This time of year as wheat harvest is getting ready to start, I get calls on what is the custom rate for combining wheat. In Tennessee, we have a few producers who derive a fair amount of their farm income from custom farming, whether it is harvesting, planting or some other aspect of the production system. Continue reading at Southeast Farm Press.
The USDA’s Risk Management Agency (RMA) reminds all producers in Arkansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi and Tennessee, including fruit, vegetable, and nursery producers that they need to have their Highly Erodible Conservation and Wetland Conservation Certification form (AD-1026) on file with their local USDA Service Center by June 1, 2015. Continue reading at June 1 2015 USDA deadline.
While profit margins are expected to be tight this year, money spent on getting the crop planted timely and efficiently is money well spent. The wet weather and saturated soils have delayed normal spring planting preparations such as field work and or burn down applications for many parts of the Southeast. This could start to compress the crop planting into a smaller window than we would like. Continue reading at Southeast Farm Press.
The profitability outlook has been updated after the release of the April 9, 2015 USDA WASDE reports. Today’s market reaction while negative, did not change much in the profitability outlook. I would like to point out the cotton price of 70 cents that is being used in the profitability outlook. I would guess that there has been very little cotton priced for 2015. The price of 70 cents is made up of a cash price of 62 – 63 cents and gin rebates (seed & hauling) of 7-8 cents. Continue reading at Profitability Outlook April 9 2015.
The profitability outlook has been updated after the release of the March 31 Planting Intentions and Quarterly Grain Stocks reports. While the market did react to those reports, there was not much change in the profitability outlook since the March 10th USDA WASDE reports. Continue reading at Profitability Outlook March 31 2015.
Corn U.S. feed grain ending stocks for 2014/15 are projected lower with reductions for corn and barley. Corn use in ethanol production is projected 50 million bushels lower based on the new Grain Crushings and Co-Products Production report recently released by the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS). Reported corn use for ethanol for October through January implies a higher conversion rate than previously assumed. Continue reading comments on the march 10th USDA reports and an Profitability Update at Monthly Crop Outlook.
During winter meetings, I asked farmers, in regard to their operations, this simple question: “Who is the risk taker and decision maker?” From a producer standpoint, the answer is a resounding “I am!” However, a trend I have noticed in recent years is an over reliance on someone else to make decisions. Continue reading at Southeast Farm Press.