News Update
January 24, 2013
Angus Internship Deadline Approaching
College students looking for summer internships still have time to apply with the American Angus Association and Angus Productions Inc. in Saint Joseph, Mo. The deadline for the four paid internships is Feb. 5. Details of each position are listed here.
NWSS History: Dan Green — In the Yards
If you couldn’t make it to the National Western Stock Show (NWSS) this year, there is no need to worry. The American Angus Association TV segement I Am Angus shares some of the best highlights from this year’s show.
Click here to watch this segment of I Am Angus.
NCBA Trade Show Offers Something for Everyone
at Cattle Industry Convention
The 2013 Cattle Industry Convention and National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) Trade Show, taking place Feb. 6-9 in Tampa, Fla., will offer something for everyone. The trade show is the largest, most innovative trade show for those in the cattle business and is a must-see for all convention attendees.
More than 230 exhibitors will have booths offering the latest in animal health products, animal identification, farm equipment, herd management, real estate and even Western art. New to the trade show this year is the New Holland outdoor display area.
“The NCBA Trade Show sold out in record time this year, and we’re thrilled to have more than 230 vendors bringing their exciting products and ideas to Tampa,” said NCBA Executive Director of Meetings and Events Kristin Torres. “From new products to use on the farm to a reception featuring Florida foods and a live cattle auction, everyone who spends time at the trade show will have a great experience.”
The show kicks off at 5 p.m. Feb. 6, with the “Taste of Florida” welcome reception. Sponsored by Micro Beef Technologies, New Holland and Certified Angus Beef® (CAB®), attendees will be treated to tasty Florida favorites from around the state while enjoying live Caribbean music on the trade show floor. Watch live cattle handling demos in the Pfizer Demonstration Arena, see cooking demonstrations and new product samplings in the NCBA booth and watch NCBA’s Cattlemen to Cattlemen live from the trade show floor.
For more information and the full release, click here.
Statement by AFBF President Regarding
Senate Introduction of Farm Bill
“The American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF) is pleased that Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) has introduced in the 113th Congress the same version of the farm bill that was passed by the Senate last session. We are also encouraged to hear that Sen. Reid is making the farm bill one of several privileged, top priority legislative actions this year. This represents real hope for farmers and ranchers that the Senate, like last session, will aggressively move forward on a long-term farm bill to give farmers the risk-management certainty we need.
“It will ultimately take real bipartisan cooperation to get the farm bill to the finish line, and we are confident the House Agriculture Committee will craft a compatible bill. We are hopeful that Senate Agriculture Committee Chairwoman Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.) and the committee’s new ranking member, Sen. Thad Cochran (R-Miss.), will work quickly to build on the bipartisan work that was the hallmark of the Senate farm bill last year. And we encourage House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) and other members of the House to follow the example set last year by House Agriculture Chairman Frank Lucas (R-Okla.) and ranking member Collin Peterson (D-Minn.) in their actions to pass a bipartisan farm bill that worked for all Americans out of their committee.
“America’s farmers deserve the policy certainty that a five-year farm bill would provide. We need a flexible, reform-minded bill that draws its key risk-management tools from crop insurance provisions. We are encouraged that the process is starting early, and we look forward to working with leaders and committees from both houses and both parties to get this long-term farm bill done.”
Legislation Removes Some Uncertainty on Estate Taxes
The recent “fiscal cliff” legislation provides small businesses and farms some much-needed relief from uncertainty about estate taxes, says a University of Missouri Extension agricultural economist.
“We were scheduled to drop the estate tax threshold from $5 million to $1 million on Jan. 1, but they extended the $5 million level,” said Ron Plain. “So now estate taxes start on inheritances greater than $5 million. The other thing Congress did was cap the tax rate at 40%.”
The top tax rate on estates had been scheduled to increase from 35% to 55%.
Also, unlike past legislation on estate taxes, which extended lower rates for a limited time, these changes have been made indefinite, Plain said.
Plain says that while farmers have a lot of assets in terms of land and equipment, limited cash income means that estate taxes can be a problem. By leaving the exemption at $5 million, a lot more family farms will be able to transfer from one generation to the next without getting a huge tax bill, he said.
However, because of rising land values, the $5 million exemption may not be enough to shield some family farms from estate taxes, Plain added.
“For the typical farm, 70% of all the investment is in land,” he said. “So if you have a father-son operation or siblings farming together, you can very quickly get above that $5 million threshold and face some sizable estate taxes.”
Plain recommends exploring different estate-planning options with a tax professional in order to be able to pass on the family farm while holding estate taxes at a manageable level.
Experts to Address Severe South Texas Water Shortage
Experts from throughout the state will gather in Weslaco, Texas, Jan. 29 to discuss options with growers facing severe water shortages this growing season, according to Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service personnel.
“Some of the larger water districts with large tracts of agricultural lands have told their growers they will receive only one irrigation this year,” said Brad Cowan, an AgriLife Extension agent in Hidalgo County. “Sugarcane, citrus and vegetables all require five to eight or more irrigations, so you can see the severe impact this water shortage is likely to have on agriculture this year.”
The expected water shortage is already challenging growers, he said.
“Many growers have been purchasing additional water and making decisions on which crops, both high- and low-water-use crops, to plant and how many of those crops they will be able to sustain. But even grain sorghum or cotton, both traditional crops that are known to perform well with limited water require two irrigations most years.”
To help weigh their options, growers are invited to attend the 8th Rio Grande Valley Irrigation Conference and Trade Show scheduled from 7:30 a.m.- 3:30 p.m. Jan. 29 at the Texas A&M AgriLife Research and Extension Center, 2401 E. Business Highway 83 in Weslaco.
For more information and the full release, click here.
USFRA Reveals Winners Of Faces Of Farming &
Ranching National Spokesperson Search
The U.S. Farmers & Ranchers Alliance (USFRA®) announced Tuesday, Jan. 22, 2013, that Chris Chinn Mo., Will Gilmer Ala., Katie Pratt Ill., and Bo Stone N.C., have been selected as the winners of its Faces of Farming & Ranching program, a nationwide search launched in summer 2012 to help put real faces on the American agriculture industry. More than 100 applications were submitted from passionate, dedicated farmers and ranchers across the country.
The winners will act as national spokespeople, and will share stories and experiences on a national stage to help answer consumers’ questions about how food is grown and raised to feed our nation.
“The four winners selected are passionate about farming and ranching, and eager to share their stories about the innovative ways they continue to improve food production each day,” said Bob Stallman, chairman of USFRA and president of the American Farm Bureau Federation. “There are a lot of misconceptions and questions among consumers about how food gets from the farm to our tables. These four individuals are equipped with the passion and experience necessary to address these complicated issues and give honest answers.”
For more information and the full release, click here.
Ag Conference to Focus on Success in Changing World
Women involved in farming, ranching and agribusiness are encouraged to attend the 2013 edition of Women Managing the Farm Conference Feb. 7-8.
The conference will be in Manhattan, Kan., at the Hilton Garden Inn and Conference Center. Previous locations have been in Wichita and Hutchinson.
Moving the conference to the university community will increase delegates’ access to experts at Kansas State University, said Janet Barrows, who is serving as volunteer chairperson for the conference. For example, Vincent Amanor-Boadu, associate professor in agribusiness economics and management in the Department of Agricultural Economics in the College of Agriculture at K-State, will speak about “Women Transforming Management: Re-Imagining the 21st Century Farm Business.”
In considering the traditions that have come to define rural America and agriculture, Amanor-Boadu noted to sustain the values nurtured over past decades, women managers will need to actively engage in transforming how agriculture and the agri-food chain is managed.
“Doing so will require educating ourselves about our consumers and the industrial customers, and determining how we, as resource and input providers, can take advantage of their idiosyncrasies,” he said.
Amanor-Boadu, who speaks on business and entrepreneurship, compared this concept to the tech industries’ success in recent years, and promised strategies that can foster success.
Virginia Moxley, dean of the College of Human Ecology at K-State, also is a featured speaker at this year’s conference. She will offer insight into achieving life balance, in “Balancing it All.”
In balancing work, family and community, yet also making time to nurture oneself, Moxley can speak from experience: She is well-known for creating educational opportunities to improve the quality of life and health for families. She works tirelessly to help others; yet, she also is a wife, mother and successful agribusiness partner.
For more information and the full release, click here.
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