We have put together a quick lists of links to help make your trip to this year’s Classic as convenient as possible.

Sorghum Schedule of Events

Commodity Classic Schedule

Commodity Classic Trade Show Exhibitor Listing and  Floor Plan

Restaurants at the Opryland

Opryland Resort and Convention Center Map

During the trade show:

• Get your 2012 Commodity Classic souvenier photo at NSP’s photo booth (Booth 405).
• Sign up to win a $200 Visa gift card or a ‘Sorghum Goodie Basket’ filled with gluten-free food products made from sorghum – All at the NSP booth (405).
• Stop by the Sorghum Checkoff booth (409) to try out the latest sorghum production and marketing tools.

Follow @SorghumGrowers on Twitter for live updates and information during Classic. Be sure to use the hash tag #Classic12 when tweeting about Classic.

You can also check Flickr for photos from the Sorghum General Session, the trade show, and other events at Commodity Classic.

We’ll see you in Nashville!

• United Sorghum Checkoff Program Board Meeting – 1:00pm – 5:00pm

 Wednesday, February 29, 2012

• National Sorghum Producers Board of Directors Meeting – 9:30am – 4:00pm

 Thursday, March 1, 2012

• NSP Meet and Greet – 8:00am – 9:30am – Tennessee Lobby A
• Sorghum General Session – 9:30am – 12:00 pm – Tennessee Ballroom C     
• Commodity Classic Trade Show – NSP (booth 405) and Sorghum Checkoff (booth 409) Booths Open 1:00pm – 5:30pm

 Friday, March 2, 2012

• Commodity Classic General Session – 9:00am – 11:00am
• Commodity Classic Trade Show – NSP (booth 405) and Sorghum Checkoff (booth 409) Open 11:00am – 4:00pm
• Sorghum Industry Reception – 5:30pm – 6:00pm – Tennessee Lobby A
• NSP Yield Contest Winners Dinner – 6:00pm – 7:30pm – Tennessee Ballroom B
• NSP PAC Event – 8:00 pm – 10:30pm – Tennessee Ballroom A

 Saturday, March 3, 2012

• Commodity Classic Trade Show – NSP (booth 405) and Sorghum Checkoff (booth 409) Open 9:15am – 12:00pm

Scanlan, a Nebraska native, began advocating for agriculture during her reign as Miss America by establishing partnerships several agricultural organizations, including The Hand That Feeds U.S. As a non-traditional spokesperson for agriculture, Scanlan is working to bridge the gap between urban and rural America by speaking about the importance of food production to a broader audience.

“We are so excited to have Teresa as our keynote speaker for this year’s Sorghum General Session,” said NSP Chairman Terry Swanson. “She is an excellent advocate for agriculture, and is a valuable addition to this year’s program.”

Former U.S. House Agriculture Committee Chairman, Larry Combest, now of Combest, Sell & Associates, will discuss the current environment surrounding farm policy in Washington, D.C.

A panel of winners of the 2011 NSP Yield and Management Contest will talk about the secrets to their yield success. Panel members representing a variety of sorghum-producing regions will include Non-Irrigated Bin Buster winner Otto Levin of Kensington, Kan., Conventional-Till Irrigated winner John A. Scates of Sturgis, Ill., and Reduced-Till Irrigated second place winner Monte Wright of Perryton, Texas.

Updates from the National Sorghum Producers and the United Sorghum Checkoff Program will be given, as well.

The 2012 Sorghum General Session will begin at 9:30am, Thursday, March 1 in the Opryland Resort and Convention Center’s Tennessee Ballroom C. Prior to the event, there will be a Sorghum Meet and Greet in Tennessee Lobby A from 8:00am to 9:30am. All Classic attendees and media are invited to attend.

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NSP represents U.S. sorghum producers and serves as the voice of the sorghum industry coast to coast through legislative representation, regulatory representation and education. To learn more about NSP, visit www.sorghumgrowers.com. Follow us on Twitter @SorghumGrowers and ‘Like’ us on Facebook.com/SorghumGrowers.

 The 23 Hill visits were distributed as follows:

• 11 visits in the Senate
• 6 meetings with Senators
• 5 meetings with Senate staffers
• 12 visits in the House
• 9 meetings with Representatives
• 3 meetings with House staffers

Overall the NSP representatives logged over 120 man-hours in the House and Senate combined. The NSP delegation also met with agriculture committee leaders from both the House and Senate and USDA leadership, including NRCS Chief Dave White and Deputy Administrator for Farm Programs, Brandon Willis.

The NSP delegation consisted of NSP Past Chairman, Gerald Simonsen of Ruskin, Neb., NSP Vice Chairman J.B. Stewart of Keyes, Okla., and Leon Sowers of Murdock, Kan. Tim Lust, Chris Cogburn and Lindsay Kennedy participated on behalf of from the NSP staff. Tom Sell, Jeff Harrison, Hannah Lipps and Judd Gardner participated on behalf of Combest, Sell and Associates, NSP’s representation in Washington, D.C.

Chromatin Inc., a supplier of biomass feedstock for energy producers, and Constellation Energy have invested in sorghum as a feasible option for use as a fuel source to generate electricity for two power plants in California. Both power plants are jointly owned by Constellation Energy and North American Power Group.

As Chromatin prepared to harvest its first crop of hybrid sorghum for power generation, the crop in El Centro, Calif. was inspected by Daphne Preuss, Chromatin's CEO (left), and Steve Gross, Managing Director of West Region operations for Constellation Energy's Power Generation group. The harvested biomass will be test burned to determine the feasibility of using sorghum as a fuel source to generate electricity at two power plants in California that are owned jointly by Constellation Energy and North American Power Group (NAPG). If successful, this will be the first production-scale effort to generate power from an energy field crop in California.

Sorghum is an excellent biomass feedstock because it a non-food crop, has high energy content, uses less than half the water of corn and sugar cane, and can be grown on a variety of land types.

Chromatin is growing three fields, totaling 95 acres, of high energy, biomass sorghum that will be used for test burns to determine the amount of energy it will be able to generate for the power plants. Energy sorghum currently being grown is 10 to 15 feet tall and reaches maturity very quickly.

Chromatin has staggered the planting of these three fields to be able to produce a consistent, steady supply of biomass sorghum for the power plants.

Chromatin said its first field of 30 acres near El Centro in the Imperial Valley of California will be ready to harvest in September and October. The end product will be used to supply one of the power plants and the other two fields will be used later on.

“The impressive yield of our crop in El Centro is an important validation of the advantages of sorghum as a biomass source,” said Daphne Preuss, Chromatin CEO. “Today, our sorghum is expected to have an energy content that is more than 70 percent of coal – roughly equivalent to firewood. Our breeding and crop engineering program is generating new varieties of sorghum that are expected to have even higher energy content with lower levels of ash and other contaminants.”

Chromatin's first crop of hybrid sorghum for use in power generation grew more than 12 feet high in less than three months. Shown here is Daphne Preuss, Chromatin's CEO, and Dave Jessen, Chromatin's CTO.

Chromatin expects to deliver the first shipments of processed sorghum biomass to the Rio Bravo plants in a few weeks. Chromatin staggered the planting of its three fields, allowing it to deliver a steady supply of the processed biomass. The sorghum program is expected to achieve industrial scale because it will produce sorghum biomass in large volumes that have predictable deliveries.

“This marks an important milestone toward our goal of creating a vertically integrated biomass supply chain that can help power generators like Constellation to rely more on renewable fuel sources that recycle greenhouse gases,” said Preuss.

The agreement between Constellation Energy and Chromatin, a National Sorghum Producers Industry Partner, is a significant milestone not only in power generation from renewable sources, but also for the sorghum industry.

Sorghum has long been touted as a resilient crop and viable feedstock and this highlight is just one step closer to its foreseen potential.

Willis is passionate about the future and wellbeing of sorghum. The crop is vital to his company, and he is ready to be a part of an association board that will be a driving force in benefitting and expanding the ethanol industry.

“Being a member of this board provides me with an opportunity to help positively influence sorghum production,” Willis said, “whether it is from an environmental, regulatory or research perspective.”

Willis says there are many areas with opportunity to contribute to the board, but specifically he would like to focus on adding value to sorghum for those growing it.

“I see myself being very active and immersed in trying all I can to be a contributing member of this board,” said Willis. “I plan to help however I can.”

In the future, he hopes to be able to say his tenure on the board was spent increasing funding and deriving more value for everyone involved in the sorghum industry-from grower to end user.

Willis and his wife Patty have been married for 30 years. Together, they have two children. Their son Josh is a U.S. Army lieutenant and is currently serving in Iraq. Their daughter Melanee and her husband live in Utah.

Willis will begin his new position as a NSP director October 1.

He is one of the three new directors joining the NSP board this year.

Krissek brings knowledge, leadership and experience to the NSP board. He has served as chairman on multiple boards and has previous involvement with the Kansas Corn and Grain Sorghum Association.

“I started working on ag and rural issues 22 years ago, first for the Kansas Department of Agriculture and then for Kansas Corn and Grain Sorghum Producers, and I got hooked on working on rural development issues,” Krissek said.

Krissek’s extensive background in legislative, regulatory and government affairs will undoubtedly benefit the NSP organization as agriculture faces challenges with budget cuts and changing government regulations.

Krissek is also very optimistic about sorghum’s future role in the biofuels market.

“I see sorghum as one of the bright spots for meeting the biofuels production goals, especially as an advanced biofuel,” he said. “I’m excited to serve on the NSP board to help further this opportunity for ag producers and agribusiness.”

Krissek believes there are many opportunities for sorghum success, and he is very excited to be part of that effort.

“Identifying and supporting production research, market promotion and public awareness will be important for sorghum’s growth and success,” Krissek said.

Krissek and his wife Beth are the parents of two children. Their daughter is a senior animal science major at Kansas State University, and their son is a middle school math teacher in Dayton, Ohio.

Krissek will begin his new position as a NSP director October 1.

This week’s spotlight is Samuel Simmons, a sorghum farmer from Harlingen, Texas.

Simmons brings experienced leadership to the NSP board of directors. He has served on numerous cotton boards and was president of South Texas Cotton and Grain Producers. This fourth generation farmer typically grows 1,200 acres of sorghum each year, and there is no doubt he is optimistic about the future of the crop.

“Grain sorghum provides a lot of unique opportunities,” Simmons said. “I think it’s a market that will continue to grow as we find different venues for sorghum.”

Simmons is ready “to go to work” for sorghum. In light of the current budget situation, now is the time more than ever to provide grower involvement in the legislative process and Simmons is eager to take an active role on behalf of sorghum producers.

Simmons says Congress will have to make big decisions in the next year and a half and it will be important for sorghum and agriculture to make sure their voice is heard.

“We’re all going to have to tighten our belts, and it is unfortunate ag doesn’t have the number of votes we used to,” he said.

When asked about the future of NSP, Simmons says he is happy with the direction things are going and he would like to continue to educate producers about what types of sorghum will add value to their bottom line.

“Due to water shortages, sorghum fills a niche because other crops that are high in water consumption just don’t make sense right now.”

Simmons’ experience and knowledge will undoubtedly be an asset to the board as it moves forward.

“I would like to listen and help make this board better by being legislatively proactive and helping to further develop our resources,” he said.

Simmons has been a husband to his wife, Susan, for 31 years this October and is a father of two sons, Samuel, 28 and James, 25. The young men are fifth generation partners with their dad at Heritage Farms.  In his spare time, Simmons enjoys fishing and spending weekends with his family at South Padre Island by the bay.

Simmons will assume his new position as a NSP director effective October 1.

In recent weeks, it has become strikingly clear how out of touch President Obama is with the needs of our nation’s farmers and ranchers. The president’s recent stop on his Midwest bus tour proved his lack of knowledge about the regulatory red tape our farmers are facing today.

On Aug. 17 in Atkinson, Ill., a local farmer expressed his concerns to President Obama about the growing number of rules and regulations, including those concerning dust, noise, and water runoff. President Obama replied saying, “If you hear something is happening, but it hasn’t happened, don’t always believe what you hear.”

“Contact USDA,” Obama went on to say. “Talk to them directly. Find out what it is that you’re concerned about. My suspicion is, a lot of times, they’re going to be able to answer your questions and it will turn out that some of your fears are unfounded.”

Not only is this statement unrealistic, but one Politico reporter took the president’s advice and proved just that. After a day and a half of phone tag and being transferred from one organization or agency to the next, Politico reporter MJ Lee finally called the USDA’s main media relations headquarters and received this reply via email.

“Secretary Vilsack continues to work closely with members of the Cabinet to help them engage with the agricultural community to ensure that we are separating fact from fiction on regulations because the administration is committed to providing greater certainty for farmers and ranchers. Because the question that was posed did not fall within USDA jurisdiction, it does not provide a fair representation of USDA’s robust efforts to get the right information to our producers throughout the country.”

Lee concluded her article saying “So, still no answer to the farmer’s question.”

Obama’s response to a concerned Illinois farmer struck a nerve elsewhere. There are many champions for agriculture on Capitol Hill, and Sen. Pat Roberts (R-KS), ranking member of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry, took it upon himself to educate the President last Friday in a letter outlining directives and regulations the administration has proposed or has in development that would affect farmers and ranchers in rural America. The letter comes following the town hall meeting the president hosted in Illinois on August 17.

Dear Mr. President:

I write to provide you with insight into actions your Administration is considering that could negatively impact rural America.

At a town hall meeting you hosted in Illinois earlier this week, a farmer expressed the concerns of many producers related to proposed regulations and directives impacting their farming operations. You asked the producer if there was a specific issue concerning him. He mentioned issues including dust pollution, noise pollution and water runoff. You responded, “Yes. Here’s what I’d suggest is the – if you hear something is happening, but it hasn’t happened, don’t always believe what you hear.” You then went on to imply that many of these concerns were created by lobbyists and associations in Washington.

I want to assure you that this farmer’s concerns are justified. To better inform you about the actions being taken by your Administration, included below is a list of proposed rules, directives and actions impacting rural America since your inauguration. While this list is not complete or comprehensive, it provides an overview of the increased regulations and resulting costs American agriculture and rural America face due to actual or proposed actions taken by federal agencies under your direction. The partial list of concerns is as follows:

GIPSA Rule Impacting Livestock Producers – USDA has proposed a new regulation for livestock marketing that will undo years of progress and innovation in the livestock industry. Many of the provisions of this proposed rule were rejected on a bipartisan basis during debate on the last Farm Bill, which was signed into law when you were serving in the United States Senate.

This proposed rule could eliminate the use of many alternative marketing arrangements in the livestock industry. A 2007 GIPSA study showed that over ten years a 25 percent reduction in alternative marketing arrangements would cost feeder cattle producers $5.1 billion; fed cattle producers $3.9 billion; and consumers $2 billion. If marketing arrangements were eliminated, the 10-year cumulative losses for producers and consumers would top $60 billion.

NPDES permits – This duplicative regulatory burden is scheduled to go into effect on October 31, 2011, less than three months from today. It will require 5.6 million applications of pesticides by 365,000 applicators to have NPDES permits to apply pesticides. These permits are duplicative, unnecessary and will add a new requirement under the Clean Water Act for pesticide applications, which are already regulated under the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA).

National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) for Ozone – EPA has proposed to strengthen the primary ozone standard. Under the proposal, the vast majority of counties with ozone monitors would be considered in nonattainment. If finalized, this could mean that additional rural and/or agricultural counties are designated as non attainment. This will limit the ability of farmers to manage crop residue on their farms and will create a substantial new burden on livestock operations where ammonia and methane are naturally emitted by animals.

PM 10/Dust – EPA is preparing to reconsider its large particulate matter (PM 10) standard. EPA’s Clean Air Advisory Committee has recommended lowering the standard. This is problematic because the current standard is already difficult for many rural counties, especially in the West, to meet. Working and harvesting farm fields is an inherently dusty business, as is driving down rural dirt and logging roads. A change in this rule will make it impossible for many farming and forestry operations to be in compliance and could result in substantial fines for many family operations.

Water Quality Standards Rulemaking – Last year, EPA announced it will propose a rule to strengthen anti-degradation standards, adopt a presumption that all U.S. waters should be fishable and swimmable, and require state decisions to be approved by EPA. In effect, this proposal would federalize decisions historically made by the states under the Clean Water Act.

Climate Change – Proposed new greenhouse gas regulations will increase the cost of virtually every input used in agriculture and forestry production. These regulations will not impact just producers but also agribusinesses. As these businesses face increased costs, those expenses will be passed on to producers and ultimately consumers. This will likely lead to higher food and fuel costs for all Americans while the economy is still struggling.

Clean Water Act Strategy – Earlier this year the Administration announced new “guidance” for federal employees to implement the Clean Water Act, thereby expanding the water bodies included under regulation. This action was taken without adherence to federal regulatory process through the promulgation of a regulation in the Federal Register. This expansion of the Clean Water Act will impact farmers and ranchers, not to mention increased burdens on States.

Spray Drift Policy – Last year, EPA proposed a rule to help states identify and prevent drift. The proposed rule counters decades old EPA policies that acknowledge small levels of spray drift are unavoidable. In fact, EPA has long recognized some de minimus level of spray drift will occur from most or all applications as a result of using pesticides. The proposed policy establishes a precautionary principle approach and is inconsistent with FIFRA.

Prior Converted Cropland – In April 2009, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers adopted a policy that “once a property changes from agricultural use to non-agricultural use, a prior converted cropland (PCC) designation is no longer applicable.” Therefore, the moment agricultural use ceases on PCC, the PCC designation is no longer valid and a jurisdictional determination will be conducted under a provision in the Corps’s Wetlands Delineation Manual that allows the Corps to assert jurisdiction over areas that do not exhibit all three wetlands characteristics. This is contrary to current Corps of Engineers policy and was adopted without any public input.

Atrazine – In response to a New York Times article, EPA has announced an unscheduled re-review of atrazine. Atrazine was favorably reviewed by EPA in 2006 and is scheduled to begin registration review in 2013. Reviews should be based on scientific justifications and established timelines and should not be done in response to a single press report.

Arsenic and Dioxin Risk Assessments – EPA is considering a cancer risk factor for arsenic that will cause virtually all soils to exceed the agency’s target risk range as well as a risk factor for dioxin that will cause nearly all agricultural products to exceed the agency’s level of concern. This means rice, wheat, corn meal, peanuts, apples, lettuce, carrots, onions, sugar, and tap water would be considered unsafe. Since 2000, the incidence of dioxin contamination has dropped 90 percent.

Mr. President, I hope this list of regulations provides more clarity on the real, proposed regulations and directives by your administration that will add costs to every farming, livestock and forestry operation in this country. They will also increase costs for consumers and limit opportunity for economic activity in rural communities across the country. I urge you to do all that you can to put the brakes on this regulatory agenda aimed at further weakening the economy in rural America.

Sincerely,

Pat Roberts
Ranking Member

Politico Article: http://www.politico.com/politico44/perm/0811/call_uncle_sam_5c130fdd-0e34-4b04-99e1-3d923ea3919e.html

Roberts’ Press Release: http://roberts.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?p=PressReleases&ContentRecord_id=9cb10a8d-25e8-46e2-8091-7ad58c57b439

The proposal, outlined in a 48-page commodities document in the Federal Register was published on June 7 but somehow flew under the industry’s radar until the first of August. The proposal makes a number of “conforming changes” for the commodity industry in line with the landmark Dodd-Frank market reform legislation signed in July 2010.

The legislation, passed in the wake of the financial crisis in the fall of 2008, aims to “reduce risk, increase transparency, and promote market integrity,” the agency notes.

Grain traders have zeroed in on a section that would require firms that are members of futures exchanges “to record all oral communications that lead to the execution of transactions in a commodity interest or cash commodity.” The recordings, which must be stored for five years in addition to full electronic records of transactions, will need to “be identifiable by counterparty and transaction.”“What they’re trying to do, in my mind, is overstepping their bounds,” said Paul Dubravec, merchandising and ag price risk management consultant for Advance Trading Inc. “They’re trying to link this to the 2008 financial debacle and that just doesn’t make sense. This is just more regulation that does nothing to promote growth within the industry.”

Although some elevators do currently record communication with farmers, it is typically in the interest of protecting themselves. With government imposed restrictions, elevators that do not already have the proper procuring systems to record all oral conversations are looking at spending thousands of dollars to meet the proposed standards. According to the documents in the Federal Register the FCTC estimates startup costs for a large grain entity to be $55,000 and at least $10,000 for smaller entities that do not already have a system in place. That does not include the burden elevator owners would incur when spending and estimated 135 hours to set up the system or the amount of money they would be forced to pay a computer specialist at a recommended rate upward of $50 per hour.

“It’s a knee jerk reaction to issues in the past,” says Barry Evans, owner of Evans Grain in Kress, Texas. “A contract should be sufficient. I can’t imagine recorded conversations being necessary. That’s just not practical at all.”

NSP expects the CFTC proposal to gain little traction after the comment period as the resulting effect, if implemented, would severely limit elevator willingness to forward contract grain from producers.

Let’s get real. With economic downfall, drought, flooding and legislative turmoil, why would the government even consider suffocating the industry with yet another regulation? Rural America isn’t Wall Street, and a firm handshake and a signature means something here.