Agriculture vulnerable to climate change

Agriculture both affects and is affected by climate change due to the increase in greenhouse gas the climate is producing, speakers said at a lively debate at the World Agricultural Forum in St. Louis May 20.

Speakers debated how, or even if, agriculture can be part of the solution to global warming in a session called “Climate Change: Impacts on Food Security.”

“Agriculture is not at the table (at the global debate on climate change that will occur this fall in Copenhagen),” said moderator Carole Brookins, former U.S. representative to the World Bank.

"How do we make agriculture part of the solution?” she asked.

Livestock is very vulnerable to climate change, said Dr. Frank M. Mitloehner, air quality extension specialist at the University of California-Davis.

During a recent hot summer, 30,000 dairy cows died in California in one week, and one of the state’s largest dairy herds saw productivity fall by one third. California is the largest U.S. milk producing state. Livestock is affected by the variability in climate, he said.

Mitloehner said the recently published figure which stated that livestock is responsible for 18% of global warming is “very controversial and cannot be applied regionally.”

For example, he said, the bulk of the 18% is due to deforestation in developing countries, while livestock in developed countries are only a small contributor to global warming. He noted that in the U.S., forested land has actually increased in recent years. Furthermore, he noted that methane production from cows has been decreased dramatically since the 1940s due to increases in productivity.

Mitloehner is critical of consumers who want safe technologies banned that increase livestock efficiency, such as rBST for cows. In addition, organic systems may contribute more to global warming, Mitloehner said.

He said through the use of methane digesters, which are increasing in use, methane can be captured and used to make electricity and natural gas.

Professor Alan Buckwell, director of the Country Land and Business Association of the United Kingdom, said agriculture is hurt by climate change. Specifically, he said, climate change above 2% creates heat stress for plants and animals and spreads diseases for both. He also said it’s a “gigantic challenge,” but agriculture has to learn how to reduce its production of methane and nitrous oxide, which contribute to greenhouse gases.

It’s a very complex issue, he said, and “we do not have good measurement tools.”

In addition, he and other panel members said it’s very difficult to control the behavior of millions of independent farmers. Right now, he said, “agriculture is not part of the solution, and we better face that.”

One piece of the solution is to boost efficiency of plants, which results in fewer emissions, said Dr. Jerry Hatfield, director of the USDA-ARS National Soil Tilth Laboratory in Ames, Iowa. He added, however, that making plants more resistant to climate change “doesn’t get quite the press.”

Particularly affected by climate change will be the world’s poor, which are disproportionately concentrated in Africa.

“By 2080 it’s a terrible picture for the world’s poor,” said Frank Tugwell, president and CEO of Winrock International.

Many areas of Africa will “not be very inhabitable,” he said, which presents “a catastrophic picture.”

One of the major problems in reversing climate change trends, he said, is that democratic societies are not very good at dealing with long-term problems.

Michael Walsh, executive vice president, the Chicago Climate Exchange (CCX), said despite a dire picture, positive developments are taking place within agriculture. For example, 20 million acres in the U.S. and Canada have enrolled in the CCX, in which farmers agree to management practices that sequester carbon in the soil in exchange for payments.

“There is reason for optimism,” he stated.

Walsh added that, in time, it may be possible that agriculture is 5% part of the solution, and as much as 20% of net ag income may come from programs such as those offered by the CCX. Livestock producers may also participate in CCX programs by reducing methane output.

“We won’t take ag emissions to zero, but we can improve,” Hatfield said.

Farmers can “drastically change” nitrogen emissions, he added. Some panellists were concerned, however, that at the same time farmers in developed nations reduce their emissions, farmers in developing nations may increase them by adopting more efficient production practices with more fertilizer and other inputs.

Some said through proper development, farmers in developing nations may be able to concentrate production on the highest-producing soils, thus reducing their carbon footprint. The panelists also debated whether reduced tillage and no-till actually reduces or increases carbon emissions.

Europe does not allow farmers to receive credit for carbon sequestration for no-till because of the view that it may increase carbon emissions. Some panelists, however, took the strong view that no-till reduces a farmer’s carbon footprint.

Panellists also debated whether incentives will be enough to change the behavior of millions of farmers or whether mandatory incentives will be necessary.

“It’s better to produce incentives,” Tugwell said, while Buckwell countered with: “I don’t think we know enough about incentives.”

Obama administration tries new tactics for GM products in Europe

Bud Philbrook, deputy undersecretary for Farm and Foreign Agricultural Services, told World Agricultural Forum attendees Wednesday the Obama administration would try a new cooperative approach in Europe to bring down barriers to biotechnology.
Philbrook said the Obama administration would work with governments in Europe that already are advocates for biotechnology and encourage them to work with their neighbors for its acceptance.
He noted that voters in many European countries are squarely against biotechnology, citing Germany as an example, where 70% to 80% of consumers oppose GM products.
The deputy undersecretary made the remarks at WAF, where attendees were grappling with the challenge of feeding the growing world population.
Philbrook said the Obama administration is committed to opening markets for U.S. products and leveling the playing field for trade.

Enzymes part of sustainable future for poultry

Improving the ability of animals to convert feedstuffs into products for human consumption will play an important role in keeping animal agriculture sustainable, according to Dr. Simon Shane who spoke at Alltech’s 25th International Animal Health and Nutrition Symposium in Lexington, Ky.
Shane, who is editor of Egg Industry magazine and has a D.V.M. and a Ph.D. in nutrition, said enzymes can improve the caloric value of monogastric diets by 5%.
The U.S. broiler and turkey industries have the potential to save $632 million and $115 million, respectively, on feed costs by utilizing enzymes in rations for all of their flocks, according to Shane.
These savings would result from the improved utilization of nutrients by the birds, whose digestive efficiency is aided by the enzymes.
As feed costs continue to rise in the future because of increased demand due to an increasing world population and competition for ingredients from the biofuels industry, fully utilizing all of the nutrients in the animal’s ration will be more important than ever.
Shane said enzymes will play an increasing role in maximizing feed efficiency in the future and this will have an important impact on the bottom line of poultry producers.

Collier blasts US biofuel subsidies and Europe's opposition to GM crops

Paul Collier, author of “The Bottom Billion,” challenged participants in the World Agricultural Forum to help defeat three areas of dysfunctional romantic populism standing in the way of feeding the world’s hungry people – the ban on genetically modified crops, U.S. subsidies on biofuels and the mistaken idea that organic peasant farming is a viable way forward.
Speaking today in St. Louis, Professor Collier said the GM ban started in Europe as ag protectionism and then became aligned with the health labeling concerns and romantic traditionalists there who want to see a return to an organic peasant lifestyle.
Anti-American sentiments also played a role, he said.
Calling Europe’s stance “shameful,” Professor Collier said Europe’s opposition to GM crops was adopted by African nations that feared they would be unable to export to Europe if they did not follow suit.
He also lambasted U.S. biofuels subsidies, which he said are distorting economic decision-making and which are another form of ag protectionism.
He suggested that the way forward is a compromise where the U.S. drops biofuels subsidies and the Europeans drop their opposition to GM crops.
Collier said there is a growing role for large commercial organizations in Africa to help feed the hungry.
He suggested the model used in Brazilian agriculture as a viable response to the needs.
Micro-financing and other small-scale approaches won’t be able to meet the huge needs in the developing countries, he said.

Tyson's Igli joins panel on sustainable solutions

Kevin Igli (second from right), senior vice president, Tyson Foods, participated in a panel discussion about sustainable solutions for meeting demand, at the World Agricultural Forum Tuesday.
Joining Igli on the panel were Aline O’Connor Funk, former CEO, Channel BIO Corp.; Gerald A. Steiner, executive vice president, Monsanto Corporation; Frank Day, director, Hershey Co.; John Buchanan, senior director, business practices, Conservation International; Gene Kahn, vice president of sustainability, General Mill; and Bonnie E. Raquet, corporate vice president, corporate affairs, Cargill Inc.

Agriculture embraces sustainability

In both developed and developing nations, farmers are embracing more sustainable practices, speakers said at a World Agriculture Forum press conference, May 18, following the first day of sessions.
In Thailand, for instance, both large and small livestock producers are investing in biogas systems, said Nopporn Vayuchote, executive vice president of Betagro, in Thailand.
The Honorable James B. Bolger, former Prime Minister of New Zealand, chairman of the WAF and moderator of the first session of the forum on the global financial crisis, said there has been a major change among farmers in how they view sustainability.
While some farmers early on opposed attempts to force them to change from extreme environmental groups, they now accept science-based solutions, Bolger, who is a farmer, said.
“We’ve come a very long way,” he continued.
He noted practices that were acceptable in a world of 3 billion people are no longer acceptable. Bolger added that since farmers live on the land and depend on it for their livelihoods, they have a strong stake in farming sustainably.
He maintains that science, including biotechnology, is part of the solution to sustainability challenges. One issue is methane from ruminants, he said, which contributes to global warming, and research to find a way to reduce it is in the beginning stages. There does not appear to be a “silver bullet” solution, however, he said.
Thad Simons, president and CEO of Novus International, said sustainability has many meanings, probably “more definitions than the people in this room.”
In his view there has to be three components to sustainability: it has to have an economic foundation for the farmer; it has to benefit the environment; and the third part is a social aspect.
Agreeing that the solution is one of science was Michael Stegman, president of Agrotain International, who said that for crops, adding nitrogen to the soil contributes to global warming, but there are products that reduce that.
In response to a different line of questions, Simons noted that not all countries are suffering from the global financial crisis.
Asia, for example, “has hardly missed a beat, and there is still good growth in livestock and poultry.”

Above photo: Nopporn Vayuchote (right), executive vice president of Betagro, in Thailand, says Thai livestock producers have invested heavily in biogas systems.
Left of him is the Honorable James B. Bolger, former Prime Minister of New Zealand and Michael Stegman, President of Agrotain International.

Will grilled chicken work for KFC?

A former owner of Kentucky Fried Chicken was not high on the chances of success for KFC’s new grilled chicken offering.

Former Kentucky governor John Y. Brown, speaking at the Alltech Agribusiness Summit in Lexington, Ky., said that he doesn’t think grilled chicken will work for KFC, based on past failure of roasted chicken.

Brown discussed his success in growing the franchising concept started by “Colonel” Harlan Sanders in the U.S. and in 57 foreign countries prior to selling his interest in the fast food chicken restaurant chain in 1971.

He said that the secret to his own success was being a good salesman, a hard worker, not being afraid to fail and luck.

“I failed more than I succeeded in business, I failed a lot,” Brown said.

“Success is built in the footprints of failure.”

He said that all entrepreneurs need to be able to take risks and deal with failure. He explained that you just need to be able to accept when an idea isn’t working and move on.

“I knew when to quit digging the hole deeper,” he said. Brown was willing to share opinions on a number of subjects with the audience. He said that a great deal of the success of Kentucky Fried Chicken was due to branding, and that he was not fond of the use of the name KFC .

In the 1960s, Brown said that Kentucky Fried Chicken was the leading quick service restaurant (QSR) chain and had more outlets than McDonald’s.

He said that the success of Kentucky Fried Chicken helped establish franchising as a growth tool for national and international QSR chains. On a lighter note, Brown said that Wendy’s founder, Dave Thomas, worked for Kentucky Fried Chicken during Brown’s tenure with the company.

“Dave Thomas worked for me for two years; everyone wanted me to fire him. He was slow and pokey,” Brown said.

Speed isn’t everything.

Interdependent world pushes companies to get bigger

An interdependent world is requiring companies to become larger to serve its growing needs, Carl Hausmann, President and CEO of Bunge North America said at the opening session of the World Agricultural Forum (WAF), May 18 in St. Louis, Mo.
“The world is pushing companies to become bigger,” he said.
Hausmann and other panelists argued for less restrictive trading rules that would reduce the cost of food worldwide, even though in the short run, they are not optimistic that will be achieved.
It’s also important that agriculture become an active player in the global climate change meeting that will occur the end of this year in Copenhagen, he said, noting that “agriculture is a producer of greenhouse gas.”
Hausmann argued against the concept of more expensive production of food based on the notion of “food miles,” as it is far less expensive to grow and ship food based on the concept of comparative advantage.
David Morgan, President of Syngenta Seeds Inc., said that “agriculture is part of the solution about climate change.”
He added, though, that Syngenta, a major global seed company, often faces hostility on science and biotechnology issues. He continued that Syngenta is developing seeds that can produce crops with fewer resources such as water, and seeds for specific needs, such as those for biofuel. While all panelists criticized export subsidies and other methods of restricting trade, J.B. Penn, chief economist for John Deere, said substantial progress has been made in decoupling grain prices from production policies in both the U.S. and European Union, a move to what’s called green box payments from trade-distorting amber box ones.
“The U.S. has made a whole series of concessions,” he added.
Professsor Nuhu Hatibu, CEO of The Kilimo Trust, East Africa, said that he supports the abolition of food aid in favor of investment. He also noted, when asked about organic agriculture, that exports of organic food from Africa to Europe “were the first to suffer” during the global economic crisis.
James B. Bolger, former Prime Minister of New Zealand, Chairman of the WAF, and moderator of the session called “The Agricultural Challenge During the Global Financial Crisis,” said production agriculture is going to face an enormous challenge in the years ahead in that food production must double between now and 2050 to meet the needs of a growing population.
For the challenge to be met, open markets are required, he said. Bolger argued for policies that would bring the 3 billion people on the bottom economic rung into customers for companies and countries.
One of the enemies of the required agricultural investment in developing nations, speakers said, is political instability. Kilimo noted that the Congo alone could feed all of Africa, but after 40 years of independence, Africa can’t feed itself.
Penn noted, however, that prior to the economic crisis, global agriculture enjoyed a sustained period of productivity, and diets were improved by millions of people.

The Agricultural Challenge During the Global Financial Crisis: The Nature of the Challenge?

Today at the World Agricultural Forum in St. Louis, a panel moderated by Rt. Honorable James B. Bolger, ONZ, Chairman, World Agricultural Forum, addressed “The Agricultural Challenge During the Global Financial Crisis: The Nature of the Challenge?”
Panelists included: J.B. Penn, Chief Economist, John Deere; Carl Hausmann, President and CEO, Bunge North America; David Morgan, President, Syngenta Seeds, Inc.; Michael L. Bennett, CEO, Terra Industries and Chairman of the Board, The Fertilizer Institute; and Prof. Nuhu Hatibu, CEO, The Kilimo Trust, East Africa.

What the ag leaders saw at the zoo

What’s your recipe for bird salad? Ag leaders from around the world enjoyed cocktails at a Novus-sponsored reception at the World Agricultural Forum on Sunday, and then set off for a tour of the St. Louis Zoo.

Included was a stop at the zoo’s Nutrition Center, where they got a peak at what’s on the menu for the zoo’s animals, including recipes for bird salad and reptile salad. The zoo’s nutritional staff gave the WAF participants a look behind the scenes into what it takes to feed the animals at one of the world’s leading zoos.

During the three-day WAF, the ag leaders will examine issues surrounding the feeding of the world’s population in the coming decades. The WAF is one of the largest biennial gatherings of leaders concerned about the world’s growing population and the respective shortages of food, fuel and fiber in both developed and developing nations.

World Ag Forum off to impressive start

In what promises to be a content-rich three days, the World Agricultural Forum was kicked off with a pre-forum networking reception and dinner Sunday night at the St. Louis, Mo., Zoo, sponsored by Novus International.
So just why are agricultural leaders from around the world attending the event? A manager from a major poultry company in Thailand tells us he hopes to learn more about alternative feeds, given the past two years of tight global grain and oilseed supplies, as well as learn about ways to bring added value to his company’s production. Feed supply and price are among his major business challenges, he says.
But it’s not only traditional agriculture producers in attendance of the event. An official with a major chocolate company was also in attendance, and has a strong interest in agricultural sustainability, one of the WAF’s key goals. Cocoa productivity has not increased like corn and soybeans in recent years, he says, but can improve with more sustainable practices.
Looking to Monday, sessions include “The Agricultural Challenge During the Global Financial Crisis: The Nature of the Challenge; An Asian Outlook: Insights from the WAF Asia Roundtable; Managing Risk and Financing Agriculture and Food Production in the Changing Global Economy; and Strategies, Actions & Policies for Long-term Security in Agriculture & Food Production.

World Agricultural Forum under way in St. Louis

The 2009 World Congress of the World Agricultural Forum got under way today with government, private and NGO leaders gathering in St. Louis for the beginning of three days of meetings on issues of agricultural production and supply, rising food costs, the crucial resource of water and the impacts on agricultural economies and resources during the current period of financial uncertainties on a global scale.
Leaders from around the globe gathered for a networking reception at the St. Louis Zoo on Sunday evening and will participate in panel discussions beginning Monday.
The three-day forum, “Our Global Priority: Food Security – Financial, Trade and Technical Strategies,” will address the world’s growing population and the impacts on food, fuel, fiber and water in both emerging and developed markets.

Broilers profitable so far in 2009

The average U.S. broiler company returned to profitability in January of 2009, and profits strengthened in February and March, said Dana Weatherford, v.p. Agri Stats.
Profits were hard to come by for broiler companies in the second half of 2008, Weatherford reported at USPOULTRY’s Processor Workshop in Atlanta.
The average company lost nearly $0.05 per pound in the second half of 2008, according to Agri Stats data.



Performance in the first three months of 2009 has seen marked improvement, with Weatherford reporting “bottom line profits” for the average broiler company of $0.0078, $0.0148 and $0.0389 per pound in January, February and March of 2009, respectively.
Weatherford said that with the reduction in the number of breeder pullets being placed, it appears the industry’s cut back in chick placements will continue below year-before levels through 2009.
If broiler meat prices get a seasonal bump this summer, he said he expects broiler firms to remain profitable for the rest of the year. If grain prices don’t jump up again, and if U.S. chicken exports continue at a relatively strong pace, he said that 2010 could be a very good year for U.S. broiler companies.