First-Half Results Reflect Tough Business Climate for U.S. Meat Exports 

June export data, released by USDA and compiled by the U.S. Meat Export Federation (USMEF), reflected a challenging first half of 2015 for U.S. pork, beef and lamb exports.

Beef export volume in June was down 8 percent from a year ago to 96,716 mt, while export value fell 9 percent to $578.9 million. This was the second consecutive month that export value fell below last year's level, resulting in first-half value being steady with 2014's pace at $3.26 billion. First-half volume was down 10 percent to 527,109 mt. 

June pork exports totaled 174,554 metric tons (mt), down 4 percent from a year ago. With pork prices down significantly from last year's high levels, June export value fell 22 percent year-over-year to $454 million. For the first half of 2015, pork exports were down 5 percent in volume (1.09 million mt) and 16 percent in value ($2.88 billion).

"We were aware that exports would be facing obstacles in 2015, and that keeping pace with last year's record performance would be difficult," said Philip Seng, USMEF president and CEO. "The first-quarter slump was partially due to the West Coast port labor impasse, as well as intense competition from countries that continue to recognize opportunities in several markets. We were expecting to see a stronger rebound in the second quarter - and that did not materialize."
 

Our complete look at the meat export picture based on the first six months of 2015 is our Top Ag Story of this Friday morning on our website- Click here to read more.  

EPA Seeks Tougher Restricted-use Pesticide Applicator Standards

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is proposing stronger standards for pesticide applicators who apply "restricted-use" pesticides. These pesticides are not available for purchase by the general public, require special handling, and may only be applied by a certified applicator or someone working under his or her direct supervision.


"We are committed to keeping our communities safe, protecting our environment and protecting workers and their families, said Jim Jones, EPA Assistant Administrator for the Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention. "By improving training and certification, those who apply these restricted use pesticides will have better knowledge and ability to use these pesticides safely."


EPA is proposing stricter standards for people certified to use restricted use pesticides and to require all people who apply restricted use pesticides to be at least 18 years old. Certifications would have to be renewed every 3 years.  Click here to learn more about this EPA proposal.

To view the complete EPA proposal-Click here.  

Senate Committee Approval of Legislation to Eliminate Duplicative Pesticide Permitting, NCFC Cheers

The National Council of Farmer Cooperatives Wednesday applauded the Senate Environment & Public Works (EPW) Committee's approval of S. 1500, the Sensible Environmental Protection Act. The legislation, introduced by Senators Mike Crapo (R-Idaho) and Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.), would resolve the regulatory morass created by a misguided and poorly reasoned court decision forced on the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).


S. 1500 clarifies the Clean Water Act and the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) to ensure that crop protectants compliant with FIFRA do not require permits under the Clean Water Act. The legislation would eliminate the significant financial and liability burdens imposed by the ruling on thousands of farms, co-ops and other agri-businesses. Companion legislation in the House, H.R. 897, was passed out of the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee.


"It is far past time for this issue to be dealt with once and for all. The intent of Congress has long been clear-FIFRA was always intended to regulate the registration and use of crop protectants and the EPA plays an important role in the process by ensuring that pesticides do not harm human health or the environment," said Chuck Conner, president and CEO of NCFC. "Quite simply, under FIFRA, the label is the law. Those who do not follow a product's label are violating the law even without a clean water permit."
 

Click here to read more about this Senate bill.  

Rabobank Forecasts Solid Returns Will Continue Support Growth of U.S. Beef Cow Herd

Herd expansion is underway in the United States. Rabobank is predicting about three million cows will be added over the next three to five years. Rabobank livestock industry economist Don Close said the market place is offering incentives to the individual cattle producer to rebuild their cattle herd.


"The big incentive for repopulating cow numbers has been the $500 a head plus return for cow-calf operations last year and again this year," Close said. "And no way do we expect those kind of returns to stay in place, but we still think there's going to be a multi-year run of very solid returns."


The Southern Plains region continues to recover from the severe drought in 2011, 2012 and 2013. Close said a lot of producers wanted to repopulate and grow their cattle herd earlier, but didn't have the cooperation from Mother Nature until this year to make that happen. He said the combination of strong economic returns and the much improved weather conditions are finally allowing producers the ability to move forward and grow their herd.  

Read more- and take a listen to Don Close's comments by clicking here for this edition of the Beef Buzz.- and if you would like to go back and hear our complete conversation from earlier this week with Don- it's available here.   

Ethanol Exports Slide in June While DDGS Exports Break All-Time Record

U.S. ethanol exports retreated for the third month in a row in June, according to Renewable Fuels Association analysis of government data released today, dropping 7% from May to 60.2 million gallons (mg). Canada (22.9 mg, or 38%), the United Arab Emirates (12.7 mg, or 21%) and the Philippines (7.4 mg, or 12%) accounted for the bulk of exports in June, followed by South Korea (4.2 mg) and the Netherlands (4.2 mg). No ethanol exports were shipped to Brazil in June. Outside of Canada, Brazil has been the largest customer for U.S. ethanol exports, averaging 12.3 mg per month over the past five years. Through the first half of the year, exports stood at 437 mg, indicating an annualized rate of 874 mg.


Imports of ethanol fell again in June, with the U.S. taking in just 717,320 gallons of denatured product. The data show that 99% of imported ethanol originated from Spain and the remainder from France. Total year-to-date 2015 imports through June are 17.1 mg, roughly a quarter of imports at this time last year. In June, the U.S. claimed its 22nd month in a row as a net exporter.

Exports of U.S. distillers dried grains continue to increase.  Click here to read more about DDGS.  

Award winning broadcast journalist Jerry Bohnen has spent years learning and understanding how to cover the energy business here in the southern plains- Click here to subscribe to his daily update of top Energy News.

New 'Ag Mag' Helps Students Beef Up Food Production Knowledge

A new beef "Ag Mag," developed by the American Farm Bureau Foundation for Agriculture and funded in part by the Beef Checkoff, is available for purchase in classroom sets of 30 and in free eReader format.


The Ag Mag, a newspaper-style reader, features information about beef production, nutrition and related careers, and encourages discussions about the industry in the classroom and at home. The Ag Mag is aligned to national learning standards and is written at a fourth-grade reading level, although the interest level is very broad. The Ag Mag and other beef education resources developed by the Foundation can be found by clicking here.


"The Beef Ag Mag was designed not only for classrooms, but also to be used by families and other youth groups as they learn where their food comes from," said Julie Tesch, executive director of the Foundation. 
 

Click here to read more about beef-based curriculum.  

House members ask for EPA Inspector General to Investigate Campaign to Sell WOTUS to Public 

As the official implementation of the Clean Water Rule- or WOTUS- nears, the outcry over the EPA's handling of this major rewrite of the Clean Water Act passed by Congress in the 1970s continues.

On Wednesday of this week- more than 100 members of Congress sent a letter to the EPA's Office of the Inspector General requesting that the OIG open a formal investigation into the EPA's unprecedented grassroots lobbying effort to promote its rulemaking.

According to the letter- the lawmakers tell the EPA's OIG that all rulemakings, particularly ones of such an enormous scope and significant consequence as the WOTUS rule, require stakeholder engagement to the strongest degree possible. However, in an effort to misrepresent the concerns of the affected public, the EPA used social media and possibly colluded with advocacy organizations to generate support for its actions.   

Read more by clicking here about this request by 100 lawmakers- including Congressmen Markwayne Mullin and Jim Briedenstine of Oklahoma who signed this letter- wanting answers about what appears to be questionable actions by EPA to get the result Administrator Gina McCarthy wanted on WOTUS- control of the waters of the US.