Ohio corn and wheat growers unite as one
DELAWARE, Ohio — The Ohio Corn Growers Assoc. (OCGA) and Ohio Wheat Growers Assoc. (OWGA) have taken steps to unite to better represent the interests of thousands of grain farmers throughout the Buckeye State.
As a single entity as of Jan. 1, the Ohio Corn & Wheat Growers Assoc. (OCWGA) has positioned itself for the regulation and advancement of domestic and international issues that affect the success of Ohio’s corn and wheat markets.

The new organization is the result of an ongoing relationship between the associations. Board members from each of the groups joined forces to plan for the unification. A grower survey conducted in 2009 indicated tremendous support for the new organization.

“In Ohio, many of the issues that we face are not as a grower of one crop, but as a producer of grains that allows us to successfully manage our farms,” said OCGA president John Davis.

“There’s strength in numbers,” said Mark Wachtman, OWGA president. “We’ll have more impact to increase our farmers’ potential.”

Officers have been elected from the combined group for a term of one year. OCWGA will continue to work with its national counterparts – the National Corn Growers Assoc. and the National Assoc. of Wheat Growers.

Chicago company expands beef recall
CHICAGO, Ill. (AP) — A Chicago company has expanded a recall to include an additional 580 pounds of beef patties because of possible E. coli contamination.
The Illinois Department of Agriculture (IDOA) said Friday that Columbus Meat Market, Inc. took the action after state inspectors discovered the same batch of beef was used to produce patties on more than one day. Patties produced on Dec. 29-31, 2010, and Jan. 3 have been added to the recall. It originally included 200 pounds of ground beef made on Dec. 27.

The IDOA said a sample of the patties tested positive for a strain of E. coli that can cause bloody diarrhea, dehydration, and – in the most severe cases – kidney failure. It stated the company has received no reports of illness linked to the patties.

The patties were shipped to food-handling establishments in the Chicagoland area. Each package label bears the establishment number “EST. 755” and an identifying pack date of 12/27/10, including lot numbers 361361, 361362 and 361364. Inquiries regarding the recall should be directed to Columbus Meat Market at 312-829-2480.

Traders sell commodities to lock in profits

NEW YORK, N.Y. (AP) — Traders are selling commodity contracts to take advantage of hefty price gains in 2010. That’s causing prices to fall across a broad range of materials from silver to soybeans.

A stronger dollar also affected commodities trading last week. Oil, gold and other commodities are priced in dollars, so a stronger U.S. currency makes them more expensive for buyers overseas.

Many analysts still believe commodity prices will continue to rise this year as demand for raw materials improves along with the global economy.

Suit challenges approval of farm pesticide
LOS ANGELES, Calif. (AP) — A coalition of environmental and farm worker groups are suing California over its approval of an agricultural pesticide that’s included on the state’s official list of cancer-causing chemicals.

The lawsuit announced Jan. 3 alleges that the state Department of Pesticide Regulation improperly cut off public comment on methyl iodide’s use by mischaracterizing the approval last month as an emergency action. It also says that regulators did not sufficiently evaluate the pesticide’s risk and that their approval was based on insufficient data.

The suit seeks to have the pesticide’s approval vacated. Department of Pesticide Regulation spokeswoman Lea Brooks said her agency has not seen the suit, but defends the approval. The suit was filed Dec. 30, 2010, in Alameda County Superior Court.

Strickland signs wind deal before exiting

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Former Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland signed a lease option on his last business day in office, giving the go-ahead for wind turbines on Lake Erie.

Strickland told The (Cleveland) Plain Dealer the agreement will provide Lake Erie Energy Development Co. the legal right to conduct extensive testing in the lake. The company plans to begin building five large wind turbines in 2014.
The order follows Strickland’s consistent support of the $100 million pilot project in renewable energy. The outgoing Democratic governor viewed it as a way to launch a new turbine construction industry in northeastern Ohio. The state owns the lake bottom, and Strickland has taken steps during his administration to speed up permitting.

11,000 chickens lost in western Ky. blaze
POSSUM TROT, Ky. (AP) — A barn fire killed 11,000 chickens at a farm in western Kentucky.

The Paducah Sun reports Gurvey Jones of Possum Trot was a week from shipping out the chickens when a barn where he kept the birds went up in flames late the night of Jan. 3. He told investigators he lost all of them.
Possum Trot Chief Rick Pershing said the blaze was the biggest he’d seen in 30 years. It was still smoldering last Wednesday. Pershing speculated the fire started in the middle of the barn, where electric and propane lines entered the structure.