Join us Thursday for the Maryland Commodity Classic!
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Growers are invited to attend the Maryland Commodity Classic on Thursday, July 26, 2018, at Queen Anne’s County 4-H Park. Hosted by the Maryland Grain Producers Association, Maryland Soybean Board, Maryland Grain Producers Utilization Board, and Mid-Atlantic Soybean Association, the annual meeting is the premier event for grain farmers in the region.
“It is important for growers to see how their grain and soybean checkoff dollars are being leveraged to make farming operations more productive and profitable,” says Dr. Robert Kratochvil, Maryland Commodity Classic chairperson. “The Classic will allow farmers to hear the most current results and visit grant recipients to learn about research, education and market development work.”
Research presentations from 9:30-10:30 a.m. will update farmers on checkoff-funded projects conducted to address local growing issues. Exhibits and informational displays to present the latest innovations in technology, research and equipment will open at 10:30 a.m. The afternoon program begins at 1:30 p.m. and will include awarding college scholarships and updates from sponsor leaders and USDA.
Keynote Speaker Bill Northey, Under Secretary of Agriculture for Farm and Foreign Agricultural Services, is a well known grain farmer, serving as president of the National Corn Growers Association from 1995-96 and most recently Iowa’s Secretary of Agriculture. Northey will be covering the latest news in agriculture from Washington DC. USDA’s current focus is to help new farmers get started in agriculture, assist rural communities, help farmers operate with less regulation, increase exports, address crop damage, and pass the 2018 Farm Bill.
The Classic will conclude with the famed Crab Feast, Pork and Chicken Barbecue. Tickets are $10 before 2:30 p.m. and $20 after 2:30 p.m. No entry is permitted after 3:30 p.m.
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Maryland Farmers Featured in Conservation Technology Information Center Tour
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Last week, over one hundred farmers, regulators, and agribusiness professionals from around the country to the Eastern Shore of Maryland to see conservation in action. The day began with a presentation from Maryland's Assistant Secretary of Resource Conservation Hans Schmidt. Schmidt shared an update on the current progress and status of Maryland's Nutrient Reduction Strategy for the Chesapeake Bay. "Ag, for its part, has made great strides in reducing nitrogen and phosphorus leeching into the Bay," he shared.
The group then loaded the buses and headed off to the Chesapeake Bay Environmental Center in Grasonville, where they heard from a panel of farmers and aquaculturalists, including Belinda Burrier, grain and soybean farmer in Frederick County. The group then travelled to Cordova, stopping first at Chip Councell’s farm to learn about conservation planning and soil health. After lunch at the local firehouse, the next stop was Bobby Hutchison’s farm, where the focus was innovations in water quality. The day concluded with dinner at the Spies’ Family Triple Creek Winery, where the group had the opportunity to see the diversification taking place on many Maryland farms.
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NCGA Calls on EPA to Account for Refinery Waivers
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The National Corn Growers Association (NCGA) today called for EPA to maintain a strong, equitable Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) that follows Congressional intent and levels the playing field for America’s farmers by using the annual volume rule to repair the damage from extensive refinery exemptions.
Michigan farmer Russell Braun provided testimony on behalf of NCGA during an Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) hearing on the agency’s proposed biofuel targets for 2019. “With corn prices low, EPA’s decisions have a greater impact on my livelihood and other farmers’ as well. We believe EPA should use the Renewable Fuel Standard volume rule to remedy the harm caused by the extensive retroactive exemptions given to refineries over the past year and ensure future exemptions are accounted for. These refinery exemptions decrease ethanol blending and reduce demand and profits for my corn crop. Every gallon of renewable fuel blending waived by EPA reduces the consumer benefits of the RFS,” he stated.
EPA’s proposal supports some growth in the RFS volumes and continues to propose an implied 15-billion-gallon volume for conventional ethanol. However, the proposed rule allows for retroactive refinery exemptions, without reallocating those waived gallons, undercutting the volume targets and rendering the proposed blending levels meaningless. In the past year, EPA has retroactively waived 2.25 billion ethanol equivalent-gallons from the 2016 and 2017 volumes through 48 refinery exemptions, many of which went to refineries owned by large, profitable companies.
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The Delaware-Maryland 4R Alliance and University of Maryland Extension invite growers and agribusiness professionals to join them for their 4R Technology Field Day on August 15, 2018 at the Wye Research and Education Center in Queenstown, Maryland. The event will be showcasing application of the 4Rs (right source, right rate, right time, and right place) on the Delmarva. Demonstrations will include phosphorus placements, drones and mapping, options for nitrogen management and conservation practices and water quality monitoring. There will also be a panel of local farmers discussing how they have been successful in implementing 4R nutrient management practices in their operations. Lunch will be provided as well as Nutrient Management and Certified Crop Adviser credits.
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Field Crops Twilight Tour & Ice Cream Social
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Growers are invited to attend a Field Crops Research Twilight, Barbecue and Ice Cream Social at the Central Maryland Research & Education Center, 2005 Largo Road, Upper Marlboro, Maryland on Thursday, August 8, 2018 from 4:00 pm to 9:00 pm. A barbecue dinner will be served at 4:00 pm followed by homemade ice cream prior to the evening tour. University of Maryland Extension Educators and Specialists will showcase their field crop, vegetable and fruit research plots.
For full meeting details and registration information, contact Dave Myers at the Anne Arundel County Extension office at (410) 222-3906.
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Annual Crop Insurance Workshop set for Sept. 13
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The Maryland Crop Insurance Workshop provides an opportunity to hear from experts on current issues related to the federal crop insurance program and federal farm policy. The plans for this year's Maryland Crop Insurance Workshop are being finalized with expert speakers to discuss insights into current issues impacting risk management issues in the Mid-Atlantic. This event is free to attend. Stay tuned for more details as they finalize speakers.
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