Bloomington, Ill.-Fertilizer interests are pleased that Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich has decided to restore nearly $500,000 to the state’s fertilizer research and education program, along with other agriculture-related funding being withheld to alleviate a budget shortfall. Blagojevich’s action upset agriculture, particularly because the research funds are provided out of the pockets of the state’s farmers. “We are pleased that the funding was released for its rightful purpose,” commented Illinois Fertilizer & Chemical Assn. Pres. Jean Payne. “Unlike a state budget appropriation, these funds are generated by the industry when fertilizer dealers remit them from the 25 cent per ton fertilizer inspection fee.” Payne noted that with release of the funds “we can now continue our on-farm nitrogen rate trials, embark on residue management and N response research in continuous corn, conduct an economic impact study on the importance of fall applied N to Illinois agriculture and create a downloadable training video on proper ammonia transfer and safety for farmers, which are just a few examples of the program approved by the Fertilizer Research and Education Council for 2008.”
Transparency Across the Fertilizer Value-Chain