NC State Gets $30 Million from Jeff Bezos

North Carolina State University was awarded a $30 million grant over five years from the Bezos Earth Fund. The funds are intended to lead to a center of excellence to create a biomanufacturing hub for plant and cell-based dietary proteins that are environmentally friendly, healthy, accessible, and affordable. The center will include numerous partners from academia and industry to research, create, and commercialize new technologies for manufacturing various protein products. Efforts will focus on multiple areas, including improving the palette of materials used to extract proteins or to use as raw materials for fermentation and cell cultivation. NC State will also reach out to community stakeholders to understand their perceptions, preferences, and expectations of sustainable protein foods and use the results to inform outreach strategies. The funds will also help to set standards for educating and training students and personnel in advanced food technologies and form a curriculum that covers all age groups.

Monday Watch List

Markets

Traders return from the weekend and will catch up on the latest weather forecasts as well as any market-related news. USDA's report of weekly export inspections is at 10 a.m. CDT, followed by the weekly Crop Progress report at 3 p.m.

Weather

A front that brought heavy rain to some areas of the middle of the country this weekend is pushing into the South, bringing some showers and relieving temperatures. Another system is moving into the Canadian Prairies and Northern Plains, where showers and thunderstorms will develop as well.

Concerns About Farm Finances

The Federal Reserve reports that farm finances remain a concern. The Fed’s Beige Book noted that 10 of the 12 districts reported slight or moderate growth in May, while the other two had no change in activity. Agricultural reports were mixed. “While drought conditions have eased in some districts, there’s still a concern about farm finances and incomes,” the Beige Book says. “Overall outlooks grew more pessimistic due to reports of rising uncertainty and greater downside risks.” In Atlanta’s Sixth District, agricultural conditions weakened slightly. Chicago’s Seventh District showed a slight increase in farm income during the reporting period. Some contacts in the Ninth District of Minneapolis reported some moderation in input costs was expected to benefit producer margins. Agricultural economic conditions in the Tenth District around Kansas City were softer through early May, and farm finances tightened slightly. Conditions were mixed in the Eleventh (Dallas) and Twelfth (San Francisco) Districts.

First H5N1 Case Confirmed in Iowa

The Iowa Department of Agriculture and USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service have detected a case of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza in an O’Brien County dairy herd. It’s Iowa’s first reported case of HPAI in dairy cattle. To date, APHIS has confirmed over 80 dairy cases on farms in South Dakota, Texas, Ohio, North Carolina, Michigan, Kansas, Idaho, New Mexico, and Colorado. Iowa’s Ag Department will announce additional response measures soon. “Given the spread of HPAI within dairy cattle in many other states, it’s not surprising that we would have a case given the size of Iowa’s dairy industry,” says Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig. “Poultry producers and dairy farmers should immediately harden their biosecurity measures, limit unnecessary visitors, and report symptomatic birds or cattle.” Naig also says the situation is evolving and officials will continue to be in close communication with stakeholders, USDA, and other states

Food Insecurity Increases in the American Midwest

American food insecurity is increasing the most drastically in the Midwest, and the number of food-insecure people increased by over 40 percent in several states from 2021 to 2022. The data comes from the annual “Map the Meal Gap” report issued by Feeding America, a nationwide network of food banks. The national rate of food insecurity is about 13 percent across all counties, but some areas are struggling with hunger at a much higher rate. North Dakota, up 57 percent, South Dakota up 45 percent, and Iowa, up 45 percent, saw the biggest increases in the number of food-insecure people from 2021-2022. Washington, D.C., Hawaii, and Nevada saw the lowest rates of increase. Child food insecurity also exists in every U.S. county, with the highest rate at 48 percent in East Carroll Parish, Louisiana. The report also says eight out of 10 highest food-insecure counties are located in the southern states.

Milk Producers Call for Milk Pricing Fairness

The National Milk Producers Federation leadership expressed confidence that farmers would soon see a fairer system for milk pricing. During the recent Board of Directors’ meeting, NMPF also highlighted dairy farmers’ robust response to the challenge of H5N1 influenza in dairy cattle. “Even with all the stress on the farm, there’s still not a better industry,” says Randy Mooney, a dairy farmer and member of the Dairy Farmers of America Cooperative. USDA is expected to release its plan for Federal Milk Marketing Order modernization at the beginning of July. NMPF has helped lead the push for updated rules that better reflect the current industry, a three-year effort that culminated in a 49-day FMMO hearing last year. The meeting was held in conjunction with the Young Cooperators Fly-In, during which young dairy farmers met with lawmakers to advocate for the industry. During the meeting, the board also voted to elect three new members.  

The World’s First Seedless Blackberry

Pairwise, a company specializing in genetics-based innovations for food and agriculture, has developed the world’s first seedless blackberry. Interested Engineering Dot Com says blackberries are helpful with regards to boosting bodily functions and improving digestion and sugar levels. They also significantly reduce inflammation, improve brain function, and help prevent cardiovascular diseases. Despite the benefits, studies show more than 30 percent of berry buyers don’t purchase them because of the seeds. The seedless blackberry was created using the company’s proprietary Fulcrum Platform. They offer a complete suite of novel tools used for CRISPR (crisper) application in plants. CRISPR is short for Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindrome Repeats. The CRISPR technology is the one scientists use to selectively modify the DNA of living organisms.  “With the precision of CRISPR, we are able to develop these thornless and compact traits without sacrificing consistency in flavor and quality for consumers,” says Pairwise co-founder Haven Baker.