The Hedged Edge

There is an agriculture tug of war happening across the nation, impacting America's farmland. Fertilizer prices are continuously fluctuating, and it has us taking a page from "The Clash" should we stay or should we go?! And, we aren't the only ones. Many farmers are asking their agronomist and chemical salespeople, "What will fertilizer cost me the rest of the season, and what are my options if I don't want to go all-in on my typical fertilizer treatment plan."

In this episode of the Hedged Edge, we are joined by a special guest who needs no introduction in his local circle, Dick Stiltz. Dick is a 50-year veteran of the fertilizer and chemical industry and is the current Agronomy Marketing Manager of Procurement fertilizer and crop protection at Prairieland FS, Inc in Jacksonville, IL. He is at the pulse of the current struggle and here to discuss the topic at hand...Should we stay or should we go…

Episode Quick Links:

https://www.prairielandfs.com/

https://twitter.com/PrairielandFS

https://www.facebook.com/PrairielandFS/

Do you have additional questions, contact Dick at [email protected].

RCM Ag Services is putting a unique spin on National Agriculture Day by going international. That's right, we're jumping right into international waters with Maria Dorsett from USDA's Foreign Agriculture Services for an interesting discussion about linking U.S. agriculture to the rest of the world.

Each year, March 22 represents a special day to increase public awareness of the U.S.'s agricultural role in society, so why not take it one step further by bringing in a global component? As the world population soars, there's an even greater demand for producing food, fiber, and renewable resources. That's why we're taking a deeper dive into the USDA's trade finance programs, like the GSM-102, which supports sales of U.S. agricultural products in overseas markets and supports export growth in areas of the world that are seeing some of the fastest population growth.

So, jump aboard (no passport needed), as Maria discusses how U.S. companies use GSM-102, what the program features, and the benefits that it offers!

Quick Links from the episode:

Educational GSM presentations:

USDA's Export Credit Guarantee Programs

GSM 102

GSM 102 (Spanish)

You can reach out to Maria at [email protected] & by checking out the links below:

https://twitter.com/USDAForeignAg

https://www.facebook.com/USDA

http://www.youtube.com/usda

And last but not least, don't forget to subscribe to The Hedged Edge on your preferred platform, and follow us on Twitter @ag_rcm, LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/company/2878..., and Facebook https://www.facebook.com/RCMAgServices.

A special guest joins us for this episode of The Hedged Edge, who is well known for his many titles, which include Doctor, Editor-in-Chief, Dean, and Chief Academic Officer, just to name a few. Dr. Channa S. Prakash, Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences (CAS) at Tuskegee University, has served as faculty since 1989 and is a professor of crop genetics, biotechnology, and genomics. He is also well recognized for mentoring underrepresented minority students.

Tune in as biotech guru Dr. Prakash discusses everything from Alabama football, genetics as one of the most extensive agricultural advancements, the most significant risk factors to feeding the world over the next 30-50 years, plus everything in between. And as a bonus, we find out what sport he would be interested in playing if he went professional.

Highlights from this week's episode include:

Quick links from the episode:

And last but not least, don't forget to subscribe to The Hedged Edge on your preferred platform, and follow us on Twitter @ag_rcm, LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/company/2878..., and Facebook https://www.facebook.com/RCMAgServices.

The 2021 U.S. grain crop has the potential to be one of the largest on record. Where did all the yield come from, what areas were the hardest hit, and why on God's green earth are grain prices still so high?

Today, we are joined by several RCM Ag Services grain markets experts from around the country to catch up on a post-harvest update and share an outlook for production and marketing in each of their respective regions for the remainder of the 2021 marketing season and the upcoming 22 crops.

Check us out at www.rcmagservices.com for any follow-up information!

Follow CME Group on Twitter @CMEGroup; learn more about Agriculture Options and the new CVOL Index on their website here https://www.cmegroup.com/agoptions and here https://www.cmegroup.com/cvol.

And last but not least, don't forget to subscribe to The Hedged Edge on your preferred platform, and follow us on Twitter @ag_rcm, LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/company/2878..., and Facebook https://www.facebook.com/RCMAgServices.

For the past year, commodity prices have perpetually soared and continue to trend higher. We're diving into the fertilizer forecast with a unique guest, Billy Dale Strader, a branch manager for Helena Agri-Enterprises in Russellville, KY., who is truly at the epicenter of the rising fertilizer prices.

Billy Dale planted his agriculture roots on his family-owned farm and has managed regional seed and chemical sales at Helena for the past decade. In this week's pod, we tackle the big question for farmers and ultimately end-users — is the impact of higher-priced inputs, like seeds, chemicals, and fertilizer, on the supply and demand for the major U.S. crops? Listen to find out!

Reach out to Billy Dale at [email protected]

Find out more information here: https://www.helenaagri.com/

Follow CME Group on Twitter @CMEGroup; learn more about Agriculture Options and the new CVOL Index on their website here https://www.cmegroup.com/agoptions and here https://www.cmegroup.com/cvol.

And last but not least, don't forget to subscribe to The Hedged Edge on your preferred platform, and follow us on Twitter @ag_rcm, LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/company/2878..., and Facebook https://www.facebook.com/RCMAgServices.

The Hedged Edge is back, and we're jumping into the thick of the commodity markets with RCM’s own King of Cotton – Ron Lawson. Cotton prices have exploded since the COVID crash, rising more than 236% from the March 2020 lows. While prices have backed off from the October 8th high, cotton is one of the purest supply + demand-driven markets around the world and has caught fire along with the global inflation bug currently running rampant across many commodity markets.

Will it be hedge fund influence in cotton that costs consumers more this Holiday season or will the continued logistical issues tie up cotton at ports send consumers scrambling to eBay for their “snuggies”? For cotton producers, merchants, spinning mills, and banks financing the backbone of the cotton supply, risk management must remain at the top of mind for the remainder of this year and into 2022 (as the current cycle is likely to continue to last for at least the next 12-18 months.) We'll dive into the thick of it in this episode and more — Hold on to your hats and enjoy!

Follow CME Group on Twitter @CMEGroup; learn more about Agriculture Options and the new CVOL Index on their website here https://www.cmegroup.com/agoptions and here https://www.cmegroup.com/cvol.

And last but not least, don't forget to subscribe to The Hedged Edge on your preferred platform, and follow us on Twitter @ag_rcm, LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/company/2878..., and Facebook https://www.facebook.com/RCMAgServices.

It is no secret that commodity markets have been on fire over the past 12 months.  On today’s podcast we’ve brought on one of our real-life firefighters from RCM Ag – Jody Lawrence along with Tim Andriesen from the CME Group to provide us with some inside baseball knowledge of the current state of the agriculture markets and to discuss the real-world application of the use of short-dated options to potentially fight the current blaze of volatility surrounding agriculture markets.

As the director Research for RCM Jody is no stranger to the podcast.  Tim is the Managing Director of Agriculture products for the CME Group and is responsible for management of the company’s global agriculture commodities business – including grain, oilseed, livestock, and dairy risk management products.

Follow CME Group on Twitter @CMEGroup, Learn more about Agriculture Options and the new CVOL Index on their website here https://www.cmegroup.com/agoptionsand here https://www.cmegroup.com/cvol.

And last but not least, don't forget to subscribe to The Hedged Edge on your preferred platform, and follow us on Twitter @ag_rcm, LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/company/28786137/admin/, and Facebook https://www.facebook.com/RCMAgServices.

Agronomy is one of the most important facets of agriculture since farming began. Everyone from the farmer to the producer to the elevator depends on the success of agronomist and their advice to the American Farmer – and we’re lucky to have one of the top agronomists in the industry with us on The Hedged Edge today. Greg Willoughby is a 20-year industry veteran, and currently the Technical Service Manager at Helena Agri-Enterprises. We’re talking with Greg in today’s episode about being a “plant doctor”, weather patterns, GMO & organic produce, crop history, technical advances, level 201 education on agronomy, the agronomy equation, Helena Agri, soil biology, American v European agriculture, Greg’s early background in livestock, and the advancement of native plants to modern produce.

Follow along with Greg on Twitter at @GLWilloughby and LinkedIn, and with Helena on Twitter at @HelenaAgriand their website.

And last but not least, don't forget to subscribe to The Hedged Edge on your preferred platform, and follow us on Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook.

Disclaimer: This podcast is provided for informational purposes only and should not be relied upon as legal, business, or tax advice. All opinions expressed by podcast participants are solely their own opinions and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of RCM Ag Services, their affiliates, or companies featured. Due to industry regulations, participants on this podcast are instructed not to make specific trade recommendations, nor reference past or potential profits. And listeners are reminded that managed futures, commodity trading, and other alternative investments are complex and carry a risk of substantial losses. As such, they are not suitable for all investors. For more information, visit www.rcmalternatives.com/disclaimer

How can lumber prices shoot up nearly 300% in one year? Does it all come down to the Corona-push to homebuying, supply chain issues, environmental swings, all of the above or none of it at all? We wanted to dig into all these questions and more with a lumber veteran to get the nitty gritty explanations on why everyone is talking about lumber. Today we’re joined by Kyle Little a 4thgeneration lumberman and Chief Operation Officer at Sherwood Lumber. Kyle has joined us to talk about the lumber supply chain & sourcing, all the types of lumber, the housing rush, the current lumber shortage and the outlook for lumber in the next 3/6/12/24 months.

Follow Kyle Little on LinkedIn and Sherwood Lumber on Twitter and check out more on the Sherwood Lumber website.

And last but not least, don't forget to subscribe to The Hedged Edge on your preferred platform, and follow us on Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook.

Disclaimer: This podcast is provided for informational purposes only and should not be relied upon as legal, business, or tax advice. All opinions expressed by podcast participants are solely their own opinions and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of RCM Ag Services, their affiliates, or companies featured. Due to industry regulations, participants on this podcast are instructed not to make specific trade recommendations, nor reference past or potential profits. And listeners are reminded that managed futures, commodity trading, and other alternative investments are complex and carry a risk of substantial losses. As such, they are not suitable for all investors. For more information, visit www.rcmalternatives.com/disclaimer

If you’ve taken an ag econ class, been in the industry on the producer or investor side, or just have a general interest in the ag space, there’s a good chance that you’ve come across Mastering the Grain Markets by Elaine Kub. It’s the perfect intro to understanding ways that could help you make money trading grain, and we’re lucky to be joined by the author herself to talk about her books, designer contracts, crop opportunities, market outlook, what the next “game changers” in the ag business are going to be and more.

Follow Elaine on Twitter, and buy her book Mastering the Grain Markets here.

And last but not least, don't forget to subscribe to The Hedged Edge on your preferred platform, and follow us on Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook.

Disclaimer: This podcast is provided for informational purposes only and should not be relied upon as legal, business, or tax advice. All opinions expressed by podcast participants are solely their own opinions and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of RCM Ag Services, their affiliates, or companies featured. Due to industry regulations, participants on this podcast are instructed not to make specific trade recommendations, nor reference past or potential profits. And listeners are reminded that managed futures, commodity trading, and other alternative investments are complex and carry a risk of substantial losses. As such, they are not suitable for all investors. For more information, visit www.rcmalternatives.com/disclaimer