AM 580 Agricultural Happenings
Welcome to Dave and Todd's Ag Blog. Here you will find details of upcoming AM 580 Agricultural events, as well as our occasional thoughts and reports on the marketplace.
Follow the Corn Bus Tour
The Mississippi River System is the lifeblood of the agricultural export market in the Midwest. If you have ever wondered how the corn makes it’s way through the river system, then this 5 Day WILLAg Follow the Corn Bus Tour will help answer your questions. Along the way we’ll visit CGB’s Mound City River Terminal, the newest Grain Export Terminal at the Gulf Port, and talk with two of WILLAg’s most listened to analysts, Dan Zwicker and John Bondurant. There will be plenty of time on your own, too. We’ll stop in Tunica at Harrah’s, spend two nights in New Orleans’s French Quarter, and visit famous Beale Street in Memphis. It is a truly a business vacation. Come join us for 5 days and 4 nights in August.
Let us know if you’re interested… send an email to .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address). This is a tentative trip. You can learn more on the following website http://www.tourgrouppro.com/will/
ILLINOIS’ Darrel Good Discusses USDA WASDE
Thursday morning we spoke with University of Illinois Ag Economist Darrel Good about the May 11 WASDE figures. You can hear that conversation using the following link http://www.will.uiuc.edu/media/WASDE-120510.mp3
You might also want to read Darrel’s thoughts on the Farm Doc Daily website at http://www.farmdocdaily.illinois.edu.
Frosted Corn in Illinois
Yesterday (April 11) I drove from Champaign to Elkhart, Illinois to have supper with my father. I knew where to find this first frosty field of corn in Champaign County. The 5 leaf stage didn’t fair terribly well. The two leaf corn and the wheat field are both in Logan County. The corn is certainly nipped, but I suppose should come out of it ok. The soft red winter wheat looked GREAT!
Todd Gleason
WILL AG Thanks These Sponsors of the 2012 All Day Agricultural Outlook Meeting
Agrigold Hybrids - http://www.agrigold.com/
The Andersons - http://www.andersonsinc.com/wps/portal/corp
Bates Commodities - http://www.batescom.net/
Boulder Designs - http://www.boulderdesigns.net/
Farm Credit Services of Illinois - http://www.fcsillinois.com/Pages/default.aspx
Pioneer - http://www.pioneer.com/landing
Risk Management Commodities - http://www.myrmconline.com/
Steel Star -
Stewart-Peterson - http://www.stewart-peterson.com/
Strategic Farm Marketing - http://www.sfarmmarketing.com/
Wisconsin Plastic Drain Tile - http://draintile.com/
2012 All Day Agricultural Outlook Meeting Now a SELL-OUT
Todd and I look forward to visiting with you on March 6th! Here is the day’s schedule…please do not arrive earlier than 8:00 a.m. central time—you will have plenty of time to get your continental breakfast and be seated.
AM 580 2012 All Day Agricultural Outlook Meeting
March 6, 2012
Beef House, Covington, Indiana
Registration
8:00 am Eastern (7:00 am Central)
Opening Remarks (5 min)
8:40 am Eastern (7:40 am Central)
Soybean Commodity Panel (45 min)
8:45 am Eastern (7:45 am Central)
Curt Kimmel, Bates Commodities, Bloomington, Illinois
Wayne Nelson, L and M Commodities, New Market, Indiana
Mike Zuzolo, Global Commodity Analytics, Lafayette, Indiana
Bill Mayer, Strategic Farm Marketing, Champaign, Illinois
Cash Grain Panel (45 min)
9:30 am Eastern (8:30 Central)
Greg Johnson, The Andersons, Champaign, Illinois
Aaron Curtis, MidCO, Bloomingon, Illinois
Matt Bennett, Total Grain Marketing, Winsor, Illinois
Chuck Shelby, Risk Management Commodities, Lafayette, Indiana
Break (5 min)
10:15 am Eastern (9:15 am Central)
Corn Panel (45 min)
10:20 am Eastern (9:20 am Central)
Dan Zwicker, ADM Grain Group, Decatur, Illinois
Paul Coolley, ADM Investor Services, Oakland, Illinois
Pete Manhart, Bates Commodities, Bloomington, Illinois
Jacquie Voeks, Stewart Peterson Group, Champaign, Illinois
Key Note 1 (40 min)
Land Values 2012 and Beyond
11:05 am Eastern (10:05 am Central)
Mike Morris, Chief Appraiser, 1st Farm Credit Services, Bloomington, Illinois
Break (5 min)
10:45 am Eastern (9:45 am Central)
Livestock Futures and Grain Usage (30 min)
10:50 am Eastern (9:50 am Central)
Lunch and Trade Show
12:30 pm Eastern (11:30 am Central)
Keynote 2
In the Wake of M.F. Global -
1:30 pm Eastern (12:30 pm Central)
Joe Vaclavik, Straits Financial, Chicago, Illinois
Stephen Platt, Archer Financial Services, Chicago, Illinois
TBA - CME Group
Correcton to December 15, 2011 Closing Market Report
It was mentioned on the December 15 Closing Market Report that ADM is accepting January 2012 corn contracts early. However the call for January corn contracts is coming from a single ADM elevator in Saint Louis and not all ADM elevators. If you have grain contracted with ADM in Saint Louis you must call prior to delivery or the the grain will not be applied to the contract..
Investigative Hearing on the MF Global Bankruptcy
Senate Agriculture Committee:
Date
Tuesday, December 13, 2011
Time
10:00 AM
Location
216 Hart Senate Office Building
On October 31, 2011, MF Global Holdings Ltd. declared bankruptcy – the eighth largest bankruptcy in U.S. history. Since then, federal officials have been unable to find a significant amount of the firm’s customer’s money. It is currently estimated that up to $1.2 billion in customer funds is missing. The Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry has jurisdiction over the sort of commodity trading that MF Global was engaged in, and the hearing on December 13 will be a continuation of the Committee’s investigation into the firm’s bankruptcy.
Here is the LIVE VIDEO LINK:
http://www.ag.senate.gov/templates/watch.cfm?id=3aea923c-5056-a032-5251-44c63b1e90d6
House Ag Committee Public Hearing on MF Global Bankruptcy - December 8
Examination of MF Global bankruptcy
Date and Time
The House Agriculture Committee will hold a public hearing on Thursday, December 8 at 8:30 a.m. CENTRAL time to examine about specifics regarding the MF Global Bankruptcy and what happened to customer funds. CFTC chairman Gary Gensler has rescued himself from the MF Global Investigation because of his prior working relationship with former MF Global CEO Jon Corzine. As much as 1.2 billion dollars in segregate customer accounts may be missing.
The link to the live feed is at:
http://agaudio1.house.gov/1300
December 8, 2011 | 09:30 AM
Location
1300 Longworth House Office Building, Washington, D.C.
Description
Thursday, December 8, 2011 – 9:30 a.m.
1300 Longworth House Office Building
Washington, D.C.
Full Committee on Agriculture—Public Hearing
RE: Examination of MF Global bankruptcy.
Witness Testimonies
Panel 1
* The Honorable Jill Sommers, Commissioner, Commodity Futures Trading Commission, Washington, D.C.
* Mr. James Kobak, Lead Counsel for the Trustee for the Liquidation of MF Global Inc., New York, New York
Panel 2
* The Honorable Jon Corzine, Former CEO, MF Global Inc., New York, New York
Panel 3
* Mr. John Fletcher, General Manager, Central Missouri AGRIService LLC, on behalf of the National Grain and Feed Association, Marshall, Missouri
* Mr. Terrence Duffy, Executive Chairman, CME Group, Inc., Chicago, Illinois
* Mr. William J. Brodsky, Chairman and CEO, Chicago Board Options Exchange, Chicago, Illinois
* Mr. Dan Roth, President and CEO, National Futures Association, Chicago, Illinois
* Mr. Stephen Luparello, Vice Chairman, Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, Washington, D.C.
* Mr. Gerry Corcoran, Chairman and CEO, R.J. O’Brien & Associates, on behalf of the Commodity Markets Council, Chicago, Illinois






