Archive - 2017

posted by Decision Innovation Solutions on Monday, December 18, 2017 According to the USDA/NASS Acreage Report, 93% of corn acres and 94% of soybean acres in Iowa were planted with a GE (genetically engineered) variety in 2017.

posted on Thursday, December 7, 2017 Soybean oil is the most dominant edible oil in the U.S. domestic fats and oils market. Relative abundant supply and cheaper soybean oil are the main reasons behind its dominance in local markets. Approximately 88 percent of total soybean oil production is domestically utilized with the remaining 12 percent exported.

posted by S. Patricia Batres-Marquez on Tuesday, November 21, 2017 China is the fourth largest producer and consumer of ethanol after the United States, Brazil, and the European Union. China's ethanol gasoline blend rate averaged 2.6 percent from 2008 to 2016, with ethanol consumption ranging from 594 million gallons in 2008 to 1.010 billion gallons in 2016.

posted on Thursday, November 2, 2017 U.S. livestock and poultry producers have typically relied on soybean meal (SBM) as a valuable and consistent source of protein in their rations. The inclusion rates for SBM varies by species. Except for dairy cattle, and to a certain extent beef cattle, SBM is the preferred source of protein.

posted by S. Patricia Batres-Marquez on Tuesday, October 24, 2017 The USDA released the October report of the World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates (WASDE, October 12, 2017), forecasting higher 2017/18 corn production, increased corn use for both feed and residual and food, seed and industrial (FSI) (excluding corn for ethanol use).

posted by Decision Innovation Solutions on Monday, October 16, 2017 2016 ARC-CO payments have been issued by the FSA. As shown on the map, counties in Iowa will receive a gross payment amount ranging from $0 to $85 for corn acres, and $0 to $33 for soybean acres.

posted by Decision Innovation Solutions on Wednesday, October 4, 2017 Recently the Trump Administration has begun to discuss and prepare to withdrawal from the Free Trade Agreement the U.S. has with South Korea. With many of the trade agreements now coming to the forefront of U.S. trade, it is important to understand the role that these countries play in supporting our agricultural production both in Iowa and across the U.S.

posted on Monday, October 2, 2017 This spring I joined the Decision Innovation Solutions team as their marketing/communications intern. I wasn't 100 percent sure what expect for the day to day workings of an analytical company like DIS, but I was certainly excited to find out!

posted by S. Patricia Batres-Marquez on Thursday, September 28, 2017 The latest (August 30, 2017) and second USDA forecasts for the 2017 calendar year for U.S. net cash income (gross cash income minus cash expenses) and U.S. net farm income (total gross income minus total expenses), indicate an increase for both measures compared with 2016 estimates. Net cash income is forecast up 12.6 percent to $100.4 billion year over year, whereas net farm income is expected to grow by $1.9 billion (3.1 percent) to $63.4 billion compared with last 2016's estimate ($61.5 bil

posted by Decision Innovation Solutions on Thursday, September 28, 2017 The 2017 average Iowa cropland cash rent by county as reported by USDA/NASS was $231/acre, down $4/acre from last year. The county averages ranged from $144/acre in Lucas County to $273/acre in Benton County.

posted by S. Patricia Batres-Marquez on Thursday, September 14, 2017 The U.S. beef export volume so far (January to June 2017) is the second largest after the record high volume of 605,835 MT CWE in 2011. June 2017 registered the largest exports of the year with 108,230 MT CWE. Exports during June were up 12% year over year and 5.5% from the previous month.

posted by Spencer Parkinson on Thursday, September 7, 2017 What can happen in ten years? Well, from personal experience, a family can move to Iowa from a place that has things called mountains with one child and have five by the time the decade's up. They could visit the Iowa State Fair ten, faithful times and come to respect the power of thunderstorms and the amount of water that can come from the sky. They could also learn that fireflies are indeed real and that agriculture is awesome everywhere.

posted on Tuesday, September 5, 2017 Ten years ago two partners formed a new company to leverage their financial modeling and decision support skills. Sterling Liddell and Spence Parkinson were both working in the Research and Commodities department at the Iowa Farm Bureau Federation (IFBF). They had developed some highly sophisticated methods for financial modeling and risk analysis.

posted by S. Patricia Batres-Marquez on Tuesday, August 29, 2017 USDA data indicates that from January to June 2017 the United States exported 22.8 percent of its pork production compared with 20.9 percent during the same period last year. U.S. total pork production rose 2.9 percent from 5.531 million MT CWE during the first half of 2016 to 5.691 million MT CWE in 2017 (January to June).

posted by Decision Innovation Solutions on Monday, August 14, 2017 Agriculture research has driven major increases in input/output margins since the late 1940's. These increases have been clear to many farmers strictly looking at crop yields and revenue statements. However, it is economic data that provides quantifiable evidence of the value of scientific and technological advancements in agriculture.