(Radio Iowa) — The public policy director for the Iowa Pork Producers Association says they’re evaluating a possible appeal of a federal court ruling that overturned the state’s so-called “ag gag” law. Drew Mogler says it’s hard to know how much impact the measure really had in discouraging undercover investigations of livestock facilities, although there have been fewer of them since it was signed into law by former Governor Terry Branstad in 2012. “So, you could give credit to this legislation for that,” Mogler said.

But Mogler also believes producers have also become more vigilant when it comes to hiring employees on their farms. “Making sure that the folks they’ve got providing care and comfort for the animals are there with the best intentions, want to be working with animals, and working productively on their farm,” Mogler said.

A federal court last week ruled Iowa’s “ag gag” law unconstitutional. The law set up a penalty for people who get a job on a farm or in a livestock confinement in order to go undercover to release details of the operation or free the animals. Federal courts have struck down similar laws in Idaho, Utah and Wyoming.

(Radio Iowa) — The partial federal government shutdown has cut services at wildlife preserves, but it’s not stopping bird watchers and other wildlife enthusiasts from exploring. At Desoto National Wildlife Refuge in western Iowa, the visitors center and most of the trails are closed, but John Calhoun from Papillion, Nebraska, says he still had a productive day taking pictures of birds. “I’ve seen some eagles, some hawks,” Calhoun says, “and that’s pretty much about it — and a lot of cars.”

Staff numbers at DeSoto have been reduced by the shutdown, but Chuck Traxler, with the U-S Fish and Wildlife Service, says the limited trail access is not related to what’s going on in Washington. Traxler says, “There are areas that may be closed at certain times of the year, not as a result of federal funding, but in order to protect wildlife or unique ecological habitats.” Fish and Wildlife is not charging entrance fees at refuges during the partial shutdown, which is in its third week. Iowa has seven National Wildlife Refuges. Traxler encourages people to get out and visit them, even while the government is shut down.

The Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR) report DNR staff were on site four miles west of Winterset responding to a spill at a hog confinement, Wednesday. The site owners, Waldo Farms of Nebraska, reported a release due to a plugged pipeline. That spill has stopped and did not reach a creek.

During the investigation, DNR field staff discovered a second, ongoing manure spill from a closed hog confinement. Manure storage at the closed facility was full, causing a small amount of manure-laden waters to overflow into a Cedar Creek tributary.

The DNR’s field tests showed elevated ammonia levels in the tributary, but normal levels downstream in Cedar Creek. The agency is requiring the owner to stop the release. Officials say the DNR will continue to monitor the cleanup and consider appropriate enforcement action.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — A federal judge has struck down a 2012 Iowa law that made it illegal to get a job at a livestock farm to conduct an animal cruelty undercover investigation. Judge James Gritzner in an order filed Wednesday sided with opponents of a law intended to stop organizations like People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals from doing animal abuse investigations at farms and puppy mills. The judge found the law violates the First Amendment’s right to free speech.

Several groups filed a lawsuit in October 2017 in U.S. District Court in Des Moines. Federal courts have struck down similar laws in Idaho, Utah and Wyoming. Litigation is ongoing in North Carolina.
A spokesman for the Iowa attorney general’s office, which represented the state, says an appeal is under consideration.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Farmers already reeling from low prices and uncertainty amid the nation’s trade dispute with China are welcoming a decision to extend a deadline for federal aid because of the partial government shutdown. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue on Tuesday announced the Agriculture Department would extend a Jan. 15 deadline for farmers to apply for payments to offset losses they had incurred due to the trade dispute, which led to new tariffs that lessened demand and lowered crop prices. About $9.5 billion in direct payments have been set aside for growers of soybeans, corn, wheat and other commodities.

Many farmers already have received the first of two payments to offset some of their losses, but others haven’t been able to apply for aid because snow and rain delayed their harvest. Farmers can’t apply for federal payments until they can specify the size of their crop. It’s unclear how much of the federal money has been spent. Farmers can apply online for the aid, but Perdue noted they couldn’t complete the application because the USDA’s Farm Service Agency has been closed since Dec. 28.

Under Perdue’s new order, the application deadline will be extended by an equal number of days to the business days the government was partially closed. The shutdown also meant growers who had questions about the process couldn’t reach out to USDA employees. Perdue’s announcement was welcomed by Iowa U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley, a farmer who earlier had said he’d seek the federal aid.

The government shutdown comes as farmers were already enduring a fifth year of low prices even as the cost of land, fertilizer, chemicals and seed have remained high, leading to a drop in net income. As they make plans for this year’s crop, farmers have been left guessing about the market and other issues because the shutdown has forced the USDA to delay the release of crop reports providing key information about global demand.

w/Kate Olson.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (2.7MB)

Subscribe: RSS

OMAHA, Nebraska – Farmland values in areas of the grain belt states served by Farm Credit Services of America (FCSAmerica) softened slightly in the last half of 2018, but remained stable overall. Benchmark farmland values in Iowa, which generally is on the leading edge of changes in the real estate market, declined 1.4 percent in the last six months of 2018. For the year, farmland values were largely unchanged. Nebraska and South Dakota each saw modest declines for the year. Only Wyoming experienced an uptick in benchmark farmland values, although the few number of farm sales in that state make it challenging to analyze its real estate trends.

Tim Koch, chief credit officer for FCSAmerica, says “The softening of the market in the latter half of 2018 wasn’t unexpected and, in fact, it better aligns farmland values to profitability in the grain sector. While producers in many areas of our territory benefited from strong yields in 2018, the industry continues to be challenged by compressed margins. For producers who rent farmland, softening in the market will help their bottom line.”

Compared to the market’s peak, farmland values are down 19.5 percent in Nebraska, 18.1 percent in Iowa and 12.0 percent in South Dakota. Continued pressure on profit margins could lead to additional softening in 2019. However, the same factors that have helped to stabilize the market for the past three years remain in place, including interest rates near historic lows and strong demand for quality land that is in tighter supply.

The chart below reflects changes in farmland values for FCSAmerica’s 64 benchmark farms. The number of benchmark farms in each state is noted in parentheses.

Fourteen of Iowa’s 21 benchmark farms decreased in value in the last six months of 2018, while two increased and five showed no change. In Nebraska, eight farms declined in value, six increased and four showed no change. Twelve benchmark farms in South Dakota showed no change in value, four increased and seven decreased in value. Wyoming’s cropland benchmark farm experienced a 4.2 percent increase in value and its pasture unit improved 2.0 percent.

FCSAmerica appraises its benchmark farms twice a year, in January and July. In addition, the cooperative compiles records from farmland sales in its four states. The cooperative’s objective in using the benchmark farms is to track real estate values without the influence of changes in land quality on sale prices.

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — The U.S. Supreme Court has decided not to preside over legal challenges to laws in California and Massachusetts requiring larger living areas for some farm animals. A total of 15 states led by Missouri and Indiana had asked the court to accept original jurisdiction over the lawsuits.

President Donald Trump’s administration had urged it not to do so. It said the dispute over interstate commerce was best suited for a district court. The lawsuit against California targeted a law barring the sale of eggs from hens that are not raised in cages large enough for them to stretch out.

The other suit challenged a Massachusetts law requiring all eggs sold there to come from cage-free hens by 2022. That law also bars tight cages for pigs and calves.

Larry Hunt, CAM PK-8 Principal, reports the CAM FFA and the CAM Middle School FFA along with the CAM Middle School are doing a joint community service project. The groups are working with a non-profit group called Meals for the Heartland, to package 30,000 meals to be donated to local food banks and other needy food banks, that send meals to areas around the world to help people in need. The chapter applied for a grant of $2,000 from the Farm Credit Services, in Harlan.

The Chapter also received a donation from the Anita Lions club to help pay for the products used in the meals. To meet the monetary needs Farm Credit Services gave an additional $700 to fund the project. On Jan. 10th members of both FFA groups along with 5th, 6th, 7th,and 8th graders will be set up in two groups to package the meals.

Officials with Pioneer seeds report the Atlantic Chapter of the FFA demonstrated a great amount of creativity in the Pioneer^® brand A-Series soybeans Big A Challenge. The chapter’s final masterpiece will be one of 15 featured during 2019 Farm Progress Show in Decatur, Ill.

A judging panel selected the top 15 chapters in the collaboration between Pioneer and FFA that focuses on the next generation of soybean varieties and the next generation of growers. Each chapter will bring a unique perspective to decorating a seven-foot-tall Big A statue, highlighting A-Series soybeans’ cutting-edge science and game-changing yield potential while celebrating local communities.

“We are impressed by the creativity from the next generation,” says John Schartman, Pioneer Soybean Category Lead, Corteva Agriscience™, Agriculture Division of DowDuPont. “The FFA chapters brought their ‘A’ game to the first round of competition. We’re excited to see how they will tie together A-Series soybeans, the Pioneer spirit and their local community in the final designs.”

FFA chapters were selected based on an essay highlighting how A-Series soybeans benefit farmers and a sample design of their Big A statue. Chapters will decorate the Big A statues through May, with the top three winners awarded prize money — $2,500 for first place, $1,500 for second place and $1,000 for third place — at the 2019 Farm Progress Show. The public also will vote for their favorites on the Pioneer Facebook and Twitter pages, with the winning chapter receiving the People’s Choice Award and a special prize for its members.

The Big A Challenge premiered at 2018 Farm Progress Show in Boone, Iowa, with seven Big A statues promoting A-Series soybeans placed around the grounds. Follow #FFAseries on Facebook and Twitter to see the creativity of these FFA chapters.