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Butter From Carbon? $5 Billion for Meat Processing, Screwworm in Elk. Oregon Wasabi Daily Farm Brief · Farm Tales Unplugged - Daily Farm Brief

0:02
SPEAKER_00: Good morning, Farm Nation, and hello, Truck City.
0:06
SPEAKER_00: This is FarmTale's unplugged daily farm brief for Monday, October 6th.
0:10
SPEAKER_00: I'm Rick Portanova.
0:12
SPEAKER_00: Give us a few minutes for Farm News, Egg Technology, the Old Farmers Almanac, and at the end we check on the markets.
0:20
SPEAKER_00: Today, more buyers for your cattle, screw worm in Texas elk, and butter made from carbon, plus an Oregon crop selling for around$130 a pound.
0:31
SPEAKER_00: So grab your coffee, fire up whatever you're driving, and let's find out what was happening while you were busy actually working.
0:40
SPEAKER_00: News Story 1.
0:41
SPEAKER_00: $5 billion could help put more buyers in the market for your cattle.
0:46
SPEAKER_00: On Friday, USDA announced at least that much in loans to expand meat, poultry, and seafood processing.
0:52
SPEAKER_00: Under the new Spur program, USDA guarantees 90% of each participating loan.
0:58
SPEAKER_00: For cattle producers, the potential payoff is more room at existing plants or another processor competing for your animals.
1:06
SPEAKER_00: And if this kind of farm news helps you, would you give us a follow, a like, or a share?
1:12
SPEAKER_00: Second news story: Screw worm has turned up in Texas elk, and these fly larvae feed on living flesh.
1:19
SPEAKER_00: Officials confirmed the case last Wednesday in Pecos County, the female elk was harvested by a hunter on a game ranch.
1:26
SPEAKER_00: Federal officials are expanding wildlife surveillance.
1:29
SPEAKER_00: For cattle country, this adds a problem.
1:31
SPEAKER_00: Checking livestock won't catch every case when wild animals can carry the pest too.
1:38
SPEAKER_00: And here's your high-tech moment.
1:40
SPEAKER_00: A California company has taken butter from carbon out of the laboratory and into a commercial product.
1:46
SPEAKER_00: Savor launched its butter alternative last year.
1:49
SPEAKER_00: It says it builds fat molecules using carbon and hydrogen.
1:53
SPEAKER_00: Do you remember the fat-free WOW chips?
1:55
SPEAKER_00: Their sales show how quickly a food breakthrough can lose its appeal.
1:59
SPEAKER_00: They used Oline, the brand name for Olestra.
2:03
SPEAKER_00: It acted like a fat in the fryer but passed through the body without being absorbed.
2:07
SPEAKER_00: The FDA approved it for certain snacks in 1996.
2:11
SPEAKER_00: Then came the warning on the bag, possible cramps and loose stools.
2:15
SPEAKER_00: Olestra could also reduce absorption of certain vitamins which had to be added back.
2:20
SPEAKER_00: WoW sales fell from about$278 million in 1998 to$149 million two years later.
2:28
SPEAKER_00: Contrary to popular belief, the FDA did not ban Olestra.
2:32
SPEAKER_00: In 2003, it actually removed the special digestive warning.
2:36
SPEAKER_00: Olestra is still permitted in certain foods.
2:39
SPEAKER_00: Another approach lasted too.
2:41
SPEAKER_00: Simpless.
2:42
SPEAKER_00: It used tiny particles of milk protein to make foods feel creamy.
2:46
SPEAKER_00: It's still sold today.
2:47
SPEAKER_00: Savor is making actual fat with calories.
2:50
SPEAKER_00: The change is where it comes from.
2:52
SPEAKER_00: For dairy farmers and oilseed growers, that's the business story, a potential new competitor supplying the fat that goes into our food.
3:03
SPEAKER_00: Here's your family farm story.
3:05
SPEAKER_00: Real wasabi can sell around$130 a pound.
3:09
SPEAKER_00: That's the retail price Oregon Public Broadcasting recently reported in its visit to Oregon Coast Wasabi.
3:16
SPEAKER_00: Marcus Mead and his wife Jennifer grow it in Tillamook.
3:19
SPEAKER_00: Most of the green paste served with sushi is actually horseradish with green coloring.
3:24
SPEAKER_00: This couple grows the real plant, and it takes patience.
3:27
SPEAKER_00: Their wasabi grows in shaded gravel beds watered once an hour.
3:31
SPEAKER_00: A harvestable crop takes about 12 to 15 months.
3:34
SPEAKER_00: Planting and harvesting happen by hand throughout the year.
3:38
SPEAKER_00: They're selling chefs something the cheaper green paste can't offer.
3:41
SPEAKER_00: The flavor of real wasabi.
3:48
SPEAKER_00: From the old farmer's almanac, why can frost hit one part of your farm and miss another?
3:54
SPEAKER_00: On a clear, calm night, cold air settles downhill and collects in low spots.
3:59
SPEAKER_00: Plants in that hollow can freeze while a nearby slope escapes.
4:02
SPEAKER_00: When frost threatens, the low ground may need protection first.
4:10
SPEAKER_00: Here's the Friday Futures closes.
4:12
SPEAKER_00: October 23rd, local cash bids will differ.
4:15
SPEAKER_00: December corn,$4.63 a bushel down$4.5.
4:19
SPEAKER_00: November soybeans,$12.56.5, up$3.5.
4:24
SPEAKER_00: December Chicago wheat,$6.25, barely changed.
4:28
SPEAKER_00: Corn slipped under harvest pressure.
4:30
SPEAKER_00: Soybeans finished higher after Chinese buying helped Thursday's trade.
4:33
SPEAKER_00: In cattle, October Live Futures finished near$229.88 per 100 pounds.
4:39
SPEAKER_00: October feeders finished near$348.33 per 100 pounds, up about$2.23.
4:46
SPEAKER_00: Cheaper corn can lower the feed bill and help support what buyers will pay for the feeder cattle.
4:50
SPEAKER_00: October Class 3 milk,$15.25 per 100 pounds.
4:58
SPEAKER_00: There's a matching blog at farmtailsunplugged.com.
5:02
SPEAKER_00: And there you have it.
5:02
SPEAKER_00: That's your FarmTales Unplugged daily farm brief for Monday, October 26th, brought to you by World TradeX empowering farmers.
5:10
SPEAKER_00: The future of food starts with the people who grow it and depends on the people who move it.
5:14
SPEAKER_00: I'm Rick Portonova and I'll see you Tuesday morning.