Texas Republican John Cornyn is drawing up legislation to overhaul the Renewable Fuels Standard. It’s his attempt to end the disagreement between corn-state lawmakers and oil-patch legislators. Cornyn’s office has been hosting talks for several months on altering the nation’s biofuels program and come up with a variety of policy ideas, although they haven’t narrowed down any of the choices …
Farm Futures Releases 2018 Planting Intentions Survey Results
Farm Futures magazine recently released its survey of 2018 planting intentions, which shows that farmers aren’t quite ready to make major changes to their crop rotations. However, they are going to plant more of what paid best in 2017. For the first time since 1983, farmers want to plant more soybeans than corn. Back then, the government’s PIK program idled …
Growing Corn like a Champ
Setting a new world National Corn Growers Association record in 2017 with a yield of more than 542 bushels per acre, Charles City, Virginia corn grower David Hula says there is no one “silver bullet” to big crops, but there are a few things producers should pay attention to. Watch After selecting your hybrid, Hula says the next most important …
Celebrating a Popular Crunchy Snack
Cathy Isom has a few popping tidbits about the popular crunchy snack you’ll want to get your hands on today. That’s coming up on This Land of Ours. Celebrating a Popular Crunchy Snack Don’t let this day slip through your fingers. It’s National Popcorn Day. A day to celebrate a time-honored treat can be enjoyed sweet or savory, caramelized, buttered …
Maximizing Yield While Not Adding Costs
In corn, yield is still king, but how can producers get more bang for their buck? At the recent NC Commodities Conference, North Carolina State Extension Corn Specialist Dr. Ron Heiniger shared four keys to multiplying corn yields without adding costs. Dr. Heiniger’s first point was proper placement of fertilizers and nutrients around the plant. Placement He adds there’s another …
Returning to the New Era Corn Price Mid-Point
The agricultural economists at the University of Illinois have been championing a new era for grain prices since the rise of ethanol as a major player in the U.S. corn market. Scott Irwin is an agricultural economist from the University of Illinois. He and his colleagues believe grain prices have achieved a new higher plateau era. An era that started …
Corn Yield and Soybean Production Up in 2017
Winter Wheat Seedings and Grain Stocks also reported Across the Midwest, a lack of extreme heat helped boost the nation’s corn yield to its highest level on record – slightly above 2016. The nation’s soybean yield was down 6 percent from 2016, but production reached a record level due to record high acreage, according to the Crop Production 2017 Summary …
U.S. Crop Acreage Still Moving to Soybeans
Farmers in the United States have been slowly switching their cropland to just two field crops. Corn is king in the United States. Soybeans have been on a swift move upward. And wheat acreage has been on the decline for about 40 years. About half-way through those four decades two important things happened. Congress passed the 1996 farm bill – …
USGC Report Says U.S. Corn Harvest Quality was Excellent
The U.S. Grains Council (USGC) issued a report on this year’s corn harvest quality, saying a good growing season resulted in record yields that had very good quality. The report says the majority of crop conditions in 2017 were good-to-excellent. That led to strong plant size, good kernel health, and a projected record yield of 370.3 million metric tons, or …
Corn Market May Need Disruption
A banking official from Nebraska says the market may need “some disruption in production,” to reach higher prices for corn. Tom Jensen of First National Bank of Omaha told the Omaha-World Herald there is nothing on the horizon to increase corn prices, unless something disrupts the market. A disruption of the corn market means, generally, some form of natural disaster, …