EU provides financial support to four member states to contain African swine fever

A European Union (EU) program grant of 2.5 million EUR has been established for Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland to prevent African swine fever from spreading into the EU pig herd has been endorsed by the Standing Committee for Animal Health and Welfare.
The program focuses on key preventive measures, which include cleansing and disinfection of vehicles, surveillance and laboratory testing, awareness campaigns and even the use of wild boar repellents. Preventive early slaughter of pigs in risky backyard farms is recommended in the spirit that "prevention is better than cure." Recent outbreaks of African swine fever in Russia and Belarus constitute a threat to EU pig farmers. African swine fever could enter the EU through illegal introduction of pig products, such as pork, via contaminated livestock vehicles or the migration of infected wild boars.
African swine fever is an infectious disease that is usually fatal and no vaccine exists to combat the virus. Its spread into the EU would cause important losses to the pig sector and disrupt the internal market and exports for live pigs and porcine products. 

China feed mills importing US sorghum as corn replacement

China's private feed mills are increasingly turning to sorghum from the U.S. after using up their annual import allocations for preferred animal feed grain corn, according to reports.
Rising Chinese imports are expected to boost sorghum prices over the next few months in the U.S., the world's largest producer, which is forecast to reap a bumper crop this year. U.S. sorghum prices are about $20 per metric ton higher than U.S. corn prices, partly due to China's buying, traders said.
Private mills in China have used up their allocated 2.88 million metric tons of corn import quotas in 2013 and are not expected to ship in more corn until the end of the year when Beijing issues quotas for 2014. Domestic corn is not a viable option as it is way more expensive than U.S. sorghum.
As an alternative, the mills have already bought about 800,000 metric tons of U.S. sorghum for shipment in the 2013-2014 year starting in September and total orders are likely to top 1 million metric tons, with prices still attractive, traders said.
China issues a fixed 7.2 million metric tons of low-tariff rate corn import quotas annually under commitments made to the World Trade Organization, of which 60 percent is for state-owned firms. Corn is the preferred feed grain for mills as it produced widely and in large quantities.
Imports of sorghum, similar in feed value to corn, are not subject to quota restrictions, and buyers need only pay a 2 percent import tax and 13 percent value-added tax on their purchases. Mills would be subject to a 65 percent import tax if they imported corn above their quota allocations.

Enzyme research grant to focus on piglet digestion, metabolism

Using enzymes to break down compounds in plant-based feedstuffs that impair digestion and metabolism in nursery pigs is being funded by a $100,000 Collaborative Funding Grant from the North Carolina Biotechnology Center. This grant was awarded to BioResource International Inc. (BRI) to help harness the natural power of enzymes to develop sustainable solutions that help feed the world.
NCBiotech's Collaborative funding grant program supports university-company partnerships that advance a company's technology to the marketplace. BRI is collaborating with North Carolina State University professor Dr. Sung Woo Kim, who will lead a project that will provide a feeding strategy to increase the use of plant-based feedstuffs in nursery pig diets and reduce the use of animal-based feedstuffs. This will lead to a reduction in feed cost and meat safety concerns in pig farming.
"We are very grateful for the support from the Collaborative Funding Grant. We hope that information derived from research supported by this grant will ultimately help address some of the specific needs and concerns of pig farmers in North Carolina and around the world," said Giles Shih, BRI CEO. "We are excited about the opportunity for enzymes to provide pig farmers with an economically and environmentally sustainable solution to raise their hogs."

US, EU wheat sales diminishing inventory

The U.S. and European Union are selling wheat at the fastest pace in at least six years, diminishing stockpiles even as farmers reap a record crop, according to reports.
Sales from the U.S. in the past three months have grown 38 percent from 2012 and export licenses issued by the EU have more than doubled, government data show. World inventories will drop to a five-year low by June 30 as farmers harvest 705.4 million metric tons, the U.S. Department of Agriculture estimates. Futures will rise 15 percent to $7.40 a bushel by the start of the next season on July 1, according to the median of 10 analyst estimates compiled by Bloomberg.
China, set to overtake Egypt as the biggest wheat buyer, may import three times more this season. Brazil already bought 41 times more from the U.S. since June 1, USDA data show. Demand increased as futures tumbled 32 percent from a four-year high in July 2012, as drought eased in the U.S., the biggest shipper. The EU is the second-largest exporter.
Wheat, 2012's best-performing commodity, has dropped 17 percent to $6.4575 on the Chicago Board of Trade since the start of January. The Standard & Poor's GSCI gauge of 24 commodities fell 0.3 percent and the MSCI All-Country World Index of equities rose 11 percent. The Bloomberg U.S. Treasury Bond Index lost 3.9 percent.
Global wheat consumption of 706.81 million tons will outpace production for a second consecutive year, leaving inventories of 172.99 million tons, the lowest since the 2008-2009 season, the USDA predicts. The agency will cut its forecast to 172.75 million tons when it releases new estimates at noon in Washington on September 12, according to the average of 15 analyst estimates compiled by Bloomberg.
U.S. exporters have sold 15.82 million tons of wheat since the marketing year began June 1, from 11.48 million tons at this time in 2012 and the fastest pace since 2007, according to USDA data. EU export licenses since July 1 climbed to 4.47 million tons, from 2.13 million a year earlier and the most since at least 2004.

US corn, soybean production uncertainty expected to continue

U.S. corn and soybean prices are likely to continue to be unsettled as harvest reports become more numerous and the market forms expectations about the October production forecasts, according to University of Illinois agricultural economist Darrel Good.
"In each of the previous three years, when the U.S. average corn yield was below trend value, the October production forecast was below the September forecast," said Good. "The difference ranged from 21 million bushels last year to 496 million bushels in 2010. Over the past 30 years, however, the October forecast was above the September forecast in 18 years and below the September forecast in 12 years.
"This year, there continues to be a range of expectations about both the October forecast and the final estimate of the U.S. average corn yield," he said. "Yield uncertainty is increased by the generally dry end to the growing season in many areas and by the late maturity of the crop where planting was delayed."
 According to Good, current corn production uncertainty also comes from uncertainty about the magnitude of the area to be harvested for grain.The U.S. Department of Agriculture's June Agricultural Survey revealed more corn acreage planted and to be harvested for grain than expected by the market. On August 15, the USDA's Farm Service Agency (FSA) released a prevented acres report that indicated 3.4 million acres of corn were prevented from being planted in 2013 due to adverse weather conditions. That report fueled expectations that the USDA's National Agricultural Service (NASS) would eventually reduce the estimates of planted acreage and acreage harvested for grain, according to Good.
"Typically, FSA-certified acreage data is reflected in the October Crop Production report," he said. "FSA is scheduled to release updated estimates of planted acreage on September 17. That report will influence expectations for the acreage estimates in the October Crop Production report. Without a change in the yield forecast, prospects for 2013-2014 marketing-year ending stocks below 1.5 billion bushels would require NASS to lower the harvested acreage estimate by more than 2 million acres. Such a large reduction seems unlikely."
Uncertainty about the NASS October forecast and the final estimate of the U.S. average soybean yield also reflects late-season heat and dryness in a large portion of the production area and late maturity in some areas. Good said that some of the impact of adverse weather was likely reflected in the September yield forecast that was 1.4 bushels below the August forecast. "Most do not expect the October forecast to be above the September forecast, but there is little agreement on the possible magnitude of a smaller forecast," said Good.
At this juncture, said Good, there is a high probability that the 2013 U.S. corn crop will be large enough to result in a meaningful increase in stocks by the end of the current marketing year. "Prospects of ample supplies point to an average marketing year farm price in the mid-$4 range," he said. "Cash prices would be expected to follow a typical large-crop pattern of establishing lows at harvest time followed by modest increases that would about cover the cost of storage."
Good said that soybean prices are expected to remain high relative to corn prices with a marketing-year average farm price in the high-$12 range. "The price pattern for soybeans may follow more of a short-crop pattern, however, particularly if the production forecast declines in October," he said. "Such a pattern would point to the highest prices at harvest and declining prices as consumption adjusts and the South American crop advances."

Mexican government complicating eradication of avian influenza, poultry consultant says

Armando Mirande speaks about avian influenza in Mexico during the Poultry Production and Health Seminar.

Avian influenza in Mexico will continue to be a severe problem for the poultry industry because the government is corrupt and does not want to see it eradicated, said Armando Mirande, a U.S.-based poultry consultant. Mirande, speaking to a U.S. audience, cautioned that because of the situation in Mexico, the risk of avian influenza spreading into the U.S. is very concerning.
Mirande, whose international clientele reaches into Mexico and other parts of Latin America, spoke September 17 at the Poultry Production and Health Seminar, held in Memphis, Tenn. A separate video interview with Mirande is available on WATTAgNet.com.
According to Mirande, the corruption has shown up on multiple levels. He said the government is not being honest about the presence of avian influenza and other diseases.
One case he made was when there was a report of a low-pathogenic form of avian influenza, but 80 percent of the birds were dying and an emergency was declared eight days later. Another instance was when an official said the avian influenza virus was never out of control and only appeared in two places, but the official declined to give his name. "When have you ever seen an official giving good news but not wanting his name released," he asked, adding that he knew he was lying under the direction of his superiors.
Mirande also spoke of the reported path of avian influenza that has gone through the country in 2013. It was reported in Jalisco, Aguascalientes, Guanajato and Puebla, but not Querétaro, which is the largest broiler producer. That would be like avian influenza first being reported in North Carolina, then in South Carolina, Georgia, Mississippi and Louisiana, but people in Alabama saying avian influenza was never there.
There has also been a "persistent denial of obvious existence of disease" when it comes to Newcastle Disease, Salmonella and early mortality syndrome, which appears in shrimp, Mirande said.
A steady flow of money coming from a certification program is also a sign of corruption. Producers can receive a certificate that declares a product comes from a clean floor and is free of disease, which accounts for about $6.9 million annually, Mirande said. However, none of that money that goes to the government goes back into the poultry industry, he added.
"They don't want AI to go away," Mirande said of the governments. "They need these certificates."

FDA issues guidance for animal food additive petitions

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has announced the availability of a draft document describing the type of information it recommends that companies provide when they submit a food additive petition for substances intended for use in animal food.
Under the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act, the FDA must approve food additives before they can be used in animal food.
The draft Guidance for Industry #221, titled "Recommendations for Preparation and Submission of Animal Food Additive Petitions," recommends that petitioners submit to FDA:

• Information to identify and characterize the food additive
• Information about the manufacturing methods and controls
• Data to show the food additive will have its intended effect and the amount of the food additive needed to achieve the intended effect
• The proposed labeling
• A description of the method or methods used to determine the strength, purity and quality of the food additive
• A safety evaluation of the food additive (this includes evaluating the safety to people who eat edible products of animals fed the food additive and the safety to the target animal species)
• Proposed tolerances for the food additive (this represents the maximum concentration of the additive allowed in edible tissues, for example, in meat, milk and eggs)
• Proposed food additive regulation describing the conditions under which the additive can be safely used in animal food
• Information to allow the FDA to assess the environmental impact from the manufacture, use and disposal of the food additive
The draft guidance is open for public comment for 60 days, starting on September 11. Although you can comment on any guidance at any time, to ensure that the FDA considers your comment on this draft guidance before it begins work on the final version of the guidance, submit either electronic or written comments on the draft guidance by November 12, 2013.