The Farm Post eNews

Friday eNews from the Pike and Scott County Farm Bureaus

OCTOBER 9, 2015

October is National Pork Month

October is National Pork Month and there is so much to celebrate. Hog farmers work hard 365 days a year to put safe and delicious pork on your family's table. Illinois ranks fourth in the nation in hog production, and according to the most recent Census of Agriculture, the sector contributed $1.5 billion to the state economy in 2012. Pike ranks 1st in hog and pig inventory and 2nd in value of sales of hogs and pigs in Illinois. In Pike, there are 40 hog farms with 243,801 head. Scott County has 16 farms with 11,502 head of hogs and pigs.

TPP Ready for the Senate

The completion of negotiations for the Trans-Pacific Partnership on Monday holds promise for opening restricted markets for American business around the Pacific Rim. The news was welcomed by Farm Bureau. "The American Farm Bureau Federation looks forward to reviewing the details of the agreement reached today to guarantee it fulfills that promise for the nation's farmers and ranchers," AFBF President Bob Stallman said in a statement. "We hope the agreement will bring a more level playing field for farmers and ranchers by reducing tariffs and removing non-science based barriers to trade," he said. Increased access for U.S. agricultural products, particularly some meats, is anticipated.

Thank a Farmer

The American Farm Bureau Foundation for Agriculture is hosting a "Thank a Farmer" campaign this harvest season to spur conversation about agriculture in classrooms. To thank a farmer, teachers are encouraged to have students write thank you notes and send them to the Foundation, which will make sure real farmers read them. The campaign website features free resources, discussion topics, classroom ideas and book recommendations for students. If you don't have access to a classroom you can still help spread the word. Share the campaign link (http://www.agfoundation.org/projects/thank-a-farmer) on social media platforms and use the #ThankAFarmer hashtag.

Sequestration

Sequestration, a budget mechanism used to achieve spending reductions, will soon affect farm programs. During a House Agriculture Committee hearing on Wednesday, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said sequestration will cut payments under the Price Loss Coverage and Agriculture Risk Coverage programs for 2014 through 2016 by 6.8 percent. Sequestration, which Congress instituted in the Budget Control Act of 2011, will affect the programs regardless of when farmers signed up for them. Farm Bureau supports sequestration as a spending reduction tool provided no programs are exempt from the cuts.

Enter by 10/30

How would you like to be cruising the country in a brand new Ford F-150? Illinois Farm Bureau (IFB) members are eligible to win a 2-year lease during the Built Tough F-150 Haul in a Winner Sweepstakes! The all-new 2015 F-150 works harder and smarter than ever before, with its military grade, aluminum-alloy body, best in class towing, and payload. The future of tough is here, and it starts and ends with the 2015 F-150. There's nothing to buy, but so much to win! IFB members are also eligible to receive $500 Bonus Cash toward the purchase or lease of any eligible vehicle from the comfortable and capable lineup of Ford cars and trucks. If you're not already an Illinois Farm Bureau member, contact your county Farm Bureau to sign up and enter the Built Tough F-150 Sweepstakes! Enter the sweepstakes before October 30, 2015 to be eligible to win.

TODAY IN HISTORY

OCTOBER 9, 1000

Leif Erikson Discovers America

Leif Erikson (also known as Leif the Lucky) was the son of Erik the Red. Leif Erikson's story of discovering America was recorded in several different sagas, but the accounts they give are so different it is impossible to be certain of the details of his life. He is thought to have visited Norway in around 1000 where he was converted to Christianity by Olaf I, who sent him back to Greenland to convert the settlers there. In one story, on his voyage to Greenland he sailed off-course and arrived in a place he called 'Vinland', because of the abundant grapes growing there, and the general fertility of the land. In another - the Groenlendinga saga - he heard of a land in the west from an Icelandic trader, and went to find it. In 1963, archaeologists found ruins of a Viking-type settlement at L'Anse aux Meadows, in northern Newfoundland, which correspond to Leif's description of Vinland.

Whatever the case, today is Leif Erikson Day in the United States.

Learn more about Farm Bureau

Check out this week's FBNews from the American Farm Bureau Federation.