Feed & Grain Associate Editor Elise Schafer shares her insights on feed and grain industry news.
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Top Three Feed Industry Predictions for 2013
By Elise Schafer - Friday March 29, 2013
While at the 2013 International Poultry & Production Expo ( IPPE ) in Atlanta, GA, from Jan. 29-31, I caught up with American Feed Industry Association ( AFIA ) president Joel Newman to discuss his top predictions for agriculture as we look into 2013. Topping his list: Focus on sustainability High commodity prices Market and weather volatility “Feeding a population of 9.1 billion people by the year 2050 is a huge undertaking by the industry, but one that I think we can achieve on a global basis,” expressed Newman. To meet this challenge, Newman said the AFIA established a sustainability initiative two years ago, which focuses on six key points and relies on a special committee to discuss and make recommendations... -
Feed & Grain Expands Newsletter
By Elise Schafer - Friday September 14, 2012
If you’re one of the nearly 9,000 people who receive Feed & Grain ’s Industry Watch E-newsletter, thank you for taking the time each week to open and read our offering. Our staff closely follows news on the critical issues that impact the feed and grain industry, and we’re dedicated to sharing it with you in an easy-to-read format. For the past two years, we’ve been mailing Industry Watch each Tuesday and Thursday, and we can see that many of you regularly click on the stories that matter most to you. Our newsletter stories, covering topics from the 2012 drought , Hurricane Isaac , Renewable Fuel Standard repea l, the Farm Bill and the presidential election , have become some of the most popular items on our web site this... -
Summer 2012 = Climate Change Proof?
By Elise Schafer - Tuesday July 17, 2012
As I write this post at 8 in the morning in Southern Wisconsin, the mercury has already hit 85 degrees. Nearly all of Indiana, Iowa and Illinois along with the lower halves of Wisconsin and Michigan are under heat advisories and at least ¾ of the country has a hazardous weather outlook, according to the National Weather Service . By now, many Midwesterners have grown tired of the chatter about the drought and the heat wave. We’ve almost become accustomed to the conditions, as you might imagine we would like the folks living in Arizona or Florida have. But we all know relief will come eventually — if only in the form of fall — and surely next summer will be cooler. But what if this outrageous weather pattern becomes the rule... -
Corn Roles
By Elise Schafer - Friday June 22, 2012
As I delve into research for my next Focus on Biofuels article, which will analyze the impact of the EPA’s decision to approve the sale of higher ethanol/gasoline blends, I’m confronted with the fact I’m quite torn on the issue of using corn for fuel. Evidence both in support of and against the widespread adoption of ethanol is mounting. The positives, as pointed out by groups like the Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) and the National Corn Growers Association (NCGA) , as well as the U.S. government include: Reduced dependency on foreign oil imports Rural American jobs creation Creation of the beef, dairy and swine feed option, DDGS Reduced gas prices As the economy continues to flounder and the news on jobs... -
Mad Cow Disease Reported in California
By Elise Schafer - Wednesday April 25, 2012
“I am going home, and I’m having beef tonight for dinner.” That’s what Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said on CNN the night the USDA confirmed its first case of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) , a.k.a. mad cow disease, in the United States in six years. The case was detected at a Baker Commodities, Inc. rendering plant in Hanford, CA, on April 24. Among 60 deceased cows randomly tested as part of the plant’s standard operating procedure, only one came back positive for BSE. It was quarantined immediately and Baker disposed of the animal according with USDA ’s instructions for contaminated carcass handling. When most Americans think of mad cow disease, visions of brain-eating zombie cows come to the...
