Farm Stories of 2005 – Thoughts From The Middle of Nowhere

I'm not much for end of the year lists but the <a href="http://www.nafb.com/DesktopDefault.aspx">National Association of Farm Broadcasting</a> came out with one which peaked my interest. n n<a href="http://www.brownfieldnetwork.com/gestalt/go.cfm?objectid=7C4D2204-B97F-C43B-7F7BC0D0B45046B0">Top Ten farm stories of 2005</a> n n<blockquote>NAFB's Top-10 Stories of the Year for 2005: n n1. Energy costs spike and squeeze producer profitability . Some of the impacts of this news item have already been demonstrated. <acronym title="United States Department of Agriculture, Bought and Paid for by The Big Meat Packers">USDA</acronym> Chief Economist Keith Collins in December said higher energy and input prices had cost U.S. farmers and ranchers an additional $5.3 billion in 2005 compared to 2004. But some of the impacts of higher energy costs, like a potential switching of acreage to less input-intensive crops, won't be known until 2006. n n2. Hurricane Katrina devastates Southern agriculture and snarls the U.S grain transportation system . For farmers and ranchers in Louisiana, Mississippi and parts of Alabama, the impact of Hurricane Katrina can hardly be overstated. But the hurricane had a major effect on all of U.S. agriculture, as hundreds of grain barges were taken out of service and Mississippi navigation was disrupted, just as some of the biggest U.S. corn and soybean crops in history were coming out of the field. River transportation costs shot to historically high levels, and already high energy costs spiked. n n3. U.S. Supreme Court finds checkoffs constitutional . In May, the U.S. Supreme Court by a 6 to 3 vote ruled the Beef Checkoff doesn't violate the U.S. Constitution. The decision resolved a years-long legal fight over Checkoff-related First Amendment issues. The decision also applied to an outstanding lower court ruling against the Pork Checkoff, and appeared to assure producer-funded research and promotion efforts would continue into the foreseeable future. n n4. Congress passes comprehensive energy bill with Renewable Fuels Standard . After years of unsuccessful efforts, Congress finally passed an energy bill in July that included a 7.5-billion gallon Renewable Fuels Standard, or RFS, to be implemented in stages between 2006 and 2012. The inclusion of the RFS was a major victory for the U.S. ethanol industry. But, ironically, high energy costs have driven ethanol demand more than prospects of a government mandate. n n5. Japan re-opens market to U.S beef . U.S. Ag Secretary Mike Johanns, during his Senate confirmation hearings in January, said getting Japan to re-open its market to U.S beef was his top priority. 11 months later, and nearly two years after it originally closed, Japan finally did. But the victory was only partial. Japan will only accept beef from U.S. cattle 20-months old or younger, and most meat industry officials agree it will take years before Japan regains its former status as America's most valuable beef market. n n6. Asian Soybean Rust has no impact on U.S. soybean production in 2005 . When Asian Soybean Rust turned up in Louisiana in November of 2004, it quickly spread, and was found in nine U.S states before 2005 began. Producers were advised to watch out for Asian Soybean Rust in the 2005 growing season, and some worried there might not be enough fungicide to handle a major outbreak. But the fungal disease didn't over winter well, and for most of the growing season, Asian Soybean Rust remained confined to Florida, Georgia and Alabama. n n7. U.S. Senate Confirms Nebraska Governor Mike Johanns as U.S. Secretary of Agriculture . Since NAFB broadcasters named U.S. Ag Secretary Mike Johanns as the NAFB Ag Leader of 2005, it's perhaps not surprising that his Senate confirmation made the NAFB Top-10 Farm Stories of the Year. Still, the Senate confirmation hearings gave the country a first glimpse of just how active Johanns would be as U.S. Agriculture Secretary. It also demonstrated the Nebraska Governor was well versed on agricultural issues, and could articulate his position on those issues thoughtfully and convincingly. n n8. U.S. re-opens border to Canadian live cattle . After the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals struck down a lower-court injunction against <acronym title="United States Department of Agriculture, Bought and Paid for by The Big Meat Packers">USDA</acronym>'s Minimal Risk Rule in July, <acronym title="United States Department of Agriculture, Bought and Paid for by The Big Meat Packers">USDA</acronym> moved immediately to re-open the U.S border to Canadian slaughter cattle under 31-months of age. As predicted in advance, the move didn't result in a wall of cattle coming south from Canada, and had little impact on cattle prices. But re-opening the U.S. border did remove an embarrassing political reality, as the Bush administration's pressure on Japan to end its U.S. beef ban seemed at odds with America's ban on Canadian slaughter cattle. n n9. U.S Ag Secretary Mike Johanns holds dozens of farm bill listening sessions in partnership with NAFB . In May, Secretary Johanns announced he would hold Farm Bill Forums across the United States in the months ahead, and that the professional farm broadcasters of NAFB would moderate many of them. Johanns himself attended over 20 of the listening sessions, which had the result of beginning the national debate on the 2007 farm bill more than two years before the 2002 farm bill expired. It also signaled the Bush administration would take a much more active role in crafting the 2007 farm bill than it did in 2002. n n10. U.S. corn crop is second largest ever as Midwest drought is less severe than thought . In the summer of 2005, comparisons to the drought year of 1988 were widespread, especially in Illinois and eastern Iowa. Some analysts believed corn production, after hitting nearly 12-billion bushels in 2004, would dip below 10-billion bushels in 2005. Individual producers were hurt by drought in 2005. But between advances in corn plant genetics, and timely rains in some areas, U.S. corn producers brought in the second-largest U.S. corn crop ever, at just over 11-billion bushels.</blockquote> n nOverall I would have to agree with their assessment. As a cattle producer I might put them in a little different order but they are right. n nA list is only as strong as its weakest link. Donald Knuth