Field Posts DTN/Progressive Farmer

Over the last two decades, the US livestock industry has had some painful encounters with foreign animal diseases– from High Path Avian Influenza and its impact on the poultry industry to “mad cow” to the current looming fear of African Swine Fever. One of the most challenging things about these kinds of highly transmissible and dangerous diseases is how difficult they are to study, and how vulnerable that absence of information can leave the industry. But in the last few weeks, USDA has opened a new facility in Kansas that promises to help close that information gap.


DTN Ag Policy Editor Chris Clayton joins us today to discuss his rare first look at the new National Bio and Agro-Defense facility near the Kansas State campus in Manhattan. He got a chance to discuss the facility’s top security priorities, learn how the latest, state-of-the-art technology will aim to keep the facility, and US ag, and see for himself how diseases will be studied as the facility gets up and running. Plus, he’ll dive into the planned vaccine development work, and highlight the history of protecting US livestock from foreign disease.

On May 17th, the annual Winter Wheat Tour wrapped up its survey of the Southern Plains wheat crop with its report on predicted yield averages, which indicated that the persistent impact of droughts have indeed driven wheat production to near-record lows.


Progressive Farmer Senior Editor Joel Reichenberger made his way to Colby, Wichita, and finally Manhattan, Kansas this week with more than a hundred fellow surveyors to see fields across the state first hand, and bring us the latest reactions from farmers, bakers, millers, and industry experts from across the country.


Today, we’ll talk about the weather impacts that affected various regions of Kansas, and what they might mean for abandonment rates, yields, and plantings of secondary crops as we move towards harvest. 


Plus we’ll dig into other pressures, from pests to irrigation to protein levels.

The May WASDE dropped Friday, May 12th, as market watchers waited with high expectations for USDA’s latest insights as plant2023 continues. A number of unexpected adjustments made this a May report to remember, especially as the outlook for a possibly bin busting crop collided with continuing tight stocks. 


DTN’s Lead Analyst Todd Hultman joins us to dig into not only the latest on old and new crop demand and how the market is interpreting the most timely information on shifting weather, feed demand, and persistent wetness that’s thwarting planting in North Dakota. He’ll also give us an update on ethanol usage, the global ending stocks picture with surprises from Brazil, and the unpredictability in current beef and pork markets. 


We’ll dive into outside pressures after the latest jobs report, global trade, and what the looming new wheat season might hold.

Plant 2023 is off to a relatively good start, despite cold and wet conditions lingering in the Northern Plains. For much of the central corn belt, from Nebraska to Indiana and Ohio, farmers are having luck, getting into fields weeks before they were able to in recent years– which could prove promising for key crop plantings this season.
 
To bring us the latest on where planting stands now and how we expect it to advance in the next few weeks, we’re joined by Joel Karlin, a DTN Grains contributor and President and Economist at Ocean State Research. Joel will dig into the data on planting regional planting weather, highlighting where progress is dragging and where dryness might inhibit emergence as the season wears on. He’ll offer insights on expectations for prevent plant and replant, and look ahead to what current conditions might indicate for harvest. Plus, he’ll flag other key issues he’s keeping an eye on, from inflation to a possible recession, right after this word from our sponsor. 
 
Learn more and register for the DTN Ag Summit Series at dtn.com/2023-ag-summit-series.

Despite optimistic news coming out of recent USDA reports for livestock producers, factors like drought continue to weigh down cattle markets, and the discouraging signs have left some analysts scratching their heads. DTN Livestock Analyst ShayLe Stewart joins us today to untangle the many issues that are driving today’s markets, and offers advice on how producers should be thinking about prices as they wade into the summer months. 
 
ShayLe will dive into the latest USDA reports, discussing slaughter pace in addition to supply, demand, and outside pressures that are affecting decision makers in unexpected ways. Plus, she’ll compare the current conditions to those bull run years in 2014 and 2015 to give listeners perspective on how similar moments in history have played out. Then, we’ll dig into questions around mindset and planning, the broader economic picture, and check-in on ShayLe’s personal experiences.

Getting approval to sell E15 year round has been a priority for the ag sector for years – and the industry has gotten close – especially 2022, to reaching that goal. However, with the summer driving season just weeks away, the ethanol sector continues to wait on a decision from EPA about whether a waiver will be granted this year to allow continued selling of high-ethanol blend fuel during the busiest fuel use season. And this is just one of many key issues EPA is currently juggling that could have a big impact on ag markets. 


Luckily, DTN Staff reporter Todd Neeley joins us today to give us an overview of the myriad issues on the agency’s plate. We’ll dig into the EPA’s new tailpipe rules that seem to favor electric vehicles, and what that might mean for the near future of the US fleet. We’ll also hear the latest on a lawsuit against the EPA relating to the Endangered Species Act and the RFS, and the conclusion of a case of biofuel credit fraud.


Then, we’ll set you up with topics to watch out for as news breaks this summer around biofuels and beyond.