Farm Journal Pulse

What Do Biden’s Climate Policies Mean for Agriculture?

Fri, 30 Apr 2021 19:35:55 GMT

What farmers think about Biden’s goal to cut greenhouse gas emissions 50% by 2030? In an April 27 Farm Journal Pulse poll, we asked:

“President Biden released a goal to cut greenhouse gas emissions 50% by 2030. For agriculture, this will be:”

Here’s how the 976 respondents answered:

4%—Positive, creating new revenue
72%—Negative, creating new regulation
14%—Positive and negative
1%—Neutral—will not impact agriculture
9%—Don’t know

Want to share your feedback? Text “Pulse” to 31313 to join the Farm Journal Pulse audience.

Share your thoughts in the comments below.

Job Approval Pulse Poll Shows Biden Has Big Hill to Climb with Ag

Sat, 27 Feb 2021 16:04:57 GMT

Respondents to the Farm Journal Pulse poll, who had shown a strong affinity to Donald Trump, now say they strongly disapprove of the job so far by President Joe Biden.

Of the 1,459 respondents, 75% said they strongly disapprove of Biden’s job so far as president. Only 9% strongly approve while 5% somewhat approve.

The Farm Journal Pulse is sent via text to approximately 5,000 farmers, ranchers and others involved in agriculture.

“We’re not focusing on anything of substance,” said farmer Casey Schumacher of Nebraska on the AgriTalk Radio Show. “We went from impeachment No. 2 to now a $1.9 trillion giveaway full of pork. It was very short-sighted to use reconciliation on this $1.9 trillion stimulus deal. If he would have went for the infrastructure, I think maybe you would have seen a turn, but it’s just going back to same old Washington, I think is people’s thoughts.”

Pro Farmer Policy Analyst Jim Wiesemeyer agreed that pushing through a stimulus bill with no expected Republican votes is driving the ag sentiment reflected in the Pulse poll.

“He campaigned on bipartisanship but it looks like they’re governing on partisanship, to be fair, and I think that’s reflected in that poll,” he said.

A year ago, 83% of Pulse respondents said they strongly approve or somewhat approve of the job performance of then President Donald Trump.

Farmers Want Proof of Concept Before Trying Biologicals

Mon, 11 Jan 2021 19:55:50 GMT

While biologicals aren’t new to the ag industry, there is still trepidation about them. Farmers wonder if they work and what they actually do—all of which impacts their likelihood of trying these products.

According to a recent Farm Journal Pulse, 41% of farmers say they need to know more about biologicals before they’ll use them. However, 35% of farmers think there is potential for biologicals in row crops.

See the picture above for detailed Pulse results.

Biologicals poised for growth

“The largest market for biopesticides is conventional crops,” says Keith Jones, executive director of the Biological Products Industry Alliance (BPIA), in previous interview. He estimates more than 400 companies are interested in biostimulants and at least 200 already have biostimulant products.

Types of biologicals

There are two general categories of biological products: biopesticides and biostimulants.“Biopesticides are reduced risk pesticides that are naturally derived or synthetic equivalents of natural materials such as animals, plants, bacteria, fungi and certain minerals,” Jones says. BPIA says biopesticides:

Allow organic producers to control pests while maintaining certified organic status.
Provide greater flexibility at harvest due to minimal re-entry or preharvest intervals.
Require fewer pieces of personal protective equipment for ag workers.
Act as effective resistance management tools because of their alternate, and often multiple, modes of action.
Can be used as a residue management tool.

“Biostimulant is a substance or substances and/or microorganism whose function when applied to seeds, plants or the rhizosphere is to stimulate natural processes to benefit nutrient uptake, efficiency, tolerance to abiotic stress and crop quality or yield,” Jones explains.

Biostimulants:

Enhance plant growth and development.
Improve efficiency of nutrients through better uptake or reduced losses.
Work as soil amendments to improve soil structure, function or performance to enhance plant response.

Each of these two categories has different regulatory requirements; funding from the farm bill will help ensure they’re accurately defined and tested before product launch.

FJ Pulse: More than 40% of Soybean Producers Plan to Apply Dicamba

Tue, 17 Nov 2020 05:33:45 GMT

In the most recent Farm Journal Pulse, farmers talked about dicamba—if they plan to use it, and how. Results show that 44% of farmers plan to apply dicamba or have it applied on their farms.

Of the 644 responses, 30% said they went through training and plan to apply dicamba themselves, 13% said they’re hiring a custom applicator and 1% (six respondents) said they’ll be applying dicamba without training—illegally.

“Annual dicamba applicator training is mandatory as a part of the Restricted Use Pesticide classification of in-crop dicamba products,” Corteva Agriscience, the agriculture department of DowDuPont, said in a provided statement. Corteva “is providing in-person and online training to satisfy mandatory applicator training requirements.”

For the farmers who said they plan to apply dicamba illegally it could have serious consequences. Illegal application also includes using generics or other dicamba products over-the-top of soybeans and cotton it not labeled for that specific use.

“BASF strongly oppose the illegal use of dicamba and the off-label use of any product. Off-label applications negatively impacts the farming community, including those farmers who apply products legally. It’s critical that growers report instances of off-label applications. We’ll continue to support federal and state agency enforcement of illegal applications and laws that prohibit the use of unregistered dicamba formulations,” BASF said in a written statement to AgWeb.

Training is available in a variety of outlets, with some states allowing applicators to complete online training any time prior to application. Prior to purchasing dicamba products, applicators must first prove they’re certified.

“As we sit here today we’re approaching 30,000 trained applicators who went through training,” said Ryan Rubischko, Bayer North America dicamba portfolio lead. “Last year we just had 25,000 applicators. There is high awareness that training is required.”

Bayer estimates Xtend traits will be on planted on 60 million soybean or cotton acres. This marks the fourth year of the germplasm and third year of legal dicamba application.

About 11% of Pulse respondents said they purchased Roundup Ready 2 Xtend soybeans because of the advanced genetics, defensively or for another reason, with no intent to apply dicamba. For farmers using this approach an early attack against weeds is critical.

“In general, my recommendation for spray season is start clean with an effective burndown with residual and make the post application before weeds exceed four inches in height—about 20 to 30 days after planting,” said Greg Elmore, Bayer crop protection technology and development lead. “Use overlapping residual to maintain weed-free to canopy closure.”

Farmers Share Their Cropping Intentions for 2018

Tue, 17 Nov 2020 05:33:42 GMT

As farmers look for ways to improve their profitability in 2018, one of the areas many are evaluating is their crop mix. The question of whether farmers will make crop changes this year was asked in a Farm Journal PULSE survey conducted earlier this month.

Of the 596 farmers who responded to the question, roughly half (54%) said they will continue what they did in 2017. Of farmers who said they plan to make a change, the most common response (20%) was that they will plant fewer corn acres and more soybeans. On the flip side, 8% of respondents said they will plant fewer soybeans and more corn.

Only 6% of respondents said they plan to branch out and diversify beyond their current crop mix this year, with cotton, sorghum and fruits/vegetables each garnering 2% of the responses. Seven percent of respondents selected “other” as their answer, indicating that they plan to diversify beyond row crops, cotton, sorghum and fruits/vegetables.

Five percent of respondents shared that they plan to add livestock or expand the amount of livestock on their farming operation this year, a decision that reflects the profits in beef, dairy, pork and poultry that some producers were able to capture this past year.

For a complete overview of farmers’ responses to the survey, check out the chart and map provided below. While farmers’ responses to PULSE are shared anonymously via text, the map highlights the area from which each person’s response originated.

The Farm Journal Pulse polls farmers and ranchers for their straight-from-the-farm opinions and crop progress updates twice each month. To participate, text the word PULSE to 31313*. If you have suggestions of questions you’d like us to ask the national panel, e-mail FJPulse@farmjournal.com .

Trump Approval Among Farmers Rises to 79%

Tue, 17 Nov 2020 05:33:42 GMT

U.S. farmers continue to throw their support behind President Donald Trump, despite a lack of progress in tariff talks with China’s Xi Jinping at the G20 Summit in Japan earlier this month.

A Farm Journal Pulse survey conducted Monday shows that 79% of farmers now approve of the job Mr. Trump is doing, versus 74% who said they approved in the Pulse poll conducted on June 11. That approval rating includes 53% who strongly approve and 26% who somewhat approve.

“Many in the ag sector hope the president works things out with China, but know it is a difficult endeavor.” - Jim Wiesemeyer, Pro Farmer Policy Analyst

The June 11 survey had 1,129 respondents, while yesterday’s survey had 1,100 respondents from farmers and ranchers.
Fifteen percent of respondents say they strongly disapprove of the president’s job performance. That percentage remained the same from the June 11 survey. Only 4% of respondents reported strong disapproval for the president while 2% were not sure.

“The Pulse result accurately captures what I hear in my many talks throughout the country and from emails from many farmers and ranchers,” says Pro Farmer policy analyst Jim Wiesemeyer. “Many in the ag sector hope the president works things out with China, but know it is a difficult endeavor.”

The Farm Journal Pulse is a national text message based survey sent to approximately 5,000 farmers and ranchers in the continental United States for their straight-from-the-farm opinions on topics that are wide-ranging—from production agriculture to politics and everything agriculturally focused in-between. The survey provides an at-the-moment snapshot of farmer sentiment of current thoughts and trends on a topic, reflecting the raw, unweighted vote totals of Pulse participants.

The June Pulse survey of presidential approval drew the attention of the Wall Street Journal as well as President Donald Trump who tweeted about the supportive poll results on his return from the G-20 Summit in Japan.

The highly respected Farm Journal has just announced my Approval Rating with our great Farmers at 74%, and that despite all of the Fake & Corrupt News that they are forced to endure. Farmers have been unfairly treated for many years - and that is turning around FAST!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 30, 2019

Suggestions for the Pulse survey can be e-mailed for consideration to FJPulse@farmjournal.com.

From The Farm Journal Family

Tue, 17 Nov 2020 05:33:42 GMT

Visit AgWeb.com/blogs

Market Watch
Alan Brugler offers weekly commentary on commodity prices and what they mean to farmers.

Planting Maps are Back!

See the latest planting progress updates from USDA on our interactive maps. Watch as corn and soybean planting percentages are logged each week on a state-by-state basis.

www.AgWeb.com/crops/planting-news-maps-and-updates

Cash Rents Stall

Tue, 17 Nov 2020 05:33:38 GMT

Most rates are the same as 2016

It’s true falling farm incomes are pressuring cash rents. But rates typically move slowly.

Why? There are two reasons: contract duration and contract terms, says David Widmar, a Purdue agricultural economist.

“It’s rare to renegotiate every contract on every acre every year,” he says. “Therefore, it will probably take several years to get them all lower.”

There are a lot of agreement types beyond flat cash rents, Widmar adds. Bonuses or other incentives might make it advantageous to delay renegotiation.

Geography is also a factor. “Local conditions can really impact rates,” Widmar says.

There’s also a correlation between farmland value and cash rent rates, he says. For example, land values have really “popped” in the past decade in areas such as North Dakota, South Dakota, Iowa and Minnesota. Widmar expects those areas to adjust back more quickly than other areas.

On the other hand, in areas of the South and Southeast that didn’t see a big boom in farmland and cash rent prices, he doesn’t expect a large downward swing, either.

Widmar’s best advice for farmers looking to renegotiate cash rents is to be open and transparent during the process. Understand how the landowner is using the income from rented ground—do they depend on it as stable income or are they treating it as an investment opportunity? That will help identify the optimal type of contract to pursue.

Stat Rack

Tue, 17 Nov 2020 05:33:33 GMT

The Farm Journal Pulse, a text-message poll of farmers and ranchers, tracked the hot topics this year:

75% of 1,378 respondents on Oct. 3 said the benefits of oil and natural gas production in rural America outweigh the negatives.

25% of 1,447 respondents on Sept. 20 planned to buy their 2013 corn seed in November.

57% of 1,503 respondents on July 6 said they were very concerned about weed resistance; 11% reported it as their biggest agronomic concern.

58% of 1,374 respondents on May 17 revealed marketing as the biggest challenge for their farm operation.

47% of 1,022 respondents on April 19 said infrastructure resources should be focused on local and county roads.

To sign up for the next Farm Journal Pulse survey, text “Pulse” to 46786 or go to www.FarmJournalPulse.com .

FJ Pulse: Fifth of Farmers to Prevent Plant Half Their Corn Acres

Tue, 17 Nov 2020 05:33:30 GMT

Thirty-four percent of farmers plan to file prevented plant claims on more than a quarter of their acres, according to the latest Farm Journal Pulse poll taken Tuesday on the eve of the crop insurance final planting date for Illinois, Indiana and Ohio.

Of the 983 farmers surveyed, 14% said they plan to take prevented plant on over half of their corn acres. Just over half (52%) said they do not plan to file prevented plant claims on any of their corn acres. Fourteen percent reported plans to claim ten percent of their acres or less, 13% said a quarter of their corn acres will not be planted and 7% pegged prevent plant at 50% of their corn acres.

AgriTalk Radio host and Farm Journal economist Chip Flory called the numbers “unprecedented.”

“What you’re talking about is somewhere between seven and eight million prevent plant acres in corn,” Flory said. “We’ve never had more than 30 million acres of corn left to plant in June. And I know that if there is an opportunity to plant up to June 12, June 15, something like that guys are going to stick with their intentions to plant corn. But with the with the rain that we’ve had over the last 48 hours, and with the rain that is expected between now and the end of the week, it’s not that guys don’t want to plant, it’s not that the market hasn’t offered the incentive to put a crop in the ground, but when it’s physically impossible to plant that crop, prevent plant is the best option.”

Those reporting more than 50% of their acres going to prevent plant are centered in the northwest corner of Ohio and southeast Michigan, Indiana, South Dakota, Minnesota and along the Missouri River.

Steve Pitstick of Maple Park, IL told Flory on the AgriTalk Radio Show that he probably won’t be able to plant a quarter of his corn.

“You know, we’re farmers, we’ll try to plant,” Pitstick said. “We’re going to try to plant soybeans on that. We’ll give the soybeans a chance up until the Fourth of July. Then it’s over, season over. Part of me fells kind like this is kind of like losing a close friend or a family member. It’s tough.”

Additional prevent plant coverage from AgWeb.com:

Pulse Poll: More Than a Third of Farmers to Take Prevent Plant

How to Weigh Your Prevent Plant Decision

How To Talk To Your Landlord About Prevent Plant

How Many Prevent Plant Acres Will The Market Allow?

Considering Prevent Plant? Call Your Agent Now

A Comprehensive Look: Should Farmers Use Prevent Plant or Plant?

MFP 2.0 Makes Prevent Plant Decisions Even More Difficult

Planting Delayed? Here Are Your Prevent Plant Options

Is Prevent Plant the Most Profitable Option in 2019?