Farmer’s Guide to Trucking Regulations available to Ohio Farm Bureau members

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Lynn Snyder

Hauling grain and livestock over the roads can raise questions about state and federal transportation regulations. The Ohio Farm Bureau legal team has created the Farmer’s Guide to Trucking Regulations as a free resource, exclusively for members.

The newly revised guide includes a farm driver checklist, overview of both state and federal regulations and exemptions, details on CDL qualifications, details on inspections, load regulations, hazardous materials, emergency response information and more.

“Navigating through both state and federal laws, in addition to identifying any agricultural exemptions that may apply, can easily become a burdensome and confusing endeavor,” said Leah Hetrick, director of legal education and member engagement with Ohio Farm Bureau. “This guide was built with the intention to gather and organize information and resources that may help answer some of the common questions we receive, and to inform our members of important regulations they should be aware of.”

Also in the second edition of the guide, find updates related to the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Transportation Act (MAP-21), including federal exemptions that apply to “covered farm vehicles.” There is also an updated and broader discussion of the transportation of hazardous materials.

Visit ofb.ag/truckingguide to download the updated Ohio Farm Bureau Farmer’s Guide to Trucking Regulations.

Ohio Farm Bureau’s mission is working together for Ohio farmers to advance agriculture and strengthen our communities. Learn more at ohiofarmbureau.org.

This is a news release for use by journalists. Questions should be directed to Ty Higgins, 614-246-8231 or [email protected].

 

Legal with Leah: CAUV update, enrollment

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Lynn Snyder

Despite being around since 1973, the Current Agricultural Use Value program, or CAUV, still has some issues that pop up from time to time. On this Legal with Leah, find out about a recent issue that Farm Bureau helped to resolve at the local level. Plus, Leah Curtis gives us a heads up on the fast approaching deadline to sign up for CAUV or renew for 2023.

Listen to Legal with Leah, a podcast featuring Ohio Farm Bureau’s Policy Counsel Leah Curtis discussing topics impacting farmers and landowners.

Transcript

Ty Higgins [00:00:00] Talking about CAUV for this Legal with Leah. I’m Ty Higgins, along with Leah Curtis, policy counsel for Ohio Farm Bureau. CAUV is something that Farm Bureau has been a part of for decades now. But for those who don’t know, remind us what it is.

Leah Curtis [00:00:16] So CAUV stands for Current Ag Use Value. We’re always going to say CAUV and we’ll say it quick. So I apologize for that. And it is a property tax program that values farmland for its ag potential only. And what that means is there’s a whole different method of determining your property value, versus your house or your buildings which your auditor looks at market value. What this means is there’s typically a lower tax burden for farmland because we’ve taken that development pressure out of the valuation. We’re only looking at what is its value as farmland versus what is its value to build a house on or build a gas station on or whatever.

Ty Higgins [00:00:52] Been around since 1975. So you’d think that all the wrinkles would be ironed out. But there are still some issues that pop up from time to time.

Leah Curtis [00:00:58] Never underestimate the power of wrinkles and laws. So we do have a lot of things that come up, certainly room for interpretation, and enrollment of the program and really the carrying out of that program is largely overseen by your county auditor. And of course there’s 88 county auditors. And where we have those kind of wiggle room/room for interpretation, there’s going to be differences in county to county about how they administer that program within their own offices.

Ty Higgins [00:01:26] We’ve been working with one county Farm Bureau in particular on some issues with CAUV that recently resulted in some success for Ohio Farm Bureau members.

Leah Curtis [00:01:32] So we talk to farmer members probably every day about a CAUV question, and most of the time those are very individual issues. You know, it’s my farm has this and I don’t know what to do, or I don’t understand this part of the form. But in this case, Lorain County had brought to us a concern that many people were experiencing about the way the auditor was treating certain portions of their farm. They were coding it, and everybody’s property gets coded with different property codes. They were calling it something called residual, and that was resulting in a higher value than it would have been on the CAUV value, even though it was kind of part of their overall farmland.

Ty Higgins [00:02:11] This really is the epitome of grassroots efforts, which is what Ohio Farm Bureau and our members are known for. What makes this such a great example of that?

Leah Curtis [00:02:19] So this was not a short process. I’m going to say that from the beginning. But we were able to kind of start by giving the county some good concrete information, showing them what the laws were, what the different rules were, how other counties did this. And so they kept having those conversations with the auditor directly. So they connected with their auditor in their own county. We were able to get them connected with some other auditors, some other resources that they could talk to as well and get answers to their questions. And then, most importantly, they worked locally to get that change. So the county Farm Bureau has said all along that that hard work, that discussion, but then also sending a letter to all their members locally to say, hey, this is going on, we found out about this. We’d like to help you check your property taxes and your property maps. You know, if you have a concern, join us. We want to talk about it some more. And that helped turn that corner. And so now the auditors announced that they are going to move forward with reconsidering that and recoding those properties based on all the information that the county was able to give them, based on some training that we were able to provide to all county auditors really across the state. And they’re going to have this change in their property code that’s probably going to result in a much better situation for all of them.

Ty Higgins [00:03:33] Why is that local action so important when it comes to issues like this, when they arise?

Leah Curtis [00:03:37] So these are locally elected officials. They are there in your local communities and you and your local members are the ones that vote for them. And so you are who matters most to them. When you approach those issues from that standpoint of I’m a constituent and here’s my concern, we can help here at the state office by giving you the background that you need. What is the law, what is the rule, how are other people doing it? But when you go talk to that person directly, it always goes further than somebody from some far flung place coming in and telling somebody what they think that doesn’t have that direct tie to the official. And it really is that power of grassroots. We cannot talk about it enough. We see it time and time again. We see it at the Statehouse. We see it on these local issues. When you personally talk to your legislator, when you personally talk to your auditor, to your county commissioner, they listen. They want to work for you. And so that discussion is really, when you approach it in a good way, you come at it as I want to work through this problem, that often gets you a lot farther.

Ty Higgins [00:04:36] Now, CAUV isn’t just one of those set it and forget it type of program. You don’t enroll once and just think it’s going to continue. That has to be renewed, or you even have to sign up before a certain timeline. What does that look like?

Leah Curtis [00:04:47] So remember that CAUV is a program you have to choose to be in. Nobody just gets to be in it. So if you’re new to the program, you want to sign up, or you are going to renew you have to do that prior to the first Monday in March of each year. So after the first Monday in January, prior to first Monday in March. If you’re a renewal, you’ve probably already got a form in the mail. So that information should already be in your hands. Hopefully you’re getting that filled out. If you’re an initial sign up, you may need to call or visit the autitor’s office to get that form. All your information needs to be turned in prior to the first Monday in March. So that’s March 6 this year; I would suggest prior to would be March 3. That’s Friday. Just to be safe, I actually always recommend if you get that renewal form, and I even tell my parents, fill it out the next day and send it back the next day. Don’t forget about it, because if you would get removed, there could be problems that you would incur.

Ty Higgins [00:05:42] What are those issues if we forget or simply don’t meet that deadline?

Leah Curtis [00:05:46] So if you’re new to the program and you forget or you don’t meet the deadline, you’ll have to wait till next year. So you’re going to miss out on a year of that program. If you’re a renewal, it could be that you would get removed from the program and with CAUV it is a farmland preservation tool. So it’s a benefit to get into it and there is a penalty to leave it. So if you would miss the deadline, you wouldn’t get that fixed, and you get out of the program, you have to pay recoupment and recoupment is equal to three years of your tax savings that you had by being on the program. Depending on where you live, that can be different. If you ever want to know, your auditor can usually tell you what your recoupment would be, but you will pay back three years of savings if you leave the program.

Legal with Leah: Ohio Power v. Burns eminent domain case

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Lynn Snyder

Ohio Farm Bureau recently filed an amicus brief in the Ohio Supreme Court in an eminent domain case. In this Legal with Leah, Ohio Farm Bureau Policy Counsel Leah Curtis tells us more about Ohio Power v. Burns. The Ohio Supreme Court is hearing this case Aug. 2, and the hearing can be watched live from the court’s website. Curtis said a decision is expected by the end of this year.

 

 

Listen to Legal with Leah, a podcast featuring Ohio Farm Bureau’s Policy Counsel Leah Curtis discussing topics impacting farmers and landowners.

Transcript

Ty Higgins [00:00:00] This is Legal with Leah. I’m Ty Higgins. The next couple of episodes will be talking about things we’re doing in the court system here in Ohio, the first one being at the Ohio Supreme Court. Ohio Farm Bureau recently filed an amicus brief about the Ohio Power v. Burns case, an eminent domain case at the Supreme Court level here in the Buckeye State. Leah, what’s this case about?

Leah Curtis [00:00:25] So the facts of this case are a taking of property by Ohio Power for a transmission line. And we talk a lot about eminent domain in the context of government. But actually we also have some companies who can use eminent domain, and mainly those are utility companies to facilitate the building of utility lines and utility services.

Ty Higgins [00:00:47] What makes this case different then?

Leah Curtis [00:00:48] When we get cases to the Ohio Supreme Court, we have to remember that at that point, we’re not necessarily only talking about this individual case and this individual property, but now, when the Supreme Court takes a look at it, we’re usually thinking about like, what is the law and what does the law mean? How should the law be interpreted? And so that’s where we are now. So with this, the court is going to look at whether a taking is necessary and for a public use anytime there’s an eminent domain case, but there can be a lot more questions underneath those headings. And so this court is going to look at a number of other issues. They’re going to look at is this taking been proven necessary? And who gets to determine whether it’s necessary? There are some things in the law that certain takings are just necessary by their nature. And so there’s the question of, well, is that true, or does the court get to determine that? And then this is taking an easement, which is typical when we talk about takings by utilities. And so, is every term in that easement, does every term have to be necessary? Is everything that that utility is saying that easement controls, does that have to be necessary to be a viable taking? And so the court’s going to look at both of those things. And that could be a really important ruling when it comes to property owner’s rights with these utility takings.

Ty Higgins [00:02:03] Is there also that question whether landowners should be able to challenge these or not?

Leah Curtis [00:02:07] Yes. So, certainly some of the briefs that we saw filed talked a lot about these are really important takings. We have to facilitate these utilities. We have to make sure that we’re maintaining them. And I don’t think anyone disagrees with that. But we recognize, sometimes it’s necessary. But, you know, landowners do deserve all the protections of the Ohio Constitution. They deserve a right to go to court. They should have the right to challenge and make sure that the taking is necessary and that it’s limited to what is actually necessary so that the law is upheld.

Ty Higgins [00:02:41] Ohio Farm Bureau filed this brief for this case. So what happens next?

Leah Curtis [00:02:45] So now the Ohio Supreme Court’s going to hear oral argument, and that’s actually scheduled for Aug. 2. And so both the parties will come in and they’ll present their cases to the panel of judges. And actually, just so everyone’s aware, you can always watch these oral arguments on the court’s website. So on Aug. 2 in the morning, those will be streamed live and then afterwards, those do get posted to the Internet. If you have one of the public channels, they play them from time to time as well. And so then after argument, we’d expect a decision kind of any time, probably by the end of the year.

Ohio Farm Bureau backs ‘consistent’ Ohio Supreme Court justices

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Ty Higgins

On Thursday, Ohio Farm Bureau was part of a group of Ohio’s largest business organizations that visited Miller Family Farm to announce their endorsement of Sharon Kennedy for chief justice of the Ohio Supreme Court and Pat DeWine and Pat Fischer for re-election to the Ohio Supreme Court.

During the event, Ohio’s business community stressed how it relies on a predictable and consistent Supreme Court, as it allows companies, both small and large, to plan and grow for the future. According to the groups, Justices Kennedy, DeWine, and Fischer are the candidates the business community believes Ohio needs to protect the Supreme Court from judicial activism that leads to unpredictability, and if any one of these candidates is not protected, Ohio will be in grave danger of damaging its national economic competitiveness.

Ohio Farm Bureau was part of a group of Ohio’s largest business organizations that visited Miller Family Farm to announce their endorsement of Sharon Kennedy for chief justice of the Ohio Supreme Court and Pat DeWine and Pat Fischer for re-election to the Ohio Supreme Court.

“In a time of so much uncertainty in our agricultural markets, our supply chains and food channels, Ohio’s agriculture community needs a consistent Ohio Supreme Court,” said Ohio Farm Bureau Executive Vice President Adam Sharp. “Ohio Farm Bureau’s Agriculture for Good Government PAC is proud to support Justices DeWine and Fischer in their re-election efforts and Justice Kennedy in her candidacy for chief justice as they have a strong record of ruling in support of private property rights and a rational regulatory environment, while maintaining a stable and predictable judicial system.”

The groups say the 2022 election cycle in Ohio is shaping up to be a pivotal one, and now, more than ever, the Ohio business community must be engaged and share just how important the Ohio Supreme Court is to the economic environment in Ohio.

CAPTION: From left, Ohio Farm Bureau Board President Bill Patterson, Ohio Supreme Court Justice Pat DeWine, OFBF Trustee Al Miller, Ohio Supreme Court Justice Sharon Kennedy, Ohio Supreme Court Justice Pat Fischer, OFBF Trustee Danielle Burch and OFBF Board Trustee Katherine Harrison.

Forecast for 2022 Lake Erie algal bloom released

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Lynn Snyder

The 2022 algal bloom is expected to have a low severity index of 3.5, according to the final forecast from the National Atmospheric and Oceanic Administration. This forecast uses an ensemble of different models, which consider phosphorus loading into the lake during the spring and early summer. 

If realized, this will be the fourth year out of the past seven that the algal bloom will be rated less than 4 on a scale of 1 (mild) to 10 (severe).

Recent soil test data from The Fertilizer Institute found that the number of soil samples tested for Ohio increased from about 69,000 in 2001 to nearly 274,000 in 2020. Over the same period, the median soil test phosphorus levels dropped from 38 to 26 parts per million (Mehlich 3).

With the expansion of the H2Ohio water quality initiative and the growth of the Ohio Agriculture Conservation Initiative certification program, both designed to help farmers find more and better nutrient management practices, efforts will continue to advance across Ohio, according to Jordan Hoewischer, director of water quality and research with Ohio Farm Bureau

“For years the farmer’s work has been judged on whether a body of water is green or not, but it doesn’t represent the improvements being made year over year,” Hoewischer said. “The research is telling us that Ohio agriculture has made progress on the water quality front and more education and upgraded technology should result in continued positive results.”

NOAA will release the final algal bloom statistics for 2022 in September.

Ohio Farm Bureau’s mission is working together for Ohio farmers to advance agriculture and strengthen our communities. Learn more at ohiofarmbureau.org.

OACI Assessment Survey Report reveals conservation progress, areas of opportunity

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Lynn Snyder

The Ohio Agriculture Conservation Initiative (OACI) hosted a panel discussion on the findings of its 2021 Assessment Survey Report which detailed practices being used by farmers in the Lower Maumee watershed to manage water and nutrients. The assessment results show ample conservation efforts, as well as areas for improvement and continued farmer education and resourcing by OACI.

“Our assessment survey shows us that farmers in the Lower Maumee Watershed are taking conservation practices and their stewardship of the land seriously,” said Kris Swartz, farmer and chair, Ohio Agriculture Conservation Initiative. “We also recognize room for improvement, and OACI will continue to provide resources and educate farmers in our ongoing effort to increase adoption of productive conservation practices. We encourage Ohio’s farmers to get involved in the OACI’s Farmer Certification Program, H2Ohio and other conservation-focused programs to learn about new practices and share information.”

The survey results establish a baseline of adoption for various farming practices in the Lower Maumee watershed. The information will allow for a more targeted approach to help increase some practices, while also displaying that some practices are already adopted at an adequate level.

“The assessment survey allows us to understand which conservation practices are being adopted and some background on the decisions being made by farmers,” said Dr. John Fulton, professor and Extension specialist, College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences at The Ohio State University.

“What stood out to me was long-term control of the farm fields. It was surprising and encouraging because sometimes it’s talked about as a hurdle for conservation with farmers,” said Jordan Hoewischer, director of water quality and research, Ohio Farm Bureau Federation. “Ninety-five percent of the farms in the survey were farmed by the same person for over three years. That goes to show you that if we get them the right information and get them in the right program, they have ties to their farm field and are likely to be more open to making conservation investments.”

The survey assessed cost share program enrollment, acres farmed and ownership status, tillage, nutrient applications and other nutrient management strategies, and water management practices. 

Key findings from the assessment survey include:
  • Approximately 66% of the fields surveyed were currently enrolled in a cost share conservation program, including both state and federal level programs.
  • Most farmers were testing their soil adequately, with 83% of the fields surveyed being sampled every 3 years. The vast majority of soil samples (87%) were being done using precision agriculture, via grid or zone methods.
  • 40% of fields surveyed had phosphorus applied using variable-rate technology (VRT); 13% of fields had nitrogen applied using VRT.
  • Nearly 50% of the fields were either no tilled or minimally tilled.
  • 48% of the farmland assessed was owned by the farmer and 52% was in a lease.
  • Farmers know their land, as 95% of the fields had been managed by the farmer for three years or longer with only 5% being farmed less than three years.
  • 42% of fields surveyed had water management practices installed and 9% used multiple water management practices.

This inaugural assessment survey is the first in what will be an ongoing program by OACI, conducting a survey assessment of two watersheds per year and re-surveying each previously surveyed watershed every three years. 

Survey methodology

The assessment survey was conducted by OACI through a randomized sampling of 450 crop production fields within the HUC8 Lower Maumee watershed. A statistical approach was implemented to determine what practices are being used by farmers within this watershed to manage water and nutrients. In the field survey process, all the cropped fields within the watershed were considered in the randomized selection process regardless of farm and field size. This survey was completed prior to the implementation of H2Ohio practices. A trained Soil and Water Conservation District employee interviewed the landowner or farm manager for each field surveyed.

ONLINE EXTRA

StoneX can help farmers navigate commodity futures

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Lynn Snyder

As a Farm Bureau member, Bailey Elchinger has come to appreciate the member benefits the organization offers. Now, through her off-farm job, she is part of a team providing new member benefits to other Ohio Farm Bureau members.

On her family’s Henry County farm, Elchinger and her husband, Nick, produce corn, soybeans and wheat as well as baling hay and straw. Off the farm, Elchinger is the regional director for the StoneX branch office in Bowling Green.

The company offers members discounts on StoneX’s agricultural risk management tools. The national benefit is offered to all Ohio Farm Bureau members through American Farm Bureau.

While many of Farm Bureau’s member benefits help members save money on products and services, the partnership with StoneX can help them improve the profitability of their farms, said Elchinger. “This one is more focused on their farming businesses.”

For Bailey, the benefits of a Farm Bureau membership are nothing new. After all, she grew up in a family of active Farm Bureau members in Michigan, and when she went off to college she joined the Collegiate Farm Bureau at Michigan State.

Then, after she moved to Ohio and settled in Henry County, she was elected to the Henry County Farm Bureau board. Bailey and Nick are also members of Ohio Farm Bureau’s Young Agricultural Professionals State Committee.

“Being in Farm Bureau was just a natural fit,” she said. Farm Bureau’s partnership with StoneX is giving members discounted access to StoneX’s customized commodity marketing plans, advisory services and data management tools, Elchinger explained. Members can also get discounts on educational seminars and outlook conferences focused on risk management.
StoneX, an international financial services company, provides a wide range of tools and services to help clients protect their profit margins and manage market volatility. The company deals with a wide range of farm commodities.

StoneXOne of the ways StoneX can help farmers manage market volatility is with trading accounts that allow them to hedge their risks, Elchinger said. Farm Bureau members who open new trading accounts with StoneX will get 10 free trades. Those free trades can help farmers use futures, options and over-the-counter contracts to manage risks and protect their farms’ profitability.

“Farmers always have one eye on the future,” said Dan Rapp, Ohio Farm Bureau senior director of health services. “The tools members have access to through StoneX range from customized commodity marketing plans to data management solutions and educational seminars in a variety of agricultural commodities, including livestock, dairy, grains and many sectors in between.”

StoneX also offers a market data management package, Know-Risk Crop Marketing, which provides software tools for data management as well as access to expert advisors. Know-Risk can help farmers aggregate information from various sources into an easy-to-use format so they can more easily use the information in developing risk management strategies. Farm Bureau members receive 20% off annual subscriptions.

Farm Bureau members can also get StoneX’s Market Intelligence packages at discounted prices. Farm Bureau members can get 40% discounts on registration market outlook conferences and other educational seminars as well, Elchinger said.

StoneX Farm Advantage offers member discounts

StoneX offers 10% off all Farm Advantage packages for Farm Bureau members. Farm Advantage provides farmers with the tools they need to market their products, manage risk, maximize margins and grow their business for generations to come. Informed by StoneX’s nearly 100 years in the commodities markets, Farm Advantage enables crop farmers, dairy farms and livestock operations to take greater charge of their operations – and their futures – by putting all the tools they need in the palms of their hands through a free app.

One of those tools is the Fertilizer Group. Fertilizer and fertilizer prices were a hot topic as plans for the growing season took shape this year.

“With fertilizer prices at historic and highly volatile price levels, it is as important as ever for producers to understand and manage their grain market risk,” Elchinger said. “Attaining market commentary from sources like StoneX could prove extremely valuable.”

This tool and more are discounted for Farm Bureau members and available on the Farm Advantage app, available to all farmers through Apple App Store and Google Play.

Russian invasion of Ukraine will impact American agriculture

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Ty Higgins

The unprecedented actions by Russia on Ukraine could have major implications for Ohio farmers and American agriculture as a whole in a number of different ways.

“Russia and Ukraine account for about 29% of global wheat production,” said Dr. Ian Sheldon, a professor and Andersons chair of agricultural marketing, trade and policy at Ohio State’s Department of Agricultural, Environmental, and Development Economics. “Beyond agricultural commodities, Russia is a major supplier of natural gas, which is an important input into fertilizer production. That means we could see things happening on the input side of agriculture, as well as the commodity export and international trade side of things.”

The input aspect could accentuate an already tight supply and demand picture for fertilizers and other 2022 inputs, but Sheldon said the crisis in Ukraine could act as a double edged sword for farmers in Ohio, as corn and wheat are major commodities exported by Ukrainian farmers.

“Obviously you don’t want to benefit from other people’s pain, but if you want to see a good side of this for American exporters, if the world corn price goes up that is potentially beneficial to Ohio corn farmers and the same goes for wheat,” Sheldon said. “I think we will see prices firm up and remain firm, especially if the invasion leads to major destruction of farmland and obstacles for farmers to bring their corn to market. A lot also depends on how Russia treats any exports leaving Ukraine and the extent of sanctions against Russia as punishment for their actions.”

Without hesitation, as tensions between Russia and Ukraine escalated to a full invasion by Russian forces, world markets reacted sharply. Due to the nature of today’s global economy, U.S. agriculture markets quickly followed suit. Shortly after the crisis escalated, prices for corn, soybeans and wheat were trading limit-higher overnight.

“Prior to the conflict escalating, everyone assumed that if an invasion did occur that the market would be bullish, figuring that there would be less supplies available on the world marketplace because of Ukraine’s importance in the global corn and wheat trade, specifically,” said Bailey Elchinger, risk management consultant and regional director with StoneX. “The speed at which this has happened over the past few days is a little bit shocking to the markets though. When you look back through history, an invasion of this nature is not a common thing.”

Just as grain prices quickly climbed, so did other agricultural products.

“Global fertilizer prices also reacted strongly,” Elchinger said. “Urea was trading $160 higher per ton on Thursday morning and that was a direct reaction to fears of Ukraine and/or Russia limiting fertilizer or natural gas out of those countries.”

Many farmers found it hard to sit on their hands as the markets offered an opportunity to sell old crop corn above $7 a bushel, while other farmers wondered what the longer term scenarios might entail. Elchinger said there are important things to consider for new crop sales.

“First and foremost, know your cost of production and what price you have your inputs locked in for,” she said. “If you know those things, really start to study what your profit margin is today and know the amounts of which you are willing to sell ahead of harvest and probably take some risk off of the table.”

Elchinger said a good relationship with your commodity buyer is key and to continue to stay in contact with them when it comes to your marketing plan. They can keep you accountable and will be able to shed some light on what may happen in the days ahead.

“It is bound to be volatile,” Elchinger said. “You need to be sure that you are not open to too much risk in times like this.”

Invasion of Ukraine rocks ag markets

Posted on

Ty Higgins

Today, the economies of the world are tied more closely than they have ever been. That often means that whatever is happening on the other side of the globe will have an impact on the U.S. economy. That couldn’t be more apparent than in the agricultural commodity markets, and that concept became even more evident when Russia moved forward with an attack on neighboring Ukraine. Shortly after the crisis began, prices for corn, soybeans and wheat traded limit-higher overnight.

“Prior to the conflict escalating, everyone assumed that if an invasion did occur that the market would be bullish, figuring that there would be less supplies available on the world marketplace because of Ukraine’s importance in the global corn and wheat trade, specifically,” said Bailey Elchinger, risk management consultant and regional director with StoneX. “The speed at which this has happened over the past few days is a little bit shocking to the markets though. When you look back through history, an invasion of this nature is not a common thing.”

Just as grain prices quickly climbed, so did the prices for other agricultural products.

“Global fertilizer prices also reacted strongly,” Elchinger said. “Urea was trading $160 higher per ton on Thursday morning and that was a direct reaction to fears of Ukraine and/or Russia limiting fertilizer or natural gas out of those countries.”

Many farmers found it hard to sit on their hands as the markets offered an opportunity to sell old crop corn above $7 a bushel, while other farmers wondered what the longer term scenarios might entail. Elchinger said there are important things to consider for new crop sales.

“First and foremost, know your cost of production and what price you have your inputs locked in at,” she said. “If you know those things, really start to study what your profit margin is today and know the amounts of crops you are willing to sell ahead of harvest and probably take some risk off of the table in doing so.”

Elchinger said a good relationship with your commodity buyer is key and to continue to stay in contact with them when it comes to your marketing plan. They can keep you accountable and will be able to shed some light on what may happen in the days ahead.

“The market is bound to be volatile,” Elchinger said. “You need to be sure that you are not open to too much risk in times like these.”

Farm Bureau members attend Ag Day at the Capital

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Lynn Snyder

Over 350 Ohio Farm Bureau members gathered in downtown Columbus to meet one-on-one with their state senators and representatives during Ohio Farm Bureau’s annual Ag Day at the Capital Feb. 16. Ohio Farm Bureau priority issues such as strengthening the food supply chain, protecting landowner rights, supporting the next generation of farmers and connecting rural Ohio were discussed, along with a host of other community issues.

Attendees were joined by members of the Ohio Supreme Court throughout the day, including a keynote address from Justice Sharon Kennedy and a panel discussion with Justices Pat DeWine and Patrick Fischer about the functions of the court and its role in Ohio agriculture.

The annual Ag Day at the Capital event embodies the grassroots efforts of Ohio Farm Bureau member volunteers. 

In addition to the justices, attendees also heard from Ohio Farm Bureau President Bill Patterson and the organization’s Executive Vice President Adam Sharp before meeting with legislators at the Statehouse.

Ohio Farm Bureau’s mission is working together for Ohio farmers to advance agriculture and strengthen our communities. Learn more at ohiofarmbureau.org.

This is a news release for use by journalists. Questions should be directed to Ty Higgins, 614-246-8231 or [email protected].

Eberhart wins 2022 Collegiate Discussion Meet

Posted on

Lynn Snyder

Riley Eberhart of Harrison County will represent Ohio at the 2022 American Farm Bureau Young Farmers & Ranchers Collegiate Discussion Meet.

The Collegiate Discussion Meet follows the same model as the Young Farmer & Rancher Discussion Meet. The competitive event simulates a committee meeting where discussion and active participation are expected from each participant. The competition is evaluated on an exchange of ideas and information on a predetermined topic. Participants build basic discussion skills, develop a keen understanding of important agricultural issues and explore how groups can pool knowledge to reach consensus and solve problems.

Eberhart, a six-year Harrison County Farm Bureau member, is currently a student at Wilmington College where she studies political science, focusing on agricultural advocacy and food policy. Prior to college, Eberhart spent 15 years as a member of 4-H, raising beef, hogs, chickens and rabbits and was involved in FFA, participating in many career development events (CDEs).

The Collegiate Farm Bureau program at Wilmington provides an opportunity to have a direct link to agriculture while in school, and Eberhart took part in the Discussion Meet to learn how to format debates and encourage innovative ideas that have the potential to help her community.

As the winner of Ohio Farm Bureau’s Collegiate Discussion Meet, Eberhart receives an expense-paid trip to YF&R Leadership Conference, Feb. 25-28 in Louisville, Kentucky, as well as an expense-paid trip to the 2023 Young Agricultural Professionals Winter Leadership Experience, and a $1,000 scholarship, all courtesy of Ohio Harness Horsemen’s Association.

Every national competitor will receive a $100 scholarship. Those advancing to the Sweet 16 round will receive an additional $300 scholarship. The winner of the competition will receive an additional $3,000 scholarship, and the other Final Four competitors will receive an additional $1,500 scholarship.

Ohio Farm Bureau’s mission is working together for Ohio Farmers to advance agriculture and strengthen our communities. Learn more at ohiofarmbureau.org.

This is a news release for use by journalists. Questions should be directed to Ty Higgins, 614-246-8231 or [email protected].

Editors: Editors: A photo of  Ms. Eberhart is available for download.

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