Featured News

Ohio Agriculture Director Robert Boggs today extended a challenge to all Ohioans to consume local foods during the week of Oct. 2 – 8. At a kickoff celebration at the Local Roots Market and Café in Wooster, Ohio, Boggs encouraged citizens to support Ohio agriculture.

“With an abundance of local food products readily available, everyone in Ohio should have access to fresh and healthy food,” said Boggs. “As the department kicks of its Eat Local Challenge Week, I encourage all Ohioans to plan and prepare one meal every day using foods that are made, grown or raised in Ohio.”

From dairy products to meats to fruits and vegetables, Ohio is home to a large variety of products and produce that are available in grocery stores and farm and farmers markets located across the state. Visit the department’s Ohio Proud website, www.ohioproud.org, to search for market locations by county or by a specific product.… Continue reading

Governor Ted Strickland today announced that farmers in 79 counties are now eligible to receive disaster assistance after U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Secretary Tom Vilsack declared 41 Ohio counties to be primary natural disaster areas and the additional 38 as contiguous disaster counties.

Strickland requested a disaster designation from the USDA due to state agricultural losses caused by several natural disasters in 2010.

“Ohio farmers faced economic losses and personal hardship as a result of these weather disasters, and I saw how important it was to help secure available aid,” said Strickland. “I am grateful for Secretary Vilsack’s decision to provide some relief for the members of our agriculture community. This assistance will help our farmers make Ohio’s $98 billion food and agriculture industry even stronger.”

The available assistance includes Farm Service Agency (FSA) emergency loans and the Supplemental Revenue Assistance Payments (SURE) Program. Farmers in these eligible counties have eight months from the date of this disaster declaration to apply for emergency loan assistance.… Continue reading

By Eric Anderson, Syngenta agronomist, CPAg

With summer over and fall in full swing, most growers have turned their attention toward harvest, which has started in earnest in some areas throughout the Great Lakes District. Looking back, spring planting was ideal (at least early on) and environmental conditions were mostly satisfactory, leading the USDA to predict near-record yields for much of the area. However, some growers who have begun harvest are finding a little different story, with lower than expected yields, especially for corn. Let’s look at the year and examine probable causes for potential corn yield loss in 2010 as well as possible solutions for future reference.

2010 Corn Crop

1.) Too much rain – One obvious cause for overall yield loss in 2010 was too much rain early on. Most areas had an over abundance of rainfall from mid-May through mid-July. Many growers experienced some flooding, at least in low-lying areas, and consequently had drowned out areas where corn was completely killed.… Continue reading

By Matt Reese

It is no secret that the general public is disconnected from agriculture and plenty has been said about the need for those involved with agriculture to share their farm-related stories with others. Michelle Houts did just that and her story has been published into an award-winning book — The Beef Princess of Practical County.

“This particular story came from my kids and their friends showing at the county fair. Not coming from a livestock background myself, I really had no idea how much time went into raising a market animal and how much emotion went into letting go of it,” Houts said. “I realized how much hard work, courage and dedication and guts went into getting out there and showing the animal and then parting with it at the end. Nobody has really told that story in a middle grade novel form. Charlotte’s Web is a great county fair story, but in the end, it doesn’t tell the story of raising livestock and what the kids learn when they raise market animals.… Continue reading

The Ohio Forages and Grasslands Council Annual Meeting will be February 11, 2011 from 8:30 to 4:00 p.m. The focus will be “The Plant and How It Grows”.  Dr.Glen Schmaker, Forage Specialist, Extension Assistant Professor from University of Idaho will do sessions on making hay, understanding how to maximize grazing based on the time of day and cool season plants. Dr. Marvin Hall, Penn State Professor of Forage Management will have sessions on plant growth and how animals utilize the plants. Besides the keynote speakers, Ohio producer panel will share their observations and experiences with plant production and harvesting practices.   The meeting will be held at Ohio Department of Agriculture at Reynoldsburg, Ohio.  For more information, call Leah Miller at 740.545.6349.… Continue reading

Corn growers who faced a legal deadline to repay money from corn sold in 2008 to the bankrupt ethanol producer VeraSun received some good news — the attorneys are dropping their questionable claims for payment.

“This is great news for farmers at a time when we need to focus on bringing in our crops,” said National Corn Growers Association President Darrin Ihnen. “We’re glad the lawyers saw the light and realized they had no legal justification to go after us. We had an excellent team working on this to make sure we had the right information, and to present our case.”

Because of bankruptcy law, attorneys representing VeraSun creditors were able to seek repayment from farmers and others who received money from VeraSun within 90 days prior to the bankruptcy filing.

In late August, hundreds of corn farmers received letters from attorneys threatening legal action. The letters offered to settle the matter with a payment equal to 80% of what the farmers received for their corn sales to VeraSun.… Continue reading

By Matt Reese

Sometimes, being a little crazy can be a good thing.

People in the seed business and on the farm thought Chris Jeffries and Dan Fox were a little crazy 20 years ago when they started a seed company from scratch.

“Nobody really knew what the heck we were doing. No one does that,” Fox said. “Everybody thought we were crazy. No one just starts up a seed company.”

No one except the founders of Seed Consultants, Inc., that is.

“Chris and I worked together at Super Crost Seeds. They did not have a line of beans and Chris actually started a line of beans and he called it ‘Seed Consultants,’” said Fox, the vice president of Seed Consultants. “In 1989, ICI bought Super Crost Seeds and Chris had always said that if something happened, he wanted to go on his own and start his own company. I told him that if he ever did that, I wanted to go with him.… Continue reading

The most important thing farmers can do to control weeds in the 2011 wheat crop is to provide a clean, weed-free seedbed before planting, Purdue Extension weed scientist Bill Johnson says. Few herbicides are available for wheat, so getting rid of weeds before the seed hits the ground will help eliminate crop injury and problems with yields. “If wheat seedlings are emerging and they are competing with standing, live weeds in the fall, we run the risk of wheat not tillering,” Johnson said. “If wheat doesn’t tiller as well in the fall, we will have fewer plants in the spring to crowd out other weeds and ultimately fewer grain heads for production.” Minimizing or eliminating the competition from weeds in the fall will give wheat the chance to take up moisture and soil nutrients and to absorb as much sunlight as possible, Johnson said. In addition to a clean seedbed, Johnson said wheat farmers should wait to plant wheat until after the average Hessian fly-free date for their area.… Continue reading

Every year there are a host of pests that reduce the yield of Ohio’s corn crop. In the past however, many of these pests never received much attention simply because there was just not much that could be done about them.

Among the most damaging of these pests is the corn earworm. Damage from corn earworm (CEW) is caused by the larvae as they feed on leaves, silks and developing kernels. The pest was present in higher numbers than usual in some parts of Ohio this year and damage varied significantly throughout the state, according to Syngenta agronomists.

“CEW is a serious pest that is present in Ohio every year. The pest overwinters in some parts of Ohio and is present throughout the state on many crops including field corn, sweet corn, popcorn and many vegetable crops. Trapping data from Ohio State University indicates that while 2008 and 2009 were relatively low years for CEW, 2006 and 2007 were strong peak years in moth trapping programs,” said Jason Fettig, a Syngenta agronomist.… Continue reading

U.S. pork exports to Cuba will more than triple if restrictions on travel and export financing for products going to the Caribbean island nation are lifted, according to an Iowa State University analysis.

The National Pork Producers Council is urging House lawmakers to take up legislation (H.R. 4645) that would let U.S. citizens travel to Cuba and allow direct transfers of funds from Cuban to U.S. financial institutions for products authorized for sale under the Trade Sanctions Reform and Export Enhancement Act of 2000. That law granted exceptions for agricultural and medical products to the unilateral trade embargo the United States placed on Cuba in 1960 after that country nationalized the property of U.S. citizens and corporations.

The House Foreign Affairs Committee is expected to mark up the bill tomorrow. In a letter sent today, NPPC asked the panel’s members to support H.R. 4645 and to oppose any amendments to it.

By William Shulaw, Extension Veterinarian, Ohio State University

Anaplasmosis is a disease that does not get a lot of attention in Ohio although I have gotten calls about it about every 2-3 years since I have been in Veterinary Extension (1988). One of my colleagues indicated to me several years ago that he had diagnosed it in at least one Ohio herd as far back as the mid-1970s. We know very little about the prevalence or natural history of the disease in this state, however, it occurs in many states in the southeastern US, the Gulf Coast states, and some regions of the West.

Anaplasmosis is a disease affecting the red blood cells of cattle and is caused by a rickettsial parasite called Anaplasma marginale. Parasitized red blood cells are removed from the circulation and destroyed by the spleen and liver. When high levels of parasitized cells occur, usually shortly after a cow is first infected, severe anemia can result; sometimes resulting in deaths or abortions.… Continue reading

By Matt Reese

From sweet corn to pumpkins, farms that market directly to customers have long competed with their products for consumer dollars. The result of such competition, more often than not, tends to be detrimental for the farms involved and beneficial for the consumer.

The wine industry, however, has done quite the opposite. As the number of wineries around Ohio has exploded like an uncorked bottle of Champagne in recent years, many of the individual businesses have thrived rather than suffered from the increased competition

“The only way this industry got off of the ground in Ohio was all of the cooperation,” said Lee Wyse, who owns Rainbow Hills Winery in Coshocton County with his wife, Joy.

Wyse was the 36^th licensed winery in the state and the first one in his region of the state when he started his business 23 years ago. As new wineries have come to the area, his business has benefited significantly.… Continue reading

Ohio has always been known as a leader in agriculture, and that view was further enhanced when just last year the Center for Food and Animal Issues was launched by the Ohio Farm Bureau Federation. The center operates as an outreach and education department engaging the public about the importance of all animals and the contributions they make in society.

Leah C. Dorman, DVM, director of food programs, Center for Food and Animal Issues at the Ohio Farm Bureau Federation, will present “We’re not in Kansas anymore: Animal Rights versus Animal Welfare” on Thurs., Oct. 21 from 7:30 – 9 a.m. at the monthly Northwest Ohio Ag-Business Breakfast Forum. The program begins at 8 a.m. with informal networking prior, hosted by the Center for Innovative Food Technology (CIFT) at the Agricultural Incubator Foundation, north of Bowling Green, OH.

Dr. Dorman will discuss animal rights versus animal welfare, and the history behind the creation of the Livestock Care Standards Board – a board which sets standards for livestock and poultry care that take into account issues of food safety, local availability and affordability of food, and best farm management practices for animal well-being.… Continue reading

The Ohio Department of Agriculture today announces that nearly 6,200 acres from 37 farms are preserved through its Agricultural Easement Purchase Program using Clean Ohio funds.

The Clean Ohio Fund bond initiative won support from Ohio’s voters in 2008 to preserve farmland and green space, improve outdoor recreation and to encourage redevelopment and revitalize communities by cleaning up brownfields.

This year, the Ohio Farmland Preservation Advisory Board reviewed 203 applications from 37 counties competing for the limited money available through the Clean Ohio Fund. Applicants had the opportunity to earn up to 150 points based on a two-tiered scoring system. Section one of the application focused on development pressure, soils, proximity to other agricultural land, use of best management practices and local comprehensive land-use plans. Section two included narrative questions regarding the farm and its unique appeal to the Agricultural Easement Purchase Program.

The following is a list of landowners selected to receive Clean Ohio funds, pending completion of a legal review, title search and any necessary review of third party interests:

An agricultural easement is a voluntary and legally-binding restriction placed on a farm.… Continue reading

The week ending Sept. 26 was unseasonably hot and dry throughout the state. The National Agricultural Statistics Service report said that 85 percent of corn was mature, compared to 23% last year and 52% for the five-year average. Corn harvest was 24% complete in Ohio compared to 1% last year and 5% for the five-year average. Corn silage was 95% harvested, compared to 66% last year and 80% for the five-year average. Eighty-eight percent of soybeans were dropping leaves, compared to 73% last year and 80% for the five-year average. Soybeans were 66% mature, which was 40% ahead of last year and 29% ahead of the five-year average. Soybeans harvested were reported at 29%, up 24 percent from last year and up 20% for the five-year average. Winter Wheat planted was at 8%, compared to 1% last year and 5% for the five-year average. The 4th cutting of alfalfa hay was 77% complete, compared to 54% last year and 65% for the five-year average.… Continue reading

FIELD ACTIVITIES AND CROP PROGRESS WEEK ENDING SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 26, 2010

This week has been unseasonably hot and dry throughout the state. Producer’s main activities for the week were planting of winter wheat and harvest of corn and soybeans. Tobacco producers report that 95% of the tobacco crop is in the barn. Excessive hot and dry weather has caused the crop to dry rather than cure. Southern livestock producers report that they have begun feeding winter hay stocks, due to poor pasture conditions.

As of Sunday September 26, 85 percent of corn was mature, compared to 23 percent last year and 52 percent for the five-year average. Twenty-four percent of corn for grain has been harvested in the State, compared to 1 percent last year and 5 percent for the five-year average. Corn silage was 95 percent harvested, compared to 66 percent last year and 80 percent for the five-year average.… Continue reading

Hog producers were ready to expand this fall. That may have been appropriate when 2010 corn prices were expected to close at $3.50 in early July, but that is no longer an acceptable conclusion with expectations closer to $5.00, said Purdue University Extension economist Chris Hurt.

“Higher corn prices will cut margins over the coming 12 months, but hog producers can now avoid an expansion that would plunge margins deep into the red in late 2011 and 2012,” he said.

“The clear message for the industry is: Don’t expand and margins will be okay. The other important message is: The next two years will not be a repeat of the large losses of 2008 and 2009,” he added.

Fortunately, the September USDA survey indicates there are no signs of expansion yet. Producers report they have 2 percent fewer animals in the breeding herd than a year ago, he said.

The primary story is in North Carolina where breeding herd numbers were down 110,000 head over the past year.… Continue reading

During the 2010 Fall Legislative Action Conference, hosted by the National Pork Producers Council, 16 Ohio hog farmers traveled to Washington D.C. where they discussed and educated Congressmen on agriculture legislation important to the pork community.

“Ohio hog farmers can take great pride in the OPPC leadership that participated in our trip to Washington,” said Dick Isler, executive vice president for the Ohio Pork Producers Council (OPPC). “This group spoke with all 18 of our congressional members and two U.S. Senators, explaining the importance of these key issues and the impact they could have on Ohio’s pork community.”

Throughout each of the visits, farmers discussed key pork issues, such as the poor impact the proposed Grain Inspection, Packers & Stockyards Administration (GIPSA) rule could have on marketing hogs across the country. In addition, Ohio hog farmers stressed the importance of passing free trade agreements with Columbia, Korea and Panama, which would not only be great opportunities for continued pork exports, but would have significant positive impact on the U.S.… Continue reading

In many central Ohio school districts, Friday, Oct. 15, is set aside for teachers’ professional development, giving students a day off. For the first time, Ohio 4-H Youth Development is offering a day of activities at the Nationwide and Ohio Farm Bureau 4-H Center on Ohio State University’s Columbus campus.

“I remember when my children were younger that I wanted them to have someplace and something to do on that day off when I couldn’t be home, they were too old for day care, but not old enough to be home alone,” said Sally McClaskey, program coordinator for Ohio State University Extension’s 4-H program. “A one-day, structured, supervised activity would have been great.”

McClaskey has planned “4-H for a Day” for Oct. 15 — a day of activities for students ages 8 rough 12 involving games, team-building, crafts — even making ice cream with students in the Buckeye Dairy Club.

The event is limited to 40 children, and registration is due to McClaskey by Wednesday, Oct.… Continue reading