Average Net Cash Income For Farm Businesses Is Forecast Down In All Regions In 2015

Apr 02, 2015

After historically high average net cash farm income (NCFI) in 2012 and 2013, average NCFI is expected to decline 22.7 percent in 2014F-15F for U.S. farm businesses (defined as farms with annual gross cash farm income greater than $350,000, or smaller operations where the operator’s primary occupation is farming), the lowest level since 2010-11 While declines are expected in all ERS resource regions, performance is expected to vary considerably, primarily driven by the regional commodity production specializations.

The forecast sharp drop in dairy receipts contributes to an expected 34-percent decline in average NCFI in the Northern Crescent. The forecast decline in NCFI for the Fruitful Rim is driven by the expected drop in NCFI for specialty crop farms. Farm businesses’ average NCFI in the Basin and Range is forecast to decline due to declining receipts for sorghum and wheat.

Expected declines in poultry and hog receipts drive lower projected average NCFI in the Eastern Uplands, while increasing livestock costs and decreasing crop receipts contribute to the decline in the Southern Seaboard.

Source:usda.gov

Video: Finding a Balance of Innovation and Regulation - Dr. Peter Facchini

Regulations help markets and industry exist on level playing fields, keeping consumers safe and innovation from going too far. However, incredibly strict regulations can stunt innovation and cause entire industries to wither away. Dr. Peter James Facchini brings his perspective on how existing regulations have slowed the advancement of medical developments within Canada. Given the international concern of opium poppy’s illicit potential, Health Canada must abide by this global policy. But with modern technology pushing the development of many pharmaceuticals to being grown via fermentation, is it time to reconsider the rules?

Dr. Peter James Facchini leads research into the metabolic biochemistry in opium poppy at the University of Calgary. For more than 30 years, his work has contributed to the increased availability of benzylisoquinoline alkaloid biosynthetic genes to assist in the creation of morphine for pharmaceutical use. Dr. Facchini completed his B.Sc. and Ph.D. in Biological Sciences at the University of Toronto before completing Postdoctoral Fellowships in Biochemistry at the University of Kentucky in 1992 & Université de Montréal in 1995.