Ag in the News

12/28/2007

National and International

Ethanol tops list of year's most significant topics: Meatingplace poll
The rising demand for corn-based fuel—and subsequent diversion of corn from livestock feed—made ethanol the most significant topic of 2007, according to an unscientific Web survey of Meatingplace members. MORE!

Listeria concerns prompt ground beef recallThe
Maramont Corp. in Brooklyn, N.Y., is voluntarily recalling approximately 88 pounds of a beef patty product that may be contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes, the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service announced. MORE!

IDDBA identifies untapped opportunity with service-deli dinner items
A wider selection of convenient, interesting and dinner-appropriate items could help supermarket delis better target after-work shoppers, a group with high potential for buying dinner at the deli, according to the International Dairy-Deli-Bakery Association's "Foodservice Opportunities" report. MORE!

IPE session to examine salmonella control from hatchery to chiller
At this year's International Poultry Expo, POULTRY magazine will present "Salmonella control," a discussion of salmonella control interventions — from the hatchery to the chiller. MORE!

Wrap Up

Winding down the year. Today is the last full trading session of 2007. Overnight a/c/e trade started it out with a varied tone -- soybean futures were 11 to 12 cents higher overnight, while corn was mixed with a slight upside bias and Chicago wheat was mostly 2 to 3 cents lower.

Weekly Export Sales Report this morning. Delayed a day by Christmas, for the week ended Dec. 20, traders expect wheat sales from 300,000 to 500,000 MT; corn sales from 900,000 to 1.2 million MT; soybean sales from 700,000 to 900,000 MT; meal sales from 100,000 to 150,000 MT; soyoil sales from 10,000 to 20,000 MT; and cotton sales from 150,000 to 250,000 running bales.

Pakistan situation hits Asian stocks. The assassination of Pakistan opposition figure Benazir Bhutto has sent Asian stocks into a decline. The Nikkei Index in Japan fell 1.7% and other markets in the region also posted steep losses. That loss in Japan produced an 11.1% yearly decline for the Nikkei, its first loss in five years.

Urea import help? The U.S. Department of Commerce has published a preliminary decision determining a 0 percent dumping margin on EuroChem's urea imports to the U.S. In case of final approval of this decision EuroChem will be able to export urea to the U.S. free of antidumping duties, according to a statement from the Russian company. A final determination is expected to come no later than May 15, 2008.