NCGA's Mission: To Create and
Increase Opportunities for Corn Growers
This is Corn Commentary, the weekly newsletter for state and national
grower leaders of the National Corn Growers Association (NCGA). For
complete stories and updated NCGA information, visit www.ncga.com or
the NCGA Leader Resource Center, www.insidencga.com.
IN THIS ISSUE:
- NASS: Corn Crop Projected at 10.97 Billion Bushels
- NCGA Reminds Corn Growers to Properly Channel Herculex Rootworm Grain
- NCGA Grower Leaders Gather in North Carolina for Leadership Academy
- NCGA Welcomes Olson as New Energy Policy Director
- NCGA Hosts Workshop Focused on Future Genetic Research
- NCGA Joins USDA on Tour to Highlight Investments in Rural Communities
- NCGA Participates in Renewable Fuels Summit
- NCGA’s Farmer to Farmer Helps Growers Fight Biotech Bans
- NCGA Congratulates Bruce Knight on Under Secretary for Marketing and Regulatory Programs Confirmation
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NASS: Corn Crop Projected at 10.97 Billion Bushels
The National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) released the August Crop Production report today, projecting an average corn yield of 152.2 bushels per acre and a total production estimate of 10.97 billion bushels, the NCGA notes. (More On This Story)
NCGA Reminds Corn Growers to Properly Channel Herculex Rootworm Grain
The NCGA reminds growers who planted hybrids containing Herculex™ Rootworm technology to develop a marketing plan for channeling the grain. The technology has full regulatory approvals in the United States, Japan and several other major markets, but it still lacks approval for import into the European Union (EU). (More On This Story)
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NCGA Research and Business Development Action Team member Pam Johnson speaks a group of government and industry officials and members of academia at the NCGA Post-sequencing Strategy Workshop in Alexandria, Va., on Tuesday. The goal of the workshop was to outline the next steps in maize genetics research. |
NCGA Hosts Workshop Focused on Future Genetic Research
NCGA Research and Business Development Action Team (RBDAT) members Gary Davis and Pam Johnson attended an NCGA workshop this week in Alexandria, Va., aimed at laying out a framework for the future of corn genetic research. (More On This Story)
NCGA Grower Leaders Gather in North Carolina for Leadership Academy
Twenty corn growers and NCGA officers and staff are convening in Greensboro, N.C., this week for the NCGA Leadership Academy, sponsored by Syngenta Crop Protection. The Leadership Academy is a three-day event that seeks to strengthen the leadership skills of NCGA members who aspire to serve in state or national association leadership positions. (More On This Story)
NCGA Welcomes Olson as New Energy Policy Director
The NCGA today announced Emily Olson has joined the organization as director of public policy for Ethanol, Energy and Renewable Products. Olson will be responsible for legislative and regulatory affairs concerning ethanol, energy and economic analysis, natural gas, climate change, in addition to advocating for biobased products. (More On This Story)
NCGA Joins USDA on Tour to Highlight Investments in Rural Communities
NCGA President Gerald Tumbleson and CEO Rick Tolman joined Secretary of Agriculture Mike Johanns and Under Secretary of Rural Development Tom Dorr on the Mid-America Rural Tour this week to highlight how rural development is reshaping rural communities.
(More On This Story)
NCGA Participates in Renewable Fuels Summit
NCGA Vice President of Public Policy Jon Doggett emphasized corn will play a prominent role in reducing the nation’s dependence on oil at last week’s renewable fuels summit and exposition held by Rep. Mike Fitzpatrick (R-Pa., 8th district). Doggett also reminded the audience corn growers will be able to provide feed, food and fiber for the world. (More On This Story)
NCGA’s Farmer to Farmer Helps Growers Fight Biotech Bans
To ensure growers have choices when they plant, the NCGA is using Farmer to Farmer to target areas outside of the Corn Belt that may be against the use of biotechnology. (More On This Story)
NCGA Congratulates Bruce Knight on Under Secretary for Marketing and Regulatory Programs Confirmation
The NCGA congratulates Bruce Knight on his Senate confirmation last week as U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Under Secretary for Marketing and Regulatory Programs. (More On This Story)
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AROUND THE CORN BELT
News
from State Associations
Illinois: Agronomy Day 2006 will take place Aug. 17 at the Crop Sciences Research and Education Center on the Urbana campus of the University of Illinois. The theme for this year's Agronomy Day is "50 Years of Progress." This 50th consecutive Agronomy Day is a partnership among several academic units in the U of I's College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences (ACES). The event features four tours on the latest developments in agricultural research, as well as numerous tent displays. The Illinois Corn Marketing Board will feature ethanol use in racing and will be represented by Bergfield Racing. The Bergfield Team is in its second year of promoting ethanol use in both Midget and Sprint racing. Tour topics will cover research on invasive insects and weeds, nitrogen management, soybean rust, disease management, experimental technologies and corn-soybean rotation considerations. Agronomy Day will begin at 7 a.m. Additional information about Agronomy Day 2006 is available at www.cropsci.uiuc.edu/agronomyday or by contacting Sharon Conatser, (217) 333-4256.
Michigan: The Corn Marketing Program of Michigan (CMPM) is partnering with the Lenawee Conservation District, the Natural Resources Conservation Service and the Michigan Soybean Promotion Committee to conduct an extensive research and demonstration project known as the Lenawee County Center for Excellence. Through the Center for Excellence, new practices are tried in test plots for producers to learn and evaluate data without it affecting their farming operation’s bottom line. Lenawee County Center for Excellence will hold its 2006 field day on Aug. 23 near Clayton, Mich. Restricted use pesticide credits can be earned for attending the program. At the Center, which includes plots on two different farms in Lenawee County, conservation tillage practices, soil fertility levels, herbicide programs and new seed genetics are tested to determine how producers can increase productivity while conserving Michigan’s natural resources. Please call the Lenawee Soil Conservation District office at (517) 263-7400, ext. 3 for more information.
South Dakota: Reid Jensen, president of the South Dakota Corn Growers Association, met with U.S. Agriculture Secretary Mike Johanns to thank him for the Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) support of expanding and rehabilitating the DM&E Railroad across South Dakota and Minnesota. “The project to rehabilitate and strengthen DM&E’s rail system will help producers have more competitive options to transport not just grains, but ethanol to market,” Jensen said. “DM&E is located right in the heart of ethanol country. With production growing in this area, our next challenge is getting it to the pumps for consumers in a safe, efficient manner. The DM&E expansion project would do exactly that.” Six ethanol plants are located on DM&E and IC&E railroad lines with another two plants under construction for total projected annual production of 1 billion gallons of ethanol. |
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KEY ISSUES
