Home

Mission Statement

Be the voice, resource, and advocate for farm families and agriculture,
while promoting stewardship for today and future generations.

Raffle to raise money for Rock River Valley Food Pantry

Looking for a way to help raise money for the hungry in the Rockford area and possibly fill your freezer at the same time?

The Winnebago-Boone Farm Bureau Young Leaders are selling raffle tickets to raise funds to help out the Rock River Valley Food Pantry.  The Young Leaders will raffle off two quarter sides of beef and two half hogs at the Winnebago-Boone Farm Bureau’s 95^th Annual Meeting on March 18, 2015.  Tickets cost $5 each or three for $10.  (You need not be present to win.)

Tickets are now available at the Winnebago-Boone Farm Bureau office located at 1925 S Meridian Road, Rockford, IL.  (Tickets are limited and all proceeds will benefit the Rock River Valley Food Panty.) Stop in today and pick up your ticket.

Key Dates for Farm Programs

USDA announced key dates for farm owners and producers to keep in mind regarding the new 2014 Farm Bill established programs, Agriculture Risk Coverage (ARC) and Price Loss Coverage (PLC).  The new programs, designed to help producers better manage risk, usher in one of the most significant reforms to U.S. farm programs in decades.  Farmers may begin visiting their local Farm Service Agency (FSA) offices in Freeport, IL if they want to update their yield history and/or reallocate base acres, the first step before choosing which new program best serves their risk management needs. Letters sent this summer enabled farm owners and producers to analyze their crop planting history in order to decide whether to keep their base acres or reallocate them according to recent plantings

Dates associated with ARC and PLC that farm owners and producers need to know:

·         Sept. 29, 2014 to Feb. 27, 2015: Land owners may visit their Freeport Farm Service Agency office to update yield history and/or reallocate base acres.  (Must bring completed PLC Yield worksheet to the meeting.)

·         Nov. 17, 2014 to March 31, 2015: Producers make a one-time election of either ARC or PLC for the 2014 through 2018 crop years.

·         Mid-April 2015 through summer 2015: Producers sign contracts for 2014 and 2015 crop years.

·         October 2015: Payments for 2014 crop year, if needed.  

USDA helped create online tools to assist in the decision process, allowing farm owners and producers to enter information about their operation and see projections that show what ARC and/or PLC will mean for them under possible future scenarios.  The new tools are now available at www.fsa.usda.gov/arc-plc.    Farm owners and producers can access the online resources from the convenience of their home computer or mobile device at any time.

Additional decision assistance is available at farmdoc: http://farmbilltoolbox.farmdoc.illinois.edu/ and Agriculture Policy Analysis System (APAS): http://fsa.usapas.com/

New Certified Crop Advisory Courses

Now available are four new CCA Online Courses that are presentations from this year’s Crop Management Conference. You may go to http://web.extension.illinois.edu/cca/   to visit each course and click on begin course to view . For obtaining CEUs, a person must register for the course.  Courses include: 

Management of Wheat Diseases in Illinois
This lesson contains content presented at the 2014 Crop Management Conferences by Dr. Carl Bradley. This lesson discusses integrated management strategies for Fusarium head scab and associated mycotoxins and stripe rust of wheat.

$15.00 - 1.0 CEU in Integrated Pest Management

Rootworm Update
This lesson contains content presented at the 2014 Crop Management Conferences by Dr. Mike Gray. This lesson discusses the biology and evolution of the Western corn rootworm to past and current management practices. Other topics include: integrate pest management, resistance management, crop rotation, in-furrow soil insecticides and more.

$15.00 - 1.0 CEU in Integrated Pest Management

Getting High Corn Yields in a Lower-Corn-Price World
This lesson contains content presented at the 2014 Crop Management Conferences. Dr. Emerson Nafziger presents results of his research on diverse, agronomically important topics: from seeding rate to row spacing, from nitrogen rate to weather, from foliar fungicides to irrigation and more.

$15.00 1 CEU in Crop Management

Planning and Using Data from On-Farm Trials
This lesson contains content presented at the 2014 Crop Management Conferences by Dr. Emerson Nafziger. This course covers many topics important to the planning, establishment, data collection and analysis of on-farm research trials including: general experimental design, site selection, why some treatments are better candidates for on-farm research, replication, basic statistical concepts and more.

$15.00 - 1.0 CEU in Crop Management

Come on out March 26.  Learn something new and improve your understanding of today's motor vehicle law.  You’ll be better able to sort “coffee shop talk” from real world requirements, saving you expenses and headaches.

The seminar is free courtesy of your county and state Farm Bureaus^®, but advance registration is requested.  Please call 815-962-0653 to reserve your place at the On-the-Road Seminar.

Drive Out Hunger Collectable Tractor- Only 90 left!
The Illinois Farm Bureau Young Leaders have teamed up with Feeding America, the nation’s largest food bank to help reduce the number of households in Illinois that faces hunger this year.  You can start a “collection” that will not only help area families, but also increase in value over time.  When you purchase the limited-edition tractor collectable, 100% of the profits will go to Harvest for All!

The1:32 scale metal die-cast, Illinois Farm Bureau, Steiger® 450 RowTrac ^TM is fully equipped with an opening cab door, opening hood, articulated body, detailed engine, movable 3-point hitch with draw bar, movable mirrors, a detailed interior, and a GPS dome.  The tractors are available for $60.00 through the Illinois Farm Bureau Young Leader Department at 1701 Towanda Avenue, Bloomington, IL  61701.  For details contact the Young Leader Department at 309-557-2536 or download an ORDER FORM.  This is a limited edition of 276 tractors, so order yours today.

Agricultural Security & Terrorism Awareness

In January 2013, the Winnebago Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) in partnership with Win-Bur-Sew Fire Department hosted an information meeting on “Agricultural Security & Terrorism”.  The presentation was given by Steffan Nass, Weapons of Mass Destruction Coordinator- FBI’s Springfield Division. 

Agro-Terrorism is defined as the deliberate introduction, use, or threatened use, of a chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear, or explosive agent against one or more components of the food or agriculture sectors, with the goal of causing mortality or morbidity, generating fee, precipitating economic loss, or undermining sector stability and confidence in government.

Here are a few indicators of Agro-Terrorism.

• Suspicious persons asking specific questions about a facility or process.
• Unauthorized photography of processes in or around facilities or farms.
• Possessions of chemicals, biological agents, vaccines, or medication with no apparent purpose
• Manuals, communications, or websites pertaining to chemicals or biological agents
• Attempts to rent or borrow ag-related equipment for no logical reason or purpose
• Thefts of anhydrous ammonia or other fertilizer products
• Thefts of livestock

 Agricultural Retail Facilities should report any of the following:

• Any attempted purchases of pesticides by those not authorized or those without need
• ALL security breaches if applicable
• Suspicious activity around anhydrous ammonia storage facilities
• Suspicious attempts to purchase fertilizer (such as ammonium nitrate, or agricultural use pesticides) by unfamiliar or suspicious persons

Producers and Auction Markets should report any of the following:

• Suspicious behavior around farms or ranch operations
• Theft of nurse tanks containing agricultural use pesticides or hazardous materials (Report Immediately)
• Unusual symptoms or behavior in livestock
• Sudden unexplained death or loss in livestock
• Severe illness in large numbers of animals
• Suspicious illnesses among employees

Suspicious signs and symptoms of illnesses in employees should be reported to your local health department.  Health officials should be made aware of the emergency, normal duties and any contact with sick animals that may have led to the illness.  Details of contact with feed products, medical supplies, or chemicals that the employee may have had contact with should also be noted.

Suspicious signs and symptoms of illnesses in animals (such as blistering or ruptured blisters around the mouth, nose, teats, or hooves; central nervous system disorders that prevent the animal from rising or walking normally; loss of appetite and conditioning; swelling around the eyes and neck in poultry; dramatic drop in egg or milk production; large number of dead insects, rodents or wildlife; and unusual ticks or maggots) should be reported to your veterinarian.

If a crime is in progress, CALL 9-1-1 immediately.  If you have information about a crime, or to report suspicious activity, please contact the Federal Bureau of Investigation at (217) 522-9675.  The following information is needed: 

• Your location
• What activity is occurring
• If a weapon is involved
• Location of the activity
• Description and license plates of any vehicles involved (make, model, color and direction of travel)
• Description of persons (race, age, height, weight)
• Your contact information

This information was provided by the Illinois Agro-Security Working Group.  The Illinois Agro-Security Working group is a partnership between frontline agricultural industry personnel and local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies for the purpose of preventing criminal and terrorist activities in and around Illinois agriculture and food systems.  The Federal Bureau of Investigation, Illinois Department of Agriculture, Illinois Fertilizer Chemical Association, Illinois Pork Producers, Illinois Soybean Association, Illinois Corn Growers Association, Illinois Farm Bureau, Illinois Beef Association, and the United States Department of Agriculture form the Illinois Agro-Security Working Group.

Brochure.pdf
237.1 KB

TERMS AND CONDITIONS:

Winnebago-Boone Farm Bureau® is affiliated with the Illinois Farm Bureau®. Illinois Farm Bureau^® is a member of the American Farm Bureau Federation^®, a national organization of farmers and ranchers including Farm Bureaus in all 50 states and Puerto Rico, and is responsible for Farm Bureau^® membership and programs within Illinois.

FARM BUREAU^® and FB^® are registered service marks owned by the American Farm Bureau Federation. More information regarding the American Farm Bureau Federation can be found at www.fb.org.

YOU EXPRESSLY AGREE THAT USE OF THIS WEBSITE IS AT YOUR SOLE RISK. NEITHER THE WINNEBAGO-BOONEFARM BUREAU, NOR ANY OF ITS PARENTS, AFFILIATES, SUBSIDIARIES, ASSIGNEES, LICENSEES, OFFICERS, AGENTS, OR EMPLOYEES WARRANT THAT THIS WEBSITE WILL BE UNINTERRUPTED OR ERROR FREE.

THE WEBSITE IS OFFERED "AS IS" AND "AS AVAILABLE" WITH NO WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EITHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO WARRANTIES OF SECURITY, TITLE, MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. ALL WARRANTIES ARE DISCLAIMED. WE SHALL HAVE NO LIABILITY FOR USE OF THIS WEBSITE IN ANY MANNER, INCLUDING ANY INCIDENTAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, INDIRECT, SPECIAL OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES SUFFERED BY YOU OR ANY OTHER PARTY AS A RESULT OF THE OPERATION, INABILITY TO OPERATE OR MALFUNCTION OF THE WEBSITE, REGARDLESS OF WHETHER OR NOT WE HAVE BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES.

You are not authorized to use the Winnebago-Boone Farm Bureau® name or mark in any advertising, publicity, or in any other commercial manner without our written consent. All rights in and to the website belong to the Winnebago-Boone Farm Bureau®. The website and its content, aside from user contributions, are protected by copyright, both with respect to individual content and as a collective work and/or compilation, pursuant to U.S. copyright law, international conventions, and other copyright laws. You may not modify, publish, create derivative works from, distribute or otherwise exploit any of the website's protected content without our prior written consent.

Our website contains links to other internet sites that are not maintained by us ("Third Party Sites"). These links are provided solely for convenience. We make no warranties or representations about the contents of or any products or services offered by such Third Party Sites. We encourage you to read the terms and conditions of Third Party Sites prior to using them.

The services and member benefits described on this site are available only to members of Winnebago-Boone Farm Bureau®. This site is not intended to solicit or encourage membership from non-county residents.

Information provided is for convenience purposes only. You should consult a professional, as applicable, for advice tailored to your particular situation. Any safety information included on this website is not intended as health or engineering advice, and should not be relied upon as a substitute for professional advice on these topics.