Rail Strike Possible – One major railroad union ratified a tentative labor agreement with the Class I railroads and other rejected it. Out of the dozen rail unions, eight are in favor of the contract and four are not. A strike could happen as soon as early December. The sticking point has been on staffing levels and paid sick time. Congress has been asked by numerous agricultural groups to prevent a strike, while the unions are opposed to congressional intervention.

Humanitarian Grain Deal Extended – The Black Sea Grain Initiative was scheduled to expire over the weekend, but was extended for another 120 days. United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres said this deal will continue to facilitate the safe movement of grain and fertilizer from Ukraine. The UN is also committed to removing any remaining obstacles for grain and fertilizer exports from Russia.

WTO and FAO Highlight ‘Fertilizer Crisis’ – The World Trade Organization and United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization are calling for urgent action to address the global fertilizer supply. The two groups have released a study about the current volatility in the fertilizer market and the impact on food security. Fertilizer shortages are expected to continue into 2023 and threaten food security, especially in places like Africa that are depended on imports. The study urges all G20 nations to make every effort possible to keep the fertilizer markets open.

Additional Emergency Relief Program Funding – USDA is preparing to roll out Phase Two of the Emergency Relief Program and a new Pandemic Assistance Revenue Program. The Agriculture Department said it was sharing information early to help farmers and ranchers put together documentation and train FSA staff on the new approach. The Phase Two of the Emergency Relief Program is for farmers and ranchers who suffered eligible losses in 2020 and 2021, but did not receive assistance in Phase One. The pandemic program is for farmers and ranchers who suffered revenue losses in 2020 when compared to 2019 or 2020 due to the COVID-19 outbreak. This program is designed to cover gaps in previous pandemic assistance which suffered a price loss or lack of market access rather than overall revenue losses.

USDA Provides $24 Million to Beginning Farmers and Ranchers – The USDA announced a nearly $24 million investment across 45 organizations and institutions that teach and train beginning farmers and ranchers. This investment is part of Agriculture’s Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Program that supports farmers and ranchers in managing capital, acquiring and managing land, and learning effective farming practices.

Corn Matters – The trade agreement between Mexico and Canada is under tension with Mexico’s claim to halt import of GM corn. Hear more from MCGA President Richard Syverson in the latest Corn Matters.

Tackling Market Transparency – National Farmers Union Communication Director Ross Hettervig says market transparency is a big part of what they’re pushing for in the next farm bill. “We’ve put together our farm bill priorities for 2023 and a big part of that was competition title. For us, that means enforcing laws that are already on the book like the Packers and Stockyards Act.” Outside of the farm bill, Hettervig is keeping an eye on bills working their way through Congress. “There’s a couple of bills related to transparency in livestock markets that are at various stages in the House and Senate.”

Lame Duck Session Priorities – The American Farm Bureau Federation Managing Director of Government Affairs Ryan Yates says there’s a few big items Congress needs to address in the lame duck session. “They need to address funding the government because they’re currently operating under a continuing resolution. The second must is the Water Rights Development Act where Congress may include WRDA in the defense bill.” The Senate is working on a modified version of the Workforce Modernization Act. “Beyond that, we’ve got two trade nominees, both of which moved out of committee in the Senate and are up for a confirmation vote.”

Volatility Becomes the Norm – The volatility in the grain markets is not going away anytime soon. “We’ve been kicking the can down the road on this potential rail strike, the Russian conflict in Ukraine and this week we’ve seen markets spike when a missle crossed the border into Poland,” said Ryan Kelbrandts, broker, CHS Hedging. In the past, grain markets were primarily swayed by supply and demand or weather in the United States. “Now we’re looking at geopolitical risk and numerous black swan events.” Listen to the interview online.

Crude Prices Drop Below $80 per Barrel – The ag commodities continue to chop in a range-bound trade. AgriSompo North America market analyst Sterling Smith says there is some good news for consumers in the outside markets. Crude oil values dropped below $80 per barrel for the first time in seven weeks. “We’re struggling with getting enough diesel and diesel prices are still in the elevated range but the unleaded gasoline futures are trading a healthy 35-to-40 cents below the recent peaks so you should see some relief at the pumps.”

Beet Stock Values – There were five American Crystal Sugar Company beet stock brokered trades last week totaling 98 shares at $4,800 per share. On a weekly basis, Acres & Shares tracks all brokered sales and provides a beet stock snapshot.

Tax Planning and Cash Flow 2023 – AgCentric Executive Director Keith Olander says this year’s tax season and planning for 2023 may be more challenging than years past. Supply chain issues remain and rising input costs present new problems for farmers and ranchers when planning purchases. “If we want a combine or tractor, we can put it in a cashflow, but we can’t guarantee that it’s even available,” said Olander. “If you’re looking at a tax perspective and wanting to sign by December 31, you probably need to plan forward more this year than in the past.”

SD Corn Comments – In this week’s edition of South Dakota Corn Comments, we remind farmers to plan ahead for the 2023 crop year.

Interest Rates Rose Sharply in 3Q – The Kansas City Fed says credit conditions remain solid, but the pace of improvement has softened. The financial impact of the drought has intesified, particularly in the southern and western portions of the United States. Interest rates on farm loans increased sharply in the third quarter and the acceleration in farm real estate values looks to be easing. The outlook for the farm economy remains positive despite a recent pullback in prices for some key commodities.

Land and Equipment Outlook – BigIron Auctions Vice President of Ag Sales Kurt Campbell says land sales remain strong. “We’ve hit record prices on several different parcels of ag land. Oftentimes, we’ll see neighbors spend a little bit more when an acre of land comes up that hasn’t been on the market for 30 years.” Campbell says used equipment sales are hot. “I don’t see any tapering of that market and the supply chain is supporting that,” Campbell told RRFN. “The used market is directly linked to the new equipment market and how easily farmers can get their hands on it.”

Lock in Financing Early – FarmOp Capitol Executing Chairman Bill York says the number of loan renewals are up. “I think it’s very important to get your financing in place early on, especially given the volatility on the input side, uncertainty around rents, and interest rates.” FarmOp Capital’s lending approach is based on farm production. “The farmer knows where they are going to end this crop year with it pretty much in the bin at this point; more of our farmers have already been able to lock in some inputs and negotiated rents for 2023.”

Be Prepared With Plans A, B and C – While it was a frustrating spring, watching it rain, rain and rain. CHS Agronomy Production Manager Tim Swanson, who is based in Grand Forks, says it turned to be a phenomenal year. “It was an exciting year with a lot of optimism as we head into 2023.” Swanson says a lot of fertilizer was put down this fall, which will help spread out the workload next spring.  “I think what we witnessed the last couple years with the logistics and the chaos, we don’t know what tomorrow brings, but we make our best plans and also have contingency plans in place.” Listen to the full interview. 

Overcoming Supply Chain Issues – Farmers Business Network U.S. Country Manager Adriano Santos says the supply chain is slowly recovering after global shutdowns. “After the hangover of COVID and the challenges in in Asia, things have stabilized a bit,” said Santos. “I think Europe is an area where we’re seeing a lot of challenges with the war and their access to gas and energy. We’ve seen some of their prices go up over 300 percent.” Adriano encourages farmers to get inputs lined up. “Farmers should be making decisions earlier on so the supply chain can react.”

ND Corn Acres Expected to Rise in ’23 – North Dakota Corn Council Executive Director Jean Henning is pleased with the state’s corn harvest. “Most people that I’ve talked to are between 55 and 60 pound test weight so no test weight issues,” said Henning. “For yield, I’m hearing about 143 (bushels per acre) for the average; when we consider the drought last year and yields of 105 (bushels per acre), we’re pretty happy about average yields of 143 bushels per acre.” North Dakota will likely see an increase in corn acres in 2023. “I think we’ll get back the acres that we lost last spring with all those prevent plant acres.”

Soil Fertility Minute – Dr. Lindsay Pease, who is with the Northwest Research and Outreach Center, is working on tile drainage research and its application in the Red River Valley. The Soil Fertility Minute is sponsored by Agricultural Fertilizer Research and Education Council.

Highly Variable – According to Pioneer field agronomist J.J. Jaehning, it was a highly variable year. “We went into spring with 150-to-250 percent of normal precip from mid-April to the middle of May which kept us out of the field. Guys were pleasantly surprised with some of the yields there were pulling out.” With the long fall season, Jaehning says the corn was dry with good test weights.

Property Rights Advocated at NDFB Meeting – NDFB delegates have established policy priorities for the year ahead. NDFB President Daryl Lies says that includes property rights. “Private property rights was enshrined in our U.S. constitution and we must make sure they stay top-of-the-line in North Dakota.” During his annual meeting address, Lies said elitist activists have eroded property rights with false climate change allegations.

SD Farm Bureau Members Debate Regulatory Pressure – South Dakota Farm Bureau President Scott VanderVal says farm bill talk was kept to a minimum at the state convention. Regulatory issues dominated the resolutions process. “We just had a referendum in Sioux Falls that would have prohibited any more packing plants within the city. The one proposed met all the zoning regulations and did everything required, if the vote would have passed, it would have superceded all of that and our members don’t think that’s appropriate.” SDFB delegates did not take a position on the proposed carbon pipeline, but took a cautious approach to the use of imminent domain.

MFBF Delegates Approve Policy Priorities – For the upcoming Minnesota legislative session, Minnesota Farm Bureau wants lawmakers to support beginning and emerging farmers, further develop renewable energy sources and strengthen rural communities by addressing the needs of childcare, workforce development and infrastructure. On the national level, Minnesota Farm Bureau delegates want funding for current programs to be maintained in the next farm bill.

Connecting With Lawmakers – Minnesota Farm Bureau President Dan Glessing says the next step is for his membership is building relationships with new and existing legislative leadership. “Lawmakers and elected officials want to hear our issues to try to help. They realize that producing food is an important task.”

Health Care, Competitive Markets, Climate Policy Addressed – The Minnesota Farmers Union membership has approved five special orders of business. That list includes making health care affordable and accessible, ensuring competitive markets and expanding local and regional processing. The MFU delegates also called for a comprehensive farm bill and climate policy.

Agriculture Depends on Metro and Rural Lawmakers – Minnesota Farmers Union President Gary Wertish is looking forward to working with the new agriculture committee chairs; Representative Samantha Yang of Brooklyn Center and Senator Aric Putnam of St. Cloud. “We have to work together. To have a strong rural community, you need a strong metro and a strong metro needs a strong rural Minnesota.”

A Divide in Feeder Calf Prices – Northern Plains feeder cattle auctions have continued to enjoy $200-plus per hundredweight calf prices this fall while values in the southern U.S. have eased. “We’ve had several years of smaller calf crops and feed pressure is also driving the spread between North and South,” said Altin Kalo, economist, Steiner Consulting Group.

Very Slow Year for Feeder Calves – Napoleon Livestock co-owner Paul Bitz says while the demand is there for the fall feeder cattle run, the calf numbers aren’t. “I think it’s one of the quietest falls in North Dakota; there’s just not a lot of calves moving through sale barns.” Bitz blames the drought, last year’s herd reduction and the very wet spring. “I really think we’re going to sell the least number of calves we’ve ever sold in North Dakota this year.” The drought in the Southern Plains is preventing buyers from seeking northern cattle as well. “The feeder cattle would go further south if they had feed and the corn basis in the south is really high so that’s caused some hesitance in the market.”

MN Beef Update – Thanksgiving is coming up! Join us in the latest Minnesota Beef Update as we reminisce on all the blessings we have to be thankful for this year.

Measuring Sustainability – To document continous improvement, the Pork Checkoff offers an on-farm sustainability assessment. “You can’t improve without measuring things, right?” asked Dale Stevermer, who is a pork producer from Easton, Minnesota and a member of the National Pork Board. “When we look at our overall carbon footprint as pork producers, the bucket is about 60 percent feedstuffs, essentially corn and soybean meal; another 18-to-20 percent is in our manure storage and handling.” The sustainability report utilizes a third-party to verify data and measure sustainability improvements. The data may also offer opportunity for the new carbon markets.

Stearns County Dairy Farm Honored for Sustainability – Steve and Cherl Schlangen of Albany, Minnesota have received the Outstanding Dairy Farm Sustainability Award from the Innovation Center for U.S. Dairy. Schlangen Dairy is a 60-cow, 200 acre farm that utilizes numerous conservation measures. Three other dairies nationwide were also honored.

What’s Hot, What’s Not in the Markets – In this week’s edition of What’s Hot, What’s Not in the Markets, Martinson Ag Risk Management President Randy Martinson said the cattle-on-feed report was somewhat friendly for feeder cattle and deferred live cattle contracts. For the grains, trade volume is expected to be thin. “This is a holiday week and we’ll see a lot of traders take their money and leave the sandbox and go home.”

Major Development for Lab-Grown Meat – For the first time, the Food and Drug Administration has cleared lab-grown meat for human consumption. UPSIDE Foods makes cell-cultured chicken by harvesting cells from live animals and using the cells to grow meat in the lab. USDA will oversee the processing and labeling of this product.

Law Enforcement Livestock Training Accredited – Cass County Farm Bureau’s Law Enforcement Livestock Training Program will become an option for Minnesota law enforcement officers to earn their continued education credits. Cass County Farm Bureau Secretary Sarah Kuschel says the training began as a way to help law enforcement handle the inevitable calls when livestock get out on the road. “We want officers to be more aware of how to deal with those calls safely and understand terminology to help dispatch; knowing if it’s a Hereford, Charolais, or Angus will help them get in touch with the owners to get everything taken care of as quickly and safely as possible.”

Two Lawsuits Become One – The federal court in Minneapolis has consolidated two beef lawsuits into one. The National Farmers Union and R-CALF USA filed their lawsuit against the four major beef packers in 2019. Retail groups, including Hy-Vee and Kroger, filed a similar lawsuit a year later. The plaintiffs are expected to seek class-action certification for this case.

Dry Bean Scene –

In this week’s Dry Bean Scene, NDSU Assistant Professor Dry Bean Pathologist Malaika Ebert has a dry bean disease recap from the 2022 growing season. The Dry Bean Scene is brought to you by SRS Commodities, Northarvest Bean Growers Association, Johnstown Bean Company, and BASF.

Argentina Expected to Implement Soybean-Specific Exchange Rate – The Argentine government is working on a plan to reinstate a special currency exchange rate for soybean farmers. In September, the government implemented a similar plan to promote soybean exports and add money to its financial reserves.

Soy Crush Expansion – U.S. soybean processing capacity is growing. “We’re seeing it across the traditional Heartland with Illinois, Iowa, Missouri and some in Kansas,” said Scott Gerlt, chief economist, American Soybean Association. “But I’d say the area that’s more new is Nebraska, North Dakota and a little bit more in Minnesota.” Gerlt says there have been 24 announcements for new crush plants or the expansion of existing plants.  “There is a risk that not all announcements will come to fruition.”

Canola Minute – In this week’s Canola Minute, Executive Director Barry Coleman talks about a hot button topic in the industry. Biofuels are quickly gaining popularity.

Register Now for Northern Crops Institute Webinar – The Northern Crops Institute will host another Future of Feeding webinar on Wednesday. This webinar will feature Robert Thaler, Extension swine specialist, South Dakota State University, who will be presenting on the future of renewable diesel. This webinar series focuses on using innovation in the processing of animal food, technology and using grains for co-products. Register online.

Fresh Potato Exports Drop Off – The North American Potato Market News reports 3.3 million hundredweight of fresh potatoes were exported during the third quarter of 2022. That is down nearly 16 percent from last year. Exports to Canada, Taiwan and Japan accounted for the downturn.

Evaluating Rural Workforce Demographics – USDA released a new report on rural population trends this past week. “The main findings from the report are first that the rural population is aging and also that the working-age population has declined over the last decade,” said Jim Davis, economic researcher. “The second main finding is that industry job reallocation has moved jobs out of traditional mainstay rural industries such as agriculture, manufacturing, and retail; the job growth has occurred more in services industries such as healthcare, hospitality, and services.” The report determined the rural workforce has become more racially and ethnically diverse in recent years.

Fielding Questions – In the Fielding Questions podcast, AgCountry Farm Credit Services Market Vice President of Home Loans, Kyle Rylander, discusses the financing of recreational land. Rylander outlines the factors impacting buyers and sellers of this type of land. This podcast is produced by AgCountry Farm Credit Services and the Red River Farm Network.

Costs Escalate for Thanksgiving Dinner – The American Farm Bureau Federation survey on the cost of a Thanksgiving meal for ten people is up 20 percent from last year. The price for a 16-pound turkey has gone up 21 percent and dinner rolls are up 22 percent. A 12-ounce bag of fresh cranberries is down 14 percent from last year.

A Record Year for Tyson Foods – Tyson Foods is reporting record annual net income of $3.24 billion on net sales of $53.3 billion. “We saw a lot of really good things,” said Donnie King, President/CEO.” We delivered record sales revenue in earnings, the chicken turnaround progressed as promised, beef performed better than expected and prepared foods is seeing positive volume momentum exiting the year.”

Ranchers Able to Monetize Grazing Land – Two venture capital firms have invested $9 million in a seed round for a tech company called Enriched Ag. Business Development Director Mike Komp says this grazing and carbon insights platform provides ranchers an opportunity to manage and monetize their pasture ground. “Look at all of the technology that’s deployed in row crops, we don’t really think there’s a parallel in rangeland, today.” Within the next six months, Enriched Ag plans to introduce its first round of technology. “A lot of the money that’s coming in is focused on actual on-ranch technology, like drones, soil sensors, different types of cameras that can provide information about the forage in pastures and when to move and rotate animals.” Enriched Ag was founded by a team that comes from well-known technology brands, including Apple and Google.

MN Wheat Minute – Prairie Grains Conference is fast approaching. Tune in for a preview in the latest MN Wheat Minute.

Sustainable Brew – Anheuser-Busch is making an investment in sustainable barley research at North Dakota State University, Montana State University and the University of Arkansas. The donation was part of the brewer’s 2025 sustainability goals and will be used to analyze crop and soil health.

Sikes to Replace MacLannan – Brian Sikes will become the new president and CEO of Cargill January 1, replacing Dave MacLannan. Sikes has been with Cargill for 31 years and is currently serving as chief operating officer. MacLennan will become executive chairman of the board and serve in an advisory role.

NCGA Hopes to Fill CEO Post by March – The National Corn Growers Association is seeking its next CEO. “Jon Doggett was in Washington, DC for 14 years leading our staff there and another six years being our CEO,” said Tom Haag, president. Doggett will retire at the end of the year. Hedlin Ag Enterprises of Ankeny, Iowa has been selected to take resumes and assist with the search. “Our goal is to have a new CEO by Commodity Classic, which is in March; that’s fast, but we’re hoping to make that happen.”

Job Opportunities in Agriculture – The Red River Farm Network is connecting agricultural companies, organizations and farms with high quality job prospects. Click on the Job Opportunities in Agriculture tab on the RRFN website to see the latest listings. Minnesota’s AURI is looking for a business development director. R.D. Offutt Farms is seeking a team lead and has three agronomy internships available. Dakota Ingredients, Pioneer and others are among those listed at this time. If you want your job listed, contact don@rrfn.com or kolleen@rrfn.com.

Petersen Reappointed – Minnesota Governor Tim Waltz has appointed Minnesota Commissioner of Agriculture Thom Petersen for a second term. Before joining the Walz administration, Petersen was the government relations director for Minnesota Farmers Union.

MN Ag Committee Leadership Named – The leadership for the 2023 Minnesota legislative session is shaping up. Senator Aric Putnam of St. Cloud will chair the agriculture and rural development committee. Putnam was first elected in 2020 and is a communications professor at the College of St. Benedict and Saint John’s University. On the House side, Representative Samantha Vang will lead her chamber’s agriculture committee. Vang was one of the first Hmong women elected to the Minnesota House in 2018. Vang served as the vice chair of the agriculture committee during the last session.

Grafton Presented NDSU Agribusiness Award – During the NDSU Harvest Bowl dinner, Ken Grafton was recognized with the 2022 Agribusiness Award. Grafton began his career as a dry bean breeder. Over time, Grafton was responsible for the release of 11 new dry bean varieties including Eclipse, one of the dominant black bean cultivars grown in the U.S. Grafton went on to a career in administration with time as vice president of agricultural affairs, dean of the College of Agriculture, Food Systems and Natural Resources and interim provost.

DenOuden Joins SDSU Team – South Dakota State University Extension welcomes Candace DenOuden as its new marketing and communications coordinator. DenOuden spent the past ten years as a journalist in South Dakota and Nebraska.

NAFB Executive Team Elected – During the National Association of Farm Broadcasting annual meeting, Joe Gill of KASM Radio, Albany, Minnesota, was elected president for 2023. Former Red River Farm Network farm broadcaster Carah Hart, who is now with Brownfield Ag News, is president-elect. Jeff Nalley of Cromwell Ag Radio Network is vice president.

Hall of Fame Careers Celebrated – The National Association of Farm Broadcasting inducted Pam Jahnke and Kathy Patton Strunk into its Hall of Fame. Jahnke is the farm director for the Mid-West Farm Report, based in Madison, Wisconsin. From 1981-1999, Patton Strunk was a broadcaster for WIBW-Kansas Agriculture Network. Watch Jahnke’s ceremony. The NAFB presentation to Patton Strunk is also available online.

Recognizing the Best of the Best – Rita Frazer of RFD Radio Network is the 2022 National Farm Broadcaster of the Year. Brent Adams of Rural Strong Media received the Horizon Award recognizing his early-career achievements. Tim Marshall of KRVN received the Dix Harper Meritorious Service Award.

Olson Leads MN Beef Checkoff Council – A farmer/rancher from Lake of the Woods County is the new chairperson of the Minnesota Beef Research and Promotion Council. Tom Olson is also president of the Northwestern Stockmen’s Association.

MN Beef Industry Leader Passes – Funeral services will be held today for former Minnesota State Cattlemen’s Association President Harvey Wollum. Wollum was in that role in 1995 and 1996 and fed cattle near Canby.