IN THIS ISSUE:

• Childs Walks Away With NCGA CYC for Fifth Consecutive Year
• Corn Growers Maintained Steady Levels of IRM Adherence in 2002
• NCGA Expresses Concerns About China Export Subsidies to USTR
• Cancellation of the SRA Comes at Bad Time, Says NCGA
• NCGA Pleased to Hear EPA, USDA Announcement on CAFOs
• NCGA President Pays Visits to Capitol Hill Ag Leaders
• NCGA Expects HFCS Deal Soon; Mexican Soft Drink Tax 'Posturing'
• NCGA Mycotoxin Task Force Formed; Seeks to Build Coalition
• NCGA Trade School Registration Under Way
  

NOTICE:
Due to the Christmas holiday, NCGA will not publish Corn Commentary next week. The next Corn Commentary will be Jan. 3, 2003. NCGA would like to wish you and yours a happy and safe holiday season.

Childs Walks Away With NCGA CYC for Fifth Consecutive Year

For the fifth consecutive year, Francis Childs of Manchester, Iowa, had the highest overall yield in the NCGA 2002 National Corn Yield Contest (NCYC) with a record-breaking yield of 442.14 bushels per acre. The previous record was 408.2 bushels per acre fielded by Childs during last year's contest. He wasn't alone in his success. This year's contest had a total of 3,286 entries from 46 states, topping last year's total despite disastrous weather conditions throughout much of the nation. The resulting top yields from farmers who placed first, second, and third nationally in the respective categories ranged from 442.14 to 214.86 bushels per acre.
A NON-IRRIGATED CLASS

Lewis Bickle
Dansville, NY, NY
Pioneer, 33Y18
251.6957 bushels per acre

AA NON-IRRIGATED

Francis Childs
Manchester, IA, IA
Pioneer, 34N44
442.1348 bushels per acre

Daniel Kamps
Darlington, WI, WI
Pioneer, 34N44
282.4807 bushels per acre

Catherine J. Miller
Sperry, IA, IA
Pioneer, 33R77
269.2091 bushels per acre

A NO TILL/STRIP TILL NON-IRRIGATED

Darrell Doub
East Bend, NC, NC
Pioneer, 31G98
241.0022 bushels per acre

H. David Everman
Dansville, NY, NY
Pioneer, 34B23
238.0002 bushels per acre

Wolpert Farms
Buffalo, WV, WV
Pioneer, 31G98
237.8441 bushels per acre

AA NO TILL/STRIP TILL NON-IRRIGATED

Melvin L. Johnston
Smithland, IA, IA
Pioneer, 32R43
268.1161 bushels per acre

Eugene Steiger
Bloomington, WI, WI
Asgrow, RX730RR/YG
257.5873 bushels per acre

Alchar Grain Farms
Darlington, WI, WI
DEKALB, DKC58-78
255.4968 bushels per acre

NO TILL/STRIP TILL IRRIGATED

Harris Brothers LLC
Pasco, WA, WA
Pioneer, 33B50
304.666 bushels per acre

David K. Hula
Charles City, VA, VA
Garst, 8288
304.4044 bushels per acre

DMC Farms, Inc.
Laurel, DE, DE
Pioneer, 33B51
284.1479 bushels per acre

A RIDGE TILL NON-IRRIGATED

Evan Oswalt
Plantersville, MS, MS
Pioneer, 3167
224.2777 bushels per acre

Sullivan Farms
Burdette, AR, AR
Pioneer, 33R77
220.3783 bushels per acre

Griffith Farms
Mayfield, KY, KY
Great Lakes, 6631Bt
214.8613 bushels per acre

AA RIDGE TILL NON-IRRIGATED

Gary Neal Porter
Mercer, MO, IA
Pioneer, 33P67
243.1207 bushels per acre

Cox Farms
Delta, MO, MO
Pioneer, 31G98
239.2547 bushels per acre

Matthew Cox
Scott City, MO, MO
Pioneer, 33P67
233.1406 bushels per acre

RIDGE TILL IRRIGATED

Steven Albracht
Hart, TX, TX
Pioneer, 33B51
281.1886 bushels per acre

John Willoughby
Wood River, NE, NE
Pioneer, 33P67
264.9349 bushels per acre

Bill Wright
Walsh, CO, CO
Pioneer, 33B51
264.9107 bushels per acre

IRRIGATED

Bruce McDaniel
Clayton, NM, NM
Pioneer, 33R77
306.3938 bushels per acreRonnie Williams
Clayton, OK, NM
Pioneer, 33B51
300.2724 bushels per acre

Brigitte M. Young
Erie, IL, IL
Pioneer, 33P67
296.0385 bushels per acre

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. For a complete list of winners and for more information about the CYC, visit the NCGA web site at <http://www.ncga.com/02profits/CYC/main/index.html>.

Corn Growers Maintained Steady Levels of IRM Adherence in 2002

For the third consecutive year, a large majority of corn growers responsibly managed Bt hybrids, according to a recent survey required by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The survey confirmed corn growers are practicing good stewardship and properly following insect resistance management (IRM) requirements to help avoid corn insect pests, such as the European corn borer, from developing resistance to Bt corn. More than 550 growers responded to the survey conducted during the 2002 growing season among Bt corn users in the Corn Belt and Cotton Belt. The survey was conducted in cooperation with NCGA by an independent research firm for the Agricultural Biotechnology Stewardship Technical Committee (ABSTC).

There are two main IRM requirements established by the EPA that growers must follow when planting Bt corn. One involves the size of the non-Bt corn refuge and the other involves the distance between Bt corn and the refuge. EPA requirements say growers must maintain at least a 20 percent non-Bt corn refuge. In certain corn/cotton areas of the South, growers are required to plant at least a 50 percent non-Bt corn refuge. In all areas, every Bt cornfield must be located within one half mile of a refuge cornfield. The survey found 86 percent of growers who planted Bt corn in 2002 met at least the minimum refuge size IRM requirement. Eighty-nine percent of growers (and 94 percent of Bt corn fields) met the distance requirement. The survey results also confirmed findings from previous years that the vast majority of growers (93 percent) believe IRM is important. The survey showed a sharp increase in grower awareness and familiarity of IRM requirements in 2002. Eighty-eight percent of Bt corn growers said they were aware of IRM requirements, which is eight percentage points higher than in 2001. Additionally, 89 percent of Bt corn growers said they received enough information to properly implement a refuge in 2002, an increase from 74 percent in 2001.

NCGA Expresses Concerns About China Export Subsidies to USTR

NCGA, U.S. Grains Council (USGC), and the North American Export Grain Association (NAEGA) met with Ambassador Allen Johnson and United States Trade Representative (USTR) officials Dec. 18 to discuss the organizations' concerns regarding export subsidies and the administration of tariff rate quotas (TRQ) as practiced by the Chinese government.

In related action, the three groups requested immediate action regarding these critical issues in a a letter this week to USTR Robert Zoellick and Secretary of Agriculture Ann Veneman. Since being admitted to the WTO last year, China exported nearly 8.5 million metric tons of corn, most of it at $30 per ton or more below domestic prices. Prior to China joining the WTO, the country subsidized corn exports at $40 to $45 per ton.

NCGA is also apprehensive about China's execution of its corn tariff rate quotas (TRQ). Such concerns as inconsistent allocations of current and previous corn import patterns, commercially non-practical allocations and the method of administering the state TRQ all "raise costs, impede trade and, ultimately, make U.S. corn exports to China very difficult and filling the quota impossible," continued the letter.

Cancellation of the SRA Comes at Bad Time, Says NCGA

NCGA last week urged the U.S. Department of Agriculture not to cancel the Standard Reinsurance Agreement (SRA), which is the contract between the federal government and insurance companies that establishes the amount of risk companies will take, sets the expense reimbursement rate and outlines other basic regulations. The request was sent by NCGA and the National Association of Wheat Growers (NAWG) Dec. 21 in a letter to USDA Secretary Ann Veneman after learning the Federal Crop Insurance Corporation (FCIC) and the Risk Management Agency (RMA) intended to cancel the SRA.

Citing Section 148 of the Agricultural Risk Protection Act of 2000, both groups contended the FCIC can renegotiate the SRA only once during 2001 through 2005. If RMA would hastily be forced to renegotiate the SRA agreement this year, it would be difficult to implement needed constructive changes in future years because of the ban.

NCGA Pleased to Hear EPA, USDA Announcement on CAFO

EPA Administrator Christie Whitman Monday joined USDA Secretary Ann Veneman, to announce the final agency rule designed to control water pollution from the nation's large concentrated livestock operations. According to the joint briefing, the new rule for concentrated animal feeding operations, more commonly known as CAFOs, will better protect the nation's water while protecting the viability of American farming.

According to USDA, the new rule applies to about 15,500 livestock operations across the country. Under the new rule all large CAFOs will be required to apply for a permit, submit an annual report, and develop and follow a plan for handling manure and wastewater. In addition, the rule moves efforts to protect the environment forward by: placing controls on land application of manure and wastewater, covering all major animal agriculture sectors, and increasing public access to information through CAFO annual reports.

The rule also eliminates current permitting exemptions and expands coverage over types of animals in three important ways: the rule eliminates the exemption that excuses CAFOs from applying for permits if they only discharge during large storms; second, the rule eliminates the exemption for operations that raise chickens with dry manure handling systems; and third, the rule extends coverage to immature swine and immature dairy cows.

NCGA President Pays Visits to Capitol Hill Ag Leaders

With less than a month remaining before the 108th Congress commences, National Corn Growers Association (NCGA) President Fred Yoder got a head start communicating NCGA's legislative agenda Dec. 17 when he met with likely future Senate and House Agriculture Committee chairs Sen. Thad Cochran, R-MS, and Rep. Bob Goodlatte, R-VA.

During the Capitol Hill meetings, Yoder discussed a number of Congressional priorities for NCGA including passage of a national renewable fuels standard and the acceptance of genetically modified corn in Europe and Africa. He also talked about NCGA's interest in advancing research initiatives, rural economic development, strengthening the livestock industry, and creating more value added opportunities for all farmers.

Cochran, a fourth-term senator, has been an active voice on the Senate Agriculture Committee during his tenure. He is also in line to chair the agriculture appropriations subcommittee.

NCGA Expects HFCS Deal Soon; Mexican Soft Drink Tax 'Posturing'

Mexico's Lower House voted last week to continue taxing soft drinks using high fructose corn syrup (HFCS), keeping the 20 percent tax that has been in place since January 1, 2002, effectively blocking the use of U.S.-made corn syrup as a sweetener. The action by the Mexican Congress is discouraging at a time when the United States Government is trying to negotiate a settlement to the ongoing sweetener dispute between the two countries. NCGA President and Plain City, Ohio, corn grower Fred Yoder said the extension of the tax maintains the status quo, and will likely be lifted as soon as the United States Trade Representative negotiates a final agreement. "I spoke (Thursday) with (Chief Agriculture Negotiator for the Office of the United States Trade Representative) Allen Johnson and it is his opinion this is more posturing than anything else," he said. "It was his understanding the tax was a permanent tax until it is repealed, so anything else is just posturing for a final settlement." The tax on HFCS, which in Mexico is largely made with U.S.-grown corn, was a measure Congress slipped into a fiscal reform package in 11th-hour deal-making last year. The tax was an attempt to aid Mexico's debt-ridden sugar industry and increase the government's tax collection revenues. Mexico's Congress argued that strict U.S. sugar quotas, which limit total imports to 1.2 million metric tons annually, force the Mexican sugar industry to sell its excess sweetener elsewhere below market prices for a loss of $600 million each year. Mexico conducts nearly 90 percent of its commerce with the United States.

NCGA Mycotoxin Task Force Formed; Seeks to Build Coalition

In an effort to build a coalition of affected states to limit the ravages of mycotoxin-afflicted corn, the NCGA Production and Stewardship Action Team (PSAT) formed the Mycotoxin Task Force. Scott Averhoff, a corn grower from Waxahachie, Texas, was appointed as chairman of the task force. An example of mycotoxins is aflatoxin, a toxin produced by a fungus that naturally occurs in corn, cotton, peanuts and tree nuts and is most common in drought-related corn. Texas and other southern states routinely deal with it, but this year more northern corn growers were experiencing aflatoxin due to widespread drought. Averhoff was quick to point out, however, the task force isn't limited to just aflatoxin research. The need for a task force was made clear during NCGA's Aflatoxin/Fumonisin Elimination Workshop held San Antonio in October. More than 135 researchers came together to discuss the latest research and look for a way to end a blight affecting many of the nation's corn growers.

NCGA Trade School Registration Under Way

Corn growers will have the opportunity to learn the latest on trade issues affecting U.S. agriculture at the NCGA Trade School II, Jan. 27 and 28 in Washington, D.C. During the two-day seminar, NCGA members will have the opportunity to participate in break-out sessions to discuss topics like long range visioning for NCGA, bulk v. value added exports, transportation capabilities and trading competition.

NCGA THIS WEEK

• Dec. 24-25 NCGA offices closed in observance of Christmas
• Jan. 1 NCGA offices closed for New Year's Day
  

   

  © 2002 National Corn Growers Association

ST. LOUIS OFFICE

WASHINGTON D.C. OFFICE