The most recent data from the U.S. Energy Administration shows the price of No. 2 Diesel has decreased sharply since June (from $5.745 per gallon to $4.993 per gallon as of September), but remains higher than the previous record high set in 2008 ($4.703 per gallon).
With our tow boat and 15 barges filled with corn, wheat and soybeans now heading downstream, Captain Rider says 100 miles represents a good day on the Upper Mississippi River. South of St. Louis on the 730-mile journey to New Orleans and with no locks to slow down the tow, it's a different story.
Barge design and positioning affect efficient movement on the Mississippi River. But when aging infrastructure brings barges to a standstill for as long as 12 hours, all the design in the world can't save what amounts to $100 million in delay-related costs. If the U.S. is going to move twice as much grain to market 20 or 30 years from now, we'll need to spend hundreds of millions of dollars to update the river's ancient system of locks.
Source: This article was originally published by the University of Illinois
When Jason Lay attended a conference last year with other Illinois farmers, he was amazed by the level of interest in strip-till, a system in which the crop is planted in a narrowly tilled strip and most crop residue is preserved to protect the soil from erosion.
While U.S. Department of Agriculture officials have been bragging about funding nearly $290 million in renewable energy efforts since the start of the Bush administration, most of the investment has gone to bioenergy and biomass ventures. In fact, much of their comprehensive energy strategy to help farmers reduce high energy costs is simply being promoted without offering any new economic incentives.
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On this episode of Conservation Ag Update, brought to you by Montag Manufacturing, growers from across the U.S. share their predictions for the upcoming planting season, including one no-tiller who’s “bullish” about a great spring.
Needham Ag understands the role of technology in making better use of limited resources within a specific environment by drawing on a wealth of global experience to overcome the challenges facing today's farmers, manufacturers and dealers.
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