Sunflower Highlights

Post Date: Apr 23 2018

Registration is now open on our website for the 2018 NSA Summer Seminar. This year’s Summer Seminar will be held at the Arrowwood Resort in Alexandria, Minnesota. Click here to register on our website. You’ll find our tentative schedule there too, as well as hotel information and more. A block of rooms has been reserved there for June 25-28. There’s a link on our website, under “Hotel Information” to make your reservation. The room block will be released May 25, 2018 but may fill up much faster so don’t wait! The program is being finalized now and more information will be coming soon. Check the NSA website for further updates. Contact Tina Mittelsteadt at tinam@sunflowernsa.com with any questions.

NSA Website Provides Helpful Information for Producers

Have questions about growing sunflowers? You’ll find the answers to your questions on our website! Click here to visit our website; then click on the “Growers” section – you’ll find answers to frequently asked questions there as well as links to more information about many important topics, including approved chemicals, production, marketing, crop insurance, and more.

Would you like to get a link to a digital copy of Sunflower Highlights every week in your email? It’s easy! Click here to sign up. You can also sign up for a digital copy of our magazine, The Sunflower, there. And for sunflower prices at various locations, click here.

Markets

Old crop sunflower prices finished the week up 5 cents. New crop prices ended mixed at down 10 to up 5 cents. Markets have been rattled by trade impacting headlines that potentially could lead to lost market opportunities. The latest news was that U.S. companies would need to put up a 178.6 percent deposit on the value of sorghum shipments into China, which will effectively act as a duty and block all trade. There were also reports that some shipments of sorghum bound for China reversed course after being threaten by these anti-dumping penalties last week. Rumors also circulated that the Chinese have purchased soybeans from Canada. This left the trade with the impression that perhaps China is more serious about trying to find supply alternatives for soybeans. Nothing has been implemented yet, but China has threatened to add an additional 25% tariff on US soybeans in retaliation for potential US tariffs on Chinese products. If the 25% tariff kicks in, traders feel the current large US soybean supply and slower demand for products will drive down new crop soybean prices as Chinese imports account for about 33% of the US soybean production each year. Adding further pressure has been the slow corn planting pace which traders believe could add more soybean acres this spring. These events have clearly created a heavy cloud over the market.