News Update
August 17, 2012
Brazil Enjoys Record Grains Export Profits, Local Meat Suffers
Influenced by severe drought this year in the United States, Brazil's corn and soybean markets now face their most profitable export scenarios in years, consequently ratcheting up grain prices within Brazil and straining the meat production sector, according to July trade figures and an August report by Santa Catarina state's Center for Socioeconomic and Agricultural Planning, or CEPA.
Brazil's corn exports in July were up 431% compared to the same month in 2011, and corn exports have been a main contributor to Brazil's record U.S.$80 billion agribusiness trade surplus during the past 12 months, according to the Ministry of Agriculture.
Soybean exports in July were up 10.5% by volume compared to July 2011 to 4.13 million metric tons, and export sales of soybean meal rose 52% in the same period. The Ministry of Agriculture tried to assure the public this week that it was monitoring corn and soy supplies to ensure grains were available for domestic poultry and pork producers.
However, animal feed grains are currently pricing at BRL29 (U.S.$14.33) per kilogram for corn, and BRL71 (U.S.$35.07) per kilogram for soy in the popular swine and poultry producing state of Santa Catarina. Those grain prices have pushed production costs for some producers higher than the sale price of their live animals, said Julio Alberto Rodigheri, market analyst and agronomy engineer at CEPA.
Swine producers have been facing this pricing scenario with high input costs for more than two months, Rodigheri said, while poultry production costs have more recently caught up to pork's overwhelming scenario. Passing on costs in pricing for both domestic and export products is easier said than done, because global demand has become more price-sensitive.
The United States produces 40% of the world's corn supply, with the second largest producer, China, generating a crop just 52% of the size of the Americans' with no export potential.
North Dakota Angus Tour set for Sept. 17-18
If Angus cattle are your craze and you enjoy good food and company, then you won't want to miss this year's North Dakota Angus Tour, Sept. 17 and 18, in the northeast and east central part of the state.
Tour stops on the two-day event include Jared Benson/Justin Green, Maddock, N.D.; the Carrington Research Extension Center (CREC), Carrington, N.D.; Hoyt Angus Ranch, McHenry, N.D.; Spickler Ranch, Glenfield, N.D.; Jallo Angus Ranch, Fordville, N.D.; Nelson Angus, Egeland, N.D.; TNT Angus, Rock Lake, N.D.; and McCumber Angus Ranch, Rolette, N.D., as well as several other Angus operations on display.
Larry Corah, vice president of Certified Angus Beef LLC (CAB) will also speak about the new GeneMax™ Angus-specific DNA profile for commercial cattle.
The cost of the tour before Sept. 1 includes a two-day bus ride, all meals, and one night lodging at the Spirit Lake Casino in Devils Lake, for $75 per person or $100 per couple. After Sept. 1, the cost is $100 per person or $125 per couple.
To register for the tour, mail the registration form and fee to the North Dakota Angus Association, c/o Nathan and Emily Spickler, 8375 7th Parkway NE, Glenfield, ND, 58443.
For more information contact Spickler at 701-674-3169 or American Angus Association Regional Manager Vern Frey, at 701-721-0344 or vfrey@angus.org.
Thiel Foundation's Breakout Labs Announce Newest Grants at the Intersection of Biology and Advanced Technologies
Early-stage companies seek to revolutionize meat and leather production, regenerative medicine and medical diagnostics.
The Thiel Foundation announced three new grants awarded through Breakout Labs, its revolutionary revolving fund to promote innovation in science and technology. The newest awards focus on solutions at the intersection of biology and advanced technologies.
Launched in November 2011, Breakout Labs provides teams of researchers in early-stage companies with the means to pursue their most radical goals in science and technology. To date, Breakout Labs has awarded a total of nine grants of up to $350,000 each. Breakout Labs accepts and funds proposals on a rolling basis.
Previous grants, announced in April 2012, have been awarded to companies working on brain reconstruction, reversible cryopreservation, human cell re-engineering, universal airborne contaminant detection, artificial protein therapeutics and antimatter-based fuel.
"People used to dream about how innovation would make the future a radically better, more advanced place," said Jonathan Cain, president of the Thiel Foundation. "By funding unusual approaches to known challenges, such as conflict over food prices or the diagnosing and curing of diseases, we hope that Breakout Labs helps bring about the sort of technologically prosperous world that people once imagined possible."
Further information about the companies funded by Breakout Labs is available at www.breakoutlabs.org/recipients.html.
For the full release, click here.
Arkansas and North Carolina Governors Join NCBA in RFS Waiver Request
High Feed Costs "Taking a Terrible Toll" on Livestock Producing States.
Gov. Mike Beebe (D-Ark.) and Gov. Beverly Perdue (D-N.C.) have joined more than 180 members of Congress, the National Cattlemen's Beef Association (NCBA) and other livestock groups in requesting that Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Lisa Jackson waive the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) and bring much-needed relief to the thousands of farmers and ranchers across the country who are experiencing the effects of the nation's worst drought in almost 50 years.
Under the RFS requirements, 13.2 billion gallons (gal.) of corn-based ethanol must be produced in 2012 and 13.8 billion gal. in 2013, amounts that will use about 40% of the nation's corn crop. Due to this year's crippling drought, some agricultural forecasters now are estimating that just 11.8 billion bushels (bu.) of corn will be harvested this year, meaning corn-ethanol production will use about four of every 10 bushels.
"Higher feed costs following the passage of the first RFS in 2005, and the second in 2007, have resulted in a long-term shortage of grain in our nation, especially corn, and are clearly taking a terrible toll on Arkansas's poultry and animal agriculture, potentially forcing reduced production and job losses and increasing food prices for consumers worldwide," said Beebe in a letter addressed to Jackson. "While the drought may have triggered the price spike in corn, an underlying cause is the federal policy mandating ever-increasing amounts of corn for fuel."
Perdue also sent a letter to Jackson, stating that, "While the severe drought that our nation has experienced is an underlying factor in current economic conditions, the direct harm is caused by the RFS requirement to utilize ever-increasing amounts of corn and soybeans for transportation fuel, severely increasing the costs of producing food and further depleting already stressed grain supplies."
"As president of the North Carolina Cattlemen's Association, my major concern is whether or not cattle farmers in our state and across the country will have enough feed for the cattle in their care," said Bill Cameron Jr., a cattleman from Raeford, N.C.
Marcus Creasy, cattleman from Arkansas and president of the Arkansas Cattlemen's Association, said, "This drought has severely affected my cattle and my business operations. Cattlemen in this drought-affected state and in other states are struggling to feed their cattle, all while the price of grain continues to increase. How many more congressional members, state leaders and livestock producers have to express their support of waiving the ethanol mandate before EPA finally listens?"
Vilsack: Ethanol Would Suffer Under Waived U.S. Mandate
America's agriculture secretary says investment in U.S. ethanol production, which, along with a drought-plagued crop, is being blamed for near-record corn costs, may decline should federal use requirements for the biofuel be reduced. That's what Tom Vilsack said in Iowa State Fair this week after learning that 25 U.S. senators and 156 House members have signed letters asking the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to suspend or lower mandates on how much ethanol the country must use this year and next.
"My concern is that we send a signal to investors of perhaps less confidence in the industry," Vilsack. "We need to see whether the market is responding with lower demand in the face of higher prices, before making a decision to relax use requirements."
According to Bloomberg News, Jose Graziano da Silva, director-general of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, last week called for a suspension of U.S. ethanol-use rules to let more corn be used for food and livestock feed. The worst drought in 56 years has pushed corn futures up 60% since June 15.
Prices reached a record $8.49 a bu. Aug. 10 when the government forecast the corn harvest would be 13% smaller than 2011. Today, futures closed at $8.075, up 0.4% on the Chicago Board of Trade.
White House Press Secretary Jay Carney told reporters that the USDA and the EPA will be evaluating data to determine what should be done about the waiver requests and that he didn't know if anyone has directly discussed the topic with the president.
Marketing Workshop For Small-Acreage Producers
Slated Aug. 24
A marketing workshop for small-acreage owners, presented by the Texas AgriLife Extension Service, will take place from 8 a.m. to noon Aug. 24 at the South Texas College's Mid-Valley Campus, 400 N. Border in Weslaco.
A marketing and management workshop for small-acreage producers will be Aug. 24 in Weslaco.
The registration fee is $15, payable upon arrival.
The workshop, "Small Acreage Management and Marketing for Profit," is part of two grants, according to Luis Ribera, an AgriLife Extension agricultural economist at the Texas AgriLife Research and Extension Center at Weslaco.
"The grants, one each from the Southern Risk Management Education Center and the U.S. Department of Agriculture, are intended to help small acreage producers of South Texas," he said.
In his presentation, "Can I make a living on three acres?" Ribera will present findings from a recent study on the economic feasibility of small acreage production in South Texas.
Two professors from Sam Houston State University, Michelle Santiago and Art Wolfskill, will present a business planning project and share their perspectives and views on the profitability of small acreage production in South Texas, Ribera said.
Marco Palma, an AgriLife Extension economist in College Station, Texas, will give a talk on marketing, he said.
"Francisco Abello, a fellow AgriLife Extension economist in College Station, will provide details about Market Maker, a web-based tool that is new to Texas this year," Palma said. "It connects small-acreage producers with consumers, retail outlets, restaurants and other markets throughout 20 states in the nation."
Other speakers, both based in Edinburg, and their topics include Vidal Saenz, AgriLife Extension farm advisor, small-acreage farm loans; and Barbara Storz, AgriLife Extension horticulturist, data and status of small-acreage production.
For more information, contact Storz at 956-383-1026, or b-storz@tamu.edu. For the full release, click here.
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