New record price for land in Nobles County

According to an article by Julie Buntjer in the Worthington Daily Globe, a recent farmland sale in Nobles County set a new record for price at $13,000 per acre.

You can read the full article here: http://www.dglobe.com/content/land-sale-sets-new-record-nobles-county

"The winning bidders, Todd and Lorna Kruger of Sibley, Iowa, paid $13,000 per acre for the 156.8-acre parcel of tillable land, for a total price tag of $2,038,400. Sold by the heirs of Ella Mae Sall, the Prins-Sliver Auction Service saw brisk bidding among a field of regional bidders in the auction, according to Steve Prins."

That was nearly $1,000 more per acre than the previous record sale price of $12,050 per acre, which was up from the previous record of $11,700. Farm land prices are jumping quickly in southern Minnesota, following trends in Iowa.

" 'As far as the buyers, we hope that the farming industry continues to be good -- it's been good for the past few years and that's the reason they can afford to pay these prices,' said Prins, adding that a healthy farm economy is good for the community and local businesses. 'You can't believe the number of people looking for land,' he added. 'We have got a list of people who want land so terribly bad that you can't believe it. That's what's driving the prices up. The corn prices, the bean prices have been good, but there's just such a demand.' "

If you're ready to see what prices look like in your area or you're ready to sell your farmland, please call me for an appraisal or real estate advice. I'd love to help!

Sincerely,
Noah Hultgren
noah@farmlandman.com
320-894-7528

Ask a farmer: What is the difference between sweet corn and field corn?

I recently wrote an article for the Minnesota Farm Guide, about the difference between sweet corn and field corn. Take a look at the article below, or here: http://www.minnesotafarmguide.com/news/crop/article_bd236186-093a-11e3-9c90-0019bb2963f4.html

August 19, 2013 8:49 pm • By Noah Hultgren, Minnesota Corn Growers Association
“Ask a farmer” is a new column written by a different Minnesota corn farmer every month. It will be sent on the third Monday of each month and cover farming issues and questions that farmers often hear from the non-farming general public.

Sweet corn. It’s almost as American as apple pie.

If you’re barbequing with friends and family on a sunny weekend evening in Minnesota, chances are good that corn on the cob is part of the menu. Or maybe you’re celebrating Thanksgiving with a plump turkey and all the fixings – mashed potatoes, dressing, cranberries, and a nice big serving bowl filled with sweet corn.

When most people think of corn, it’s sweet corn that comes to mind. But the fact is, of the 97.2 million acres of corn planted in the United States last year, sweet corn made up less than 1 percent of the total crop. The rest was field corn.

When driving through rural Minnesota or any other Corn Belt state, it’s usually field corn you see out your window. Although field corn kernels start out soft like sweet corn, it’s not harvested until the kernels are dry. Field corn is used to feed livestock, make the renewable fuel ethanol and thousands of other bio-based products like carpet, make-up or aspirin.

Sweet corn is harvested when the kernels are soft and sweet, making it ideal for eating. If you grab an ear of field corn and try to take a bite, you’ll probably break your teeth. It’s hard and dry (and only tastes good to cows, chickens, pigs, turkeys and some wild animals).

U.S. corn farmers harvested 10.8 billion bushels of field corn last year. Minnesota corn farmers harvested a record 1.37 billion bushels. In contrast, 158.7 million bushels of sweet corn was harvested throughout the entire United States.

While sweet corn satisfies our taste buds, field corn improves our lives in many other ways.
One bushel of field corn weighs 56 pounds, and if it isn’t used directly for livestock feed, it is likely to be exported or made into ethanol that is used to fuel your car. Each bushel produces 2.8 gallons of ethanol, 18 pounds of dried distillers grains (a high protein livestock feed), 14 pounds of corn gluten pellets, 1.8 pounds of corn oil and 17 pounds of carbon dioxide (used in dry ice, the beverage industry, water treatment facilities and other applications).

The remaining field corn crop is used to make other food products, manufactured goods, exported to other countries and put into storage.

Sweet corn holds a place in American dining lore. Field corn nourishes livestock, powers our cars, cleans our air, creates jobs and builds strong local economies.

So, even though you can’t slather a cob of field corn in butter and eat it, it still touches our lives in many ways.

Noah Hultgren is on the Minnesota Corn Growers Association board and is a field corn, sweet corn, soybean and sugar beet farmer in Raymond, Minn., in Kandiyohi County.