Ag Headlines, Wednesday August 26, 2015

Farm Credit Supporting Illinois Agriculture with Funding

Farm Progress Show attendees next week can help “Designate the Dollars” from a Farm Credit gift to Illinois agriculture. Celebrating the 100th year of the Farm Credit System, 1st Farm Credit Services and Farm Credit Illinois will distribute $100,000 among ten different Illinois agriculture groups. Farm Progress Show attendees can vote for one of the ten organizations in an electronic survey during the show and the $100,000 donation will be distributed to the groups based on the percentage of votes they receive. The groups selected for the funding include Illinois 4-H and FFA. The Farm Progress Show starts Tuesday, September 1st, in Decatur, Illinois.

Monsanto Increases Syngenta Takeover Offer

Bloomberg reports Monsanto has increased its Syngenta takeover offer. After the initial deal was rejected earlier this year, Monsanto has changed the proposal to contain a higher proportion of cash than the prior bid, which envisioned a split of 45 percent cash to 55 percent Monsanto shares. Raising the bid goes against Monsanto’s pledge not to do so unless warranted by a review of Syngenta’s books, Matt Arnold, a St. Louis-based analyst told Bloomberg. Syngenta’s board was scheduled to meet this week to decide on how to respond to the increased offer.

USDA Forecasting Drop in Farm Sector Profitability for 2015

A forecast released Tuesday by USDA predicts significantly lower farm profitability for 2015. Numbers by USDA show cash receipts from crops are down 6.2 percent while cash receipts for livestock are down 9.1 percent in 2015. Cash receipts for crops are estimated at $195 billion while livestock cash receipts are estimated at $192.8 billion. AgWeb reports that given low prices for farm products, it’s not surprising to see that government payments are expected to rise in 2015 to $11.4 billion, an increase of 16.3 percent compared to last year. Net cash income is forecast at $100.3 billion, down about 21 percent from 2014 levels. If the forecast holds true, 2015 will mark the second straight year of decline. The 2015 forecast for net farm income would be the lowest since 2006 and a drop of nearly 53 percent from the record high of $123.7 billion in 2013. Farm Expenses have yet to follow the downward trend, dropping less than one half of one percent since last year, at $338.8 billion. Ag Secretary Tom Vilsack released a statement following the forecast saying despite the fact that farm income is forecasted to be down from record levels, the projections provide a snapshot of rural America that continues to remain stable and resilient while battling an animal disease outbreak in the Midwest and facing prolonged drought in Western states. The USDA forecast will be updated again in November.

NAFB News