Farmers' business dries up

Recent rains might have softened the blow, but area farmers are still struggling to overcome losses suffered from this summer’s two month drought, conditions not felt here since 1980, agricultural experts say.

Farming is a big deal in Missouri. The state boasts 106,000 farms – the second-highest number in the country – and produced nearly $5 billion of agricultural products in 2003, according to the Missouri Agricultural Statistics Service.

While the extent of the damage won’t be known until the end of the growing season, estimates indicate that production of corn and soybeans, the state’s two biggest crops, could be down by about a third from last year.

State agricultural officials say it’s impossible to determine the total economic impact of the dry conditions, but it’s clear that most of the state has been affected. Local farmers are feeling the effects in a big way.

Vickie Kensinger is co-owner of Memory Lane Dairy Store in Fordland, where milk production from her 120 head of dairy cattle is down by 30 percent. She said that cows don’t eat as much or as often in such weather.

“It’s been so hot and dry that we put hay out to (the cows), but they only eat the hay at night, whereas if they were grazing they’d eat during the day and the night, which has caused our milk production to be down drastically,” she said.

But the cattle’s appetite is not the only cause for concern.

Greg Lenz is a northern Greene County farmer in charge of nearly 600 acres and a dairy cattle herd numbering 400.

He’s been hit from all sides; the fields he normally reserves for hay production had to be left as pasture so his cattle could feed. That means his hay crop is smaller than usual.

Hay itself is in short supply all over; a normal farming season brings two or three cuttings of hay while this year may only allow for one.

“We’ve already bought some hay from out of state to mix with the hay that we have on hand. We’ve had a couple of semi-truck loads that have come in from Kansas to help us cope with the loss already,” Lenz said. “We’re probably only two months away from using up everything that we’ve got.”

Milk production is down 20 percent at Lenz’s facility compared to last year.

Missouri Gov. Matt Blunt has requested federal disaster assistance for all but two of Missouri’s 114 counties.

“A disaster declaration will allow producers to be eligible for low-interest loans through their farm service agency and the USDA,” said Judy Grundler, program administrator for the Missouri Department of Agriculture. “If there were some federally appropriated disaster funds they would be eligible for that, but that’s something that you just don’t know if you’re ever going to get,” she added.

The USDA has requested additional information about individual counties, Grundler said, noting that the state hopes to know whether federal assistance is coming before the end of the month.

The USDA and the Farm Service Agency Aug. 11 approved aid for 22 counties, including Greene, Christian, Webster and Taney counties, in the form of cost-share payments for securing more water for livestock.

The Emergency Conservation Program is expected to provide more than $1 million in funds for the stricken counties.

Wyman Miller, executive director of the Greene County Farm Service Agency, said the program is intended to aid farmers in finding new water sources.

“It could be a well, a pipeline, or a spring development,” he said. “We just look at all the resources to see what method is available to provide water in a given situation.”

Dairy farmer Kensinger said she has not heard what type of assistance, if any, will be available to her dairy company, but she would take the help if it were offered.

“If they have some type of program that we qualify for, yeah, we’ll take any help we can get,” she said. “In farming you have to watch every corner anyway. If it’s available and we qualify, I’m not going to cut off my nose to spite my face.”

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