IN THIS ISSUE:

• Congress Goes Home Without Passing Disaster Assistance; NCGA Ready to Seek Disaster Relief in Lame Duck Session
• NCGA-Sponsored Ethanol Pump Tour Stops in Central Missouri Saturday
• NCGA to Promote Aflatoxin/Fumonisin Education, Prevention at Workshop
• NCGA Member Represents Corn, Grains Council in Havana
• NCGA's Vaughan: Texas is a Logical Market for DDGS
• NCGA Reminds CYC Entrants to Turn in Harvest Reports
• NCGA Membership Continues to Break Records
  

NCGA On The Move!

NCGA will move its St. Louis offices on Oct. 23! Visit the NCGA Leader Resource Center (LRC) at <http://www.insidencga.com/?p=19429> to see photo and video updates!
The new address is:
NCGA
632 Cepi Drive
Chesterfield, MO 63005
Ph: 636-733-9004
FAX: 636-733-9005

Because of NCGA's move next week, there will be no Corn Commentary on Friday, Oct. 25. Corn Commentary will return Friday, Nov. 1.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Congress Goes Home Without Passing Disaster Assistance; NCGA Ready to Seek Disaster Relief in Lame Duck Session

NCGA is disappointed the long-term continuing resolution (CR) passed by the U.S. House and Senate Oct. 23 does not contain funding for disaster assistance relief. NCGA is now hopeful Congress will use the lame duck session to pass a funding measure to relieve farmers and ranchers from financial hardships inflicted by recent droughts and flooding. In a last minute effort to keep the federal government operational through Nov. 22, the House passed the CR in a 228-172 vote. To the surprise of many members, the Bush administration maintained its position that the House only pass a "clean" CR, cautioning any new spending must be paid with offsets. In order to quickly pass a CR while side-stepping political ramifications, the House leadership sent a "clean" bill to the floor.

Warning that attaching additional funding to a CR would cause political turmoil and may cause delays, Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert (R-IL) told members "if there's a problem" with disaster aid the House would deal with it in the lame duck session. Speaker Hastert came under great scrutiny from House and Senate members, the industry and media when his quote reached the Washington Post Oct. 17. Senate Budget Committee Chairman Kent Conrad (D-ND) scrutinized Hastert for dismissing House members "without first taking action to provide disaster relief to the ranchers and farmers hit by drought, wildfires, flooding and other natural disasters around the country."

NCGA-Sponsored Ethanol Pump Tour Stops in Central Missouri Saturday

NCGA continues to promote not only the importance of the national energy bill with a renewable fuels standard (RFS), but the overall benefits of ethanol by teaming up with AgriTalk radio to sponsor the "AgriTalk Ethanol Pump Tour 2002." After stops in Iowa, South Dakota and Illinois, the next town on the list is the central Missouri town of Moberly on Saturday.

AgriTalk host Mike Adams, along with NCGA member Ron McNeall, will broadcast and pump gas at the Breaktime station in Moberly, near the intersection of Highways 63 and 24 across from Wal-Mart, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Rep. Kenny Hulshof (R-MO) is also scheduled to be there from 11 a.m. to noon to talk to AgriTalk and those attending the event. The theme for the event is "AgriTalk on your radio - Ethanol in my tank!" AgriTalk also will hand out T-shirts and caps bearing the AgriTalk and NCGA logos. Growers are encouraged to attend the event or listen live on their AgriTalk affiliate. Farmers are also encouraged to contact their elected officials and encourage them to pass a comprehensive energy bill containing the RFS by clicking on the action alert on the NCGA web site at www.ncga.com <http://www.ncga.com>.

****************************************************
What's New at the Leader Resource Center?

NCGA Grower Leaders can receive weekly updates on the latest additions to the LRC! Visit www.insidencga.com <http://www.insidencga.com> for more information on this subscription service or e-mail corninfo@ncga.com <mailto:corninfo@ncga.com> for more!
****************************************************

NCGA to Promote Aflatoxin/Fumonisin Education, Prevention at Workshop

This year, with many states experiencing drought conditions, aflatoxin and fumonisin are expected to be an issue for more corn growers. To help growers affected by these issues, the NCGA will host a workshop in San Antonio, Texas, Oct. 23-25, showcasing research in aflatoxin/fumonisin elimination and fungal genomics.

For more information on the conference, visit the NCGA workshop at <http://www.ncga.com/02profits/aflatoxin/index.htm> or contact Jennifer Mueller at 636-733-9004 ext. 118 or e-mail at mueller@ncga.com <mailto:mueller@ncga.com>.

NCGA Member Represents Corn, Grains Council in Havana

Cuba is eager to import more U.S. grains was the message heard by NCGA member and U.S. Grains Council (USGC) Vice Chairman Terry Wolf when he represented USGC and NCGA at the first-ever U.S. Food & Agribusiness Exhibition in Havana Sept. 26-30.

"In talking with Cuban officials, I learned they want to see better terms for trade," explained Wolf. "Right now they are buying on cash terms only. We also need to open travel between our countries as we need our customers to see how we grow the grain, handle it and ultimately ship the product."
Approximately 70 companies and organizations exhibited at the event, and more than $92 million in sales of U.S. agricultural products have already been reported as a result.

"It's vital that U.S. producers recapture the Cuban market and capitalize upon its proximity to our borders," Wolf said. "Cuba, at one time, imported almost 1 million metric tons of grain from the United States. This year, thanks to some loosening of trade restrictions they are up to about 200,000 tons. But there's obviously great potential for growth in this country."
--Submitted by U.S. Grains Council

NCGA's Vaughan: Texas is a Logical Market for DDGS

Distillers dry grain solubles (DDGS) has become increasingly popular with nutritionists and feed consultants due its profitability when used in rations as a protein and energy source for livestock. NCGA is headed to Texas Oct. 30-31 with the third installment of its DDGS educational conference.

According to NCGA President-Elect and Dumas, Texas, corn grower Dee Vaughan, the Lone Star State is a fitting choice for the meeting. "The southern Great Plains is a logical market for the increasing production of DDGS," he said. "The area including the Texas Panhandle, Oklahoma Panhandle, eastern New Mexico, southeastern Colorado and southwestern Kansas feeds over 35 percent of the nation's beef and is becoming a major dairy and pork-producing region as well. Unit trains already are shipping DDGS from Midwest ethanol plants into a Dalhart, Texas, terminal." To further promote the event and educate the nation's corn growers on the importance of co-products, AgriTalk will broadcast live Oct. 30 from 10-11 a.m. (CST). The individual fee for the conference is $200, and the group rate is $150. For more information about the conference or to register online, visit the NCGA web site at <http://www.ncga.com/research/ddg/index.htm>. Or contact Jennifer Mueller at 636-733-9004 ext. 118 or e-mail at mueller@ncga.com <mailto:mueller@ncga.com>.

NCGA Reminds CYC Entrants to Turn in Harvest Reports

NCGA is reminding those who have entered its annual Corn Yield Contest (CYC) to complete and submit their harvest reports no later than Dec. 1. Growers should also ensure harvest forms are postmarked within seven days of their final yield check. This year's contest had a total of 3,286 entries, beating last year's total despite disastrous weather conditions throughout much of the nation. "I want to thank contest sponsors John Deere and Gustafson for their support," said NCGA Director of Production and Economics Paul Bertels. "Ultimately, this contest hinges on our sponsors, the seed companies and growers interested in demonstrating their ability to increase yields in an environmentally responsible manner." As in years past, state CYC winners will be honored at a breakfast and national winners will be recognized during an awards banquet at the Commodity Classic, the combined convention and trade show of the NCGA and the American Soybean Association. This year, Commodity Classic will be held in Charlotte, N.C., Feb. 27 through March 1. CYC winners will be announced Dec. 16. For more information about the CYC, visit the NCGA web site at <http://www.ncga.com/02profits/CYC/main/index.html>.

****************************************************
Harvest 2002

NCGA Grower Leaders can access a Harvest 2002 discussion board by visiting the NCGA Leader Resource Center at www.insidencga.com <http://www.insidencga.com>.

The Harvest 2002 Discussion board is found on the LRC under "Other NCGA Issues" and then by clicking on Harvest 2002. Growers can post comments on their harvest and answer a short 3-question Harvest 2002 survey.
****************************************************

NCGA Membership Continues to Break Records

In August, NCGA set a record for membership at 32,300. It took only a single month to top that record as NCGA membership reached 32,379 in September. In all, membership has increased by 1,175 members since July 2001.

While many associations are experiencing significant declines in membership, NCGA membership grew 1.52 percent for the fiscal year 2001 - 2002. Several state assocations also had significant increases in membership this year, as well. The Ohio Corn Growers Association added 305 members to its roster, which is a 15.8 percent increase. North Dakota added 206 members, a 15.47 percent increase in their overall membership, and Illinois added 191 members, representing a 4.6 percent increase.

Other states seeing increased numbers include Missouri, 169 members; Wisconsin, 101 members; Minnesota, 215 members; Iowa, 81 members; Michigan, 28 members; and Tennessee, 13 members. Garber said he expects NCGA membership to continue to climb with the recent announcement by Syngenta Seeds and Syngenta Crop Protection that they will continue sponsoring the recruitment program through 2003. NCGA and Syngenta will host a membership kickoff meeting Nov. 20-21 in Las Vegas to provide information and training to top recruiters and their staff, said Garber. For more information on the meeting or other recruitment issues, contact Mike Shelby at 636-733-9004, ext. 120, or by e-mail at shelby@ncga.com <mailto:shelby@ncga.com>. For more information membership, visit the NCGA web site at <https://gims.ncga.com/MEMBERNEW/Default.asp>.

NCGA THIS WEEK

• Oct. 22-25 NCGA Director of Production and Economics Paul Bertels will attend the Aflatoxin Workshop in Amarillo, Texas
• Oct. 23-25 NCGA's St. Louis office will be shut down as staff moves to the new location. The St. Louis office should be online Monday, Oct. 28
  
  

© 2002 National Corn Growers Association

ST. LOUIS OFFICE

WASHINGTON D.C. OFFICE