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About Us
Founded in 1957, the National Corn Growers Association (NCGA) represents approximately 35,000 dues-paying corn growers and the interests of more than 300,000 farmers who contribute through corn checkoff programs in their states. NCGA and its 48 affiliated state associations and checkoff organizations work together to help protect and advance corn growers' interests.
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Bertels Now VP of Production and Utilization
 The National Corn Growers Association announces that Paul Bertels, former director of agricultural economic analyses and environmental impacts, has been promoted to the position of vice president for Production and Utilization, effective today. Bertels assumes a pivotal position coordinating the staff and activities for the former Research and Business Development Department.
"For a dozen years, Paul has played a valuable role in our organization and we are excited about the experience and perspective that he brings to our management team," said NCGA Chief Executive Officer Rick Tolman. "Given his strong leadership experience and intense personal motivation, Paul will be able to provide the direction that we need as we continue to adapt and look toward the future."
In his new role, he is responsible for strategic and on-going departmental program planning and staff oversight and serves on the NCGA management team.
Bertels brings considerable business analysis experience to the position. Prior to his employment at NCGA, he worked as an agricultural economist for the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Agricultural Marketing Service.
Bertels has worked in agriculture from a young age, growing up on a grain and cattle farm in southwest Illinois. He then went on to earn both a Bachelor of Sciences degree in Animal Sciences and a Masters of Sciences degree in Agricultural Economics from the University of Illinois.
Bertels also gained significant leadership experience through his work both with NCGA and in the U.S. Army. In 1998, he joined the National Corn Growers Association in St. Louis as director of production and marketing. As an officer in the Illinois Army National Guard, Bertels took a military leave of absence from NCGA in 2003 that included a tour of duty in Iraq. Following his return in 2005, he was appointed director of agricultural economic analyses and environmental impacts. In 2008, Bertels was recalled to active duty and deployed to Afghanistan, where he served as a mentor to the Afghan National Army. He returned to the National Corn Growers in November 2009, where he focused on general economics, trade and cap-and-trade issues.
Bertels remains involved in agriculture on a more personal level, running a small farming operation with the assistance of his four sons.
Off the Cob caught up with Bertels this week to discuss his vision for the department, if the name change plays into a shift in functionality and on his personal insight as a farmer into this year's crop.
Click here to listen to his interview |
Forecast: Bigger Crop, Better Yields
Corn farmers will be bringing in another record crop this year, according to U.S. Department of Agriculture reports released this morning. Additionally, they are on course to break average yield records yet again continuing a strong upward trend.
"This forecast reconfirms what we have always recognized: U.S. corn growers work hard to produce the most abundant, affordable crop possible," said National Corn Growers Association President Darrin Ihnen, a grower from Hurley, S.D. "As we continuously beat records, such as those for total production and average yield, without substantially increasing the area planted and while decreasing the amount of inputs, we hope that those outside of our industry also take notice. In educating themselves on the triumphs of modern agriculture, the 98.5 percent of the population not involved in agriculture can make informed decisions in debates on issues pertaining to food, fuel and feed."
USDA forecasts now show that the 2010 harvest will bring in a record corn crop of 13.4 billion bushels with a record average yield of 165 bushels per acre. The total crop would surpass the record set in 2009 by 2 percent.
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Looking at the High Costs of Farming
During these economically stressful times, rising food prices can lead to questions about how much profit a farmer actually makes. With 98.5 percent of the population not working in agriculture, it becomes easy to make assumptions based upon only the prices on the shelves. But, in all actuality, farmers must spend a large percentage of the price they will get after harvest on the inputs necessary to grow the crops that provide food, feed and fuel. Not only does it costs a significant amount of money to farm, but growers must plant each spring without knowing what they will recoup in the fall.
"Farming is not a nine-to-five cubicle job with a paycheck at the end of the week," said National Corn Growers Association President Darrin Ihnen, a grower in Hurley, S.D. "Even the smallest family operations need to run their farm as a small business, pay attention to costs and do their best in a market that is impacted by many outside forces beyond their control, from potentially disastrous weather patterns to new rounds of regulation from Washington."
Two new reports issued this past week detail some of these costs. In 2009, farmers ended up spending more when purchasing and renting land and on seeds and plants. These increases were somewhat offset by decreases in the prices of fuel, fertilizer and agricultural chemicals.
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Revitalizing the Chesapeake Bay
Last week, the Conservation Technology Information Center held its annual "Conservation in Action Tour" in Williamsburg, Virginia, focused on how conservation practices in southeast Virginia are helping improve water quality in the Chesapeake Bay. The tour was attended by more than 125 farmers, journalists, agribusiness representatives, state officials and congressional staff. The National Corn Growers Association is a member of CTIC.
USDA Deputy Under Secretary for Natural Resources and Environment Ann Mills and EPA Agriculture Policy Coordinator for the Chesapeake Bay Program Kelly Shenk addressed the group during a lunch briefing at Shirley Plantation. Both speakers discussed the delicate balance between voluntary practices and government regulation in the effort to clean up the Chesapeake Bay.
The tour included stops in three different Virginia counties where local producers explained the widespread adoption of no-till farming and the introduction of cover crops in the region to reduce nitrogen runoff. The tour included a stop at David Hula's Renwood Farms, which has earned multiple National Corn Yield Contest awards from NCGA. Conservation tillage within the Colonial Soil and Water Conservation District is estimated at nearly 95 percent of all actively farmed acres with one of the highest adoption rates in the nation.
For the whole story, click here. |
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Technology Makes More with Less
 Like a growing number of U.S. farmers, Ken Davis uses a global positioning system to assist in planting seeds and applying just the right amount of fertilizer on his fields.
It helps produce more corn without increasing input costs from chemicals such as fertilizer or herbicides, said Ken, whose farm is outside Leesburg, Ohio, a town of 1,200 surrounded by the checkerboard squares of dozens of other family farms.
Four generations of Davises have farmed this land, going back to 1932. Yet these days Ken, who has a master's degree in agriculture, has a leg up: New technology means larger yirlds every year with less of an environmental impact.
Above: (From left to right) Ken, Joe and Evan Davis |
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