Agriculture News
Ohio Supreme Court says CAUV woodland owners can appeal
Farm and Dairy | Posted on December 21, 2017A group of woodland owners who believe they have been overcharged for their property taxes can appeal the values to the Ohio Board of Tax Appeals. The Ohio Supreme Court released a decision Dec. 7 that said landowners can challenge their Current Agricultural Use Value before the appeals board, because the values are considered a “final determination” and are part of Ohio’s law that allows for appeals.A group of landowners from 20 Ohio counties had previously appealed their CAUV values to the Board of Tax Appeals, arguing their taxes were too high because the state used too low of a cost for clearing woodlands, and that the board’s rules were unreasonable.
Ohio dairy and veal farmers face new rules
Farm and Dairy | Posted on December 21, 2017Ohio livestock producers will face two new rules related to care and housing when the new year begins.Effective Jan. 1, veal calves must be housed in group pens by 10 weeks of age, and at all ages must be able to turn around and not be tethered.Secondly, dairy cattle can no longer have their tails docked, unless performed by a licensed veterinarian and medically necessary.
Witnesses assess US biosecurity infrastructure as inadequate
Agri-Pulse | Posted on December 21, 2017Senate Agriculture Committee members can’t say they weren’t warned. A panel of witnesses spoke to the committee on Wednesday and all essentially delivered the same message: the current defense against pests, pathogens, and biosecurity threats to the food system needs work.“If you were an enemy of the United States and wanted to strike us, nuclear weapons always get the most attention because they’re so terrifying to everybody, but when you think about the damage that would be done to our economy, to our country, to our people, it would create a real sense of terror if somebody successfully attacked with a pathogen our agriculture sector,” former U.S. Senator Joe Lieberman, co-chair of the Blue Ribbon Study Panel on Biodefense, told the committee.
Veterinarians need loan forgiveness program
The Hill | Posted on December 21, 2017The Promoting Real Opportunity, Success and Prosperity Through Education Reform Act – unveiled this month by Rep. Virginia Foxx (R-N.C.) – would effectively eliminate PSLF. This could devastate our public service veterinary workforce. The simple truth is that veterinarians carry high student debt loads that necessitate the consideration of financial factors in career decisions, and any cuts to PSLF could render public service careers financially unfeasible for many. We can’t afford this disruption to our supply of public service veterinarians.
13 states sue to stop cage free eggs law in Massachusetts
Fox Business | Posted on December 21, 2017Massachusetts is being sued by 13 other states that claim a voter-approved law to ban the sale of eggs and other food products from farm animals that are confined in overly restrictive cages is unconstitutional.
Input price declines can’t make up for low crop prices
Capital Press | Posted on December 21, 2017As farm commodity prices have declined over the past three years, many farm input costs have fallen as well — but at a slower rate.
Center for Consumer Freedom complains to FTC about HSUS
Meatingplace (free registration required) | Posted on December 21, 2017The Center for Consumer Freedom (CCF) has filed a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission against the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) for “orchestrating a deceptive advertising campaign,” the organization said in a news release. Specifically, CCF complains that in November 2017, HSUS drove traffic to a web page on its HumaneSociety.org domain that contained false information. On the web page in question, a graphic claimed that only 19 percent of HSUS donations are spent on fundraising. However, HSUS’ Form 990 tax return for 2016, its most recent filing, shows that the organization spends at least 29 percent of its budget on fundraising, the group said.
Projected Positive Economic Profit Margins for Dairy Producers in 2017 After Continued Negative Margins in 2016
Farm Doc Daily | Posted on December 18, 2017Lower milk prices resulted in continued negative economic returns for Illinois dairy producers in 2016, according to figures summarized by University of Illinois agricultural economists in cooperation with the Illinois Farm Business Farm Management Association. The average net price received per 100 pounds of milk was $16.28, which was less than total economic costs of $18.14. The price received for milk in 2016 was the lowest since 2010. On a per cow basis, total returns from milk were $3,895 compared to the total cost to produce milk of $4,332 per cow. Total returns from milk per cow were the lowest since 2010. 2014 was the highest on record at $5,730. The net returns per cow in 2016 were a negative $437. Total returns have exceeded total economic costs two out of the last ten years.Milk production per cow for all herds averaged 23,959 pounds. The average was 604 pounds more per cow than in 2015. This is the highest level in milk production per cow.Trends in total costs and returns per cow for all herds are given from 2007 to 2016 in Figure 1. The profit margin (return above all cost) decreased-- from a negative $410 in 2015 to negative $437 per cow in 2016. The last five-year returns above all costs has averaged a negative $364 per cow. During this period, returns above all costs per cow have varied from a negative $935 in 2012 to $662 in 2014. In Figure 1, labor and interest charges are included in total costs only. Most dairy producers will incur hired labor and cash interest expense and would include them as cash operating costs.
DMI partner helps grow overseas cheese sales
Hoard's Dairyman | Posted on December 18, 2017Partnerships with major restaurant chains have helped to drive new dairy product sales in the U.S. Those same initiatives are now going past America’s borders. Yum! Brands — think KFC, Pizza Hut, and Taco Bell — have 44,000 restaurants in 135 countries.DMI recently facilitated innovation sessions with Pizza Hut in its Asia Pacific region and created a “Cheese University” taught by a dairy checkoff scientist to educate culinary teams on the ways to use U.S. cheese. Tom Gallagher, CEO of Dairy Management Inc., said the emphasis is already yielding results.“U.S. cheese use at Pizza Hut’s Asia Pacific region has sales up 35 percent versus a year ago,” said Gallagher speaking to those attending the joint annual meeting of the National Milk Producers Federation, the United Dairy Industry Association, and the National Dairy Promotion and Research Board at its gathering in Anaheim, Calif., on November 1.A second pilot project is taking place in Latin America and the Caribbean with KFC. Like the project with Pizza Hut in Asia Pacific, this initiative also will look for ways to incorporate more U.S. dairy products into menu items such as cheese sauces and food pairings to complement KFC’s international products, including chicken sandwiches.
Commodity Costs and Returns
USDA | Posted on December 18, 2017Cost and return estimates are reported for the United States and major production regions for corn, soybeans, wheat, cotton, grain sorghum, rice, peanuts, oats, barley, milk, hogs, and cow-calf. The history of commodity cost and return estimates for the U.S. and regions is divided into three categories: Current, Recent, and Historical estimates. Cost-of Production Forecasts are also available for major U.S. field crops.