Get Ready For Revolt In the United States of America!

[r_w]

Well, how many acres does the USDA pay to keep out of production??  They just renewed CRP again. 

And don't forget water rights.  You can't grow more crops in many areas unless you get more water. 

[ratcatcher55]

Well, how many acres does the USDA pay to keep out of production??  They just renewed CRP again. 

And don't forget water rights.  You can't grow more crops in many areas unless you get more water. 

I'm not sure water rights affect corn or soybeans but it has caused huge problems with truck crops in CA. Stoping irrigation to protect a darter has caused a major changes in farming and the economy of the Central Valley.

CRP? Well taking marginal acreage out of production does help water and soil conservation. If demand for grain increases then some changes will be coming.

And 2011 weather? Who knows.

[billt]

oil has tripled in price since BHO took office.

That is exactly what he wants. He likes high gas prices because it is forced conservation in his eyes. The more people who buy the little "green" $h!tboxes he wants to see everyone in, the better. He doesn't care how it happens, just as long as it happens.  Bill T.

[MikeBjerum]

Well, how many acres does the USDA pay to keep out of production??  They just renewed CRP again. 

And don't forget water rights.  You can't grow more crops in many areas unless you get more water. 

CRP ground doesn't produce enough crops to make a difference.  CRP is wetlands, highly erodible slopes and/or soil types. that do not produce well.

It is like when they had set aside acres.  They would try and drop production by 8% by having a 10% set aside.  Farmers would put their crap ground in set aside and production would only drop 3%.  At the peak in the 80's we had a 20% set aside and I still had to build a new bin for the production.

[ratcatcher55]

Well, how many acres does the USDA pay to keep out of production??  They just renewed CRP again. 

And don't forget water rights.  You can't grow more crops in many areas unless you get more water. 

According to the USDA 30 million acres in CRP set aside.

[Sponsor]

[r_w]

CRP ground doesn't produce enough crops to make a difference.  CRP is wetlands, highly erodible slopes and/or soil types. that do not produce well.

It is like when they had set aside acres.  They would try and drop production by 8% by having a 10% set aside.  Farmers would put their crap ground in set aside and production would only drop 3%.  At the peak in the 80's we had a 20% set aside and I still had to build a new bin for the production.

It is SUPPOSED to be that way.  Some places it still is, but many places it is good land--between the farmers (or off-farm land investors) that do or don't sign up and .GOV regional quotas it doesn't always end that way.

The REALLY bad land was already out of production so didn't qualify to be get in to CRP. 

[MikeBjerum]

Can't speak to other regions of the U.S., but in ours it is all crap land in CRP.  The non-farmer recipients are the ones that purchased the crap land from the farmers for hunting (mostly) or conservation (a few whack jobs that cause nothing but trouble when they come down to "reconnect with nature.")

[r_w]

Here it is no worse that land in production, it is a matter of which farmer jumped through the right hoop. 

All the land is marginal around here, though.  Most of it would qualify if purely based on erodibility or fertility, but since the region only gets X $'s for CRP--our standards to get in are higher (lower) than other regions.  The worst land in Iowa is probably better than the best we have for example. 

[mkm]

First, not a huge fan of ethanol, especially from corn.  There are much better things with which to make it, if you're dead set on making it.

Second, I think CRP land is generally a good thing.  I've dealt a little with implementing it, and worked quite a bit on managing it.  I know that it can be a little iffy on who gets to sign up for it and who doesn't, but that's mostly internal FSA crap.  Most of the land I've worked on wouldn't be that great of farm land anyway (in Western KY).  With that said, properly managed CRP provides much needed habitat for wildlife.  It's generally good for quail, rabbits, and other upland species (think random birds that don't get any respect).  CRP is a very broad term that covers many practices with various goals.  It includes stream buffers, field borders, conversion to native warm-season grasses, hardwood restoration, I think there are some grazing version, and other things.

[runstowin]

In an actual market economy, you and me vote daily with our pocketbooks, we pick the winners and losers, that is economic freedom, when the federal government steps in and picks winners and losers, we have economic tyranny. Subsidies for no one!