Soy, Corn Contracts Inked With Taiwan
BLOOMINGTON - The Taiwan Agricultural Trade Goodwill Mission visited Illinois recently to sign letters of intent to purchase soybeans and corn from Illinois farmers, the Illinois Soybean Association (ISA) and Illinois Corn Marketing Board (ICMB) announced last week.

ISA representatives traveled to Springfield to meet with 22 Taiwanese representatives from the feed industry, vegetable oil manufacturers and other buyers and secure the purchase of $1.73 billion to $1.84 billion worth of soybeans in 2012 and 2013.
ICMB chairman Bill Christ of Metamora also attended the ceremony, which was held September 27 at the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum. The letter of intent signed by Taiwanese officials with the ICMB calls for the delivery of 7.7 million to 10.5 million metric tons (303 million to 413 million bushels) of corn and 0.5 million to 0.75 million metric tons of corn by-products in 2012 and 2013 to the Taiwan Feed Industry Association.
“Illinois farmers are pleased and encouraged by the sale of Illinois corn and corn products to the Taiwanese,” Christ commented. “Even though this has been a tough year, Illinois farmers remain reliable producers, and Taiwan continues to be a valued customer.” (ISA Weekly Update, ICMB news release)

Bypass Corridors Narrowed to Six
METAMORA - A recent public meeting allowed area residents-- many of them farmers-- an opportunity to offer comments on the six corridor alignments being considered for the proposed Eastern Bypass. The road would span 25 to 30 miles and connect Illinois Route 6 and Interstates 74-474 in the Peoria area with I-74 east of the Illinois River, creating a virtual “ring” road proponents say would increase commerce and stimulate business development along the route.
The road’s construction would require farmers and other rural landowners to sacrifice some of the 720,000 tillable acres of rich farmland present in Tazewell and Woodford counties east of the river, however. Data provided by the Tri-County (Peoria, Tazewell and Woodford) Regional Planning Commission shows that every mile of interstate takes 40 acres of land out of production, meaning the entire project could consume 1,000 to 1,200 acres of farmland.
Following the September 15 meeting in Sunnyland we spoke with Ken Maurer, superintendent of Metamora Community High School and a member of the IDOT Study Team and Community Advisory Group (CAG) for the Eastern Bypass project, about area farmers’ reaction to the six proposed corridors (narrowed down from 20).
“Some farmers are very concerned that the highway will split their farms,” Maurer said. “If they’ve got livestock, how will they get them across the highway? Grain farmers also have to get equipment over or under the highway. The farmers are mixed in terms of what (the bypass) is going to do for them. Many don’t want to give up their valuable farmland. They want to pass it on to their grandchildren, for instance. Others see it as an opportunity to make money.”

NASS Reports Highlight Hogs, Grain Stocks
SPRINGFIELD - The September 1st total inventory of hogs and pigs in Illinois was 4.65 million head, up four percent from 2010, according to USDA-NASS’ Hogs and Pigs Report. Of those hogs and pigs, market hogs were at 4.16 million head, up five percent, while breeding hogs were estimated at 490,000 head, consistent with last year’s report. The June-August pig crop of 2.53 million pigs was down slightly from last year, the report stated, while the average number of pigs per litter increased from 9.55 to 9.9 from 2010. Hog producers intend to farrow 255,000 sows from September through November, or two percent less than a year prior.
NASS’ September Grain Stocks Report for Illinois shows old corn stocks in all positions totaled 156.6 million bushels on September 1, a 36 percent decline from 2010’s stock. Farmers are storing 120.6 million bushels, or 77 percent of the total, off-farm. On-farm stocks decreased by four million bushels to 36 million bushels during the same period.
Old crop soybeans on Sept. 1 increased 42 percent from 2010 to 29.3 million bushels. “Stocks have not been at this level for this quarter since September 2008 when total stocks were 34.7 million bushels,” the report stated. Off-farm stocks of 23.3 million bushels accounted for 80 percent of the old crop.
In addition, Illinois wheat stocks totaled 61.3 million bushels, an increase of 31 percent from September 2010, with off-farm stocks of 54 million bushels comprising the bulk of the total stock.

Ag Groups Combine For Media Award
BLOOMINGTON - The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign’s college of ACES and College of Media were the recipients of a $28,000 award from Illinois agricultural commodity groups for use in addressing the growing need for effective communications in the burgeoning fields of agriculture, food, feed, fiber, bio-energy and rural development. The award will be applied towards the U of I’s $2 million goal for the James F. Evans Endowed Chair in Agricultural Communications, and was presented by the Illinois Beef Association, Ill. Corn Marketing Board (ICMB), Ill. Farm Bureau, Ill. Pork Producers Assoc. (IPPA)  and Ill. Soybean Assoc. (ISA).
Officials from the state ag commodity boards made comments following the presentation of the award, including Mike Haag, IPPA president. “The number one priority of the IPPA Board of Directors is to effectively communicate the message about what pork producers do and this will be an important tool in helping to achieve that,” said Haag.
“As the agriculture industry changes, it is important for Illinois commodity groups to be a leading voice for our farmers,” commented ISA chairman Matt Hughes. “We must reach out to new audiences and we need talented communicators who understand agriculture.”
Bill Christ, ICMB chairman from Metamora, added that the award will help non-farmers to understand more about modern agriculture through improved communications. “With that priority in mind, it just makes sense that we would invest in educating quality communications professionals with a focus in agriculture to better tell our story,” Christ said. (ICMB news)


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