fight the Hunger, Stock the Trailer” program has officially wrapped up its second year with major increases, both in the amount donated and the counties involved.
Ohio Ag Net’s Dale Minyo travelled to the Norwalk office of Farm Credit Mid-America to recap the program for 2022 and hear about the contest’s winners. Guests from Farm Credit Mid-America include Evan Hahn, regional vice president of ag lending, Chandra French, financial officer, and Lindy McLaughlin, associate financial officer.… Continue reading
Precipitation has increased a bit across the state in recent weeks, ending what was a very dry stretch this fall. Observations indicate 1.5-2 inches have fallen across NW Ohio and in couties just to the southeast of about I-71. Still, about 73% of the state is in abnormally dry to moderate drought according to the latest U.S. Drought Monitor. Temperatures overall are averaging about normal across the southern half of the state and 1 to 3 degrees F above average across the north, with the typical late fall oscillation between mild and chilly air. For the latest up-to-date conditions, seasonal outlooks, and monthly climate summaries, please visit the State Climate Office of Ohio.
The first in a series of storms this week will be on-going Tuesday morning. Periods of rain showers are expected across the state through Wednesday morning then again Thursday afternoon through Friday night.… Continue reading
Matt Inman, technical marketing manager with BASF, encourages reflection and tweaking on this year’s practices for the year ahead. Ohio Ag Net’s Dale Minyo caught up with him at 2022 NAFB Trade Talk. He encourages farmers to keep weed control a year-round job, and be sure to work to get ahead of weeds now before they germinate in early 2023.… Continue reading
Dan Ory suspected the hot, dry growing season of 2022 could result in elevated population densities of the most damaging soybean pathogen, soybean cyst nematode (SCN). That was confirmed when Iowa State University (ISU) Nematologist Greg Tylka visited his farm to answer his questions about SCN management.
The two met through a partnership between The SCN Coalition and BASF Agricultural Solutions to spread awareness about the yield-robbing pest. In a new video series, Tylka, who has spent decades studying SCN and working toward management solutions, answers Ory’s questions about managing SCN.
Why is SCN an issue again?
The Ory family has battled SCN in the past, but that was well before Dan joined the family farm. For years, his father controlled SCN with resistant varieties. He asked Tylka why SCN is prevalent once again.
By Daniele Siqueira, AgRural Commodities Agrícolas
The record area of 43.2 million hectares that Brazil is likely to cultivate with soybeans in the 2022-23 crop was 91% planted by Dec. 1, compared with 94% in the same period last year and in line with the 5-year average, according to AgRural data. Production, based for now on trendline yields, is seen at 150.5 million metric tons, 25 million up from last season, when a severe drought linked to the phenomenon La Niña resulted in historical losses in southern states.
AgRural will replace trendlines by actual yield estimates by state later this month. So far, the new crop develops well, but rains have been spotty in some regions, and farmers in central states, including top producer Mato Grosso, are concerned about dry spots that are now heading into the pod-filling stage. Hit-and-miss rains have also been seen in southern states, but the situation is far from being as bad as the one faced a year ago.… Continue reading
The Environmental Protection Agency released its draft set rule for the Renewable Fuel Standard on Dec. 1, which sets blending volumes for 2023, 2024, and 2025. The RFS requires annual volumes of renewable fuels, such as ethanol, be used in the fuel supply to reduce emissions, expand and diversify the fuel supply, improve energy security and lower costs.
The proposed requirements were disappointing to soy growers, who had expecting stronger numbers for biofuels but viewed as positive by corn growers from an ethanol standpoint
“We are pleased with EPA’s forward-looking approach of annual increases in the proposal,” said Tom Haag, president of the National Corn Growers Association. “EPA clearly recognizes that renewable fuels like ethanol play a critical role in cutting greenhouse gas emissions, increasing U.S. energy independence and providing long-term relief to consumers at the pump. With continued pressure on energy security and costs and the need to accelerate carbon emission reductions, biofuels can contribute even more, and we will make that case to EPA for the final volumes.” … Continue reading
Ohio Ag Net’s Dale Minyo hears from Ashley Bergthold of Brevant Seeds about lessons learned in 2022. Adjustment recommendations on the path to higher yields and a greater crop value, as well as planning around tar spot, are included in this conversation from 2022 NAFB Trade Talk.… Continue reading
After it was passed by the House, an early December Senate vote of 80-15 passed a bill to head off a potential rail strike and led to a signature from President Biden the following day.
A rail strike could have disrupted the movement of grain and input shipments.
“AFBF applauds Congress and President Biden for working together to avert a rail strike. High diesel prices, a truck driver shortage, and low water levels on the Mississippi River have already made shipping conditions difficult. A rail strike would have had a devastating effect on the American economy, especially as families grapple with higher prices caused by inflation,” said Zippy Duvall, American Farm bureau Federation president. “Farmers rely on trains to transport food and feed, and they also depend on the rails to bring important supplies like fertilizer back to the farm, which is why AFBF urged Congress and the president to find a solution to the rail worker impasse.… Continue reading
