Pig Deaths Reported During Heat Wave
NORMAL  - With temperatures soaring into the upper 90s and holding over much of the Midwest during mid-to-late July, conditions were ripe for trouble for those transporting livestock and other animals to market.

For some pork producers, their fears came to fruition the morning of Tuesday, July 19, when word began to filter throughout the pork community that several pigs had succumbed to heat, apparently while being transported to a west-central Illinois processing plant.
“The Farmland (Foods) plant in Monmouth got shut down (July 19) because of animals that came in on the truck that were dead,” said Jim Kaitschuk, executive director of the Illinois Pork Producers Association (IPPA). “I don’t know exactly how many, but I heard around 20. I can’t confirm that.”
Kaitschuk’s account was later confirmed by Keira Lombardo, vice president of investor relations and corporate communications for the Monmouth Farmland plant’s owner, Smithfield Foods, Inc., of Smithfield, Virginia. Lombardo sent an e-mail to this reporter on July 29 in response to an earlier inquiry about the incident. “On Tuesday, July 19th, due to extreme heat, we lost approximately twenty hogs during delivery to our Farmland Foods plant in Monmouth,” Lombardo confirmed.
“Our plant was closed for three hours while the inspector on premises reviewed our procedures for handling hogs on trucks during extreme temperatures. We immediately notified producers not to send additional hogs to our plant and also rerouted trucks already in transit to other facilities.
“We have strict handling procedures in place, which were followed by the majority of the trucks that day. Unfortunately, there was one isolated incident where handling procedures did not meet our internal standards, and we immediately took corrective actions. In addition, we enhanced our communications with drivers by providing them with printed instructions that detail our handling procedures and the availability of water during extreme heat conditions. We also revised our handling procedures that cover waiting times for unloading trucks at our facility.”

IFCA President: Phosphates Must be Mined
BLOOMINGTON - When the subject turns to fertilizers and farming, Jean Payne, president of the Illinois Fertilizer and Chemical Association (IFCA), has long been known as an invaluable source for current, factual information by reporters such as yours truly. During a recent phone call regarding public and government pressure to reduce the amount of fertilizers farmers use on their crop fields, Payne referenced a recent report from The Fertilizer Institute (TFI) showing that farmers are producing more crops today than in 1980 while using less nutrients such as nitrogen and phosphorous.
“[TFI] looked back at USDA statistics and information provided by the fertilizer sector and compared it to corn yields. The report shows that because of biotechnology, efficiency and better fertilizer management, corn yields are up tremendously and farmers are not overusing fertilizers,” said Payne, who went on to explain that environmentalists are pushing for a return to the days of old when farmers used only “organic” fertilizers on their crop fields.
“People are sometimes under the impression that there are enough organic properties to use as nutrients, but when you are looking at 20 million acres of crops in Illinois alone, we would have to grow our livestock production by several hundred percent-- and build more CAFOs-- in order to begin to try to produce enough nutrients for manure to take care of the crops,” said Payne. “That’s why those products have been mined for the last 100 years, particularly potassium and phosphates.”
Payne said the U.S. will likely run dry of known phosphate deposits in mines within the next twenty years. In Florida, home of the “phosphate belt,” court action brought by environmentalists is currently prohibiting mining companies from deploying new technology capable of extracting deep deposits of phosphates, she added.

ISA Offering Discounted Membership Rates
BLOOMINGTON - Encouraging soybean farmers to take an active role in the future of Illinois agriculture has always been a primary focus of the Illinois Soybean Association (ISA). The organization announced last week they will make it easier for producers to become active in the organization by offering a discounted membership rate of $145 for three years, effective August 1 through September 15.
“The success of our organization depends on building a stronger voice in Springfield and Washington, D.C.,” stated Matt Hughes, ISA vice chairman and an at-large director. “The phase ‘strength in numbers’ rings true now more than ever.” New ISA members receive benefits such as $100 in biodiesel certificates and automatic membership to the American Soybean Association. For more info, visit www.ilsoy.org/membership or e-mail This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it . (ISA Weekly Update)

Ethanol Speeding Into Race Industry
BLOOMINGTON - The Illinois-based Mario Clouser Racing Team’s recent tests on ethanol performance both on and off the track helped the United States Auto Club (USAC) to announce a three-year sponsorship program with National Biofuels Distribution, producers of Ignite High Performance Ethanol, and bio-refinering firm ICM, Inc.
The Illinois Corn Marketing Board (ICMB), using checkoff dollars, sponsored the testing, which helped prove ethanol’s performance under tough racing conditions. “There are many myths out there about ethanol,” said Scott Stirling, ICMB chairman. “With so many people in the racing world standing behind ethanol blends, those myths will be short lived. From NASCAR to Indy cars, and from the National Boat Racing Association to now USAC, professional drivers and engine tuners are standing behind ethanol. We’re glad to have them on our team.”
Ignite-brand fuel is a proprietary premium blend of ethanol (“upwards of E85”) with other additives, according to USAC. Ignite allegedly provides 40 to 45 percent better mileage with fewer emissions than traditional methanol racing fuels, while engines run 30 to 40 degrees cooler when using the fuel.

Illinois Farm Fact:
Statewide temperatures averaged 84.5 degrees across Illinois the week of July 19-25, eight degrees cooler than normal. (NASS-Illinois Field Office)

(Tim Alexander is a freelance reporter who writes agriculture, news and feature articles for the News Bulletin, Farm World and many other publications.)