Good morning.
By now we all know about aquaculture, but today we want to highlight a different kind of water-based farming…
Specifically, producing your next plate of fried octopus.
Nueva Pescanova has invested €50M into building a 3,000-tonne capacity facility in Gran Canaria to raise the tentacled creatures—an initiative they hope will meet rising demand, but also take pressure away from wild populations.
The issue of octopus farming is a multi-faceted one (concerns about their intelligence and territoriality lay some doubt on whether breeding them in captivity makes sense). But it’s certainly an interesting look into aquaculture innovators charting new waters.
Stories:
- Cattle Controversy
- Cooking Oil Market Gets Fried
- Soil Tech Gets Green Light
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Cattle producers are finding it hard to agree to disagree about some proposed legislation on market transparency. Cue the cattle controversy.
Grab the bull: Debate Wednesday in the Senate Ag Committee reviewed two cattle market proposals—the Cattle Price Discovery and Transparency Act of 2022 and the Meat and Poultry Special Investigator Act of 2022.
Cattle Price Discovery and Transparency Act of 2022
The yeas: Some producers are calling for mandatory cash trades in cattle markets, which this act would provide, plus more public disclosure of what packers are paying. The proponents say the act will bring more competition to the packing industry and give producers more power.
The nays: Cattle producers against the bill say cattle marketing issues have been present for decades and passing the bill would apply "20-year-old pricing mechanisms to an industry that has far advanced beyond cash trade," noted Shawn Tiffany of Tiffany Cattle Company in Kansas.
Packers argue recent price changes are due to natural supply and demand and that blasted COVID-19 pandemic.
Groups like the North American Meat Institute want to guard the bill from passing, citing economists’ predictions this will be costly to producers:
- Shifting away from alternative marketing agreements (AMAs) will cost cattle producers between $23M and $249M annually.
- Nearly 90% of the bill’s costs will be shouldered by farmers in Kansas, Texas, Oklahoma, and New Mexico—because, well, there are a lot of cattle in those states.
Meat and Poultry Special Investigator Act of 2022: This bill would create a new USDA office to investigate and enforce antitrust laws, establish minimums for negotiated sales, and require clear reporting of marketing contracts.
Sen. John Boozman, R-Ark., has concerns on the efficiency and necessity of the new entity and says even small packers would be subjected to the new law.
In the House: The House Ag Committee also held a hearing on Wednesday with CEOs of Cargill, JBS, National Beef, and Tyson Foods.
Long story short? This beef brawl is set to continue for a while.
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→ Grabbing (money) by the horns. The former lead animal health technician at the U.S.-Mexico border pleaded guilty to accepting bribe money for letting diseased and tick-infested cattle into the U.S. without inspection or quarantine.
→ Slow roll. Rail traffic congestion is keeping ethanol plants from maintaining production, with deliveries being delayed and weekly production rates falling for 4 consecutive weeks.
→ Rejected. A new report shows that the USDA is turning down most farmers’ applications for federal funding to implement conservation practices, with budgets instead going to larger operations.
→ CoverCress boost. St.Louis-based startup CoverCress, which produces an oilseed cover crop, raised a $26M funding round and announced a partnership with agribusiness Bunge to turn their crop into renewable fuel.
→ Breezy is an understatement. Average wind speeds through the middle of the U.S. are higher than normal this year, sparking wildfires, dirt drifts, a decrease in cattle grazing grounds, and more.
→ Funding is flowing. The EPA is directing $50B towards rural water infrastructure, with investment going towards upgrading wastewater, stormwater, and drinking water management.
→ Help is flocking to the USDA. Ag Secretary Tom Vilsack approved $263M of emergency funding from the Commodity Credit Corporation to help fund the USDA’s fight against highly pathogenic avian influenza, which has reached 29 states.
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Cooking Oil Market Gets Fried |
The cooking oil market is getting into an even bigger pickle, thanks to news that Canada will plant less canola this season amid a worldwide supply squeeze.
Oh Canada. "Fertilizer costs and the fact that canola in recent years has become a crop that’s struggled to get those big yields," have ultimately contributed to the latest cutback, according to Ken Ball of PI Financial in Winnipeg.
Poppin’ prices. In February, vegetable oils hit record high prices, promptly followed by an additional 23% increase in March. Soybean oil followed suit, up 156% vs. 2019. Palm oil rose 200% and will likely go higher after Indonesia banned all cooking oil exports to protect its supply.
Starting to sizzle. Shoppers and large companies alike are starting to sweat the cooking oil crunch. Some European grocers have set limits on how much customers can purchase. In Kenya, thieves are selling toxic fluid from electrical transformers as cooking oil. Large companies like Cargill are experimenting with different oils and formulas.
Bad news for biofuels. If the crisis continues, countries may reconsider their biofuel mandates. 42% of soybean oil goes to biofuel production in the U.S., but that could change. The European Commission said it would back member states who choose to reduce their biofuel mandates. Indonesia delayed a plan requiring 40% palm oil-based biodiesel.
"Now we’re cooking with oil!" EU growers have increased rapeseed hectares by 7% for this year. Argentina has boosted its soybean area by 4%, and U.S. growers are expected to do the same.
Perhaps these increases will keep the world cooking.
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Grains: Soybeans were suppressed by the soy meal market while corn stayed green thanks to large China purchases.
Livestock: Sluggish consumer demand for pork coupled with cattle concerns from traders had prices mixed.
*As of Market Close [4/28/22]
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Future of Soil Technology Looks Croptimistic |
The world could use a little optimism—er, croptimism.
And Canadian AgTech company Croptimistic Technology Inc. is bringing just that, after receiving $1.1M in funding from Canadian Agri-Food Automation and Intelligence Network (CAAIN). The funding will go toward a $5M project to automate and scale SWAT MAPS.
Say WAT? Soil, water, and topography (SWAT) data is essential, and SWAT MAPS will provide accurate, automated, artificial intelligence-ready "soil potential" information. Croptimistic is developing the technology in collaboration with researchers at the University of Regina, the University of Prince Edward Island, and the University of Saskatchewan.
The end goal will be eventually pinpoint the best seed varieties for specific soil types.
Soundbite: "Their concept of developing automation and artificial intelligence of SWAT maps is remarkable, and as one of the largest projects of the seven we greenlighted, its scope and scale reflect the important benefits it will provide to Canadian producers," said CAAIN CEO, Kerry Wright. "‘Doing more with less,’ is the new mantra of the agri-food sector, and precision agriculture is an important piece of that puzzle."
MAPping the future: With input prices continuing to increase recently, farmers need to know exactly how much they need in order to maximize their yields (and avoid wasted money). More soil, water, and topography info means farmers can make better decisions, improve their profitability, and be more environmentally sustainable in the process.
And the hope from Croptimistic is that the company’s data will be exactly SWAT those farmers need.
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Corn and soybeans aren't the only crops struggling to get their planting progress rolling in 2022.
Sugarbeets are also feeling a little bit sour, 30% behind their planting pace from 2021.
Can you name the four states that make up 84% of the U.S. sugarbeet acreage?
Answer at the bottom of the email.
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Idaho, Michigan, Minnesota, North Dakota
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Written & Edited by Sheridan Wimmer, Amelia VanLandegen, Rachel Robinson, Ashley Scoby, and Travis Martin
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