SUSTAINABILITY: Via Minnesota Corn, VERBATIM: “Minnesota corn farmers are committed to maintaining sustainability in their farming operations while ensuring financial viability. To support them in that journey, Minnesota Corn works to ensure producers have the resources, information, flexibility and support necessary to implement the practices that work best for their respective operations. In a presentation last Wednesday to the Minnesota Board of Water & Soil Resources (BWSR), Minnesota Corn Executive Director and CEO Adam Birr and Senior Public Policy Director Amanda Bilek outlined this sustainability journey.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/3YN0Q88 (SPONSORED: Minnesota Corn Growers Association)
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RIVER: From Larry Lee via Brownfield, VERBATIM: “Shipping on the upper Mississippi River upstream from Lynxville, Wisconsin will end December 9th this year. Patrick Moes with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers St Paul District tells Brownfield that’s when winter maintenance will begin on three of their lock and dam facilities.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4eVkd4l
PAYMENTS: Via USDA, VERBATIM: “The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is issuing payments this week to agricultural producers impacted by natural disasters, including $143 million in crop insurance indemnities for Florida producers impacted by Hurricane Milton and about $92 million for livestock producers, nationwide, who faced increased supplemental feed costs as a result of forage losses due to 2022 qualifying drought and wildfire.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/3YIW2Aj
WEATHER: From North Dakota Agricultural Weather Network’s Daryl Ritchison via X, VERBATIM: “The new @NDAWNmesonet Morris station in cooperation with the @MNagriculture is now up and running and available on our websites. It's on the West Central Research & Outreach Center. A couple of pictures from the station including a pheasant checking on the new station.” PHOTOS: https://fluence-media.co/3YHlc2p
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HARVEST: From Brent Barnett via Brownfield, VERBATIM: “A southwest Minnesota farmer says harvest was a mixed a bag this year. Bryan Biegler says soybean yields were disappointing due to expanding drought conditions.” BIEGLER: “I don’t even know if we’ve had two inches of rain from July until now. The beans just didn’t have enough moisture to finish off.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/3UvJyK2
BIOFUELS: Via USDA, VERBATIM: “U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Deputy Secretary Xochitl Torres Small today announced that USDA is awarding $39 million in grants to U.S. business owners to increase the availability of domestic biofuels in 18 states and give Americans cleaner, more affordable fuel options. Deputy Secretary Torres Small also announced the Department will make $200 million available through the new Biobased Market Access and Development Grants made possible by Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC) funds.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/3C006mU
SOYBEANS: Via Bloomberg, VERBATIM: “Agriculture giants including Cargill Inc. and Bunge Global SA are slowing their buying of soybeans due to uncertainty over US biofuels policy. The lack of guidance for a new clean-fuel tax credit is causing biofuels producers to put off some purchases of soyoil for early next year. That’s damping demand for soybeans, causing the giant crop traders to also rein in their buying, according to people familiar with the matter, who asked not to be identified discussing private information.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/40mP5WT
CHICKENS: From Brooks Johnson via Star Tribune, VERBATIM: “More than 1.4 million chickens whose fate was in limbo after an Iowa slaughterhouse went bankrupt have been euthanized, according to state officials. ‘Given the unavailability of buyers and lack of processing capacity combined with the ever-increasing feed and yardage costs,’ the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship said in a news release, ‘the court granted the department authorization to begin depopulation.’ All 1.3 million chickens formerly owned by Pure Prairie Poultry on Iowa farms had been killed by Friday.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4eaLpuy
From morning take…
MORE: via a Rep. Brad Finstad press release, VERBATIM: “Congressman Brad Finstad (MN-01), member of the House Committee on Agriculture and Chairman of the Subcommittee on Nutrition, Foreign Agriculture, and Horticulture, was joined by U.S. Senator Chuck Grassley (R-IA) in leading seven bicameral members of Congress in a letter to United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Secretary Tom Vilsack regarding distribution and oversight of grants and loans following the recent bankruptcy filing of Pure Prairie Poultry. The Minnesota-based poultry processor received more than $45 million in USDA grants and loans intended to help meat and poultry processors start or expand processing capacity, [but] Pure Prairie Poultry filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/48rVWAp
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FUNDING: Via USDA, VERBATIM: “During a visit to Dramm Corp. today, U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Deputy Secretary Xochitl Torres Small announced that the Biden-Harris Administration is making investments that will strengthen American farms and businesses by expanding innovative domestic fertilizer production and increasing independent meat and poultry processing capacity, which will in turn increase competition and lower fertilizer costs for farmers and food costs for consumers.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/3YIhFke
WEEDS: From Mark Dorenkamp via Brownfield, VERBATIM: “Harvest is a good time for farmers to evaluate weed management. Jeff Moon with Corteva Agriscience says growers should have a good idea of which weeds are the most problematic.” MOON: “Taking note of what that weed species is. If you have a problem, hope out of the combine, or again make a note of it and run back there and grab that and take it to your local retailer or an agronomist or crop consultant that you work with and see if they can identify it at that point.” LISTEN: https://fluence-media.co/3Yk068I
FORESTS: Via USDA, VERBATIM: “Today, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Forest Service announced an investment of more than $265 million to conserve nearly 335,000 acres of ecologically and economically significant forestlands across the nation, in partnership with states across the country, thanks to funding from President Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act. The Forest Service will fund 21 projects in 17 states to conserve working forests that support rural economies.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4htB8ws
MORE: Via USDA, information about funded projects including those in neighboring Wisconsin and Iowa. SEE: https://fluence-media.co/3NN7tAK
FORUM: If you’re interested in having the Fluence Forum host a topic, please contact Blois Olson at bloisolson@gmail.com
DAIRY: Via Red River Farm Network, VERBATIM: “Two major dairies are proposed in eastern North Dakota; a 25,000-cow operation east of Hillsboro and a 12,500-cow farm near Abercrombie. Morris, Minnesota-based Riverview is the company behind these two dairy farms. Riverview is a dairy, beef and crop farm with locations in Minnesota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Arizona and New Mexico.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/3YnUyKF
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