Ag Industry News and Events - Page 26

STATEMENT FROM PRESIDENT BOB HEMESATH
On behalf of the Iowa Corn Growers Association (ICGA), I would like to thank Congress, especially the entire Iowa delegation (both House and Senate), for their support in the passage of the GMO labeling agreement. We urge President Obama to sign this legislation into law as soon as possible so that there are no negative consequences from Vermont’s labeling law which will hinder interstate commerce, severely disrupt the U.S. farm and food industry, and raise food prices.

Iowans driving flex fuel vehicles received good news this week as  Iowa Governor Terry Branstad signed into law a bill extending tax provisions for fuel retailers providing Iowa motorists with homegrown, renewable ethanol and biodiesel.

Senate File 2309 is an act that extends the per gallon income tax benefits for retail stations who choose to offer higher blends of ethanol (E15 and E85) and/or biodiesel (B5 and B11) to their customers at the pump through 2024. This bill passed by the legislature this session, with bipartisan support in both the Iowa House and Iowa Senate.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced last week it will make available $250,000 to match checkoff investments from the Iowa Corn Promotion Board (ICPB), Illinois Corn Marketing Board and Nebraska Corn Board for phenotyping research.  This is part of a larger $130 million research initiative announced by USDA to fund research, education, and extension projects. ICPB initiated the a phenotyping research initiative, known as Genomes to Fields, to expand our understanding of interacting effects that corn genetics and crop environments have on corn yields.

While the U.S. Environment Protection Agency’s (EPA) announcement of the proposed Renewable Volume Obligations (RVOs) moved in a more favorable direction today, we are disappointed that the agency chose to set the 2017 number well below the statute.

As the 2016 Iowa legislative session nears its end, the Iowa Corn Growers Association (ICGA) President Bob Hemesath, a farmer from Decorah, says notable progress occurred on many legislative issues positively impacting agriculture.

Even before Iowa farmers received a jump start on planting last week, many within the agricultural industry started placing their bets on what this season may hold. The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) National Agricultural Statistics Service predicts that U.S. corn growers will plant 93.6 million acres of corn this year, the first increase in corn planted acreage since 2012 and, if predictions are correct, this year’s crop will be the third largest corn acreage since 1944.

Iowa farmers received a jump start on corn planting last week with a streak of sunny, dry weather days. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) National Agricultural Statistics Service Weekly Crop Progress Report issued on Monday, 13 percent or 13.9 million acres of Iowa’s corn crop has been planted.  A feat significantly ahead of the five-year average of 3 percent planted by mid-April. Rain throughout the state this week hampered some progress although with sunshine in the forecast for this weekend has many farmers remaining optimistic.

Since 1978, Iowa corn growers have elected their peers to serve on the Iowa Corn Promotion Board (ICPB) to oversee the investment of funds generated by the Iowa corn checkoff. As established by Iowa Code, a portion of the board seats are up for election each year.

Members of the Iowa Corn Leadership Enhancement and Development (I-LEAD) program recently traveled to Malaysia and the Philippines on an international trade mission to gain first-hand knowledge of the significant market potential for U.S. agricultural exports to the region.

More than 100 Iowa Corn Growers Association (ICGA) members descended upon the State Capitol on Wednesday, March 30th for the second “Iowa Corn Day on the Hill” lobbying event. This delegation included ICGA Board of Directors, county leaders and student FFA members from across the state.