Projects on soybean rust
   Two projects focused on Asian Soybean Rust have received funding from the Southern Soybean Research Program (SSRP) and Kentucky Soybean Board to bring farmers valuable tools to fight the yield-robbing disease. The projects are a fungicide study and an Asian soybean rust yield loss prediction tool.
   At present, there are no soybeanrust-resistant varieties available, but there is ongoing checkoff-funded rust-resistance research that shows great promise for the future. For right now, the first line of defense against soybean rust is the timely use of foliar fungicides. To provide soybean farmers in the Southern soybean-growing region with unbiased information on soybean rust control through follar fungicide applications, SSRP funded a fungicide study.
   The fungicide study focuses on testing the effectiveness of commercially available fungicides on Asian soybean rust, which had not been previously tested at length. Since soybean rust has already occurred in parts of Alabama, Florida, Georgia and Louisiana in 2005-07, it was practical to place fungicide test plots in those locations. Results from standardized tests in Alabama, Florida and Georgia have been very successful in 2006 and 2007 and may be expanded to include Louisiana for 2008.
   Soybean rust’s ability to overwinter in extreme Southern regions makes the timing of the first fungicide application highly important to get the best results.  First application must be sprayed on the soybeans before infections reach the five percent to 10 percent level. The fungicide study’s findings are provided to farmers through their extension services at farmer meetings, field days and through the media.

Marketing conference set for November
   The first-ever Kentucky Direct Marketing Conference hosted by the Kentucky Department of Agriculture will be held November 13-14. Seminars will be facilitated by the KDA and will focus on helping producers find ways to increase market share, improve product quality and grow their customer base.
   Tentative topics include farmers’ markets, Internet marketing, the Good Agricultural Practices program and community supported agriculture, or CSAs. The keynote speakers will hold nationally-recognized credentials. More information will be available in August at www.kyagr.com.

USDA addressing "downer" cattle issue
   Agriculture Secretary Ed Schafer announced the agency will begin writing a proposed rule to prohibit the slaughter of all disabled non-ambulatory cattle, also known as “downer cattle.” Put another way, Schafer said he is “calling for the end of the exceptions in the socalled ‘downer rule.’”
   According to USDA, of nearly 34 million cattle that were slaughtered in 2007, fewer than 1,000 were re-inspected and approved by a veterinarian for slaughter. This represents less than 0.003 percent of cattle slaughtered annually.
   “The current rule, which focuses on cattle that went down after they have already passed pre-slaughter inspection, has been challenging to communicate and has, at times, been confusing to consumers,” Schafer said.
   Citing the need to maintain consumer confidence in the food supply, eliminate further misunderstanding of the rule and, ultimately, to make a positive impact on the humane handling of cattle, Schafer said he believes it is sound policy to “simplify this matter by initiating a complete ban on the slaughter of downer cattle that go down after initial inspection.”
   USDA’s Food Safety & Health Inspection Service (FSIS) is drafting a proposed rule to remove the exception that allows certain injured cattle to proceed to slaughter.

Floriculture industry has changed
   Despite a relatively high purchasing power, U.S. flower consumption lags behind Western Europe, which is the largest flower consumer. Cultural differences account for some of this disparity, but U.S. consumers have traditionally been dissatisfied with flower quality and vase life in particular. However, retailers are tackling this problem, according to a new Rabobank report, “U.S. Floriculture.”
   “The U.S. flower market is primarily an impulse market with approximately three quarters of flowers sold as gifts.  Other countries, such as Switzerland, Norway and the Netherlands, also use flowers as decorations and throughout their homes,” said Rabobank Assistant Vice President Marieke de Rijke.  "However, U.S. consumers are not used to buying flowers for personal use."
   According to the Flower Council of Holland, each year Americans spend about $31 -- based on current exchange rates -- on cut flowers while the Swiss, for example, spend more than $100.
   Primarily a shorter vase life and cultural differences account for this disparity. de Rijke said, “in order to make flowers more common and to lift flower consumption, retailers, particularly supermarkets, are increasingly offering a vase-life guarantee.”
   According to the report, 75 percent of U.S. flower consumption is originating in Colombia and the cut flower trade flow from South America to North America is the world’s second largest.
   “In order to stay in business over the past two decades U.S. growers have started to focus on producing higher quality flower varieties. As a result, traditional cut flowers such as roses, carnations and chrysanthemums are now rarely produced in the United States. Growers are mainly producing orchids, lilies, tulips and gerberas,” said de Rijke. “Over the past decade, the U.S. flower industry has gone through a ‘survival of the fittest’ with the most efficient producers left.”