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UPI Farming Today

By GREGORY TEJEDA, United Press International

Fungus could fly to U.S.

A soybean fungus native to Asia has managed to make its way to South America, and officials are wondering if it could spread north into the United States.

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Purdue University plant pathologist Greg Shaner noted soybean rust -- which originates in Asian countries and has ruined farm fields -- has been found in Argentina, Brazil and Uruguay.

"Two years ago, it showed up in South America," Shaner said. "Now that it's in the Western Hemisphere, we're concerned that it will find its way to the continental United States."

Soybean rust concerns plant researchers because it is caused by an airborne pathogen that can move hundreds of miles by wind.

It somehow made its way from Asia to Africa, then across the Atlantic Ocean to South America.

Officials say it is possible the winds could now carry it up to North America.

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Although there are no signs of the disease in the United States this year, officials say its current track indicates it could spread to the southern states within a few years.

Agriculture Department researchers are screening soybean germplasm for genetic resistance, in anticipation of the disease's arrival in the United States.

Researchers have yet to identify any highly resistant soybean germplasm.

The fungus attacks a plant's foliage, which causes leaves to drop early and reduces yield.

"The rust fungus produces small pustules," Shaner said. "Each little infection produces a mass of spores.

"The pathogen parasitizes the soybean plant, deriving nutrients for its growth from nutrients in the soybean plant," he said. "So nutrients that normally would go into seed production are diverted into the growth of the fungus."

Field studies in Asia and South America have found yield losses of anywhere from 10 to 80 percent of the crop due to the fungus.

Should the fungus make it to the United States, losses here would depend on how early in the growth of the soybean plant the infection occurs and how favorable the weather conditions are.

One factor does work in the United State's favor -- seasons in the north are the reverse of those in the south. The soybean crop is maturing in South American nations while the U.S. crop is not yet planted.

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War's end could resume Iraq wheat purchases

Kansas State University agriculture economist Bill Tierney said the inclusion of wheat grown in the United States as part of relief shipments to Iraq could boost wheat exports.

"It appears likely that U.S. wheat exports to Iraq could increase substantially once hostilities are ended," Tierney said. "With the conclusion of the war, it seems reasonable to expect that Iraq's per capita wheat consumption will increase and could approach pre-1990s levels."

Prior to the first Gulf War, Iraq consumed about 8.2 bushels per person, with the United States providing about half of that. During the 1990s, Iraq wheat consumption dropped to 5.8 bushels per person, with the United States providing nothing.


Agreement creates new rural lending tool

Agriculture Department rural development officials reached agreement with a subsidiary of J.P. Morgan Chase Bank to provide more opportunities for rural lenders to participate in guaranteed loan programs.

Federal officials Wednesday reached agreement with Colson Services Corp. to simplify the monitoring and selling of business guaranteed loans to boost the chances of rural projects receiving funding.

The Agriculture Department will issue certificates to investors who purchase guaranteed portions of Rural Development business loans. They will be available to investors who name Colson as a registrar and paying agent for guaranteed portions of loans.

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Feds create genetic crop committee

A forestry professor at Clemson University was named to chair an advisory committee that will study issues related to agriculture and genetically modified crops.

Patricia Layton, a forest resources professor at the South Carolina-based college, will be chairman of the Agriculture Department's advisory committee on biotechnology and 21st Century Agriculture.

Seventeen other people were chosen to be members of the committee, serving one- or two-year terms. Members come from 14 states, the District of Columbia and the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center in Mexico City.


Bywater gets federal contract

Connecticut-based Bywater received a contract from the Agriculture Department to ensure the movement and import of plant and animal materials comply with federal regulations.

Bywater has been working with the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Services for three years and the new contact extends their services for two more years.

Bywater will provide strategic planning and implementation services to help improve processes and better meet the needs of customers.


Grains mixed on CBOT

Grain futures were mixed at the close Wednesday on the Chicago Board of Trade.

Soybeans rose on early technical buying.

Corn fell as traders positioned themselves prior to the supply-demand and export sales reports to be released Thursday by the Agriculture Department.

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Wheat rose on beliefs losses earlier this week were overdone.

Oats were mixed.

The prices:

Soybeans: May 6.04 up 3, Jul 6.03 up 3 1/2, Aug 5.90 1/2 up 4, Nov 5.32 3/4 up 2.

Corn: May 2.42 off 3/4, Jul 2.43 3/4 off 3/4, Sep 2.42 1/2 off 1 1/4, Dec 2.42 1/4 off 1 1/4.

Wheat: May 2.87 up 3 1/2, Jul 2.93 1/4 up 3 3/4, Sep 2.98 1/2 up 4 1/2, Dec 3.09 1/4 up 4.

Oats: May 1.88 1/4 up 1/2, Jul 1.61

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