February 6, 2003

Organic Crop Budgets For 2003 Available from NDSU

The North Dakota State University Extension Service is offering projected organic crop budgets for south-central North Dakota. While these budgets are area-specific, the information in the 21-page Extension publication will be of value to organic producers in other parts of the state as well as conventional farmers interested in organic production, says an NDSU agricultural economist.

"The budgets should serve only as guides due to the considerable variation in soil type, productivity, weather conditions and organic management practices within the 11 county area comprising North Dakota's south-central region. In addition, prices are difficult to predict," says Andrew Swenson, an extension farm management specialist at NDSU and co-author of the publication.

The organic crop budgets included in the publication are for spring wheat, durum, feed barley, corn, oil and confectionery sunflower, soybeans, oats, flax, field peas, millet, buckwheat, rye, and green manure.

A primary assumption for all the crop budgets is that the marketable yield of organic production will average about 75 percent of conventional crop yields. Some experienced organic growers, however, have achieved yields similar to conventional production. But for organic producers to meet stringent standards, the cleanout for organic grain is often greater than for conventional markets. This lowers the marketable yield. ‘The cleanout, or screenings, from organic grain can have considerable value as feed for certified organic livestock production, but no estimate of this value is provided in the budgets," Swenson says.

Swenson says strong price premiums can be achieved for organic commodities, but the markets are much smaller than for conventionally grown crops, and price discovery can be difficult. Hauling grain longer distances to market and cleaning grain are important factors for an organic producer when evaluating price and costs. Contracts may specify the grower as responsible for both, either one, or neither. The budgets assumed the producer delivered the grain to the buyer and the price was for grain after the buyer cleaned, or conditioned it. "Organic producers emphasize the importance of carefully reading all the production contracts they enter into to make sure they understand all the terms, especially those related to cleaning, delivery, quality standards and timing of payment," Swenson says.

Budgeted seed costs are higher in 2003 because organic certified seed is required unless it is not commercially available. Also, expenditures have increased for organic certification, inspection fees and grain testing.

Also included in the publication are two examples of four-year organic crop rotations. Rotations are the essence of an organic production system, says Brad Brummond, cropping systems agent with the NDSU Extension Service in Walsh County. Brummond, who specializes in organic production methods, is a co-author of the publication.

"The principal rule of organic production is to rotate crops to break pest cycles. The same crop should never be grown consecutively, nor should crops that have similarly sized seeds be grown back to back if the previous crop is expected to become a ‘weed’ in the subsequent crop," Brummond adds.

Copies of the projected 2003 organic crop budgets are available at county offices of the NDSU Extension Service or on the Web at http://www.ext.nodak.edu/extpubs/ecguides.htm. For more information on organic crop rotations and organic management practices, contact Brummond at (701)284-6624 or by e-mail at brummon@ndsuext.nodak.edu.

In addition, conventional farmers interested in organic production can consult another publication developed by the NDSU Extension Service. "Organic Farming: Is It For Me?" (A1181) is available at county offices of the NDSU Extension Service or via the Internet at http://www.ext.nodak.edu/extpubs/plantsci/crops/a1181w.htm.

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Sources: Andrew Swenson (701) 231-7379, aswenson@ndsuext.nodak.edu
Brad Brummond (701) 284-6624, brummon@ndsuext.nodak.edu
Editor: Tom Jirik (701) 231-9629, tjirik@ndsuext.nodak.edu