SAM_02-29-2016

AG Mag

Northern Illinois

The Quiet Zone The presidential candidates have had very little to say about agriculture issues on the campaign trail.

A Publication of Shaw Media

Spring 2016 AG Mag

1

PRSRT STD U.S. POSTAGE PAID PERMIT NO. 440 STERLING, IL 61081 P.O. Box 498 Sterling, IL 61081 CHANGE SERVICE REQUESTED

Index

AG Mag Northern Illinois

Publisher Sam R Fisher Advertising Director Jennifer Heintzelman Editor Jeff Rogers Magazine Editor Jeff Rogers Page Design Jeff Rogers, Breanne Hunter Reporters & Photographers Pam Eggemeier, Eric Engel Dave Fox, Kelsey Haugen, Christopher Heimerman, Breanne Hunter, Philip Marruffo, Alex T. Paschal, Lucas Pauley, Terry Thomas, and Angel Sierra Published by Sauk Valley Media 3200 E. Lincolnway Sterling, IL 61081 815-625-3600 Articles and advertisements are the property of Sauk Valley Media. No portion of the Northern Illinois Ag Mag may be reproduced without the written consent of the publisher. Ad content is not the responsibility of Sauk Valley Media. The information in this magazine is believed to be accurate; however, Sauk Valley Media cannot and does not guarantee its accuracy. Sauk Valley Media 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.

COVER STORY PAGE 24

Drought in ag politics Though there are many presidential candidates, few of them are saying anything about agricultural issues.

Our family protecting your family.

2 Spring 2016

Index FIRST READ PAGE 8

Here we go again!

As another planting season begins, worries about commodities prices, grain surpluses, and weather are becoming all too familiar for Northern Illinois farmers.

Rural Dixon farmer Kyle Scheaffer is learning to be a leader in the field.

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Index

AG OUTLOOK PAGE 34

Better days ahead for ethanol?

Ethanol is a big deal in Illinois. If the industry is able to break the blend wall at the pumps, it could become an even bigger, and better, deal.

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AG Mag

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CONDITIONS CRITICAL

Persistence, anticipation key amid climate longtime farmers call among worst they’ve faced

F

BY CHRISTOPHER HEIMERMAN AND ERIC ENGEL For Northern Illinois Ag Mag

arming veterans have been here, seen this before. El Niño drenched farmlands at the tail end of 2015. Commodity prices are in the cellar.

But what about the young farmer who hasn’t yet lived through a 1987, 1998 or a 2001?

“Those years really teach you that you’d better be paying attention to what’s going on, because when they turn, they turn quickly, and they get ugly in a hurry,” said Jim Schielein, a 51-year-old former State Farm Board member who’s been in business for himself in Lee County since 1990, before which

8 Spring 2016

he worked “forever” for his dad.

“Cash is king. In this type of situation, cash is always king, and you’ve got to keep your leverage ratio as low as possible.”

In 2015, corn was planted on 11.7 million acres, down 2 percent from 2014. The yield dropped from 200 bushels per acre to 175, a drop of 12.5 percent. And farmers in eastern Lee County would love to be coming off those numbers.

Longtime farmer Craig Buhrow experienced some of the worst that 2015 had to offer, with land from Interstate 88 to U.S. Route 30 in eastern Lee County.

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“It was as bad as it’s been for about the past 20 years,” he said. “If you live down where the ground’s flat, you don’t go to the coffee shop. You put on your boots, get out the spade and make little ditches for drainage.”

In the final 2 months of 2015, U.S. farmland took on more rain than it had in 120 years, a sign that corn and soybean yields will shrink.

In the past 15 months, farmers had only two bona fide opportunities to seize market rallies: around Christmas 2014 and late-June last year, said Scott Stoller, a grain merchandiser with the Dixon-based, family-owned grain consulting firm AgPerspective.

“Unfortunately, from the low to the high to the low again in the marketplace was 5 weeks,” he said. “Did growers take advantage of that? How worried were they about their own yields? If they were originally thinking 180 or 190 bushels, when the crops were damaged, did they pare their yield back to 140 at that point?”

The financial climate hasn’t been much more kind to farmers than the actual climate lately. Corn prices in

2012 hit record highs around $10 per bushel.

That was after a drought.

In mid-September, that price was around $3.60.

The prospects for price hikes in 2016 are slim. In Scott mid-January, corn futures Stoller were selling between $3.70 and $3.80.

The market has been brutal on beans, too. Soybeans hit a high of more than $17 a bushel in 2012, largely due to the same drought that caused shortages and price spikes for corn. By last fall, prices were hovering around $8.65 a bushel. Bean futures in mid-January were only about 10 cents higher.

Between low market prices and El Niño living up to his reputation, Stoller said lenders will play a huge role this year.

“Unfortunately, the lender is probably going to be a bigger part of that than he should be,” he said. “Some decisions have been pushed off until this calendar year as they decide what they can or can’t afford. But agronomic decisions are not necessarily best based on what can I afford or not afford today. It’s what does the plant need, and how does it

need to be fed?”

But Stoller also lauded Sauk Valley lenders, and said most of them will stand by their men and women.

And that’s where it’s good to be Schielein, whose land is family-owned, and whose lender relationship isn’t an issue – yet.

“Let’s put it this way: They’re not worried about me right now,” he said. “But if we continue this downward spiral, if we don’t see some recovery in prices, it’s going to be a real tug-and-pull as we go into spring.”

Buhrow has gone with a 2.5:1 corn-tobeans ratio of late, but a 60 or so bushel average the past 5 years is “making us think a little more about the beans,” he said.

But South America’s bean production, driven by its weak currency, gives him pause.

Stoller said many farmers are going from corn-heavy rotations to the 50/50 splits planted by a past generation. The bottom line, he said, is for farmers to keep their ear to the ground, and jump on what few price spikes could occur this year.

CONTINUED ON 10

Photos by Alex T. Paschal/Northern Illinois Ag Mag

Craig Buhrow of West Brooklyn in Lee County is storing grain on his farm, hoping for prices to rise. Not only have commodities prices been hurting Northern Illinois farmers in recent years, but a wet end to 2015 also has caused problems. “It was as bad as it’s been for about the past 20 years,” Buhrow said.

AG Mag

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CONTINUED FROM 9

“Is there any reason to think that at some point in the calendar year, we won’t have a chance to make money?”

Stoller said. “You still have to be cautiously optimistic, and ready to move.”

One thing that put 2015 behind the 8-ball was the tremendous amount of 2014 corn that went unsold. When the market rallied in the summer, few new crop sales got made, because the old crop had to go first.

“That is no different than where we stand today,” Stoller said. “We would need to see a rally of 30 or 40 cents in corn, and about the same in soybeans, before you’d see just a rash of selling.

Because of that, the 2015 crop will get sold first, before the 2016 crop does.

“We’re fishing behind the net right now, with not being able to get caught up and focus on the problem at hand: the 2016 crop.”

Ted Heaton, a lifelong farmer in Bureau County, said it’s a wise business practice to sell a little bit of grain throughout the year, although, he said, no responsible tradesman wants to barter his hard work for peanuts.

“We’ve just got too much supply compared to what the demand is,” Heaton said.

Stoller urges farmers to buy crop insurance, to protect against disasters

Photo contributed

“We’ve just got too much supply compared to what the demand is,” Bureau County farmer Ted Heaton said, adding, “You never know what kind of black swan event may occur, either in the economy or worldwide grain production. So you sell a little bit every month, but you hate to sell anything below the cost of production.” such as the one 2015 brought. It’s a year he wishes could simply be put in the past. But that’s not realistic.

“We’ve still got to get out of 2015 as

profitable as we can, or lose the least amount of money we can,” he said.

“That’s a very negative term, but that’s where we stand.”

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The Leading

Edge Alex T. Paschal/Northern Illinois Ag Mag

Kyle Sheaffer, who farms in rural Dixon, is participating in the Illinois Agricultural Leadership Program, which has been developing knowledgeable and effective leaders in the industry for more than 30 years. “It really helps with networking and sharing information,” Sheaffer said of the program. “It’s another learning tool.”

Program broadens Dixon farmer’s horizons in the wider world of agriculture

T

BY TERRY THOMAS For Northern Illinois Ag Mag

o succeed in today’s increasingly globalized marketplace, farmers not only must be skilled producers of corn, soybeans, and livestock, but they also must master a host of other business and social skills, from finance and marketing to political advocacy.

Agriculture “has gotten a lot more competitive, and like every industry, farmers have had to do things leaner,” said Dixon corn and soybean farmer Kyle Sheaffer, 37. “If you are not efficient, you’re not going to make it. We have to do more with less. And that requires information.”

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AG Mag

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It’s not just information about the latest technologies for producing agricultural products that’s important. Farmers also must be conversant with issues related to all aspects of the agricultural sector – things like commodity markets, farm credit, business management, national and international politics, environmental issues, and even social media, Sheaffer said.

Providing and processing all that information requires effective leaders to guide the industry in the 21st century.

That’s why Sheaffer applied last year, and was accepted into the Illinois Agricultural Leadership Program. The program has been developing knowledgeable and effective agricultural leaders for more than 30 years.

“Bookwork used to be with paper.

Now it’s done on a computer,” Sheaffer said. “We used to get the [commodity] markets on the radio. Now I get them on my phone. Markets used to change little, now they change a lot.”

Sheaffer said he decided to apply for the 2-year program because it offered an opportunity to share ideas and gain new perspectives from people who work in all facets of agribusiness. He also hoped the program would enhance his leadership skills.

About the program The Illinois Agricultural Leadership Program is a 2-year educational series designed to develop knowledgeable and effective policy and decision makers for the agricultural industry.

It’s funded by the nonprofit Illinois Agricultural Leadership Foundation, which is comprised of individuals, companies, organizations and institutional partners.

Program participants are selected from diverse backgrounds in Illinois agriculture, and, according to program leaders, its graduates have attained the highest-level positions in commodity organizations and the nation’s leading agribusiness corporations.

Applications for the 2017-18 class are due Feb. 29.

Call IALF at 309-837-7711, find the foundation on Facebook or go to agleadership.org for more information or to apply.

The program, which involves participants in a series of seminars on various issues related to the farm industry, is structured to do precisely that, said Don Norton, president and CEO of the Illinois Agricultural Leadership Foundation, the nonprofit organization that sponsors the program.

“We don’t teach hands-on agriculture,” Norton said. “What we do teach is how to be a leader in the global business of agriculture.”

Some participants, like Sheaffer, are directly involved in production agriculture, others are not, but all are involved in essential aspects of the agricultural economy, Norton said.

Of the 30 members of the 2016 class, fewer than half are full-time farmers.

• • • •

Others work in a variety of farm-related positions, from community development and farm credit experts to participants who work for fertilizer manufacturers and international grain companies. One is a researcher at the University of Illinois working on animal genetics, while another is an agribusiness reporter for a Springfield radio station.

“Agriculture can really be viewed as a long line that begins with input companies like seed companies and fertilizer companies on one end, and with the grocery store at the other end,” Norton said. “Those in the middle are people like Kyle but also people like bankers.”

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All are essential to agriculture’s success, and agriculture’s success is essential to guaranteeing the nation – and the world – a safe and abundant food supply.

For Sheaffer, the program already has proven its value.

“It really helps with networking and sharing information,” he said. “The grain we produce gets shipped around the world, and now we compete with the world, so these kind of things are important to our success.”

The program “is part of my continuing education,” Sheaffer said. “It’s another learning tool.”

Norton said that’s the goal.

“Our class participants collectively learn from each other,” he said. “All the issues we talk about affect the industry, and that’s important not only for farming, it’s important for everyone. Estimates are that 1 out of 4 jobs in the entire economy is somehow related to agriculture.”

Scheaffer said he knew the program would prove

Alex T. Paschal/Northern Illinois Ag Mag

Kyle Sheaffer, 37, operates Sheaffer Acres along with his father, Jim. The Sheaffers cultivate 2,800 acres of corn and soybeans. They also sell Wyffels Hybrid seed corn. beneficial when he applied because his brother, Steve, who works in the farm credit business, graduated from it a few years ago.

The seminars he has participated in so far have involved discussions on improving leadership and communications skills as well as agriculture’s relations with the media.

Other seminars have covered topics such as economics, market development and business decision-making.

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The seminars will help

keep Sheaffer Acres, which Kyle operates along with his father, Jim, on the cutting edge. The Sheaffers cultivate 2,800 acres of corn and soybeans on Sugar Grove Road between Dixon and Polo.

They also sell Wyffels Hybrid seed corn.

Jim, who started with just 40 acres in 1971, has proven to be a leader in the local farm economy by any standard. In 2013, the prestigious magazine “Prairie Farmer” named him one of its Master Farmers, an honor that recognizes farming excellence, as well as commitment to family and community.

Kyle, who is married with two daughters, is following in his father’s footsteps.

He has served on the Illinois Farm Bureau’s Young Leaders State Committee.

He is also actively involved on the Farm Bureau’s Resolutions Committee and has served as chairman of the Lee County Farm Bureau’s Young Leaders Committee.

He recently was elected to the Lee County Farm Bureau Board.

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ALL IN THIS TOGETHER Kids enjoy gardening, meals with fresh ingredients

BY LUCAS PAULEY For Northern Illinois Ag Mag

Peter and Bobbe Oliver of Byron have gotten serious about eating healthy and are passing that mission on to their kids. Pictured with the Olivers are their children (from left), Eliza, 4, Lydia, 2, and Aubin, 6. (Photos submitted

What a difference a year makes.

In the fall and winter of 2014, Bobbe Oliver and her family were sick all the time. Something had to change.

The 29-year-old mom, originally of Franklin Grove, and her husband, Peter, 30, originally of Dixon, decided to get serious about eating healthy. “Once we realized that good health and natural immunities come from your nutrition and your daily diet, we changed our habits to create a healthier lifestyle,� Bobbe said.

Peter and Bobbe live in Byron with their son, Aubin, 6; and two daughters, Eliza, 4 and Lydia, 2.

CONTINUED ON 20

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Luckily for mom and dad, the kids took the changes in stride.

“The kids love to help us in the kitchen,” Bobbe said. “We have gotten our kids to try lots of new foods just by pairing it with a food that we know they enjoy.”

The parents also cut fruit and veggies ahead of time, so they always have a healthy snack available immediately for the kids.

“We also use a muffin pan as a nibble tray,” Oliver said. The couple fills it up with healthy snacks such as grapes, blueberries, apple slices, crackers, carrot sticks, celery, dried fruits, nuts, popcorn, peanut butter for dipping, and veggie dip.

“They will take a bite and then run off to play and then return when they need another bite,” Bobbe said.

The family also makes smoothies daily and uses a plant-based protein powder called Juice Plus+ Complete. They like to add frozen fruits, vegetables, peanut butter, chia seeds or flax seeds to create a “super healthy breakfast, snack or even a dessert,” Bobbe said.

The Olivers grow herbs and greens at home with a Juice Plus+ Tower Garden, which is an aeroponic growing system.

CONTINUED ON 22

The family uses a muffin tin as a “nibble tray” filled with healthy foods the kids can eat throughout the day.

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You want Brussels sprouts to still have their crunch, so turn off the heat once they start to brown.

2 lbs Brussels sprouts, halved 2 tablespoons Olive Oil 1 1/2 teaspoons garlic powder 1. Heat oil on medium heat.

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CONTINUED FROM 20

“This winter, we are growing kale, romaine, Bibb lettuce, rainbow chard, oregano, parsley, basil, chives and spinach,” Oliver said. “We pick it as we need it.”

During the summer, the family moves the system outside to the deck and grows a wide variety of produce.

They also visit farmers markets and roadside stands about once a week, Oliver said. They get local, free-range eggs and try to shop small when possible.

Bobbe said the healthy eating is spreading, too. Her parents, Bob and Billie Branscum of Lost Lake, are eating healthier.

So, too, are many in Peter’s family.

In fact, his parents, Tim and Patty Oliver, own Oliver’s Corner Market in Dixon. The store has recently made some healthy changes of its own, expanding its meat offerings to include grass-fed beef, and its produce department to include more local and organic fruits and vegetables.

After a little more than a year since making the change, Bobbe’s family has more energy and is just happier overall, which is what matters most, she said.

“It’s fun to be in on this all together.”

Spinach Stuffed Chicken Breast

Before you put the spinach stuffed chicken breast into the oven, sear each side of the chicken breasts for 3 to 4 minutes until the chicken starts to brown.

2 cups fresh spinach 1 cup plain Greek Yogurt 1/2 cup provolone or mozzarella cheese 1 clove garlic, finely minced 4 chicken breasts Salt and pepper to taste Olive oil for skillet 1. Preheat oven at 400 degrees 2. Wilt spinach in skillet over low heat just until it starts to warm and wilt. Remove spinach from skillet and stir into a bowl with Greek yogurt, garlic and cheese.

3. Butterfly chicken breasts to create a “pouch” for spinach mixture.

Spoon the spinach mixture onto the open, butterflied chicken breast.

Fold top side onto spinach mixture to close. Salt and pepper each side of the chicken breast.

4. Heat olive oil over medium heat in skillet and sear each side of the chicken breasts for 3-4 minutes until the chicken starts to brown.

5. Transfer chicken into an ovensafe pan and bake for 20 minutes at 400 degrees. Chicken internal temp should read 165 degrees.

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AG Mag

23

A CROWDED, The many presidential candidates have had little to say about agriculture issues

I

BY PAM EGGEMEIER For Northern Illinois Ag Mag

f you’re wondering where the presidential candidates stand on important agriculture issues, you’re not alone.

Although the presidential election kicked off in Iowa, both parties’ candidates have managed to dodge what’s most important to Midwest farmers.

“If it weren’t for there being such an important early primary in Iowa, we might not hear anything about ag from the candidates,” said Adam Nielsen, director of national legislation and policy development for Illinois Farm Bureau.

Farmers say renewable fuels is about the only issue that has brought much input from the

candidates because of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s November ruling on biofuel requirements.

“Short of the Renewable Fuel Standards, I haven’t heard any significant policy statements for ag from any of the candidates,” said Jim Schielein, a Lee County farmer.

Nielsen said farmers are challenged by a cyclical downturn, and while this environment certainly isn’t reminiscent of the great farm crisis of the 1980s, lower commodities prices should merit some discussion.

“We’re just coming out of the ‘glory days’ where income was high, and farmers were able to make investments, and now income is running behind production costs,” Nielsen said.

Plunging commodities prices, especially oil and metals, are shaking the global economy, leaving farmers wondering how low ag-related commodities could go.

Illustration by Alex T. Paschal for Northern Illinois Ag Mag

24 Spring 2016

, QUIET FIELD

e

g

“Oil has been a wake-up call for farmers, and it’s been a nervous time for any commodity,” Schielein said. “If you translate what’s happened with oil prices to corn, we’d be at $2.”

While the 2014 farm bill has brought a workable safety net, farmers fear crop insurance might fall woefully short if corn drops below the $3 level. That scenario could have farmers calling for the return of the ad hoc disaster system that disappeared in the farm bill.

The importance of finding new markets grows as crop prices drop, pushing trade issues near the top of Farm Bureau’s legislative priority list this year. Ag leaders are strugging to find a candidate in either party who can make strides on exports.

“There is a protectionist strain that runs through both parties now, and they are equally bad on trade,” Nielsen said.

Ag interests are pushing for the enactment of the Trans-Pacific Partnership, a trade agreement with 12 Pacific Rim nations, that among many other things would lower trade barriers for Midwest farmers. Negotiations between the nations that started nearly 8 years ago wrapped up in October, but the pact faces stiff challenges in Congress.

Some of ag’s top issues mirror those of business at large,

‘‘

so the candidates have addressed them in a general fashion.

Immigration would be a prime example, and Nielsen fears the issue is one of many to have fallen victim to theatrics.

“Farm Bureau has worked hard on immigration for the last few years, and it’s obvious that we need a clearer policy,” Nielsen said. “The candidates haven’t talked about it much in reference to ag, and it’s almost turned into a competition to see who’s most anti-immigrant.”

The immigration issue also is a good example of how difficult it can be to figure out the candidates’ positions on an issue.

Several have flip-flopped on their immigration policy stances since the campaigning began, and complicated conditions are often attached to those positions. Political analysts are struggling to find clarity, so it’s no surprise that voters are as well.

Farm Bureau doesn’t formally endorse presidential candidates, but it takes a key leadership position in smoking out candidates’ positions on their prioritized issues. That task is made more difficult by the GOP logjam that remains – 12 candidates were still in the race going into the Feb. 1 Iowa caucus.

We’re just coming out of the ‘glory days’ where income was high, and farmers were able to make investments, and now income is running behind production costs.

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

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’’ AG Mag

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How the candidates lean on ag-related issues How the candidates stack up on three key agriculture issues as prioritized by the Illinois Farm Bureau – immigration, environmental regulation, and trade: Republicans Donald Trump – No path to citizenship for undocumented workers; fair trade advocate, opposes Trans-Pacific Partnership U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz – Opposes letting undocumented immigrants legally remain in the U.S.; vocal opponent of renewable fuel standards, environmental regulations; opposed Trans-Pacific Partnership U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio – Work toward piecemeal immigration reform; once staunch environmental supporter, has backed off stance; supports Trans-Pacific Partnership Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush – Create a legal status, not a path to citizenship, for undocumented residents; supports environmental regulation; supports free trade, Trans-Pacific Partnership Ben Carson – Allow undocumented residents access to a national guest worker program if they leave the country first; mixed messages on environmental policies; says he supports free trade and open to Trans-Pacific Partnership Ohio Gov. John Kasich – Allow undocumented immigrants to stay in the country legally; mixed record

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on environmental issues; supports Trans-Pacific Partnership Former Virginia Gov. Jim Gilmore – Strict on border security, fix broken immigration system; launched environmental initiative in Virginia; enforce trade laws to level playing field Democrats Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton – Wants comprehensive immigration reform, including a path to legal status; supports environmental regulation; opposes the Trans-Pacific Partnership U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders – Offer path to citizenship, waive some deportations now; supports environmental regulation; opposes the Trans-Pacific Partnership Libertarian Party Former New Mexico Gov. Gary Johnson – Simplify legal immigration, crack down on illegal immigration; supports EPA clean air and water efforts; supports free trade, but not Trans-Pacific Partnership Green Party Jill Stein – Supports creating legal status and path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants; strong advocate for environmental health; opposes expansion of free trade agreements

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The field began to winnow soon after.

“When we have nominees, they’ll sit down with advisers and write specific positions on ag,” Nielsen said. “Then we’ll look more carefully at the candidates’ records, but now there isn’t much to look at.”

Schielein said he’s hoping the tenor of the campaigning will become more thoughtful as the field narrows.

“As some candidates drop out, we should start seeing more focus on the issues,” Schielein said. “It’s the nature of the beast – there’s a lot of theater early, but at some point, they have to stop with the reality-TV politics.”

Voters were trying to decipher the politics of 12 GOP candidates and three Democrats who were still in the game heading into Iowa. Polls showed only Donald Trump, Ted Cruz, and Marco Rubio grabbing more than 7 percent of the vote among the crowded Republican field.

“This election field is dif-

ferent – we have a billionaire who went bankrupt and resurrected himself, a self-described socialist, and populists on either side of the aisle,” Schielein said.

The pulse of the voters is tough to take or understand, in an election filled with familiar faces trying to reinvent themselves.

“Bernie Sanders has been on the scene for a while, and was never really taken seriously before, and now he’s resonating with a significant part of the population,” Schielein said.

The ag lobby is still well organized and wields considerable influence in both parties, but political pundits contend there are some dynamics at play that have made it riskier for candidates to line up with ag interests.

“The ag lobby is still powerful, but it has generally fallen out of favor with both parties,” said Scot Schraufnagel, a political science professor at Northern Illinois University in DeKalb.

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AG Mag

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The declining number of farmers who are running bigger businesses can make support of many key ag issues a tougher sell with political strategists.

“With fewer small farms, Democrats that used to identify with the family farm are less inclined to support farmers who now are running a large corporation,” Schraufnagel said.

He said the GOP is hesitant to be linked with such issues as price supports and ethanol while espousScot Schraufnagel ing fiscal conservativism.

Political strategists call for ignoring an issue you can’t win, and many ag issues can be painted as loselose propositions.

“While candidates don’t want to offend the ag lobby, openly supporting the ag lobby can be perceived as support of more government spending,” Schraufnagel said.

U.S. Rep. Cheri Bustos is one Democrat who still openly identifies with the family farm. She said there is a lot at stake in this presidential election, including for the agriculture community. She said it’s important to keep building on the wins secured in a long-term farm bill.

“Looking toward the future, we need to make sure that our family farmers

Kelsey Haugen/Northern Illinois Ag Mag

U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, a Republican presidential candidate from Texas, addresses a citizen’s question during a meet-and-greet Nov. 29 at The Windrow in Creston, Iowa. have access to the capital they need to be successful,” Bustos, D-East Moline, said. “There’s also a lot of potential to invest in clean and renewable energy.”

Bustos said the most pressing issue for ag is to elect a presidential candidate who will fight for rural communities and family farmers. She said that candidate is Democratic front-runner Hillary Clinton.

“We’ve seen Hillary Clinton lay out a plan for rural America, and I’m pleased to see her focusing on so many of the issues farmers discuss with me every day,” Bustos said.

Regulatory pressures on farmers is a key concern every year, but the ag lobby has rallied hard against the implementation of the Waters of the United States, or WOTUS, rule. The rule would pinpoint the reach of the nation’s Clean Water Act, bringing some smaller waterways such as streams and wetlands into federal jurisdiction. Farmers using those areas would be forced to meet environmental permit requirements of the EPA and the Army Corps of Engineers.

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The issue has stalled along party lines, with Republicans calling the rule another example of “executive overreach”, and a violation of the rights of states and private property owners.

“We’re hoping they’ll take their foot off the accelerator on regulations when ag prices are down,” Nielsen said.

U.S. Rep. Adam Kinzinger, R-Channahon, who formed an agriculture committee in the 16th Congressional District, also has his eye on the regulatory hurdles faced by agriculture.

“I think our next president needs to empower our agribusinesses, and allow them to continue driving our economy without fear of costly and burdensome regulations,” Kinzinger said. “It will be important to keep the standards of the 2014 House Farm Bill intact, and I hope that our next president gives greater attention to reigning in the overreaching EPA.” The congressman said he, too, is disappointed in the lack of meaningful conversation about several important ag-related issues. He said he holds out hope that something of substance will come up in future debates.

“I do wish there was more discussion of what the candidates plan to do to tackle the WOTUS regulation, address the EPA’s slow rollout of RFS levels,

expand trade with foreign countries, and other areas that are still in flux,” Kinzinger said.

Don Temple, president of the Whiteside County Farm Bureau, raises corn Adam and soybeans a few miles Nielsen south of Fulton. He also ran a hog business, but has retired from that operation.

As a former livestock producer, he is closely watching the regulatory and immigration issues.

“I think the biggest issue now is the Waters of the U.S. rule, and broader concerns over the reach of the EPA,” Temple said.

Historically, the use of undocumented workers has been more commonly associated with large dairy and livestock operations.

“There have been a lot of migrant workers in the hog industry, but while it’s true we have people here to do the work, it’s work they usually don’t want to do,” Temple said.

Temple said a smaller ag voting bloc is cause for concern, and it could help explain why candidates haven’t come out strong on ag-specific issues. He said a protectionist president would make it difficult for the industry to steady itself in a downward pricing cycle.

“A bright spot is that ag has been strong the last few years, but now we need to get prices back up – and the way to do that is to find more markets to export to,” Temple said.

Rep. Adam Temple also wants to Kinzinger see higher renewable fuel requirements in the future.

The low-price commodities environment is making it tougher for ethanol producers to expand.

“Cheap oil is hurting the industry, and grain farmers are concerned because ethanol is already using a large part of what we are producing,” Temple said.

Temple said the crowded presidential field has drifted away from substance at a time when it is desperately needed.

“I’m concerned that this election is spinning into never-never land,” Temple said. “Over the last 16 years, we seem to be going down the same road, and I’m not liking the direction we’re taking.”

Temple said early on he had been drawn to the message of Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker, but Walker exited the campaign in September. Walker said he bowed out to clear the Republican field that had become fixated on personal attacks instead of the issues that mattered most to voters.

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Pearson’s claim still staked Harvey Brown farming land that’s been in the family since 1834

BY TERRY THOMAS For Northern Illinois Ag Mag

Philip Marruffo/Northern Illinois Ag Mag

Harvey and Sue Brown live in a two-story house in rural Eagle Point Township that was built in 1917 and replaced a home that had been constructed by the land’s original settler, Pearson Shoemaker. Here, Harvey holds old photos of his family.

A lot has changed in rural Eagle Point Township since it was settled shortly after the 1832 Black Hawk War. One thing that has remained constant, though, is the imprint of Pearson Shoemaker, who staked out a claim there 2 years after the Sauk leader was defeated

by U.S. and Illinois forces and driven from his Northern Illinois homeland.

For five generations, Shoemaker and his descendants have worked the original homestead on South Brookline Road, 8 miles northwest of Polo on the border between Ogle and Carroll counties.

“He settled here in 1834,” said greatgreat-grandson Harvey Brown, 78, who now lives with his wife, Sue, on the site of Shoemaker’s original claim.

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“He staked out a claim in Paw Paw in 1833, and then decided to come over here. Our family has been on this land ever since.”

That remarkable longevity was honored by the Illinois Department of Agriculture when it designated the farm a Sesquicentennial Farm in 2008. The designation recognizes farms that have been held by descendants of the same family for 150 years or more.

One factor that attracted Shoemaker to the Eagle Point location was its mix of ample timber and tall-grass prairie, Brown said.

The combination provided Shoemaker and his family with access to hardwood lumber for building and other needs, as well as fertile soil to grow crops. There also was a fresh water spring nearby.

“This was a good place to stake out a claim,” Brown said. “Pearson, who was a carpenter by trade, originally built a cabin here and then eventually replaced it with a big house.” That house was destroyed by fire in 1917. It was replaced by the two-story house where the Browns now live.

While it was the land’s natural attributes that attracted Shoemaker, it was his hard work and determination that turned the original 80-acre claim into a

Philip Marruffo/Northern Illinois Ag Mag

A photo of Harvey and Sue Brown is laid over of old photos of Hazelhurst, which took much of the attention and population away from Eagle Point Township when the Burlington Northern Railroad built its line there. successful farming operation that has persisted over the generations.

Along the way, the family has seen plenty of changes.

“They started out growing wheat,” Brown said. “And they hauled it to Chicago for sale. Two or three guys went

along on the trip to Chicago to protect the wheat going in and the money coming back,” from would-be thieves who infested the region during those early years.

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Eventually, corn replaced wheat as the primary crop, and livestock was added to the mix early on. “In the beginning, they picked the corn by hand.” Brown said, reflecting on the changes experienced by family members over the generations. “Then came corn pickers, and now you have combines.”

The family successfully adapted to changing technological and economic conditions, but things never were easy. From the beginning, the local conditions presented daunting challenges.

Local historians Horace and Rebecca Kauffman outlined some of those difficulties in their 1909 “History of Ogle County”: “While building a cabin and establishing his claim, [Shoemaker] and his wife occupied a shanty which had been deserted during the Black Hawk War by a man named Parish, who never returned.”

The cabin Shoemaker built was of the “primitive variety,” the authors continued, “with clapboard roof and stick and mud chimney.”

Shortly thereafter, Shoemaker brought in cattle and hogs from Pekin and Indiana, places where the family had lived prior to migrating to Ogle County.

And while Shoemaker had established

Philip Marruffo/Northern Illinois Ag Mag

Harvey Brown is a fifth generation farmer on this property on South Brookline Road, 8 miles northwest of Polo. Harvey and his wife, Sue, have twin daughters and a son – the next generation that will keep Pearson Shoemaker’s 1834 homestead in the family. the beginnings of a functioning farm, he still had to do battle with his wilderness surroundings.

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According to the history book, Shoemaker was forced to build a trap to protect his hogs from wolves and other predators. He “caught a wolf every night for five nights in succession. He also trapped a much fiercer animal, a lynx or wild-cat.”

As more people moved in and settled the land, Shoemaker and his neighbors pacified the wilderness and built a growing community.

“Eagle Point was a thriving place back in those days,” Brown said.

Eventually, Burlington Northern Railroad built its line a mile south of Eagle Point at Hazelhurst. As a result, much of the local bustle moved to Hazelhurst as locally produced commodities were shipped to market on the train.

When Harvey took over farm, he began raising beef cattle, which he shipped to Chicago’s Union Stockyards on the train, Brown said.

Prior to shipment, however, Harvey would drive the cattle to the Green River region south of Dixon, where the swamps provided ample grass on which the animals were fattened.

Hard work and material success were only one part of Pearson Shoemaker’s contributions to the Eagle Point com-

munity. He also was a devoted Christian who strove to bring religion to the frontier settlement.

“While he was cutting trees one day, Pearson had a spiritual experience,” Brown said. “The Holy Spirit entered him, and he became very dedicated to the church.”

In fact, the local United Brethren Church was built on land owned by Shoemaker. The original church was built in 1857; the present brick building replaced it in 1917.

The church is now part of the United Methodist denomination, which merged with the United Brethren Church some years ago. Adjacent to the church is a cemetery where Shoemaker and many of his descendants are buried.

The Browns remain active members of the church; they also work in the Gideons organization to spread the faith.

According to Brown, Pearson Shoemaker eventually retired from farming and moved to Polo, where he built and operated a hotel.

When Harvey took over, he expanded the operation. “My great-grandfather accumulated quite a bit more land,” Brown said. Eventually the family “probably had 1,000 acres in this area.”

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When Brown graduated from Polo High School in 1955, he worked along with his brother on the farm. At one point, it boasted as many as 3,000 feeder cattle.

Harvey and Sue, who came from a dairy farm just down the road, married in 1962 and raised twin daughters and a son – the next generation that will keep Pearson Shoemaker’s 1834 homestead in the family.

These days, the Browns retain 103 acres, including the original homestead.

Harvey, who retired some years ago, rents out much of the land, and some acres are set aside as part of the Soil Conservation Program.

Sue also retired after 28 years as a registered nurse at KSB Hospital in Dixon.

“I’m the fifth generation,” Brown said.

“I’ve got five generations up here in the cemetery” by the United Methodist Church.

“The only time I was really gone was when I was in the service, and I really don’t have much desire to move around.”

Sue agrees. “I don’t think I would enjoy picking up and moving.”

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E15 a key to continued ethanol growth

E

BY DAVE FOX For Northern Illinois Ag Mag

thanol has come a long way in the American marketplace since it was introduced as “gasohol” in the early 1970s.

Then, it was a response to a gasoline shortage that had quickly driven prices of regular gas from about 25 cents per gallon to more than 75 cents. The blend of ethanol and gasoline was widely met with skepticism, as naysayers questioned the performance of engines running on gasohol.

Today, ethanol still is considered an alternative fuel but is established and popular.

Its positive impacts on the environment (cleaner emissions), geopolitics (less dependence on foreign oil), and the U.S. agriculture economy (outlet for domestic corn crops) are generally accepted.

More fuel ethanol is produced domestically now than ever – a record 14.313 billion gallons in 2014, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

That’s 1.02 billion gallons more than was produced in 2013. EIA estimates for the first 9 months of 2015 show a 3.6 percent increase from the same period in 2014.

But how does that supply jibe with demand? During those first 9 months of 2015, the EIA said, consumption of ethanol produced domestically was up 4 percent from the previous year. Total consumption in 2015 was expected to reach 13.982 billion gallons – about 13.897 billion of that being conventional ethanol made from corn.

The University of Illinois Extension reports that U.S.-produced “ethanol consumption in 2016 could be about 200 million gallons larger than projected, requiring an additional 70 million bushels of feedstock.”

That, the report said, would require a combination of a larger increase in domestic gasoline consumption, a larger consumption of higher ethanol blends, and an increase in ethanol exports.

Those increases would not only be

good for the U.S. economy, but it also would improve corn markets, helping to reduce surplus stockpiles that are common to good crop years.

A better blend

A “blend wall” stands in the way of more consumption of higher ethanol blends.

Now, most gas is an E10 blend – 10 percent ethanol blended with gasoline. Vehicles produced in the past 30 to 40 years run well on that blend, and exhaust emissions have been shown to be greatly reduced.

But the ethanol industry has pushed for more E15 gasoline. That would require the oil industry to invest in blender pumps, storage tanks, and other infrastructure compatible with E15-and-higher ethanol blends.

Flex fuel also has gained in popularity, the most common being an E85 blend with 85 percent ethanol. E85 fuel can be burned only in vehicles with motors designated as flex-fuel capable. Mileage per gallon drops somewhat with this type of mixture, but prices at the pump generally are considerably lower than prices for the E10 blend.

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E85 proponents point to the reduced dependence on petroleum and further reductions in emissions from exhaust fumes. For the farmer, the more ethanol that is burned, the more corn is used to produce it.

Art Johnson, owner of Rock Falls-based Johnson Oil, explained why price comparisons between E10 and E85 make a difference in which type of fuel is purchased at the pump.

“Those who use E85 say they only get about 75 percent of the fuel efficiency with that as they would with gas (with a lower ethanol blend),” he said. “Because of the difference in mileage you get between both types of fuel, there needs to be about a dollar a gallon difference in price between the two to make it worthwhile to burn E85.”

As with any fuel, gasoline prices fluctuate, sometimes daily. “When the cost difference is a dollar or more (per gallon), there is generally an increase in the sale of E85,” Johnson said.

At the end of 2015 and into early 2016, gasoline prices had dropped below $2 per gallon, causing many Americans to wonder if the lower prices were long term or just a temporary tweak in the system.

There are many factors in gasoline pricing, including availability and supply, the world economy and petroleum markets, and the cost of crude oil in the commodities marketplace.

“Oil is a commodity,” John-

son said, “and just like any other commodity it is subject to change at any time. I’ve been in this business since 1949 and have never had a crystal ball; no one does.

Prices are always subject to change, and no one can accurately predict what the trends will be.”

That being said, it stands to reason that increases in ethanol production, and possibly an increase in the standard ethanol blend, might steady prices at the pump and provide some assurance of stability for the American consumer.

While the blend wall is largely a federal issue, states also can enact legislation to facilitate the necessary infrastructure.

“There had been talks of increasing the ethanol blend to 15 percent,” state Sen. Tim Bivins, R-Dixon, said, “but then it fell back. There is some opposition to it. “... There was a push for it here last year, but it fell back because the state budget woes are kind of the dominating things [in Springfield] right now.”

Bivins pointed out that because subsidies for grain, ethanol, and fuel come from Washington, D.C., increases in the blend wall are dependent more on the federal government than from state lawmakers.

Although he said he favors things that would help farmers, the economy, and the environment, Bivins said there are a number of issues getting in the way of increasing the blend wall.

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He said, though, that he is not opposed to increased ethanol usage, citing a vehicle he used to drive regularly.

“In that car, I burned E85 all the time,” Bivins said.

“There wasn’t any difference at all in the performance, but I did get less mileage.

When regular gas prices were higher, it came out about the same cost-wise.

It was good to burn the higher ethanol because of its impact on Illinois agriculture and cleaner emissions.”

Surpluses and profits

Dave Fox/Northern Illinois Ag Mag

State Sen. Tim Bivins, R-Dixon, said that while there have been talks of increasing the ethanol blend to 15 percent in Illinois, “it fell back because the state budget woes are kind of dominating things [in Springfield] right now.”

CONTINUED FROM 38

“The increased blend is talked about and brought up by the lobbyists every so often,” he said, “and so far they’re keeping it alive in Springfield, but the state budget is the main focus of things right now, so not

much else will likely get done until the budget is approved to keep the state running.”

Ethanol “is an alternative fuel,” he said, “and just like with any kind of alternative, I don’t think it was ever meant to be a replacement for gas.”

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Corn, like oil, also is a commodity, and record yields in recent years have caused a price drop and led some farmers to store their grain.

Higher exports of U.S.-produced ethanol could help reduce those surplus stockpiles, Bivins said.

“The foreign market for ethanol was growing steadily, at least until a year or so ago,” he said.

Foreign export markets for American ethanol likely will continue to grow, but other countries producing corn-

based ethanol will probably also see increased exports.

And an increase in the blend wall, should it happen, would also create greater demand for domestic ethanol.

Gilbert Hostetler, president of Prairie Hybrids, a nonGMO seed corn producer based south of Tampico, said increasing the blend wall “is definitely a good way to go.”

“For one thing, the emissions from vehicles using it are much cleaner, which is good for the environment,” he said. “And the increased use of corn is a good way to use up the corn surplus that we see in good crop years.”

Reducing the surplus of corn would help drive up profits for farmers, he said, in a market where corn production costs have increased steadily in past years but profits have stayed roughly the same, meaning farmers have to produce even more corn each year to keep profits on par with inflation.

CONTINUED ON 40

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That increased production, however, contributes to the grain surplus, creating a cycle that’s difficult to break. Increases in ethanol use and production in the U.S. would be a way to end that circle.

Illinois farmers have seen sharp drops in incomes the past couple of years after a surge in profits and productivity from 2006 to 2014, the State Journal-Register in Springfield reported in December. According to that story, grain farmers are likely to have lower incomes for the next several years.

“The average $20,000 profit projected (in 2015) – compared with $104,000 in 2014 – would be at levels not seen since 1998 through 2002.

“The 81 percent drop follows eight years of mostly rising prices, yields and income, as a result of increased use of corn for ethanol production. Farmland prices also rose to record highs during the period.”

The article also said that “Illinois corn yields averaging 168 bushels (in 2015), compared with 200 bushels in 2014, and overall lower commodity prices contributed to the drop in income. ...

Based on current demand and price trends, lower farm income likely will carry over into 2016 and beyond.”

Rising costs also are a factor, said Don Brill, now retired, who farmed in the

Dave Fox/Northern Illinois Ag Mag

The ethanol blend found at most gas pumps in Illinois is 10 percent. Other pumps have gas designated as E85 or “Contains 85% Ethanol” that can be used only in vehicles with FlexFuel engines.

Coleta area.

“Costs are definitely up at least a little each year,” he said. “When I first started farming, seed corn was probably $25 a bag, but now a lot of it is $125 to $400 for the same thing.

“Fertilizer and other chemicals, along with fuel, maintenance and repairs, ... all of the expenses are up each year, so you really have to produce bigger crops or better yields to offset the expenses

and try to make a profit,” he said.

“The downside to that is that by doing so, you see an increase in the surplus of corn most years, which keeps the prices down, so it gets to be a vicious circle.”

Increased use of ethanol would bring universal benefits, Brill said.

“An increase would definitely be good for farmers, the grain market, and the environment,” he said. “It would be just a good thing all the way around.”

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40 Spring 2016

Not just for guys

Milledgeville FFA sees a shift toward female leadership

BY BREANNE HUNTER For Northern Illinois Ag Mag

Members of the Milledgeville High School FFA leadership look over their books during an afternoon class. Pictured are (from left) Collin Eubanks, Mady Fink, and Dylan Alexander. (Philip Marruffo/Northern Illinois Ag Mag)

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Visitors to her classroom are greeted by handshakes from her students.

“This generation doesn’t shake hands much, and we are working to change that,” Erbsen said.

Another way she is impacting the future of agriculture is through encouraging female involvement.

Seven of the chapter’s nine officers are girls. The shift to greater female involvement is something relatively new for the program, but isn’t something that comes as a surprise to Erbsen.

CONTINUED ON 42

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As she talks about the shift, she mentions the daunting FFA officer application process.

The Milledgeville chapter requires students to complete a 4-page application to become an officer. It also has a Supervised Agricultural Experience section to the program that teaches students how to apply their classroom knowledge to the activities they participate in outside of class. For these projects, the officers must create project records, which can be quite extensive.

Erbsen said women are more apt to complete the paperwork, a thought which is echoed by the students gathered around her desk.

Erbsen also wonders if there would be more male involvement if the students had a male teacher.

The officers seem to attribute the shift to a greater emphasis being placed on the many aspects of agriculture. As students talk in the classroom, the wide range of backgrounds is evident.

Some mentioned an interest in graphic design, public relations, honeybees, and tractor design, to name a few.

All of this allows the chapter to develop and implement new ideas.

“In the past, we did more traditional banquet style events, but this year we did an open house,” junior adviser Racheal Osterhaus

said. “It’s different than what is expected and shows more of what we do.”

While those Wendy factors might Erbsen contribute to the gender shift at Milledgeville High School, greater participation by women in agriculture is a national trend. According to the USDA, the number of farms in the United States operated by women has nearly tripled over the past three decades. In 1978, women accounted for only 5 percent of farmers nationwide. Fast forward to 2012, the last year a census was conducted, and that number has reached 30 percent nationwide.

Collin Eubanks and Dylan Alexander, the only male officers, had nothing but positive things to say about the shift.

Eubanks feels the group functions well because of their similar personalities and mindset.

“We are all laid back, but together we have the mindset to get things done,” he said.

“It has been very beneficial to our chapter,” Alexander said. “Last year, there was a lot of tension, not between members, but as a whole. You could feel that everyone wasn’t together and everyone wanted to do their own thing in FFA. This year, we are joining together to make a better chapter.”

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42 Spring 2016

THE NEW WAVE OF FARMING

Diversification, technology are key in digital agriculture era

BY ANGEL SIERRA For Northern Illinois Ag Mag

The Wolfs use the latest technology in their planters to produce maximum yields on their farm near Dixon. (Philip Marruffo/Northern Illinois Ag Mag)

The expanse of a long gravel driveway narrows to the front door of a brick building at the Wolf farm in rural Dixon.

Inside is an office where the family meets daily.

“When you walk in, you’ll notice there are no walls in that office. We get in that office and have a cross-table every morning,” said Jeremy Wolf, 24, a Western Illinois University graduate and Precision Planting dealer.

“Communication is number one. We don’t want any surprises,” said his father, Loren, 50.

CONTINUED ON 44

AG Mag

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Lauren Wolf (right), and his sons, Jeremy (left) and Aaron, stand with a Precision Planter they use on their farm. “We were always brought up to try new things,” Jeremy said.

“You’ve got to be willing to change.”

CONTINUED FROM 43

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He emphasized diversification and family support as key components to the business.

Jeremy and his brother, Aaron, 27, also a WIU graduate, work with their father to produce corn – but that’s just the beginning.

They build their own farm equipment. (It’s a pride thing, Loren said.) They raise cattle, restore tractors, and they are deep into the technology behind some of the most advanced farming rigs in the industry – some of which will be used in the field for the first time this season.

“We were always brought up to try new things,” Jeremy said. “You’ve got to be willing to change. We live in an

area where farmers are very competitive, and farmers are always trying to get that leading edge.”

The Wolfs made clear that digital agriculture is in a new era. Loren joked that the days of farmers wearing overalls and carrying pitchforks are gone.

Around the corner from the office is a doorway that opens to a cavernous garage that looks more like an airplane hangar. In its center sits a blue and white 24-row Kinze crop planter.

It is a newer model, but what makes it special are its brains – 24 brains, each controlling a planting component, all the while relaying information back to a pulling tractor.

CONTINUED ON 45

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The Wolfs are a part of a new breed of farmers who plant, record, map, and monitor entire planting operations from germination to seed ducts.

CONTINUED FROM 44

The tractor has a brain, too.

A suite of meters delivers precise planting and population management down to the seed. Each row can be fine-tuned for depth and speed in near real-time.

Speed is sensed and varied; soil types are mapped.

“Technology has helped and given us opportunities. It has helped with some of the stress load, and makes things more efficient,” Aaron said.

The Wolfs are part of a new breed of farmers who plant, record, map, and monitor entire planting operations from germination to seed ducts.

“We’re to the point where we’re mapping every seed that goes into the ground. We control every aspect,” Jeremy said. And his company offers more than planting precision.

Older planters can be retrofit with newer technology – anything from metering devices to hydraulic controls.

In the coming season, a new insecticide metering system will be installed on the blue planter, and will take advantage of variable-rate drives.

Previously, meters had been accurate at a single speed, making them somewhat ineffective on curved farmland sections.

Technology is everywhere for the Wolfs.

A technology called thermocoupling measures leading indicators of deteriorating grain health, such as excessive moisture and temperature. It has been around, but its ability to be integrated into cloud-based management systems is fairly new.

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While Jeremy was at college, he monitored silo grain conditions on his smartphone through a subscription-based service for text and email updates. It kept him connected.

Companies are betting big that data harvesting and analysis will help push forward efficiency and increased production. Planting technologies remain at the forefront of farming innovation.

In November, John Deere and Climate Corporation announced plans to buy Precision Planting with plans to integrate the majority of Precision’s hardware, sensors and displays.

In 2014, the northwest Illinois region, including Bureau, Carroll, Lee, Ogle and Whiteside counties, led the state in several planting, harvest, yield and production categories, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

“Competition breeds excellence,” Jeremy said. “We have to stay competitive to stay in this industry. The land is our livelihood. We have to be good stewards of the land, and efficient on every square.”

46 Spring 2016

Philip Marruffo/Northern Illinois Ag Mag

A 24-row Kinze crop planter sits in the middle of a cavernous garage that looks more like an airport hangar on the Wolf family farm in rural Dixon. It has 24 “brains,” each controlling a planting component, all the while relaying information back to a pulling tractor.

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