Outlook 2008 

By Dr. Dave Kohl

Wow! The holiday season is over and many are ready to hit the ground running for 2008. Personally, I am licking my basketball wounds from the intensive holiday battles at Cassell Coliseum at Virginia Tech. Playing b-ball is still fun, but the court appears to be getting longer each year. Now, on to the outlook...

Researchers Tackle Waterhemp With Practical Solutions 

Source: University of Missouri, Iowa State Universiy, University of Illinois

Midwest farmers struggling with waterhemp issues have a new resource for information thanks to the efforts of university weed scientists Kevin Bradley with University of Missouri, Bob Hartzler with Iowa State University and Dawn Nordby with University of Illinois. The result of this collaboration is Biology and Management of Waterhemp...

Agriculture in the Age of Turbulence 

By Dr. Dave Kohl

2007 is going down as a year of heavy turbulence from an economics perspective. Alan Greenspan’s book, The Age of Turbulence, develops a good subplot to the agriculture industry’s short- and long-term future. The following are some of the interesting views ...

Farm Bill Update 

By Kent Thiesse, VP, Minn Star Bank

The U.S. Senate finally passed their version of the new farm bill on December 14, by a 79-14 margin. The U.S. House of Representatives passed a new farm bill in late July 2007. The farm bill now will go to a U.S. House and Senate Conference Committee, probably in late January...

National Effort To Boost Soybean Yields Will Be Led By Iowa State University 

Source: Iowa State University

Many soybean producers across the U.S. may be missing out on high yielding soybeans, according to Palle Pedersen, Iowa State University (ISU) Extension soybean agronomist...

NCGA to Growers: Respect the Refuge 

Source: National Corn Growers Association

Amid the holiday cards and gifts in the mail, U.S. corn growers need to be on the watch for a postcard reminder about an important part of their work, according to the National Corn Growers Association (NCGA) ...

Oil Hits $100 for First Time Ever: Bad Way to Begin 2008 for Consumers 

Source: American Coalition for Ethanol

Greater use of cost-effective ethanol can help
Crude oil prices on the New York Mercantile Exchange soared to $100 Wednesday, Jan. 2, and closed at a record $99.62, underscoring the urgent need for cost-effective renewable fuels such as ethanol...

Iowa Farmland Tops $3,900 an Acre 

Compiled By Greg Lamp

The average value of an acre of Iowa farmland increased by just over $700 during the past year, to an all-time high of $3,908, according to an annual...

You are not a Terrorist 

Still, the Department of Homeland Security wants to know if you have more than 2,000 lbs. of ammonium nitrate, 60,000 lbs. of propane, 10,000 lbs. of...

Ethanol Not Cause of high Food Prices 

Simply put, growing U.S. ethanol industry is not the cause of food price inflation, according to a new statistical analysis by Informa Economics, Memphis,...

USDA Forecasts AG Exports 

The value of U.S. farm exports during fiscal year 2008 is now forecast to hit a record $91 billion, up $7.5 billion from a previous estimate issued last...

Track Fertilizer Prices 

If you have not booked your fertilizer needs, the University of Illinois suggests watching these Web sites for price trends: 1) The Fertilizer Institute...

NCGA Hails House Passage of Energy Bill; Measure Moves to President’s Desk 

Source: National Corn Growers Association

A renewable fuels standard (RFS) of which 15 billion gallons comes from corn, inched closer to law today, creating a solid foundation for grain-derived ethanol to continue to flourish, according to the National Corn Growers Association (NCGA)...

RMA Approves BYE For 2008 Implementation 

Source: Risk Management Agency

WASHINGTON, Dec 13, 2007 – The Risk Management Agency announced today that the pilot Biotech Yield Endorsement (BYE) will be implemented beginning with the 2008 crop year in the states of Illinois, Indiana, Iowa and Minnesota...

Marketing Costs And Global Demand Are Key Drivers Of Food Price Inflation 

Source: Informa Economics

Statistical Analysis Finds Little Connection Between Corn Ethanol Production and Consumers’ Food Bills...