🌽 GMO Cornfusion Cleared Up + Fowl Turkey Prices, Carbon Cabernet Farming

Good morning.

The ‘Henry Ford’ of the fish industry, Chuck Bundrant, passed away last week.

When Chuck showed up in Seattle in 1961, he had no job, no skills, and $80 to his name. Then, over sixty years, he built Trident Foods, America’s largest seafood company, while shifting the industry to be more innovative.

Talk about a game-changing agriculture pioneer. Here’s to you, Chuck!

Speaking of ag pioneers... don't miss our Movers & Shakers feature with Tara Vander Dussen, the New Mexico Milkmaid, on the scroll.

On the docket:

GMO Cornfusion Cleared Up
Carbon Cabernet Farming
Fowl Turkey Prices

P.S. Final call! We’re two days out ‘til the Magnetic Meet-Up at the National FFA Convention. Let us know if you’re coming by on Thursday via the RSVP form here.

It’s time for some music to corn growers’ ears: After recent farm visits between USDA Ag Secretary Tom Vilsack and Mexican Secretary of Agriculture and Rural Development Victor Villalobos, Mexico said it will continue to import GMO corn from the U.S.

Mexico is full of corn-ivores who eat more than one billion corn tortillas a day. While Mexico produces enough white corn of their own, they’re the number two buyer of U.S. yellow corn to meet those tortilla needs. Long story short… Mexico will continue to depend on U.S. corn.

Zoom out: Last year, Mexico’s president signed an executive order aiming to bar GMO corn for human consumption by 2024. More than 90% of U.S.-grown corn is genetically modified, so the announcement had producers corncerned.

Villalobos clarified that the policy bans GMO corn from Mexican farmland but doesn’t stop imports of it from the U.S.

Feel-good friends: A joint statement released after the visit was an earful of heart-warming news. The leaders noted the importance of the world’s largest two-way trade in food and agricultural goods. They see collaboration in the future as both countries’ farmers battle climate change, increasing demand, and natural resource constraints.

Shared statement sound bite: “We remain proud of our shared successes and equally steadfast in meeting common challenges together.”

Quick Hits

→ American cheese gets gobbled up. Exports of American cheese in August were up 71% over the prior year as Asian buyers led the charge of buying up over 9,000 metric tons.

→ Bluetooth booster for cattle. Startup HerdDogg’s recent rollout of Bluetooth 5 technology now lets animal owners scan tags for cattle on pasture while monitoring them from 100 yards away.

→ Containergeddon. Food traders are starting to stick commodities like sugar, coffee, rice, cotton, and cocoa into dry bulk vessels versus containers, giving up better quality control to merely get items shipped to receiving nations.

→ No messin’ around. The USDA and FDA will co-host a ‘Cybersecurity Summit’ for leaders in food and agriculture after multiple ransomware attacks on industry businesses over the past two months.

→ Brazil is getting testy. China is keeping its ban on Brazilian beef, a full six weeks after two atypical cases of Mad Cow Disease were found. Authorities in Brazil are getting concerned, as their export market is valued at $4B per year.

→ No more zombie deer. The House Ag Committee voted last week to allot $70M to controlling chronic wasting disease (CWD), a contagious, neurological disease found in deer, elk, and moose that leads to rapid weight loss and deranged behavior.

Higher temperatures. Less water. Wildfire smoke. Climate change is getting the wine industry a little buzzed.

Temperatures are an average of 2 to 5 degrees Fahrenheit higher than in 1980, according to weather records. Plus, the major wine regions in the U.S. are looking a little dry with all the water issues. Vineyards are getting about 30% less water than in the 1980s. (Luckily, technology like drip irrigation is helping the issue).

The intense droughts are leading to a blanc-et of smoke from wildfires over the area, creating a whole new set of problems to yet be solved...

A soundbite: “It is one of the most complicated issues to face the wine industry in a long while,” Melissa Hansen, research program director with the Washington State Wine Commission, said. “The impact of smoke on grapes depends on many factors.”

Oh, and this: Climate change is causing a domino effect on the industry. The changing temperature means the potential for new diseases and pests, on top of everything else.

Some in the wine industry are drinking deeply into doing their part to combat climate change with things like carbon farming. And the shifting weather is leading other wineries to switch up grape varieties and look for other ways to manage the change.

It took a once-in-a-lifetime blizzard in New Mexico for Tara Vander Dussen to sit down and start a blog nearly 6 years ago.

Fast forward to today, and the New Mexico Milkmaid has made quite a splash, creating content and building awareness for the dairy industry she loves, all while building up an audience of over 50,000 followers across her social media channels.

Between her work as an environmental scientist and her passion for the industry, she’s generating insightful ag content that inspires everyone from her fellow farmers to everyday moms that meander the grocery aisles.

Magnetic caught up with the busy dairy guru on all things life, work, and play. Read the full Q&A here.

October is ‘Career Fair Season’ across colleges and it’s no doubt that many of our college readers are on the internship hunt.

So why not look to The Combine and its participating companies as a place to land for summer 2022?

Getting a high-growth AgTech startup experience is unlike most internships. You mingle with co-founders, sit in on strategy discussions, and often get tangible results that drive the business forward in ways you can see.

From engineering to marketing and beyond, there are plenty of opportunities to help build the future of our industry.

Interested? Learn more here and get early access to posted roles as they are launched.

With frost on the jack-o-lantern, it’s time to start thinking about the next big American holiday—Thanksgiving.

The good: The “turkey shortage” isn’t happening, so you won’t have to give up your holiday bird cold turkey. While finding smaller birds will be slightly more difficult because many folks are having smaller gatherings (thanks, COVID), there are plenty to go around. Production is down 1.4% this Thanksgiving vs. last—not near enough to cause panic.

The bad: You’ll be paying more this year due to widespread labor shortages. There aren’t enough workers to clean, dress, and get the turkeys ready to cook.

The ugly: Your bird will cost you 68% more than it did two years ago. With some quick math, your 16-pound turkey will cost $21.76 this year compared to $12.96 in 2019.

That’s nothing to gobble at.