14 CapitalPress.com
June 16, 2017
Sugar growers won’t support Mexico trade amendment
By JOHN O’CONNELL
Capital Press
WASHINGTON, D.C. —
American sugar grower orga-
nizations aren’t satisfi ed with
the latest proposal to resolve
their ongoing concerns about
the illegal dumping of subsi-
dized Mexican sugar in the
U.S.
On June 6, USDA and the
U.S. Department of Com-
merce announced a proposal
to amend a December 2014
agreement between the U.S.
and Mexico that growers say
failed to restore balance to the
U.S. sugar market.
Jack Roney, director of
economics and policy analy-
sis with the American Sugar
Alliance, said the proposed
amendment represents a “big
improvement but doesn’t
quite get there.”
U.S. Secretary of Agricul-
ture Secretary Sonny Perdue
said in a press release the
agreement would avert poten-
tial retaliation by Mexico and
set a good tone for the upcom-
ing renegotiation of the North
American Free Trade Agree-
ment.
“I maintain that if the rules
Sean Ellis/Capital Press File
A sugar beet fi eld near Nampa, Idaho. Organizations representing
U.S. sugar growers say they can’t support a recent proposal to
improve an agreement regarding sugar dumping by Mexico.
are fair and the playing fi eld
is level, American agricultural
products will succeed, thrive
and lead the way,” Perdue
said.
Corn Refi ners Association
President John Bode laud-
ed the proposal as a means
of strengthening the original
agreement without threaten-
ing the $500 million in U.S.
corn sweetener exports to
Mexico.
But sugar producers be-
lieve the amendment, as cur-
rently drafted, would open
up a new “loophole.” Roney
explained Mexico has the
right to supply 100 percent of
any unmet needs of the U.S.
sugar market, and the amend-
ment would strip USDA of
its ability to specify whether
those surplus sugar shipments
should be unrefi ned or pro-
cessed.
Roney said the alliance is
working with the U.S. gov-
ernment on further modifi ca-
tions to close the loophole,
with a deadline of June 30
for the updated agreement to
be finalized.
Roney said Mexican sug-
ar exports into the U.S. dou-
bled in 2013 to 2 million tons,
contributing to a U.S. sugar
price collapse. He estimates
price declines cost U.S. sug-
ar growers $2 billion during
2013 and 2014 combined.
In lieu of imposing tariffs,
the governments of Mexico
and the U.S. agreed in 2014
to set minimum prices for
Mexican sugar and to limit
the refined share of Mexican
sugar exports.
But Roney said the agree-
ment allowed Mexico to ship
the U.S. too much refined
sugar and not enough raw
cane to supply U.S. sugar
refineries. He estimates U.S.
growers have lost another $2
billion since the agreement
was signed. Without chang-
es to the original agreement,
Roney fears further price de-
creases could soon lead U.S.
growers to default on federal
loans.
The proposed amendment
would increase minimum
prices of Mexican sugar from
22.25 cents per pound to 23
cents for unrefined sugar and
from 26 cents per pound to
28 cents for refined sugar.
Most importantly, Roney
believes, the amendment
would reduce the percentage
of refined sugar Mexico can
export to the U.S. from 53
percent to 30 percent, while
revising the standard for raw
sugar from a maximum pu-
rity of 99.5 percent to 99.2
percent.
“That was a problem we
noted with the original sus-
pension agreements and lat-
er took a chance on and re-
ally wish we hadn’t,” Roney
said.
The Sweetener Users As-
sociation, which represents
big U.S. sugar buyers, issued
a statement predicting the
amendment would hurt con-
sumers by increasing sugar
prices.
“The sugar lobby is simply
trying to extract additional
concessions, despite having
gotten what it asked for,” the
association said in its press
release.
Be wary of rattlesnake encounters, WSU says
At a glance
By MATTHEW WEAVER
Capital Press
Watch your step.
That’s the advice universi-
ty researchers are offering to
farmers and ranchers this year
as rattlesnakes become more
active in Eastern Washington.
Washington State Universi-
ty Veterinary Teaching Hospi-
tal recently treated a dog and
a horse that had been bitten by
rattlesnakes. According to the
university, anecdotal reports
indicate “there seems to be a
lot of snakes out this year, per-
haps more than in most years.”
Charlie Powell, spokesman
for the College of Veterinary
Medicine, told the Capital
Press a late spring may have
allowed rattlesnakes to leave
their den later, making for a
higher concentration of snakes
around areas where they might
have otherwise already dis-
persed.
Such conditions shorten the
overall season in which snakes
can feed and breed before the
fall and winter return, Powell
said in a WSU news report. In
warm weather, snakes are like-
ly to be more active.
The Western rattlesnake
is common to much of East-
ern Washington, according
to WSU. They are usually
spotted near dens, which are
generally in rock crevices ex-
posed to sunshine. They most
often are seen at night and
dusk during the spring and fall
when moving to and from hi-
bernation sites.
Western rattlesnake
Courtesy Bill Bouton via Wikipedia Commons
Binomial name: Croatus viridis (nine subspecies in North America)
Appearance: Broad, triangular head, diamond-shapped pattern along the
back with a rattle on the tip of the tail. Overall color patterns differ with
habitat, ranging from olive to brown to gray. Mature rattlesnakes measure
from 24 to 60 inches in length.
Range: British Columbia, Alberta and Saskatchewan south through
western U.S. states, and into Baja California and
Northern Mexico.
Courtesy National Park Service
Habitat: Arid plains, desert margins,
fertile valleys, prairie grasslands,
chaparral-covered foothills,
rocky ridges, mountain
meadows and forests.
Prey: Primarily rodents
Venom: Contains
hemotoxic elements
which damage tissues
and affect the
circulatory system.
A Western rattlesnake (Crotalus oreganus) is common in much of
Eastern Washington, according to WSU. They may be more preva-
lent this year, so awareness and avoidance are recommended.
Sources: Washington Dept. of Fish and Wildlife;
University of Oregon; Idaho Museum of Natural History
No long-term study of rat-
tlesnake populations exists,
so predicting population sizes
is not feasible, said Kenneth
Kardong, a professor emeri-
tus at WSU’s School of Bio-
logical Sciences who studies
reptiles.
He recommends farmers
be careful and watch their
step.
Powell says the best thing
to do for any average person,
including farmers or ranch-
ers, is to leave the rattlesnake
alone. Rattlesnakes help con-
trol rodents and small vermin
that can create problems in
fi elds, Powell said.
Most farmers’ fi elds are in-
tensively worked, Powell said.
“In order to have venom-
ous reptiles around, you’ve
harm than other types of rat-
tlesnakes.”
Kardong
recommends
keeping an eye on the bitten
animal.
“Most farm animals —
pigs, cattle — can ride out a
bite,” he said. “If not, get it
to the vet. Horses are a spe-
cial situation as they cannot
breathe through their mouths.
Hence, if bitten in the snout
and it swells up, get the vet.”
Half of all rattlesnake
bites on large animals or peo-
ple are “dry” bites, “meaning
the snake is not wasting its
venom on you,” Powell said.
“It’s basically telling you,
‘Leave me alone,’” he said.
“You’re too big for that snake
to eat, and it takes time and
energy to produce that ven-
got to have small mammals
around for them to eat,” he
said. “But in the middle of
a plowed fi eld, it’s unlike-
ly to run into those types of
things.”
However, rattlesnakes can
bite livestock on rangeland.
Most ranchers aren’t even
aware when it happens, Pow-
ell said, because the bite area
will swell and be uncomfort-
able for two to three days,
but then the symptoms will
disappear.
“This is not like the situ-
ation with Eastern large dia-
mondback rattlesnakes that
are much more venomous
or snakes that have differ-
ent types of venom,” Powell
said. “Our Western rattle-
snakes (cause) relatively less
Alan Kenaga/Capital Press
om, so why waste something
that’s essential for you to eat
on something that’s too big
for you to eat?”
If a farmer or compan-
ion animal is bitten, Powell
advises immediate medical
care.
“With human beings,
don’t do any of the old cut-
and-suck types of things,
don’t apply ice to the
wound,” he said. “Simply el-
evate the wound above your
heart if you can, get yourself
to a hospital and let them
help you determine how to
best treat that wound.”
“Don’t screw around by
trying to treat in the fi eld,”
Kardong echoed. “(It is) usu-
ally useless and wastes valu-
able time.”
Producers encouraged to meet with China trade mission in Portland
By ERIC MORTENSON
Capital Press
The largest trade mission
to visit Oregon — a 25-mem-
ber team from China — will
stop in Portland June 21-22
to check out specialty food,
snack products and wine, craft
beer and hard cider.
The Oregon Department
of Agriculture is hosting the
group, which will stop on
their way back from the an-
nual Summer Fancy Food
Show in New York City. It is
the Chinese group’s only other
stop in the U.S., and the ag de-
partment encourages specialty
food and beverage producers
to make themselves available.
Vendors would typically set
up a booth, offer samples and
provide information. Interpret-
ers are available.
The Chinese buyers are es-
pecially interested in healthy
snacks such as dried fruit and
nuts, said Theresa Yoshioka,
an ODA trade development
manager.
Healthy snacks are served
to guests and are “very, very
popular in China,” Yoshioka
said.
The country’s expanding
middle class provides a market
opportunity for Oregon pro-
ducers, and the state’s reputa-
tion for high-quality food and
drink products is an advantage,
she said.
Chinese consumers in
some regions are developing a
taste for fi ne wine, and Yoshio-
ka said she’s been to craft beer
pubs in Beijing. With both
parents in a household increas-
ingly working and having less
time to prepare meals, Chinese
families also have a need for
convenience foods, Yoshioka
said.
The trade mission team is
made up of people with the
authority to buy products, she
said. Oregon producers inter-
ested in selling to China may
have to scale up production,
however, and that’s a jump for
some, she said.
Oregon has innovative
snack producers, for exam-
ple, who are making premium
products, but are still quite
small, Yoshioka said.
“You need to be big enough
to have an established co-pack-
er (an existing manufacturing
company that may produce
items under private label) or
have your own facility,” she
said. “You need to be at that
level to ship to China.”
But she encouraged even
small producers to visit with
trade mission groups to learn
what they’re looking for. “It’s
a good market testing oppor-
tunity and a chance to get in
front of a buyer,” Yoshioka
said.
Vendors interested in the
Portland event should con-
tact Yelena Nowak, also a
department trade offi cial, at
ynowak@oda.state.or.us.
Another Chinese trade mis-
sion, this time an all-woman
team involved in the seafood
industry, will visit Astoria and
Newport on the Oregon Coast
June 26-30.
Buyers from South Korea
and Mexico will visit in July;
Taiwan teams arrive in August
and September; and two more
Chinese trade groups will visit
in August and October, ac-
cording to ODA.
Eastern Oregon fi eld day highlights research for wheat growers
By GEORGE PLAVEN
EO Media Group
PENDLETON, Ore. —
Gusty winds made for a chilly
Tuesday morning at the Co-
lumbia Basin Agricultural Re-
search Center north of Pend-
leton, where scientists with
Oregon State University and
the U.S. Department of Agri-
culture hosted their annual fi eld
day for local wheat growers.
The station, on Tubbs
Ranch Road, is home to both
OSU and the USDA Agricul-
tural Research Service. Field
day provides an annual update
of ongoing research projects to
help farmers improve the qual-
ity of their crop and the bottom
line of their business.
Participants rode in buses
from one wavy wheat fi eld to
the next, where project leaders
discussed their latest fi ndings
on experiments to battle weeds,
plant diseases and soil degra-
dation. Representatives of the
National Association of Wheat
Growers were also on hand to
gather feedback on priorities
for the 2018 Farm Bill.
Christina Hagerty, plant
pathologist at the station, said
this year was a perfect storm
for stripe rust across the region,
given early seeding of winter
wheat followed by a cool, wet
spring. Stripe rust is capable of
cutting wheat yields by more
than half if it goes untreated.
Hagerty passed around
samples to show how to iden-
tify diseases such as stripe
rust, eyespot and crown rot.
While OSU has done a good
job of developing disease-re-
sistant wheat varieties, Ha-
gerty said options are still
lacking for soil-borne mosaic
virus, which has been another
major focus of her program.
“Our options for genetic
resistance are pretty limited,”
she said.
Bob Zemetra, a wheat
breeder for OSU in Corval-
lis, said he began screening
for soil-borne mosaic virus in
2008. The disease is especial-
ly on the rise around the Wal-
la Walla Valley, and can cause
severe stunting in plants.
“One of my goals is to re-
lease varieties that can fi t in
across the state, and in these
micro-climates,”
Zemetra
said.
Other issues raised during
fi eld day included soil stratifi -
cation, where the nutrient and
pH levels are uneven in the
soil profi le. Don Wysocki, a
soil scientist with OSU Exten-
sion, said that problem is “like
a freight train coming down the
line” for farmers.
One possible soil amend-
ment is biochar, a char-
coal-like substance made
by roasting biomass such as
woody debris at high tem-
peratures and low oxygen.
Biochar has already been
proven to instantly increase
organic matter and soil pH in
tests conducted at the research
station.
Stephen Machado, agron-
omist for OSU, reviewed his
data from early experiments
and said he is now looking
into how long the residual ef-
fects of biochar may last.
Sean Ellis/Capital Press
Seed peas are planted near
Nampa, Idaho, on March 28.
Many crops in the Treasure
Valley of Idaho and Oregon
were planted several weeks
late this year and yields could
be reduced as a result. But
most farmers expect those
crops to be OK if there is a
normal summer this year.
Delayed
planting in
Treasure
Valley could
reduce crop
yields
By SEAN ELLIS
Capital Press
NAMPA, Idaho — Record
winter snowfall followed by
a steady string of spring rain-
storms delayed by several
weeks the planting of many
crops in the Treasure Valley
that straddles the Idaho-Ore-
gon border.
It’s also pushed fi eld work
back signifi cantly.
“Everything is behind,”
said Meridian, Idaho, farm-
er Richard Durrant. “A lot of
spraying, fertilization and oth-
er things that still need to be
done hasn’t happened yet.”
Many farmers told Capital
Press they are not overly con-
cerned by the late start and
expect their crops to turn out
OK with a normal summer.
But they also say the late
start means a repeat of last
year’s record yields for many
crops is unlikely.
“Without a doubt, it will
make a little difference in
yields,” said Eastern Oregon
farmer Craig Froerer.
While yields for sugar
beets grown in Idaho and
Malheur County, Ore., set
a record in 2016, he said, “I
don’t think you can expect
that this year with how late in
the game we are.”
Many farmers in the area
were late getting in their fi elds
because record or near-re-
cord amounts of snowfall left
fi elds saturated when it melt-
ed. That was exacerbated by
persistent spring rainstorms
that have only recently bro-
ken.
During the past 10 days the
Treasure Valley has had much
warmer and drier weather.
Many crops started slow-
ly but are responding to the
more favorable growing con-
ditions, said Paul Skeen, pres-
ident of the Malheur County
Onion Growers Association.
Skeen planted the major-
ity of his onions two to three
weeks later than usual.
“But with this hot weather
we’ve had (recently), they are
really starting to jump,” he
said. “Sugar beets are a little
bit behind but they’re also re-
ally coming on.”
Skeen agrees the late start
will have an impact on yields.
“We have a good crop
coming but yields, in my opin-
ion, are going to be below av-
erage because of the lateness,”
he said.
According to Stuart Reitz,
an Oregon State University
Extension cropping systems
agent in Malheur County, as of
June 1 the area had 16 fewer
heat degree days than last year
and 12 fewer than in 2015.
Heat degree days are calculat-
ed by subtracting a reference
temperature, which varies
by crop, from the daily mean
temperature. The higher the
mean temperature, the more
heat degree days are recorded.
Reitz agreed that yields
will depend on how the sum-
mer plays out.
“If we get some good,
warm but not too hot condi-
tions, things should fi nish off
OK,” he said. “But if it stays
cool and rainy, some of those
late-planted crops may not
turn out too well.”
Across Idaho and Eastern
Oregon, sugar beets were on
average planted two weeks
later than during recent years,
said Clark Alder, an area
agronomist for grower-owned
Amalgamated Sugar Co.