Index to University Clippings
Iowa State University
January 9, 2006 through January 20, 2006
University News
Associated Press State & Local Wire - 1/14 - Fate Of Historic Hospital In
Judge's Hands - David Block - Faculty/Research.
Aberdeen American News - 1/13 - How To Handle Post Holiday Credit Card
Bills
Aberdeen American News - 1/13 - Lawyering - Roger McEowen Faculty/Research
Saint Paul Pioneer Press - 1/12 - New Face Of Tech Security – General
Argus Leader - 1/11 - Pop. 144,600 - And Booming - Tim Borich Faculty/Research
Chicago Tribune - 1/11 - Letters – General
Grand Forks Herald - 1/9 - Bin-Buster Year Prompts Concerns Of Low Prices Robert Wisner - Faculty/Research
The Times - 1/9 - Gory Games That Can Warp Your Brain - Craig Anderson Faculty/Research
Top Producer - 1/9 - Will Iowa's Cows Come Home Again? - John Lawrence Faculty/Research
Top Producer - 1/9 - What Land Bubble - Mike Duffy - Faculty/Research
Waterloo Courier - 1/9 - Deere & Co. Promotes Waterloo Native To Senior
Position - Michael J. Mack Jr. – Administration
Iowa City Press-Citizen - 1/8 - Don't Overlook ISU For Tips – General
Ocean County Observer - 1/4 - Purchase Food Locally - Faculty/Research
ABA Banking Journal - January Issue - Gray Hair, Good-Times, And Guns Michael Duffy - Faculty/Research
Beef - 1/1 - 2005's Top Environmentalists – General
Beef - 1/1 - The 2006 Cattle Outlook - Bob Wisner - Faculty/Research
Beef - 1/1 - Windrow Composting - Tom Glanville - Faculty/Research
Columbia Journalism Review - January Issue - Watching Wal-Mart - Kenneth
Stone - Faculty/Research
Emerging Food R&D Report - 1/1 - The Genetics And Genomics Of Maize Carolyn Lawrence - Faculty/Research
Farm Industry News - 1/1 - Nitrogen Rate Calculators – General
Food Chemical News - 12/19 - Study Sees Little Benefit For Farmers From
Biopharm Crops - Robert Wisner - Faculty/Research
Begin In-house Media Review, 01-20-06
Agri News, MN – 1/17 - Research designed to find ways dairy can help diets
studied – Ruth MacDonald – Faculty/research
Agri News, MN – 1/17 – Iowa news and notes - Extension
Agriculture Online – 1/16 - High Yield Team shoots to boost bean yields by 30%
on 'challenged' fields – Palle Pedersen - Extension
AgWeb – 1/13 - USDA Awards $10 Million to Sequence Swine Genome –
General
Associated Press – 1/12 - Lawmakers told public education can help expand
ethanol use – Larry Johnson – Faculty/research - Also ran in: WHO-TV, IA;
WQAD, IL; WOT, IA; Agri News
Associated Press – 1/14 - Researchers Win $10M Pig Genome Grant – Max
Rothschild – Faculty/research – Also ran in: TheNewsTribune.com, WA; San
Jose Mercury News; Agriculture Online; HappyNews.com, TX; CBS Contra
Costa Times, CA; Press of Atlantic City, NJ; Silicon Valley.com, CA;
Newsday, NY; phillburbs.com, PA; Biloxi Sun Herald; Flint Journal, MI; The
Ledger, FL; Los Angeles Times, Ca; Washington File, DC; Forbes;
Washington Post; Seattle Post Intelligencer; Kentucky.com, KY; Belleville
News-Democrat, IL; The State, SC; Monterey County Herald, CA; Bradenton
Herald; Fort Wayne News Sentinel, IN; Hilton Head Island Packet, SC; Fort
Worth Star Telegram, TX; MLive.com, MI; Macon Telegraph, GA; Charlotte
Observer, NC; MSN Money; Myrtle Beach Sun News, SC; Houston
Chronicle; Press of Atlantic City, NJ; San Francisco Chronicle; Chicago
Tribune; CNN; CNN International
Associated Press – 1/15 – Groups build energy-efficient house - Students
Associated Press – 1/17 - Iowa remains tops in corn, soybean production –
Robert Wisner – Extension – Also ran in: Truth about Trade & Technology,
IA; Marshalltown Times Republican, IA; Quad City Times, IA
Associated Press – 1/18 - Regents seek revenue boost from out-of-state
students – General - Also ran in: WOI, IA; WHO-TV, IA;WQAD, IL; Sioux City
Journal, IA; KCCI.com, IA
Dailyrecord.com, NJ – 1/17 - Single, but not alone: Farmers too busy for love –
Paul Lasley – Faculty/research – Also ran in: Arkansas Times, AR; USA
Today
Des Moines Register – 1/12 - Biotech crops' acreage increases - GianCarlo
Moschini – Faculty/research
Des Moines Register – 1/13 - Ethanol experts explain fuel issues – Robert Brown
– Faculty/research
Des Moines Register – 1/13 - Munson: Pop culture hot talk of 2006 - General
Des Moines Register – 1/13 - Warm January temperatures prompt more work
outdoors - Charles Hurburgh – Faculty/research
Des Moines Register – 1/14 - Iowans eager to invest big bucks in biodiesel Roger Ginder – Faculty/research – Also ran in: Sioux City Journal, IA; Quad
City Times, IA
Des Moines Register – 1/14 - Anchor's snub may be death for Eastgate – Ken
Stone – Retired – Faculty/research
Des Moines Register – 1/14 – Young artists try out at ISU - General
Des Moines Register – 1/14 - Ace ACT score opens doors for Ames student's
future - General
Des Moines Register – 1/15 - ISU: Arrests at football games in '05 under 200 –
Rob Bowers – Sara Kellogg – Faculty/research
Des Moines register – 1/15 - Martin Luther King Day events - General
Des Moines Register – 1/15 - Iowa mom spins 'Wheel of Fortune' – Jill Lansing Student
Des Moines Register – 1/15 - Biotech struggles in market despite its promise in
lab – Dan Voytas – David Wright – Steve Carter – Kan Wang – Walter Fehr –
Faculty/research
Des Moines Register – 1/15 – Vacancy at research park interests firm – Steve
Carter – Faculty/research
Des Moines Register – 1/15 – Grassroots – 1/15/06 - General
Des Moines Register – 1/15 - Cable viewers: Switch to a la carte - Jeff Blevins –
Faculty/research
Des Moines Register – 1/16 - ISU may be leader in dining decision – Deb
Duncan - Union - Larry Quant - Athletics
Des Moines Register – 1/17 - Metal thieves strike gold at construction sites –
Alan Russell – Faculty/research
Des Moines Register – 1/18 - Stricter pollution limits for Iowa waters OK'd General
Des Moines Register – 1/18 - Ames keg registration plan nears passage – Drew
Larson - Greg Bonett - Students
Des Moines Register – 1/18 - Energy scientists turn bean counters – Stephen
Howell - Administration
Farm News – 1/13 - Johnson: Look for basis opportunities this spring – Steven
Johnson - Extension
Farm News – 1/13 - Odds improve for ‘06 drought - Elwynn Taylor –
Faculty/research
Farm News – 1/13 - Corn piles still in good shape – Robert Wisner –
Faculty/research
Food Consumer, IL – 1/12 - Early drinking in teens linked to alcohol use in
movies – Fredrick Gibbons – Faculty/research
Forest City Summit, IA – 1/17 - Public health says, 'Lighten Up, Hancock' – Ruth
Litchfield – Extension – Also ran in: Britt News Tribune, IA
Fort Wayne Journal Gazette, IN – 1/14 - Wal-Mart weaves in wellness – Ken
Stone – Retired – Faculty/research
Iowa Farmer Today – 1/7 - Help offered for those applying for value-added grants
– Mary Holz-Clause – Faculty/research
Iowa Farmer Today – 1/7 - Convenience stores could be local products market –
Mary Holz-Clause – Faculty/research – Also ran in: Convenience Store News
Kansas City Star, MO – 1/18 - Bigger prices, bigger fears – Robert Brown –
Faculty/research
KCCI.com, IA – 1/16 - Hit-And-Run Penalties Could Get Tougher - DPS
Quad-Cities Online, IL – 1/12 - Irritating intrusion at funerals prompts legislation –
Barbara Mack – Faculty/research
Quad City Times – 1/9 - Lobbying scandal fallout felt in area – Steffen Schmidt –
Faculty/research
Quad City Times – 1/13 - Ethanol 101 explains fundamentals – Robert Brown –
Faculty/research – Larry Johnson - Administration
Radio Iowa – 1/12 - Researchers brief Legislators on ethanol – John Miranowski
– Robert Brown – Faculty/research
Radio Iowa – 1/13 - Practical Farmers of Iowa meeting today – Mike Duffy –
Faculty/research
Radio Iowa – 1/17 - I-S-U group encourages "pro-bono" engineering work - Mark
Bryden – Faculty/research
Sioux City Journal, IA – 1/13 - Iowa lawmakers get lesson on ethanol - General
The Register-Mail, IL – 1/12 - Ag seminar signup deadline Jan. 27 – Stanley R.
Johnson - Extension
The Associated Press State & Local Wire
January 14, 2006 Saturday
Go To Top
Fate of historic hospital in judge's hands
WASHINGTON Iowa
A judge will decide whether the 94-year-old Washington County Hospital should
be saved or torn down and replaced with a new building.
Locals hoping to preserve the building, and hospital officials planning to demolish
the structure, presented their cases in a packed Washington County courtroom
Friday.
District Court Judge Dan Morrison could issue a ruling as early as next week.
Built in 1912, the hospital building is on the National Registry of Historic Places
and the Iowa Historic Preservation Alliance's 2005 list of Most Endangered Iowa
Properties. It is the oldest hospital building in the nation that was paid for by
county taxpayers and has come to be regarded as a local landmark, according to
preservationists.
Washington County Hospital officials have acknowledged the historic qualities of
the building, but claim saving it would cost $1.5 million.
A group of residents organized after the hospital's seven-member board of
trustees voted in August 2005 to tear down the building.
Mary Patterson, of Washington, said local preservationists were kept out of the
information loop by the trustees.
"They failed to follow Iowa's open-meetings laws," Patterson said. "They listed
the topic of hospital demolition under 'technology.' How does that correlate?
They've been trying to demolish for a number of years, and they finally got the
right people on the board."
Citing legal counsel, Don Patterson, the hospital's chief executive officer, and Jim
Harris, president of the board of trustees, declined comment.
Old buildings are not always worth saving, according to David Block, an
architecture professor at Iowa State University.
"The question to ask is whether or not the building can be saved for some kind of
usage," Block said.
CompetitivEdge 1-888-881-EDGE
www.clipresearch.com
Electronic Clipping
Demolition often seems the best way to go in terms of cost, he said, but added
that bids can sometimes be several thousand dollars off because the cost of
removing the existing building may not be included.
"Around half the cost of the new building is in the outer walls," Block said. "Even
if it does cost slightly more to renovate, you have to keep in mind the big picture.
If people think it's a landmark and it's structurally sound, why not renovate?"
Information from: The Des Moines Register, http://www.desmoinesregister.com
CompetitivEdge 1-888-881-EDGE
www.clipresearch.com
Electronic Clipping
Aberdeen American News
Go To Top
January 13, 2006 Friday
South Dakota: FF; Pg. 98
How to handle post holiday credit card bills
BECKY LEONARD
Extension
Educator/Family
Consumer Sciences
Spink County
A charge here, a charge
there and pretty soon
your holiday shopping
has resulted in a stack of
credit card bills. Now you
may be left wondering
how you will pay for
those
bills.
Phyllis
Zalenski,
Family
Resource Management
Specialist at Iowa State
University Extension,
shares strategies for
reducing your debt and
taking control of your
finances.
How much do I owe?
First, begin by listing all
of your debts. Include
balances
owed,
the
monthly payment, and
annual percentage rate.
Check your credit card
statements carefully to
make sure all the
charges are correct and
calculate your total.
Minimum
Payments,
Maximum Cost
CompetitivEdge 1-888-881-EDGE
One of the advantages
of using a credit card is
being able to buy now
and pay later. But some
consumers take the paylater concept to an
extreme - they pay only
the minimum amount
due on their card's
outstanding balance and
end up paying the
maximum costs.
Try to add as much as
possible to the minimum
payment. Depending on
the balance owed, the
extra amount can make
a major difference in
reducing the amount of
interest you will pay. You
may have noticed that
your monthly minimum
credit card payments
have increased (or soon
will be.) This is due to
new guidelines from
federal
regulating
agencies to reduce the
high levels of personal
debt in our country. In
the long run, higher
minimum payments will
enable
consumers
paying
minimum
payments to get out of
debt faster. But those
www.clipresearch.com
who have struggled to
make just the minimum
payments in the past will
have
a
challenging
adjustment ahead of
them.
If you have a savings
account earning a small
rate of interest, use it to
pay toward higher rate
credit accounts. The
difference between the
interest you earn on your
savings account and the
interest you would pay
on your credit card debt
can
be
significant
savings.
Pay your account on
time, before the due date
if possible, and don't go
over your credit limit. If
not you could be paying
a late fee, an over-the
limit fee, and increased
interest.
Get a Better Rate
Call your current card
issuer and ask that they
can lower your interest
rate. Tell the card issuer
that you've been a good
customer for X years,
that you're making a
Electronic Clipping
resolution to pay what
you owe, and you'd like a
better deal.
If that doesn't work,
consider
shopping
around for a lower rate
card and transferring
existing
credit
card
balances. Before you
switch, understand the
terms of the new credit
card completely. Make
sure you will get that
lower
rate
on
the
balance
you
just
CompetitivEdge 1-888-881-EDGE
transferred,
because
some card issuers have
restrictions on balances
transferred.
PowerPay Out of Debt
PowerPay is a free,
confidential
computer
analysis that shows you
how to pay debts to save
time and interest. Using
the
"power
pay"
principle, the program
shows you how to
eliminate high-cost debts
www.clipresearch.com
first,
thereby
saving
money in the long term.
Contact your county
Extension Office to learn
how you can analyze
your debt repayment
plan. You will receive a
repayment
schedule
showing how you will
benefit
from
power
payments
and
a
reduction calendar to
track
your
monthly
payments
to
each
creditor.
Electronic Clipping
Aberdeen American News
Go To Top
January 13, 2006 Friday
South Dakota: FF; Pg. 2
Lawyering
Lawyering that led a
more
business-pliant
federal judiciary to an
ever looser interpretation
of the federal dormant
commerce clause that
forbids
states
from
enacting "discriminatory"
laws to impede interstate
business.
That pliancy is now
hardening into case law,
notes Roger McEowen,
an associate professor
of ag law at Iowa State
University, in a Jan. 6,
2006 Agricultural Law
Digest
article
coauthored
with
ISU
colleague Neil Harl,
because none of the
three courts examined
"the actual impact" of the
anti-corporate
farming
laws before tossing them
out.
While
the
Nebraska
"opinion appears to be
seriously
flawed,"
McEowen holds little
hope for reversal through
appeal.
Instead,
Congress
should
"address
the
anticompetitive effects of
concentrated agricultural
CompetitivEdge 1-888-881-EDGE
markets and vertically
integrated
production
supply chains" these
court-approved assaults
continue to bless.
A second, important
hinge to these cases is
that agbiz found farmers
to front the corporate
court
challenges.
In
short, farmers loaded the
gun; agbiz pulled the
trigger.
Item Two: Just days
before
Christmas
Congressional Scrooges
agreed to cut nearly $3
billion in ag spending
over the next five years.
The path was greased
by opinion makers like
the Washington Post
which, on Oct. 19, used
the upcoming budget
fight to note:
"...As with Hollywood
Mafiosi, the farmers'
lobbying muscle is based
on a combination of
charm, thuggery and
bribery. They exploit
urban
sentimentality
about the pastoral idyll...
When sentiment and
charm
don't
work,
www.clipresearch.com
farmers get their way
with other tactics... The
American farm lobby...
makes slightly more than
$50 million worth of
political donations in
each election cycle."
Item Three:Despite all
the D.C. sanctimony
over
federal
farm
subsidies, 31 percent of
805 farms in a statewide
University
of
Illinois
study pocketed less than
$20,000 in income in
2005.
Additionally, noted the U
of I study released in
December, in three of
the last five years net
income on the Illinois'
farms surveyed was less
than the government
payments
received.
Indeed,
without
government
payments
40 percent of the farms
in the survey would have
logged negative incomes
in
the
last
six
consecutive years.
Items Four and Five: If
the already put-in-place
2009 federal estate tax
exemption of $3.5 million
Electronic Clipping
was the law in 2000, only
65 farms nationwide
would have paid any
estate taxes that year,
according to the nonpartisan Congressional
Budget Office. Using the
same 2000 IRS data for
2006,
when
the
exception rises to $2
million, only 124 farm
estates
across
the
country would have paid
taxes.
According to an Aug. 31
survey by the Illinois
Society of Professional
Farm Managers and
Rural Appraisers, 56
percent of all land buyers
in the state during the
CompetitivEdge 1-888-881-EDGE
first six months of 2005
used 1031 Tax-Deferred
Exchanges
to
avoid
federal capital gains
taxes while pushing land
prices to over $5,000 an
acre in many prime
farmland areas.
is the owner of Ag
Comm in Delavan, Ill.
Guebert's Farm and
Food File is published
weekly throughout the
U.S.
and
Canada.
Contact
him
at
agcomm@sbcglobal.net.
As such, why aren't farm
groups - and their
expensive lobbyists fighting for tax changes
to drain the 1031 price
pressure that affects
every working farmer
and rancher as hard as
they are for estate tax
changes that affects only
a handful?
Facts: Farmers loaded
the gun; agbiz pulled
trigger
Columnist Alan Guebert
www.clipresearch.com
If you have information
you would like to submit
to the Farm Forum, you
can
email
it
to
farmforum@aberdeenne
ws.com or send it to
Farm Forum, P.O. Box.
4430, Aberdeen, SD
57401.
Electronic Clipping
Saint Paul Pioneer Press
Go To Top
January 12, 2006 Thursday
BUSINESS; Pg. 1C
NEW FACE OF TECH SECURITY
Metro State program designed to bridge gap between IT offices
and executive suites
LESLIE BROOKS
SUZUKAMO
Pioneer Press
When 23-year-old David
Luttrell gets his master's
degree in information
technology a couple
years from now, he
doesn't want to work with
computers he wants to
work with the people
who
work
with
computers.
"Ideally,
it'll
be
something where I'm
managing a (computer)
security department or
regular IT department,"
the Metropolitan State
University student from
Rush City said. "I don't
want to be the guy rolling
up his sleeves and up to
my elbows in wires."
Luttrell is not your classic
geek.
He
has
a
bachelor's degree in
business and discovered
his affinity for computers
after
the
trucking
company
where
he
CompetitivEdge 1-888-881-EDGE
works
introduced
automation not long ago.
He's now interning parttime
at
the
state
Department
of
Revenue's
securityconscious
technology
unit.
If the state of Minnesota
has its way, Luttrell and
others like him may
become the new face of
computer security.
The state has seeded a
new program at the Twin
Cities' Metro State to
create advanced courses
and
curriculum
in
computer security. It
wants to bridge the
chasm
between
the
basement server room
where a company's IT
workers toil and the
corner suites where the
executives hang out.
In a world where new
computer vulnerabilities
are discovered weekly,
the need for more
technology bodyguards
www.clipresearch.com
is no longer questioned.
By 2008, the research
firm IDC believes more
than
800,000
new
security
professionals
will join the 1.3 million
already employed.
But the real problem in
security
isn't
finding
technicians who know
how to cobble together a
decent
firewall,
according to St. Paul
computer
consultant
Mike O'Connor. It is
finding managers who
can write sound security
practices
and
help
executives
use
technology to comply
with
new
financial
reporting and privacy
laws
like
SarbanesOxley.
"It's the business stuff
they need to know.
Those folks are really
scarce," O'Connor said.
So this fall, the state
awarded a $4.8 million
"center of excellence"
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grant to Metro State to
create
both
undergraduate
and
graduate programs in
computer security.
The state's vision is to
build a center that would
train a cadre of future
information
security
managers
and
executives who would be
closely tied to Minnesota
businesses.
Metro State officials
have classes approved
by the National Security
Agency for its stilldeveloping Center for
Strategic
Information
Systems and Security.
Classes
began
in
September
but
the
center doesn't expect to
hire a director until
February.
Those courses will lead
to four-year bachelor of
applied science degrees
in computer security or
computer forensics, said
Steve
Creason,
associate professor in
the university's College
of Management and one
of the architects of the
program.
The two-year master's
program in which Luttrell
is enrolled combines
both
business
and
technical
training.
A
Ph.D. program could be
CompetitivEdge 1-888-881-EDGE
down the road
Creason said.
too,
The state hopes the
center could crank out
not just new workers or
research but maybe
even spawn a miniindustry
devoted
to
computer security and
the burgeoning area of
Internet telephony.
Other states have the
same idea, though, and
this could provide some
competition
for
the
Minnesota program.
Iowa State University
in
Ames
has
an
advanced computing
center to help develop
the next generation of
data security. Dakota
State
University
in
Madison, S.D., offers
bachelor and master's
degree
programs
in
"information assurance"
also certified by the
NSA.
All of these programs are
so new that it's hard to
assess
them.
It's
probably safe to say,
however, that the most
rigorous of the new
programs, announced in
December, is offered by
the SANS Institute in
Bethesda, Md. SANS is
renowned as one of the
world's largest sources
of information security
www.clipresearch.com
training and certification
and as the operator of
the
Internet
Storm
Center, an early warning
system for viruses and
worms.
The Maryland Higher
Education Commission
has approved separate
master's
degree
programs in security
engineering
and
management at SANS,
designed for people from
around the country who
have been picked to
assume leadership roles
by their companies, said
Alan
Paller,
SANS
director of research.
"American corporations
are being riddled by
(computer) attacks they
are being defended very
badly," Paller said.
To develop its four-year
program, Metro State
partnered with existing
two-year programs at
Inver Hills Community
College in Inver Grove
Heights and Minneapolis
Community
and
Technical College. The
three
schools
are
cooperating to allow
graduates from the more
technically oriented twoyear programs at the
colleges
to
transfer
seamlessly to Metro
State and finish up in
only two more years.
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Focusing on a niche like
computer security and
Internet
telecommunications
allows universities like
Metro State "to get away
from being plain vanilla
schools," said David
Anderson, dean of the
center for professional
development and work
force development at
CompetitivEdge 1-888-881-EDGE
Inver Hills
College.
Community
The program also could
raise Minnesota's profile
by letting its students
test
ideas
in
real
workplaces, turning the
program into a security
"proving ground," added
Ken
Niemi,
vice
chancellor
for
information technology at
www.clipresearch.com
the Minnesota State
Colleges
and
Universities,
which
oversees Metro State.
Leslie Brooks Suzukamo
covers
telecommunications and
technology and can be
reached
at
lsuzukamo@pioneerpres
s.com or 651-228-5475.
Electronic Clipping
Argus Leader
Go To Top
January 11, 2006 Wednesday
South Dakota: FRONT PAGE; Pg. 1A
Pop. 144,600 - and booming
January estimate means Sioux Falls has doubled since 1970
BY JON WALKER
live," she said.
climate, he said.
Sioux Falls' population
has swelled to 144,600
as the city basks in the
benefits of a humming
economy,
safe
neighborhoods and a
growth
pattern
that
seems to feed on itself.
Jobs
in
medicine,
education and finance
create a need for
houses, and the resulting
construction boom has
fueled a demand for
retail, restaurants and
other services.
The city is not on a major
waterway or rail line and
does not feed off larger
metro
areas.
Those
details make the growth
all the more remarkable,
said Borich, a 1971
graduate of O'Gorman
High School.
The new total, released
Tuesday, shows a 2.5
percent hike the past 12
months and sustains a
trend in which South
Dakota's largest city has
doubled in size the past
35 years. It will double
again in the next 35
years,
if
City
Hall
projections hold true.
"As long as industry
comes, we're going to
need more housing,"
said Alan Amdahl, 48, a
construction
company
owner
who
also
remembers leaner days
in the early 1980s.
The city gained 10
people a day in 2005,
such as Tara Friez, 27,
an interior designer for
Architecture Inc. who
moved
here
from
Houston
when
her
husband, Matt, joined
the residency program at
Sioux Valley Hospital.
"It's just a nice place to
CompetitivEdge 1-888-881-EDGE
Tim Borich, associate
professor
of
community
regional
planning at Iowa State
University, said Sioux
Falls has become a
regional growth center in
the
Upper
Midwest,
though not on par with
the Twin Cities or
suburbs near Chicago.
"Location is a battle
Sioux Falls deals with"
for reasons more than
www.clipresearch.com
The downside is that
medical
and
retail
consolidation
pumps
Sioux Falls but also
siphons the cream off
economies of smaller
towns trying to survive,
he said.
The
numbers
from
previous studies do in
fact show Sioux Falls
growing
faster,
by
percentage, than its own
metro area and the state
as a whole. About onethird of newcomers here
are from six nearby
counties, one-third from
a three-state area, and
one-third from across the
country, said Jeffrey
Schmitt, assistant city
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planner.
Dan Scott, president of
the Sioux Falls Area
Development
Foundation, said his
agency has helped other
towns
build
their
economies,
but
he
doesn't think that issue
relates to Sioux Falls'
effort to attract new
businesses.
"If a town is going to dry
up, it's going to dry up
whether
we
provide
opportunities or not,"
Scott said.
A bigger issue is work
force,
the
priority
concern
whenever
employers
show
an
interest in moving here,
Scott
said.
Unemployment is 3.3
percent - below state
and national rates -
CompetitivEdge 1-888-881-EDGE
raising questions of an
adequate labor pool.
"That's the number one
thing on everybody's
mind," he said. The work
force is far more than
adequate,
he
said,
because
medical,
education
and
retail
services continue to
cause people to move
here, increasing the
labor pool and sustaining
the cycle that builds the
economy.
"The positive here is that
people here want to
work," Scott said.
Sioux Falls scores well
among newcomers for its
park system - the city's
top asset, Friez said.
And it ticks low on any
study of crime rates in
part because of a mindset that small news is big
www.clipresearch.com
news. "People have a
tendency to pay attention
to their neighborhoods.
They
don't
ignore
problems," said assistant
police chief Patti Lyon.
Schmitt said a 200,000
population - probably
about the year 2020 might
strike
some
potential newcomers as
too big for Sioux Falls.
But even hitting 301,000
in 2040, as he projects,
won't change the city's
identity.
"We're still not Omaha,"
Schmitt said. "We're
never going to be
Minneapolis. In 40 years,
we'll be a big Sioux
Falls."
Reach
reporter
Jon
Walker at 331-2206 or
800-530-6397.
Electronic Clipping
Chicago Tribune
Go To Top
January 11, 2006 Wednesday North Final Edition
GOOD EATING ; ZONE N; Pg. 2
LETTERS
Milking the
savings
You missed one easy
way to save money:
Don't overpay for milk. I
usually buy my milk at
the corner gas station for
$1.99 per gallon, but
sometimes pay slightly
more if it is on sale
somewhere
more
convenient. I have never
noticed a difference in
quality, and the gas
station is near our
house. I think typical
grocery store prices are
about $3.29 to $4.79 per
gallon, which means I
save at least $90 to $145
per year this way.
Barbara Sowa
via e-mail
Editor's
note:
Many
readers responded to
our statement about not
freezing milk ("Don't Get
Boxed in by Warehouse
Stores,"
Jan.
4).
CompetitivEdge 1-888-881-EDGE
Although it is a safe
practice,
we
don't
recommend it because,
as noted by the Iowa
State
University
Extension Service on its
Web site, " . . . freezing
may change the texture
of the milk and cause
some separation."
However, we heard from
many
of
you
who
successfully freeze milk,
echoing the rest of the
extension service's advice:
"Stirring well may reduce
the texture change and
separation enough to
use the milk in products
like puddings and baked
goods.
If
you
are
freezing milk for your
family to drink, try a
small amount first and
see how they like it.
Remember
to
allow
plenty of space at the top
(1 to 1 1/2 inches) for the
milk to expand in your
freezing container."
And this from a reader:
www.clipresearch.com
It's cool to freeze milk
Great spread ("Balancing
the Budget," Jan. 4) but
you can freeze milk
beautifully! I am a mom
to four, two with special
needs, who have so
many
environmental
allergies as well as food
allergies that we struggle
to make the grocery
ends
meet.
Another
mom shared with me
years ago that milk in
paper or plastic freezes
just great. She was a
dietitian and assured me
that you have no loss of
nutrition in either case.
Just pop your halfgallons or gallons right in
the freezer. To defrost
take out a day or two
before
needed
and
defrost in the fridge or
soak
the
plastic
container in water (same
rules as for turkey
defrosting). Shake well
before using and be sure
to use within 5-7 days of
opening. Happy freezing!
Electronic Clipping
editor
Rebecca Tews
Plainfield
Carol Mighton Haddix,
CompetitivEdge 1-888-881-EDGE
Good Eating, Room 500
Chicago Tribune
435 N. Michigan Ave.
Chicago, IL 60611
www.clipresearch.com
or
e-mail:
ctcgoodeating@tribune.com
.
or fax: 312-755-0212
Electronic Clipping
Grand Forks Herald
Go To Top
January 9, 2006 Monday
North Dakota: FRM
Bin-buster year prompts concerns of low prices
Lower exports, higher grain supplies may push prices lower
after bumper harvest
Associated Press
The nation's farmers
have
harvested
the
second-largest corn and
soybean crops on record
last year, but many are
concerned
that
low
prices for livestock and
grain and other factors
will
challenge
profitability.
Some analysts say the
added volume from a
large crop will help offset
depressed prices, but
sagging
U.S.
crop
exports and ballooning
grain supplies threaten
to push prices even
lower.
Looking to 2006, farmers
have concerns including
languishing prices, high
energy costs and a
mushrooming
federal
deficit
that
could
pressure Congress to
consider reducing farm
program payments
Good for the economy
CompetitivEdge 1-888-881-EDGE
Revenue from last year's
U.S. crops, including
cash
receipts
and
government payments, is
expected to total $138.6
billion,
a
record,
according to USDA.
Farmers in Iowa, the
nation's leading cornand soybean-producing
state,
could
capture
more than $9 billion of
that
amount,
says
Robert
Wisner,
an
extension economist at
Iowa State University in
Ames.
farmers to buy new
appliances and vehicles.
Wedemeyer
is
encouraged by what he
sees on year-end farm
financial
statements.
Two successive years of
above-normal
yields,
coupled
with
strong
cattle
prices
and
government payments,
have enabled his farmerclients to turn a profit.
"Farmers are pretty good
at recycling their money,"
says Del Wedemeyer,
senior vice president and
an
agricultural
loan
officer at Guthrie Center
(Iowa) State Bank.
There is a downside,
however. For two years,
cash market prices have
plummeted. Those who
use farm commodities,
such as livestock feeders
and grain processors,
have benefited from lowpriced
corn
and
soybeans. So have food
processors
and
manufacturers - a major
agricultural sector in
Iowa.
Retailers
in
Guthrie
Center, about an hour
west of Des Moines,
Iowa, are counting on
Farmers complain about
Depression-era
prices
for corn and escalating
prices for fuel and
That bodes well
Iowa's economy.
www.clipresearch.com
for
Electronic Clipping
fertilizer.
"At $1.30 (per bushel of)
corn, there's not much
money in it," says Jerry
Clark, a Guthrie County,
Iowa, crop farmer. Even
with yields of 200
bushels of corn per acre,
today's cash market
prices would generate
barely enough to cover
production costs. Market
analysts caution that
higher prices are unlikely
anytime soon.
Farm income
A significant portion of
CompetitivEdge 1-888-881-EDGE
farm income will come
from
government
payments.
"People are concerned
because a lot of this
year's cash income is
coming
from
the
government, a lot more
than people would like $22.7 billion," says Keith
Collins, chief economist
at USDA in Washington.
"That's a ton of money."
Wisner says cash prices
for Iowa corn in the year
ahead will average $1.65
per bushel. The price for
the marketing year just
www.clipresearch.com
ended averaged $1.96
per bushel.
He and others believe it
could take two to three
years for prices to
rebound to higher than
$2 per bushel.
Lenders
and
farm
management specialists
are urging farmers to
begin locking in prices
now for some of their
2006 crops, even if those
prices are less than what
they could have secured
ahead of time on this
year's crops.
Electronic Clipping
The Times
Go To Top
January 9, 2006, Monday
London: HOME NEWS; Pg. 9
Gory games that can warp your brain
Sam Lister
The
links
between
computer images of
brutality and the real
thing may go further than
first thought, Sam Lister
reports
Violent computer games
trigger a mechanism in
the brain that makes
people more likely to
behave
aggressively,
research suggests.
A study of the effects of
popular games such as
Doom, Mortal Kombat
and Grand Theft Auto,
which
involve
brutal
killings,
high-powered
weaponry and street
crime, indicates that avid
users
become
desensitised to shocking
acts of aggression.
Psychologists found that
this brain alteration, in
turn, appeared to prime
regular users of such
games to act more
violently.
Many
studies
have
concluded that people
CompetitivEdge 1-888-881-EDGE
who play violent games
are more aggressive,
more likely to commit
violent crimes, and less
likely to help others.
But critics argue that
these correlations prove
only that violent people
gravitate towards violent
games, not that games
can change behaviour.
However,
the
new
research, carried out by
scientists
at
the
University of MissouriColumbia, goes some
way
towards
demonstrating a causal
link between computer
games and violence,
rather than a simple
association.
When
shown images of real-life
violence, people who
played violent video
games were found to
have a diminished brain
response. However, the
same group had more
natural reactions to other
emotionally
disturbing
images, such as those of
dead animals or ill
children.
www.clipresearch.com
The researchers, led by
Bruce
Bartholow,
a
psychologist at MissouriColumbia, found that the
particular reduction in
response
associated
with
violence
was
correlated
with
aggressive behaviour. A
type of brain activity
called
the
P300
response, which reflects
the emotional impact of
an image on the viewer,
was measured in 39
experienced gamers.
The participants were
shown a variety of reallife images interspersed
with violent scenes and
other
non-violent
negative
images.
In
subjects with the most
experience of violent
games,
the
P300
response to the violent
images was smaller, and
delayed. "People who
play a lot of violent video
games didn't see them
as much different from
neutral (images)," Dr
Bartholow said.
While such de-sensitivity
is well documented and
Electronic Clipping
has resulted in the use of
video games to prepare
soldiers for scenes of
war,
researchers
detected more alarming
trends. When the game
players were then given
the
opportunity
to
"punish"
a
pretend
opponent in another
game, those with the
greatest reduction in
P300 brain responses
meted out the most
severe punishments.
According to an early
report of the study,
published
on
newscientist.com,
the
website of the scientific
journal, even when the
team took into account
the subjects' natural
hostility,
the
games
experience and P300
response
were
still
strongly correlated with
aggressiveness.
Many shocking crimes,
mostly committed by
teenagers, have been
linked to violent video
games in recent years.
In 1999, two high-school
students shot dead 13
people and wounded 23
at
Columbine
High
School
in
Littleton,
Colorado. In 2002, a
German
teenager
murdered 16 people as
he
walked
through
Gutenberg school in
Erfurt
brandishing
a
CompetitivEdge 1-888-881-EDGE
shotgun. Both incidents
were later linked to
violent video games: the
American teenagers had
enjoyed playing Doom,
while the German youth
was reported to have
spent
hours
playing
particularly
brutal
computer games.
In 2004, the game
Manhunt was blamed by
parents
of
a
boy
murdered in Britain for
contributing to his death.
Police found no direct
links to the game,
although some retailers
removed it from their
shelves.
Other psychologists said
that
Dr
Bartholow's
findings, due to be
published this year in the
Journal of Experimental
Social
Psychology,
offered further evidence
of a worrying trend.
Craig Anderson, of the
Department
of
Psychology at Iowa
State University, said:
"These brain studies
corroborate the many
behavioural
and
cognitive
studies
showing that violent
video games lead to
increases in aggression."
Some critics remain
unconvinced
by
the
findings,
however.
Jonathan
Freedman,
www.clipresearch.com
Professor of Psychology
at the University of
Toronto,
who
has
prepared
several
government reports on
media
and
games
violence, said that all
people "habituate" to any
kind of stimulus. "All we
are really getting is desensitisation to images,"
he said. "There's no way
to show that this relates
to real-life aggression."
SO
VIOLENT,
ALMOST REAL
IT'S
Last year's most violent
games, as assessed by
the US watchdog Family
Media Guide, included:
* Resident Evil 4
Player is a special forces
agent who is sent to
rescue the President's
kidnapped daughter (top
picture). Images include
a woman pinned to a
wall by a pitchfork
through her face
* 50 Cent: Bulletproof
Loosely based on the
gangster lifestyle of the
rapper (middle picture).
Player
engages
in
shootouts and loots the
bodies of victims to buy
50 Cent recordings and
music videos
* Grand Theft Auto: San
Electronic Clipping
Andreas Player is a
criminal on a mission of
murder,
theft
and
destruction
(bottom
picture).
Health
is
improved by visiting
CompetitivEdge 1-888-881-EDGE
prostitutes, with bonuses
for killing them
who tricked him
killing his family.
into
* God of War
Prisoners are burnt alive,
victims torn in half
A warrior hunts the gods
www.clipresearch.com
Electronic Clipping
Top Producer
Go To Top
January 9, 2006
Will Iowa's Cows Come Home Again?
Marcia Zarley Taylor
Ethanol could lure beef
back to the Corn Belt
When cattleman Bill
Couser was growing up
in Iowa in the 1960s,
animal
agriculture
reigned supreme. Now
he
views
the
construction site where
he is doubling his 1,500head Nevada, Iowa,
feedlot as a symbol that
it may reign again.
Cousers
new
environmentally friendly
feedlotin the shadow of
three new ethanol plants
all within a mere 30
milesis ideally suited to
take advantage of the
Corn
Belts
ethanol
explosion. The closest
plant, a 50-million-gallon,
coal-fired venture just
around the corner in
Nevada, isnt slated to
open until March. But
already,
Couser
accesses an abundance
of
distillers
grains,
particularly the modified
wet variety that is only
economical to haul 50
miles or less.
CompetitivEdge 1-888-881-EDGE
One ethanol plant was
giving distillers grains
away a few days ago
because their dryer went
down, says Couser.
Once all three are
operating at capacity, he
expects byproducts to
stay competitively priced.
An hours drive north, in
Iowa Falls, Iowa, Bruce
Rastetter also believes
there is a future for beef
in the nations top ethanol
state and he is gearing
up his herd at Summit
Farms to prove it. He is a
part owner of Hawkeye
Renewables, an Iowabased ethanol company
that will boost volume to
200 million gallons in
2006.
Meanwhile,
Rastetter
has
just
increased the size of his
beef feedlot from 400head
to
1,000-head
capacity and constructed
a 1,000-head slatted
floor confinement facility
for
finishing.
Both
expansions complement
his cow-calf herd based
in southern Iowa.
www.clipresearch.com
Test phase.With most of
Summit Farms capacity
spanking
new,
farm
manager Mike Taylor
says it will take a few
cycles
to
measure
profitability. Aside from
grazing cows on stalks
and
backgrounding
calves in the outside lots,
were
evaluating
the
economic
impact
of
finishing cattle in a
slatted
floor
beef
confinement system in
north central Iowa, he
says.
But the law of supply and
demand tilts in Summit
Farms favor. In the next
six
months,
Taylor
expects expansions to
generate 600 million
gallons of ethanol plant
capacity within 60 miles
of the cattle operation.
Record energy prices
are making distillers
grains less economical
to dry and ship by rail, he
says.
Weve already seen the
price of modified wet
distillers
grain
drop
dramatically,
says
Electronic Clipping
Taylor. A year ago we
were paying $36/ton.
Now we consistently buy
it for $10 to $15 less per
ton. With more plants
scheduled to come on
line, theres still a lot of
upside
potential
for
feeders here.
Another plus for locating
livestock close to corn
acres is the ability to
recycle nutrients. Taylor
estimates that Summit
Farms is saving $30 to
$50/acre
at
current
fertilizer
costs
by
strategically
locating
cattle and swine facilities
close to corn fields.
All of those reasons are
why
Iowa
State
University
livestock
economist
John
Lawrence believes beef
expansion
has
tremendous potential in
Iowa. The economics
clearly support more
cattle feeding here, he
says. The question is
whether
people
will
make it happen.
By the end of 2006,
Iowas ethanol plants will
produce enough coproducts to feed the 13
million U.S. cattle on
feed 8 pounds per day,
Iowa
State
animal
scientists estimate. Only
about 1.5 million head of
beef cattle are fed
CompetitivEdge 1-888-881-EDGE
annually in Iowa now but
the state has capacity to
use the nutrients from 21
million head.
Iowa cattlemen have
long
benefited
from
access to some of the
nations least expensive
corn, Lawrence adds.
But a recent University of
Nebraska study points
out that feeding modified
distillers grain within 30
miles of a plant gives
feeders another $20 to
$25/head
advantage
over
conventional
rations, even if local corn
prices rally due to the
plants demand.
company
in
Lakota,
Iowa, and Riga, Mich.,
confirms
that
plants
occasionally
discount
modified distillers grains
(55% moisture) to avoid
the high natural gas
costs of drying or
because
of
plant
malfunctions.
Feed
buyers
market.Whats
more,
Lawrence sees the sheer
volume of byproducts
pressuring the prices for
distillers grain, separate
from what happens in
the corn market. It will be
quite possible to see
prices for distillers grains
fall, even if corn prices
bounce back up again,
he says.
If an ethanol plant has a
problem with a dryer,
there are only so many
animals
that
eat
[modified
distillers
grains] and so many
pounds a day in their
rations. Plants in animaldeficit areas have to get
rid of the stuff since they
cant store it and they
cant afford to shut down
the plant, given the high
cost of ethanol, he says.
Midwest
Grain
Processors
would
welcome a larger beef
herd in Iowa, since it
currently exports most of
its byproducts as dried
distillers grains through
New Orleans, or by rail
to dairies in California
through Idaho, Bower
adds. While it makes
economic sense to feed
more cattle in the
Midwest, he doubts Iowa
can reverse a 35-yearold trend overnight.
Greg
Bower,
a
commodity risk manager
for
Midwest
Grain
Processors, an ethanol
Reality check.The states
capacity to expand beef
production is limited,
Bower notes, since no
In some parts of Iowa, it
is already impossible to
go 30 miles without
seeing an ethanol plant,
Lawrence quips.
www.clipresearch.com
Electronic Clipping
beef packer operates
within Iowa and most
cattlemen must ship
animals to Nebraska for
slaughter.
Theres
a
consensus in the ethanol
industry that it would
behoove us to move
either the plants or the
cattle closer together,
says
Bower.
The
problem in Iowa is that
ethanol wants to be
close to the corn, but
beef producers want to
be close to their packers.
Complicating the issue is
that Iowas harsh winters
and muddy springs can
be
downright
inhospitable to cattle, he
adds.
CompetitivEdge 1-888-881-EDGE
Statistics
dont
yet
register much of a
turnaround
in
herd
numbers. Between 1968
and 1972, Iowa reigned
as the nations top cattle
feeder, with 4.5 million
head marketed each
year, Lawrence notes.
When technology and
environmental
regulations favored the
High Plains in the 1970s,
however, the state saw
an exodus of 3 million
head that it has yet to
regain.
Lawrence thinks the
pendulum may swing
back to Iowa now since
www.clipresearch.com
ethanols
economic
incentives represent a
sea change to cattle
profitability. The question
is really whether Iowa
producers or out-of-state
investors will step up to
the plate, he says.
Web Connection
For information on Iowa
beef:
www.IowaBeefCenter.or
g
Iowa Ag Review, Fall
2005:
www.card.iastate.edu
A
dvocacy for livestock
producers:
www.supportiowasfarme
rs.org
Electronic Clipping
Top Producer
Go To Top
January 9, 2006
What Land Bubble?
Mike Walsten
Real estate may cool,
but wont collapse
The days of double-digit
annual gains in farm and
ranch land values may
be over in most areas,
but that doesnt mean a
1980s-style collapse in
land prices is just around
the corner. Rather, most
areas should see land
holding its value or
posting 1% to 5% annual
gains for 2006 and
beyond.
Why no collapse in land
values this time? First,
the economy and the
dynamics
of
land
purchases
and
ownership have changed
dramatically since the
go-go years of the 70s.
That period featured
strong inflation. Yes,
energy prices and gold
prices have soared, but
overall inflation rates still
remain under 4%. That
wasnt the case in the
late 70s, which saw
double-digit inflation at
CompetitivEdge 1-888-881-EDGE
times. Although interest
rates were higher than
they are now, the rate of
inflation
was
even
higher. That resulted in a
very low real rate of
interest. This meant
leveraged buyers could
repay mortgage debt
with cheaper dollars
later.
Credit
rationing.When
the Federal Reserve
decided
to
choke
inflation in 1979 by
sending
short-term
interest rates higher, the
leverage-bubble
burst.
Highly leveraged buyers
were suddenly trapped,
unable to make debt
payments.
The bulk of the land
purchased in the past
three years has been
bought with very little
financing. Rising interest
rates now will not have
the catastrophic impact
on recent buyers as they
did in the 1980s.
Second, a significant
percentage
of
the
transactions in the late
www.clipresearch.com
70s were installment
contract sales financed
by sellers. When farm
revenues
collapsed,
buyers often forfeited
their land. Faced with
property they thought
they had sold, sellers put
that land back on the
market. That added to a
growing
supply
of
offerings at a time when
buyers were scarce.
Third, there was very
little
outside
capital
interested
in
buying
farmland to absorb the
boost in sales offerings.
Investors chose to put
their money into low-risk
savings accounts and
CDs that were paying as
much as 8% to 12%
annual interest.
Fourth, land prices have
not yet approached their
1980s peak, on an
inflation-adjusted basis.
For instance, an average
acre of Iowa farmland
had reached only its
1973 level by the end of
2005, on an inflationadjusted
basis,
according
to
Iowa
Electronic Clipping
State Universitys Mike
Duffy.
The desire for safety
following the terrorist
attack of 9/11 motivated
some investors to buy
land. Beyond security,
investors turned to land
out of disillusionment
over poor stock market
returns
and
stock
manipulation scandals. A
net rent of $160 on
$3,600 looked attractive
by comparison.
Another new factor in
todays market is the
recreational buyerpeople
who want land for
hunting, fishing or hiking.
The
Illinois
Farm
Managers and Rural
Appraisers estimate that
9% of all buyers are
recreational buyers. This
segment is significant
because it means there
is a demand for what
was once considered
scrub land.
The
tax-sheltering
CompetitivEdge 1-888-881-EDGE
aspects available from a
1031
tax-deferred
exchange have also
proven a strong incentive
for
land
purchaseswhether from
investors turning over
commercial or residential
property or from farmers
displaced
by
urban
expansion. Illinois farm
managers estimate that
1031 exchanges add
about $854 per acre to
the sales price of the
states land.
Slower
gains.Whats
ahead for land values?
Rising interest rates will
cool the housing market,
slowing the conversion
of
farmland
to
development land and
curbing 1031 activity.
Farm operators will still
compete for productive
land as they seek to
expand, remaining the
dominant buyers. Baby
boomers,
nearing
retirement, will turn to
land as an investment in
www.clipresearch.com
an effort to diversify their
portfolios.
But
dont
expect
double-digit
annual gains. First, rising
interest rates are making
CDs and other financial
instruments
attractive
again,
siphoning
off
demand. Second, land
prices have risen faster
than rents, decreasing
the rate of return from
land. Third, the run-up in
prices has pulled plenty
of offerings on the
market. In some areas,
the number of auctions
and farm listings are
more than double the
usual seen at the end of
the year. That increased
supply will dampen price
gains.
Mike Walsten is editor of
LandOwner newsletter,
owned by Top Producers
parent company, Farm
Journal Media. E-mail
him
at
landowner@profarmer.c
om.
Electronic Clipping
Waterloo Courier
Go To Top
January 9, 2006, Monday
Web Edition
Deere & Co. promotes Waterloo native to senior position
By Pat Kinney
WATERLOO
--A
Waterloo native has
been named to one of
the top positions with
Deere & Co.
Michael J. Mack Jr. has
been named senior vice
president
and
chief
financial
officer
with
Deere, company officials
announced Thursday. It
is a senior officer
position
with
the
company. He had served
as treasurer since June
2004.
Mack, 49, is a 1975
graduate of Columbus
High School in Waterloo
and of Iowa State
University.
Mack began his career
at the John Deere Des
Moines Works in 1978
as an engineer while
attending Iowa State.
Following graduation, he
worked as a research
and
development
engineer for HewlettPackard.
CompetitivEdge 1-888-881-EDGE
After returning to John
Deere in 1986, he held a
variety of positions in
information
systems,
corporate
finance,
international
finance,
business development,
strategic
planning,
product
engineering,
purchasing and as a
factory manager.
In 1999, he was named
vice
president
of
marketing and sales for
Deere's
Worldwide
Commercial & Consumer
Equipment
Division,
formerly known as lawn
and grounds care.
He was named a senior
vice
president
in
February
2001,
responsible
for
the
division's
marketing,
sales, order fulfillment,
finance,
information
systems, and e-business
activities worldwide.
Mack serves on the
board of the Figge Art
Museum in Davenport
and the Iowa State
University Engineering
College
Industrial
www.clipresearch.com
Advisory Board.
Mack's namesake father,
of Waterloo, is the retired
longtime director of the
John Deere Product
Engineering Center in
Cedar Falls.
In 1971, Mack, then 14
and a crossing guard at
St. Edward's School in
Waterloo, won state and
national
lifesaving
awards and recognition
for saving 10-year-old
Beth Sand from being
struck by a car at the
Kimball Avenue school
crossing.
-----
To see more of the
Waterloo-Cedar
Falls
Courier, or to subscribe
to the newspaper, go to
http://www.wcfcourier.co
m.
Distributed by Knight
Ridder/Tribune Business
News.
For
information
on
republishing this content,
contact us at (800) 661Electronic Clipping
2511 (U.S.), (213) 2374914 (worldwide), fax
CompetitivEdge 1-888-881-EDGE
(213) 237-6515, or email
www.clipresearch.com
reprints@krtinfo.com.
DE,
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Iowa City Press-Citizen
Go To Top
January 8, 2006 Sunday
HOME & GARDEN; Judy Terry; Pg. 7A
Don't overlook ISU for tips
Iowa State Extension
offers many great garden
publications
When planning your
spring garden this winter,
don't forget the wealth of
information
available
from
Iowa
State
University Extension.
Pamphlets, brochures,
books and the everpopular garden calendar
are available at the
Johnson
County
Extension office or by
visiting the Iowa State
Extension Web site,
www.extension.iastate.e
du/store/.
The
2006
Garden
Calendar from Iowa
State
University
Extension is chock full
of color, plant stories and
useful tips for each
month. It includes a list
of horticulture resources
at ISU and extension
numbers to call with your
horticulture
questions.
It's a great buy for only
$8.
But it gets even better.
This time of year, indoor
CompetitivEdge 1-888-881-EDGE
plants brighten our lives
just by being green. Yet,
they have a few needs to
keep them healthy and
strong. "Indoor Plants"
for just $7 has 180 color
photos and 110 plant
descriptions. It covers
foliage, flowering indoor
plants, succulents and
florist's plants. It lists
each
plant's
ideal
environment and their
growth
characteristics
and is indexed.
"Perennials for Sun" is a
full color publication that
gives growing needs for
more
than
100
perennials that love the
sun and grow well in
zones 3-5. It, too,
includes color photos,
about 140 of them, plus
plant
descriptions,
special plants and other
useful tips.
"Perennials for Shade" is
the companion book and
each is just $5. Hostas
aren't the only choice,
this book says, and give
more than 70 perennials
for shade gardens in the
zones 3-5. If you're lucky
www.clipresearch.com
enough to have many
trees
shading
your
house in the summer,
you can also have many
blooming
plants.
It
features 130 photos, tells
when bloom times are
and has a specialty plant
list.
One
other
special
publication is the "2006
Commercial Tree Fruit
Guide." This includes
herbicide
recommendations, times
to spray and lots of
information for setting up
your own fruit tree spray
program. It sells for
$4.50.
Here are a few helpful
hints for the month of
January. If you want to
give your Christmas
poinsettia a longer life,
set it in a sunny window.
Don't use soft water for
houseplants and don't
fertilize your plants this
month. Because the
weather is drier, your
indoor plants might need
for water. Keep them
away from drafts and
cold window panes and
Electronic Clipping
rotate them once in a
while, so they don't grow
in one direction.
Use calcium chloride
rather
than
sodium
chloride to melt the ice
on the driveway and
sidewalk.
Sodium
chloride is hard on grass,
bushes and plants.
If we have a heavy
snow, remove as much
as
possible
from
evergreen
branches
because the weight can
CompetitivEdge 1-888-881-EDGE
break them.
And don't forget to check
your stored bulbs, such
as cannas, dahlias and
glads. If you find some
spoiled roots, throw them
out, because you don't
want them to spoil the
others and your plans for
a special, colorful bulb
garden this summer.
Now is the time to plan
your garden on paper
and decide the number
of seeds you will need.
www.clipresearch.com
The publications from
Iowa State Extension
I've mentioned above,
should be a great help.
Judy Terry is a freelance
garden
writer.
Her
column appears weekly
in the Press-Citizen.
Questions or comments
should be sent to her at:
Iowa City Press-Citizen,
P.O. Box 2480, Iowa
City, Iowa 52244-2480;
faxed to 834-1083; or emailed to life@presscitizen.com.
Electronic Clipping
Ocean County Observer
Go To Top
January 4, 2006 Wednesday
New Jersey: A; Pg. 12
Purchase food locally
The various feeding
programs
under
the
auspices
of
United
States Department of
Agriculture's Food and
Nutrition Service would
do well to follow a simple
mantra: When available,
buy
locally
first,
regionally second and
nationally
or
internationally as a last
resort.
With
fuel
costs
escalating, it just makes
sense for programs like
The Emergency Food
Assistance Program and
Food
Stamps
to
encourage the shortest
line between consumer
and producer.
The Senior Farmers
Market Nutrition Program
already makes the most
of this principle, creating
a model for the others to
follow.
Today's reality dictates
that we have to make the
most of our resources
while trying to do even
more to help Americans
eat healthier. Shrinking
CompetitivEdge 1-888-881-EDGE
the radius from which
those foods come is one
way to reduce the costs
without reducing the
benefit.
Recently, the USDA's
Food
and
Nutrition
Service invited those
involved
in
public
nutrition
issues
to
comment
on
the
service's
feeding
programs, and I was
grateful for the time
devoted to hearing the
New Jersey Department
of Agriculture's views.
Our message of buying
locally first was well
received
during
the
listening session that will
help federal officials craft
the 2007 Farm Bill.
Clearly, this is a trend
that has become well
established. Consumers
have
shown
a
preference for buying
fruits and vegetables
produced as close to
their homes as possible.
Locally grown or state
brands like Jersey Fresh
have become a staple of
supermarket advertising.
www.clipresearch.com
One
of
the
best
examples of shortening
the chain from farm to
consumer
is
the
community
farmers
market. Like many other
states, New Jersey has
seen dramatic growth in
our community farmers
market programs. In
2000, there were about
45 community farmers
markets. Today, there
are nearly 80. Clearly,
the idea of going to a
local market where area
farmers are selling their
locally grown products
appeals
to
many
consumers.
This
concept
easily
transfers
over
to
programs like the Senior
Farmers Market Nutrition
Program, where people
over age 60 meeting
income
guidelines
receive vouchers for
fresh
fruits
and
vegetables at farmers
markets. To see if you
qualify,
visit
http://www.state.nj.us/ag
riculture/markets/wic.htm
.
Electronic Clipping
Currently, the annual
limit for these senior
recipients is only $20,
although
a
pending
USDA proposal would
raise that to $50. This is
clearly an example of
how buying locally can
stretch the federal food
dollar. Instead of buying
large
quantities
of
commodities
on
a
national scale and then
paying to truck them all
over the country, this
program
links
local
residents
with
food
grown by local farmers,
keeping
associated
transportation costs to a
minimum
and
strengthening
the
connection
between
producer and consumer.
While the increase to an
annual $50 is a welcome
trend,
cutting
other
costs,
such
as
transportation,
could
help raise that bar even
higher. Besides being a
cost-saver
on
the
transportation side, this
program
also
holds
benefits in health-care
costs. The link between
eating a healthy diet,
including more fruits and
vegetables,
is
undeniable. Eating more
CompetitivEdge 1-888-881-EDGE
of these nutritious foods
will contribute to these
residents being healthier,
reducing medical costs,
which typically increase
with age.
Another area where
savings
could
be
achieved
across
a
variety of programs is in
the transportation costs
associated with moving
commodities
into
position to be distributed.
The concept of food
miles is receiving more
and more attention from
both
government
agencies and the media.
Food miles refers to the
distance you move food
from its point of origin to
a market. With fuel costs
rising rapidly, reducing
food miles becomes
essential to reining in
costs.
The Leopold Center for
Sustainable
Agriculture at Iowa
State
University
recently researched food
miles for 16 different
fruits and vegetables. It
found that 16 Iowagrown crops traveled a
total of 716 miles to get
to market, compared to
25,301 miles for the
same products bought
www.clipresearch.com
from outsidee sources.
Only a last resort, if the
commodity cannot be
obtained
regionally,
move to buying it from
an area from which it
must be transported a
longer distance.
By keeping the cost of
food
miles
low,
government
programs
will be able to reach
even more recipients
and increase food-buy
dollars
through
the
reduced transportation
costs.
We have seen this
approach also work well
in a component of our
school
lunch
and
breakfast program in
New Jersey. Through a
Department of Defense
contract, produce such
as
romaine
lettuce,
peaches and blueberries
are purchased from local
farms for use in school
feeding operations. This
brings the dual benefit of
exposing our younger
residents to nutritious
foods
while
also
providing a new market
for our farmers.
Charles M. Kuperus is
the
New
Jersey
Secretary of Agriculture.
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ABA Banking Journal
Go To Top
January, 2006
COMMUNITY BANKING; AG Pulse 2006; Pg. 14
Gray hair, good-times, and guns
By Steve Cocheo
executive editor
Sentimentality only goes
so far
The changing landscape
of farm land values and
uses
promises
continuing adjustments
for ag lenders. Also:
NAFTA's
continuing
effects and a look ahead
to the 2007 Farm Bill
Nearly half of Iowa's
farmland is owned by
people over 65, Prof.
Michael Duffy of Iowa
State University told
lenders
at
the
ABA/Canadian Bankers
Association-sponsored
conference.
This
"graying"
of
land
ownership has led to the
increasing transference
by gift or inheritance of
farmland to people who
haven't lived anywhere
near the family farm for
years. As a result, the
share of Iowa land
farmed
by
owneroperators has fallen
significantly, according to
Duffy,
and
the
significance of absentee
landlords has risen. This
has contributed to a fall
in sales, as the younger
generation
takes
advantage
of
lease
income from non-owner
farmers.
In much of Ag America,
the price of an acre of
land hasn't got to do so
much with the land itself,
but the potential value of
that land as part of the
mechanism we call a
"farm" that produces
marketable commodities.
At least, that was
traditionally the case.
But speakers on land
values at the 2005 North
American
Agricultural
Lenders
Conference
spoke
of
changing
dynamics in land pricing
that are part of the
shifting conditions that
ag lenders and their
customers face in the
years ahead.
CompetitivEdge 1-888-881-EDGE
But prices change, and,
over time, this will
influence who holds the
www.clipresearch.com
land, Duffy predicted.
Land values have been
increasing in Iowa.
"Sentimentality will only
go so far," he said. There
comes a point for each
absentee
landowner
when they will willingly
hack off their family's
farm roots in exchange
for a healthy payday.
The money for that
payday will likely come
from investors, who,
Duffy said, have been
playing an increasing
role in land purchases
while farmers have been
buying land less often
than in the past.
Addressing the Midwest
in general, speaker Jim
Farrell,
president,
Farmers National Co.,
Omaha, noted that the
"graying" trend involved
not only the generation
passing its land onto the
next, but also the next
generation itself. Many of
the "kids" receiving land
as gifts or inheritances
are in their 50s or 60s,
as
their
parents'
generation has been
Electronic Clipping
living longer.
About half of midwestern
farmland is owned by
absentees, Farrell said.
Equally significant is
another statistic Farrell
cited:
60%
of
the
farmland sold in recent
years in the Midwest
went to farmers, with
40% going to buyers with
other uses in mind for
the land.
Some of the alternative
uses for the land are
hunting and fishing, a
trend that also affects
Texas farmland, which
Charles
Gilliland,
research economist at
Texas A&M University's
Real
Estate
Center,
addressed.
Gilliland
noted
that
Texas farmland is sought
not only by farmers, but
also
by
consumers
looking for recreational
acres and by retirees
hoping to realize dreams
of ending their days on a
farm or ranch. Investors - many of them bored
with lackluster stock
markets and hoping to
profit from rising prices -also
compete
with
farmers for the land.
Many have snapped up
sites with potential to be
turned from farming to
retail use.
CompetitivEdge 1-888-881-EDGE
While farmers dominated
the land buying process
in Texas in the middle of
the 1990s, consumers
and
investors
now
dominate the farmland
market, according to
Gilliland. Indeed, the
economist
said
that
Texas land prices show
more correlation with the
state's personal income
statistics than with its
farm income numbers.
Happily ever NAFTA?
One of the early ads for
America Online showed
a farmer arguing in an
AOL chat-room with a
NAFTA
supporter.
Finally the frustrated
farmer stopped typing,
picked up his shotgun,
and
terminated
the
dialup connection, with
extreme prejudice.
The formation of the
North American Free
Trade Agreement was
an
emotional
time.
Several
conference
sessions touched on
how it all turned out.
The
cigar-chomping
Prof. Barry Flinchbaugh,
of
Kansas
State
University,
who
frequently exhibits his
own talent for verbal
blasts, didn't disappoint
fans waiting to hear his
take on what NAFTA has
www.clipresearch.com
meant.
"Economics
doesn't
recognize
national
borders,"
declared
Flinchbaugh.
"Trade
occurs
when
it
is
mutually beneficial. If we
could only remember this
when we enter into trade
negotiations."
Flinchbaugh
believes
producers in any of the
NAFTA countries -- the
U.S.,
Canada,
and
Mexico -- who ask for
governmental protection
are simply "admitting that
you can't compete on
your own."
For
the
efficient
producer, NAFTA has
already
paid
off,
Flinchbaugh continued.
A full third of the U.S.
agricultural exports are
to Canada and Mexico,
with
the
northern
neighbor being top ag
buyer and the southern
neighbor
representing
the
second-largest
market.
Flinchbaugh
believes, in time, that
even the inefficient will
see some benefits.
This would not be the
case had NAFTA failed
to
become
law,
Flinchbaugh
insisted.
When asked about the
borders closed to beef
trade due to "mad cow"
disease,
Flinchbaugh
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dismissed the episode
as
a
triumph
of
emotionalism
over
rational science.
Mexico has seen mixed
results, according to Ron
Knutson,
professor
emeritus, Texas A&M
University. While Mexico
has enjoyed increasing
exports of certain ag
products to the U.S.,
Mexicans
personally
benefiting
from
the
agreement
represent
only a small part of that
nation.
Government
finance of agriculture has
grown to be a larger
factor, in the wake of the
devaluation of the peso,
Knutson said.
As for Canada, "NAFTA
didn't change that much
for us," said Larry Martin,
CEO, of the George
Morris
Centre,
an
independent think tank
based
in
Guelph,
Ontario.
The
most
significant growth has
been in exports of valueadded, consumer-ready
agricultural
products,
notably baked goods.
Whither the farm bill?
The next federal farm bill
is
expected,
per
traditional
timing,
to
come
in
2007.
In
legislative terms, that's
not really very far away,
CompetitivEdge 1-888-881-EDGE
and a panel, as well as
individual
speakers,
addressed things that
banks will likely see -- or
not see -- in the 2007
package.
In some quarters, the
call
has
been
for
legislators
to
simply
change the date on the
bill and leave everything
else as is.
However, the legislation
must be considered in
light of what's going on in
other countries. In the
European
Community,
for instance, crop limits
are on the way out. Iraq
is now the number two
importer of U.S. wheat.
World
Trade
Organization
"green
compliance" issues face
the U.S.
Domestically, additional
factors play a role. For
the first time in years,
because of Hurricanes
Katrina and Rita, the rice
harvest is an issue.
Energy prices have also
shifted drastically since
the previous bill was put
together,
and
petroleum's key role in
fertilizer production is
also part of the picture.
In 2002, the year of the
last Farm Bill, the U.S.
was running a budget
surplus. Now, clearly, the
www.clipresearch.com
country has a fiscal
deficit, yet there is no
shortage of competing
demands
for
funds,
pointed
out
Floyd
Gaibler,
Deputy
Undersecretary
of
Agriculture for Farm and
Foreign
Agricultural
Services.
Some speakers plumped
for the U.S. to make
major shifts in farm
policy,
in
part
to
encourage
trading
partners like Canada and
Europe to drop trade
restrictions
and
subsidies.
Both
academician
Knutson
and think tank chief
Martin from Canada
supported such moves.
The
argumentative
Flinchbaugh, dismissing
their ideas as the work of
"eggheads,"
nevertheless agreed that
change is in the cards.
"This will not be your
grandfather's farm bill,"
said Flinchbaugh. "We
are
witnessing
the
beginning of the end of
market-dictating, WTOtype programs, like the
U.S. marketing loan. The
issue is not, and will not
be, how much the U.S.
spends on the farm bill.
How much we spend is
irrelevant, and it always
has been. It is how we
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spend it that matters."
CompetitivEdge 1-888-881-EDGE
GRAPHIC: Illustration, no
caption,
ILLUSTRATION
BY JON PINTO
www.clipresearch.com
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Beef
Go To Top
January 1, 2006
Pg. 36 ISSN: 0005-7738
The 2006 Cattle Outlook
By Larry Stalcup
Fed
cattle
prices
hovering steadily above
$90/cwt. much of the
year, feeders at $1.10+,
and calf prices close to
as strong as a year ago.
Those price projections
for 2006 are certainly
pleasant after seeing
markets seemingly ready
to roll downhill earlier
this fall. It's just another
example of what's been
proven many times over
- cattle prices can
rebound or decline at
any time. In this case,
the markets are higher,
despite negatives.
"The resilience of this
overall market after the
loss of exports (the past
two years), high energy
costs
and
other
problems
has
been
great," says Jeff Rule of
West Oak Commodities,
a Weatherford, OK, firm
that handles cattle risk
management for cowcalf, stocker and fed
cattle producers. "I don't
know if there's ever been
CompetitivEdge 1-888-881-EDGE
another time the industry
could shake off so many
negatives
and
keep
going."
Despite
what
feed
prices, calf supplies,
consumer demand and
other
factors
might
suggest,
forecasting
cattle markets is rarely
an exact science. Those
who
will
guarantee
exactly what the price
will be might also be
pushing the latest snake
oil.
"It's really hard to predict
what the market will do,"
says Jim Gill, Texas
Cattle
Feeders
Association
(TCFA)
marketing director. "But
as long as we see cheap
corn and tighter feeder
cattle supplies, prices
should remain strong."
Gill,
who's
fielded
thousands of "what's the
market going to do" calls
in his two decades at
TCFA, is fairly bullish for
2006, based on earlyDecember conditions.
www.clipresearch.com
"I think we'll see fed
cattle in the mid-$90s the
first quarter," he says.
"The low- to mid-$90s
are likely for the second
quarter, and I see high
$80s in the third and
fourth."
Darrell Mark, University
of Nebraska Extension
economist,
sees
Nebraska
fed-steer
prices in a little lower
range. He projects firstquarter prices at $87$93, with second-quarter
forecast at $85-$90. He
pegs third-quarter prices
at
$79-$84,
and
forecasts the last quarter
at $82-$87.
"Overall, cattle supplies
remain relatively tight,
and domestic demand is
up from previous years,"
Mark says. "This should
result in fed-cattle prices
averaging in the mid$80s for 2006."
But, with small increases
in
cattle-on-feed
numbers and heavier
weight placements the
final months of 2005,
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Mark
says
harvest
numbers are expected to
increase 4% from 2005
during the first quarter
and remain higher than
year-ago
levels
throughout the year.
That, combined with an
expected increase in
dressed weights (6-7
lbs.) the first half of 2006
due to low corn prices,
"should lead to increases
in beef production of 45% for the first half of
2006.
This
supply
increase will likely result
in fed cattle prices
slightly lower than in
2005," he adds.
Gill anticipates continued
high feeder-calf prices good news for stocker
and calf producers, but a
frown for cattle feeders.
"I won't say they'll stay at
near $115 (cwt.) all year,
but I don't see any major
breaks in feeder prices,"
Gill says. "There will be
some cyclical ups and
downs, but they should
remain strong."
Mark
also
sees
continued strong feeder
prices for 700- to 800-lb.
animals. His first-quarter
projections are for prices
in the $114-$118/cwt.
range,
and
secondquarter prices slightly
lower at $110-$116/cwt.
CompetitivEdge 1-888-881-EDGE
He
forecasts
thirdquarter prices at $111$117/cwt., with $103$113/cwt. in the fourth.
For 500- to 600-lb.
calves, Mark expects
continued high prices,
thanks to stronger fourth
quarter '05 fed-cattle
closeouts and rallies in
live cattle futures that
should
continue
to
support higher feeder
cattle prices. He sees
calf prices at $125$135/cwt. for the first
quarter, $125-$134/cwt.
for the second, $120$130/cwt. for the third,
and $108-$118/cwt. for
the fourth.
"The estimated calf crop
in 2005 was 37.8 million
head, only 0.5% higher
than the record small calf
crop in 2004," Mark
says. "With tight supplies
and cheap corn, calf
prices should remain
relatively
strong
throughout 2006."
However, he says an
increase in the 2006 calf
crop is likely, given the
4% increase in heifers
held for beef cow
replacements in both
2004 and 2005.
"Thus, calf prices will
likely begin to decrease
next fall when a larger
2006
calf
crop
is
www.clipresearch.com
weaned," Mark adds.
Prices for calves could
be more volatile in areas
where dry weather has
stunted winter grazing.
"For example, it's been
pretty dry in western
Oklahoma and Texas,"
Rule says. "We could
see more calves go
directly to the feedyard
due to less pasture."
Corn by the bins full
If USDA and other crop
projections remain as
high as those in late fall,
so-called "cheap corn"
will keep flowing into
feed
mills.
Late-fall
production figures were
11.03 billion bu. for
2005. And the carryover
from 2004 was 2.1 billion
bu.
Bob Wisner, Iowa State
University (ISU) grain
marketing economist,
says
estimated
production
compares
with projected total use
of corn for 2006 of about
10.8 billion bu., with the
rest of the crop going
into increased carryover
stocks.
Aug. 31, 2006, U.S. corn
carryover stocks are
projected to rise to
almost 2.4 billion bu., up
from the 2.11 billion bu.
Electronic Clipping
in Aug. 31, 2005, he
says in a recent "Iowa
Farm Outlook" report.
Will demand continue to
grow? It's difficult to
know how much the
anticipated opening of
Asian markets for U.S.
beef is built into the
current market.
"At least some of the
bullishness in recent fedcattle prices resulted
from the idea the Asian
Rim
countries
will
resume
U.S.
beef
imports in 2006," Mark
says. "Interestingly, the
impact might be smaller
than many believe, for a
couple of reasons."
First, he says, Japanese
demand
remains
uncertain. While some
food-service
providers
are anxious to purchase
U.S. beef, its acceptance
by Japanese consumers
has
yet
to
be
determined. After nearly
two years of Japan
questioning the safety of
U.S.
beef,
some
consumers will likely be
hesitant to buy U.S.
product, he adds.
"Therefore, it may take
considerable time to
reassure consumers of
its safety, and increase
exports
to
an
economically significant
CompetitivEdge 1-888-881-EDGE
volume," Mark says.
Glenn Selk, Oklahoma
State
University
economist, says when
access is finally granted
the U.S. industry could
be in for a lengthy
process of recovering
the Japanese market.
One
factor
is
the
verification requirement
that all meat is from
animals 20 months of
age or younger. The
U.S. still has limited
ability
to
provide
acceptable records to
verify cattle age, Selk
says.
Also, since the U.S. has
been
out
of
the
Japanese market for
nearly two years, other
countries have filled the
void. And, Selk adds, it's
likely Canada will receive
Asian market access
about the same time as
the U.S., and will be a
bigger competitor than
before.
"The U.S. has a difficult
challenge ahead in the
Asian markets, and it will
likely take several years
to recover anywhere
near
our
pre-BSE
exports levels," he says.
Shane Ellis, another ISU
economist,
notes
demand for U.S. beef
could
increase
as
www.clipresearch.com
concern
over
influenza grows.
avian
"Bird flu continues to
spread in the Asian
poultry flocks," he says.
"Some cases also have
been found in Europe.
"Humans can only get
the disease from sick
birds, and thoroughly
cooked
meat
is
completely
safe.
However, consumer fear,
especially in Eastern
countries, could push
consumers to alternative
meats. This is a familiar
story
to
the
beef
industry, but perhaps this
event will be in beef's
favor," he adds.
Ellis says the discovery
of
foot-and-mouth
disease in Brazil is
hurting its exports. But,
most Brazilian beef is
grass-fed and in the
price
range
of
consumers in countries
with lower disposable
incomes. As a result,
U.S. beef may not find a
place in that market.
"U.S. beef will benefit by
gaining market share in
countries
where
the
population has a large
disposable income and a
taste for well-marbled
meat," he says.
Cattle
markets
Electronic Clipping
uncertainty
means
producers and feeders
should become more
prudent marketers, Rule
says.
"Due to the sheer
number
of
dollars
CompetitivEdge 1-888-881-EDGE
involved, it's important to
think about locking in a
profit for the inventory
you have out," he says.
"Think about it. What is
the value of 500 cattle
now compared to 10
years ago? That risk
www.clipresearch.com
probably needs to be
covered some way. I try
not to worry where the
market is, just how a
producer can use the
marketing tools available
to make some money."
Electronic Clipping
Beef
Go To Top
January 1, 2006
Pg. 78 ISSN: 0005-7738
Windrow Composting
By Darcy Maulsby
If a disease outbreak
akin to Great Britain's
2001
foot-and-mouth
disease crisis were to hit
the U.S., it would require
the emergency disposal
of millions of animals.
Imagine
the
environmental
and
logistical implications on
cattle-rich states in the
High Plains.
Iowa State University
(ISU) may have part of
the answer if such a
luckless reality came to
pass. New research
shows
emergency
composting could be part
of the disposal solution.
"We've learned we can
break some of the rules
and composting will still
work,"
says
Tom
Glanville,
ISU
associate professor of
agricultural
and
biosystems
engineering.
"The
emergency composting
process may be a little
slower, but it gets the job
done."
CompetitivEdge 1-888-881-EDGE
Emergency composting
may be one of the only
viable solutions should a
disaster occur, he says.
Many states have limited
or
no
rendering
capabilities, and a plant's
capacity
could
be
exceeded in the event of
large-scale death loss.
"You don't want to
transport
infected
carcasses to a remote
location in any event,"
says Don Reynolds,
associate dean of ISU's
College of Veterinary
Medicine.
"Emergency
composting can be done
on the premises."
On-farm burial could
lead to water pollution. In
every 1,000 lbs. of
carcass, for example,
are 22 lbs. of nitrogen
and
8
lbs.
of
phosphorus,
notes
Glanville, who worked
closely
with
Iowa's
Department of Natural
Resources
on
emergency composting.
Burial
could
pose
problems in states such
www.clipresearch.com
as Iowa, where nearly
40% of the land has
shallow bedrock or a
shallow water table, he
points out.
Incineration is another
alternative,
but
it
requires
hightemperature,
highcapacity equipment to
avoid
serious
air
pollution.
"This can be expensive,
and incineration didn't go
over well in Britain,"
Glanville adds.
Composting
biosecurity
protects
After composting more
than 54 tons of 1,000-lb.
cattle in the past three
years, ISU researchers
found
on-farm
emergency composting
offers
affordable,
immediate
carcass
containment
that
reduces air pollution and
disease
transmission
potential. In addition:
* Composting can be
achieved by using typical
Electronic Clipping
farm equipment and
common
agricultural
products such as corn
stalks, silage and straw.
* Composting works
when the ground is
frozen.
* Composting keeps
potential water pollution
away from groundwater.
"Emergency composting,
done properly, minimizes
risks
and
increases
biosecurity,"
Reynolds
says. "We feel very
secure in this because
we introduced viruses
into the compost piles to
see if strains could
escape. We stationed
sentinel
animals
(pathogen-free chickens)
in cages located 10 ft.
from all sides of the
composting test units
and had no problems."
The scientists found
windrow
composting
systems
made
with
ground straw, ground
cornstalks, wood chips
or corn silage to be well
suited for emergency
livestock disposal.
"These can be easily
sized to fit varying
quantities and sizes of
carcasses,"
Glanville
notes.
Building
a
windrow
involves laying down an
absorptive base layer,
positioning a single layer
of beef carcasses on the
base and covering the
carcasses with more
coarse-textured material.
Plan on using 12 cu. yds.
of cover and base
material per 1,000 lbs. of
carcasses.
This
is
equivalent to 3.2 tons of
corn silage, 1.4 tons of
ground cornstalks or 1
ton of ground hay or
straw.
Narrow-row
widths
improve
the
oxygen
concentration at the
center of the pile. ISU
recommends
a
maximum base width of
16-18 ft./1,000 lbs. of
cattle. Carcass-loading
rates shouldn't exceed 1
ton for every eight ft. of
row length. Here's what
else ISU researchers
have
learned
about
successful
emergency
composting:
* OxygenWhile turning
the pile to maintain a
desirable
oxygen
concentration is typical in
routine composting, it
requires
time
and
mechanized equipment,
and could pose a
biosecurity hazard in
emergency composting.
Windrow composting
CompetitivEdge 1-888-881-EDGE
www.clipresearch.com
* "We've never turned
one of our compost
windrows, which breaks
one of the rules of
traditional composting,"
Glanville says. "We just
put the cows in there and
leave them until they're
done. It works, and it
improves biosecurity."
* Moisture contentOne of
the
most
important
factors of successful
composting,
Glanville
says the windrow will be
too dry below 40%
moisture but too wet
above 65%."You don't
need to run lab tests to
identify
appropriate
moisture
levels,"
he
adds. "Use the squeeze
test. Materials with 4065% moisture should
feel moist, but you
shouldn't be able to
squeeze water out of
them."
* Carbon:nitrogen (C:N)
ratioWhile the ideal C:N
ratio for composting
ranges from 20:1 to 30:1,
bacteria will still break
down organic material,
though more slowly, at
C:N ratios as low as 10:1
and as high as 50:1."A
lot of literature on
composting stresses the
perfect C:N ratio, but
forget it," Glanville says.
*
TemperatureISU
researchers
found
Electronic Clipping
compost windrows that
were started in warm
weather break down
1,000-lb. beef carcasses
in 6-7 months; windrows
started in cold weather
will
break
down
carcasses
in
10-12
months. Large bones
that aren't broken down
can be crushed with a
hammer-mill spreader.
CompetitivEdge 1-888-881-EDGE
emergency basis."
"We thought the compost
would
create
good
fertilizer, but it didn't,"
Glanville notes. "It's not
nearly as good as
nutrients from routine
composting. The system
does offer a good
solution, however, for
disposing
of
large
carcasses
on
an
www.clipresearch.com
For more information on
emergency
livestock
composting,
visit
http://www.abe.iastate.e
du/cattlecomposting.
Darcy Maulsby is an
agriculture writer based
in Granger, IA.
Electronic Clipping
Columbia Journalism Review
Go To Top
January 2006 / / February 2006
IDEAS & REVIEWS; Documentaries; Pg. 58
WATCHING WAL-MART
Four documentaries, four perspectives
BY
LIZA
FEATHERSTONE
Liza Featherstone is the
author of Selling Women
Short: The Landmark
Battle
for
Workers'
Rights
at
Wal-Mart
(Basic Books), which
was recently released in
paperback. She shared
research with Robert
Greenwald's producers -and vice versa -- and
has been a featured
speaker
at
several
screenings of his WalMart film.
IS WAL-MART GOOD
FOR AMERICA? PBS,
Frontline
THE AGE OF
MART, CNBC
WAL-
WAL-MART: THE HIGH
COST OF LOW PRICE,
Brave New Films
WHY
WAL-MART
WORKS (AND WHY
THAT MAKES SOME
PEOPLE
CRAZY)
Galloway Productions
Until a couple years ago,
press coverage of WalCompetitivEdge 1-888-881-EDGE
Mart -- the nation's
largest private employer,
and its most powerful
retailer -- was fawning
and sycophantic, and
largely limited to the
financial pages. Often,
the
company
was
presented as an icon of
business success: HOW
WAL-MART
KEEPS
GETTING IT RIGHT was
a typical headline. All
that
has
changed.
Thousands of lawsuits
against the company
allege serious workers'
rights violations, ranging
from child labor to sex
discrimination.
Labor
unions, church leaders,
economists,
state
governments, and many
other players have been
raising questions about
Wal-Mart's low wages
and light benefits: Are
they a helpful efficiency
passed
on
to
the
consumer;
inhumane
and exploitive to the
worker; burdensome to
the taxpayer, who must
foot the bill when the
company's workers need
supplemental
Food
Stamps and Medicaid?
www.clipresearch.com
Now, the press is far
more vigilant in covering
the retailer's flaws and its
economic impact. Stories
potentially embarrassing
to Wal-Mart appear just
about every day. In this
climate, over the past
year,
a
flurry
of
documentary films have
appeared, two in 2004
and two more just
recently,
representing
some of the best and
worst coverage of the
retailer.
In
November
2004,
PBS's Frontline aired Is
Wal-Mart
Good
for
America?
Hedrick
Smith's
substantive
exploration of the realworld implications of the
company's
"Everyday
Low Prices" shows that
Wal-Mart puts intense
pressure on suppliers to
lower labor costs, forcing
many manufacturers to
move
production
offshore. We meet a
worker who used to
make television sets in a
plant in Ohio, which was
forced overseas when
Wal-Mart
demanded
Electronic Clipping
cheaper TVs. The man is
not sure where he'll find
work or what will become
of future generations in
his small town. Without
the plant, jobs are
scarce, except, as Smith
poignantly points out, at
the
local
Wal-Mart,
where
wages
and
benefits aren't even half
as good.
CNBC's The Age of
Wal-Mart, which aired
the same month and
won a Peabody Award,
was narrated by the
reporter David Faber,
whose ironically affable
manner will be familiar to
any regular viewer of the
financial cable news
channel. Faber presents
the company in a more
favorable light, yet his
report is hardly a puff
piece. He gives a sense
of
the
breathtaking
logistics and technology
behind
Wal-Mart's
success: the distribution
centers the size of
twenty-four
football
fields, and the detailed
data
the
company
collects
on
what
products are selling,
where, and why. WalMart's computer geeks
even track the weather.
Learning, for instance,
that people buy more
strawberry Pop Tarts
during a hurricane, the
folks
at
Arkansas
CompetitivEdge 1-888-881-EDGE
headquarters, seeing a
hurricane predicted in
Florida, could place a
massive order for that
coveted comfort food.
Yet Faber doesn't shy
away
from
the
company's dark side,
highlighting its many
lawsuits, as well as the
arrogant and fraudulent
tactics Wal-Mart has
used in political battles
with community activists.
He makes decent use of
his
access
to
the
company's CEO, Lee
Scott,
asking
some
tough questions. Noting
the company's less-thangenerous
employee
health-care plans, Faber
asks Scott, "Would Sam
be proud?" ("Sam" is
Sam
Walton,
the
company's
legendary
founder.) Faber also
challenges
Scott's
assertion
that
he's
unconcerned about the
company's bad press,
noting
Wal-Mart's
numerous ads asserting
its
praiseworthy
corporate citizenship. At
points
during
the
interview Scott becomes
testy; it's clear that he
expected
kid-glove
treatment
from
the
business network, and
was disappointed.
It's been more than a
year since the reports of
Faber and Smith, and
www.clipresearch.com
the
public
debate
surrounding Wal-Mart's
business practices is
now even fiercer. Two
major
national
organizations, Wal-Mart
Watch and Wake Up
Wal-Mart,
both
attempting to press the
company toward greater
social
responsibility,
have been successful in
influencing
media
coverage. It is fitting,
then, that this past
November, two more
documentaries, far more
polemical
in
tone,
emerged to sharpen the
debate over Wal-Mart.
Robert Greenwald's WalMart: The High Cost of
Low Price, strenuously
argues that Wal-Mart's
low-cost model is bad for
America. In contrast to
the PBS and CNBC
documentaries,
Greenwald
interviews
only people whose lives
are directly affected by
Wal-Mart's
practices:
former
employees,
small-business people,
community opponents,
former managers. This
strategy
has
some
limitations, yet it is also
the source of the film's
power.
Greenwald opens with a
story about a small
family-owned store in
Middlefield, Ohio, H&H
Electronic Clipping
Hardware, which closed
when Wal-Mart began
breaking ground for a
supercenter. The local
real
estate
market
anticipated
that
downtown
businesses
would suffer, so the
value
of
the
land
plummeted, and the
family was unable to
refinance its commercial
mortgage. Wal-Mart -along with conservative
commentators
sympathetic
to
the
company
-has
relentlessly attacked this
part of the film, correctly
pointing out that the
store
closed
three
months
before
the
Middle-field
Wal-Mart
opened, and that a new
hardware
store
has
reopened in the same
spot and is thriving. The
film doesn't actually say
that the store folded
because
of
direct
competition with WalMart. It's clear, however,
that H&H is a flawed
example,
and
that's
unfortunate, because no
one -- not even Wal-Mart
-- disputes Greenwald's
larger point that when
Wal-Mart comes to town,
small businesses are
often forced to close
their doors. Kenneth
Stone, an Iowa State
University economist,
has
extensively
documented
this
CompetitivEdge 1-888-881-EDGE
phenomenon. Yet the
segment also suffers
from a lack of attention
to this broader picture;
Greenwald doesn't ask
why we should care
about small businesses
being crushed by WalMart. Of course it's
disappointing for the
entrepreneurs and their
families, but does it
affect life in the region in
any significant way? We
know, for example, that
when small businesses
suffer,
the
local
newspaper is often hurt
as well, for the steep
loss in advertising dollars
is far from offset by WalMart, which does little
print promotion. What do
small businesses offer a
community
that
big
businesses can't, and
vice versa? Greenwald
doesn't say, and here
exclusive reliance on
personal stories seems
to hinder an exploration
of important issues.
At other points, however,
Greenwald's focus on
individuals
works
magnificently. Interviews
with former and current
employees
-who
describe
sex
discrimination and many
other abuses -- are
powerful. The former
managers in the film are
riveting; some describe
practices
they
were
www.clipresearch.com
pressured into (including
falsifying time cards to
cheat
employees
of
overtime pay), of which
they are now deeply
ashamed. The film's
biggest
surprise
-especially in contrast to
Smith's
Frontline
documentary, in which
the Chinese exist only as
a
backdrop,
an
anonymous
force
stealing American jobs -is Greenwald's intimate,
humanizing segment on
a young couple who
work in a factory in
China making products
for
Wal-Mart,
under
harsh conditions. In an
eloquent misconception - illustrating the vast
distance
between
producers
and
consumers -- a Chinese
worker imagines that
Wal-Mart shoppers in the
United States must be
very rich.
Ron Galloway's Why
Wal-Mart Works (And
Why That Drives Some
People Crazy) is by far
the most amateurish of
these efforts, as well as
the most ideologically
extreme. It is hard to
believe that anyone who
was not being paid by
Wal-Mart would make
this lengthy infomercial,
but
Galloway
has
repeatedly said that he
took no money from the
Electronic Clipping
company. In this film,
analysis of Wal-Mart -and of the hostility to the
company -- is delivered
only by conservative
free-market zealots. The
only Wal-Mart critics in
the film are inarticulate
young people who don't
have much knowledge of
the company's practices.
Some are stereotypical
hippies who wouldn't
think highly of any large
business.
Elsewhere,
Galloway's film verges
on dishonesty, as when
he dismisses talk of WalMart's plan to cut down
on
"unhealthy"
employees, suggesting
that
it's
unfounded
gossip, when in fact the
proposal to save on
healthcare
costs
by
"dissuad[ing] unhealthy
people from coming to
work at Wal-Mart" was
earnestly discussed in
an internal company
memo.
The
two
workers
Galloway chooses to
profile -- a ninety-yearold retired nurse and a
former drug addict -- are
remarkably
CompetitivEdge 1-888-881-EDGE
unrepresentative of the
nation's
working
population. The retiree
came to work at WalMart because she still
had plenty of energy and
needed something to do
-- not because she
needed money or health
benefits. The recovered
drug addict, who had no
work history when WalMart
hired
her, is
tearfully grateful to the
company for giving her a
chance.
Galloway's
choice to emphasize
their experiences over
any
others
unintentionally raises a
question: Shouldn't we
be worried when the
nation's largest private
employer provides jobs
that work well only for
people with few needs
and low expectations?
All these documentaries
add to the debate, but
reporting
on
the
company can go further.
Clearly, Wal-Mart is not
merely a source of
problems -- it is a
symptom of broader
problems.
In
Greenwald's
www.clipresearch.com
documentary -- and to a
more
subtle
extent,
Frontline's -- Wal-Mart is
a threat to everything
rightfully
and
authentically American.
For Ron Galloway, it
represents
what's
greatest about America.
Neither is quite true:
Wal-Mart has emerged
from the contradictions
and
paradoxes
of
American culture. We
have created Wal-Mart,
rather than the other way
around. David Faber is
right when he declares,
at the end of The Age of
Wal-Mart: "Wal-Mart is a
near-perfect example of
capitalism, which itself
can bring both good and
bad." This seems more
promising as a point of
departure
than
a
conclusion; perhaps we
will begin to see more
coverage
of
the
company as a window
on
the
intensely
marketized nature of
contemporary life in the
United States, rather
than as an isolated
example of corporate
evil-doing.
Electronic Clipping
Emerging Food R&D Report
Go To Top
January 1, 2006
Vol. 16 No. 10 ISSN: 1050-2688
The genetics and genomics of maize
Executives: FYI ...
Looking for details on the genetics and
genomics of maize? Then USDA-ARS
and Iowa State University scientists
have the Web site for you. The Maize
Genetics and Genomics Database-www.maizegdb.org--offers information
on the traits, genetic sequences and
other related features of maize (Zea
mays L. ssp. mays), including those
aspects involving breeding and crop
improvement. The site is a portal to
cutting-edgeresearch on this staple
crop, as well as to landmark work
performed decades ago. It also
provides contact information for more
than 2,400cooperative researchers,
along with Web-based tools for
ordering items such as maize stocks
and cloned sequences. The site
presents information on maize in a way
CompetitivEdge 1-888-881-EDGE
that clearly summarizes biological
relationships, and features easy-to-use
computational tools. With it, a
researcher can connect how a plant
looks to the genetic sequences
responsible for causing its phenotype.
Maize is much more than a source of
food for people and livestock. It's also
used in the manufacture of glue, paint,
insecticides, toothpaste, rubber tires,
rayon and molded plastics. It is also
the major source of ethanol in the
United States. Contact: Carolyn
Lawrence, USDA-ARS Corn Insects
and Crop Genetics Research,
Genetics Building, Iowa State
University, Ames, IA 50011. Phone:
515-294-7380. Fax: 515-294-2265.
Email: triffid@iastate.edu.
www.clipresearch.com
Electronic Clipping
Farm Industry News
Go To Top
January 1, 2006
Pg. 23 ISSN: 0892-8312
NITROGEN RATE CALCULATORS
FARMERS HAVE a new tool to help
deal with the recent sharp increases in
nitrogen prices. New nitrogen rate
guidelines for Illinois corn growers help
them apply economics to the decision
on nitrogen rates. The guidelines allow
growers to apply nitrogen on corn
within a defined range of rates that is
based on calculations using research
data from more than 250 nitrogen rate
trials in Illinois. Recommended ranges
change when the price ratio between
nitrogen and corn changes.
guidelines. The Web site includes an
animated
demonstration
of
the
calculator.
For more information, contact Emerson
Nafziger, U of I Extension crop
scientist, at 217/333-4424.
The site calculates the new economic
return to nitrogen application and finds
the maximum return to nitrogen rate
directly from recent research data. The
site includes nitrogen rate trial data for
Iowa, Illinois, Minnesota and Wisconsin
that had an adequate number of
research trials available for corn
following soybean and corn following
corn. These trials were conducted with
spring,
sidedress
or
split
preplant/sidedress-applied
nitrogen,
and the sites were not irrigated.
Iowa corn producers can calculate the
economic return to nitrogen application
using a new regional Web-based tool
located at the Iowa State University
Extension agronomy Web site. The
Corn Nitrogen Rate Calculator follows
a newly developed regional approach
for determining corn nitrogen rate
Using the online calculator, producers
can calculate returns for one set of
nitrogen fertilizer and corn grain prices,
or multiple prices for the state and
rotation in which they are interested.
Visit
http://extension.agron.iastate.edu/soilf
ertility/nrate.aspx.
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Food Chemical News
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December 19, 2005
Pg. 5 Vol. 47 No. 45 ISSN: 0015-6337
Study sees little benefit for farmers from biopharm crops
Clapp, Stephen
A study commissioned
by
the
Union
of
Concerned
Scientists
has found little benefit to
farmers
and
rural
communities
from
cultivation ofcrops used
to produce plant-made
pharmaceutical
and
industrial products.
Authored by Iowa State
agricultural
economist
Robert Wisner, The
Economics
of
Pharmaceutical Crops:
Potential Benefits and
Risks for Farmers and
Rural
Communities,
claims to be the first
analysis by a land-grant
university economist of
potential
economic
benefits
and
risksof
biopharm crops to rural
America.
Wisner concluded that,
while some drug and
biotechnology
companiesmay
profit
from
biopharming,
aggregate
farmer
benefits are likely tobe
small,
and
rural
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community benefits may
be much more modest
than often portrayed.
"Those
looking
at
pharma crops as a boon
to rural America view
increased farm income
as a key benefit," he said
in a UCS news release.
"However, in the end,
economic
principles
dictate that only a small
part of the pharma crops'
value would be expected
to go to growers."
Farmers are unlikely to
benefit in a significant
way because they will be
unable to negotiate with
biopharm
companies
from a position of
strength,
the
study
found. Market forces,
including
potential
foreign
competition,
would
drive
farmer
compensation down to
the lowest levels that
biopharm
companies
could achieve.
Moreover, the acreage
likely required if the
biopharm industry meets
its expectations is so
small that only a few
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growers
would
be
needed, UCS noted.
Rural communities are
thus likely to benefit in a
substantial way only if a
drug-processing
company locates in their
town or a local university
or private businesses
win
large
research
contracts.
In
addition,
those
growers who produce
food and feed versions
of biopharm crops could
be put at risk because of
the
potential
for
contamination,
UCS
stressed. For example,
Missouri rice farmers
worry thatthey may lose
domestic and foreign
markets out of fears that
their rice is contaminated
with drugs.
"The major benefits of a
successful pharma crop
industry
would
be
expected to go to
companies in the form of
reduced
production
costs,"UCS said. "If the
companies pass cost
savings
along
to
consumers, society may
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benefit
drugs."
from
cheaper
The study found that net
savings in production
costs would be at least
partially offset by the
costs of containment
needed to protect the
food supply from pharma
crop
commingling.
Contamination
from
open-air production is
considered
likely,
because most drugproducing crops are food
crops such as corn, rice,
and soybeans, and most
pharma crop production
occurs in areas where
food versions of the
crops are grown, UCS
said.
"Proponents
of
pharmaceutical
crops
have inflated the rewards
and downplayed the
risks," said Jane Rissler,
deputy director of the
UCS
food
and
environment
program.
"State officials, farmers
and rural communities
should be wary of rosily
optimistic claims."
UCS renewed its call to
USDA to ban the outdoor
production of biopharm
crops because of threats
to the food supply. The
advocacy group urged
the
department
to
encourage
genetically
engineered
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alternativesto food and
feed crops for the
production of drugs and
industrial chemicals.
Study
challenged
are also risks involved
with doing nothing. But
the potential benefits for
human health to my
mind are mind boggling."
conclusions
"As
far
as
their
contention
that
[biopharming] will not
produce revenue for
farmers, I don't know
what they are talking
about," Dean Hubbard,
president of Northwest
Missouri
State
University,
told
the
Associated Press. The
university has invited
California-based Ventria
Bioscience to anchor a
new biologics center at
its
campus
in
Maryville,Mo.,
where
bioengineered rice and
other products would be
processed into drugs.
--Stephen Clapp
steve.clapp@informa.co
m
"Our agreement with
Ventria commits them to
paying
farmers
substantially more, up to
double what they are
making per acre, for
growing these crops,"
Hubbard said, adding
that the university wants
to help the biopharming
industry develop in a
way that is responsible
and careful.
"Of course there are
risks," Hubbard was
quoted as saying. "There
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Agri News, MN
01/17/06
Research designed to find ways dairy can
help diets studied
By Janet Kubat Willette
Agri News staff writer
ST. PAUL -- Ways in which dairy products can help U.S. consumers improve
their diets are among the projects being studied at the Minnesota-South DakotaIowa Dairy Foods Research Center.
A research forum was held at the center on the University of Minnesota campus
last week to highlight some of the work that's being done with checkoff dollars.
One project involves feeding cheese pellets to mice with high blood pressure.
Lloyd Metzger, director of the Minnesota-South Dakota-Iowa Dairy Foods
Research Center, is conducting the study to determine if the type of cell envelope
proteinase used in the manufacturing of cheddar cheese influences the
angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitor activity.
ACE inhibitors are commonly used to treat high blood pressure, Metzger said.
Casein, the major milk protein, has been shown to have numerous bioactive ACE
inhibitor sequences, he said.
Metzger also wants to find out if ACE inhibitor activity differs depending on the
age of cheese.
Vikram Mistry, department head of the South Dakota State University Dairy
Science Department, is researching ways to improve the physical properties of
reduced-fat cheese using exopolysaccharide, or EPS. EPS is a component of the
cheese-making process.
Daniel O'Sullivan, a U of M associate professor, is using genomics to determine
ways in which bifidobacterium longum could better survive during yogurt
manufacture and storage.
At Iowa State University, a project that encapsulates omega-3 and CLA into a
dairy's total mixed ration is underway, said Ruth MacDonald, professor and
chair of the Iowa State University Department of Food Science and Human
Nutrition. The goal is to see if the omega-3 and CLA will survive through the
cattle and come out in the milk.
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Omega-3 is beneficial to the heart and in cancer prevention.
Another project involves re-establishing the Iowa State University dairy culture
collection. The cultures can be used for Swiss cheese processing.
Many of the words used at the research update went over his head, said farmer
and Midwest Dairy chairman Mel Kunstleben, but he learned that research is
important.
It was also good to find out that the research projects are coordinated through
Dairy Management Incorporated to avoid duplication, he said.
The Minnesota-South Dakota-Iowa Dairy Foods Research Center is an affiliation
of the University of Minnesota, SDSU and ISU. The center conducts research
that will benefit dairy producers by adding value to dairy products.
The center was established in 1988. Universities provide research and
processing facilities, faculty effort and administrative time. DMI provides funding.
Projects compete for funding on a national basis.
Midwest Dairy Association is the major regional sponsor of the Minnesota-South
Dakota-Iowa Dairy Foods Research Center.
In 2005, Midwest dairy farmers contributed more than $300,000 to the center
through checkoff dollars.
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Agri News, MN
01/17/06
Iowa news and notes
Dairy Days planned at several locations
ELMA, Iowa -- Dairy Days are planned at several Iowa locations.
The events will feature Lee Kilmer, Extension dairy specialist, who will
discuss changing dairy herds' milk butterfat and protein content. He will explain
the methods needed to getting that done.
Kilmer will be joined by Leo Timms, Larry Tranel and Dale Thoreson,
Extension dairy specialists.
The 9:55 a.m.-3 p.m. programs will also feature information on methods of
handing sand-laden manure, compost barns, managing cow feed efficiency and
an update on Iowa State University research.
Dairy Days are planned Jan. 31 in the Knights of Columbus Hall, Elma; Feb. 1,
the Dairy Foundation Center, Calmar; Feb. 2, in the 4-H Building, Waverly; Feb.
7, Aalon Supper Club, Rickardsville; and Feb. 8, American Legion Hall, Ryan.
For more information, call (563) 583-6496.
Farm Pesticide Recertification event is Jan. 27
NORTHWOOD, Iowa -- The Extension Service will hold a Farm Pesticide
Recertification session Jan. 27 in First Lutheran Church, Northwood. The session
will start at 1 p.m.
All farmers renewing their license without testing are required to attend the
training meeting.
For more information, call Dennis Johnson at (641) 324-1531.
'Iowa's Promise Youth' grants available
AMES, Iowa -- Applications are being accepted until Feb. 1 from youth groups
that want to receive an "Iowa's Promise Youth'' grant for community improvement
projects.
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The Iowa Commission on Volunteer Service, in cooperation with the Extension
Service, is offering $250 to qualified groups.
The grants, totaling $8,000, will be available to fund projects ranging from
planning and hosting a countywide leadership conference to making a field guide
to identify plants in a community prairie.
For more information, call Sue Bogue at (515) 294-1533
Lamkey interim chairman of ISU department
AMES, Iowa -- Kendall Lamkey, Iowa State University professor of
agronomy, will become interim chairman of the Department of Agronomy
effective Feb. 1.
Lamkey's appointment will be for two years. He will continue to be director of the
Raymond F. Baker Center for Plant Breeding and hold the Pioneer Distinguished
Chair in Maize Breeding.
He replaces Steven Fales, who was named associate director of the Office of
Biorenewable Programs. Fales joined the agronomy department as department
chairman in 2001.
Specialty crop, livestock focus of event
AMES, Iowa -- A program designed for new or existing farm businesses and
people who are interested in raising speciality livestock, vegetables, herbs,
flowers or value-added products will start Jan. 21.
The "Grow Your Small Market Farm'' program will be taught weekly from Jan. 21
to April 15. The class will meet from 9 a.m.-noon in the Gerdin Business
Building on the Iowa State University campus.
The program will help participants with business tasks, including writing a
business plan, developing financial planning skills and speciality food marketing.
To register for the class, call (515) 232-1344.
'New Women in Denim' title of newsletter
AMES, Iowa -- The Extension Service is offering a "New Women in Denim''
newsletter that is geared toward women in agriculture. The first issue was mailed
in mid-December and there will be six issues annually.
"The focus of this newsletter is addressing farm women's issues,'' said Beverly
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Peterson, Franklin County Extension director.
The newsletter is written by six northeast Iowa area women Extension directors
who have ties to farming.
For more information, call the Franklin County Extension office at (641) 4564811.
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Agriculture Online
01/16/06
High Yield Team shoots to boost bean yields
by 30% on 'challenged' fields
John Walter
Agriculture Online Editor
A group of nearly 1,000 farmers who are part of the Successful Farming
magazine High Yield Team are aiming to improve soybean yields this year by
about 30% on fields they have enrolled in the program.
The High Yield Team, organized by Successful Farming and Agriculture Online,
is comprised of farmers who are taking on a personal challenge to boost yields
on soybean acres that have proved problematical in the past.
In recent years, many growers have seen yields of the "miracle crop" hit a
plateau, for a variety of reasons, including pests, disease, and adverse weather.
Growers participating in the High Yield Team program have enrolled more than
100,000 acres in the program. The historical yields on these "problem" fields is
47 bu/ac on average. The personal improvement goal of the growers is to raise
those yields to 61 bu/ac on average.
For their participation, High Yield Team members receive special reports from an
expert panel, an e-mail newsletter, as well as other benefits.
Variety selection is one area where team members are seeking improvement.
"The major change for beans in 2006 is selection of varieties that yield well in our
microclimate and management based on our own test plot and field performance
in the past two years," says Tom Culp, Lexington, Ohio. "Granted this runs
against the rule to select from varieties that do well across a wide area, but those
varieties don't always work for us."
Culp has designated as his own personal challenge to boost yields to about 45
bu/ac on a 30-acre field averaging 31.4 bu/ac.
Culp already has an intensive soybean production system in place on his farm -including an optimal fertility program, early preplant residual chemicals, seedapplied fungicides on early planted varieties, innoculation, and crop scouting and
treatment as needed. But some issues are beyond his control, he points out, like
how to deal with drainage issues on rented ground.
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And then there is the weather. "You pray for sunshine, a rarity here in north
central Ohio, and just the right amount of rain," he says.
High Yield Team expert panel members agree that variety selection is a major
issue in breaking through yield barriers.
Variety selection can make a major difference whether you harvest 45- or 60bushel-an-acre beans, says Palle Pedersen, Iowa State University Extension
agronomist. In Iowa, soybean cyst nematode (SCN) is a major pest that can
slice up to 30% off soybean yields. The good news is farmers can protect yields
by selecting top-notch resistant varieties for SCN-infested fields.
Northern growers had excellent results with late-maturing varieties in 2005 due to
great growing conditions, says Mark Bernard, a New Richland, Minnesota, crop
consultant.
"Because it's tempting to select varieties based on last year's performance, there
likely will be an increase in later-maturing varieties in the regions this year," he
says. "Yet, northern soybean producers should still strive to plant a mix of
varieties with varying maturities, says. "We never know when we'll see a
September 14 or earlier killing frost," he says.
To learn more about the High Yield Team, and to join the program, visit:
The High High Yield Team is sponsored by the AgriEdge Soybean Program from
Syngenta.
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AgWeb
01/13/06
USDA Awards $10 Million to Sequence Swine
Genome
AgWeb.com Editors
Agriculture Secretary Mike Johanns announced today that USDA is awarding
$10 million to the University of Illinois to obtain a draft sequence of the swine
genome.
"Pork is the major red meat consumed worldwide," Johanns said. "With more
than 61 million pigs in the nation, the sequence of the pig genome will have a
significant impact on U.S. agriculture."
The two-year project will lead to the development of new DNA-based tools to
identify and select genetically superior pigs that resist infectious diseases, yield
larger litter sizes, and produce leaner cuts of meat for consumers.
"By decoding the sequence of the pig genome, scientists can explore new ways
to improve swine health and to increase the efficiency of swine production," said
Joseph Jen, USDA Under Secretary for Research, Education and Economics.
The pig genome is similar to the human genome in size, complexity and
organization. Because of these similarities, understanding the pig genome could
lead to future biomedical advances, such as pig-to-human organ transplants.
The USDA's Cooperative State Research, Education and Extension Service
(CSREES) administered the grant through the National Research Initiative. The
NRI is the largest peer reviewed, competitive grants program in CSREES. It
supports research, education and extension grants that address key problems of
national, regional and multi-state importance in sustaining all components of
agriculture.
Additional funding to sequence the pig genome was provided by the National
Pork Board, Iowa Pork Producers Association, Iowa State University, North
Carolina Pork Council and North Carolina State University.
Several other institutions are collaborating with the University of Illinois, including:
Roslin Institute, Edinburgh, Scotland; University of Nevada, Reno; Wellcome
Trust Sanger Institute, United Kingdom; INRA Cellular Genetics Laboratory,
Toulouse, France; USDA Agricultural Research Service Meat Animal Research
Center, Clay Center, Neb.; and Iowa State University. – Also ran in:
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Washington File, DC; Forbes; Washington Post; Seattle Post Intelligencer;
Kentucky.com, KY; Belleville News-Democrat, IL; The State, SC; Monterey
County Herald, CA; TheNewsTribune.com, WA; San Jose Mercury News;
Agriculture Online; HappyNews.com, TX
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Associated Press
01/12/06
Lawmakers told public education can help
expand ethanol use
DES MOINES, Iowa Iowa lawmakers are hearing about ethanol today -- and the
need to overcome misperceptions before efforts to expand the industry can
succeed.
Several lawmakers are touting a proposal to expand the use of E-85, an 85
percent ethanol-gasoline blend, in Iowa. But only 30 gas stations statewide are
offering it. Lawmakers hope to use incentives to make the fuel more widely
available.
Researchers from Iowa's three state universities told lawmakers today that to do
that public demand must increase.
Larry Johnson of Iowa State University says about 100-thousand cars in Iowa
are equipped to run on E-85, but most of the owners don't they have that kind of
car.
Senator Jack Kibbie, an Emmetsburg Democrat, is a big proponent of a
requirement that all gasoline sold in Iowa be blended with ethanol, and he's
willing to look at proposals to expand the use of the 85 percent ethanol blend.
He says lawmakers and consumers need to be educated.
Copyright 2006 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be
published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed – Also ran in: WHO-TV, IA;
WQAD, IL; WOT, IA; Agri News
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Associated Press
01/14/06
Researchers Win $10M Pig Genome Grant
CHAMPAIGN, Ill., Jan. 14, 2006
(AP) A research team led by two University of Illinois scientists has won a $10
million federal grant to help provide the first complete sequence of the swine
genome, a map that could help farmers produce better hogs, give consumers
tastier pork and ultimately benefit human health.
Lawrence Schook and John Beever, UI professors who last summer completed a
side-by-side comparison of the pig and human genomes, will head a project that
will involve researchers at other U.S. universities, the government and
laboratories in France and England. The project is expected to be completed
within two years at a total cost of about $20 million, Schook said.
"Pork is the major red meat consumed worldwide," U.S Agriculture Secretary
Mike Johanns said in a news release announcing the grant Friday. "With more
than 61 million pigs in the nation, the sequence of the pig genome will have a
significant impact on U.S. agriculture."
The sequencing, or deciphering the pig's genetic code to learn how each gene
lines up on a DNA molecule, will eventually help breed better pigs and, because
pig and human genetics have many similarities, could give researchers better
tools for fighting human afflictions such as diabetes, obesity or heart disease,
said Max Rothschild, an Iowa State University animal science professor
who also is one of seven project directors.
"The ultimate beneficiary of the pig genome project is really not the pork
producer, it's the consumer," Rothschild said Friday. "It's going to be better food
at a reasonable price, and it's going to be, eventually, better health issues related
to this animal called the pig."
The researchers also have commitments for additional money from organizations
in France, Korea, the Netherlands and Great Britain. The Clive, Iowa-based
National Pork Board and several state pork-producer associations also will
contribute about $1 million, said Mark Boggess, the pork board's director of
animal science.
"Virtually everything we do with pork production will be impacted by this genome
work," Boggess said. "We'll thoroughly understand the biology involved with the
way things are genetically and then we can apply management, selection and
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nutrition programs to fit."
Schook and Beever's side-by-side comparison looked at blocks of genes on pig
and human chromosomes and found more than 170 similarities. That comparison
provided detail that Schook describes as sentences in a book, while the genome
sequencing will break the pig down into the "words and letters."
"Pigs are like humans," Schook said. "They're all different and we know they're
different but we can't figure out when the differences are important for normal
growth and development or when they lead to disease.
"By having this model pig we have something to compare to. It's a benchmark for
understanding how genes contribute to why animals are different, even within the
same species," he said.
Sequencing the swine genome also will give researchers tools they need to
develop healthier hogs and improve meat quality, Beever said.
"This is probably the final frontier," said Illinois Pork Producers Association
President Darrell Stitzel, who raises about 7,500 hogs annually on his Carroll
County farm. "If the geneticists for the swine companies have that information
and can use it to improve traits, then it will come down to the farm and we can
get the benefits of it."
The genetic material for the sequencing comes from a female Duroc pig that was
raised on the South Farms at the University of Illinois' Urbana-Champaign
campus. The same animal was used to study genes that control growth and
contribute to meat quality, research that can become even more detailed once
the genome is sequenced, Beever and Schook said.
Sequencing the swine genome will involve deciphering the 2.5 billion chemical
base pairs that spell out the animal's genetic code. That laboratory work will be
done at the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute in England.
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The State, SC; Monterey County Herald, CA; Bradenton Herald; Fort Wayne
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Telegram, TX; MLive.com, MI; Macon Telegraph, GA; Charlotte Observer,
NC; MSN Money; Myrtle Beach Sun News, SC; Houston Chronicle; Press of
Atlantic City, NJ; San Francisco Chronicle; Chicago Tribune; CNN; CNN
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Associated Press
01/15/06
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Associated Press
01/17/06
Iowa remains tops in corn, soybean
production
DES MOINES (AP) -- Iowa remained on top in crop production last year, growing
more corn and soybeans than any other state, according to U.S. Department of
Agriculture statistics released this week.
Just over 2.2 billion bushels of corn were harvested in Iowa last year, down 3.6
percent from 2004. The soybean harvest totaled about 533 million bushels, 7
percent more than the previous year, according to the USDA's annual crop
production report.
Corn yielded about 173 bushels per acre across the state, 8 bushels per acre
less than in 2004. The soybean yield of 53 bushels per acre was a record high.
The number of acres of corn planted grew from 12.7 million in 2004 to 12.8
million last year, while the number of soybean acres planted dropped from 10.2
million in 2004 to 10.1 million last year.
Farmers, especially those in the east-central and southeastern parts of Iowa,
battled drought conditions.
"Here in Iowa, there were a lot of nervous days during the summer due to hotter
weather than in earlier years," said Robert Wisner, a grain marketing
economist with Iowa State University Extension.
Wisner said there was one bonus to the hot, dry weather: It seemed to keep
soybean diseases away. The late summer rain was ideal for pod-filling, he said.
"The results were record soybean yields," he said.
Farmers dodged a potential problem posed by the late-season precipitation.
Many were able to leave their corn in the fields long enough to let it dry without
having to pay high fuel costs to artificially dry the crops, Wisner said.
Iowa farmers produced about 19 percent of the corn and about 17 percent of the
soybeans grown in the United States last year, according to the USDA report
released Thursday.
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Nationwide, the 11.1 billion-bushel corn crop and the 3.09 billion bushels of
soybeans were about 1 percent more than the USDA estimates released at the
completion of harvest in November, according to the report. – Also ran in: Truth
about Trade & Technology, IA; ; Marshalltown Times Republican, IA; Quad
City Times, IA
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Associated Press
01/18/06
Regents seek revenue boost from out-ofstate students
IOWA CITY, Iowa Iowa's public universities hope to boost tuition revenues by
attracting more students outside the state.
Non-resident tuition rates have increased sharply in recent years, accompanied
by a decrease in out-of state students.
The Iowa Board of Regents wants to curb tuition increases and get more
nationwide consideration from high school graduates.
Bob Downer, a regent from Iowa City, says the state can't grow by -- quote -"throwing up a wall around it or digging a moat."
Out-of-state undergraduates -- not including international students -- comprised
23 percent of the undergraduate enrollment last fall at the University of Iowa,
Iowa State University and University of Northern Iowa.
That's up about 1 percent from fall 1995.
Regents say the schools can profit from drawing more out-of-state students, who
pay higher tuition at Iowa's universities than residents.
In fall 2004, the state spent 92-hundred dollars to educate each University of
Iowa student. The school received 13 thousand, 800 dollars in out-of-state tuition
per student. That means the state netted 46 hundred dollars in revenue for each
out-of-state student.
Copyright 2006 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be
published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Also ran in: WOI, IA; WHO-TV,
IA;WQAD, IL; Sioux City Journal, IA; KCCI.com, IA
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Dailyrecord.com, NJ
01/17/06
Single, but not alone: Farmers too busy for
love
Some in Morris say demands of the farm make blue-ribbon
romances difficult
BY LAURA BRUNO
DAILY RECORD
Anne Giller never had trouble getting dates before. An attractive, smart woman
with a keen sense of humor, Giller didn't imagine that following her life's dream
would leave her in a dating drought.
Five years ago, Giller left her job as an administrative manager at a fuel supply
company to pursue running an organic farm in Rockaway Township.
She soon found out the suburban haven for families with young children wasn't
conducive to dating.
Most of her clients are mothers.
"The majority of people in suburbia have a house and a family in it already,"
Giller says. "Most of the men I meet are already taken."
While city folk find dating a minefield of complications and angst, America's
single farmers can beat their worst tale of woe. Try traveling 200 miles, roundtrip, for a dance. Or breaking a date on account of a sick steer.
Single farmers, male and female, from suburban New Jersey to the Kansas
plains, say it's increasingly difficult to find someone willing to play second fiddle
to the demands of a farm. It's hard selling a life of isolation, time constraints and
economic uncertainty. Plus, the pool of available mates keeps shrinking.
"There is a lack of time ... I have 8 billion children to watch over," Giller says,
referring to the many fruit, vegetable, herb and flower plants she grows.
Single-handedly running Dégagé Gardens, Giller keeps a hectic year-round
pace. When not harvesting, she is stripping seeds, drying herbs and crafting
flower sachets and ointments. Her days can begin at 7 a.m., end at 1 a.m.
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The 39-year-old Giller wants to share her life with a man who makes her laugh
and supports her dreams. She's even willing to make time for him, potentially
losing money, but she's just not sure how to find him.
While churches and communities historically provided matchmaking forums, they
are no longer adequate, says Paul Lasley, a sociology professor at Iowa
State University. With shrinking farmland in New Jersey and across the country,
small farmers find themselves increasingly isolated and working long hours to
stay afloat.
The U.S. Census Bureau offers no data on single farmers, but there were 2.1
million farms in 2002, down from 3.1 million in 1964. The average farmer's age is
55. In New Jersey, the picture is no different. There were 9,900 farms in 2002,
compared with 10,640 in 1964.
Slim pickens
So, if Giller's got it tough less than 50 miles outside of New York City, imagine
Eric Fynaardt's plight.
The 23-year-old Searsboro, Iowa, crop farmer is searching for a wife, not just a
roll in the hay.
But, in his town of 150 people, a scant 10 are single. And only two of them are
women.
"Women think we're hillbilly hicks tied to our land,"Fynaardt says. "We're looked
down upon. Girls say, 'I don't want to date him, I don't want to go back to the
farm. I want to explore city life.'"
Fynaardt has turned to Internet dating sites to help. Some, like Fynaardt, see the
Web as their last frontier of hope.
A new Web site, www.farmersonly.com, has sought to specifically fill the need of
dating-challenged farmers.
Though big Web sites boast thousands of members, the rural set found it was
still slim pickings for them, says Jerry Miller, founder of farmersonly.com.
You don't have to be a farmer to join the site, but you have to "understand the
traditional farm values," he says. A married publicist for the Alpaca Owners and
Breeders Association, Miller started the site to help despairing farmer friends.
"There are a lot of lonely people out there," Miller says.
Thanks to widespread media attention, Miller says membership surged recently
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to 10,000. He kicked off the site in May with a couple hundred people.
'Tragically hard'
Tami Linne, a 42-year-old combine and tractor driver in Burr Oak, Iowa credits
the new Web site for boosting her spirits.
"It's tragically hard out here," Linne says. "I don't want to be alone the rest of my
life."
A divorced mother of three, Linne says the men she meets are either too young,
too old, too married or too busy. The bar 10 miles away boasts a jukebox and a
swarm of college students. But she's looking for a partner, not a drinking buddy.
Farmersonly.com opened new worlds to Linne. She tried other dating Web sites,
but the men she found there were city slickers. Now, she talks to men who know
the difference between tractors and combines.
"Nobody had anything in common with me," Linne says. "They all lived in the city.
Why would they be interested in a farm girl?"
Blain Newsome is a farmersonly.com convert too. The 24-year-old Dublin, Ohio,
equestrian coach at a horse farm was wary of Web dating. But after checking out
farmersonly.com, Newsome changed her mind.
Just two months into her online experiment, she met Chris, a 27-year-old farm
equipment salesman. They've been on two dates. The first to a restaurant, the
second to the zoo. A third is in the works.
"There's no way we would have met otherwise," Newsome said. "I spend 24/7 at
the farm."
Tough lifestyle
A former president of Future Farmers of America, Newsome tried dating city
boys. It never worked.
"I don't want to babysit some city boy who is afraid of stepping in poop,"
Newsome said.
Frank Carrajat of Mendham recently celebrated his one-year wedding
anniversary and says it wasn't easy finding someone like his wife. Someone who
would understand when he needs to wake up at 3 a.m. to plow snow and not
return home for two days.
Because even during the winter, he's got crazy hours, filling in the downtime on
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his hay farm with plowing snow and selling firewood in the winter.
"A lot of girls were scared to get on tractor, she hopped right on," Carrajat says of
his wife, who works on a horse farm.
Carrajat, 26, opted not to attend college and went straight into farming, so it was
a struggle to date before meeting his wife. He dated college girls and had a hard
time adjusting to their schedules.
"Girls I dated wanted to go out at 10 p.m. and I wanted to go to sleep," Carrajat
says.
Embracing a farmer means embracing their lifestyle and that's not for the faint of
heart, says Kurt Alstede, a married Chester Township farmer.
"It's a very challenging way to make a living," Alstede says. "Downtime means a
40-hour week and a relatively free weekend."
But that's only two or three months out of the year --December through February.
By mid-March, work on the farm is heating up again. Farmers easily work 100
hours a week, Alstede says.
"The Norman Rockwell illusion of farming doesn't exist,"Alstede says. "There's
adversity and pressure."
Against the odds
It wasn't easy 30 or 40 years ago either, he says, but there was more in the way
of community that brought people together. There's less of that today, in addition
to fewer farmers.
Daniel Farrand, in Washington Township, says the lifestyle made it tough to date.
He remembered how women didn't appreciate getting called on a rainy Saturday
afternoon for a date later that night.
"I figured I was free then, so I'd call," Farrand says with a laugh.
Farrand joined a ski club and met his wife, Janet, now married for more than 20
years.
The farm crisis of the 1980s did make things more difficult, says Lasley at Iowa
State said. Children were discouraged from pursuing a farmer's life, he said.
Farmers' children were sent to college. Many didn't return.
David Stigge says that's his reality. Girls at his Kansas high school left for college
and never looked back. Stigge and his brother remained on his family's farm,
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overseeing 900 head of cattle and hundreds of acres of wheat, corn and alfalfa.
Now, 53 and never married, the Kansas farmer says he has given up completely.
Stigge dates, but the women never understand the farm is his priority. He
attended Singles in Agriculture, the 20-year-old national organization with 650
members, that originally served as a dating service. He's dropped out of his local
chapter since the group evolved into more of a recreational club.
The odds are against him, Stigge knows. Farm life can't compete with the
glamour of city life, he says. His brother married, but Stigge calls it a fluke.
"He got lucky," Stigge says. Also ran in: Arkansas Times, AR; USA Today
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Des Moines Register
01/12/06
Biotech crops' acreage increases
Genetically engineered seeds spread; Iran tries rice
By PHILIP BRASHER
REGISTER WASHINGTON BUREAU
Washington, D.C. — Iowa farmers are getting new company around the world
when it comes to growing genetically engineered crops.
Farmers in 21 countries planted 222 million acres of genetically engineered crops
worldwide last year, an 11 percent increase from 2004, according to an annual
survey by the International Service for Acquisition of Agri-biotech Applications.
A genetically engineered version of rice was grown commercially for the first time
— in Iran. Farmers in India planted 3.2 million acres of biotech cotton, a 160
percent increase from 2004.
Genetically engineered crops, which are engineered to be resistant to pests or
herbicides, were first cultivated commercially in 1996. An estimated 8.5 million
farmers grew the crops last year.
"A decade ago, some suggested that biotech crops would not be viable in the
developing world," said Clive James, chairman of International Service for
Acquisition of Agri-biotech Applications. "By now, 90 percent of farmers
benefiting from biotech crops are resource-poor farmers in developing countries."
The global growth in agricultural biotechnology is important to Iowa, which is both
the largest producer of genetically engineered crops in the United States and
home to Pioneer Hi-Bred International, a leading biotech company.
The increasing acceptance of the crops internationally makes it easier to export
U.S. commodities, said GianCarlo Moschini, an economist at Iowa State
University.
"That's good news for Iowa," he said.
However, he said the increased use of the crops in major agricultural countries
like Brazil also means that U.S. farmers are losing the advantage in productivity
from the pest-resistant or herbicide-tolerant seeds.
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The increase in biotech acreage "really points out the benefits to growers
worldwide," said Tom West, vice president of biotech affairs at Pioneer.
His company sells biotech varieties of corn, soybeans and canola and is working
on new traits for those and additional crops.
Pioneer is testing a drought-tolerant variety of corn and is developing food
sorghum that is fortified with vitamins and minerals
The United States continues to dominate biotech farming, having planted 55
percent of the global acreage last year. Argentina accounted for 19 percent of the
total, according to the survey. Brazil was third with 10 percent.
Iran was one of two countries, along with Czech Republic, to try biotech crops for
the first time in 2005.
Portugal and France, which had stopped growing the crops in the late 1990s,
resumed cultivation of small acreages of biotech corn.
The survey relies on estimates derived a combination of public reports, crop
associations and proprietary databases. The survey was sponsored by the
Rockefeller Foundation and an Italian foundation.
Critics of the biotech industry say the technology has primarily benefited big
biotech companies like Pioneer and Monsanto Co. rather than farmers.
"Most (biotech) crops commercialized so far are destined for animal feed, not for
food, and none have been introduced to address hunger and poverty issues," the
environmental group Friends of the Earth said in a statement.
The group also questioned the accuracy of the study's widely cited acreage
estimates in developing countries.
James said he expected biotech acreage to grow significantly during the next
decade as new varieties of rice are developed and traits such as droughttolerance reach the market.
China has developed biotech rice but is not yet growing it commercially. Several
African countries are testing biotech cotton and corn.
In 2005, insect-resistant, biotech rice was grown on about 10,000 acres in Iran,
according to the report. The acreage will grow this year as more seed is
available.
Iowa State's Moschini said the critical breakthrough for agricultural biotechnology
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will come when the European Union and other rich countries lower barriers to the
import of biotech food crops.
"I personally cannot imagine agriculture 20 years down the road not having been
fully penetrated by this technology," he said. "It is just not feasible to resist it
indefinitely."
Last year, 90 percent of the state's soybeans and 60 percent of the corn were of
biotech varieties, according to the U.S. Agriculture Department. – Also ran in:
Truth about Trade & Technology
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Des Moines Register
01/13/06
Ethanol experts explain fuel issues
The presenters were invited to the Legislature to combat
misinformation about the product.
By TIM HIGGINS
REGISTER STAFF WRITER
The state's top ethanol experts Thursday gave Iowa legislators some fuel to sell
legislation that's aimed at increasing sales of the corn-blended gasoline.
Professors from the state's three universities delivered about an hourlong
presentation to state lawmakers on the issues surrounding the grain-based fuel
called ethanol.
Both Democrats and Republicans have said they want to pass legislation this
session to help increase the use of fuels made mostly of corn alcohol, but they
have not settled on the best approach.
Republican leaders in the Iowa House invited the group of presenters on
Thursday.
House Majority Leader Chuck Gipp, a Republican from Decorah, said they
wanted to combat misinformation and confusion about ethanol among Iowans.
Although 70 percent of the motor fuel sold in Iowa contains at least 10 percent
ethanol, lawmakers want to convince more Iowans to use the corn-based fuel.
Car manufacturers are now selling vehicles that can run on both gasoline and socalled E85, fuels made with 85 percent ethanol, but there are few places to
purchase E85.
"There are a lot of stories out there," Gipp said. ". . . If you can knock down some
of the myths out there, then you can actually put together some legislation
increasing enhancements of ethanol products, in particular E85."
He added that it helps legislators address constituents' concerns.
"This gives legislators the most current information they have to go back and tell
them what the facts are," Gipp said.
The top concerns lawmakers are hearing include whether it takes more energy to
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make ethanol than it produces and whether using E85 can damage vehicles.
Iowa State University professor Robert Brown told legislators that all fuel
production consumes more energy than it produces. Studies over whether
ethanol takes too much energy to be efficient are conflicting because different
assumptions are used in different analyses.
While older ethanol plants weren't very efficient, new plants are doing much
better, Brown said. He expects new technology will make it even better.
ISU professor Larry Johnson told lawmakers that new vehicles that run on either
gasoline or E85 are built to handle the properties of the ethanol fuel. He said the
E85 vehicles get 80 percent of the miles per gallon compared to gasoline.
There are fewer than 30 E85 fuel stations in Iowa and 400 in the United States.
Lawmakers are weighing a variety of ideas to increase ethanol use from tax
breaks to incentives for gas stations.
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Des Moines Register
01/13/06
Munson: Pop culture hot talk of 2006
From Stern to Superman, Iowans will talk.
By KYLE MUNSON
LIFE SO FAR
Any look ahead to 2006 shouldn't be complete without this, my third occasional
installment of the TOP 20 MEDIA BUZZ COUNTDOWN - a ranked assessment
of the latest pop-culture chatter from a uniquely Iowa perspective .
14. Veishea - Iowa State University's annual, riot-plagued celebration, on
hiatus last year, is set to make a comeback April 17-23, and it won't be "dry."
There probably also won't be an aluminum can cracked open in town that a
security staffer or a journalist won't hear.
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Des Moines Register
01/13/06
Warm January temperatures prompt more
work outdoors
By JARED STRONG
REGISTER STAFF WRITER
January temperatures are holding steady at a record warm pace, but state
weather forecasters say that cold - possibly frigid - weather could be lying in wait.
With more mild temperatures forecast for the weekend, the average statewide
temperature almost halfway through the month is 32.6 degrees, about 15
degrees above normal, state climatologist Harry Hillaker said.
"It'll be hard to keep up that pace," he said. "My hunch is that we will have to pay
the price."
Hillaker said this winter's weather pattern closely resembles that of 1989, when
Iowa recorded its fifth-warmest January and ninth-coldest February. That winter's
extreme "split personality" is unlikely to occur again this year, he said, but
anything is possible.
"Almost 70 percent of the time, if January is unusually warm, February is warm,
too," Hillaker said. "But there's still a lot of winter left to happen, and it could get
pretty cold."
Officials with the National Weather Service said high temperatures in the 30s
and 40s will continue into the weekend and well into next week. Southern parts of
the state could have temperatures in the 50s on Sunday.
Thursday was central Iowa's 24th day in a row of above-average temperatures,
and warmer weekends have led to increased demand for outdoor supplies.
"I've been authorized to purchase more soils, rock, mulch and other stuff that
would normally be frozen this time of year," said Drew Layland, an assistant
manager at Lowe's Home Improvement in West Des Moines. "We've also had
quite a bit of people coming in who are working on fencing. That's pretty
unusual."
Hillaker said it's odd for January, typically the coldest month of the year, to be
this warm, especially since we're experiencing a La Nina event.
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"This doesn't fit a typical La Nina scenario when winter months tend to be colder
and wetter," he said. "Strong jet streams going from straight west to east are
preventing cold air from coming down to us."
That arctic air would receive a warm welcome from Iowa farmers, who rely on
cold temperatures to preserve grain in storage, said Charles Hurburgh, Iowa
State University professor of agricultural and biosystems engineering.
"I don't suppose most people give thought to that kind of benefit of the cold," he
said. "But it'd be nice to see some colder weather. We could use a few cold
months."
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Des Moines Register
01/14/06
Iowans eager to invest big bucks in biodiesel
By JERRY PERKINS
REGISTER FARM EDITOR
Newton, Ia. — Iowa farmers, small-business owners and retirees anted up more
than $7 million in two days to build a biodiesel plant here, eager to make a bet on
what's billed as the future of the state's rural economy.
Organizers raised more than a third of the $17.6 million to $25 million needed
from investors at meetings in Newton, Pella and Grinnell. Investors had to plunk
down a minimum of $25,000. Some wrote checks on the spot for at least 10
percent of their investment, with the balance due later.
Investments in biodiesel and ethanol plants have often been limited to farmers or
high rollers. But urban and rural investors alike have started lining up to own a
piece of the booming renewable energy industry in Iowa, thanks to $1-a-gallon
government subsidy and the soaring price of oil and diesel fuel.
Carlton Mitchell, the mayor of Orleans in northwest Iowa, drove about 215 miles
to Newton to invest $25,000 in the biodiesel plant. He didn't even attend the
hourlong informational meeting to hear the pros and cons of investing in the
plant.
"I tried to invest in the Wall Lake biodiesel plant, but they were sold out by the
time I got my money in," Mitchell said. "This time I came to them."
In Wall Lake, organizers raised $20 million in a little more than a week to build a
30 million-gallon-a-year biodiesel plant.
Some agriculture leaders are concerned the industry could be growing too fast,
outpacing the demand for biodiesel or the supply of raw materials. Leland Tong
of MARC-IV Consulting, which tracks the biodiesel market, warns against
thinking of the industry as "the next big cash cow."
Iowa State University economist Roger Ginder, a specialist in agribusiness
management, said there is sufficient demand for biodiesel fuel and sufficient
feedstocks like soybeans and animal fats to support the industry's growth.
Interest in biodiesel plants is "not unreasonable in relation to the demand or the
available feedstocks," Ginder said.
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Trucking companies believe the use of biodiesel will expand fuel supplies.
Besides making money, investors say they also want to boost prices for soybean
growers and boost Newton's hard-hit economy.
Dr. Alden Frischmeyer , a veterinarian from Grinnell, was one of the first people
to invest seed money to get the project off the ground.
"It's great for the local economy, great for the environment and a great economic
opportunity for our farmer-clients at the vet clinic," Frischmeyer said. "What's
good for our clients is good for us, too."
Initial investors have put $2.4 million in seed capital to launch the equity drive
effort. Frischmeyer declined to say how much he invested.
About 375 people attended the first four investor meetings held in Newton, Pella
and Grinnell to explain the project, which is being developed by Central Iowa
Energy. Future meetings are scheduled around the state.
Melvin Dunsbergen, a farmer, attended the Grinnell investors' meeting on Friday
but left without writing a check because, he said, he needed to talk with his wife
before putting money into the project.
Dunsbergen has invested in the Lincolnway ethanol plant in Nevada, and he
thinks the Newton biodiesel plant also will pay off, he said.
"The more soybeans we use, the better it'll help us," he said. The biodiesel plant
will use about 75 percent soybean oil and 25 percent animal fats to make
biodiesel, which can be used as a diesel fuel additive or a substitute.
The 30 million gallons of biodiesel produced a year by the plant will be made
from 21.8 million gallons of soy oil and 10 million gallons of animal fats and
grease.
The plant will cost about $50 million to build on 32 acres northeast of Newton,
organizers said.
The plant's 28 jobs, with a minimum salary of $30,000 a year, will help counter
uncertainty over the fate of the Maytag headquarters and plant in Newton, said
Max Worthington, chairman of the Jasper County supervisors.
Newton's largest employer, Maytag, is being purchased by Whirlpool.
"Newton and Jasper County need all the employment we can get," Worthington
said. "I only wish this plant was bigger. We need a lot of these small companies
to come in."
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Organizers will ask local, state and federal governments to pay for
improvements, provide grant money, float bond issues or grant tax breaks to the
project.
The city and county will team up to extend roads and sewer lines to the site,
Newton Mayor Charles Allen said.
Mary Lawyer, director of the Iowa Department of Economic Development, said
the state can extend investment tax credits and rebates on the sales tax paid on
construction materials.
Most of the state aid will have to wait until the equity drive is complete, she said.
This article includes reporting by Register staff writer Philip Brasher.
Potential risks
The prospectus for the Newton biodiesel plant's equity drive lists several risks
that potential investors need to consider:
• Only Iowa residents can invest in the plant, which restricts the number of
potential investors and limits the potential sale of stock.
• If the offering fails, investors' money will be returned to them, but only with
nominal interest.
• If the enterprise is unable to obtain a loan, all the equity may be lost.
• Central Iowa Energy has no experience in the biodiesel industry and no
operating history, which might result in management errors and an inability to run
a plant. Because of the dependence on partners, loss of a relationship with the
partners or changes in the industry may cause delays and additional expense.
• Market prices for biodiesel and prices of seedstock sources, such as soybeans
and animal fats, may turn negative.
• Government actions like a loss of tax breaks or a change in environmental
regulations could reduce the value of the investment.
• There has been no independent valuation of the stock, nor does any public
market for stock exist now nor will it exist in the future, which may make it difficult
to withdraw.
• Consult a tax adviser. Also ran in: Sioux City Journal, IA; Quad City Times,
IA
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Des Moines Register
01/14/06
Anchor's snub may be death for Eastgate
By JOSE DE JESUS
REGISTER STAFF WRITER
A northeast-side Des Moines shopping center that once drew customers from
across central Iowa has likely drawn its last breath, despite millions of dollars in
private and public money spent to resuscitate it.
A decision by home-improvement giant Home Depot not to open a store in the
former Eastgate Plaza could represent a final blow to the site in a decade-long
effort to recapture the strip mall's mid-1970s peak, when it commanded the city's
second-busiest intersection and boasted national retailers, theaters, restaurants,
carnival rides and a bowling alley.
"It's just a shame that all we've got is an empty lot with junk," east-side resident
Bill Flaherty said.
Planners and developers say the western growth that helped kill the popular strip
mall in the '80s has forever altered the area's shopping patterns and made the
40-acre Eastgate site undesirable to the large retailers it needs for revival. Eastside elected officials say they have pushed for retail development at the site
because that's what residents want.
Michael Ludwig of the city's Community Development Department said the site is
zoned for retail, but would allow apartments, townhouses, condominiums or
office buildings. The debate remains how to draw retail, Ludwig said, especially
with Ankeny and Altoona booming and drawing the kinds of stores that might
consider locating at Eastgate.
"I continue to believe something could succeed there," Ludwig said, noting that
while the area has some aging houses and has struggled to keep population, it
has more buying power than many developers think.
Ken Stone, a retail consultant from Ames who studies shopping patterns,
said that while Eastgate's demise might be a psychological blow to neighbors,
"the greater Des Moines area has not suffered" as a result.
"If Eastgate was today like in its heyday, its sales would represent a very small
percent of the total sales in the metro area," Stone said.
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Eastgate already had fallen on hard times when Florida developer Norman
Weinstein bought it eight years ago. Gone were the Younkers, Sears, Ardan's,
and Atlantic Mills stores that kept the massive parking lot just north of Euclid
Avenue full year round.
"I remember that there were plenty of people going there and shopping," said
Larry Croll, who has lived on the east side for 43 years and recalls trips to
Eastgate with his children for movies, Ferris wheel rides and "that Half Price
store when they had good bargains there."
Weinstein renamed the sagging property "Shops at Eastgate" and vowed to
succeed where previous developers had failed. He envisioned a $15 million
project to dislodge shoppers from the magnetic pull of Merle Hay and Valley
West malls. He persuaded elected officials to pump more than $4 million into
Eastgate. The amount included $800,000 in taxpayer money for sewer upgrades.
The revitalization stalled as retailer after major retailer turned down Weinstein's
overtures in favor of newer developments in Ankeny and the western suburbs.
Wal-Mart, Target and Lowe's Home Improvement rejected Eastgate, Weinstein
said, because they didn't want to cannibalize their other area outlets.
"One of the problems is that they are locating in the newer neighborhoods and
are expecting that people on the east side will drive to do their shopping,"
Weinstein said.
East-side City Councilman Bob Mahaffey said options such an apartment
complex or grocery store have been discussed but not as seriously pursued.
"The neighborhood really prefers some retail stores there rather than housing,
and grocery store chains have elected not to," he said.
Mahaffey said city officials now would consider any proposal to revitalize
Eastgate, whose surrounding neighborhood is middle-income, blue-collar, highschool educated and tired of waiting.
Jon Ewing, who in less than a month will move his small software development
company, ID check, into the new Creative Entrepreneur Organization Center in
the East Village area, said city officials should consider a similar resource center
at Eastgate to help small business owners.
"A center like that would help solidify their business plans, their financial
structures and assistance like that," Ewing said.
Eastgate remains mostly empty. A building under construction along East 14th
Street is expected to have space for 12 businesses. But at least two of the
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planned tenants, a Subway sandwich shop and a Tires Plus store, will simply
move from other spots on the Eastgate property.
Critics lament the lack of progress. Some blame Weinstein for a perceived lack of
commitment. Others point fingers at city leaders who made promises but failed to
deliver.
Weinstein is "not looking out for the people of east Des Moines, and personally I
don't feel that he is really trying very hard to get something in there," Croll said.
Weinstein shrugs off such criticism. He says he has invested millions of dollars at
the site and pays about $160,000 in property taxes each year.
"Anyone who thinks I'm not committed to this property is crazy," he said. "They
really don't have any knowledge or understanding of the real estate business,
frankly."
Stone said the lack of development at Eastgate likely galvanizes east-siders who
believe they've been left behind when it comes to development.
"There's a tendency to think that neighborhoods are deteriorating because we've
lost our retailing and our shopping center," he said.
Fran Koontz, a lifelong east-side resident and president of the Accent
Neighborhood Association, says city leaders acted too slowly to reverse
Eastgate's painful slide. She sees it an example of how Des Moines' east side is
always at the back of the line when the public checks are written.
"Why did the city let Eastgate fail?," Kootz asked. "That started failing when
business started moving into the western suburbs years ago."
Stone suggested it might be too late to draw shoppers, even those who grew up
in east Des Moines, away from the western suburbs.
"I think it would be very difficult for people to come back after they've moved
away unless there's something different or unique there," he said. "If you get one
or two anchors there that would fit the demographics of the area, I think it could
become a very vibrant neighborhood again."
Weinstein says he has been close but unable to persuade an anchor business to
move in. He nearly reached an agreement last year with Wal-Mart, but the
world's largest retailer pulled out after a close look at the Des Moines-area
market.
Eastgate's hopes then shifted to Home Depot. City and county leaders told
Weinstein they wanted a progress report by Dec. 31 if he expected more
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taxpayer help.
The news was not good.
Casey Yancey, a Home Depot spokesman, confirmed there were negotiations
with Weinstein, but he refused to say what led to the decision.
Mahaffey said Home Depot pulled out because an Eastgate store would take too
much traffic from its Ankeny and south Des Moines locations.
Enrique Pena, who lived near Eastgate for 10 years before he moved to
Winterset, said with the number of Hispanics concentrated near the Eastgate
area, Weinstein should make an effort to bring in minority businesses.
"That should be one of the components," Pena said. "The presence of the Latino
community in that part of town is very strong."
For his part, Weinstein said he has not given up on the project.
Many east-siders, however, have.
"It used to be handy to have a Younkers here, because we didn't have to run
across town to get there," Flaherty said. "Now it's become an eyesore."
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Des Moines Register
01/14/06
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Des Moines Register
01/14/06
Ace ACT score opens doors for Ames
student's future
By BETH LOBERG
REGISTER STAFF WRITER
Emily Kawaler of Ames became part of an elite group of high school students
and instantly eligible for some of the best colleges in the country — all without a
lot of effort on her first try.
Out of about 8,000 or so Iowa high school students who took the October 2005
national administration of the ACT test, Kawaler was the only one to receive a
perfect score of 36. She was one of 39 nationwide to get a perfect score on the
exam.
Although her score demonstrated the straight-A student's academic prowess, she
admits that she is far from perfect.
"I took the SAT the week before I took the ACT. I was really procrastinating on
college stuff and I signed up late for both," Kawaler said with a laugh.
The Ames High School senior said that despite her best intentions, she really
didn't study for the test.
"I took part of the SAT test online, and I checked out a book on the ACT from the
library. I started making vocabulary cards and got through to the letter B, but
that's really all the farther I got," she said.
Kawaler said that what really prepared her for the test was her love of reading,
which she said her parents helped to instill in her at an early age.
"My parents taught me to read before I went to school," she said. "They expect a
lot of me and I know they would never be mad if didn't do well, but they would be
disappointed and that would make me disappointed."
Besides her parents' support, Kawaler said she is motivated by competition.
"I have a very competitive nature," she said. "I wanted to do better than some of
my friends."
Kawaler's mother, Leslie Kawaler, said she is proud of her daughter.
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"She's very well-rounded — socially, academically. She's studying Japanese and
went to Japan and is planning to go again," she said.
Kawaler said that her passions are beyond textbooks.
"I'm on the dance team, and I've been playing the piano since I was in
kindergarten. I'm also the co-editor of Scratch Pad, our school's literary
magazine. I've been doing that since I was a freshman," she said.
When she's not reading or dancing, Kawaler said some of her favorite things to
do are going to coffee shops and watching movies while eating ice cream with
her friends.
"All during the test, I just wanted it to get over. We were going to an apple
orchard afterwards and I just wanted to go," she said.
Kawaler said she has applied to 10 or so schools throughout the country, and
that she is certain her college experience will be positive.
"I really think that anywhere I go, I'll be happy," she said.
While she hasn't made up her mind yet, she said she will most likely major in the
area of humanities because of her love of reading and her interest in languages.
"I took Calculus II through Iowa State (University), and I guess math is just
something that I'm naturally good at, but I hate it," she said.
Although the schools to which she has applied vary in location, the one thing they
have in common is size.
"I've applied to mostly schools with less than 10,000 students," she said. "I really
don't want to go and get lost in the crowd."
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Des Moines Register
01/15/06
ISU: Arrests at football games in '05 under
200
Fans caught in Ames for intoxication were drunker than in '04, a
report shows.
By LISA LIVERMORE
REGISTER AMES BUREAU
Ames, Ia. — For the second straight year, fewer than 200 arrests were made at
Iowa State University football games, but fans arrested for drunkenness at ISU
home games in 2005 were more intoxicated than those in 2004, according to
statistics released by the ISU Department of Public Safety.
At six home games last year police issued 187 tickets — many were alcoholrelated — compared with 177 in 2004. There were 285 in 2003 and 216 in 2002.
Charges for public intoxication increased in 2005 with 36 filed, compared with 19
in 2004. The numbers were 22 in 2003 and 24 in 2002.
The increase could be attributed to the Cyclones' home game against the
University of Iowa, said Capt. Rob Bowers of ISU public safety. Otherwise, he
said the numbers are within a normal range of fluctuation.
The Cyclone-Hawkeye game drew 54,290 fans, well above the average of
46,705 who attended games at Jack Trice Stadium.
The average blood-alcohol level of those arrested at ISU football games jumped
in 2005, with a measure of 0.203, compared with 0.172 the year before.
The numbers generated concern — but not surprise — from campus workers
who fight substance abuse.
"I think it's something that happens," Sara Kellogg, a prevention program
coordinator with the Substance Abuse and Violence Prevention office, said
of game-day drinking.
"I think you have a group of people who we are more concerned about," Kellogg
said. "Primarily, those are people that are drinking so excessively they are putting
themselves and, potentially, others at risk."
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ISU public safety staff analyze the safety of home football games annually. The
report for this season was completed in late December and released recently.
Bowers said ISU public safety officials complete the report as a requirement of
their accreditation by the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement
Agencies.
ISU public safety is the only accredited university police department in the state,
he said.
The University of Iowa and University of Northern Iowa did not compile such
reports.
Other accredited schools would have similar data for football games, but ISU has
not performed a comparison because each department's practices, policies and
situations are unique, Bowers said.
For the past two football seasons, ISU public safety officials have tried to
increase what they call positive interactions with students. At home games, they
arrive early to mingle and hand out small prizes to students who are following the
rules.
Last season at games in Iowa City, 185 charges resulted — many were related
to alcohol use. Seventy-three of the charges were filed against U of I students.
Angela Reams, coordinator of the Stepping Up Project, a group at the U of I
trying to reduce high-risk alcohol use, said the school's statistics show there's an
ongoing problem with students starting to drink in the morning and continuing
through the game and sometimes after.
To respond to the problem, Stepping Up worked to close a large tailgate lot in the
fall of 2003 that often became overrun with student drinkers, she said.
The group organizes alcohol-free tailgate events that attract alumni with young
families, she said.
But she said that despite some of the reduction efforts, game-day drinking has
stayed consistent.
"Consuming large amounts of alcohol in association with football games has
become the culture," she said.
Game-day drinking
Iowa State University public safety officials issued a report detailing arrest
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activities for Cyclone home football games.
TOTAL CHARGES: A total of 187 charges were filed during 2005 home football
games, compared with 177 the year before.
AVERAGE PER GAME: On average, 31 charges were filed per game, which
included some individuals generating multiple charges.
PUBLIC INTOXICATION: Total charges filed for public intoxication increased in
2005. There were 36 filed, compared with 19 in 2004.
BLOOD-ALCOHOL LEVELS: The average blood-alcohol level of those arrested
was up in 2005. The level was 0.203, compared with 0.172 the year before.
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Des Moines Register
01/15/06
Martin Luther King Day events
AMES:
Iowa State University celebrates King's birthday with several events on campus
throughout the month. All the events are free and open to the public.
The Community Birthday Celebration will be at 7 p.m. Monday at the Boys and
Girls Club of Ames, 210 S. Fifth St. This Ames tradition celebrates King with
song, story and birthday cake. Parking is available behind 20th Century Bowling.
The Martin Luther King Jr. celebration will be at 4 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 19 in
the Sun Room at Memorial Union. Musical groups and speakers will celebrate
King's life. Members of Shy of a Dozen and the Gospel Soul Innovators will
perform. Speakers include Government of the Student Body President Angela
Groh, Black Student Alliance President Jonnell Marion, and Assistant Professor
of History Katherine Mellen Charron, who teaches African American history and
will be talking about the women who worked with King in her presentation
"Standing Behind Dr. King." President Geoffroy will present the first Dr. Martin
Luther King Jr. Advancing One Community Awards. ISU Dining Services will
provide birthday cake.
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Des Moines Register
01/15/06
Iowa mom spins 'Wheel of Fortune'
By MARY CHALLENDER
REGISTER STAFF WRITER
Until today, when "her" show airs, Heather Rowley can't tell Iowans exactly how
well she represented them on "Wheel of Fortune" or how much she won.
She can share this, however:
The wheel, the one that looks so easy to spin on TV?
It's heavy .
"If you're a small person, you have to really push the wheel pretty hard," she
said. "I didn't have enough strength to get it around more than once. You spin
your hardest and where it lands, it lands."
Just getting on the game show was a huge thrill for the 43-year-old Rowley, who
has solved the word puzzles in her living room for years. The Urbandale mother
made it through two auditions, including a Wheelmobile appearance at Merle Hay
Mall last April that drew thousands, to earn a spot.
The show was taped in August in Los Angeles. Several members of Rowley's
family, including her husband, Russ, and her two children, Josh, 10, and Lauren,
8, were in the audience.
Rowley decided early that if this was to be her 15 minutes of fame, she wanted to
use it to the fullest. When host Pat Sajak introduced her, she told the show's 19
million viewers not only about her family but also her favorite charity, Samaritan's
Purse, which collects toys and school supplies for children all over the world.
To prepare for the actual game, she practiced on a computerized version of
"Wheel of Fortune" and studied up on a couple of the categories, "On the Map"
and "Rhyming Phrases." Her strategy was to buy vowels whenever possible,
although the $250 price tag for an A, E, I, O or U went against her normally frugal
nature.
Rowley also wanted to avoid the sort of stupid mental errors that often derail
game show competitors. Win or lose, she was determined not to embarrass
herself.
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"You're not only playing the game, you're also representing yourself in front of 14
million people," she said. "You want to look sane and like a decent, normal
person."
Rowley is the second Iowan to appear on "Wheel of Fortune" this month. Last
week, Jill Lansing, an Iowa State University student from Cresco, won
$3,000 on the show.
Iowans who tune in Monday night will see some tense moments in what turned
out to be a close game, Rowley says. She remembers one roll especially. She
knew the answer to the puzzle but wanted to get her score a little higher. So she
spun again.
Lose a turn.
"I was a little disappointed, but sometimes you have to take a chance," she says.
She lost that puzzle but she won others.
"The wheel was actually pretty good to me," she said. "You can be a pretty good
player and still come out behind if the wheel doesn't spin your way."
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Des Moines Register
01/15/06
Biotech struggles in market despite its
promise in lab
Ames firm's collapse reflects troubles of an industry Iowa
counts on for jobs
By ANNE FITZGERALD
REGISTER AGRIBUSINESS WRITER
Ames, Ia. — Dan Voytas' company has died, but his dream endures.
The Iowa State University professor wanted to market a faster, more precise
way to genetically engineer crops — the holy grail of the $30 billion crop seed
industry. Biotechnology boosters predicted that it would revolutionize crop
production. Voytas created a company, Phytodyne Inc., and state and federal
government and private investors poured millions of dollars into the Ames-based
biotech startup.
But Phytodyne failed to get access to a key piece of patented technology owned
by a California company. Financing fell through, Phytodyne folded, and Voytas
returned full time to academia, taking three fellow researchers with him, including
David Wright, co-founder of the company.
Phytodyne's story is a cautionary tale for those seeking to build businesses and
create jobs based on biotechnology, an industry that Iowa and other states are
trying to tap. And it shows how hard it is to turn a university researcher's biotech
discovery into a commercially viable product.
Locked out of the marketplace, Voytas, 43, has joined with colleagues at Harvard
University Medical School and other institutions to make the genetic engineering
process developed at Phytodyne available to academic researchers around the
world for a nominal fee.
"Scientifically, we met our objective and exceeded our expectations," Voytas
said. "We and, unfortunately, our investors are not going to recoup their
investment, but people will benefit nonetheless."
Meanwhile, the California company with the patent, Sangamo BioSciences Inc.,
has sold exclusive rights to use of its technology in plants and plant cell cultures
for agricultural and industrial purposes to Dow AgroSciences in a $50 million deal
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announced in October.
Those disparate approaches represent two sides in a philosophical, legal and
economic tug-of-war that has emerged in the decade since agricultural biotech
products first hit the market. On one side are those who believe that scientific
and technological discoveries belong in the public domain so that researchers at
universities and not-for-profit organizations can make advances for the common
good. On the other side are those who believe in the right to restrict access to
new technology to the highest bidders.
Riches from research
The promise of combining Iowa's agricultural prowess with emerging biotechbased research at state universities has tantalized state leaders. Biotechnology
could help turn Iowa's 23 million acres of cheap corn and soybeans — now used
primarily for livestock feed — into a gold mine of food, fiber, fuel and
pharmaceuticals, supporters say.
The possible risks and rewards are huge. The Battelle Memorial Institute, a
Columbus, Ohio-based consultant, has recommended that Iowa spend $300
million over 10 years, mostly on the state's three public universities, to try to
attract and retain premier scientists, develop research facilities, and turn ideas
into new products and companies. Battelle predicts the investment would attract
or create 130 new bioscience businesses and 5,100 high-paying biotech jobs,
while indirectly creating another 10,950 jobs.
But nine out of 10 biotech startups fail. Voytas and Wright knew that going into
their venture. So did investors and state economic development officials.
They believed the company could be the exception. The research team consisted
of top-flight scientists, including Voytas, a molecular geneticist who had earned a
bachelor's degree in biology from Harvard and a doctorate in genetics from its
medical school.
Phytodyne sought to develop plant engineering tools with global appeal and
potentially enormous payoffs. And the company was located in the heart of the
world's most productive grain-growing region, with lower operating costs than
those found in such high-tech hubs as Boston or San Diego.
Phytodyne also had this in its favor: proximity to a major land-grant institution
whose Plant Sciences Institute had a mission closely linked to Phytodyne's —
discovering new and better ways to increase the productivity and uses of plants.
Initially, Voytas and Wright estimated that their method would shave two years off
the time it takes to develop and commercialize new crop seeds — a process that
typically takes six to eight years, with research and regulatory compliance costs
averaging $50 million per product. Eventually, they developed an even better
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approach that enabled them not only to add genes to plants, but to change the
DNA code of a plant.
State's high hopes
State officials touted Phytodyne as a poster child for the burgeoning biotech
economy. Early in 2004, Iowa Gov. Tom Vilsack announced a three-year, $5
million financial assistance package for Phytodyne, saying the company had the
potential to revolutionize agriculture.
The announcement was welcome news to Phytodyne, which was struggling to
pay its bills as it was trying to close a deal with Sangamo. The state gave
Phytodyne about $300,000 in February 2004, on top of $200,000 given in 2002.
Economic development officials saw other Iowa biotech startup companies
succeeding, and they remained confident in Phytodyne's potential.
"We had a lot of support from the state and from individual investors and from
institutions," said Wright, 40.
Voytas declined to specify how much private investment was lost. Iowa's
Department of Economic Development sent notice to Phytodyne last year that it
had to repay the nearly $500,000 because it did not fulfill its promise to create
lasting, high-wage jobs. It remains to be seen whether Iowa will recover that
money.
Biotech boosters worry that Phytodyne's failure may make investors and state
lawmakers more cautious about investing in high-tech ventures. Phytodyne was
the first company out of research conducted at Iowa State's Plant Sciences
Institute.
"The unfortunate thing was that it was the first time that Iowa got brave enough to
try something. . . . It just makes it a tougher sale," said Lisa Lorenzen, a former
research scientist at Pioneer Hi-Bred International Inc. who is industrial liaison for
ISU's vice provost for research.
She and others point to success stories, such as NewLink Genetics Corp., a sixyear-old company, based at the ISU Research Park in Ames, that is using
biotechnology to develop new cancer drugs and cancer diagnostic products.
State officials said Phytodyne's failure has not diminished Iowa's interest in
expanding its biotech base.
"The biotech industry is still booming," said Jennifer Mullin, a spokeswoman for
Vilsack.
Tina Hoffman, spokeswoman for the Department of Economic Development,
defended the state's investment in Phytodyne, calling it "a calculated risk."
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"This is a targeted industry that we have committed to," Hoffman said.
In fact, the state is pumping new money into such efforts. Iowa State, for
instance, has received $200,000 to help its research park reduce costs for
startup companies. In addition, the university has received $1.9 million from the
state to help develop faculty researchers' discoveries that have commercial
potential. There will be two rounds of awards annually at Iowa State, said Steve
Carter, president of the research park. The first round has attracted 47 faculty
proposals.
"For the first time, we've actually gotten dollars to help companies get started and
to speed up the process," Carter said.
Talks, but no deal
Phytodyne's financing, as for many biotech startups, depended in large part on
securing intellectual property. Wright had discovered retroviruses in plants while
a graduate student at Iowa State. He and Voytas, his mentor, developed a way to
use them to genetically engineer crops. After Iowa State secured patents on the
discoveries, the scientists gained exclusive access to them and set about forming
Phytodyne.
When retroviruses proved more difficult to use than they had first thought, Voytas
and Wright instead focused on an alternative. That method enabled them to
closely target where to alter a plant's genetic makeup, slice into DNA wherever
genes need to be added, deleted or changed, and repair the break after the
modification. The University of Utah held a patent on the process, and the
Iowans gained exclusive access to its use.
But they also needed access to technology owned by Sangamo, a publicly traded
biotechnology company based in Richmond, Calif. Established in 1995,
Sangamo employed fewer than 60 people, but they included renowned molecular
geneticists. Sangamo had built a formidable bank of patented zinc fingers —
DNA binding proteins used in the ISU scientists' process. The California
company also controlled zinc finger technology that could be used to target
particular genes and turn them on or off, rather than breaking DNA to alter it.
Sangamo had reduced its agricultural biotech efforts, focusing more on the
human health arena. Voytas wanted to build Sangamo's ag-related business,
with Phytodyne leading the effort. He gained the help of key investors, including
Equity Dynamics, owned by Des Moines venture capitalist John Pappajohn.
Phytodyne tried to strike a deal with Sangamo. Jon Leafstedt, then Phytodyne's
president, led negotiations for the Ames company.
Talks occurred over more than a year and took place in Iowa and California,
officials said. Sangamo's chief executive, Edward Lanphier, traveled to central
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Iowa twice for discussions, including one meeting at the governor's mansion.
But the two sides could not agree on terms of a licensing arrangement that would
have given Phytodyne access to Sangamo's patented technology. Sangamo
wanted 50 percent ownership of Phytodyne — a demand Voytas and his team
initially rejected but eventually agreed to. Getting that, Lanphier sought an even
greater interest in the company, Wright said. Lanphier was acting like a "high
stepper" — someone who raises the stakes after winning a concession, he said.
"It didn't matter what we agreed to. He just wanted more," Wright recalled.
Sangamo "wanted too much of everything — money, control, power," he said.
"There was no deal to be had."
Voytas, a scientist at heart, said the experience was a real eye-opener: "When
everyone's cards were laid on the table, you really saw greed."
An article by Christopher Thomas Scott in the August issue of Nature
Biotechnology, a scientific journal, said: "Sangamo says it must control its IP
(intellectual property) to maintain value and to ensure its survival; making the IP
freely available to academic laboratories relinquishes that control." The article
also called Sangamo's response "a familiar refrain at the interface of industry and
academia."
But Sangamo officials said the company had worked hard to make a deal with
the Iowans.
"We wanted to do the deal," Lanphier said. But Sangamo and Phytodyne couldn't
raise the $5 million to make the project go, he said.
He also said Sangamo had sought "a significant minority interest" in Phytodyne,
not majority control.
In the end, Lanphier said, it came down to money. Dow AgroSciences paid
Sangamo $7.5 million in cash up front to license its technology, and the giant
agribusiness committed an additional $42.5 million that included a $4 million
equity investment in Sangamo.
"As a business person, if I offered you $2.5 million in stock in a private company
versus $7.5 million in cash, just in the up-front deal, which would you take?"
Lanphier said. "The numbers are unambiguous."
By late 2004, Phytodyne had been dissolved, its workers laid off, its laboratories
disassembled and its investors left holding the bag.
People who had championed Phytodyne's potential were crestfallen. Those who
once had spoken with pride of Phytodyne's promise now pause and look down
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when asked about the company.
Carter, the ISU Research Park president, said Phytodyne "involved very talented
people and appeared to have tremendous potential. . . . But in this arena of
technology businesses and startups, they don't all make it. They don't all
survive."
Carter said he hoped the principal players would start another company one day.
Phytodyne's founders feel the disappointment.
"It would have been a fantastic technology if we could have gotten a deal,"
Wright said. "It would have been just a huge deal for Iowa."
The public path
Voytas had time to reflect. After Phytodyne failed, he took up exercise, hired a
personal trainer and lost 20 pounds. He also spent time pondering the science
and technology that had generated so much excitement about Phytodyne.
Voytas decided that the work would continue — not in the commercial sector, but
within the university.
In July, he returned full time to academia, hiring Wright and two other former
Phytodyne scientists to work in his laboratory at ISU's Plant Sciences Institute.
He also got a $2 million National Science Foundation grant to move Phytodyne's
work to campus.
Voytas and his team are tackling ways to advance their discoveries. In addition,
he is teaming with Keith Joung, a Harvard Medical School scientist with expertise
in zinc finger engineering, selection and design. Voytas calls Joung, who is
leading the Zinc Finger Consortium, "my academic Sangamo." The researchers
hope to develop their own zinc finger technology and to give public-sector
researchers access to Phytodyne's process for engineering plants.
The goal is to get information into the public domain, so that when Sangamo's
patent protection lapses, the technology will be widely available. The Iowa State
researchers also hope they will make discoveries that will revolutionize plant
genetics.
In November, the Plant Journal published a paper by Voytas and his nowscattered Phytodyne team in which they described the use of zinc finger
nucleases to engineer plants. For the scientific community, it was a
breakthrough. For Voytas, it showed that Phytodyne's science had worked, even
if the venture had not.
"I feel bad that despite our best efforts, we could not make this work," he said.
"The wound still is not fully healed, but this story isn't over. It's just a new chapter
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now."
Phytodyne timeline
1999: Dan Voytas and David Wright, Iowa State University scientists, begin
to study the use of plant retroviruses, discovered by Wright, as a way to
genetically alter plants faster and more precisely.
JANUARY 2000: Voytas and Wright establish Phytodyne Inc. to commercialize
their discoveries.
2002: The state awards Phytodyne $200,000. Phytodyne moves into laboratories
and offices at the ISU Research Park in Ames, with help from venture capitalist
John Pappajohn and other investors.
2003: Phytodyne develops several products, including Genome Editor, a
"molecular scissors" that works like a word processor for scientists working with
plant genetics. The company is one of two Iowa startups to make presentations
at a gathering of venture capitalists and technology companies in Chicago.
2004: State officials announce a three-year, $5 million award to Phytodyne,
which plans to create 78 jobs at an average wage of $33.17 per hour and retain
five jobs. Capital investment is expected to total $17.5 million. Gov. Tom Vilsack
proclaims that Phytodyne's work could revolutionize the state's agricultural
economy. State fiscal shortfalls and partisan battles threaten the Iowa Values
Fund. Phytodyne receives $500,000 in state funding, but collapses after failing to
win access to key technology from a California company.
State agency sues after loans aren't repaid
When Phytodyne Inc. closed shop at the end of 2004, the state was among the
investors that lost.
Last fall, Michael Fastenau , business services manager at the Iowa Department
of Economic Development, wrote a letter to Dan Voytas, co-founder of the
company, demanding repayment of $480,666 — the remaining principal owed on
three loans given by the agency to Phytodyne.
Now-defunct Phytodyne was in default, the Sept. 26 letter said, and the state
wanted "immediate repayment of the outstanding balances owed since no cure is
possible or feasible."
Short of that, IDED would "have no alternative but to turn these loans over to a
collection agency to pursue."
Voytas responded in an Oct. 11 letter to Fastenau, saying that the First American
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Bank in Ames had repossessed the company's assets, and that there was no
money left over to repay both unsecured and secured creditors, including IDED.
"Phytodyne failed despite the best efforts of the Board of Directors to identify a
path forward for the company. The Board and I sincerely regret that we were not
able to settle our debts or recover any capital for our creditors and investors,"
Voytas wrote.
On Dec. 23, IDED filed a lawsuit against Phytodyne in Polk County District Court,
seeking a judgment against the company.
"I think the message here is . . . we do have a contract that does have teeth, and
we do try to get collateral, and we do try and collect," said Mary Lawyer, director
of the Department of Economic Development.
"We have been as aggressive here as we could be," she added.
—Anne Fitzgerald
The Promise
State leaders see promise in combining Iowa's agricultural bounty and emerging
biotech research at universities. Supporters say New scientific techniques could
create more drought-resistant crops, better-tasting soy foods and corn with
cancer-fighting compounds.
The proposals
1. Consultants recommended that Iowa spend $300 million over 10 years to
attract scientists, develop research facilities and turn ideas into products and
companies.
2. The state has awarded millions via the Grow Iowa Values Fund.
3. Iowa State University was awarded $1.9 million for grants for discoveries that
have commercial potential.
The Results
SUCCESS: Many count NewLink Genetics in Ames, which is developing cancer
drugs, as a success.
FAILURES: Nine out of 10 biotech startups fail. Industry supporters fear that
stories like that of Phytodyne — a company that sought to develop technology to
speed creation of new plant species — may make investors and state lawmakers
more cautious.
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Biotech Q and A
Q. Where does Iowa go from here? What does the state need to do to build
its bioeconomy?
A. "We have our Biosciences Alliance. We have developed a road map, with the
Battelle Institute. . . . One thing that's key is the public sector, the private sector
and the universities working together to commercialize all of the great research
that goes on here."
— Mary Lawyer, director of the Iowa Department of Economic Development
A."We learn from every one of these experiences. Each of these companies is an
individual entity that faces a unique set of challenges, and they are working
within a unique environment, so there is an extraordinarily complex set of
interactions. . . . (We must try) to understand that which may be manageable,
that which may have been managed in a different way and that which is not
within your ability to manage. Those are not always terribly clear, but you have to
begin thinking them through."
— Steve Carter, president of the Iowa State University Research Park
A."There are two obstacles. One is public perception of genetic engineering. The
second is industry controlling the technology. . . . By and large, it's a problem of
scientists — we don't go out and tell people what we do. Until we do this, really
only the negative gets attention. . . . I think there are areas where we (in Iowa)
are very front-running, such as vaccine production or biorenewables. We need to
have a permissive atmosphere to encourage innovation, but under law, under
regulation."
— Kan Wang, associate professor of plant molecular biology at ISU
A."Iowa should be at the forefront in areas like biorefineries. . . . And it's not just
about ethanol. Anything you can do with petroleum, we can do with corn and
soybeans. . . . We think the key to this is industry-university partnerships in the
development phase. If we have that all figured out, there will be enough venture
capital. I know there is. The more you iron out the risk wrinkles, the more
valuable the invention is."
— Ted Crosbie, vice president of global plant breeding for Monsanto Co. and
Iowa's chief technology officer
"As a researcher, it's much easier for me to get funding for research than it is for
any teacher to get the funds they need to upgrade their skills. That's not the way
we're going to build the talents of our young people in the biosciences arena.
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Teachers in our state should not have to pay from their own funds to take a
graduate course in their area. . . . We have got to get beyond salaries."
— Walter Fehr, professor of agronomy and director of the Office of
Biotechnology at ISU
DOUG WELLS/THE REGISTER
Public purpose: Iowa State University scientists Dan Voytas, left, and David
Wright discovered a more precise way to genetically engineer plants, but their
efforts to commercialize the idea fizzled. Now they're continuing their work at
ISU's Plant Sciences Institute.
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Des Moines Register
01/15/06
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Des Moines Register
01/15/06
Grassroots
Tap new markets
A program for new or existing farm businesses and people who are interested in
raising specialty livestock, vegetables, herbs, flowers, prairie or native grass
seed or creating a value-added product on the farm will begin SaturdayJan. 21 in
the Gerdin Business Building on the Iowa State University campus in
Ames.
“Grow Your Small Market Farm” has three phases and costs $425 for a farm
business plan. The first phase will be taught 9 a.m.-noon on Saturdays through
April 15.
The second phase involves one-on-one site visits to each farm between May and
October. In the fall, participants share their experiences and plans. There also
will be a statewide networking event.
The program is intended to help write a business plan, develop financial planning
skills and learn about specialty food marketing, said Penny Brown Huber,
program administrator and 2005 Iowa Small Business Development Center’s
Deb Dalziel Woman Entrepreneur of the Year.
For details, go to www.iowasbdc.org/workshops/dsm/smmarkfarm.cfm. To
register, call (515) 232-1344 or e-mail BrownPennyL@aol.com.
More information for women
Participants in “Annie’s Project — Women Managing Farm Information” are
asked to pre-register by TuesdayJan17 for an educational program at the West
Des Moines Des Moines Area Community College campus.
Beginning Monday, Jan. 23, 3-hour sessions will be conducted for six weeks by
Des Moines Area Community College and Iowa State University Extension
instructors in a computer lab setting. Farm management and family financial
resource information topics related to women and money, goal setting, business
plans, financial record keeping, cash and crop-share leases, retirement and
estate planning, crop marketing and financial risk management strategies will be
taught.
Computer topics include Internet basics, file management and the use of Excel
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spreadsheets and are designed at an introductory level. Registration costs $50.
The value of the training and material, software and access to an online course is
estimated to be more than $300 a participant. For more information, Call (515)
993-4281, (800) 342-0033 or (515) 964-6800.
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Des Moines Register
01/15/06
Cable viewers: Switch to a la carte
But companies cite obstacles in delivering choices
By FRANK VINLUAN
REGISTER BUSINESS WRITER
With a television diet consisting of sports and occasional comedies, Adam Steen
says he thinks cable television heaps too much on his plate.
Steen watches about a dozen of the 78 channels in his Mediacom package. As
cable television rates rise - Mediacom's latest increase starts today - he wonders
if he and his roommate can save by paying for only what they watch.
"I haven't had any problems with Mediacom, but if I could have choice to pick
channels or pick packages, I'd definitely be in favor of that," said Steen, 25, of
West Des Moines.
The option is called a la carte television. Just like restaurant patrons can choose
and pay for individual menu options, viewers in theory would be able to pick and
pay for only the channels they want. The cable industry has resisted a la carte,
arguing that choosing individual channels rather than receiving a bulk package
actually would cost consumers more money.
That debate resurfaced after recent comments from Federal Communications
Chairman Kevin Martin. He suggested a la carte could offer parents more "familyfriendly choices."
But achieving a la carte won't be easy. Pay television is a complex business of
negotiated contracts between the companies that produce content and the cable
and satellite operators that deliver it, said Jeff Blevins, professor of electronic
media studies at Iowa State University.
Barring a change in federal laws, a la carte likely won't become a consumer
option any time soon, Blevins said.
Consumer groups have long embraced a la carte, saying it would give
subscribers more choices and more control on their bills. People have choices in
nearly every other aspect of the consumer marketplace, said Jeannine Kenney, a
policy analyst for Consumers Union.
"It would be ludicrous and consumers would not accept a requirement that if you
wanted Time magazine, you had to buy it in a bundle of 12 other publications you
do not have any interest in and may never even open," she said.
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FCC Chairman Martin broached a la carte in November in the context of
discussing television indecency. Martin suggested to a congressional committee
several ways cable operators could restructure their offerings.
An example is allowing customers to "opt out" of channels they don't want and
getting their package price reduced accordingly. Martin also suggested a fixed
price menu of channels: 20 channels for $30, for example. The option embraced
by cable companies was Martin's suggestion of new "family tiers" of programs.
Two of the nation's largest cable companies, Comcast and Time Warner,
announced last month that they would soon launch family tiers - packages of
channels carrying inoffensive content. Consumers could order that tier on top of
a basic package of about 25 channels.
Technologically possible
Charles King, a senior vice president for Mediacom, said the company supports
tiered options and would welcome additional tiers besides family programming. A
la carte is technologically possible, King said. Digital cable systems now allow
the operators to remove individual channels for a customer.
The obstacle to a la carte is a business one, King said. Mediacom's contracts
with programming companies require many channels to be carried together. King
said his company is still exploring whether those business agreements would
allow tiers.
The channels that Mediacom or any other video service provider carries are set
by these contracts, said Mike Paxton, a cable industry analyst for Scottsdale,
Ariz. research firm In-Stat/MDR. Cable and satellite companies negotiate with the
various programming companies such as Viacom and ESPN. The contracts are
confidential and vary from one cable operator to another.
But in each instance, a company that owns programming is trying to get as
much of its content to as many viewers as possible, Paxton said.
"So many cable channels are bundled together, whether it's from Fox or Time
Warner, or Viacom, you often have six, seven, sometimes eight or nine channels
bundled together under one programming deal," Paxton said.
Programming companies such as ESPN have grown from a single network into
many different channels, said Iowa State's Blevins. Under an a la carte system, it
would be harder to sell that programming on a larger scale, he said. The potential
for losing audience means that programming companies also could lose money
under an a la carte scenario.
These circumstances mean a rural independent Iowa telephone company that
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offers cable television to a market of fewer than 2,000 people faces the same
pressure to add channels as a large satellite company serving millions.
"We're handcuffed," said Dave Duncan of the Iowa Telecommunications
Association. "Our guys are receiving these video streams that are part of a
contract that requires them to carry all this other stuff."
Kenney, of the Consumers Union, said family tiers are a good start to an a la
carte system. But the problem the group sees with tiers is that cable companies,
not consumers, select what goes in the tier. Tiers also fall short of true a la carte
system. Kenney points to Canada as a potential model for the United States.
Canadians can pick and choose individual channels. But they first must buy a
basic package of 20 to 30 channels, said Peter Grant, a Toronto lawyer who
specializes in communications law. After buying the basic package, customers
can choose additional channels individually. Few do.
"Although they could pick one channel for $1.95, rather they'll go for six or eight
channels for $5," Grant said. "There's a huge price advantage when you get
them in packages."
Canadian model
The packages Canadians can choose from are similar to the tiers proposed by
American cable companies. One tier features movies. Another features sports.
But Grant said the Canadian model might be an inappropriate comparison for
the American a la carte debate because of the degree of regulation. Canada's
regulators require all programmers to be licensed. All major satellite and cable
providers must carry that service.
That means a network carried in Toronto also can be seen in Winnipeg. Besides
local channels, viewing options are consistent throughout Canada. That contrasts
with the United States, where the channels offered depend largely on the
contracts negotiated by each cable operator.
The U.S. cable industry has opposed a la carte, in part fearing additional
regulation. The National Cable Television Association also said a la carte could
be more expensive.
An individual channel could cost $4 to $6, analyst Derek Baine of Kagan
Research said in a research note. Also, implementing a la carte would require
additional staff to take calls and fulfill individual requests. Those expenses don't
represent programming costs, but they still would be passed on to customers.
Mediacom's King said he understands consumer interest in a la carte. But he
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said customers overestimate the savings.
When King started in the cable industry in New York years ago, his company ran
tests to see if they could charge by the minute. The thinking was customers who
don't watch much television could save by paying for only what they watch.
One customer's monthly bill topped $300. King warned that customers also
could run up charges by paying for individual channels in an a la carte system.
"It's such a great concept," King said. "But the (current) financial model is difficult
to understand and communicate to the public. And it's hard to change."
More than anything else, the entrenchment of negotiated contracts makes a la
carte an unlikely option, said Blevins, the ISU professor.
"I think the family-tier compromise is going to solve this politically and it will go
away," Blevins said.
Analysts note that cable television subscribers now enjoy choice in the form of
video-on-demand options and digital video recorders. But consumer support for a
la carte persists. Des Moines resident Warren Riedesel said he'd support a la
carte cable even if it costs as much or more than what he pays now.
"Give the consumer a choice," he said. "Let me be in control, let me choose
what I need or want and I'll feel I got a better value."
Duncan, of the Iowa Telecommunications Association, said he wonders if
industry advances will outpace federal regulators' ability to react to them.
"Whether it's cable TV or Internet TV or TV over your cell phone, it's bound to
come and customers are demanding it," he said. "This is just another area where
the laws have to change to what the marketplace is doing."
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Des Moines Register
01/16/06
ISU may be leader in dining decision
The school is weighing bids to control its food-service
operation.
By LISA LIVERMORE
REGISTER AMES BUREAU
Ames, Ia. - Lately, the clash over who will control Iowa State University's food
operations has spilled on to Deb Duncan's kitchen table.
Letters, financial information and documents about the three companies that
have applied to run the ISU food-service operation cover almost every inch of the
finished oak table surface.
The stacks of paper reflect Duncan's determination and the super-size nature of
a showdown that is being watched on campuses across the Midwest, she said.
"My mother told me, 'If you're telling the truth, fight to the bitter end,' " said
Duncan, a union leader on leave from her usual job as a university custodian.
The truth, she insists, is that privatized food operations at ISU will diminish the
quality of food and service on campus and result in a reduction of wages and
benefits for employees.
ISU administrators view the situation differently. They are following the orders of
the Board of Regents, which asked them to consider outsourcing in March after
noting that ISU was losing money from parts of its food service.
ISU administrators have defended private companies vying for the contract,
saying that they consider existing staff and student employees important parts of
the dining operation. Company officials also said they would value what ISU
already has.
"There's this perception that food service contract companies are a three-headed
monster," said Doug Collins, a regional sales director at Chartwells, one of the
companies that applied to be hired by ISU. "They're not. Under no circumstances
do we plan on eliminating positions. . . . We absolutely cannot do away with
union or the individuals."
An ISU committee reviewing bids from the three companies is expected to make
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a decision by mid-February and forward it to two ISU vice presidents,
Proponents of outsourcing see privatizing food operations as a way of containing
costs. Middle-class parents who don't qualify for financial aid, but still can't afford
higher education for their children, could benefit, said James Boyle, president of
College Parents of America, an organization based in Arlington, Va., with more
than 72,000 members, including 380 in Iowa. "Efficiency and cost savings are the
biggest benefits," he said.
The trend of outsourcing university services began about 20 years ago, said Jeff
Pittman , the vice president for student services at Regent University in Virginia
Beach, Va.
It has continued today, with about 71 percent of campuses in the United States
outsourcing food services, said Pittman, who conducted his doctoral research on
privatization.
It's difficult to compare food prices at schools that hire an outside company with
those at schools that don't, as food and labor costs vary from city to city, he said.
The real savings to taxpayers comes in when outside companies volunteer to
pour money into improving facilities, he said.
"Somebody's got to pay the bills. Either the private company comes and pays for
it . . . or the university has to get money from someplace,'' Pittman said.
In Ames, all three companies bidding on the dining service, including ISU Dining ,
have outlined plans for renovations to dining facilities. One company also offered
a $500,000 unrestricted gift to ISU upon the signing of a contract.
Duncan, a Boone resident and president of the 177-member American
Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Local 870, points to
testimony from other universities that recently hired private companies to run
food services. Employees on these campuses complain about stagnating wages
and increased workloads.
Duncan also cites examples of recent outsourcing at ISU that have resulted in
problems for the university. At Jack Trice Stadium in 2005, sausages, popcorn,
pretzels, soda and bottled water were more expensive under the management of
Centerplate than under the management of Sodexho in 2004, she said.
Also, Centerplate ran out of several concession items at halftime of a Nov. 12
football game, she said. "It was a miscalculation, pure and simple," said Larry
Quant , senior associate athletic director for administration at ISU. "I don't
think what happens at a football stadium six times a year translates to providing
meals three times a day nine months out of the year."
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Do your own digging
BIDS: ISU received proposals, which are available for review, from ISU Dining,
which currently manages food services,
ARAMARK Campus Services, Oakbrook Terrace, Ill.; the Chartwells Division of
Compass Group USA Inc., Charlotte, N.C.; and Sodexho Operations, LLC,
Williamsburg, Va. To review the proposals, contact Cory Harms, assistant
director of purchasing, at (515) 294-2591.
UNION RESEARCH: Contact union leader Deb Duncan to see some of her
research at (800) 567-9806.
STUDENTS: ISU sophomore Rosa Avelar , a dining employee, said she and
other students are trying to schedule a meeting with Board of Regents members.
"We're trying to figure out who started this whole thing," said Avelar, who wrote a
letter to the ISU administration earlier this year which she said had 500 student
signatures opposing the privatization.
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Des Moines Register
01/17/06
Metal thieves strike gold at construction
sites
By TOM ALEX
REGISTER STAFF WRITER
Des Moines-area police say rising metal prices have drawn thieves to
construction sites, where they often find a mother lode of unattended wiring,
plumbing and copper tubing.
Detectives call them "urban miners" and describe the thieves as fearless,
cunning and keenly aware of how much scrap dealers will pay. They can cause
thousands of dollars worth of damage and loss in a single theft.
Metal fences have been hacked down at a Des Moines ballpark. Aluminum
grates disappeared from an east-side plant. Rolls of copper wire were swiped
from a telephone company's storage building.
"It's been terrible," said Pleasant Hill detective Sgt. John Britt. "They go into these
places and just make a mess."
Alan Russell, an Iowa State University engineering professor, said copper
prices, driven by economic growth in China and India, recently reached an alltime high of $2.30 per pound on the London market, driving scrap copper in Iowa
as high as $1.45 a pound.
"It's really quite startling. A graph of it looks sort of like the Alps," he said.
"Major commodity metals are being consumed, and . . . there's just not enough to
meet demands," Russell explained. "Copper demand in China has gone up 18
percent each year for the last two years. Four percent would be considered a lot."
Russell said it takes three years or more to ramp up production in new or
mothballed copper mines, which gives scrap copper added value.
Kirk Sherwood of A&F Scrap & Steel in Mount Pleasant said the amount paid for
No. 1 scrap copper — copper free of plastic, rubber, brass and other pieces —
was just 85 cents a pound in the fall of 2004.
"We've been busy," he said. "The market is steady right now."
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So are the thefts:
• Urban miners went after aluminum grates at the sewage treatment plant in the
3000 block of Vandalia Road in Des Moines.
"It was 500 pounds of high-grade, industrial-strength aluminum grating," said Bill
Stowe, Des Moines' public works director. "It has to be strong so you can drive a
forklift over it. They took a whole pallet of it. It's unfortunate because it had a lot
more value to us — it's worth about $10,000 - than to whoever took it. They
would get just a fraction of that for it."
• Qwest Communications officials reported 15 rolls of cable taken from a storage
area in the 100 block of College Avenue two weeks ago. The copper was valued
at about $2,400.
• "We had brackets associated with bridge construction stolen from the Keo Way
interchange," said Bill Lusher, field services coordinator for the Interstate
Highway 235 project. "I'm sure they would have been sold as scrap. What else
could they do with them? I doubt very much they took them so they could build
another bridge."
• Ron Tesdell, owner of Tesdell Electric in Ankeny, said metal thieves "will cause
up to $5,000 in damage to a house under construction to get $10 to $100 worth
of scrap metal."
"It's crazy," he said. "We've had about 60 minor cases where they cause about
$300 to $600 damage and four major cases where they strip the whole house."
Police said easily identifiable pieces of metal stolen in a given area likely would
be taken to a different market because thieves know detectives are on the
lookout for them.
The problem is far from local.
• In Tucson, Ariz., where methamphetamine users have been blamed for
hundreds of recent scrap metal thefts, city officials will consider a new law that
requires dealers to ask for identification and file a report on each transaction. The
regulations mirror those imposed on pawn shops.
• Thieves in western Oregon have targeted large aluminum highway signs,
guardrails, and farmers' irrigation lines.
• Two men in Philadelphia allegedly took more than $100,000 worth of metal from
a major scrap dealer.
Sherwood, of A&F Scrap & Steel, said he ships the metals he buys to mills in
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Wilton; Peoria, Ill.; and elsewhere.
"The mill might melt it down if it's No. 2 steel, or shred it if it's one of the other
metals. Then it's shipped out to whoever wants to use it," he said.
"They may use it in highway construction or send it to a foundry out east. Steel,
tin, copper, aluminum, brass — there's all sorts of things they might use it for.
Some of the steel might go to China and come back as good steel."
Des Moines Police Sgt. Todd Dykstra said it's difficult to blame scrap dealers.
"There's a lot of legitimate people bringing scrap to metal scrap dealers. I'm not
sure how they would know if it was stolen or not, unless it was a brand-new spool
of wire and it said 'Qwest' on it," he said. "And in that case, I would hope they
would give police a call."
He said the outer coating on copper wire often is burned off to make it cleaner
and more valuable — and impossible to trace.
"It's often difficult to know if a lot of this scrap is stolen," he said. "There's no
reason to believe these dealers are dishonest."
Detective Ron Foster said scrap dealers are usually cooperative when police
show up and often help track down thieves who bring it in.
"We may call them and say we've had a shipment of stepladders stolen," Foster
said. "They're generally real good about stalling" anyone trying to sell such goods
and calling police.
When a Pleasant Hill police officer drove by a fourplex under construction on
Sweetgrass Lane about 1:25 a.m. Jan. 10, everything seemed in order. Another
officer drove past about 15 minutes later and noticed a Ford Bronco parked
outside.
Police found Phillip Brett McGruder, 31, of Des Moines hiding in a trash container
and charged him with burglary. They said that he had caused about $6,000 in
damage and that electrical wire was piled up inside, ready to be carted away.
Investigators also found two-way radios, but no accomplice.
Police said someone ripped out much of the wiring within the last week from a
house under construction at 5900 S.E. 34th St.
Mark Gass, an electrician for Tesdell, said he'd just finished the Sweetgrass job
two days before it was hit.
"It had just passed inspection," he said.
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He started over last week. He said the wiring that was ripped out could not be
used again.
"People stop by almost every day asking if they can have our scrap," he said.
"That used to be pretty unusual. But not anymore."
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Des Moines Register
01/18/06
Stricter pollution limits for Iowa waters OK'd
DNR would gain influence on livestock sites
By PERRY BEEMAN
REGISTER STAFF WRITER
Iowa's rivers would be in better shape for fishing, boating and swimming if new
rules approved Tuesday by state environmental commissioners survive expected
challenges in the Iowa Legislature.
The governor-appointed Iowa Environmental Protection Commission voted 7-1 to
approve new limits on bacteria, ammonia and other pollutants in streams, which
previously weren't fully protected, as required by the 1972 federal Clean Water
Act.
Farmers, environmentalists and lawyers filled the panel's Urbandale meeting hall
for what many saw as one of the most significant water-quality votes of the past
decade. The rules would affect virtually all Iowans in some way - improving water
recreation while potentially boosting residents' sewer bills as much as $35 to $40
a month in some towns.
The new river rules could cost 334 cities close to $1 billion over the next decade
or two for new or improved sewage treatment plants.
"We all want clean water," said Christina Gruenhagen of the Iowa Farm Bureau
Federation. "Farmers want clean water. The question is: What are Iowans willing
to pay for it?"
Gruenhagen said the protections go too far, protecting some streams for
activities that aren't likely to occur on them.
Deborah Neustadt, an ecology teacher at East High School in Des Moines who
spoke in support of the rules, displayed an aquarium with guppies in an effort to
demonstrate the importance of clean water.
"We need to restore Iowa's water," Neustadt said. "I believe when you have clean
water, you have a functioning ecosystem."
Jeff Vonk, director of the Iowa Department of Natural Resources, said he
expected the rules to be delayed by state lawmakers, who will review them and
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may seek alternatives.
Water quality is a huge issue in Iowa. Runoff of silt, fertilizer and manure is the
state's top water pollution problem. Iowa is the nation's top producer of corn and
hogs, and pollution rules stand to affect agribusiness industries that are
economically important to the state.
Iowa State University studies have shown that Iowa has some of the most
nitrogen- and phosphorus-rich waterways in the world. Those elements occur
naturally, but also come from sewage, manure runoff and fertilizers. Bacteria in
the water also prompt dozens of health advisories at Iowa beaches each
summer. More than 200 of Iowa's lakes and river stretches are on a federal list of
seriously polluted streams, and thousands of Iowans have attended meetings in
the past decade to demand that the state do something.
Wayne Gieselman, Iowa's environmental protection chief, said the new limits
cannot be enforced on farms. "However, if we are ever to expect action out of
agriculture, we need these standards so people know what we expect," he said
of the new pollution limits.
Gieselman said he expected widespread support of a second rule that won
tentative approval Tuesday - one that would give Vonk's department a broader
range of environmental factors to consider when deciding whether to allow new
livestock feedlots and confinements. That rule won't face a final vote until spring,
following a series of public hearings.
Viola Faust of Dexter hopes Vonk gets that power. She raises hogs and cattle in
a family operation. She's sick of the occasional fish kills caused by livestock
manure runoff.
"That's what happens with all this terrible, terrible manure that goes on all this
land," said Faust, acknowledging that the manure from her operation also is
spread on crop acres. "We cannot afford to let this drag out. We need this rule
now."
Des Moines lawyer Michael Blaser countered that the state's move to further limit
livestock operations' locations is vague and in the domain of state lawmakers, not
the resources department.
"This should be decided by the elected members of the Iowa Legislature. It
should not be a policy set by political appointees. This rule presents no
ascertainable standard. It is unintelligible," he said.
Vonk called the rules vital to Iowa's fight to clean up waterways.
"There are a couple of things on this agenda that are absolutely critical to the
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future of environmental protection in the state of Iowa," he told commissioners.
"Are we going to start a process that assumes the highest protection for waters,
or are we going to assume degraded waters?
"We should start with the assumption that waters should be held to the highest
standard. We can't keep doing what we have been doing and expect positive
change. There will be an economic impact, but the scare tactics are overstating
it."
Commissioner Henry Marquard of Muscatine said the rules would have minimal
effect on Iowa's water quality but cost $1 billion or more. Small towns would be
hurt the most, he said.
"We're telling people you're going to have to pay for it with higher rates, with
higher taxes," Marquard said.
Commissioner Jerry Peckumn of Jefferson said the new rules are needed now.
"If we put this off for 20 years, our grandchildren won't enjoy the benefits," he
said.
Register Staff Writer Lynn Campbell contributed to this article.
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Des Moines Register
01/18/01
Ames keg registration plan nears passage
Action by supervisors is set for Thursday in Ames in an attempt
to help curb underage drinking.
By ERIC LUND
REGISTER CORRESPONDENT
Ames, Ia. — A keg registration ordinance designed to combat underage drinking
is on the verge of being passed in Story County.
The countywide ordinance would be the sixth of its kind in Iowa and would
require vendors to keep logs containing the names and addresses of keg
purchasers. The ordinance is designed to allow adults to be prosecuted if
underage drinkers are later found in possession of the kegs.
The final consideration of the ordinance by the Story County Board of
Supervisors will take place on Thursday. If passed, it will take effect 60 days
later. The previous reading of the ordinance passed unanimously.
Drew Larson, a member of Iowa State's Government of the Student Body,
said some students think the ordinance will be ineffective at reducing underage
drinking and will lead to an increase in parties serving "jungle juice," a variable
alcohol content mixture of Kool-Aid and hard liquor, because only keg beer is
covered by the ordinance.
Buyer privacy is also at stake, said Greg Bonett, president of the Iowa State
student chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union.
"Isn't this between me and the business owner?" he said.
Story County Board of Supervisors member Jane Halliburton said similar keg
laws have proven effective in a number of other states.
Five other counties in Iowa — Hancock, Keokuk, Kossuth, Mahaska and
Pottawattamie — have keg ordinances. Boone County is considering one.
A former Keokuk county supervisor, Mary Krier, said the Keokuk County
ordinance has reduced underage drinking. In the year since the ordinance went
in to effect, there has been a decrease in keg sales, with a rise in sales of bottled
beer, she said.
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She said the motivation for new rules was the high rate of alcohol-related traffic
fatalities among young people. Also, some high school students who were
caught with kegs refused to reveal their adult sources to police, she said.
In the past, supporters have unsuccessfully lobbied the Iowa Legislature to pass
a statewide law. In 2004, groups of high school students from Des Moines,
Mason City, Lamoni, Underwood and other communities lobbied the Legislature
for legislation to register kegs.
The bill was approved in a House committee but failed to go any further. A similar
bill died in committee last year.
Halliburton said it is unlikely a statewide keg registration law could succeed this
legislative session, as the Legislature has other priority issues.
Rich Parizek, manager of the Keg Shop in Ames, said he expects the ordinance
to reduce keg sales.
Currently, the store records the addresses of first-time buyers, Parizek said.
Under the proposed ordinance, stores will be required to obtain personal
information with each purchase.
"On weekend nights when we're busy and everyone's in line to buy a keg, it's
going to definitely slow things down," Parizek said.
Story County's proposed ordinance
MEETING: The final reading of the ordinance is scheduled for 7 p.m. Thursday at
Ames City Hall, 515 Clark Ave.
PROPOSED RULES FOR KEG BUYERS: Buyers are required to provide a
government-issued photo ID with name, address and identification number.
Buyers are also required to return their kegs within 60 days with the sticker
attached, or forfeit their deposits.
RULES FOR SELLERS: Sellers are required to keep buyer and keg
identification information in a log for six months. They also must attach a sticker
containing a keg identification number and a warning that it is illegal to remove or
alter the sticker to each keg. Sellers must collect a deposit from buyers and
provide logged information to police on request.
HOW BIG: The ordinance applies to containers holding two or more gallons, but
not to sales to liquor license holders.
PENALTIES: Violating any of the requirements can result in 30 days in jail and a
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$500 fine.
POLICE: Under the ordinance, police would not be allowed to view buyer logs
until 12 hours after the sale.
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Des Moines Register
01/18/06
Energy scientists turn bean counters
Soybean genome to be unlocked to help with biodiesel, crop
yields.
By PHILIP BRASHER
REGISTER WASHINGTON BUREAU
Washington, D.C. — Scientists at the U.S. Energy Department announced plans
Tuesday to decode the soybean genome, an $11 million project that will make it
easier to develop varieties of the crop for food and fuel.
Identifying the plant's genes will make it easier for plant breeders to alter the
plant's traits.
By knowing which genes control what traits, scientists could change the type and
quantity of oil provided by the crop. It also could lead to developing soybean
plants that are more resistant to drought or disease.
The gene mapping will "accelerate improvements in the crop in a similar way that
the human genome project has accelerated medicine," said Eddy Rubin, director
of the department's Joint Genome Institute at Walnut Creek, Calif.
Soybeans are of special interest to the Energy Department because they are the
main feedstock for biodiesel, a fuel additive. They also are one of the mostimportant agricultural commodities in the United States, with an annual value
exceeding $17 billion.
The soybean genome has about 1.1 billion base pairs, about half the size of the
human or corn versions.
"I can't even begin to explain how important this genomics information really is
for future scientific work that goes on in this area," said Stephen Howell, director
of Iowa State University's Plant Sciences Institute.
The Energy Department lab already is mapping the genetic makeup of corn,
sorghum and various types of bacteria that could be used in energy or cleaning
up pollution.
The project is expected to last two to three years. The new data will be posted on
the Internet as it is developed.
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"We're providing a roadway that anybody can travel over," Rubin said.
The genetic map will be useful for both conventional and biotech breeding
methods, said Ed Ready, production program manager with the United Soybean
Board, a research and promotional group.
Biotech companies and university scientists have been working to produce
varieties that produce more healthful cooking oil. They also are pursuing varieties
that are more resistant to a type of fungus known as Asian soybean rust.
The Energy Department project would cover the entire genome for the first time,
Howell said.
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Farm News
01/13/06
Johnson: Look for basis opportunities this
spring
By RANDY MUDGETT- Managing Editor
PERRY — Marketing experts agree producers should market their 2005 crop and
begin looking at pricing their 2006 crop.
‘‘We need to put the 2005 crop in the rear view mirror,’’ said Steven Johnson,
an Iowa State University Extension farm management specialist, while
speaking to a group of farmers at a Farm Credit Services of America crop
meeting in Perry Jan. 6. ‘‘Producers need to look for basis opportunities and sell
your corn over a series of spring sales between March and June.’’
Typically, according to Johnson and ISU’s Bob Wisner, around 42 percent of all
corn is marketed between harvest and the end of the year while around 46
percent of soybeans are sold during that period. The month of January is
normally the highest movement of corn to market next to October. A recent rally
in soybean prices caused many farmers to move their soybeans to market.
Johnson said the upcoming USDA supply and demand report will likely increase
the number of bushels harvested in 2005 trending to push corn prices downward,
and because exports are remaining flat, producers should look into pricing
opportunities now ahead of the report. ‘‘This is the largest carryout we have
experienced in corn since the 1988-89 season. We need to lose 1 billion bushels
of corn and get back to a lower carryout for prices to improve.’’
Johnson said a wide basis in the fall has not improved much since the supply of
corn remains so high. Coupled with nearly 17 percent of all of Iowa corn on the
ground at local elevators, producers can expect basis margins to remain wide
until corn moves from the elevator sites.
‘‘There is a lot of corn out there that has not been sold as we figure that 84
percent of all producers took
the loan deficiency payment on corn in the fall,’’ Johnson said. ‘‘That is a lot of
corn that has not likely been sold. I recommend putting the 2005 crop behind you
and focus on the 2006 crop.’’
Looking forward, several factors are impacting how farmers will do business in
2006. Farmers will have to become more efficient with high energy prices and
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low corn prices expected again this year. The added uncertainty of new farm
policy affecting the producer’s bottomline also weighs heavy on the market. ‘‘You
will have to become more efficient as we figure that fuel and fertilizer costs
amount to more than one-half of the expenses farmers must endure now,’’
Johnson said. ‘‘Developing an ’06 marketing plan that includes crop insurance
and pre-harvest sales strategies is crucial to a profitable season.’’
Erick Schminke, an insurance specialist with Farm Credit Services of America,
said with increases in energy costs it becomes more and more important for
producers to analyze their crop insurance plans for 2006.
‘‘Without crop insurance you could raise 195 bushels of corn, sell it for $2.10 a
bushel and still only break even,’’ Schminke said. ‘‘Crop insurance has gone
down this year, and we are confident that given a directed plan, we can
guarantee you make much more money with a risk-minded crop insurance plan.’’
Johnson said the best producers understand the importance of marketing and
crop insurance, even in high yielding years. ‘‘I highly recommend developing a
marketing plan that includes crop insurance as a tool for producers. There is a
high probability that cash corn prices will be about the same again this year, so
farmers need to take advantage of all the tools out there.’’
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Farm News
01/13/06
Odds improve for ‘06 drought
By RANDY MUDGETT- Managing Editor
AMES — Farmers must always manage their risk, and according to Elwynn
Taylor, Iowa State University Extension climatologist, risk should be
examined carefully in 2006 when it comes to preparing for weather possibilities.
‘‘Temperature affects yield more than anything else,’’ Taylor told a group of
farmers at a Crop Advantage series meeting in Ames Monday. ‘‘There is a 70
percent chance that Iowa will experience below trend line yields in 2006 so we
Taylor said the chances of a major drought occurring in Iowa this year have
doubled recently, mainly due to the fact that certain weather patterns are
beginning to line up in the Pacific Ocean. The Pacific Decadal Oscillation pattern
remains in a high risk mode meaning a shift back to hot, dry conditions may
occur.
‘‘We are entering a period when a La Nina event is taking shape, and it will likely
form soon,’’ Taylor said. ‘‘Springweather tends to be dry in a La Nina year and
summertime temperatures also are more extreme than usual across the Corn
Belt.’’
Taylor said he is so certain hotter conditions will exist this summer that he
lowered his expectations for the 2006 corn and soybeans crops. ‘‘Look for corn to
trend below normal yields to 143 bushel average across the Corn Belt and
soybeans will be lower as well, coming in at 42 bushel nationwide average.’’
Currently, Iowa producers are not facing major moisture problems as most of the
state is around 8 inches of moisture in the profile. That would be enough to get
the crops started this year, but a dry spring and potential of a hot, dry summer
would be a big swing from the past two growing seasons.
‘‘If I were to choose my hybrids this year, I would plant about one-third of the
crop in drought tolerant varieties this year,’’ Taylor said. ‘‘It is a risk management
tool farmers should use.’’
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Farm News
01/13/06
Corn piles still in good shape
By KRISTIN GREINER- Farm News staff
A jaunt across Iowa’s countryside would reveal quite a few mountains of corn still
sitting on the ground, the golden piles peeking out from underneath covers
designed to try to protect the crop from Mother Nature.
Fortunately, the favorable weather during harvest meant that the corn dumped on
the ground did not have too high of a moisture content and the fairly mild winter
weather so far has been better on the crop than in years past.
“There’s not as much of a risk of deterioration as last year, because we didn’t
have the heavy rains in the fall last year, but there is some risk now, the longer it
sits on the ground,Ӕ said Bob Wisner, Iowa State University (ISU) grain
economist.
Surprisingly, there is still quite a few grain piles left uncovered at elevators across
the state.
“There’s a lot of grain outside—more than last year—but some have finally
figured out what a plastic tarp is for,Ӕ said Charles Hurburgh, an agricultural and
biosystems engineering professor at ISU. “Most of the outdoor piles are covered
in plastic tarp and most of them this year have some form of aeration on them, so
they’re not nearly as vulnerable as they have been in the past.”î
Hurburgh said the corn piled up outside has been holding up well quality-wise,
but some weather factors may still have an impact.
“The past few weeks haven’t really been bad for grain storage, but there is a
little bit of difficulty controlling conditions when the outside air is in the upper 30s
to low 40s and all this fog is coming in,î” he said. “But, we have had the best of
winters and people are saying it’s nothing like last year.î”
If corn moisture levels are greater than 15 percent and piled up outside on the
ground, spoilage often occurs throughout the pile and not just on top. If a pile
isn’t covered and/or aerated, significant levels of damage can occur on the
surface of a grain pile.
More than 75 percent damage can be identified in the first one to two feet of a
grain pile, then the damage level varies down into the pile, depending upon
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weather conditions while the grain was piled and how wet the corn was to begin
with.
Hurburgh said it is crucial to cover corn piles then aerate them. To help minimize
damage to the grain, a pile should be smooth with one peak, not several peaks
and valleys. Also, elevators should pile only dry corn and use fan ducts to move
air.
At least the top 20 feet of a pile should be covered and weighted down, and a
pile should be built at once and not gradually, which results in varying moisture
levels of corn being mixed and the risk of damage in the middle from possible
adverse weather conditions while the pile was being built.
Wisner said elevators are trying to move the corn as quickly as possible, but
there are still quite a few places where the grain just hasn’t moved.
“The main impact that I am anticipating is simply the quantity of corn left over
and the fact that it is a potential constraint on prices and basis, to some extent,
until that grain is moved out,î” Wisner said. “As far as quality, there will be some
areas where it could be a problem to market it, if it’s going out of condition.
“Ethanol plants and cattle feeding operations tend to shy away from corn going
out of condition, and export markets don’t like it,î” he continued. “Hogs and
poultry tend to be more sensitive to it, and dairy is especially.î”
Sometimes damaged corn can be blended and fed to livestock, but that’s a risky
move. It can be used in ethanol production, but yields tend to be lower and
processing conditions are different than what’s necessary.
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Food Consumer, IL
01/12/06
Early drinking in teens linked to alcohol use
in movies
By Dartmouth Medical School
Early drinking in teens linked to alcohol use in movies
First study to measure alcohol influence in films
Seeing movies that feature characters drinking alcohol can predispose young
adolescents to experiment with alcohol at an early age, concludes a study led by
Dartmouth Medical School (DMS) researchers. It is the first research study to
measure the influence of alcohol use in movies and, using data from more than
600 films and 5,000 students, found that movies play a significant role in an
adolescent's decision to drink at a young age.
The regional study was published in the January issue of the Journal of Studies
on Alcohol and the authors cite previous research that identified early initiation of
alcohol use (before the age of 14) as one risk factor for problems with alcohol
later in life.
"Each year that kids delay experimenting with alcohol can help them avoid some
of the serious consequences that drinking at a young age can contribute to,
including drinking and driving and alcohol dependence," said the lead author of
the study Dr. James Sargent, professor of pediatrics at DMS. "This study is
aimed at the prevention of early alcohol use and our hope is that parents of
young children become more aware that drinking in films is common and that
seeing these depictions can lead to early experimentation with drinking."
In his previous studies, Sargent found that images and scenarios depicted in
movies are among the strongest influences on young children, rivaling several
other factors such as drinking by parents and peers. In his current study, his
research team found that 92% of the films in a sample of 601 contemporary
movies depicted the use of alcohol. Broken down by ratings, they found that
alcohol was used in 52% of G-rated films, 89% for PG, 93% for PG-13 and 95%
for R.
The researchers surveyed more than 5,000 students ages 10 to 14 years old in
Vermont and New Hampshire schools, to assess the amount of movies they
watch and whether they had tried drinking before. Other factors, including the
adolescents' class performance, gender and personality characteristics were also
taken into account. The researchers then followed up with the "never drinkers"
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two years after the initial assessment and found that kids who with higher
exposure to movie alcohol use at the initial assessment were more likely to start
drinking during the follow up period. Thus, high exposure predicted future use of
alcohol.
Overall, researchers calculated that the typical child who took part in the survey
was exposed to about 8 hours of alcohol use through movies. "If you think about
how many 30 second beer commercials one can fit into eight hours, it's a
staggering number--over 1000" said Sargent.
A practicing pediatrician at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center, he notes that
the vast majority of movie scenarios depict alcohol in a positive light, often
showing people drinking at parties or bars, unwinding with a drink after work, or
leading up to a romantic scene. He believes that parents could improve their kids'
health later in life by limiting their "diet" of movies that portray adult-oriented
behavior. "Parents shouldn't let their kids overeat and they shouldn't let their kids
overindulge in movies," he said. "One movie per week for a child 10-14 years old
should be sufficient, but it's clear from this research that kids are watching much
more than that."
###
This study was sponsored by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and
Alcoholism (NIAAA) and grants from the National Cancer Institute, and the
National Institute on Drug Abuse. Co-authors of the study include Dr. Thomas
Wills (Albert Einstein College of Medicine), Dr. Mike Stoolmiller (University of
Oregon), Dr. Fredrick Gibbons (Iowa State University), and Jennifer Gibson
(Norris Cotton Cancer Center).
Contact: Andy Nordhoff
mednews@dartmouth.edu
603-653-0784
Dartmouth Medical School
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Forest City Summit, IA
01/17/06
Public health says, 'Lighten Up, Hancock'
By ANGIE JOHANNSEN, News-Tribune Editor; Posted online
GARNER — Betty Mallen is full of enthusiasm for her newest cause — Lighten
Up Iowa. In fact, pound for pound, she has enough reasons for the whole county
to get involved in the event.
Mallen is the Director of Planning for Hancock County Public Health Services.
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Her office has joined with the Hancock County Extension office to promote the
annual event, which kicks off Wednesday.
This year, the two groups are going one step further in their support of the health
program by hosting a kickoff lunch and offering incentive prizes to county
residents throughout the five month program. The additional support was made
possible through a Lighten Up Iowa mini-grant the county received after also
receiving funding via a Harkin Wellness Grant.
Mallen says the program is a benefit to those who participate because of the
team aspect of getting healthy.
“It’s great having a support group to help you along,” Mallen said. “And besides
having your own team to help you, every week you get emails encouraging you
to exercise and eat healthy.”
Lighten Up Iowa (LUI) is a team based program designed to help Iowan’s make
positive lifestyle changes. In 2005 a record number of participants, 19,231 (2,705
teams) recorded 95,332 pounds of weight lost and over four-million miles of
activity were logged.
There will be a few changes in the program this year. Teams of two-ten people
sign up for one of two divisions; weight loss due to an appropriate diet or
accumulated activity. In past years the accumulated activity division recorded
miles but for the 2006 program individuals will be asked to record activity
minutes.
Mallen says the number of Hancock County participants has grown each of the
past few years, a good sign that people are concerned about their health.
“The benefit of Lighten Up Iowa is that people can take charge of their own
health and there are lots of ways they can do this,” Mallen. “But I don’t want
people to just look at being more healthy over a five-month period, this needs to
be more long term.
“The whole point is to make it a lifestyle so it’s not just this one period of time, but
this is such a good start.”
According to the Center for Disease Control, being overweight and obesity may
soon surpass tobacco as the leading preventable cause of death in the United
States. Today, 61.7 percent of Iowa adults are considered overweight or obese
and only 44.7 percent of Iowa adults obtain the recommended level of physical
activity.
The LUI Web site provides information designed to give even the most dubious
LUI joiners a boost in a healthy direction. According to the site, Iowa cracked the
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top 10 in healthiest state rankings for 2005. “That’s a step up from 11th place in
2004,” said Ruth Litchfield, Iowa State University Extension nutritionist.
“While most of the country has stalled in the last five years in terms of improving
overall health, Iowa is improving.”
Although the rates of overweight and obesity have continued to increase
nationwide, Litchfield says the Lighten Up Iowa program has helped Iowans
counter that trend.
“The number of states in the country that have more than 25 percent of their
adult population classified as obese doubled from four to nine between 2003 and
2004, while Iowa maintained status quo,” Litchfield said.
Public health and the extension office will do their part to encourage teams to
lose weight and get more active. In March, two George Foreman grill will be
given away to people involved in the competition. Two foot massagers will be
given away in April and in May $100 will be given to the top weight los
percentage team and $100 will be given to the team with the most minutes of
physical activity.
Mallen said the incentives may help motivate people, but she is counting on the
teams themselves to be the great motivators for everyone wanting to make a
change in their lifestyle.
“It’s just the fun of being on teams,” Mallen said. “Here in our area, we really
support our athletics and our team events, and this is really kind of the same
spirit people can have with Lighten Up.
Registration for the program will be accepted after the 18th through the end of
February.
To find out more about the Lighten Up program, or to register online, go to
www.lightenupiowa.org.
The Britt News-Tribune is interested in your team story. Please contact the
newspaper with information about your team, team photos, or events your team
will participate in to get healthy during this program.
We would also like to publish updates about teams as the contest progresses.
Motivate your neighbors and share your stories. – Also ran in: Britt News
Tribune, IA
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Fort Wayne Journal Gazette, IN
01/14/06
Wal-Mart weaves in wellness
But some argue campaign meant to repair image
By Sherry Slater
The Journal Gazette
As a journalist, I’m supposed to avoid cliches like the plague.
Oops! I did it again (with abject apologies to Britney Spears).
But even though talking about health and fitness around New Year’s Day has
become a predictable ritual, lots of people really get into this stuff. After all,
there’s nothing like hanging a new “Napoleon Dynamite” calendar on the wall to
make us feel like we’re starting with a clean slate that doesn’t necessarily have to
include nightly ice cream binges (even though we’d miss them … oh, how we’d
miss them).
So, let’s talk about wellness.
Wal-Mart wants to talk about it. The Bentonville, Ark.-based discount retailing
behemoth is sponsoring its first national wellness campaign today. Customers
who visit stores between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. may taste product samples, take a
wellness test and pick up information.
Hollie Pantano, who works for New York public relations firm Ogilvy PR
Worldwide, is doing Wal-Mart’s media relations for “Get Started Today.”
“It was a joint decision between Wal-Mart and the brands to create the event,”
she said.
Most of the featured items are made by Unilever, the massive international
consumer products company that makes products as varied as Mrs. Dash saltfree seasonings, Wish-Bone salad dressings, Lipton tea and Vaseline Intensive
Care lotion. Unilever didn’t return messages seeking comment.
While the co-sponsoring companies didn’t pay to participate, they are covering
costs associated with passing out free samples in the stores, Pantano said.
Richard Feinberg, a retail management professor at Purdue University and a
researcher with the Purdue Retail Institute, said retailers more commonly partner
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with non-profit associations than vendors for projects. That’s how restaurant
chains end up marking certain menu items with heart symbols to show they have
been recommended by the American Heart Association and grocery stores
distribute recipes endorsed by the American Cancer Society.
By sponsoring the wellness event, Wal-Mart is trying to be a better corporate
citizen, Feinberg said. The company has come under criticism in recent years for
a variety of alleged bad acts, including requiring unpaid overtime and locking
third-shift workers in buildings overnight.
“There’s no one who’s going to stand up and complain about promoting health in
the community,” Feinberg said.
Ken Stone, a retired Iowa State University economics professor and author
of “Competing with the Retail Giants,” has closely followed Wal-Mart and
given more than 1,000 presentations around the world on retail mass
merchandisers. He agreed with Feinberg’s take on Wal-Mart.
“They’re doing anything they can right now to polish up their image,” Stone said.
Whatever the company’s motive, the free wellness program is a bonus for
consumers who are concerned about their health and fitness.
The primary attraction of Wal-Mart’s one-day event is a free, 24-page booklet
mostly full of advertisements for products such as Breyers Light ice cream, Ragu
organic pasta sauce and Slim-Fast Optima shakes. The packet includes five
recipes and an 11-question lifestyle quiz.
The RealAge test, available today in Wal-Mart stores in an abbreviated form,
allows people to gauge the health effects of various choices, such as whether
they smoke, how often they floss and how often they exercise. Their answers
allow participants to subtract or add years from their biological ages, depending
on whether their lifestyles are healthy or unhealthy.
Several RealAge-related books have been published, dealing with cooking, diet,
exercise and healthy lifestyle choices. I’m guessing most of the books will be
available for purchase today at most Wal-Mart stores.
I tried an online version of the test that says I can consider myself a few years
younger. People making a concerted effort to live healthy lives can subtract as
many as 26 years from their calendar total, something to get really excited about.
Hey, I wonder if that Breyers Light ice cream really does have, as advertised,
“half the fat, all the taste.” If you’re going to Wal-Mart today, just don’t eat all the
samples before I stop by and get mine!
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Iowa Farmer Today
01/07/06
Help offered for those applying for valueadded grants
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Iowa Farmer Today
01/07/06
Convenience stores could be local products
market
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Also ran in: Convenience Store News
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Kansas City Star, MO
01/18/06
Bigger prices, bigger fears
By MATTHEW L. WALD
The New York Times
Early every winter here, farmers make their best guesses about how much food
the world will demand in the coming year. They decide how many acres of corn
to plant, and how many of soybeans.
But this year is different. Now it is not just the demand for food that is driving the
decision, it is also the demand for ethanol, which is made from corn.
Some locations are requiring that ethanol be blended in small amounts with
gasoline to comply with anti-pollution laws. High oil prices are dragging corn
prices up with them, as the value of ethanol is pushed up by the value of the fuel
it replaces.
“We’re leaning more toward corn,” said Garold Den Herder, who cultivates 2,400
acres in a combination of corn and soybeans and is on the board of directors of
the Siouxland Energy and Livestock Cooperative, which opened an ethanol plant
here in late 2001. Last year a bushel was selling for about $2 here, but near the
plant it was about 10 cents higher.
Farmers expect it to go higher soon if oil prices stay high. Ethanol was up to
$1.75 a gallon last year, from just over $1 the year before.
The rising corn prices may be good news for farmers, but they are ringing alarm
bells with some food planners.
“We’re putting the supermarket in competition with the corner filling station for
the output of the farm,” said Lester R. Brown, an agriculture expert in Washington
and president of the Earth Policy Institute. Farms cannot feed all the world’s
people and its motor vehicles as well, he said, and the result is that more people
will go hungry.
Others say that the price of everything that has corn as an ingredient, including
potato chips and Danish pastries, will rise.
But Robert C. Brown, a professor of mechanical engineering at Iowa State
University and a specialist in agricultural engineering, said the use of corn
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for nonfood purposes sounded harsher than it was.
“The impression is that we’re taking food out of the mouths of babes,” he said. In
fact, corn grown in Iowa is used to feed farm animals or make corn syrup for
processed foods. A global shift to farm-based fuel could reduce the need for oil
and slow climate change. But Lester R. Brown is not alone in worrying about the
effect on world hunger. For 20 years, the International Food Policy Research
Institute, a nonprofit group in Washington, has maintained a computer model to
predict food supplies, based on population changes, farm policies and other
factors.
Until now, the institute’s analysis had included the price of oil and natural gas
only as a factor in production costs, including the price of making fertilizer,
running a tractor or hauling food to markets. But last year, after Joachim von
Braun, the institute director, went to Brazil and India, both of which make vehicle
fuel from plants, he told his economists to change the model, taking into account
the demand for energy from farm products.
Even a small shift could have big effects, he said, since “the mouth of your car is
a monster compared to your family’s stomach needs.”
“I do not just expect somewhat higher food prices, but new instability as well,” he
said in an interview. “In the future, instability of energy prices will be translated
into instability in food prices.”
Gustavo Best, the energy coordinator at the U.N. Food and Agriculture
Organization, said growing crops for energy could provide new opportunities for
small farmers and finance the development of valuable infrastructure in poor rural
areas.
But Best added: “Definitely there is a danger that the competition can hit food
security and food availability.”
Some experts scoff at the idea of corn shortages, but others say it is possible, at
least to some degree. Wendy K. Wintersteen, the dean of the College of
Agriculture at Iowa State University, said that possibly as early as this summer,
“we will have areas of the state we would call corn deficient,” because there will
not be enough for livestock feed — the biggest use of corn here — and ethanol
plants.
Eventually, experts say, American corn exports could fall.
Nationwide, the use of corn for energy could result in farmers planting more of it
and less wheat and cotton, said Keith J. Collins, chief economist of the
Department of Agriculture. But the United States is paying farmers not to grow
crops on 35 million acres, to prop up the value of corn, he said, and much of that
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land could come back into production.
Iowa has 19 ethanol plants now and will have 27 by year’s end, said Bernie
Punt, a former president of the Iowa Renewable Fuels Association. The
Siouxland Energy and Livestock Cooperative showed a $6 million profit for 2005,
driven in part by the price of ethanol.
Another biofuel is a diesel substitute made from soybeans, which still leaves
about 80 percent of the bean for cattle feed, advocates say.
Joe Jobe, executive director of the National Biodiesel Board, a trade group,
predicted that more demand for soy oil as a diesel substitute would force
production of meal, pushing down its price and thus making cattle feed cheaper.
“I think there’s a historical shift under way, not to grow more crops for energy
and less for food, but to grow more for both,” Jobe said.
Nick Young, the president of an agriculture consulting firm Promar, in
Alexandria, Va., pointed out that corn products had been used for nonfood
purposes for years, including to make fluids used to drill oil wells. He said it was
an exaggeration to say that nonfood use of crops would make the world’s poor
go hungry, but he added that the use of vegetable oil as a substitute for diesel
fuel had already driven up the price of canola oil.
“These markets are linked,” Young said. “Inevitably, there’s going to be some
interaction on food prices.”
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KCCI.com, IA
01/16/06
Hit-And-Run Penalties Could Get Tougher
Legislator Looks To Change Law
DES MOINES, Iowa -- Iowa has one of the weakest laws when it comes to
punishing those involved in a hit-and-run.
One central Iowa lawmaker thinks this may be partly to blame for a rash of such
accidents.
Rep. Lisa Heddens said she was contacted by a woman whose brother was
killed in a hit-and-run accident and after examining the state law she's now
decided to do something about it.
Iowa State University police have yet to file any charges in a hit-and-run
accident along a road that killed 20-year-old Kelly Laughery.
Investigators have identified 20-year-old Shanda Munn as the driver that hit
Laughery, but they have yet to determine if she was under the influence of drugs
or alcohol.
This is one reason why Heddens wants tougher penalties for drivers involved in
hit-and-run accidents.
"I think some see it that way as being an advantage to leave," Heddens said.
Under Iowa law, if a driver leaves the scene of an injury accident, the penalty
ranges from $250 to $1,500, and up to one year in prison.
If it's a fatal accident, the fine is up to $5,000, and up to two years in prison.
"If there's a serious injury that causes death; that needs to be a felony," Heddens
said.
"Again, it's going to encourage, I believe, some personal responsibility that you
don't just leave the scene of an accident," she said.
Investigators are still searching for the driver in a fatal hit-and-run in Altoona.
Police believe tougher laws might make people think twice before taking off.
"I think that if the penalties were enhanced, certainly the general public would
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know the severity of not obeying the law," said Randy Kessel, of the Ames Police
Department.
If the driver does decide to leave, police and lawmakers say at least they would
be held to a higher level of accountability. Especially if stopping could have made
a difference in whether the victim lives or dies.
"I can't imagine what the families are going through saying ... 'What kind of
difference would that make?' or 'What difference would five minutes have
made?'" Heddens said.
Heddens said she's working with the attorney general's office and members of
the judiciary committee on the language of the bill. She hopes to have a draft of
the legislation ready to go next week.
Other states are pushing for such a change, but Heddens said she's not sure
Iowa wants to go that far. The proposed law would only make it a felony, if the
driver leaves the scene of a fatal accident.
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Quad-Cities Online, IL
01/12/06
Irritating intrusion at funerals prompts
legislation
By Scott Reeder, sreeder@qconline.com
Gavins Auction
January 15TH
SPRINGFIELD -- Imagine the horror of losing a son on an Iraqi battlefield and
then having protestors outside his funeral telling you he is in hell.
That's the situation the Rev. Peter Wehrly faced two months ago as his 28-yearold son, Kyle, was laid to rest in Galesburg.
A church group from Topeka, Kan., waved signs and hollered at mourners,
something the group has done at funerals across the nation, including this week
in Evansville, Ind. The church is led by the anti-gay preacher Fred Phelps.
"I'll be diplomatic -- their theology is unique," Rev. Wehrly said. "Basically they
are saying that because my sons choose to fight for a nation that condones
abortion and homosexuality he is in hell.
"I disagree with them. But the greatest irony is that my son died defending their
right to free speech," Rev. Wehrly said.
It is situations such as Wehrly's that have Illinois lawmakers introducing
legislation to restrict protests near funeral services.
"This group calls itself a church -- but I call them a hate group," Illinois Lt. Gov.
Patrick Quinn said.
Lt. Gov. Quinn advocates a measure that would prohibit demonstrations of any
kind within 300 feet of a place in which a funeral service is being conducted.
"I'm an advocate of the First Amendment," Lt. Gov. Quinn said. "It not only
protects these protestors' right to free speech, but it also protects the freedom of
those going into the church to worship. We are not prohibiting these groups from
protesting. We are just saying they can't do it near a church or funeral home
when a funeral service is taking place."
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But the Rev. Phelps said this is ridiculous.
"These aren't funerals. These are patriotic pep rallies. ... Kansas passed a
similar law. We sued and won. We'll do the same thing in Illinois. And we'll win."
Rev. Phelps contends divine retribution is causing the United States to lose in
Iraq.
"God is punishing this evil, sodomite nation," he said.
But even the war dead are not above Rev. Phelps' harsh rhetoric.
"They served in a fag army for a fag nation. America has sinned against God. Its
days of grace are over," he said.
Barbara Mack, an associate professor of media law at Iowa State
University and a practicing First Amendment lawyer, said at first blush Lt. Gov.
Quinn's proposal appears to pass constitutional muster.
"We have free speech in this country, but we don't have the right to drown out
someone else's speech. The courts have allowed geographic restrictions on
speech, such as prohibiting protestors from picketing too close to abortion
clinics," she said.
But Rev. Phelps sees things differently.
"The First Amendment is the brightest star of our constitutional galaxy. ... Cheap
politicians support this (legislation) because they are dumb and evil," he said.
"Why don't they expand free speech rather than restrict it?"
Ms. Mack, who has spent her career defending free speech, had this to say:
"Fred Phelps is a disgusting bigot and a small-minded fool, but his right to free
speech is protected by the Constitution -- as long as it doesn't drown out the
speech of others."
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Quad City Times
01/09/06
Lobbying scandal fallout felt in area
By Ed Tibbetts
At 7:15 a.m. the day after Washington lobbyist Jack Abramoff pleaded guilty to a
second set of corruption and conspiracy charges, Brian Kennedy sent an e-mail
containing his two-page plan to “clean up Congress.”
A Republican candidate for the U.S. House in Iowa’s 1st District, Kennedy
proposed banning lobbyist contributions to congressional campaigns and political
fundraising in the nation’s capital.
Even before the Abramoff pleas, corruption promised to be an issue in the
midterm congressional elections. Democrats, sensing an advantage, are poised
to drive it home, and polls show the public’s already low opinion of Congress is
dwindling.
It still is too early to know whether Democrats can capitalize on the scandals
rocking Washington, D.C., or whether it becomes a stew in which both sides are
blamed. What is clear is that candidates in the 1st District are staking out
positions on what should be done and, among Republicans anyway, they’re
using the issue to distinguish themselves from their rivals.
Kennedy, a lobbyist himself who now lives in Bettendorf, concedes he is not the
perfect messenger for reform, noting that he, too, has made donations to
lawmakers he’s lobbied. In fact, he worked until late last year for DCI Group,
which ranks among the top lobbying firms in terms of campaign donations. Its
members gave more than $300,000 in donations during the 2004 election cycle,
according to the Center for Responsive Politics.
Still, Kennedy said he has worked in the halls of Congress and therefore can talk
credibly about the issue. His client list includes universities and municipalities,
according to Senate records. He also has had corporate clients, the records
state.
“You talk to most lobbyists, they would welcome the change,” he said. “I want to
reform Washington, D.C.”
Kennedy’s rivals say his plan is more about trying to inoculate himself from a
culture that many outsiders, Republicans and Democrats alike, say is corrupt.
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“It sounds to me like a D.C. lobbyist who is running from his profession,” Iowa
Rep. Bill Dix, R-Shell Rock, said.
Dix said greater disclosure, not necessarily new laws, is the best answer. “We
have laws on the books,” he said, adding they should be enforced.
Meanwhile, Mike Whalen, the chairman of Heart of America Restaurants & Inns,
whose campaign has emphasized he’s a common-sense businessman with
meat-and-potato ideas from the heartland, said a potential answer comes straight
from Iowa where state legislators cannot take gifts valued at more than $3. “I
think the rule for Iowa is a good rule for Washington, D.C.,” he added.
The Republicans do share common ground in saying their party is not solely to
blame for what is happening. They note that Abramoff’s clients and associates
gave to Democrats, too.
“I think it’s a problem with the culture of Washington. I don’t think it’s a problem
with one party or another,” Whalen said.
Democratic leaders scoff at that. They say Republicans are merely trying to
muddy the waters, noting Abramoff’s ties to indicted former House Majority
Leader Tom DeLay, R-Texas, as well as the resignation of U.S. Rep. Randy
“Duke” Cunningham, R-Calif., for taking bribes in a separate matter. “Clearly, this
culture of corruption has been coming from the Republican side,” said Jennifer
Psaki, a spokesperson for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee.
“I’ve said for a long time there’s this unholy alliance between corporate America
and wealthy individuals and politicians that has to be broken,” Democratic
congressional candidate Bill Gluba of Davenport said last week. “This is just the
tip of the iceberg.”
Gluba proposes that, once elected, legislators be prohibited from soliciting
anything of value, including campaign contributions.
Public money would pay for an incumbent’s campaign, he said, but only up to 85
percent of what a challenger raises. An incumbent would get less money than a
challenger because a challenger has the cost of fundraising in the private sector,
Gluba explained.
Bruce Braley, a Waterloo lawyer, says lobbyist-sponsored travel should be
banned, enforcement beefed up and, eventually, the country should move toward
publicly financing campaigns. He said voters are paying a lot of attention to
what’s going on. “It’s just one more thing to frustrate voters,” he said.
Rick Dickinson, an ex-state legislator and economic development official from
Sabula, said there should be a way to encourage, even require, candidates to
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raise money from their home district. And he, too, said public financing should be
part of the answer someday. “There’s a culture of corruption that everybody
ought to be concerned with,” he said, but he also noted that voters are not as
worried about the scandals as they are about health care and the economy.
It may be difficult for Democrats to drive the corruption issue home in a district
where there are no incumbents, said Steffen Schmidt, a political science
professor at Iowa State University. In fact, he believes the impact of the
Abramoff scandal will likely be confined to lawmakers who are caught up in the
investigation.
At the same time, Democrats lost their majority in Congress in 1994 on the heels
of controversy ? notably the House banking scandal, which Republicans said
was indicative of a party in control for too long.
To some extent, Republicans who have had their hands on the levers of
government for the better part of a decade recognize the threat.
In taking his plan around the district last week, Kennedy toted a paper bag with
him. It was a reference to the time in 1991 when U.S. Rep. Jim Nussle, R-Iowa,
now a candidate for governor, put a bag over his head on the floor of Congress
to protest the banking scandal. “I don’t want to find myself the second
congressman from eastern Iowa who has to put a bag over his head on the floor
of the Congress,” he said.
Ed Tibbetts can be contacted at (563) 383-2327 or etibbetts@qctimes.com.
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Quad City Times, IA
01/13/06
Ethanol 101 explains fundamentals
By Todd Dorman
DES MOINES — Iowa may be the nation’s top ethanol-producing state, but that
doesn’t mean state lawmakers know all there is to know about the corn-based
fuel.
Your latest comments
So on Thursday legislative leaders called in top experts from Iowa’s three state
universities to conduct an Ethanol 101 course for dozens of legislators who
gathered in the House chamber.
The Legislature is expected to debate a series of measures this year intended to
boost Iowa’s renewable fuels industry. Five professors from the University of
Northern Iowa, Iowa State University and the University of Iowa addressed some
of the key questions shaping that debate.
“If you can knock down some of the myths out there, then we can put together
legislation to increase usage of ethanol-blended products,’’ said House Majority
Leader Chuck Gipp, R-Decorah.
Here’s a sampling of the issues addressed during the 75-minute presentation.
Q: Does it take more energy to produce ethanol than the fuel additive yields?
A: Yes, but Robert Brown, professor of thermal science at Iowa State
University, says that’s true of all fuels.
Ethanol made from corn yields just 38 percent of the energy that it takes to
produce the fuel additive. Ethanol made from fiber, such as switchgrass, returns
54 percent. Both trail gasoline, which has an energy return of roughly 84 percent,
Brown said.
But Brown said it took the petroleum industry a century to achieve that level of
efficiency. He said ethanol will catch up rapidly as the industry develops new
production technology.
Q: What is ethanol’s overall economic impact in Iowa?
A: Greg Carmichael, a professor of chemical and biochemical engineering at the
University of Iowa, said current and planned ethanol production capacity adds up
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to 1.6 billion gallons annually and will yield $4.6 billion in total sales. By the end
of 2006, the industry will employ 5,855 people in Iowa.
Ethanol production in Iowa adds $2.5 billion to the value of the state’s corn crop,
or roughly $3 per bushel.
Q: Will my car’s gas mileage drop off if I use fuel blended with ethanol?
A:Yes, according to Larry Johnson, director of the Center for Crops
Utilization Research at ISU. He said a car that gets 25 miles per-gallon using
regular unleaded gasoline will get 24.1 mpg using gas blended with 10 percent
ethanol. Mileage drops to 20 mpg using gas mixed with 85 percent ethanol, also
known as E85.
But last week, Johnson said, E85 was selling for $1.73 per-gallon compared to
$2.19 for regular unleaded. So per mile, both fuels cost roughly the same.
Q: Is E85 available everywhere?
A: No. There are fewer than 30 E85 pumps in Iowa serving the roughly 100,000
“flex-fuel” vehicles equipped to handle high-ethanol blends. Johnson, of ISU, said
it would take a “sizeable investment’’ by station owners to expand the market.
That’s because tanks and equipment designed to handle regular gasoline
products can’t handle E85. Johnson said the fuel corrodes steal tanks and isn’t
“compatible” with rubber, polyurethane adhesives and other materials. Ethanol is
like a sponge, so all water must be removed from tanks.
Lawmakers have proposed spending $5 million annually to help stations convert.
Q: Will ethanol hurt my car?
A: Johnson said cars made after 1986 operate well on E10 and all warranties
offered by automakers cover the use of 10-percent ethanol fuel. But E85 should
only be used in flex-fuel vehicles modified to handle the fuel. There are 5 million
flex-fuel vehicles in the U.S., but Johnson said a recent survey found that 70
percent of owners were unaware of their vehicle’s special fuel capabilities.
Q: Can ethanol be transported in normal fuel pipelines?
A: No. Because ethanol would absorb “dirty” water in pipelines, Johnson said
they can’t by used to transport the additive. Those contaminants would plug fuel
filters.
Q: Do ethanol fuels produce less greenhouse gas emissions when burned?
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A: Yes, according to William Stigliani, director of the Center for Energy and
Environmental Education at the University of Northern Iowa. Emissions per-mile
decrease slightly with the use of E10 and drop by almost one-fourth with E85.
Todd Dorman can be contacted at (515) 243-0138 or at todd.dorman@lee.net.
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Radio Iowa
01/12/06
Researchers brief Legislators on ethanol
by O.Kay Henderson
Researchers from Iowa, Iowa State and U-N-I today briefed Iowa legislators on
the economics and environmental impact of corn-based ethanol fuel. Gregory
Carmichael is a University of Iowa professor of biochemical engineering who
testified today (Thursday) at the statehouse. "As you're all aware, this issue of
biofuels is a very important one. It's in the public eye. Individuals are very
interested in this topic," Carmichael testified. "It's also a very complex issue."
Critics in the petroleum industry often call for an end to the tax breaks and other
incentives state and federal governments have extended to the ethanol industry.
But Iowa State University's John Miranowski says the petroleum industry has
been heavily subsidized and continues to get big breaks for the government.
"There's regulatory cleanup and liability coverage provided to the petroleum
industry. There are relaxed environmental regulations proposed for new
refineries," Miranowski says. "So it's not only the biofuels that are getting
subsidized, there's substantial subsidies that have gone and continue to go to the
petroleum industry."
Some six-thousand jobs in Iowa are directly connected to the ethanol industry,
according to the researchers. Iowa State University professor Robert Brown
says the ethanol industry is a significant part of the Iowa economy. Brown says
the state of Iowa gains about two-and-a-half billion dollars each year when corn
is converted to ethanol. The researchers spent a great deal of time explaining the
chemical properties of ethanol and how ethanol is made.
Some consumers still refuse to use ethanol because they believe it will cause
engine problems, but Brown refuted that. "There still persist some concerns
among individuals about ethanol. Most of those I believe are historical and are
not current issues," Brown says. When ethanol was first introduced, it sometimes
contained too much water, but Brown says the refining process has resolved
that. The professors talked for 80 minutes, but did not offer their own proposals
for increasing ethanol use in Iowa, one of the goals legislators have set for
themselves this year.
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Radio Iowa
01/13/06
Practical Farmers of Iowa meeting today
by Stella Shaffer
The annual meeting of Practical Farmers of Iowa getting underway today (Friday)
features a panel on the aging of Iowa's farmers and how to help young ones get
started in the business. Iowa State University ag economist MIke Duffy says
the "Beginning Farmers" program at I-S-U helps with the cost of land and other
considerations in handing off a farm from one generation to the next.
Duffy says the program helps farmers ready to retire find ways they can help
beginning farmers without exposing themselves to financial risks, things like
leases and other arrangements that'll help new farmers get into the business. For
young people looking at the career field, Duffy says they'll need a plan to get into
farming successfully. Look at what resources are available, consider their goals
and figure out how to combine the resources into a package. That's likely to be a
modest beginning, as Duffy says the cost of land and equipment will rule out
starting up with a big farm. "They're not going to be able to farm the whole
county," Duffy says, explaining that using an old formula that relies on producing
a big volume of commodities to get young people into farming won't work for very
many. He compares it to a game of musical chairs, with 20 people and two
chairs. "We have two happy people and 18 unhappy if we go that way."
For farmers being urged to find a different crop to grow or market to reach, Duffy
says he understands the concern that leaving mainstream agriculture will be
risky. There's a variety of niches, he says, and if everyone tried the same thing,
of course it would flood the market and not work -- but they won't all choose the
same niche. He says there are options and alternatives, but it's going to look
different. Duffy says the niche markets are changing and might look a lot different
in a couple years, a good reason not to invest a lot in machinery right now that
will tie a farmer to one kind of crop and one kind of farming. Saturday's keynote
panel will culminate with Duffy's presentation, and another panelist from
Minnesota will talk about that state's "Land Stewardship Project" and its
programs for beginning farmers.
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Radio Iowa
01/17/06
I-S-U group encourages "pro-bono"
engineering work
by Matt Kelley
While lawyers are encouraged to do charity work through what are called probono cases, an Iowa State University mechanical engineering professor has
created a group that urges engineers to do likewise. I-S-U's Mark Bryden is
co-founder and president of ETHOS, Engineers in Technical and Humanitarian
Opportunities of Service. Bryden says ETHOS has grown exponentially in the
few years since it was founded.
ETHOS is having a meeting in Seattle, Washington, on January 28-29 and it will
include about 100 members from some 30 non-governmental agencies, research
labs, other universities like U-C Berkeley, Colorado State and many other
practicing engineers from private firms and students. Bryden says the non-profit
group aims to get all sorts of organizations working together to create and then
disseminate the best available appropriate technology to families in need.
He says many other groups cater to students in order to create good student
experiences in third-world countries or other nations to develop an appreciation
for diversity, which is an excellent thing to do, but ETHOS specifically targets
opportunities for engineers. Bryden says the organization is designed to help
practicing engineers and engineering students build pathways toward helping
others.
He sums up the goal as being "to make a difference and to get people connected
on the ground so that when you're sitting here in Iowa you can say 'Oh, we went
to Honduras and we determined how to change this manufacturing item and
that's how it's being done now,' so there's a difference made. When you get
done, something changed." For more information, surf to
"www.vrac.iastate.edu/ethos".
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Sioux City Journal, IA
01/13/06
Iowa lawmakers get lesson on ethanol
By Todd Dorman Journal Des Moines Bureau
DES MOINES -- Iowa may be the nation's top ethanol-producing state, but that
doesn't mean state lawmakers know all there is to know about the corn-based
fuel.
So on Thursday legislative leaders called in top experts from Iowa's three state
universities to conduct an Ethanol 101 course for dozens of legislators who
gathered in the House chamber.
The Legislature is expected to debate a series of measures this year intended to
boost Iowa's renewable fuels industry. Five professors from the University of
Northern Iowa, Iowa State University and the University of Iowa addressed
some of the key questions shaping that debate.
"If you can knock down some of the myths out there, then we can put together
legislation to increase usage of ethanol-blended products," said House Majority
Leader Chuck Gipp, R-Decorah.
Here's a sampling of the issues addressed during the 75-minute presentation.
Q -- Does it take more energy to produce ethanol than the fuel additive yields?
A -- Yes, but Robert Brown, professor of thermal science at Iowa State
University, says that's true of all fuels.
Ethanol made from corn yields just 38 percent of the energy that it takes to
produce the fuel additive. Ethanol made from fiber, such as switchgrass, returns
54 percent. Both trail gasoline, which has an energy return of roughly 84 percent,
Brown said.
But Brown said it took the petroleum industry a century to achieve that level of
efficiency. He said ethanol will catch up rapidly as the industry develops new
production technology.
Q -- What is ethanol's overall economic impact in Iowa?
A -- Greg Carmichael, a professor of chemical and biochemical engineering at
the University of Iowa, said current and planned ethanol production capacity
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adds up to 1.6 billion gallons annually and will yield $4.6 billion in total sales. By
the end of 2006, the industry will employ 5,855 people in Iowa.
Ethanol production in Iowa adds $2.5 billion to the value of the state's corn crop,
or roughly $3 per bushel.
Q -- Will my car's gas mileage drop off if I use fuel blended with ethanol?
A -- Yes, according to Larry Johnson, director of the Center for Crops Utilization
Research at ISU. He said a car that gets 25 miles per-gallon using regular
unleaded gasoline will get 24.1 mpg using gas blended with 10 percent ethanol.
Mileage drops to 20 mpg using gas mixed with 85 percent ethanol, also known
as E85.
But last week, Johnson said, E85 was selling for $1.73 per-gallon compared to
$2.19 for regular unleaded. So per mile, both fuels cost roughly the same.
Q -- Is E85 available everywhere?
A -- No. There are fewer than 30 E85 pumps in Iowa serving the roughly 100,000
"flex-fuel" vehicles equipped to handle high-ethanol blends. Johnson, of ISU, said
it would take a "sizeable investment" by station owners to expand the market.
That's because tanks and equipment designed to handle regular gasoline
products can't handle E85. Johnson said the fuel corrodes steel tanks and isn't
"compatible" with rubber, polyurethane adhesives and other materials. Ethanol is
like a sponge, so all water must be removed from tanks.
Lawmakers have proposed spending $5 million annually to help stations convert.
Q -- Will ethanol hurt my car?
A -- Johnson said cars made after 1986 operate well on E10 and all warranties
offered by automakers cover the use of 10-percent ethanol fuel. But E85 should
only be used in flex-fuel vehicles modified to handle the fuel. There are 5 million
flex-fuel vehicles in the U.S., but Johnson said a recent survey found that 70
percent of owners were unaware of their vehicle's special fuel capabilities.
Q -- Can ethanol be transported in normal fuel pipelines?
A -- No. Because ethanol would absorb "dirty" water in pipelines, Johnson said
they can't by used to transport the additive. Those contaminants would plug fuel
filters.
Q -- Do ethanol fuels produce less greenhouse gas emissions when burned?
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A -- Yes, according to William Stigliani, director of the Center for Energy and
Environmental Education at the University of Northern Iowa. Emissions per-mile
decrease slightly with the use of E10 and drop by almost one-fourth with E85.
Todd Dorman can be reached at (515) 243-0138 or at todd.dorman@lee.net
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The Register-Mail, IL
01/12/06
Ag seminar signup deadline Jan. 27
MONMOUTH - Midwest Bank of Western Illinois will have its annual "Challenges
and Opportunities" agriculture seminar Feb. 2 at the Monmouth Veterans of
Foreign Wars Post. Registration starts at 8:30 a.m. and the seminar begins at 9
a.m.
Speakers will include analyst Virgil Robinson, PHI Marketing Services, sharing
his insights in the ag commodity markets. Stanley R. Johnson, vice provost for
the Extension Department of Economics at Iowa State University, will
discuss his research interests. Johnson's topics may include mechanisms and
patterns of consolidation in the biotechnology industry, the cost of living in the
transition economies and implications of the political stability during the periods
of true economic reform. Ag comedian Jay Hendren will also perform.
Lunch is included. To make reservations, call Ann Walters or Bonny Munson at
(309) 734 -2265 or toll-free at (888) 309-2265 by Jan. 27.
For more information, contact Les Allen, executive vice president and chief
credit officer, toll-free at (888) 309-2265, Ext. 236.
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