SD Corn

It’s no doubt that we raise great beef in South Dakota. Our farmers and ranchers take a lot of pride in that and it shows in their hard work and continued investment into valued-added agriculture.

As our state’s farmers and ranchers steadily work on getting their crops planted this spring, many are also working with their cattle. Spring is a busy time as farmers have short windows when they can plant due to the weather while also trying to find time to transport their cattle to pasture.

Beef cattle are big consumers of both corn and the ethanol byproduct, distillers grain as cattlemen invest in the highest quality nutrients, which in turn produce the safest and best tasting beef in the entire world.

Besides its great taste, beef is also very nutritious, providing a significant source of protein, B12, zinc, niacin, B6, phosphorus, choline, iron and riboflavin.

We encourage you, your family and friends to celebrate National Beef Month by grilling out with some burgers or your favorite cuts of steak, taking part in a great American tradition and appreciating a great American product during the month of May.

For more information on beef nutrition, recipes or other information, check out: http://www.beefitswhatsfordinner.com/

Congratulations to the originators of the term, “Pink Slime,” you have officially put over 700 hard-working Americans out of a job. By not fully understanding the product yourself, your reckless reporting on a healthy, affordable, lean protein source scared millions for absolutely no reason which in turn led to a full-fledged misinformation epidemic across the entire nation.

The results have been devastating with lay-offs from blue collar to white, along with the closing of three plants at Beef Products Inc., headquartered in Dakota Dunes, South Dakota.

Is this what journalism has come to in today’s culture? When did grabbing a headline at the expense of so many jobs, ranches and families become acceptable?

Lean finely textured beef remains to be a quality source of protein regardless of the damage done by the false media blitz. What no longer remains are the incomes for hundreds of families and the market stability for thousands of our nations’ family farms and ranches that continue to face uncertainty not because of market fundamentals, but catchy headlines.

Corn Comments Podcast with Jim Woster

Jim Woster addresses the recent attacks on Lean Finely Trimmed Beef. This highly concentrated lean beef is not only nutritious but also good tasting. The producer of LFBT, Beef Products Inc. makes a huge difference in so many ways as they employ 3,000 people and add value to the entire United States cattle market.

As American agriculture continues to advance in terms of production and efficiency, the need to expand future export markets is becoming increasingly critical. Three landmark free trade agreements with Korea, Panama and Columbia were ratified this fall creating enormous potential for America’s future agricultural markets.

The KORUS Trade Agreement, which goes into effect on March 15^th is the most significant since NAFTA as the country boasts a $1.4 trillion GDP, ranking 12^th on the globe. Currently, Korea ranks 5^th in U.S. farm exports and according to the American Farm Bureau the agreement should spur an additional $1.8 billion each year. In turn, KORUS should give a boost of between $10-12 billion annually to the U.S. GDP from just ag and industrial products.

According to the Office of the United States Trade Reps, “For agricultural products, the FTA will immediately eliminate or phase out tariffs and quotas on a broad range of products, with almost two-thirds (by value) of Korea’s agriculture imports from the United States becoming duty free upon entry into force.”

Those products include corn, soybeans, wheat, dairy, cotton, vegetables, fruit juices and many more.

But KORUS will have the biggest impact on American beef and pork exports. According to the National Hog Farmer, “Tariffs on pork exports currently at 22.5% to 25% will be phased out over two years beginning on Jan.1, 2014.  Tariffs on U.S. beef will go from 40% to zero over 15 years.” 

Learn more about the benefits of KORUS at http://www.atoseoul.com/fta/generalinfo.asp

Is increased ethanol production hurting beef cattle and dairy operations? The answer is NO according to a recent Texas A&M study detailing that cattle operation profits have increased since the implementation of the renewable fuels standard, which mandates that certain amounts of renewable fuels be used in the United States each year.

The study originated from allegations that increased corn ethanol production was causing instability and uncertainty in beef and dairy operations. While the analysis did show an increase in feed prices, the overall profits outweighed the increased costs.

“For years, corn farmers have understood that we have the ability to supply both growing ethanol and livestock producers simultaneously without negatively impacting these valued customers,” said South Dakota Corn Growers Association President, Gary Duffy, a farmer and rancher from Oldham. “With advances in both seed and farming technology, we have increased our average yield substantially in the past few decades. This abundance allows us to meet increased demand, providing both feed and fuel that benefit our nation’s economic security.”

Not only does this study answer the questions of those in the livestock industry, but it reassures our countries’ policy makers that the Renewable Fuels Standard is truly an effective program that is not hurting other facets of agriculture. The study also extinguishes yet another anti-ethanol myth.

 “While it is easy to reiterate artificial arguments against the use of ethanol, we believe this study clearly illustrates the fallacies on which they are often based,” said Duffy. “This study again concludes that, in reality, we do not have to choose between using corn for food or fuel.”

South Dakota Corn salutes America’s beef producers as we recognize May as National Beef Month.

As our state’s corn farmers steadily work on getting their crops planted, a number of those same farmers and ranchers are also working with their cattle. Spring is a busy time as farmers have short windows where they can plant due to the weather while also trying to find time to vaccinate and transport their cattle to pasture.

Beef cattle are big consumers of both corn and the ethanol byproduct, distillers grain as producers invest in the highest quality nutrients to receive the best financial return and produce the best tasting beef in the entire world.

Besides taste, American beef is also known as being some of the safest, most inexpensive and nutritious protein available to consumers today.

We encourage you and your family to celebrate National Beef Month by grilling out with some burgers or your favorite cuts of steak, taking part in a great American tradition and appreciating a great American product during the month of May.

For more information on beef nutrition, recipes or other information, check out: http://www.beefitswhatsfordinner.com/