Latest News From Betsy Jibben

Thirty-two million food boxes have been delivered as part of USDA’s Farmers to Families Food Box Program. The Food Bank of Northern Indiana shows how the program is making a difference in people’s lives.

Like many farmers, Rob Stout hopes his operation will be viable for generations to come. With the future in mind that means focusing on sustainability today.  

Two-thirds of bacon demand comes from the food and hospitality industries, specifically restaurants and hotels. Both have been impacted differently due to COVID-19.  

The next quarterly Hogs and Pigs report from USDA will be released later in the month. The last report showed continued expansion for all hogs and pigs at 77.6 million head.  Could the industry still expand?  

While it’s been work as usual since mid-March on many farms, that hasn’t been the case for restaurants, shops and other businesses in the county seat, Washington.  

While COVID-19 and foreign animal diseases are both a threat, industry experts believe diseases are a bigger concern.  

The summer show season is uncertain for many 4-H and FFA members who have been caring for their livestock and preparing the show ring for weeks. Some event organizers have found another way using the World Wide Web.

Pork producers have been looking forward to China's purchases.Lately, China has been purchasing large amounts of product. Some wonder if it will change. Follow along as we cover more during Farm Journal's #PORKWeek.

Closures and shutdowns are still leaving many producers struggling with what to do with their hogs. One producer resorted to Facebook to sell hogs.

Brian Mehlhaf, who custom feeds hogs in Parkston, S. D., decided to head online to try to make a profit. He thought posting hogs for sale on Facebook would be a last resort. Now, the response is overwhelming.  

Ethanol plants and DDG facilities closing is a hit to the livestock industry. This is as some producers begin to switch feed rations based on price, availability and in an effort to keep weights from getting too high.

Plunging sales and plant closures are all creating a crisis right now for the pork industry. Hogs are stacking up on farms with farmers scrambling to find places to process them as the value per hog plummets.

Plants which have closed are trying to reroute loads. The industry says many plants were already at capacity, which created a larger problem. Some producers share their stories.

The Smithfield Foods plant in Sioux Falls announced it was closing until further notice. As of Tuesday, 438 total workers have tested positive with COVID-19. That’s an increase of nearly 100 overnight.

The hog herd is expanding. That’s according to the USDA Quarterly Hogs and Pigs report. Numbers are increasing in all categories compared to one year ago. How expansion continues amid COVID-19 is anyone’s guess.

One of the most high-profile events in farm country affected by coronavirus concerns is the Houston Livestock show and Rodeo. Some producers had to pack up and leave for home while others didn’t even make the trip.

South Dakota hog farm is conservation conscious

Lean hog contracts closed in the red after Friday’s trading session. However, some analysts say the near-term story for the hog market is bearish.

The White House and House Democrats have reached a deal with new language on labor provisions in the trilateral trade deal between the United States, Canada and Mexico (USMCA). 

One Nebraska hog producer has been flooded multiple times this year due to a wet spring. He even had to travel by boat to take care of his hogs. We have an update of where he is now.

Trade with China is also a topic on Capitol Hill. The Senate Ag Committee holding a hearing on the state of the livestock industry. It was a hearing from representatives throughout the livestock sector.

Some places impacted by Hurricane Dorian are still waiting for disaster aid.

Washington County, Iowa is a large pork producing state. Any disruption like the risk of African Swine Fever on U.S. soil would be a crisis for producers and their communities. AgDay national reporter Betsy Jibben has the story from Washington County, Iowa.

Washington County, Iowa is a large pork producing state. Any disruption like the risk of African Swine Fever on U.S. soil would be a crisis for producers and their communities. AgDay national reporter Betsy Jibben has the story from Washington County, Iowa.

Close says 70 percent of the pork imports into China are currently coming from the European Union. That plays a major role in the ASF story. AgDay Betsy Jibben talks with Don Close of Rabo Agri Finance.

Close says 70 percent of the pork imports into China are currently coming from the European Union. That plays a major role in the ASF story. AgDay Betsy Jibben talks with Don Close of Rabo Agri Finance.

National Reporter Betsy Jibben takes a look. Jibben talks with Justin Mensik of Morse Bluff, Nebraska; Dan Mensik of Morse Bluff, Nebraska; John Tyson of Blair, Nebraska and Tim Gregerson of Herman, Nebraska.

The Missouri River is roughly a mile over its banks. One producer in Blair, Nebraska has to travel by boat to get to his hogs. Luckily, his hogs are safe on higher ground.

The Missouri River is roughly a mile over its banks. One producer in Blair, Nebraska has to travel by boat to get to his hogs. Luckily, his hogs are safe on higher ground.

China discovering more than a dozen outbreaks of African Swine Fever in its herd since August. It’s putting the U.S. hog industry on high alert.

Scouts along the Western Leg of the Pro Farmer Midwest Crop Tour are ‘on the homestretch’ as they make their way to Rochester, Minnesota. However, Southwest Iowa answered some one question for scouts on tour.

It’s been nearly one month since a handful of twisters touched down in central Iowa, destroying buildings and crops in its paths. Tornadoes touched down in Marshalltown, Pella and Bondurant, Iowa all on July 19.

Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue wrote an op-ed piece for USA Today Monday focusing on trade tensions and telling farmers he’s working on tools to help ease the burden.

The House of Representatives rejected an immigration bill known as “the Ag Act” (H.R. 4760) on a 193-231 vote Thursday. The conservative bill, sponsored by Congressman Bob Goodlatte of Virginia.

The Trump administration announced Friday it is moving forward on slapping tariffs on imported goods for China as the trade fight widens.

The Trump administration announced Friday it is moving forward on slapping tariffs on imported goods for China as the trade fight widens.

News outlets reporting China proposed to buy roughly $70 billion worth of U.S. ag and energy products if the US lifts its tariffs. However, some in the administration say the number is flawed.

Ag Secretary Sonny Perdue is vocal the Trump administration is leaning towards potentially drifting away from the trilateral North American Free Trade Agreement and heading toward two separate bilateral agreements.

News outlets reporting China proposed to buy roughly $70 billion worth of U.S. ag and energy products if the US lifts its tariffs. However, some in the administration say the number is flawed.

Ag Secretary Sonny Perdue is vocal the Trump administration is leaning towards potentially drifting away from the trilateral North American Free Trade Agreement and heading toward two separate bilateral agreements.

The head of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is taking fire from both sides of the aisle as major agricultural issues linger.

Iowa had a decent week of planting with corn planting climbing 23 points from the previous week. However, it still lags behind the five-year-average.

The I-80 Planting Tour continues in Illinois.

As the northern stretches of the U.S. are dealing with one of the coldest April on record, planters are slowly starting to unfreeze.

Embattled Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Scott Pruitt was on Capitol Hill Thursday defending not only the administration’s work but his ethics.

The I-80 Planting Tour continues this week in Indiana.

The Trump administration is taking action with China on what President Trump says is “the largest deficient of any country in the history of the world” with an announcement of tariffs on steel and aluminum.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Hogs and Pigs report on Thursday shows the hog herd is growing. The total herd size comes in at 73.5 million head. The number is the highest for the quarter since the government started its data tabulation nearly 30 years ago. Hogs on U.S. farms during the June through August quarter are up 2.5 percent last year at that time. The growth is now an all-time high for the quarter. The pork industry is adding and modernizing its plant space due to the expansion. AgDay national reporter Betsy Jibben looks the plants coming online and global demand. 

The front and back month contracts for pork are lingering near the $80 per head mark. It’s a price some didn’t expect to hang out this long with a flush of pork on the market. 

During the 2017 World Pork Expo in Des Moines, Ia., the pork industry stressed the importance of trade and expanding trade markets.