Hoosier Ag Today: Recent Episodes
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Harvest season means grain movement, from fields to trucks on roadways and then often times on to the U.S. inland waterway system where grain is shipped to world markets. This year there is a problem though. Dry weather has led to the lowest river levels in decades. Mike Steenhoek, executive director of the Soy Transportation […]
Oral arguments were heard Tuesday by the Supreme Court regarding California’s Proposition 12. Prop 12 bans the sale of pork in California from the offspring of sows kept in pens that do not meet its prescribed dimensions of 24 square feet per sow. “If Proposition 12 is lawful, New York can say the pigs have […]
Beck’s, CountryMark, Co-Alliance, and Central Indiana Ethanol announced last week a collaboration with ClearFlame Engine Technologies to drive efforts that are expected to benefit row crop farmers through an innovative technology that decarbonizes heavy duty diesel combustion engines by enabling the use of any biofuel, including 100% ethanol (E98), as truck fuel. “This is the […]
There are a growing number of careers that are connected to the ag industry – including careers in land surveying. The average of age of Indiana’s land surveyors is 57, so there is a huge need for more students to enter this career field as more professionals within the industry decide to retire. “We’re trying […]
Consecutive weeks of cool, dry weather have propelled harvest progress forward throughout much of Indiana. So far, 27% of corn for grain and 36% of soybeans have been harvested as of Sunday, Oct. 9 according to the USDA National Agricultural Statistic Service (NASS). That’s a jump from 16% for corn and 17% for soybeans from […]
Weather has been incredibly cooperative the past few weeks to get harvest moving along. “We’re probably around 30-40% done up in Northwest Indiana,” explains Pioneer field agronomist Carl Joern. “Significantly more bean acres have been taken off here this fall.” As for yields coming out of those fields, Joern looks to the later start to […]
Rising production costs, supply-chain issues and labor shortages are all affecting Indiana farmers. These issues may also be keeping producers from expanding their farm operations. Mike North of Ever.Ag says the uncertainty of the economy is causing a lot of livestock and dairy producers to re-think plans of expansion. “In my 28 years there’s never […]
The National FFA Foundation, which is headquartered in Indianapolis, has been awarded a $750,000 grant from the Walmart Foundation. The grant money will help the National FFA organization to incorporate sustainability principles in school education. “The funding made available allows us to create new sustainability-focused education resources and programming that integrates current sustainable practices across […]
Indiana soybean harvest is moving right along and ramped up corn harvest should be following. Early returns suggest yields will be varied, just as the quality of the crop was variable throughout the season. “In my complete professional experience, I’m seeing more variability in these yields than I can recollect over those multi decades,” says […]
Agricultural manufacturers are still struggling to get enough parts to continue to put together their products. Dr. Kanlaya Barr is director of corporate economics with John Deere. She spoke at the recent Ag Outlook Forum in Kansas City and talked about the kinds of parts they’re regularly missing. “This is like whacking a mole. You […]
The largest barge operator in the U.S. told its customers last week that it won’t be able to make good on deliveries due to the shrinking Mississippi River. Bloomberg says Ingram Barge Company declared a force majeure in a letter to customers because of the “near-historic” low water along the Mississippi River. The river is […]
Drought intensified in many of the nation’s top corn-growing states during the past week. Nationally, 321.6 million acres of crops are experiencing some level of drought, while more than 31 million beef cattle across the country are living with drought. The latest drought monitor map shows a pocket of D2 severe drought emerging in Illinois […]
Purdue Extension is continuing its role serving as an administrative lead for the Extension Disaster Education Network (EDEN) and expanding disaster education response throughout America. EDEN, a multistate collaboration of land-grant Extension Services, including 1862, 1890, 1994, Hispanic-serving institutions and Sea Grant programs, aims to reduce the impact of disasters through research-based education. Since 2003, […]
U.S. pork exports in August topped year-ago totals for the first time in 2022. USDA data compiled by the U.S. Meat Export Federation shows beef exports were slightly above the large volumes of last August and once again surpassed $1 billion in value. “We talk about the importance of developing a wide range of markets […]
Click BELOW to listen to Chief Meteorologist Ryan Martin’s harvest weather forecast. There is one threat of harvest interruption over the next ten days across Indiana. We are sunny and dry from this weekend through Tuesday. Temperatures will moderate on Sunday, and we send up quite warm and mild for Monday and Tuesday. Evaporation rates […]
What is test weight? Although yield is always at the forefront of many corn farmers and agronomists’ minds during harvest, another important discussion topic each fall is that of grain test weight. Although grain test weight is often discussed when determining how well someone’s corn did, this number can often be confusing when understanding its […]
We have a frosty start to our harvest weekend, but longer-term, Chief Meteorologist Ryan Martin’s forecast looks promising. This is the Seed Genetics Direct Harvest Weather Forecast. Order from Seed Genetics Direct and save $4 per unit of soybeans, $10 per unit of corn, and 11% more when you pay by Nov. 10! Martin says […]
The warm, dry weather conditions across Indiana has been helpful to farmers this harvest season. Unfortunately, those conditions also increase the risks for combine fires. “Perfect conditions don’t always mean a perfect outcome so take your time and be safe,” says Josie Rudolphi, an assistant professor and agricultural safety specialist at the University of Illinois. […]