JBS SA Beef reported a loss in the second quarter of
$233 million. This compares to a positive profit of $28 million the
year prior. JBS USA Pork fared much better than beef with positive
earnings of $253.6 million. JBS Australia (covering beef, lamb, pork,
value-added, and aquaculture) reported positive earnings of $290.2
million. Net income for the company's diverse operations in North and
South America increased 61% from the previous year to $528.1 million.
In other news, JBS announced an agreement to purchase a plant in
Ankeny, Iowa, for $130 million, with plans to build out the largest
ready-to-eat bacon and sausage plant in its US portfolio. The plant is
expected to be operational by mid-2026. It will have the capacity to
process 500,000 hogs annually and produce 130 million pounds of product
per year.
The city of Amarillo, Texas, issued a building permit
for a new $253 million beef processing plant. The plant was previously
expected to be completed by May 2027, but that has been pushed back to
December 2027. The plant is projected to have a daily slaughter
capacity of 3,000 head.
Total pork stocks in cold storage at the end of July
were reported at 404.6 million pounds, down 11% from last year. Stocks
of pork bellies were pegged at 31.7 million pounds, down 25% from last
July. Total beef stocks in the freezer increased 1% to 397.8 million
pounds, and total chicken stocks increased 3% to 773.1 million pounds.
The first case of a New World Screwworm infestation in
a human was confirmed in the US according to the Department of Health
and Human Services. The screwworm was detected in a Maryland man who
returned to the US from El Salvador. There is no medication to treat
it, according to the agency.
USDA is investing $750 million to build the US first
domestic sterile New World Screwworm fly production facility. The new
facility will be based at Moore Airfield Base in Edinburg, Texas, where
USDA previously announced it was investing $8.5 million to create a
disposal facility for sterile flies. Once the new production plant is
finished, it will have the capacity to produce 300 million flies per
week. The only current operating sterile New World Screwworm fly
facility is in Panama, where about 11 million flies are produced per
week.
Grains
On August 22nd, the EPA announced its decision on 175
individual small refinery exemption petitions from 38 refineries
seeking an exemption from their RFS obligations for the 2016-2024
compliance years. The EPA granted full small-refinery exemptions on 63
petitions, while granting partial exemptions on 77 petitions and
denying 28 petitions, and determined 7 petitions to be ineligible.
The Pro Farmer Crop Tour estimated the average corn
yield at 182.7 bushels per acre compared to USDA's August projection of
188.8 bushels per acre. Pro Farmer's yield estimates for both Iowa and
Illinois were significantly below USDA due to disease pressures. Pro
Farmer was above USDA in South Dakota and Minnesota. For soybeans, Pro
Farmer ended up with a national yield projection for 53.0 bushels per
acre verses the USDA August estimate of 53.6.
Senator Jerry Moran joined Senator John Thune of South
Dakota, Senator Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota, and Senator Tina Smith of
Minnesota in introducing the Conservation Reserve Program Improvement
and Flexibility Act. The legislation would bolster CRP by improving
grazing access, maximizing enrollment options for producers, and
expediting emergency haying in response to drought. It would also
increase the CRP annual payment limitation from $50,000 (which was set
in 1985) to $125,000 to account for inflation and rising long values.
Vietnam is planning to switch completely to
ethanol-blended gasoline next year. The Ministry of Industry and Trade
has submitted a proposal to the government to switch to E-10, which
would pave the way for the import of American ethanol and corn to
Vietnam as it seeks to narrow the trade gap with the US.
Cronus Chemicals has secured all necessary state and
federal environmental permits and is preparing to begin construction of
a new ammonia plant that will cost $2.0-2.4 billion and take 3 1/2
years to build. The plant will be based at Tuscola, Illinois, about an
hour east of Decator. The plant will have the capacity to produce
nearly 1 million short tons of ammonia per year.