Good morning.
Every NCAA Tournament seems to have a Cinderella story.
And Magnetic March Madness is no exception: #15 Ag Future of America (AFA) knocked off #2 ADM for the biggest upset of the first round.
Other notable bracket busters:
- #13 RFDTV took out #4 BASF
- The #11 seeds were on a roll, as Advanced Agrilytics, Rabo AgriFinance, and AgBiome advanced.
- #10 seeds—National FFA and Bushel/FarmLogs—also snagged W’s.
Who will make the Sweet 16? You decide. Scroll for the link to vote.
Stories:
- Battle in the Breadbasket Rages On
- The Bovine Butler
- Magnetic March Madness: Second Round is Live!
- Seazing the Seaweed Moment
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Battle in the Breadbasket Rages On |
Lauren Van der Stockt | Getty Images
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As the Russian invasion of Ukraine enters its fourth week, the humanitarian crises are mounting.
And as the world watches, the state of agriculture remains a grave concern upon the steppe.
Planting prognosis: On Tuesday, agriculture analysts at APK-Inform noted that, because of the conflict, the spring planting area was expected to be down nearly 7.5M acres from last year… a whopping 39% drop.
With Ukraine being a top commodities exporter, that reality is sending shockwaves across the world.
Hitting hard at home: Largely due to the uncertainty created by the war, grain prices are on the rise and U.S. livestock producers are among the economic collateral damage.
As John Hansen, the president of the Nebraska Farmers Union, noted: "The longer this war goes on, the more ranchers and farmers who raise cattle will be put out of business."
Poultry products panic: After having to close multiple farms, one of Ukraine’s largest ag companies announced it’s now producing 40% fewer eggs.
And after a fire caused by Russian shelling demolished the nation’s largest frozen food storage warehouse, $8.5M worth of frozen chicken was destroyed.
Where this goes: Regional food security is a major concern, and even as they ban the export of staple crops, Russian officials are adamant there is "no risk" of food shortages in the aggressor’s country.
But as the spring sowing season begins, the message released by Ukraine’s parliament to their citizens is clear:
"The food security of the whole state is on the shoulders of Ukrainian farmers."
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→ Ag crypto. Argentinian farmers will now have access to loans secured by cryptocurrency "tokens," thanks to a partnership between Santander and Agrotoken—the first time the agricultural credit market has used blockchain technology.
→ Where’s the beef? Demand for U.S. beef exports is "remarkable," and the export value per head of fed slaughter exceeded $500—a new record.
→ Wait for SCOTUS on WOTUS. Two hundred House members have signed a letter asking the Biden administration to hold off on writing new rules for what "waters of the U.S." are until a crucial Supreme Court case on the topic is decided.
→ When pig (processing times) fly. Three U.S. pork plants will increase their processing line speeds under a new USDA trial program.
→ More bad moos. Price forecasts are on the rise for butter, cheese, nonfat dry milk, and whey thanks to a reduction in available milking cows and a 17-year low in dairy semen sales.
→ Can organics close the (price) gap? Organic food is getting more affordable, and the gap in prices between organic and conventional foods has gone down by 8% since January.
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Ranch Rover, Ranch Rover, send feed rations on over.
Tech company Smooth Ag is creating a butler for cattle of sorts. The company has developed V1 Ranch Rover, a fully autonomous feeder, aimed to help with higher input costs and decreased labor availability.
How now, auto cow? The Ranch Rover is powered by a 24.9 horsepower Honda engine and can haul up to a ton of feed. It can even traverse rugged pastures with its four-wheel drive. It’ll stay in bounds with a geo-fence set up by the "driver" and can avoid obstacles.
"It’s going to be the first-ever pastureland autonomous cattle feeding rover," says Hunter Allemand, co-founder of Smooth Ag. "Think about your flatbed truck with your trip hopper or whatever you use on the ranch to supplement pasture feeding. This is just an autonomous version."
Data-driven: When the rover moves around its pasture, it can collect data and notify the owner when it runs out of feed. Future designs are expected to have the unit return to the feed collection point and get more.
The rovers are in development now and are taking pre-orders on their website.
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Grains: With corn clogging the Black Sea and Brazil on a bean export shortage, demand looked pretty good for the grains.
Livestock: Pigs fell as traders are alerted to higher short-term weights and a backlog of inventory.
*As of Market Close [3/17/22]
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To unleash your soil’s fertility and maximize your crops potential, ask your trusted retailer for TerraTrove today.
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And then there were 32... |
The Sweet 16 has never tasted so good.
But that taste is reserved for only half of our remaining companies...
The deets for this round:
- Head to the link below and hit 'Click Here to Vote!' once in the portal.
- You will have to vote for a winner in all 16 Second Round matchups.
- Voting is live until Monday at noon EST.
We'll announce the Sweet 16 and open the next round of games in Tuesday morning's newsletter.
Go Vote Here!
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Seazing the Seaweed Moment |
Svetlana Levin / Getty Images
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The seaweed is always greener in someone else’s… farm.
Different varieties of seaweed and kelp have hit headlines the past few years, and interest is growing. But, interested parties are being entangled in red tape.
Soundbite: "We lag behind the rest of the world in aquaculture production," said Sarah Brenholt, campaign manager with Stronger America Through Seafood, an aquaculture industry group. "One of the reasons for that is the lack of a clear, predictable framework."
Ocean waters and saltwater tanks hold potential to grow seaweed, and it could potentially kelp the environment by sequestering atmospheric carbon. Many also see another health food for both humans and animals, pharmaceutical applications, fertilizers, bioplastics, biofuels, and textiles. And it doesn’t take up any more arable land, which is also in short supply.
Zoom out: Currently, most seaweed is harvested in Asia, with China, Indonesia, and the Philippines leading the way in the $15B global business. In the U.S., the market is not as developed.
However, the future doesn’t necessarily hold smooth sailing.
During the World Ocean Summit’s panel discussion on the seaweed industry, panelists lined out the challenges facing this newer industry. Fundamentals need to be established, and the industry needs more research and development on the potential for scaling and seeing climate benefits.
For now, methods and end-user knowledge gaps are keeping new companies close to shore, in the pilot stage.
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Exports are a big deal for the U.S., but individual states also care quite a bit.
Can you guess the hidden export categories for the associated colored states on the map below?
Answer at the bottom of the email.
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ERS USDA Data / HowtoCook.Recipes
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Why are you keeping us a secret? Make sure to share Magnetic with friends, family, and coworkers to snag Magnetic goodies when you hit certain referral counts.
Your link:
*Curious where you stand? You can always check your referral hub and see rewards here.
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Yellow = Soybeans
White = Cotton
Light Blue = Dairy
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Written & Edited by Kevin Cross, Sheridan Wimmer, Rachel Robinson, Ashley Scoby, and Travis Martin
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