This week on AgweekTV, what does the future hold for the ethanol industry? North Dakota farmland prices continue to rise. A South Dakota rancher burns the midnight oil as calving season continues. And a Minnesota family has kept their roots strong, by farming the same land for nearly 150 years.
WELCOME TO AGWEEKTV, I'M EMILY BEAL. NEARLY HALF OF ALL THE CORN GROWN IN THE UNITED STATES GOES TO PRODUCING ETHANOL. THE INDUSTRY CAN PRODUCE MORE THAN 17 BILLION GALLONS EACH YEAR. BUT THE PROCESS GENERATES A LARGE AMOUNT OF CARBON DIOXIDE. SO, IS SPENDING BILLIONS OF DOLLARS TO BUILD THOUSANDS OF MILES OF CARBON CAPTURE PIPELINES THE ANSWER? THIS MONTH OUR OUR AGWEEK SPECIAL REPORT IS THE FUTURE OF BIOFUELS. WE TAKE A CLOSER LOOK.AT CAPTURING CARBON FROM ETHANOL PLANTS.
WELL TODAY ETHANOL IS BLENDED INTO JUST ABOUT EVERY GALLON OF GASOLINE IN THE UNITED STATES. IN FACT, MORE THAN 98 PERCENT OF GAS SOLD IN THE U.S. CONTAINS ETHANOL.. BUT MOST OF IT IS TEN PERCENT, OR E-TEN.
ADVERTISEMENT
GEOFF COOPER IS PRESIDENT AND CEO OF THE RENEWABLE FUELS ASSOCIATION. HE WANTS TO SEE HIGHER BLENDS, ESPECIALLY E-FIFTEEN. BUT THOSE ETHANOL PLANTS PRODUCE A LOT OF CARBON. COOPER SAYS THE INDUSTRY IS WORKING ON REACHING NET ZERO...A CARBON-NEUTRAL FUTURE.
TODAY'S ETHANOL IS ALREADY FIFTY PERCENT BETTER THAN GASOLINE IN TERMS OF ITS CARBON EMISSIONS, SO WE'RE ALREADY HALF WAY TO NET ZERO. BUT TO GET THE REST OF THE WAY. CARBON CAPTURE AND SEQUESTRATION WOULD BE A BIG STEP, AN IMPORTANT STEP IN FURTHER REDUCING THE CARBON INTENSITY OF CORN ETHANOL.
COOPER ACKNOWLEDGES THAT THERE IS SOME RESISTANCE TO CARBON PIPELINES, BUT HE SAYS THERE ARE OTHER OPTIONS BEING STUDIED TO LOWER THE CARBON FOOTPRINT. BRENDAN JORDAN, VICE PRESIDENT OF TRANSPORTATION FUELS AT THE GREAT PLAINS INSTITUTE, SAYS WHILE THE FOCUS IS ON CARBON CAPTURE FOR ETHANOL, THERE ARE MANY OTHER THINGS THAT CAN BE DONE.
ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE FOCUS ON AS WELL IS LOOKING UPSTREAM, SO WHAT ARE THE EMISSIONS ON THE FARM ASSOCIATED WITH PRODUCING BIOFUEL FEED STOCK? SO THERE'S GREAT OPPORTUNITIES THERE FOR REDUCED TILLAGE CONSERVATION TILLAGE, GREEN AMMONIA, YOU KNOW THERE'S A LOT OF GREAT STRATEGIES THERE THAT CAN LOWER ETHANOL EMISSIONS. SOME CARBON PIPELINE OPPONENTS, INCLUDING LANDOWNERS IN THE PATH, FEAR THEY WILL BE STUCK WITH HAZARDOUS MATERIAL FLOWING THROUGH THEIR LAND. ISAAC EMERY IS A CONSULTANT WHO HAS STUDIED THE MOST EFFICIENT WAY TO DEAL WITH CARBON EMISSIONS FROM AG PRODUCTION.
HE SAYS THAT THERE ARE SEVERAL WAYS TO REDUCE CARBON FROM ETHANOL PLANTS, SUCH AS USING RENEWABLE ELECTRICITY AT THE PLANT. BUT HE SAYS THAT CARBON CAPTURE IS IMPORTANT TO REACH NET ZERO.
IT'S DEFINITELY NOT THE EASIEST THING THEY CAN DO, BUT IT IS ONE OF THE MOST EFFECTIVE, IF IT WORKS. YOU CAN READ MUCH MORE IN THE NEXT AGWEEK MAGAZINE, OR AT AGWEEK.COM .
THE BIDEN ADMINISTRATION WANTS HALF OF NEW CAR SALES TO BE ELECTRIC BY 2030, AS PART OF ITS "BUILD BACK BETTER" PROGRAM. RIGHT NOW, ONLY ABOUT SIX PERCENT OF THE NEARLY 14 MILLION VEHICLES SOLD LAST YEAR WERE ELECTRIC. IF THE GOAL IS REACHED, IT COULD HAVE A BIG IMPACT ON THE GAS AND ETHANOL INDUSTRY. BUT RATHER THAN FIGHTING THE MOVE TO ELECTRIC VEHICLES, A SPOKESMAN FOR THE AMERICAN ETHANOL COALITION SAYS THEY CAN WORK TOGETHER. THE FUEL CAN PLAY AN IMPORTANT ROLE IN REDUCING GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS, AND IT'S ALREADY WIDELY AVAILABLE.
THOSE WHO WANT THE ENVIRONMENT TO BE BETTER, THOSE WHO WANT TO REDUCE CARBON POLLUTION, THAT THE BEST WAY TO DO IT QUICKLY IS HERE RIGHT NOW.
ADVERTISEMENT
THE UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA IS STUDYING THE POSSIBILITY OF BOOSTING THE RANGE OF ELECTRIC VEHICLES WITH A SECONDARY, ETHANOL-POWERED ENGINE. HIGH PRODUCTION COSTS DIDN'T STAND IN THE WAY OF A PROFITABLE YEAR FOR FARMERS IN 2022.
HIGH FARM INCOME WAS THE DRIVING FORCE BEHIND NORTH DAKOTA LAND VALUES SHARPLY RISING IN 2023. NDSU EXTENSION STATE AG FINANCE SPECIALIST BRYON PARMAN SAYS THE AVERAGE VALUE PER ACRE IN NORTH DAKOTA FOR 2023 IS $2,863 PER ACRE. HE WARNS WITH THE VALUE OF LAND GOING UP, RENT PRICES WILL BE GOING UP ALONG WITH IT.
Rents are starting to go up considerably. And I think that's probably going to continue for the next few years. We're gonna see cash rent start catching up with the increases in land prices.
THE BIGGEST INCREASE IN LAND VALUES WAS IN THE EAST-CENTRAL AND SOUTHERN RED RIVER VALLEY REGIONS WITH BOTH INCREASING OVER TWENTY PERCENT.
Spring hasn't really felt like spring this year for producers in South Dakota, as snow continued to fly well into April. With all the snow on the ground, planting season will be delayed for many producers. Equipment that would normally be in the field is under snowbanks at Todd Hanten's farm in Goodwin.
Every year that's our goal, to get in and get some spring wheat planted by April 11th, and most years we've gotten that accomplished and some years we've had it all in and planted by April 11th, our spring wheat. that's definitely not going to happen.
This year, Hanten's farm got over 55 inches of snow, the most they have had since 1997.
That year we were late on planting, but we did get everything planted so I am hopeful and positively thinking that we will get things planted.
ADVERTISEMENT
Last year, Hanten faced issues with moisture flooding out his fields, causing him to have to plant some sections of fields multiple times, which is something he fears could happen again this year. Yeah, Very worried about that, we had to make several trips to fields to areas that were able to be planted but then we had to come back and plant them again and again in some circumstances, which messes it up for the spraying and the harvest and everything.
But in other areas of the state, conditions before this spring were extremely dry and this moisture will help set producers up for success.
Yeah, I think the soil moisture that we are going to get from this spring from snow melt and precipitation in general can carry us quite a bit into the summer season and hopefully protect us from at least extreme drought for the beginning to middle part of the growing season of the summer. Preparing the possible planting challenges and working to get into the field as soon as possible. With the knowledge that we've accumulated that early planting really makes a difference, this spring is looking like that's going to make it tough and it makes you anxious to want to get it in as early as you can, but you just can't push it in those wet conditions.
In a normal year, Hanten usually likes to get the spring wheat planted by April 11th, corn planted by the May 1st and the soybeans in by the first couple days of May.
UP NEXT ON AGWEEK TV...A SOUTH DAKOTA RANCHER STAYS UP CALVING WELL AFTER THE SUN GOES DOWN
Farming and ranching is no 9 to 5 job, and for cattle producers calving season means being ready for anything 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. This means they are up at all hours of the night, monitoring cows and checking for new calves. It may be the end of the workday, but the nighttime calving shift is just beginning here at Fuoss Farms.
Night checks kind of start at last light. We check and make sure nothing is going on, if there is you give them about an hour and check again, but after last light we wait until about 2 am when we check again and then we will go through and walk through them if they are packed in a tight area or we will drive the 4-wheeler around and we just try to look at every cow and make sure no one is calving at two.
Not only are they checking for new calves, but they are making sure no cows are having complications.
The biggest concern is calving issues, whether it be, you know, too large of a calf for the cow to have on their own, or the peculiar ones like the backwards ones, the upside downs, sometimes, anything that you might need to pull or even get a vet out in a real severe case.
ADVERTISEMENT
So far, they haven't had any complications this year, but regular checks are still important.
It's been pretty non eventful at night, which is nice not having to stay up all night long to drag calves in the sled in.
The cows are checked once again in the morning at around 6:30, then at around 8 a.m., the new calves are checked on and cared for.
Check on everyone that's new, make sure they got up and sucked, and put a tag and vaccinate them. Doing what they can to make sure every cow and calf are safe and healthy.
Every calf you save is a big influence on your profit for the year.
The Fusses have 134 cows to calve this year and expect to be done around the beginning of June.
There are some new members in a Sioux Falls ag classroom. Their sow, Dolly has farrowed, welcoming 14 piglets. Pipestone, a large Pork Management company, brought the sow into the classroom, as a way to get students at the Career and Technical Education Academy interested in the swine industry and learn about the opportunities available. Students were able to be there throughout the entire farrowing process
I started this farrowing project at my former school in Chester and did two years there, came to the CTE academy and this was one thing that we really wanted to give our students an opportunity to be a part of. Very few if any of our students have any ties to production ag, so I said this is a great way for them to see what it is like to actually be part of the swine industry.
ADVERTISEMENT
Giving the hands-on learning experiences are key to any ag class, but especially in classrooms where students aren't exposed to agriculture on a regular basis.
It helps us learn. I mean, Mr. Jensen can sit and he can talk to us and he can show us slides but it's a lot different than actually doing it. It gives you a learning curve I would say over just having the class.
The students plan to name the piglets after their favorite Dolly Parton songs. The sow and piglets will stay in the classroom for around a month and then will be adopted out to a student who is interested in using the pig for their FFA career development project.
AHEAD ON AGWEEK TV... THESE FUTURE CHEFS ARE COOKING UP SOME WINNING DISHES, USING SOY...
AGWEEK WEATHER IS SPONSORED BY BREMER BANK. CONNECT WITH A BANKER TODAY AT BREMER DOT COM
HAS SPRING FINALLY SPRUNG? HERE'S JOHN WITH OUR AGRIWEATHER OUTLOOK.
April marches on. And you know what? The sunshine finally will win out. Even those cold snow covered areas of the northern plains are finally seeing the snow melting away. And we're really getting spring underway across the northern part of the country. The rest of the world has been in spring for a while. Rain showers are going to become a little more spotty as we go into the second half of April. I'm not seeing quite the widespread onslaught of stormy weather, but there certainly will be some April showers to talk about. And it is conceivable. In fact, it's likely that in a couple of areas of the country, the colder spots there will be at least a rain snow mix possible a couple of times, particularly as we get into the second week. I see a little bit of a cooldown in some parts of the north, but it's definitely more of a spring weather pattern. Jet stream still has a few lobes in it, implying the ups and downs. The cold spots are cold, the warm spots are warm. We start off with some chilly weather in the northern plains. That won't last, though. That's actually going to be fading into just cool the western half of the Dakotas where there isn't much snow, if any is going to be recovering nicely. The eastern Dakotas still melting. Snow will be melting snow. It just won't be a terribly warm week because of that. Still fairly cold across Canada. And we're not seeing a lot of really hot weather. And by hot this time of year, I'm talking about consistent eighties and some nineties thrown into that. The warm is seventies with maybe a stray 80 that's in the south.The Rockies of course are going to be cold this week and the ambulatory up and down pattern of the jet stream this week as we get toward the weekend is going to begin to flatten out a bit. There will be a fairly deep, low pressure trough over the northeast part of the continent, and that's going to keep the new England fairly cool and eastern Canada very cold. The Rockies will continue to be fairly cool, although with this ridge of high pressure in place, there will be some warming up there. We're not going to see a lot of really hot weather in the south because of this phase, this low in the jet stream. The hot places will be Florida, Texas and Arizona, Southern California, the usual spots as we get toward that second week. Now, we're still seeing fairly cool weather. By that I mean a lot of forties and fifties in the northern plains. But once you get south of there, some pretty nice spring weather. We've had some hot temperatures in the central plains and western part of the Midwest. The next couple of weeks will not be quite so warm and with this cooler weather, there will be a slight chance of some snow.There might even be some snow in Minnesota, Wisconsin, here later on toward the parts of this week. There will likely be some precipitation in the Pacific Northwest, which will mostly be noticed as rain except in the mountain areas and the Gulf Coast areas through parts of Florida. Looks like some thundershowers in Florida.That's great news because this can be a fairly dry time of year in Florida and the Everglades and some parts of central Florida can kind of catch on fire, it looks like will be a little more rainy for that down there. There will be a chance of some rain snow mix in the northern plains toward the latter part of April. That's not unusual with the rain.
AGWEEKTV SOY INSIGHT BROUGHT TO YOU BY THE NORTH DAKOTA SOYBEAN COUNCIL
ADVERTISEMENT
FUTURE CHEFS IN THE CULINARY PROGRAM AT THE NORTH DAKOTA STATE COLLEGE OF SCIENCE IN WAHPETON HAVE DEVELOPED SOME AWARD-WINNING RECIPES, USING SOY PRODUCTS. ROSE DUNN GIVES YOU A TASTE, IN THIS MONTH'S SO INSIGHT.
THESE BUDDING CHEFS HAVE COOKED UP SOME AWARD-WINNING DISHES, MADE WITH SOY PRODUCTS, FOR A CONTEST SPONSORED BY THE NORTH DAKOTA SOYBEAN COUNCIL. GRACE NADLER TOOK FIRST PLACE HONORS IN THE DESSERT CATEGORY FOR HER SWEET TREAT--SOY ICE CREAM TOPPED WITH CARMEL, SOYNUT BUTTER AND CHOCOLATE COVERED SOY NUTS.
I HAVE NEVER COOKED WITH SOY BEFORE. I WOULD USE SOY SAUCE, BUT THAT'S ABOUT IT. IT'S A NICE PROTEIN ALTERNATIVE.
GRACE STUMPF WON FIRST PLACE IN THE APPETIZER CATEGORY FOR HER MISO-GINGER SALMON WITH EDEMAME- PINEAPPLE SALSA AND HONEY-SOY GLAZE.
I KIND OF HAD THIS DISH LIKE IN MY MIND SINCE WE STARTED TALKING ABOUT THE SOY FOODS, AND I WANTED TO INCORPORATE AS MUCH SOY AS I COULD, SO I DID. AND SALMON IS A GOOD BASE PROTEIN FOR BASICALLY EVERYTHING, BECAUSE IT JUST SUCKS IN FLAVOR.
AMBER GAGNON WHIPPED UP A CHOCOLATE TOFU MOUSSE-FILLED CROISSANT, AND SOME EDAMAME HUMMUS. SHE LIKES THE IDEA OF MAKING A DESSERT AND AN APPETIZER HEALTHIER WITH SOY.
WORKING WITH HEALTHY FOODS, AND HELPING OTHERS TO BE INSPIRED TO EAT HEALTHY FOOD IS DEFINITELY ALWAYS A WIN.
AND IT'S NOT JUST FOR BRAGGING RIGHTS.... THE CONTEST CARRIED SOME SCHOLARSHIP MONEY FOR THE STUDENT WINNERS. THESE STUDENTS ALSO SPENT SEVERAL DAYS LAST FALL VISITING A FARM WHERE SOYBEANS ARE GROWN, A FOOD GRADE SOYBEAN PLANT IN CASSELTON, AND WATCHING TOFU BEING MADE AT THE NORTHERN CROPS INSTITUTE. CULINARY ARTS INSTRUCTOR BENJAMIN WHITMORE HIS STUDENTS HAD A GREAT TIME LEARNING ABOUT THE BENEFITS OF SOY.
REALLY THE BEST OF BOTH WORLDS. GETTING THE HEALTH BENEFITS, BUT ALSO HAVING THAT GREAT FLAVOR THAT OUR STUDENTS ARE REALLY STRIVING FOR WHEN THEY GET OUT INTO THE INDUSTRY.
IN WAHPETON, NORTH DAKOTA, THIS IS ROSE DUNN FOR AGWEEK.
FOR THESE RECIPES, AND MORE OF THE STUDENTS' RECIPES. GO TO NORTH DAKOTA SOYBEAN.ORG , AND SEARCH SOY ON YOUR PLATE.
UP NEXT ON AGWEEK TV...A MINNESOTA FAMILY NURTURES THE SAME SOIL FOR OVER A CENTURY
AMERICA IN THE 1880'S LOOKED A LOT DIFFERENT THAN IT DOES TODAY. BUT ON A SMALL FARM NEAR ROCHESTER MINNESOTA, ONE THING HASN'T CHANGED. THE O'NEIL FAMILY HAS BEEN TENDING THAT SAME SOIL FOR ALMOST ONE HUNDRED AND FIFTY YEARS. THE FARM IS NOW RUN BY PAT O'NEIL AND HIS PARENTS, DENNIS AND BRIDGET. PAT O'NEIL HAS FOND MEMORIES OF GROWING UP ON A FARM THAT HAS SUCH A RICH HISTORY.
SOME OF THE MEMORIES WERE MY GREAT UNCLE ED COMING OUT WHEN WE WERE RENTING THE FARM WHEN I WAS JUST A KID, HIM COMING OUT AND JUST OVERSEEING THINGS AND TELLING STORIES OF THE FARM AND THIS FIELD AND THIS HAPPENED AND YOUR GRANDPA DID THIS. IT'S JUST KIND OF A LOOK BACK INTO HISTORY, HOW THEY USED TO DO THINGS.
O'NEIL SAYS HIS OLDEST SON, HAS SHOWN INTEREST IN TAKING OVER THE FARM AFTER HE GRADUATES HIGH SCHOOL.
STORIES YOU'LL ONLY SEE ON AGWEEK.COM AND IN AGWEEK MAGAZINE THIS WEEK. A federal judge in North Dakota has halted the new WOTUS law in 24 more states. It's already on hold in both Texas and Idaho. A biofuels leader recounts the history of the industry since the late 1970s.
WE APPRECIATE YOU WATCHING AGWEEK TV. REMEMBER TO CHECK US OUT DAILY ON FACEBOOK, TWITTER, INSTAGRAM AND TIK TOK, TO KEEP UP ON ALL YOUR AG NEWS. HAVE A WONDERFUL WEEK EVERYONE
The Trust Project
