It’s time for your Merchandiser Minute with Robert Harper! The topics this week pertain to the China concessions, big volatility in the energy sector & strong corn export sales.

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Convention participants can help Farm Bureau and Paul Obaugh Ford supper Virginia Agriculture in the Classroom on Tuesday, Nov. 27 at the Virginia Farm Bureau Federation Annual Convention in Hot Springs by taking a free test drive in a new Ford vehicle.

There’s a goal of 300 test drivers, and for each one, AITC will receive $20.

Test drives will be available from 8 to 11 a.m., and 1 to 4:30 p.m. Please show your interest now on your registration form. Once you arrive, you can sign up to drive at our booth, located between the hotel and convention registration desks.

High school students have until Jan. 31, 2019, to submit entries for the National Ag Day essay and video essay contest, sponsored by the Agriculture Council of America.

The theme for entries is “Agriculture: Food for Life. How Does Our Nation Lead the Way?” Participants are encouraged to describe how agriculture affects their daily lives and how it will feed the world’s growing population.

The contest is open to students in grades 9 through 12 in the 2018-2019 school year. Participants must be U.S. citizens attending school in the U.S. Details and an entry form is available at agday.org.

First-place winners will be contacted in February and will be announced to the public on National Ag Day, March 19.

Ag Day will be celebrated during National Ag Week, March 17-23. The observation encourages Americans to understand how food and fiber goods are produced; value the essential role of agriculture in maintaining a strong economy; and appreciate the role agriculture plays in providing safe, abundant and affordable products.

Topsoil moisture levels have been higher than normal throughout this year’s harvest season and remain high.

“The rainfall situation this year certainly did a big turnaround from conditions at the beginning of the year,” said Jerry Stenger, director of the state Climatology Office at the University of Virginia. “We were very concerned then about possible water shortages but around April, just as the growing season was getting into gear, the skies opened up.

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Best-selling author Michele Payn will share excerpts from her latest book, Food Truths from Farm to Table, on Nov. 27 during Virginia Farm Bureau Federation’s 2018 Annual Convention at The Omni Homestead Resort in Hot Springs.

Payn, of Cause Matters Corp., will deliver keynote remarks at the convention’s Farm to Table Luncheon. Food Truths has been a No. 1 bestseller on Amazon and features interviews with U.S. farmers who dispel common misconceptions about agriculture. The book was awarded a 2018 Independent Publisher Book Awards bronze medal for medicine, health and nutrition. Payn also has authored No More Food Fights! Growing a Productive Farm & Food Conversation, which encourages farm and food advocates to seek common ground.

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The Agriculture Department recently released several tables previewing the annual long-term Agricultural Projections to 2028 (the complete projections will be released in February 2019). These early-release tables provide USDA’s estimates on the supply and demand for agricultural commodities for the next 10 years and take into consideration macroeconomic conditions, gross domestic product growth, population growth and farm policy, among other factors.

Given the current U.S.-China trade environment – U.S. Soybean Exports to China Fall Sharply –a key takeaway from these projections was the impact on soybean and other field crop acreage, soybean exports, soybean ending stocks and, finally, prices.

For the 2019 crop year, USDA projects soybean planted acreage will decline by 6.6 million acres, dropping from a record 89.1 million acres planted in 2018 to 82.5 million acres. If realized, this would be the third-largest acreage decline of all time and the largest year-over-year decline in soybean plantings since the beginning of the Renewable Fuels era in 2007. The decline in soybean acreage is anticipated given the slow pace of soybean exports, the dramatic decline in Chinese purchases, expectations for a nearly billion-bushel-carryout and projections for decade-low soybean marketing year average prices.

Market Intel update

Tune in for your Merchandiser Minute with Robert Harper! We’re discussing just how the election & the U.S. dollar are playing a role in your prices.

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The American Farm Bureau Federation has joined 15 other agriculture organizations urging House and Senate agriculture leaders to complete the federal farm bill by the end of the year.

The groups said the financial security of America’s farmers and ranchers is in jeopardy if the farm bill is not passed. The 2014 farm bill expired Sept. 30.

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2019–2020 Terrestrial Wildlife Regulation Review & Amendment Process: Public Scoping Period

This is an opportunity to offer ideas on changes to hunting, trapping, or other wildlife regulations that you would like to see for the 2019-2020 seasons. The Department of Game and Inland Fisheries takes public opinion into account when developing regulations, and it is critical for farmers to voice their concerns about areas that affect them, such as wildlife damage to crops and livestock.

Please take the time to complete DGIF’s survey, which can be found here. The deadline for comments is December 14, 2018.

Virginia’s Elk Management Plan

DGIF has developed an elk management plan that will guide the agency’s management of the elk population in Virginia through 2028. A public comment period is underway as part of the plan development process.

Links to the “Elk Management Plan’s Mission, Goals, Objectives, and Strategies” document and comment form can be found here.  The deadline for comments is December 5, 2018.

A wide variety of speakers at this year’s Virginia Farm Bureau Federation Annual Convention will be steering the event’s Driving Agriculture Forward theme.

This year’s largest gathering of farmers in the state will take place Nov. 27-29 at The Omni Homestead Resort in Hot Springs. Convention participants will hear keynote remarks from best-selling author Michele Payn at Tuesday’s Farm to Table Luncheon. Payn’s latest book, Food Truths from Farm to Table, became a No. 1 bestseller on Amazon and features interviews with U.S. farmers who dispel common misconceptions about agriculture.

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