DairyBusiness Update for Feb. 15, 2013
Next LGM-Dairy policy sale is Feb. 22-23
The next sales period for Livestock Gross Margin-Dairy (LGM-Dairy) income margin insurance is Feb. 22-23, according to according to Alan Zepp, Risk Management Program coordinator with Pennsylvania’s Center for Dairy Excellence.
Zepp will discuss anticipated insurable margins and other dairy economic factors during his next “Protecting Your Profits” conference call on Feb. 20. For further information, producers can contact Zepp at azepp@centerfordairyexcellence.org or phone 717-346-0849.
Dairy producers can also find an LGM-Dairy specific agent on the LGM-Dairy website maintained by Prof. Brian Gould (bwgould@wisc.edu) of the Department of Agricultural Economics at the University of Wisconsin-Madison (http://future.aae.wisc.edu/lgm_dairy.html). The LGM-Dairy Analyzer software system contained within the software section (http://future.aae.wisc.edu/lgm_analyzer/) is being used extensively across the U.S. by insurance providers and dairy farm operators to help plan for LGM-Dairy contract offering, and to examine the performance of previously purchased contracts.
Senate Ag Committee ‘dairy’ subcommittee members named
U.S. Senate Ag Committee chair Sen.Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.), and ranking member Sen. Thad Cochran (R-Miss.) announced final subcommittee assignments for the 113th Congress.
The Livestock, Dairy, Poultry, Marketing and Agriculture Security subcommittee includes: Democrats: Kirsten Gillibrand (N.Y.), chair; Pat Leahy (Vt.); Max Baucus (Mont.); Amy Klobuchar (Minn.); Joe Donnelly (Ind.); William Cowan (Mass.); and Stabenow (ex officio); and Republicans: Pat Roberts (Kan.), ranking member; Mitch McConnell (Ky.); John Boozman (Ark.); Mike Johanns (Neb.); Charles Grassley (Iowa); and Cochran (ex officio).
Other subcommittees include: Commodities, Markets, Trade and Risk Management; Jobs, Rural Economic Growth and Energy Innovation; Nutrition, Specialty Crops, Food and Agricultural Research; and Conservation, Forestry and Natural Resources. Find full membership lists for those subcommittees at www.ag.senate.gov/about.
Farm Bureau criticizes Reid sequestration replacement measure
A plan introduced by Sen. Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) to avert mandatory “sequestration” is now drawing criticism from the American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF) for its deep cuts to agriculture programs.
Sequestration is an across-the-board reduction in spending mandated by the Budget Control Act of 2011. In an effort to turn off sequestration, a number of alternative proposals that include raising taxes and cutting Defense and agricultural program spending have been offered. Under the Senate Democratic leadership proposal, elimination of direct agricultural payment subsidies saves $27.5 billion and constitutes the entire non-defense discretionary cuts in the bill.
“It appears the lion’s share of budget reductions will come from cuts to agricultural programs that will create much harm in farm country,” said Bob Stallman, AFBF president. “More than $27.5 billion in net spending reductions are earmarked for farm programs – with all the cuts coming from the elimination of direct payments, with no provision to allow use of some of the savings for reinvestment in new safety-net or risk-management concepts. The magnitude of these proposed cuts will hamstring the House and Senate Agriculture committees from crafting a farm bill that includes the safety-net and risk-management provisions that our farmers need. We also believe it is very unfair that only the Defense and Agriculture programs are tapped to reduce spending in this bill.”
“While last year’s farm bill was leading us toward a path without direct payments, at least that path did include significant reinvestment of some of that funding to other farm programs and crop insurance tools,” Stallman continued. “It is vital that a realistic portion of the proposed funding cuts to agriculture be reinvested to support risk-management programs that are so vital to farmers and ranchers. We recognize that the proposal provides for some of the savings to be redirected to extend key disaster programs left in the lurch by the New Year’s tax deal and several other expiring provisions in the farm bill. But in order to address the constant perils of market instability and potential yield loss, farmers need a stable risk-management program.”
MARKETS: Butter up; barrels down; Class III futures mostly lower
Today's market closing prices:
Butter: up 0.25¢, to $1.6050/lb.
Cheddar blocks: unchanged at $1.6750/lb.
Cheddar barrels: down 1.0¢, to $1.63/lb.
Grade A nonfat dry milk: unchanged at $1.5050/lb.
Extra Grade nonfat dry milk: unchanged at $1.56/lb.
Class III milk: steady to -17¢ through November 2013. Based on current CME closing prices, the 2012 average is $17.44/cwt.; the 2013 average is $18.00/cwt.; and the 2014 average is $16.42/cwt.
Near-term corn, soybean and meal futures slightly higher
Corn: +3¢ to +4¢ per bushel through July 2013, then -1¢ September 2013 through July 2014. The 2013 average is $6.45/bu.
Soybeans: +2¢ to +6¢ per bushel through September 2013. The 2013 average is $13.63/bu.
Soybean meal: +$2.10 to +$3.00/ton through Septmber 2013. The 2013 average is $381.77/ton.
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