Wednesday, March 20, 2013

Swift County Monitor-News

Page 7

Rural Life
Markets
Grain Markets
BEANS..................................13.85 CORN......................................7.03 OATS.......................................3.60 WHEAT....................................7.51

Memories of a Former Kid

MDA to present customers Minnesota Grown research

Farmers market managers and vendors from across Minnesota will be the rst to hear the results of customer research conducted by the Minnesota Department of Agricultures Minnesota Grown Program. The new research will be presented at the Minnesota Farmers Market Associations Spring Conference on March 21 in Waite Park. During the summer of 2012, the Minnesota Grown Program conducted a customer survey at fty-seven farmers markets throughout the state. More than 1,100 customers participated in the survey and were asked questions such as How did you hear about this market? or How often do you shop at this market? Minnesota Grown Program Coordinator Paul Hugunin says the market research collected by the survey will help growers better understand which services and products are most important to their customers. Learning more about their customers such as how they use
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WEB Livestock
STEERS.....................110.25-119.00 HFS...........................114.00-118.50 N O M A R K E T S COWS................................75.00-84.00 BULLS................................85.00-93.50

CFSA PC PricWHEAT....................................7.68 CORN......................................7.21 BARLEY..................................4.92 OATS.......................................4.07 SOYBEANS..........................14.07

Average farmer produces food for 155 people

Focus On Ag
By Kent Thiesse Farm Management Analyst & Vice President MinnStar Bank Lake Crystal

National Ag Week is being celebrated March 17-23 all across the United States, as well as in Minnesota with Tuesday, being designated as National Ag Day. As we celebrate National Ag Week, it is a good time to reect on all the traditions and advancements that help make the U.S. agriculture industry second to none! Following are some interesting statistics about todays agriculture industry: - There are currently about 2.2 million farms in the United States (by USDA denition), with about 922 million acres in

National Agriculture Day

Reaching more farmers through ag professionals

By Bev Durgan, Dean, University of Minnesota Extension Tuesday was National Agriculture Day, a day to recognize the hard working men and women who produce the food, feed, ber and fuel that generate more than $75 billion in economic activity every year in Minnesota. Our state is a leader in agricultural production, ranking in the top 10 states in cash receipts from our farms and in the export of farm products. Moreover, agriculture provides more than 340,000 jobs in Minnesota, and the state is home to many of the nations top agribusinesses. Modern farming is a more complex eld than ever, and University of Minnesota Extension keeps farmers upto-date with best practices that help their bottom line and their stewardship of the land and water through various eld days, on farm research, meetings and electronic media. Extensions researchbased information also reaches growers through the agricultural professionals they work with. Minnesota farmers rely on the partnership of agricultural professionals-consultants, seed and fertilizer dealers, pesticide applicators and local Extension educators-to help them manage all aspects of their enterprise. These agricultural professionals in turn rely on Extensions Institute for Agricultural Professionals to learn about the newest agricultural research and innovations. For more than 20 years, the Institute has been a pioneer in providing hands-on opportunities to agricultural professionals with hands-on opportunities related to crop management, including an annual eld school delivered at the Universitys Research and Outreach Centers, research updates offered at locations throughout Minnesota, and a crop pest management course that reaches hundreds of agricultural professionals as part of a trade show each December. As Extension agronomist Jeff Gunsolus says, herbicide issues are in the forefront on farms today. Fewer chemicals are used on the farm when agricultural professionals guide farmers to the right herbicide on the right weed at the right time. Farmers resources are used more efciently, weeds develop less resistance, and environmental impacts are reduced. It is
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production, with an average farm size of about 450 acres. - There are approximately 375,000 farms in the U.S. with annual gross sales exceeding $100,000 per year. While those farms represent only about 17 percent of the total number of farms, they account for over 80 percent of the total sales of agricultural products each year. - 95 percent of the farms and ranches are operated by farm families as individuals, as well as by family partnerships and family corporations, usually multi-generational. - According to recent data, it is estimated that 88 percent of the farms with over $1 million in annual gross sales are familybased farming operations. - The U.S. Agriculture Industry employs more than 21 million people to produce, process, sell, and trade the Nations food and ber, or about 15 percent of the total U.S. workforce. Approximately 3.3 million people are directly involved in farming and ranching in the U.S. - Today there are over 300,000 women who are the primary managers of farm operations in the United States, which is an increase of nearly 30 percent in the past decade. - The number of African American, Hispanic, and American Indian farmers in the U.S. has also increased signicantly in the past decade. - The sale of crops accounts for approximately 58 percent of the total gross receipts received by farmers in the United States, while the sale of livestock products is about 42 percent. - Each year, U.S. farmers and ranchers produce approximately 875 billion pounds of feed grains (corn, wheat, etc.), 222 billion pounds of oilseed crops (soybeans, sunowers, etc.), 140 billion pounds of horticulture crops (fruits, vegetables, etc.), and 132 billion pounds of sugarbeets, cotton, and other crops. They also produce about 42 billion pounds of poultry, 26 billion pounds of beef, and 22 billion pounds of pork. All of these crops and livestock are produced, processed, and marketed more efciently and much safer than a few decades ago. - It takes the average American less than 40 days to earn enough disposable income to pay for all the food that is consumed at home and away from home during the entire year. - By comparison, it takes consumers about 100 days of earned income to pay all federal, state, and local taxes each year, and nearly 60 days of income to cover health insurance and medical costs. - The U.S. farmer of today produces enough food and ber for approximately 155 people. This number was 19 people in 1940, 46 people in 1960, and 115 people in 1980.

- Farmers receive just under 16 cents of every consumer dollar that is spent on food. The other 84 cents is spent on processing, packaging, marketing, transportation, distribution, and retail costs of the food supply. - One acre of wheat will yield about 40 bushels per acre and will produce over 2,000 loaves of bread, or over 50 loaves of bread per bushel of wheat. - If a farmer is paid $6.50 per bushel for wheat from the farm, the wheat cost in a loaf of bread is only about 18 cents per loaf. (Est. Retail Value is about $2.99/loaf). Following is the farmers share of some other common food products and the (Est. Retail Value as of February, 2013, based on USDA average prices): Bacon - $.89/lb. ($4.83/lb.); Sirloin Steak - $2.00/lb. ($7.99/ lb.); Boneless Ham - $.89/lb. ($3.99/lb.); Milk - $1.67/gal ($4.12/ gal.); Eggs - $.98/doz. ($2.89/doz.); Breakfast Cereal - $.13/box ($4.89/box); Potatoes - $.31/ve lbs. ($3.29/ve lbs.); Tomatoes - $.33/lb. ($3.88/lb.). - The soil erosion rate in the U.S. has declined by over 40 percent in the past twenty years. Today, conservation tillage methods are utilized on over 72 million acres of crop acres in the U.S., contour farming practices are used on approximately 26 million acres, and over 1.3 million acres of waterways are maintained by U.S. farmers. - Fresh beef sold at the retail meat counter in the U.S. has 25 to 30 percent less fat content than 20 years ago. - Today, the average pork tenderloin only has about one gram more fat content than a skinless chicken breast, which is considered among the leanest of meat products. - Todays modern combines, harvest over 900 bushels of corn per hour, or 100 bushels every seven minutes. By comparison, in the 1930s, before modernized harvesting equipment, a farmer would harvest approximately 100 bushels of corn in a nine hour day. - The Minnesota Agriculture Industry generated approximately $15.1 billion in farm income and over $5 billion in farm exports in 2010. - Nearly one in ve jobs in Minnesota is linked to the agriculture industry. Minnesota ranks in the top ten States in the U.S. in corn, soybean, pork, dairy, and turkey production. Please celebrate and enjoy National Ag Week, and thank a farmer for the abundant supply of safe and affordable food that they provide for all of us! (NOTE --- Facts listed in this article are from USDA, National Farmers Union, American Farm Bureau, and other sources.)

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FARM REAL ESTATE LOANS

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