BAM_07-16-2015

AG Mag Keeping it Real

NorthCentral Illinois

The organic revolution has begun on a few NorthCentral Illinois farms

ASSESSING LAND: Are local land values still on the rise?

TALK IT OUT: Have a plan for avoiding an estate tax hit RECORD SETTER: A Tonica farmer raises the bar on soybeans

PRSRT STD U.S. POSTAGE PAID PERMIT NO. 486 PRINCETON, IL 61356 P.O. Ace Box Road 126 800 Creston, IA Princeton, IL50801 61356 CHANGE SERVICE CHANGE SERVICE REQUESTED REQUESTED

A Publication of Shaw Media

Summer 2015 AG Mag

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AG Mag

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Index

AG Mag

NorthCentral Illinois

Publisher Sam R Fisher Advertising Sales Development Director Pam Pratt Editor Terri Simon Magazine Editors Larry Lough, Jeff Rogers Reporters & Photographers Dave Cook, Goldie Currie, Pam Eggemeier, Lyle Ganther, Zita Henneberry, Alex T. Paschal, Jermaine Pigee, Ken Schroeder, Shannon Serpette, Terri Simon, Christi Warren, Vinde Wells, and Brenden West Published by Bureau County Republican 800 Ace Road Princeton, IL 61356 815-875-4461 Articles and advertisements are the property of Bureau County Republican. No portion of the NorthCentral Illinois Ag Mag may be reproduced without the written consent of the publisher. Ad content is not the responsibility of Bureau County Republican. The information in this magazine is believed to be accurate; however, Bureau County Republican cannot and does not guarantee its accuracy. Bureau County Republican cannot and will not be held liable for the quality or performance of goods and services provided by advertisers listed in any portion of this magazine.

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COVER STORY

Natural connection NorthCentral Illinois organic farmers are taking their land preservation measures to a new level.

Tax avoidance Today’s farmer must plan to ensure his survivors don’t get saddled with a large federal or state estate tax bill.

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Index Up or down?

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How are land values faring locally? Auctioneer Tom Tumbleson (left) and banker Derek Fetzer weigh in.

A legacy of champions The Ropp family in rural Buda has built a local dynasty with its competitive draft horses.

28 18 COVERING TRENDS Bean count

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6 Summer 2015

Soybean farmer Dan Arkels of Tonica in LaSalle County takes the Bushel Challenge, and sets a new record in the process.

Market fresh Putnam County’s Boggio’s Orchard and Produce rides wave of trend toward eating healthy and local.

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Index 34

Prior experience not necessary Marshall County student Rochele Rosa didn’t grow up in a farming family, but she’s quickly learned that agriculture is in her blood.

An industry mainstay Farming equipment company Diller-Rod has been serving the region for many years.

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BHE Renewables is excited to join the Bureau County community. As part of Berkshire Hathaway Energy, we are part of one of the leading renewable energy companies in the U.S. and have a proven record of successful projects all over the country. Our Bishop Hill II wind project in Henry County, Illinois has been producing wind energy since 2012, and we look forward to doing the same with the Walnut Ridge Wind Farm.

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Together with Bureau County and you, we can look forward to developing this project and providing clean energy in the future.

AG Mag

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Emily Kauffman, a worker at Edgewood Farm Organics in rural Princeton, stands amid the two-acre organic vegetable garden.

(Dave Cook/NorthCentral Illinois Ag Mag)

ORGANICALLY SPEAKING ...

Bureau County farms embrace natural lifestyle

T

BY DAVE COOK AND GOLDIE CURRIE For NorthCentral Illinois Ag Mag

ucked away in a valley, seemingly a world away from conventional farming, Edgewood Farm Organics, located in rural Princeton in Bureau County, is heading down the final stretch of the long road toward becoming a USDA-certified organic farm.

Since 2013, Katy Clarke has gradually been transforming her parents’ 130-acre property into an idyllic combination of organic farm and nature preserve. Her parents had already restored wetlands, which are just a stone’s

10 Summer 2015

throw from the two-acre vegetable patch.

They’re conservation-minded, so Clarke’s desire to farm organically was a perfect fit.

“Their prior work really helped us with the organic process,” Clarke said.

Farmers are known for having a connection to the land, but Clarke has taken it a step further and fully embraced a harmonious connection to nature. One certification requirement is to provide a buffer area of natural landscape between the organic area and conventionally farmed land to prevent chemical over-spray. Clarke’s property is nicely isolated as it is, but her parents had previously restored areas of prairie, so it has been maintained that way.

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Every farmed area on the property is surrounded by natural prairie and woodlands. An abundance of wildlife is present throughout the farm.

“They know they’re safe,” Clarke said.

3 years to get certified Receiving organic certification is a 3-year process that involves not only plenty of work in the fields, but also 3 years worth of recording crop history. A detailed record must be made of every crop rotation, location and product used.

Clarke feels it’s worth it, as the demand for organic products continues to grow. Last year she attended the Midwest Organic and Sustainable Education Service conference, which had 3,500 attendees. The inaugural conference in 1990 saw 90 attendees. The group helps farmers through the certification process and provides education

and mentoring programs.

Edgewood Farm, which takes its produce to local farmers markets, has a contract to provide weekly harvests to a Chicago suburb Community Supported Agriculture program, but it’s the contract to sell the grain that will be most valuable when it receives organic certification.

“We make money on the produce, but it’s the grain which will keep the farm sustainable,” Clarke said. “Having organic certification next year will bring us a premium price on our crops.”

Clarke has received informal farming mentorship from a local conventional farmer who has since become a friend.

“He gets all my farming questions, and he gets a lot of them” Clarke said with a laugh.

But her organic lifestyle and relationship with nature has started to rub off on him, as well, as this year he planted non-GMO corn for the first time.

“Baby steps,” Clarke said.

Naturally higher prices Consumers must pay more for organic. “[In 2006] corn was somewhat cheap, but organic corn was still probably close to double,” Sterling, Illinois, farmer Keith Landis said of his decision to go organic. “Milk prices – they were several dollars higher.”

Today, organic corn often sells for 3 to 4 times what conventionally raised corn costs – a product of higher input costs and a significantly lower supply.

But the growing – if still relatively small – demand for naturally raised products is a trend that Craig Chase, local food systems program manager at Iowa State University Extension, doesn’t see ending anytime soon.

“As far as trends in organic products, [demand has] been going up pretty much every year for the last 20 years or so,” he said.

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Goldie Currie/NorthCentral Illinois Ag Mag

Cherie House, co-owner of Meadow Haven Farm of rural Sheffield, stands in the cooler with more than 1,000 dozen organic chicken eggs, which are produced on her farm.

AG Mag 11

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“Even through the recession in 2008 and 2009, the demand for organic products continued to rise. And, as far as predictions, it’s probably going to continue to rise. … People talk about it leveling out, but it keeps on going.”

More than 19,000 farms in the United States are certified organic. In Illinois, there are more than 300; in Iowa, more than 800. Those numbers continue to grow.

Demand demands attention “I think people are really interested in and concerned about their health,” ISU’s Chase said. “They’re really concerned about what they eat, but not only that – what their children eat.

“Corporations like McDonald’s are going to have to go along with what [their consumers] want,” he said. “What we’re seeing from McDonald’s, and from others, is that they’re suggesting it.

They would like it, but they’re not mandating it yet.

“So what consumers are going to be looking for is, Where are the mandates?

Are you really going to, at some point, say my Chicken McNuggets are cagefree? … A lot of consumers are excited about it, and they’re just waiting for stuff like that to actually happen.”

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Dave Cook/NorthCentral Illinois Ag Mag

Katy Clarke (front, from left), owner of Edgewood Farm Organics, and workers Emily Kauffman and John Zearing pull weeds at the rural Princeton organic farm — seemingly a never-ending job.

But that doesn’t mean it’s end times for conventional farming – not even close.

Census numbers indicate that less 1 percent of farms in both Iowa and

Illinois were certified organic – just 0.1 percent in Illinois and 0.3 percent in Iowa.

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In talks with conventional farmers, Landis notes, the main reservation that holds them back from going organic is a general lack of knowledge, or lack of belief, when it comes to the effects of conventionally raised produce on humans.

“Some feel what they are doing is right,” he said. “I’m not necessarily going to say they’re wrong, but they do not feel what they’re doing is wrong at all, and they see there is no problem with [chemicals]. I know when I was looking at going organic, I called and talked to a number of other organic farmers, and the question I asked was, ‘What is the hardest part about going organic?’

And they all said it was about changing the mindset.”

Marnie Record, a coordinator with the Illinois Organic Growers Association, offers a more practical reason for the reluctance of conventional farmers to switch over.

“It’s a different type of farming,” she said. “They don’t want to deal with it. It’s a little bit more hands-on. It’s just a different way of doing things. Imagine having to change the entire way of doing your job. That’s hard to do for anybody. ... Also, the land has to have no chemicals put on it for 36 months, so that’s a tough time.”

Chemically free, and nutritious Meadow Haven Organic Farm of Sheffield, a small western Bureau County town, was founded 14 years ago by Allan and Jeanne Sexton.

At the time, the Sextons were on a mission to produce healthy food for their family, and they searched for the best land they could find to start an organic farm that would raise grass-fed beef, pastured pork, chickens, eggs, turkeys and ducks, as well as a large garden and orchard.

A couple of years into their adventure, Jeremy and Cherie House joined them on the farm.

Together the families are committed to the idea of food

that is not only free of chemicals, pesticides, herbicides, hormones and antibiotics, but is also highly nutritious, rich in minerals, vitamins and other nutrients.

The House family admits they had no real interest in farming organically before joining the Sextons, but when they began seeing the benefits of organic, they knew they’d never go back to conventional farming.

It took 3 years to transition the Sheffield land into certified organic.

Customer base grows Through the years, Meadow Haven has built a large costumer base that extends from the Quad Cities to Chicago.

Many costumers in the Quad Cities, Bloomington and Peoria areas are athletes from the local Crossfit gyms.

Also, Jeremy takes part in the Green City Market in Lincoln Park, Chicago, every Saturday throughout the summers and every couple of weekends in the winter; and Cherie makes monthly deliveries to the Chicago suburbs.

For the most part, Meadow Haven markets its products directly to the consumer.

“We get to set our own price,” Jeremy said, “but then we have to find our costumers, so there is a trade-off.”

The House family said they are seeing a large demand for organic products. Jeremy said a lot of reasons are behind that.

“Some of it has to do with social media,” he said. “Some people are not satisfied with treating a symptom. They want to treat the problem.

They are tired of being sick.

Those tend to be our best costumers.”

But with more demand, there could be a bad side to it all for the small organic farmers.

“I feel like the bigger corporations are seeing the demand grow, and so they’re jumping in,” Cherie said. “It’s going to do the same thing as it did to regular farming – the smaller farmers are going to struggle because we can’t match their prices.”

Reporter Christi Warren contributed to this report.

AG Mag

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There is a lot to do to go through an estate process.

There are a lot of dos and don’ts, as well as a lot of tricks and tips. Farmers should really seek the help of a good and knowledgeable accountant and attorney.

(Lyle Ganther/ NorthCentral Illinois Ag Mag)

PLANNING AHEAD CAN SAVE FARM FAMILIES

Professionals can help lessen federal, state tax burden

BY LYLE GANTHER For NorthCentral Illinois Ag Mag

A farmer in today’s world needs to get professional guidance from an accountant, an attorney, and a financial adviser to plan best how to not saddle his survivors with a large federal or state estate tax bill, experts say.

Nate Edlefson, a representative of Western Farm Business Farm Management Association in the Toulon office in Stark County, said the big14 Summer 2015

gest source of net worth for a farmer is farmland and equipment.

“It is not out of the realm once the value of farmland, equipment and grain is put together to have a net value of $15 million, if a farmer has about 1,000 acres of land,” he said. “So if you are over the exemption by $4 million, you can imagine a $2 million bill with federal and state estate taxes combined. A farmer certainly doesn’t want to sell land in order to satisfy

that liability. It is not a tax that works well with farm clients.”

The exemption for federal estate taxes is $5.43 million per spouse and $4 million for Illinois.

“Once you go over those amounts, then it is subject to that federal tax rate of 40 percent federal,” he said. “The reason it affects a lot of people in agriculture is that ag is a business that has a lot of assets in value but not a lot of cash.

You have all these assets, but they don’t generate a lot of cash in return.

CONTINUED ON 16

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“Once a farm couple gets assets more than $10.86 million, they will owe 40 percent in federal taxes over and above that,” Edlefson added. “Coming up with that in cash is the hard part because all of your money is tied up into land and equipment and things you need to produce the crops. That is why estate planning is very important to farm families.

It certainly comes into play more often than people think, particularly if you have these multi-generational farms that are trying to pass things down.”

If a need arises, the company does a team approach. It gets involved because it is the accountant, and it puts together a financial statement for a client. The company has a good idea what the net worth is, and then it will meet with the client, his attorney and even a financial adviser. By putting all their heads together, it’s easier to put together an estate that can make it through without paying a lot of estate taxes and planning to get it to the next generation, he said.

“Farmers can transfer their assets to the next generation to get their capital growth down,” Edlefson said. “We recently gave some of our clients that advice. Some chose to follow through, while others didn’t. Being proactive about it is a good thing.”

‘‘

U.S. Rep. Adam Kinzinger, R-Channahon

There are some special things farm families can do, such as a $1 million special use valuation exemption for farmland for farm families to account for the low return rate. Some restrictions placed on using this exemption are that the land has to stay in the family and be farmed a certain way, Edlefson added.

House votes for repeal The U.S. House this past spring voted to repeal the so-called “death tax,” but the bill faces an uncertain future in the Senate.

The issue solidly divides lawmakers along party lines – it is being pushed by Republicans, and is met with resistance

by Democrats.

Rep. Adam Kinzinger, R-Channahon, who voted for repeal, said he continues to work to get the bill passed in the Senate as part of a larger tax reform bill.

“More than 70 percent of family-owned businesses and farms do not

survive through the second generation, and 87 percent do not make it to a third generation,” Kinzinger said.

The 16th District lawmaker said he believes the estate tax is a contributing factor that makes it difficult for farmers to do estate planning.

“Farm families are especially harmed by the estate tax because they are often land rich but cash poor, forcing the inherited land to be sold after a death to satisfy the tax bill,” Kinzinger said.

U.S. Rep. Cheri Bustos, D-East Moline, has also walked the party line on the estate tax. In April she voted against the repeal it, but said her vote was more about fiscal responsibility than tax reform, because she feared it could increase the budget deficit.

“I have long supported bipartisan, comprehensive reform of our tax code that closes unfair loopholes and lowers rates,” said Bustos, who sits on two agricultural subcommittees.

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16 Summer 2015

’’

Farm families are especially harmed by the estate tax because they are often land rich but cash poor, forcing the inherited land to be sold after a death to satisfy the tax bill.

CONTINUED ON 17

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Bustos said she couldn’t predict whether the estate tax would even make it to the Senate floor, but she hopes the parties come together on a comprehensive tax reform package.

“I am encouraged that leaders from both parties, in the House and Senate, have expressed a desire to achieve this goal, and I stand ready to work with them in this effort,” Bustos said.

Part of larger tax reform?

The bill needs at least 60 votes in the Senate to pass, so Republicans cannot do it without Democratic support.

However, even if the GOP can muster enough votes to proceed, the chances of the tax being taken off the books anytime soon are slim.

If the bill makes its way through the Senate, Republicans don’t expect President Obama to sign it.

A presidential election looms next year, and it could be an issue that neither party wants to be associated with until the next president is chosen.

The bill went through the House as a separate item, but in the Senate it will be part of a much larger tax reform plan – one that isn’t likely to develop quickly.

“The Senate Finance Committee is looking at tax reform issues, as are several study groups,” said Adam Nielsen, director of national legislation and policy development for Illinois Farm Bureau. “The estate tax has kind of dropped off the radar screen for now.”

Tax issues were at the heart of the fiscal cliff situation when a budget stalemate threatened to trigger a combination of expiring tax cuts and reductions in spending at the end of 2012.

‘‘

At that time, agriculture lobbyists were working to fend off a threatened reduction in the estate tax exemption to $3.5 million. It was left at $5 million, and now after regular adjustments for inflation, the first $5.43 million of any estate is exempt from taxes.

A more pressing issue Farm Bureau is still working to have the estate tax repealed, but another tax is considered more important this year.

“Tax issues are still a high priority for Farm Bureau,” Nielsen said, “and the estate tax is an enormous part of that, but more emphasis is being put on the small business expensing option.”

Commonly known by its tax classification, the Section 179 option allows small businesses and farmers to deduct up to $500,000 a year on capital purchases.

“Section 179 expires every year, and every year farmers converge on Washington to lobby for it not to be cut,” Nielsen said.

In addition to producers, farm equipment dealerships have a vested interest in the tax writeoff. Any expensing cuts would defer the purchase of big-ticket items until the tax climate became more favorable.

“Section 179 already expired, and it was extended for a year,” Nielsen said.

“The closer we get to the 2016 election, the more likely these issues are to be politicized.”

Farm Bureau hasn’t lost all hope that the “death tax” could die before the election.

“There is still potential for the tax to be repealed in the Senate,” Nielsen said, “but within the context of broader tax reform, if it doesn’t catch momentum, it could take a while.”

Pam Eggemeier contributed to this report.

The closer we get to the 2016 election, the more likely these issues are to be politicized.

Adam Nielsen, director of national legislation and policy development for Illinois Farm Bureau

’’

AG Mag

17

FRESH AT THE FARMERS MARKETS Shannon Serpette/NorthCentral Illinois Ag Mag

Denise Boggio (left) and Jena Dalzot cut and clean fresh asparagus at Boggio’s Orchard and Produce in Granville. Boggio said she has noticed an explosion in the popularity of farmers markets in the past 5 years.

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18 Summer 2015

Eating locally at Putnam County’s Boggio’s Orchard and Produce

BY SHANNON SERPETTE For NorthCentral Illinois Ag Mag

Denise Boggio wasn’t born into the world of agriculture.

“I married into the business,” she said.

Since 1979, when she married Keith Boggio, she has immersed herself into this world, working the fields and eventually the market they built at Boggio’s Orchard and Produce in Granville.

The Boggios enjoy handling food from its beginnings to the time it is sold – they pick it, clean it and sell it.

In the past 5 years or so, Denise said, she has noticed an explosion in the popularity of farmers markets.

She credits part of that popularity to attempts to get people to eat locally and to know where their food comes from.

Older generations were used to picking their own food and eating local food because there were many smaller family farms at that time, and even those who didn’t have farms often grew small vegetable gardens in their backyards.

The younger generations, however, have been used to getting fruit and vegetables from stores, where often the produce been imported from other countries, Denise said.

Jena Dalzot of Spring Valley, who has

Shannon Serpette/NorthCentral Illinois Ag Mag

Loaded with nutrients and low in sodium and calories, asparagus is a great dietary choice. Asparagus can be added to a variety of dishes, but is also tasty on its own. worked at Boggio’s Orchard and Produce for 6 years, explained the appeal of farmers markets.

“I think just seeing everything fresh and not packaged,” Dalzot said. “I think that really is a big seller.”

Farmers markets are a bit of a novelty for younger adults, particularly ones who come from an urban background, Denise said.

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AG Mag

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The farmers markets draw in a lot of younger people, especially families, and in the fall, Boggio’s Orchard brings in many clients from urban areas such as Chicago and Peoria.

Denise said many people go to farmers markets and the orchard not even knowing what fruits and vegetables are in season – mainly because they can get many of them at the grocery store at any time of the year.

But the flavor of imported produce in the grocery store can’t compare with the taste of fresh fruits and vegetables, according to Denise. Fresh, homegrown tomatoes, for instance, taste much better than the types of tomatoes people can buy in the store during the winter, she said.

Farmers markets also allow customers to meet the seller, which is something they won’t get at a grocery store, Keith said.

“They see the people who grew it,” he said.

Produce-starring recipes Quart Mason Jar Dressing Ingredients: 1/2 cup vegetable oil 1/2 cup sugar 1/3 cup ketchup 1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce 1/2 of a red onion finely chopped.

Directions: Mix together all ingredients. Pairs nicely with the spinach salad.

Spinach Salad Ingredients: Fresh spinach crumbled cooked bacon chopped hard boiled eggs diced red onions Directions: Mix together all ingredients. Customize the quantities to your liking.

Grilled asparagus Ingredients: Fresh asparagus Season All Directions: Spray asparagus with olive oil or coat with extra virgin olive oil, sprinkle with Season All. Grill over low to medium heat, turning every few minutes until desired tenderness.

Orzo with lemon and asparagus Ingredients: 1 and 1/2 cups uncooked orzo 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided 1 small uncooked onion, chopped 2 cups uncooked fresh asparagus, sliced into bite-sized pieces.

1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese 2 tablespoons lemon zest grated 4 medium uncooked scallions, chopped 3 tablespoons fresh dill, chopped 2 tablespoons lemon juice or more to taste 1/4 teaspoon table salt or to taste 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper or to taste Directions: Bring salted water to a boil in a large saucepan. Add orzo as package directs.

Meanwhile, melt one tablespoon butter in nonstick skillet over medium heat, add onion and cook, stirring often until tender, about 3 minutes.

Stir in asparagus and cook, stirring often until lightly browned and tender, about 3 to 5 minutes.

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NorthCentral Illinois farmers markets BUREAU COUNTY Bureau County Farmers Market Corner of Elm Place and North Main Street, Princeton Open: 3-6 p.m. Tuesday, 8:30 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturday, May to October Products sold: Produce and home-baked goods from Bureau, LaSalle, Lee, Whiteside, Henry, Stark, Marshall and Putnam counties Sheffield Farmers Market At Cornerstone Community Wellness Center, 302 N. Mason St., along Routes 6 and 34, east of town, Sheffield Open: 4-7 p.m. Thursdays Products sold: Fresh produce, baked goods and more Grow Walnut!

South of Memorial Park on the corner of Main and Jackson streets, Walnut Open: 8 a.m.-noon Saturdays Products sold: Homegrown produce, meats and handmade baked goods and gifts Spring Valley Farmers Market 100 E. Dakota St. (Heartland Bank & Trust parking lot), Spring Valley Open: 4-6 p.m. Wednesdays Products sold: Homegrown and

homemade foods, produce and other products Neponset Farmers Market Bach’s parking lot, Neponset Open: 2-5 p.m. Saturdays Products sold: Homegrown produce PUTNAM COUNTY Boggio’s Orchard and Produce 12087 IL Route 71 Open: 9 a.m.-6 p.m. Monday-Saturday, 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Sunday Products sold: Homegrown and homemade foods, as well as other products LaSALLE COUNTY Downtown LaSalle Canal Market First and Marquette streets, LaSalle Open: Saturdays Products sold: Art, produce, jewelry, baked goods, fine crafts, plants, jams and jellies, fresh flowers, etc.

Products sold: Locally grown produce, organic products, bakery items, fresh grown vegetables, handmade crafts, fruits, jams, and jellies Ottawa Area Chamber of Commerce Farmers Market Jackson Street, south of Washington Square Park, Ottawa Open: 8 a.m.-12:30 p.m. Saturdays Products sold: Plants, flowers, locally grown produce, homemade baked goods, dog treats, breakfast items, and specialty coffee syrups; every fourth Saturday is Artist and Artisans Day featuring local art and jewelry Larson’s Country Market Inc. 1968 E. U.S. Route 34, Leland Hours vary. Call 815-495-2500 for hours of operation and availability of seasonal fruits and vegetables

LaSalle Farmers Market Second and Gooding streets, La Salle Open: 3-6 p.m. Tuesdays

Marseilles Farmers Market 200 Lincoln St., Marseilles Open: 1-6 p.m. Wednesdays Products sold: Fresh produce, baked good, crafts and flea market items

Mendota Farmers Market 700 Main St., Mendota Open: 8 a.m.-noon Saturdays

North Bloomington Street Farmers Market 1215 N. Bloomington St., Route

23, Streator Open: 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Thursdays Products sold: Garden fresh vegetable and fruits Streator Downtown Farmers Market 200 E. Main St., Streator Open: 9 a.m.-1 p.m. Saturdays Products sold: All popular vegetables, berries, apples, pumpkins, straw, cornstalks, honey, baked goods, eggs, herbs, plants, artisan crafts HENRY COUNTY Kewanee Farmers Market 200 W. Third St., Kewanee Open: 7:30-11 a.m. Wednesday and Saturday, 4-7 p.m. Thursday Products sold: Homegrown produce, baked goods and handmade crafts Geneseo Farmers Market North City Park, Geneseo Open: 8 a.m.- noon Saturdays Products sold: Homegrown produce, baked goods and handmade crafts MARSHALL COUNTY Henry Farmers Market Central Park, Henry Open: Saturday mornings Products sold: Homegrown produce

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Farmers markets a cooperative effort Vendors advised on selling techniques

BY VINDE WELLS For NorthCentral Illinois Ag Mag

Hans and Helen Metoyer of Byron attended a farmers market training session this spring to look for a way to make the most of their perennial abundance of garden produce.

Helen good-naturedly ribbed her husband about his green thumb.

“He’s always planting, and half of it is thrown out,” she said, “so we thought we’d try a farmers market.”

Hans agreed with a grin.

The couple were two of the dozen or so people who attended a mid-April training session sponsored by Ogle, DeKalb, and Boone County University of Illinois Extension at the Ogle County Farm Bureau building in Oregon.

Andrew Larson, Extension

educator for Local Food Systems and Small Farms, led the session on marketing and merchandising for Andrew farmers market Larson vendors.

Topics ranged from how to set up a booth and what color tent is best to pricing products and how to deal with challenging customers.

On the last subject, experienced vendor Steve Hammer, Oregon, offered a simple solution. “Keep smiling,” he said with a grin.

Larson said farmers markets are a fast-growing business, although not usually a main income source.

“Farmers markets are growing in the Midwest, and it’s generally a side gig,” he said. “The majority of vendors make less than $5,000 per year.”

Although fresh vegetables

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and home-grown produce is the thing farmers markets are known for, Larson pointed out that many other home-grown and homemade products are offered.

Fresh eggs, maple syrup, baked goods, and craft items are also routinely part of the fare.

Larson, himself a farmers market vendor, offered tips and tricks of the trade.

Customer service should be the main priority, he said.

Booths should be set up for customer convenience and good traffic flow.

Finding out and then providing what customers are looking for develops a relationship that keeps customers coming back, Larson advised.

He advised vendors to have a name for their business and display on an eye-catching sign so customers will remember them.

He stressed the importance of displaying products in an

eye-catching way, using contrasting colors to make items “pop.”

Products should be positioned in the sell zone “from eyeball to elbow,” he said, to be noticed and for customers’ convenience.

Some of his advice was light-hearted and drew a hearty laugh from his audience.

“Don’t put your product on the ground, especially if your farmers markets allows dogs,” he joked. “Nobody want a pumpkin that’s has a leg lifted on it.”

Teamwork between vendors is important to the success of the farmers market, Larson said, urging his listeners to consider other vendors as co-workers rather than competition.

“If you don’t have what the customer asks for, send him or her to another vendor who does,” he said. “Look for opportunities for cooperation.”

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AG Mag

23

LAY OF

Increasing or decreasing land prices?

A

BY TERRI SIMON For NorthCentral Illinois Ag Mag

uctioneer Tom Tumbleson, owner of Tumbleson Auction Co. of Princeton in Bureau County, said he had seen local land prices in the Midwest increase in recent years.

“Land prices have escalated tremendously in the last 5 years all over the Midwest,” Tumbleson said. “The reason for it is not the grain or corn or bean prices; it’s because people want to invest their money in land.

It has to do with the interest rate and what they do with their money.”

Tumbleson added there are certain tax advantages for those who buy and sell land for income tax purposes, Tumbleson said he’s seen farmland sell in the area for $13,000 to $15,000 an acre. Likewise, he’s also seen pasture and timber land go up as well.

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24 Summer 2015

“Honestly, it’s usually farmers and investors buying this land, but the percentage is mostly neighbors,” he said, adding he recently sold a farm in Bureau County for $8,600 an acre. In 1966, that same farm sold for $600 an acre.

“It was just an average farm. It wasn’t nothing that was top shelf,” he said. “And then I sold another that went for $15,000 an acre, which was all tillable.”

Tumbleson said he sees a cycle in land/real estate sales, adding he’s seen ups and downs.

“The trends fluctuate,” he said.

‘A lot of variables’

Derek Fetzer, vice president of agribusiness banking for Heartland Band and Trust Co., which has offices in Bureau, LaSalle and Marshall counties, agrees with Tumbleson’s fluctuating trends theory, but he believes prices are actually trending downward.

THE LAND

Auctioneer, banker see trends in land sales “There are always a lot of variables,” Fetzer said about a person’s decision to sell acreage.

Fetzer said he had seen A quality ground go from $13,000-$15,000 an acre to $10,000$12,000. Regarding B quality ground, he’s watched prices drop from $11,000-$15,000 an acre to $7,000-$10,000.

Fetzer also said he is seeing fewer properties go up for sale now, primarily because the price has gone down.

“Many families are sitting on their property until it goes back up,” he said.

Fetzer attributes the lower land values to the commodity prices coming down. He said if someone is contemplating selling farmland, he would suggest the prospective seller speak with local auctioneers to get an opinion from them.

“I wouldn’t be selling things now,” Fetzer said, “but every situation is different. If you don’t have to sell, I probably would hold on

for a while.”

He suggested late fall and early winter is probably the best time to sell farmland, since potential buyers can realize income with a spring planting.

Not a ‘bubble bursting’

Tim Eggers, field agricultural economist at Iowa State University, said falling land prices are no reason to panic.

“This is not an alarmist type of situation,” Eggers said. “It is merely a recognition of lower profitability and the fact that producers have been in the primary land purchasers.”

The land price correction is taking place on a national scale, said Ryan Drollette, a farm management educator with the Iowa State Extension office in Iowa City. However, it’s hitting various pockets at a different rate.

CONTINUED ON 26

AG Mag

25

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In Iowa, he said, the correction hasn’t been so swift. In states like Illinois and Indiana, it took hold sooner.

Experts don’t really know what’s in store for land and commodity prices, Drollette said.

“There’s some sentiment that we’re going to continue to see it correct downward,” Drollette said. “It’s just a matter of how far we see it correct downward.”

His role in the state is to educate, but farmers are constantly asking him the same questions: Should they sell now, what is their land worth, and how far down will the correction spiral?

Drollette doesn’t have the answers, but he recommends landowners get their land professionally appraised if they’re looking for solutions.

“I can’t tell people if they should sell now,” Drollette said. “I can give them a general ballpark figure. I always tell individuals if you want an actual value ... call up a land appraiser.”

But local and statewide land appraisers seem to agree with Iowa State’s Eggers: this market shift is a correction, not a bubble that’s bursting.

Correction relatively mild Keith Zoeller is a Sterling-based accredited farm manager and a

Terri Simon/NorthCentral Illinois Ag Mag

Tom Tumbleson, owner of Tumbleson Auction Co. of Princeton, attributes what he calls a tremendous escalation of land prices locally in the past 5 years to interest rates and people wanting to invest their money in farm properties. long-standing member of the Illinois Society of Professional Farm Managers and Rural Appraisers. His experience spans 33 years, and he says he’s “seen it all.”

The market drop, naturally, might concern some landowners, Zoeller said. But it’s nothing close to what happened to the market when he started in the 1980s – a period in which Zoeller observed a 25-percent national dropoff in farm values.

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“I’ve seen the bottom; I’ve seen the top,” Zoeller said. “I don’t think we’ll see what we saw in the 1980s. I think our prices should level out a little more.”

When grain prices were high, Zoeller said, investors were buying land left and right. Now that prices have leveled off, the net income for land and its yield is lower, making those investors less apt to buy.

CONTINUED ON 27

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“Our land values had drastically increased over the last 4 to 5 years. A lot of it had to do with corn and soy prices going sky high,” Zoeller said. “The farmers were making lots of money.

They decided that it’s time to start buying land. ...

“I think a lot of your land investors that were in the market before are just sitting back now and waiting to see where the good prices are going to,” he added. “When you can’t get a return on the property, investors aren’t going to buy it.”

Zoeller estimated that during the upswing, 70 percent of land purchases were being made by land investors.

Most of the purchases now are being made by individual producers because “they have other ways to make it pay.”

“If they can get a return, they’ll buy the ground,” Zoeller said.

Watch interest rates

But commodity prices aren’t the only indicators to watch.

Dave Aberle is vice president of 1st Farm Credit Services in Rock Falls, Illinois, a branch of the largest ag lender in the state. He pays mind to the interest rates, which have been low for several years.

All the while, ag land borrowing ticked

up during the fall 2014, according to the Kansas City Federal Reserve.

Experts anticipate interest rates will eventually go up, again affecting land values.

“The big factor that influKeith ences land values is comZoeller modity prices and what interest rates are doing,” Aberle said. “Commodity prices were high and interest rates were low, so that’s what got the land prices to go up so high.”

He said his recent clientele is almost exclusively individual farmers.

“At one time, there might have been 20 percent [investors seeking loans],” Aberle said. “Now it’s virtually zero – less than 5 percent. Investors haven’t been too interested since [values] jumped up the last 3 years.”

He recommends land buyers keep in mind what they’re able to afford. It’s a personal decision.

“Make sure you’re looking at your cash flows, and make sure you can handle a drop in commodity prices,” Aberle said.

“You’re going to have to subsidize your purchases with today’s prices. If that farm isn’t going to pay for itself, you’re going to have to generate income to pay for that farm.”

‘‘

I wouldn’t be selling things now, but every situation is different. If you don’t have to sell, I probably would hold on for a while.

Derek Fetzer, vice president of agribusiness banking for Heartland Band and Trust Co.

Reporter Brenden West contributed to this story.

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Pulling for victory Ropp family horses have championship legacy

BY DAVE COOK • For NorthCentral Illinois Ag Mag

It’s not hard to guess what goes through most people’s minds when they first see Dale Ropp’s Percheron horses.

But once you get past their immense size, it’s the presence of their steady and affectionate disposition that leaves a lasting impression. These aren’t over-sized affectionate pets, though; these are championship-level athletes who are focused and drive, whether it’s time to train or compete.

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Living in rural Buda, members of the Ropp family – Dale and his wife Sally; their daughter Tami; her husband, Mike; daughter Patricia and granddaughter Jenna – are all integral to the success of the family’s competitive draft horses.

Percherons derive their name from Le Perche, a small province about 50 miles southwest of Paris, France.

When the day of the war horse had faded, the people of Le Perche, long associated with horses, adapted their best to fill the need for a heavy coach horse.

After Americans became fond of them in the 1800s, the U.S. saw a massive influx of the breed, and the Percheron became one of America’s best-loved horses. According to The Percheron Horse Association of America, more than 70 percent of purebred draft horses in America during the 1930s were Percherons.

As modernized equipment continued to threaten the horse’s place, much of the farm press was still loyal to the horse as the most economical source of farm power during the Depression, when corn was cheap and gasoline wasn’t. But, after the end of World War II, veterans returning to the farm were more mechanically inclined, and the nation’s stock of draft horses dramatically dropped, bottoming out in 1954, when just 85 head were recorded.

Since that time, the breed has been kept going by those devoted to the breed, those sharing the pleasure of working with them at nonfarm tasks, and thousands of Amish farmers who stuck with the horse as their source of farm power.

Dale Ropp, who first got involved with Percherons in 1990, has been competing since 2000. He feels they not only stand favorably to other drafters (Belgians, Clydesdales and Shires) but are the most athletic of the drafting breeds.

“We’ve competed at every level and in every class, and have had success against some of the best drafters in the world,” Ropp said.

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Dave Cook/ NorthCentral Illinois Ag Mag

The Percherons on the Ropp farm in Buda have a temperament that is second to none. Steady, patient, willing to work and clearly a part of the family, the horses are valued family members of Dale and Sally Ropp.

He has competed for years in county fairs within about a 3-hour drive, the Illinois State Fair, and the Brit Iowa Invitational, which is limited to the finest 18 drafting teams. The Ropps have also been a part of Indiana’s Horse Progress Days, an event that showcases newly manufactured agricultural equipment modified for those who farm with horses.

While discussing how things have changed since he started, Ropp spoke of a greater interest in the riding classes, which are always very well attended.

“Whether the show is large or small, the training and preparation are the same,” Ropp said. “They’re athletes, so they have to be conditioned; it can take 1 to 2 months to get them ready; each horse has it’s own process.”

The initial training for a new horse is a long and involved process before they even get hitched to a team. Ropp’s expertise in training is apparent in a video of the first time Chase, Ropp’s youngest horse, was hitched with a veteran horse. Chase remains calm and falls immediately in step with the more experienced horse.

CONTINUED ON 30

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CONTINUED FROM 29

“There was a lot of work that was done before this happened,” Ropp said.

Since he began competing, he has maintained and built an ever-growing video library of every competition. Each video is put in a slow-motion loop to help determine what adjustments need to be made to their training or to the tack.

Ropp said competitions are a friendly, social event with like-minded people.

“Everyone there is willing to help you in any way or give you whatever you need. They’ll jump right in and help you and are happy to do so, but as soon as you get into the arena, they’re trying to beat you,” Ropp said with a laugh.

Throughout the years, the Ropps have owned 70 head overall, but are now scaling down their operation. Ropp said he can see himself transitioning into the training of young draft horses, but he will gradually move away from competitions.

“I really enjoy working with the young horses,” he said.

They currently have three Percherons.

Ace and Ollie, 8, are the veteran competitors, and Chase, 3, is the upcoming rookie.

“It’s a big burden on the amateur, and the expenses can quickly pass out of the hobby realm,” Ropp explained.

“It’s also very time consuming; every-

Dave Cook/NorthCentral Illinois Ag Mag

Dale and Sally Ropp stand with two of their three Percherons — Ace and Ollie.

The Ropps have been quite successful in the show ring with these huge horses, yet more important, these animals have become a part of their family. thing involved has to fit into your daily schedule, and there’s no profit to be made unless you’re a breeder. The rewards have to be something other than money.”

“A History of the Percheron Horse” (1917) describes the breed’s history and relationship with those who created it: “... particularly prized and accustomed to the affectionate attention of the entire household. Their docility, growing out of their intimate human rela-

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tionship is therefore an inborn trait.”

When read that passage, Ropp nodded.

“I agree completely,” he said. “There are times at the end of the day, after they’ve been turned out to pasture, when I’m watching them, they’ll approach me and nuzzle me – that feeling is what makes it all worthwhile. If a horse can make me feel like that, then he’s fulfilled his role as a horse, as far as I’m concerned.”

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Breaking the barrier Tonica farmer grows 104 bushel per acre of soybeans

BY KEN SCHROEDER For NorthCentral Illinois Ag Mag

When the U.S. Department of Agriculture released figures for the Illinois 2014 soybean crop in February, estimates put the record-breaking total at an average of slightly more than 50 bushels an acre, a level once thought impossible to break.

Don’t tell that to Dan Arkels of Tonica in LaSalle County.

“It started a year ago when I went to Commodity Classic in San Antonio,” Arkels said. “I was approached by a representative from Stoller USA; they make biological products.

“We got together and he said, ‘The Illinois Soybean Association has a yield contest, and we would like to help you accomplish that goal.’ I had tried for a couple of years, and I couldn’t even get close. I got within the mid-80s, but I couldn’t get any closer.”

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The extra help and determination must have made a difference. On a 30-acre test plot, Arkels answered the ISA 100 Bushel Challenge with 103.95 bushels an acre, nearly 15 bushels more than the previous record.

Arkels said it didn’t happen overnight; it took a lot of work.

“It wasn’t easy, but it can be done, if you have the right soil and the right growing season,” Arkels said. “I had fertility down for a 100-bushel crop; potash and phosphate to support that crop; and nitrogen was applied to the crop in small increments throughout the growing season. The latest seed technology from Pioneer and a full-season bean, and we took care of them with a lot of application of product throughout the growing season.

“We did two ground applications with foliar products in them, and then four aerial applications after that,” Arkels said. “We had a sprayer over that field six times altogether, and each time we had a cocktail of products that was going to feed and protect the crop to keep that crop as healthy as we could during the growing season.”

Arkels said although last year was a

good growing season, it was not a great season. With no rain through the month of July and into early August, his crop started to stress, especially during the heat of the day.

With the man hours and extra chemicals it took to achieve nearly 104 bushels per acre, the question is, Was it economically successful?

“Everybody asks me that question,” Arkels said. “I don’t get into actual numbers of ‘I spent such-and-such dollars and sold it at this price,’ but I can tell you normal production acres yielded in the upper 70s throughout the 1,000 acres of soybeans. I added 25 bushels of soybeans to my Illinois Soybean Association high-yield plot. If you take 25 bushels of beans times $10, that’s what they are today, that’s $250 of extra income per acre. I did not spend $250 extra.”

Arkels said he learned a lot from the experience, and while he will take much of what he learned from the plot and apply it to the rest of his crop, he doesn’t plan now to apply the same care to his entire crop. He will, however, continue to experiment to find a combination that will raise his yields.

“If you don’t change your methods,” he observed, “you’ll never change your crop.”

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Dan Arkels holds some of the fruits of his labor. Arkels was able to grow 104 bushels per acre on his test plot. He said the most important thing to do that most farmers fail to consider is fertilize the soil enough. “If you want to grow a hundred bushels, you need to fertilize for a hundred bushels,” Arkels said. Arkels tended the field carefully, including a total of six sprayings over the course of the growing season.

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Science of soybeans: New technologies still dependent on weather

BY KEN SCHROEDER For NorthCentral Illinois Ag Mag

According to the University of Illinois, the U.S. soybean crop 50 years ago was one of the smallest during the past 60 years – about 22.5 bushel an acre. Throughout the intervening half-century, harvest numbers have increased with a few hiccups until the 2014 harvest of an estimated 47.5 bushels. Illinois set the bar with a record estimated 56. Just 5 years ago, the average nationwide was 41 bushels.

While new farm technologies and techniques have had a lot to do with that, it all starts with the seed, and today’s soybean is very different from the one your fathers and grandfathers planted in the ’60s.

In beating the 100 bushelan-acre challenge, Tonica’s

Dan Arkels made it clear he had help from others to get the job done. Among the people he cited were Lukach Seed Co. and Pioneer Seed.

Between the advice and product, Arkels was able to achieve what nobody else did.

So what’s in the future for seed? More of the same ... and more.

“We’ve had 2 years of record soybean yields, and we’re looking forward to striving to another one with the new genetics we have coming to the table,” George Lukach, co-owner of Lukach Seed, said. “We’ve learned a lot in the last 3 years in specific to certain applications and treatments that are driving soybean yields higher.”

It starts with the seed, and soybeans have been genetically modified to

George (left) and Dan Lukach stand with a bag of Pioneer’s P34T07R2, which Dan Arkels used for his record crop.

George said the seed is part of the new “T” series from Pioneer that is the culmination of 3 years of development and treatment behind the product line. The Lukachs and Arkels’ sales agent, Drew Schlumpf, worked with Arkels to advise him and help him achieve his goal. remove unwanted traits while improving growth and performance traits through DNA manipulation. The first genetically modified soybeans were planted in the U.S. in 1996. Today, most of the American crop has been genetically modified, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

While seed and hard work can get you there, it’s not a guarantee.

“We know the genetics have the ability to produce in excess of 100 bushel[an acre] on soybeans, but there’s a lot to go into that.

Weather is probably the biggest component to driving yields,” Lukach said.

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AG Mag

33

No farming background, but still ag in her blood Rochele Rosa embraces world of agriculture

BY SHANNON SERPETTE For NorthCentral Illinois Ag Mag

Shannon Serpette/NorthCentral Illinois Ag Mag

Rochele Rosa (left) has impressed Marshall-Putnam Farm Bureau manager Tiffany Moodie during their interactions. Moodie said Rosa is always quick to reply to correspondence and has a great work ethic. Rosa wants to encourage more youths to join FFA and pursue careers in agriculture.

As a young child, Rochele Rosa of Varna in Marshall County never envisioned agriculture as a career path. Despite living in a small rural town, she had no ties to agriculture. Her family didn’t come from a farming background – her mother is a nurse, and her father is a quality engineer.

Future Farmers of America was something she had no interest in joining, as she wrapped up her grade school career.

“It was not on my radar before I got to high school,” Rosa said.

But then she attended a high school orientation that included information about raising chicks, which reminded her of a project she did in her early elementary school years. She asked how she could sign up for that class.

CONTINUED ON 35

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“I was told that in order to take that class, I had to take Intro to Ag,” she said.

Once she was introduced to the world of agriculture, Rosa knew she had found her home. Since then, she has fully immersed herself into the field, learning everything she can.

Those who interact with Rosa clearly see her passion for agriculture.

“She’s very interested,” said Tiffany Moodie, Marshall-Putnam Farm Bureau manager.

Moodie said she is especially impressed by Rosa’s ability to follow up on projects thoroughly and promptly.

Now nearing the end of her term as 2014-15 Illinois Section 5 FFA President, Rosa said her decision to join FFA has allowed her to learn skills she never dreamed possible and visit places she never thought she’d go.

Get to know Rochele Rosa Town of residence: Varna County of residence: Marshall Year in school: Just finished freshman year at Illinois Central College Are you interested in pursuing a career in agriculture? I am currently double majoring in Agriculture Communications and Agriculture Education with the expectation to either go into public relations/marketing or become an FFA adviser.

Do you have a farming or ag-related background? Although I have grown up in an agriculture-dominant community where me and the neighborhood kids would play in the fields before planting and after harvest, I do not have a background in farming. I was surrounded by it for years but never truly understood it.

How did you first become interested in agriculture? High school orientation introduced me to the FFA. At the time, all I knew was that they raised chicks in the classroom, and that was something that seemed fun.

After 5 years in the FFA, two Silver Placements in a National Career Development Event, two trips to Washington, D.C., and countless memories and knowledge of the agriculture industry learned, I am now nearing the end of my term as 2014-15 Illinois Section 5 FFA President.

What ag-related subjects are you most

interested in? I am most interested in Agriculture Communications and Agriculture Education. Ag Comm was one of the CDE’s that my team and I placed silver in, as well as Agricultural Issues.

Why is agriculture important to you? Agriculture is important to me because the entirety of the food, fiber and energy industry represents the infrastructure of the nation, which is something too many people overlook, but I appreciate it greatly.

What is your favorite ag-related experience? My favorite ag-related experience has been any and all moments in the FFA, whether serving my local Midland Chapter, my section or the Illinois Association FFA. Any chance to uplift the future leaders of the industry and country has been a joy in and of itself.

What do you think the field of agriculture has to offer young people? With the food, fiber and energy industry representing 20 percent of both Illinois’ economy and the national economy – that’s one out of every five jobs – I believe that the field of agriculture offers stability and peace of mind to young people when it comes to job prospects. The public will always need food for themselves and their families, clothes to put on their backs, and energy to light their homes. So, agriculture isn’t an economic fad. It’s here to stay.

CONTINUED ON 36

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CONTINUED FROM 35

She has been to Washington, D.C., twice, something she says she wouldn’t have done without FFA. “I’m the oldest of seven,” she said. “We don’t go on many family vacations.”

In addition, her public speaking ability, time management and networking skills have all improved greatly because of FFA. “FFA has prepared me for the business world, and for that, I am forever grateful,” she said.

Seeing the different personalities and disciplines FFA brings together is one of her favorite things about the group – FFA unites like minds who all come together for one overall cause.

“But we’re still incredibly diverse,” Rosa said. “It’s really interesting to see how all compartments of agriculture are linked together.”

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36 Summer 2015

Farmers use best practices to protect environment

A

s an Illinois soybean farmer, I care about maintaining soil and water health for my family and for all consumers.

I want to know the nutrients we apply to our crops are not wasted, but rather used efficiently by those crops. It’s good for our business, and it is good for the environment.

Many farmers rely on best management practices (BMPs) to help protect our natural resources. BMPS include soil and water conservation practices that are uniquely practical and effective on our farms. Often, we use our own best combination of BMPs to meet those goals.

That’s why the Illinois Soybean Association (ISA) supports the use of voluntary, incentive-based programs focused on BMPs to address nutrient losses from Illinois farm fields.

BMPs were included in the draft Illinois Statewide Nutrient Loss Reduction Strategy (NLRS) that was open for public comment earlier this year. ISA worked with other agricultural, environmental and industry groups, the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency and the Illinois Department of Agriculture to provide

SHARON COVERT Director, District 4 Illinois Soybean Association

feedback on the strategy. As part of the NLRS draft, municipal wastewater treatment facilities, urban storm water and other industries also were asked to dedicate new efforts and resources to reduce nutrient losses from their sectors.

To achieve agriculture’s goals, Illinois farmers will continue to reduce nutrient losses, as well as look for new ways to improve nutrient use by the crops we grow. We have listened to consumer concerns about farming practices, and want consumers to know we are proud of the practices we implement to improve our environmental stewardship in our local communities.

Many agriculture-led initiatives are in place to help farmers continue to improve nutrient use.

ISA is a member of the Illinois Council on Best Management Practices (C-BMP), a coalition of agribusinesses and agricultural organizations that encourages adoption of best management practices to protect and enhance natural resources and the sustainability of agriculture in Illinois. It also is an important resource for nutrient management information.

CONTINUED ON 37

CONTINUED FROM 36

We have a 3-year cover crop initiative underway with regional specialists to provide training, education and outreach to promote the use of cover crops for nutrient management. This summer, we will host events to further promote wise nutrient use.

The environmental landscape in Illinois is changing for both consumers and farmers. And as farmers continue to implement BMPs, we can continue to improve the efficiency of crop nutrients and ultimately water quality.

Soil health improves and runoff is reduced, which is good news for Illinois waterways and downstream waters like the Gulf of Mexico.

New management practices will play an important role in our ongoing efforts to decrease the soybean production footprint. For example, we’ve shown that reduced

tillage systems protect soils, reduce runoff and decrease fuel use and subsequent greenhouse gas emissions. Providing nutrients to crops with precision systems just as plants need them also is effective.

In the future, our efforts will focus on priority watersheds. We will partner with the Natural Resources Conservation Service and other USDA agencies, university experts and crop advisers to push for adoption of BMPs best-suited for our unique operations.

ISA believes everyone – farmers and non-farmers – should work together to do their part and account for actions to reduce nutrient losses, improve water quality within our state and the waters that leave our state.

For more information, visit illinoiscbmp.org/nutrientstrategy.

Sharon Covert is an llinois Soybean Association director and a farmer from Tiskilwa.

More than just a white face

I

BY LAUREN McMILLAN

’d like to ask everyone to close their eyes. Bear with me – you’ll see why this is important in a minute.

Now, with your eyes closed, I want you to picture yourself walking through a lush pasture in the spring time. As you are walking you see a herd of cows all with new babies at their side. You sit down under a shade tree and watch the babies run and jump with their tails in the air as their mothers graze in the lush grass.

Now open your eyes. What did the cattle you pictured look like? While the greater population of beef producers will picture a black herd in their mind, I would like to help them see the Hereford or Hereford influenced cattle that I always in vision in my mind! Today, I’d like to share

with you many of the positives of the Hereford breed beyond their pretty white face.

First, I’d like to Lauren talk about what McMillan is “between their ears.” Not all breeds of cattle are created equal in this area. Herefords are, without a doubt, the champion of good attitudes.

Year in and year out, beef producers across the country say Hereford cattle are the most user-friendly, good tempered breed available.

This not only leads to more money in ranchers pockets, but it also provides a safer and more enjoyable environment for all involved in the operation.

CONTINUED ON 47

We feel the results that matter most are yours.

While we are always happy when our hybrids perform well in trials, what’s really important to us is how well our seed, and our people, perform where it matters most – on your farm. I’d love to discuss what seed will give you the results you want.

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37

It’s all in the family ...

Diller-Rod serving area for many years

BY GOLDIE CURRIE For NorthCentral Illinois Ag Mag

Goldie Currie/NorthCentral Illinois Ag Mag

Ralph (left) and Duane Rod, owners of Diller-Rod Inc. stand before a new tractor outside their business on East Peru Street in Princeton.

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In 1951, Ralph Rod lost part of one hand while building a hog house.

He didn’t want to quit farming, so he tried to continue; but the task proved to be much more difficult than what he thought.

“In the wintertime it would hurt really bad when I was out feeding cattle or hogs, or milking cows,” he said. “I decided then if I was going to do something else, now was the time.”

That “something else” came along in 1962 when Charles Diller came out to talk with him about creating a partnership for the well-known farming equipment company in Princeton – CD Implement Co. It didn’t take too much convincing before Ralph agreed to the partnership with Charles. The business was then renamed to what it’s known today, Diller-Rod Inc.

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CONTINUED FROM 38

The transition from farming to operating a business was an easy one for Ralph. He was familiar with farm equipment and enjoyed working and demonstrating products to customers.

When Ralph and his wife, Pat, who has now passed away, had six children, he put each of them to work at the shop when they were old enough to take on the tasks given.

Every one of them worked there through elementary, junior high and high school.

One of Ralph’s sons, Duane Rod, knew he wanted to be a part of the business long after high school. He enjoyed working with the equipment and helping needs of customers.

He later took over Diller’s partnership and worked alongside his father as co-owner of business. Diller passed away in 1992.

The Rods continued to sell farm equipment that had gone with the business since 1924, when C.E. Diller Sr. started the implement business.

Today, Ralph has stepped back from the business and into retirement but continues to help when he needs to keep busy. Duane continues to head the shop.

Diller-Rod has been a trusted name in the agricultural service industry throughout Princeton, Bureau County and North Central Illinois.

Whether it has offered equipment to farmers or provided maintenance to equipment to keep it running, Diller-Rod has worked hard to keep farmers planting, plowing and harvesting.

In the early ’80s, Diller-Rod was even named one of the Top 150 dealers in the United States.

Being a part of a business that’s had a long-standing history in Princeton provides a sense of pride for the Rod family.

Throughout the years, the business has kept up with the ever-changing technology in farm equipment. Duane said the business has seen everything from a four-row planter to a 36-row planter.

“We used to keep parts recorded on a Rolodex, and now everything is on computers,” he said. “It’s been that way for a long time, but everything is more convenient now with the technology.”

Hard times for the business have come when commodity prices were down and farmers didn’t have money for new equipment. It was also a tough time for the business when it was terminated from International Harvester Co. in 1985.

Ralph and Duane touched on what it’s been like being a family-owned and -operated business. They both say it has its ups and downs.

“If this goes bad, everyone is hurt,” Ralph said. “If it goes good, everyone is happy.”

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AG Mag

39

An R&D Farm masterpiece

Don Walter demonstrates the easy engine access granted by his homemade hood to a farm tractor.

(Zita Henneberry/ NorthCentral Illinois Ag Mag)

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Pushing through hard times with the force of a tank engine

BY ZITA HENNEBERRY For NorthCentral Illinois Ag Mag

A farmer lives off the land and is no stranger to making things work and pushing through hard times ... and Don Walter has spent his life doing exactly that.

Other men’s trash has continually been transformed into a Walter farm’s profitable treasure through the mechanical prowess of Walter himself.

“I got started changing engines in tractors and stuff back in the early ’80s.” said Walter, co-owner and operator of R&D Farms. “The farming economy was kind of bad. We didn’t have all brand new equipment and tried to make ends meet to make some of this old equipment work by changing engines.”

Not only has Walter changed and reworked the engines running his business, he created the machinery himself, of his own design and unique to the R&D farming operation.

Because at R&D Farms,

shiny and new means very little, and real value is found in original ideas and practical machinery.

“He’s got a lot of talent,” said Ralph Walter, Don’s brother and co-owner of R&D Farms.

While Don might have started changing the engines in his tractors around the early ’80s, Don’s study of mechanics began long before.

“Sometimes things come naturally for some people,” he said.

As a boy, when he was supposed to be out farming or learning in school, Don was spending his time working on his go-kart.

Don laughed as he remembered how Ralph would get annoyed with him for working on that go-kart, while Ralph was out working and feeding cattle.

“I wasn’t thinking about what I was doing in school, but I was thinking about that go-kart,” Don said.

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Zita Henneberry/NorthCentral Illinois Ag Mag

Ralph (front) and Don Walter close the easy-access homemade tractor hood.

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Zita Henneberry/NorthCentral Illinois Ag Mag

LEFT: The Minneapolis Moline is one of the first models of a four-wheel-drive tractor. After only a few years, the tractor began to develop engine and transmission troubles. This led Don Walter to replace the tractor’s engine with an engine built for a tank during the Gulf War. RIGHT: Detroit can be seen branded on this Desert Storm engine built for the tanks of the Gulf War. CONTINUED FROM 41

However, the study Don put into his go-kart might have been more beneficial throughout his life than anything he could have learned in the classroom. Today, Don’s mechanical abilities have helped propel R&D Farm forward as a unique and successful business.

A few years after he bought one of

the first ever models of a four-wheeldrive tractor, the transmission and engine started going out. The tractor was a Minneapolis Moline A4T 1600. While he could have replaced the parts easily with the Minneapolis Moline equipment, Don figured the same problems would just occur again. So Don decided to go in a different direction.

“I got to thinking about a bus engine,”

• • • •

he recalled.

The direction that took him was all the way to New Jersey to an old bus junkyard. There, Don got a little more than he bargained for.

“After he [the junk yard attendant] showed me a bunch of bus stuff, … he said, ‘You might be interested in something else,’” Don said.

CONTINUED ON 43

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42 Summer 2015

Growing to Serve Today’s Farmer

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Zita Henneberry/NorthCentral Illinois Ag Mag

The mound of corn cob shavings is immediately visible upon entering the R&D Farm establishment. The mountain-high pile stands as a testament to the farm’s success.

CONTINUED FROM 42

It was then the junk yard attendant introduced Don Walter to a truckload of old Detroit engines taken from Desert Storm tanks. Don found exactly what he’d been looking for.

“They had been completely overhauled,” Don explained, They were what the government was taking over to Iraq to put in tanks.”

After buying five of the Detroit tank engines, Don hired a meat truck to transport the machinery home.

Don was able to adjust the mechanics and replace the engine in his Minneapolis Moline tractor with the Desert Storm machinery.

“The reason I put Detroits in them is because I know a Detroit can be reversed, left

or right hand rotation,” Don explained.

With some extensive work and mechanical tinkering, Don Walters created his tank of a tractor out of junkyard scraps. The new and improved Minneapolis Moline tractors still work today, he said.

“Oh, yeah, it worked real good,” Don said. “We used them for quite a few years that way. It worked real good because they didn’t have transmission or engine problems anymore.”

The historical significance of these unique tractors means very little to the Walters family.

Instead there is a sense of achievement and sentimental value placed in the successful overhaul of an R&D Farm masterpiece.

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Dig the pig!

Henry County hog farmer shares passion with students

BY JERMAINE PIGEE For NorthCentral Illinois Ag Mag

Osco hog farmer Gary Asay really has a passion for pork.

“I’ve been around hogs for about 49 years, and I have a lot of experience,” Asay said.

“I’ve been working with hogs since I was 10.”

Asay, who enjoys sharing his passion with students, recently passed along some of his knowledge at the Whiteside Area Career Center in Sterling.

He wanted commercial food service students at WACC to know pork is one of the leanest meats available on the market – whether they’re talking pork chops, pork tenderloin, or bacon.

“We speak to students because we want everyone to know how versatile pork is and how it can be used in various food products,” Asay said.

Asay owns and manages Asay Farms, which

markets 9,500 hogs a year. He also raises corn and soybeans on his Henry County farm.

Asay, 59, also wants to dispel some misconceptions about how hogs are raised.

“We care about the hogs we raise, and we want to raise a safe and nutritious product,” he said. “Students need to know that farmers are not trying to waste things or make things unhealthy. We want to produce food that is safe.”

Asay also said some people might think pork is full of antibiotics.

“We work carefully to make sure the product does not contain antibiotics when people buy it in the grocery store,” Asay said. “There is also no added hormones in pork. The hormones that are there are naturally occurring and they will not affect someone’s health.”

CONTINUED ON 46

Our family protecting your family.

44 Summer 2015

Illustration by Alex T. Paschal/ NorthCentral Illinois Ag Mag

Farmer, ag retailer recognized Schoff, Stamberger earn national stewardship honor NorthCentral Illinois Ag Mag staff

James Schoff, Schoff Farms and Malcom Stambaugh, crop specialist with Ag View FS, both of Walnut, have been named 4R Advocates by the Fertilizer Institute’s 4R Advocate program.They were commended for their ongoing work to select the right nutrient sources for Schoff’s crops and apply them at the right rate in the right place at the right time.

Schoff and Stambaugh received their honors at an awards banquet hosted

by TFI Feb. 26 during the Commodity Classic in Phoenix, Arizona. The duo was among four other winning farmer/ ag retailer pairs from Idaho, Maryland, Ohio and South Dakota.

The 4R Nutrient Stewardship program is part of a fertilizer industry initiative to encourage awareness and adoption of farming practices that protect the environment while optimizing productivity.

In addition to promoting the application of soil nutrients at the right rate, right time, right place and from the right source, the program encourages collaboration with growers, retailers, conservation personnel and others to ensure sustainable agriculture for generations.

Schoff farms 2,300 acres of corn and soybeans with his father, Ray, and cousins, Bill and Ron. They use soil conservation practices on every acre, including no-till for soybeans and strip-till on most of the corn acres. Reduced-tillage is used on the balance of the corn acres.

Schoff’s fertility program includes soil sampling on a 2.5-acre grid every 4 years. Fertility and pH levels are maintained at levels recommended by the University of Illinois. Stambaugh and his team conduct all the sampling using a GPS-based system.

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Photo contributed

Chris Jahn (left), president of The Fertilizer Institute, presented James Schoff, Schoff Farms, and Malcom Stambaugh, Ag View FS, both of Walnut, an award naming them 4R Advocates for their ongoing nutrient management achievements.

“Over the last 5 years, we’ve incorporated yield data into our fertility recommendations,” Schoff says. “This allows us to fine-tune nutrient applications by using exact crop removal based on varying yields compared to using field averages like we did previously.”

Split nitrogen applications have virtually eliminated nitrogen deficiencies and foliar fungicide applications are showing positive results. Schoffs also incorporate foliar feeding during these same applications to help plants overcome any additional nutrient deficiencies they may observe.

Technology naturally complements the 4R approach. The Schoffs have used yield maps since 1995. They still form the foundation for many practices.

“Yield maps may be the biggest tech-

nological advancement for our farm,” Schoff says. “Yield data is used in so many decision. It is our report card for product trials, helps evaluate variety selections and drives our fertility recommendations. It’s also used to develop management zones for seeding and nitrogen prescriptions, crop shares and splits and the list goes on.”

Combined with other tools that include computers, mapping software apps, auto steer and wireless data transfer, Schoff adds the 4R practices make even more sense.

“The 4R program benefits our farm and our bottom line. It’s common sense and helps us do everything right to make agriculture sustainable for our community and our environment.”

200 North Street Prophetstown, IL 61277 (877)221-0018 We are dedicated to helping our customers achieve maximum success. When you meet and work with a member of the Crop Production Services team, we are confident you will see our strengths firsthand and “Profit from our experience.”

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A study by the U.S. Department of Agriculture found pork tenderloin was just as lean as a skinless chicken breast, and the American Heart Association has certified it as a heart-healthy food.

“Farmers have been working continuously to change how they raise pigs for the better,” Asay said. “They’ve been able to make great progress in animal health, food quality, and protecting the environment using advancements in agricultural science and technology.”

Asay said farmers have put more emphasis on animal care, compared to 50 years ago.

Producers have brought their pigs inside, where they can control feed consumption and the environment.

“Pork is a good item for students to have,” Asay said. “It’s an important part of the diet, and it can be used in a lot of different menu items to serve people.”

Asay says the Illinois pork industry contributes more than $1.7 billion a year to the state’s economy, generates more than $136 million in taxes, and supports more than 7,800 jobs.

Joseph Hunt, food services instructor at WACC, said students have been learning about preparation and cooking different cuts of meat. He said Asay’s presentation fit in perfectly with his lessons.

“It’s great for the students to hear this

Alex T. Paschal/NorthCentral Illinois Ag Mag

Gary Asay, a pig farmer from Osco, leads a presentation on pork production improvements to a group of commercial food students at Whiteside Area Career Center in Sterling. Asay says today’s pork is leaner, healthier and much easier on natural resources than in the past. presentation from someone who is out in the field, as opposed to hearing me talking about it,” Hunt said after the presentation. “It’s interesting to get his take on things, and it lets students hear a farmer’s point of view.”

Students at WACC enjoyed Asay’s presentation.

“It was very informative,” said Jared

Brauman, a 17-year-old junior at Newman Central Catholic High School. “He taught us a lot about making pork, and I thought it was a good presentation.”

Jacob Cain, an 18-year-old senior at Polo High School, agreed.

“I learned a lot from his presentation,” Cain said. “It was nice to see how farmers are making a leaner meat.”

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Hereford cattle are also “built to last” because they can quickly adapt to many different environments.

Hereford cattle have heavier hides and that makes them one of the very best beef breeds for cold tolerance. In addition, their rugged design and structure delivers one to four extra years of productivity and breeding power. This is beneficial to beef producers as it reduces their annual bull costs.

Under that tough and rugged hide, Hereford cattle have been proven to marble only second to Angus. They have adequate muscling and produce tender, very tasty meat. The Hereford influence also fits well in most every branded beef program, but my personal favorite is CHB or Certified Hereford Beef.

Known as the efficiency experts, Herefords have been the industry role model for more than 100 years. Today, the beef industry faces more challenges than ever and Herefords are ready to help producers meet those challenges head on. Why is this, you may ask? It is because Herefords do more with less.

They are efficient converters of grass and grain, meaning that a little feed goes a long way. This improvement in efficiency helps Hereford cattle to improve ranchers’ bottom line.

Along with excellent efficiency, tough hide, and gentle disposition – Herefords have improved

fertility built in from the many, many years of focus on genetic selection. The fertility advantage means that Hereford bulls can cover more cows compared to bulls from other breeds.

And, daughters of Hereford bulls will breed back faster and remain in the herd longer. This is yet another reason Herefords put more money in their owners’ pockets.

Lastly, I’d like to talk about the “mark of quality” associated with the Hereford breed’s white face. When beef producers see the unique and unmistakable Hereford markings, they know that they are guaranteed to get English influenced genetics. This assures them of a predictable and consistent end product.

With the sea of black cattle across the country, the Hereford white face is quickly becoming the standard for ranchers looking for a true boost in crossbreeding programs. Due to Hereford purity, white-face crosses pack extra hybrid kick.

In summary, Herefords are best known for their white faces; but it is what lies under that unmistakable hide that makes them so valuable to their owners and the beef industry. I hope the next time you look at a Hereford you will remember they are more than just a pretty white face!

Lauren McMillan is an eighth-grader at Logan Junior High School in Princeton and works on her family cattle farm in Tiskilwa in Bureau County.

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