Pork industry won't raise check-off rate
Delegates to the National Pork Industry Forum decided to keep the check-off rate at its current level.
The check-off, which raises money to pay for research and marketing projects to benefit the pork industry, charges 40 cents per $100 of value for each livestock purchase.
Delegates made their decision during the weekend at the forum held in Dallas.
"The unity and optimism of pork producers about the future of the pork check-off was clear," said National Pork Board President Hugh Dorminy.
"The future of the check-off isn't about individual pork producers," Dorminy said. "It's about all producers working together to deal with the issues affecting all of us."
The decision to keep the check-off rate the same comes at a time when many ranchers would prefer to do away with it altogether on the grounds that the benefits provided to ranchers by the research and marketing projects are miniscule.
Some groups have filed lawsuits against the various check-off funds, and some federal judges have ruled sympathetically to those groups.
Those legal cases are all still pending in federal appeals courts.
Officials say that the check-off rates managed to raise about $44 billion last year.
Of that amount, about $9 million was sent to programs overseen by state organizations. Programs overseen by the national organization take up the rest of the funding.
Besides keeping the rate at its current level, officials also decided to create a task force to determine if the pork board should combine with the National Pork Producers Council into a single industry organization.
That task force will study the issue this year, and will make recommendations to be reviewed at next year's pork industry forum.
Iowa governor invited to Cuba
Officials in Cuba want Iowa Gov. Tom Vilsack to visit their country so they can show off their potential as a market for Iowa-produced goods.
Officials said they would commit to buying "several millions of dollars" of food and agricultural products made in Iowa, if Vilsack includes himself in any trade mission of business and political officials from Iowa.
Cuba has purchased more than 1 million tons of food from the United States, with a quarter of that coming during the past 13 months. Federal laws only permit humanitarian items such as food and medicine to be sold to Cuba.
Aides to Vilsack told the Des Moines Register he has not decided whether to go. He would be far from the first U.S. governor to visit the Caribbean island nation. Even Jesse Ventura included a trip there as part of his four-year stint as governor of Minnesota.
Group supports milk protein import limits
The National Milk Producers Federation is supporting a bill to limit the flow of imported dairy proteins into the United States.
The bills before Congress would impose tariff-rate quotas on imports of milk protein concentrate, and casein products intended for use in the food and animal feed industries.
Existing laws impose few restrictions on the products, except for quotas applied to related dairy products such as nonfat dry milk and cheese. The bills were introduced last week.
Child food program remains w/ Ag dept
The Agriculture Department will maintain control of the International Food for Education and Child Nutrition Program.
Officials had been considering shifting the program, which oversees domestic school nutrition programs and runs international school lunch pilot programs, to another agency.
"I am pleased to see that the administration has decided to preserve the linkage between those who raise the food, American producers, and those who will receive it, by placing this program here at" the Agriculture Department, said Sen. Pat Roberts, R-Kan.
Hawaii wants farms to attract tourists
The Hawaii Legislature is considering measures that would encourage the development of agriculture as a way of attracting even more tourists to the island state.
The bill in question, which has passed the Hawaii House, would define "agriculture tourism" and would support activities such as bed and breakfast facilities, horseback riding or festivals that would show off the state's farming.
Officials say agriculture related tourism has the potential to boost the state's economy by $26 million. About one-third of that comes from the sale of crops native to the island -- macadamia nuts, coffee, sugar, honey and pineapple.
Grains mostly down on CBOT
Grain futures were mostly lower at the close Monday on the Chicago Board of Trade.
Soybeans rose on a lack of negative news.
Corn fell on a lack of positive news and a desire by traders to position themselves in advance of Tuesday's supply-demand report by the Agriculture Department.
Wheat fell, continuing Friday's slide.
Oats were lower.
The prices:
Soybeans: Mar 5.66 1/2 up 2, May 5.65 3/4 up 2 1/2, Jul 5.64 up 1 3/4, Aug 5.53 3/4 up 2 1/4.
Corn: Mar 2.37 1/4 off 2 1/2, May 2.37 off 3, Jul 2.38 1/4 off 3 1/4, Sep 2.38 3/4 off 3.
Wheat: Mar 3.11 3/4 off 1 1/4, May 3.05 up 1/2, Jul 3.01 3/4 off 1 1/4, Sep 3.06 1/2 off 1/2.
Oats: Mar 2.17 up 1 1/4, May 1.83 off 6 3/4, Jul 1.71 1/2 off 5 1/2, Sep 1.59 off 2.
