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READ the NAFB’s National Ag News for Thursday, August 31st
USDA Forecasts Increase in Farm Income
The Department of Agriculture Wednesday predicted a slight increase in farm income for 2017, reversing three years of major decline. The August update of the farm income forecast predicts net cash farm income for 2017 at $100.4 billion, up $11.2 billion, or 12.6 percent, from 2016. Net farm income, a broader measure of profits, is forecasted at $63.4 billion, up $1.9 billion, or 3.1 percent, relative to 2016. USDA says the stronger forecast growth in net cash income is largely due to an additional $9.7 billion in cash receipts from the sale of crop inventories. The net cash farm income measure counts those sales as part of current-year income while the net farm income measure counted the value of those inventories as part of prior-year income. However, that predicted increase is still lower than every year from 2010 to 2015. During that period, net farm income peaked in 2013 $131.3 billion.
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Perdue Offers Support to Trump Tax Plan
In a statement Wednesday afternoon, Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue offered support to President Trump’s tax reform agenda. Trump announced his plans for tax reform during a stop in Springfield, Missouri, Wednesday. Perdue says: “The president’s tax reform package will be of great benefit to agriculture and help improve rural prosperity.” Trump did not offer many details on reforms, but offered broad outlines that he said would offer economic benefits to main street America. Trump says the plan includes cutting taxes for individuals and business. Perdue mentioned that farms are small businesses, and that “time and costs associated with merely complying with the tax code are impeding American prosperity.” Secretary also mentioned the Estate Tax, or death tax, saying “too many family farms have had to be broken up or sold off to pay the tax bill.”
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Most U.S. Farmers Will Feel Impact from Hurricane Harvey
Hurricane Harvey stands to harm virtually all of U.S. agriculture, in some way. Many ports that ship agricultural commodities are in the path of the storm, from Texas to Louisiana, where the majority of corn and soybeans destined for other nations leave the United States. Texas produces high volumes of cotton, wheat, rice and soy and is a large exporter of crops from around the country. Some of the regions impacted by the storm are expected to see about a years-worth of rainfall this week, causing flooding and stressing infrastructure. Mike Steenhoek of the Soy Transportation Coalition says that until the storm passes, they will not be able to assess the structural integrity of railroad tracks or bridges. And because of these transportation issues, grain elevator operators, which will have reached capacity, will discourage farmers from delivering crops by lowering the commodity prices that farmers are usually paid. Steenhoek told DTN: “From a soybean and corn logistics perspective, the larger concern occurs if the consequences of Harvey extend farther east to the 230-mile stretch of the Mississippi River from Baton Rouge, Louisiana, to the Gulf of Mexico.”
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Officials from Mexico Visited Washington After NAFTA Threats
Two government officials from Mexico were in Washington D.C. earlier this week, following threats by President Donald Trump to terminate the North American Free Trade Agreement. While Canada and Mexico have both dismissed Trump’s threats as a negotiating tactic, two officials traveled to Washington on what the Mexican Government called a “pre-planned” trip. A source in the foreign ministry of Mexico told Reuters the trip was organized before Trump’s latest warnings that he would prefer to scrap NAFTA than negotiate. Mexico also said earlier this week that it would not negotiate the trade deal through social media, referring to the Twitter post by Trump calling Mexico and Canada “difficult” in the ongoing negotiations. The second round of talks to renegotiate the 23-year-old agreement ais due to start in Mexico next week.
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Secretary Perdue Embarking on Second RV Tour
Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue is visiting states in the Northeast U.S. Thursday and Friday as part of his second installment of the “Back to Our Roots” RV tour and gathering input on the 2018 farm bill. Perdue will make stops in Connecticut, Massachusetts and New Hampshire. Friday, Perdue will visit Albany, New Hampshire, will he will also swear in Forrest Service Chief Tony Tooke. The tour schedule Thursday includes a listening session with 40 farmers at a farm near Lebanon, Connecticut, and hold another listening session at a farm near Northborough, Massachusetts. Perdue held the first installment of the RV tour at the beginning of August, visiting Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa, Illinois and Indiana.
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Goodyear Introduces Soybean Tires
Goodyear will introduce a tire made with soy-based rubber this fall. The assurance WeatherReady tires for passenger vehicles features a soy-based rubber compound that remains soft at lower temperatures, leading to enhanced traction in dry, wet and winter conditions. The United Soybean Board says the tires offer another market opportunity for U.S. soybean farmers. Goodyear’s interest in soybean oil included a look at sustainability, a priority for many corporations throughout the United States. However, what they found was a competitive advantage, according to USB. The United Soybean Board worked with Goodyear in creating the rubber compound, a move that USB board members say helps increase demand for soybeans and increase profit opportunities for farmers. Goodyear’s Assurance WeatherReady tire will be widely available in September 2017, offered in a wide range of sizes, covering 77 percent of cars, minivans and SUVs on the road today.
SOURCE: NAFB News Service

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