2011 Crop & Livestock Report to be presented July 24Tulare County’s 2011 Annual Crop and Livestock Report will be presented to the Board of Supervisors on Tuesday, July 24. Copies of the report will be available during the presentation and posted online.
The Agricultural Commissioner, Marilyn Kinoshita, will present the report and offer brief comments regarding its contents.
Corn Crop Sizzles: Drought in the cornbelt continues this week and prices are heading to $8 a bushel for July corn and $7.30 for September. That’s’ high enough to hurt both the livestock industry and ethanol makers,some of who are idling plants.Late today USDA reported that just 40% of the corn crop was in good to excellent condition,down from 48% a week ago and 69% this time last year. USDA also said 30% of the corn crop was now in very poor to poor condition compared to 22% just a week ago.
Short Chinese Garlic Crop
The Packer newspaper reports that a” short, lower-quality Chinese garlic crop should open the door for California producers, who report good yields and excellent quality.
The combination of a big, high-quality crop from California and a short crop from China could produce a milestone in the 2012-13 marketing season, said Jim Provost, president of West Grove, Pa.-based I Love Produce.
“I’ve been hoping for a year where California exports garlic to China,” Provost said. “This could be it.”