farm progress show special section

Corn and soybeans are used in prod-ucts all around us and not just the oneswe eat.

The corn commonly seen infields around the area issoaked and milled, separatingdifferent parts of it to makeinto various products. Cornstarch, cooking oil, sweeteners,high fructose corn syrup, cere-al, beverages and fuel are just afew on a list of products thatuse corn.

One bushel of cornprovides 31.5 pounds ofstarch, 33 pounds ofsweetener or 2.8 gallonsof ethanol, according toinformation from theIllinois Farm Bureau’sAg in the Classroomprogram. That’s in addi-tion to 13.5 pounds ofgluten feed, 2.6 poundsof gluten meal and 1.5pounds of corn oil.

Decatur-based ArcherDaniels

Mid-landCo.is a top producerof ethanol andmakes theingredientsused in manyof the foodproductsfound in gro-cery stores.

Soybeansare used in avariety ofways as well.Their mainuse is in live-stock feed, asapproximately94 percent ofsoybeans gotoward feeding live-stock, according tothe Illinois Soybean

Association.It’s also in food prod-

ucts such as oil, mar-garine, salad dressing,chocolate and flour.But take a lookaround where youlive. Soybeans areused in soap,

shampoo, paint,crayons and ink.

On the cover ofthis section, afarmer is holding a

basket full ofproducts that usewhat he grows. It hasbody lotion, a soy candle,a coat, a cup, peanut but-

ter, soy cleaningprod-ucts,Splen-da,syrup,tooth-pasteandwine.

Mostof thoseprod-ucts onsomelevel haveDecaturconnec-tions. Forexample,the soycleaningproducts arefrom SoyWorld

USA, a Decatur-based company that started in

Veronica Lee’s garage. Theyoffer a natural and safealternative to more com-mon household cleaners.

Splenda, the no-caloriesweeten-er, is aTate &Lylecre-ation.

Workcontinuesin Tate &Lyle’sDecaturresearchlabs. A part-nership withDuPont is

aimed at developing material

that can be used in clothing that userenewable products including corn instead

of petroleum-based ingredients.Research at Tate & Lyle has

helped make it so people don’teven have to go to a farm to walkthrough corn. Some carpeting,

including Dupont’s Sorona line,makes use of corn sugar.

Corn and soybeans are used indifferent ways in these productsand others like them.

Taketooth-pasteas anexam-ple. Itcon-tains

sorbitol,which isproducedfrom thecorn sugardextroseand used intoothpaste

as a low-calorie,water-solublebulking agent.

The uses arecontinuing to

broadenand interest in alternative products

continues toincrease, all

the whilehelping cre-ate moremarkets forfarmers. Asmore productsare developed,Decatur will

continue to holdits claim as theAgribusiness Cap-ital of the World.

2 FARM PROGRESS WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 26, 2009 DECATUR, ILLINOIS www.herald-review.com

From farm to market

For generations of Decatur-area residents, those two wordscome packed with memories ofnights spent driving up anddown the road, stopping onlywhen you came across someoneyou knew — or wanted to know.

Cruising Eldorado was part ofgrowing up and the Herald &Review would like you to share

your memories about the people, the places and the experience,with our readers.

Send them to Scott Perry via e-mail at [email protected]; by fax at 421-7965; by mail at Box 311, Decatur, IL62525; or go to www.herald-review.com.

Submitted items must be 300 words or fewer and need toinclude a daytime phone number. The deadline to submit yourCruising Eldorado memories is Friday, Sept. 4. Pictures are wel-come.

ELDORADOCruising

The Farm Progress Showoffers more than just whatwould interest farmers.

Like the agriculture indus-try it showcases, attendeesshould be able to find plentyof things they run across on adaily basis. If nothing else,show manager Matt Jung-mann had an agreeableanswer when asked at arecent Greater DecaturChamber of Commerce eventif nonfarmers should have aninterest in attending theFarm Progress Show.

“Anybody who has had any-thing to eat is involved inagriculture,” Jungmann said.

A lot of the focus at theevent next week at ProgressCity USA will be on majormoney-making crops such ascorn and soybeans. But everyday, especially here in theDecatur area, we’re impactedby at least some aspect ofagriculture as products aremoved from farm to market,which is the focus of this sec-tion.

Those directly involved inagriculture are trying in oneway or another to find andcarve out their niche markets.

Some have been quite suc-cessful at doing so.

It takes more than whatfirst meets the eye to takecrops from the farm fieldsaround us and turn them intowhat we eat and use aroundthe house.

Transportation is a key fac-tor in making it all happen.Archer Daniels Midland Co.,for example, has a world-lead-ing agricultural transporta-tion system that provides itthe flexibility to move prod-ucts throughout the process ofgetting them from farm tomarket.

ADM owns and operatesmore than 20,900 rail cars,1,350 tractor trailers, 2,150barges, 58 tow boats and 29

line boats to move its prod-ucts on a global scale.

The depth of the industrygoes beyond what is happen-ing at leaders such as ADMand Tate & Lyle.

The agriculture industry ischanging around us. Newproducts are being developedmaking use of crops in waysthat most of us never beforethought possible. A push is onto make the environmentcleaner and use more renew-able energy sources.

Farm Progress Show hostRichland Community Collegeis at the center of many ofthose changes, working totrain workers to make renew-able energy practical.

In the days to come, we’lllook more closely at thereturn of the Farm ProgressShow to Decatur for a thirdrun. For now, in this sectionour focus is on agriculture inCentral Illinois and some ofthe ways all of us encounter iton a daily basis as productsgo from farm to market.

Chris Lusvardi covers business and agri-culture for the Herald & Review. [email protected]|421-7972

Everyone can enjoy Farm Progress Show

Jacket: It might not look likecorn, but Tate & Lyle is work-

ing with DuPont todevelop a newline of corn-based materialto replacepetroleum-based prod-ucts.

Soycandle:Fresh-smelling breathisn’t the only thing nat-ural ingredients canhelp with. These can-dles use soybeansmixed with scentssuch as pumpkin tooffer desirable aro-mas.

Peanut butter:One does notexpect to findcorn and soybeanproducts in foodssuch as peanutbutter. But thecrops are usedto make so muchmore.

Soyclean-ing prod-ucts:Cleanup anyspills at homewith soy-basedcleaningproductsdevel-oped inDecatur.It’s saferfor chil-dren andpets alike. While they’reedible, it’s not recom-mended anybody actual-ly try eating them.

Bodylotion:Naturalbodylotion isa way tofreshenup andmakeuse ofrenew-able re-sourcesat thesametime.

Corncup:Thirsty?AddSplenda

to your cof-fee or tea in this corn-based cup, and you’ll beusing an all-naturalassortment of products.

Splenda:

Developed

in Tate & Lyle’s Decatur research

labs, this no-calorie sweetener is

now among the most popular

and recognizable substitutes.

ColorfulmemoriesThe Herald & Review now offers couples

the option of running their

wedding and engagement photos in color.

Call 421-6979 for details.

CHRIS LUSVARDI

Toothpaste: The use of cornand soy-based products doesn’t stop in the diningroom. Corn products are found after meals for suchtasks as brushing our teeth.

www.herald-review.com WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 26, 2009 DECATUR, ILLINOIS FARM PROGRESS 3

Facility expansionspreparing students forarea of growing demand

By CHRIS LUSVARDIH&R Staff Writer

DECATUR — Richland Communi-ty College is preparing to bring itsbiofuels program on the road.

The college began using a mobilebiofuels lab earlier this summer andplans to use the trailer as a way toeducate its students and the publicabout the expanding uses of bioener-gy. It will be used to conduct semi-nars in Richland’s display at theFarm Progress Show and was at theState Fair each day during its 10-dayrun this month.

“This is a great chance for stu-dents to learn about biodiesel pro-duction and future technology,” saidTerry Robinson, Richland dean ofcontinuing and professional educa-tion. “We’re starting off here.”

The lab is part of Richland’sgrowing bioenergy program, whichstarted last year. Robinson describesit as still in its infancy.

“This is an exciting piece of tech-nology to build our program on,”said Doug Brauer, Richland’s vicepresident of economic developmentand innovative workforce solutions.

The program is expanding in partdue to more than $300,000 in fundsU.S. Rep. Phil Hare, D-Rock Island,helped to secure. Brauer said thecollege wanted to do more with themoney than just what could beoffered inside a building.

“We’re just on the cusp for excit-

ing things for the area,” Brauersaid. “We’re getting to where we areable to draw global attention.”

Program development was one ofthe ways the funds could be used,Brauer said.

The skills students learn in thebioenergy program translate to abroad range of career possibilities,Brauer said. Richland has about 130students between its agriculture andhorticulture programs, Brauer said.

Degrees are offered in engineer-ing, with specialties in biofuels andbioprocessing, Brauer said.

“The skills are portable to a vari-ety of industries,” Brauer said. “Itmakes the students very adaptable.

They’re not tied to that degree andwhat that says you can do.”

Richland is trying to be sensitiveto the changing work force needs ofthe community, Robinson said.

“We want to prepare students forcareers that are going to exist in thefuture,” Robinson said. “Until stu-dents see it, they can’t visualizewhat kind of careers are out there.”

A wealth of job possibilities existfor students as companies try tomake the community an attractiveplace to come, said David Bowman,the school’s biofuels program coor-dinator.

“With retirements, they can’t sat-isfy their needs internally,” Bowmansaid. “We need to create students atthe right time for the right jobs.”

Richland has production capabili-ty inside the mobile lab and class-rooms within the Dwayne O.Andreas Agribusiness EducationCenter. A machine inside the biofu-els lab can produce up to 55 gallonsof biodiesel a day, Bowman said. Asimilar machine inside the mobilelab can produce 25 gallons, he said.

“You don’t just put one of these inyour backyard,” Bowman said.“Across the street (at ArcherDaniels Midland Co.) is one of themost efficient ethanol plants in theU.S. That’s our goal here.”

The program attempts to operateefficiently by making use of materi-als and skills from other areas ofthe college, including using veg-etable oil from the cafeteria forbiodiesel production, Bowman said.

The technology is moving beyondits original sources.

RICHLAND/PAGE 5

Richland biofuels program may bring global recognition

Herald & Review/Kelly J. Huff

David Bowman, Richland Community College’s biofuels program coordinator, demonstrates the brewing process to TerryRobinson, Richland’s dean of Continuing and Professional Education and Engineering Technology, in the mobile biofuels labwhich will be on display at the Farm Progress Show.


Company that isowned by employeesis rare in industry


CERRO GORDO — In 37years working for Van Horn,Inc., Roger Oliver has seenthe agriculture industryundergo many changes.

Yields continue to improvedue to enhanced technologyin everything from themachines farmers use to theseed that goes into theground, Oliver said. With theimprovements being made,Oliver expects that 200-bushel-per-acre yields forcorn soon will be common.

“Technology in the seedselling today is far and awaythe biggest improvement,”said Oliver, the company’spresident.

Van Horn’s goal, as it hasbeen for 75 years, is to giveits customers the best andmost cost-effective technolo-gy available in the products itsells, Oliver said. It has a lineof products that includes cornand soybean seeds, insecti-cides, herbicides, fungicides,fertilizers and liquid nitro-gen.

“We feel good that what wedo is the most cost-effectiveto raise a good crop, and thecrop is profitable for thefarmer,” Oliver said.

The company started in1934 as a family-owned busi-ness near Cerro Gordo. TheVan Horn family sold thebusiness in 1974, and it hasbeen entirely employee-ownedsince then. Employee-ownedcompanies such as Van Hornare rare in the industry, Oliv-er said.

“I now use it as a recruitingtool to get new people,” Oliversaid. “They feel like they ownthe company and are able toprovide input to have controlof their destiny.”

Not every decision is madewith a poll of employees, butmanagement keeps theminformed of what’s happen-ing, Oliver said.

The company beganexpanding to other locationsin 1993 and now has sevenlocations that form a circle

that serves customers inmore than 10 counties around

the Decatur area. In additionto the original Cerro Gordo

plant, Van Horn now hasoperations in Warrensburg,

Dewitt, Findlay, Bethany, Sul-livan and Macon.

The focus of the company isto provide services locally,with the heaviest target basewithin a 15-mile radius ofeach plant, Oliver said.

For farmers, the ruralneighborhoodlike locationsmake it easy to find whatthey need.

“It’s only five miles awayfrom my house, so it’s con-venient,” said farmer MatMuirheid, who lives in nearbyOakley Township. “If I have apart broken or if I run out ofsomething and need extra, Ican run over there and getit.”

VAN HORN/PAGE 5

Van Horn helps farmers get most out of the field

Herald & Review photos/Kelly J. Huff

Roger Oliver, president of Van Horn Inc., checks the progress on an ear of corn near the company’s Cerro Gordo headquarters. BELOW LEFT: Mike Comerford, a Van Hornemployee for 31 years, fills portable tanks with anhydrous ammonia. BELOW RIGHT: Tom Tohill, a 33-year Van Horn employee, monitors the filling of a truck with herbicide.


RICHLANDContinued from Page 3

“It’s more than justcorn,” Robinson said. “Nowis the time to think aboutother alternatives.”

Research is being doneon cellulosic ethanol, andalgae is gaining momen-tum, Bowman said. Thegoal is to reduce theworld’s carbon footprint asthe supply of fossil fuel ispredicted to be out by 2050,Bowman said.

“Alcohol is almost unlim-ited,” Bowman said. “It’schanging faster than weknow. It’s wake-up time.We’re not going to make itto 2050.”

Richland now has a vari-ety of alternative energysources on its campus. Aturbine that stretches morethan 150 feet into the airwas built in early Augustand will power the newCenter for Sustainabilityand Innovation. If enoughelectricity is generated, itwill be used throughout thecampus, said Greg Florian,Richland’s vice presidentof finance.

“It’s a great visual,” Flo-rian said. “Part of it is astatement: We need to paymore attention to beingsustainable.”

Having the turbine oncampus could be the basisfor developing a wind ener-gy training program, Flori-an said.

“It’s technology that ishere,” Florian said. “It’sviable.”

Another alternative ener-gy source, biomass, is beinggrown and researched infields on the campus.

About the only thing leftis solar power.

“Solar is the last frontierfor Richland,” Bowmansaid.

All of the work beingdone should benefit theDecatur community in thefuture.

“Decatur will be a betterplace if we’re relying onbioenergy rather than onfossil fuel,” Bowman said.“The world’s changing.”

[email protected]|421-7972

VAN HORNContinued from Page 4

Saving on input costs is crucial forfarmers’ bottom lines.

“Everything’s going up,” Muirheidsaid. “That’s why we spend time in thewinter looking at budgets. You cannever stick to a budget 100 percent. It’s

like owning ahouse. Youdon’t knowwhen yourwasher anddryer is goingto go out. Youhope it lasts,but you don’tknow.”

Buying inlarger quanti-ties helps,Muirheid said.Oliver also saidthe technologyimprovementscan help farm-ers control howmuch product,such as fertiliz-

er, is applied in each field.“Fertilizer can be applied more effi-

ciently with the right placement and amore targeted application,” Oliversaid.

Muirheid said he and his dad,George, don’t have the mapping capa-bility yet to vary rates within the samefield, but the rate at which they applyfertilizer can change from field tofield.

Van Horn depends on loyal customers,such as the Muirheids, as the number offarmers dwindles. Its customer servicesets it apart, Oliver said.

Test plots in fields just to the northof the Cerro Gordo plant give the com-pany visibility for Farm Progress Showvisitors coming on a main artery fromthe east on Illinois 32. The plots allowfor Van Horn employees to see how thedifferent seed varieties perform andbase their recommendations partiallyon that firsthand knowledge.

As Van Horn moves toward its next

major anniversary, Oliver expects thechallenge will be how well biggermachinery is able to cover more acres.Farms are getting bigger, he said.

“Nobody knows what direction it’sgoing to go,” Oliver said. “It’s changedso much in the 30-plus years I’ve beenhere.”


An aerial photo of Van Horn Inc. from the 1960s.


Roger Oliver, president of Van Horn, takes inventory of a line of grass seeds and fertilizerthe company sells.


David Bowman, Richland Community College’s biofuels programcoordinator, discusses the college’s purchase of a biofuel unitthat can produce up to 55 gallons of alternative fuel a day.

Noncredit offeringsRichland Community Col-

lege is offering the following

classes for the first time this

fall.

n Understanding fuel alco-

hol

nMaking fuel alcohol:

How to do it

n Co-products from mak-

ing fuel alcohol

n Using alcohol as fuel

n The business of fuel

alcohol

n Fueling a revolution

n Biomass fundamentals

For more information

about these classes and

others related to bioenergy,

contact biofuels program

coordinator David Bowman

at 875-7211 ext. 207.

‘We feel good that what we do is the most cost effective to raise a good crop,

and the crop is profitable for the farmer.’Roger Oliver, Van Horn president

FOOD

DR IVE

Van Horn Inc. is hold-ing a food drive throughthe end of September.Collection bins will beplaced at each of itsseven locations.

The food collectedwill benefit local foodpantries to help fill theirshelves.

The company planson making a $2,000match for the food col-lected.

‘It really bums me out. You used tosee all sorts of animals, and now,

livestock is dwindling.’Erica Lehman


Sullivan couple finds niche raisingantibiotic- and hormone-free livestock

By ALLISON COPENBARGERH&R Staff Writer

SULLIVAN — Erica and Jamie Lehman’s backgrounds were amatch made in livestock-raising heaven.

Erica’s family raised beef cattle for more than 30 years, and Jamieis a veterinarian.

So it came as no surprise when the rural Sullivan couple beganLehman Farm Meats, growing antibiotic- and hormone-free beef andpork products.

LIVESTOCK/PAGE 7

Keepingalive the

animal farm


Dr. Jamie Lehman and his wife, Erica, and children, Rhett and Ellie, take a stroll through the pasture to check on some new-born calves. Because of the size of their operation, the Lehmans are focusing on raising antibiotic- and hormone-free live-stock.

Dr. Jamie Lehman pours extra feed into a feed pan for his sow and herpiglets at Lehman Farms near Sullivan.

LIVESTOCKContinued from Page 6

“It’s just how I grew up,”Erica said. “People eitherlove it or hate it, and I reallyenjoyed it. It was something Iwas interested in continuing.”

The Lehmans’ animals,unlike some others’ animalsthat claim to be hormone-free, are completely free ofantibiotics from birth. Theysay their small, 18-acre farmallows them to give full atten-tion to each of their animalsand sell directly to local cus-tomers.

“There’s no way we couldsell on the large scale,”Jamie said. “So we decided tofocus on the antibiotic- andhormone-free niche market.”

Jamie, a veterinarian for20 years, said their meat isnot necessarily better thanothers, just different.

“It’s pretty good meat,” hesaid. “But we’re not sayingit’s any safer just because it’santibiotic-free. Some peoplejust like to know where theirmeat comes from.”

Erica said the diminishingnumber of animal farmsbreaks her heart.

“It really bums me out,”she said. “You used to see allsorts of animals, and now,



Rhett Lehman, 3, fills a bucket with corn to be fed to a mother pig who is nursing piglets at thefamily farm.

EricaLehmanand herdaughterEllie, strollthroughthe pas-ture tocheck onsome new-borncalves.Lehmangrew upraisingcattle on afamilyfarm.

livestock is dwindling.”Erica and Jamie began

selling their meats at farm-ers markets last year, hoping

to do four or five per week.They found, though, that themarkets were more workthan they had thought.

“We really scaled backsince last year,” she said.“The markets are a lot ofwork, and you never knowhow much you’re going toneed. It’s such a guessinggame.”

Vada Wond, who organizesa farmers market for CityCentre Decatur, said havingLehman Farm Meats partici-pating adds variety to theevent.

“They’re a nice addition,”Wond said. “They bring a lotof people down here. It’s goodmeat, too.”

Along with his own prac-tice, Jamie is heading up theVet Tech program at Park-land College, and Erica stayshome with their 3-year-oldand 8-month-old children.With their busy schedules,they say having the businesson the side is a lot of work.

“It’s a challenge, a ton ofwork and a very slowprocess,” Jamie said. “I’mnot going to say I’ve neverthought about stopping, butwe really enjoy it.”

The Lehmans plan on sell-ing at the farmers market

in Decatur through late Sep-tember. Their beef and porkproducts also are availableat Huddie’s Goodies in Sulli-van or by phone at 728-2451and can be delivered.

They sell whole, half orindividual cuts of beef andvarious pork products.

Staff Writer Chris Lusvardi contributed to

this report. [email protected]

‘It’ s just how I grew up. People either love it or hate it,

and I really enjoyed it. It was something I was

interested in continuing.’Erica Lehman

Long Creek Vineyardshas big vision from its little grapes

By TONY REIDH&R Staff Writer

LONG CREEK — To makea grapevine love you, you’vegot to hurt it.

They’ve got this breed oftough love down to a fine art atLong Creek Vineyards in LongCreek, where viniculturist JodyFisher says only the grapes ofwrath await those who makewine vines too comfortable.

“If the vines don’t believethey are under stress, theywon’t produce the grapes weneed,” said Fisher, 45. “Whenwe first planted our vines, wehad to physically twist them,

make themthink theywere hurt.You’ve gotto makethem thinkthey aregoing todie.”

Thedesire toseed anuncertainfuturewith off-springpromptsthe suffer-ing vinesto bringforth theirgratuitousgrapebounty,and skilledwinemak-ers can goon fooling

the vines season after season;some of the oldest grapevinesin the world have known histo-ries dating back 400 years.

Poor soil is another plus, anda tall order to find in a CentralIllinois covered in rich, blackprairie. Happily for the LongCreek Vineyards, the glacierthat pressed most of this areaas flat as an ironing boardcame to a screeching halt attheir 25-acre site, leaving thewell-drained vineyard hilly andsalted with glacially depositedrocks, boulders and gravel.

Ground like that is the kissof death for corn and beansbut ideal for grapevines thatexpect the worst from life andlike to go drilling for waterwith root systems that punchdown 30 feet.

The proof of all this environ-mental pudding is in the drink-ing, and no one can doubt thatLong Creek ferments results.

The vineyard’s precise rowsmarch over 4½ acres and pro-duce 10 kinds of wine thatcover a broad palate: every-thing from Chambourcin,“black cherry and chocolatewith hints of smoked bacon,”to La Cin, “bold but fruity,hints of strawberry but with ameaty backbone,” according totheir information guide.

The wines also have rackedup a string of medals at boththe Illinois State Fair and, forwinegrowers, the more presti-gious Indy International WineCompetition, organized byPurdue University, a majorcenter of North Americanwine-growing knowledge.

Jody Fisher founded LongCreek Vineyards in 2004 withhis wife, Terri, and they run thebusiness with help from herbrother, Brad Warnick, and hiswife, Laura, and Terri’s par-ents, Jacki and Gary Warnick,who used to raise cattle on thatbrutally tough vineyard soil.

“Now if you had told me 20years ago I would one day havemy own vineyard, I would nothave believed it, no way,” saidTerri Fisher, 46. “But Jody andI have enjoyed drinking winesfor close to 20 years, and Iguess it just kind of evolved.”

What got the cork rolling,

besides lots of cooperativefamily members, was movinginto a circa 1886 house inBlue Mound in 1999 that hadfour grapevines in the back-yard dating back to the daysbefore Prohibition.

“So the first year we’rethere we had 800 pounds ofgrapes and they’re not jellygrapes,” Jody Fisher said.“So it was like, ‘Well, we’rewine-drinkers and these arewine grapes,’ so we decidedwe’re going to make wine.”

Which they did, gettingoccasional help from theirfour daughters to do thetreading in big buckets, andinvesting in some amateurequipment that managed toproduce a drinkable result.

“It was good,” Fisherrecalled. “It wasn’t like Cali-fornia or French wines, but itwas OK. And it was enoughfor us to know that ‘Wait aminute, we can do this.’ ”

They’ve since moved to acustom-built house and wineryon the vineyard grounds wheretheir wine is aged in oak bar-rels downstairs. They’ve builtsales and interest through hardwork and their great-tastingproducts. They run the winerylike a full-time business, eventhough neither Fisher can be

there all the time: He holdsdown a day job as a projects

estimator for King-Lar, and sheis trust operations officer in

the wealth management divi-sion of Soy Capital Bank.

They plan to expand theiracres under cultivation andone day build a tasting roomoverlooking a scenic pond atthe foot of their vineyards,which will be a perfect loca-tion to host weddings andother happy events. It’s allpart of a carefully mapped-outpath to the time when the cou-ple can raise their glasses insalute to making the LongCreek Vineyards their full-timeoccupation. Like making greatwine, however, building thebusiness can’t be hurried,especially in the midst of arecession.

“We have a lot of hopes anddreams, but it just takestime,” Terri Fisher said. “Get-ting the market built up, get-ting the product built up, allthe equipment, getting every-thing that is needed, it is justa lot of time, and money.”

But as a means for winningfriends and influencing people,it’s hard to top the effects ofmankind’s favorite sociallubricant for the last 8,000years. The vineyard has estab-lished various wine clubs thathost regular meetings andactivities and offer thirstyparticipants deals on wine andeven the chance to adopt oneof those long-suffering vines.

And Long Creek’s marketingefforts couldn’t come at a bet-ter time, despite the dregs ofeconomic gloom and doom.With a rising tide of studiesand reports toasting the healthbenefits of drinking wine inmoderation, record numbersof Americans are flocking totake their medicine.

“What’s happened in thelast 10 years is a 1,000 percentincrease in U.S. wine con-sumption,” Jody Fisher said.

The number of wineries inIllinois has gone from 12 in 1997to more than 70. The stateranks in the top 12 wine-pro-ducing states, with 450 vine-yards and a direct economicimpact of $283 million annually.

Customers are seeking outlocal wines, said Jay Emrich,one of the owners of theDecanter, 215 N. Main St. inDecatur. The Decanter is oneof the places that wines from

VINEYARD/PAGE 10


From a little stress, something great grows

Herald & Review photos/Stephen Haas

TOP: Jody Fisher tops off a barrel of wine at Long Creek Vineyards in Long Creek. BELOW RIGHT: Wine bottles are displayed at the vine-yard. LOWER RIGHT: Terri and Jody Fisher pose for a portrait among some of the arbors at the business they created.


Grapes grow at Long CreekVineyard in Long Creek.

MORE

INFO

The LongCreek Vineyardswinery is open 4to 8 p.m. Fridays,noon to 7 p.m.Saturdays andnoon to 5 p.m.Sundays. Call521-6297 or go to longcreekvineyards.com.

The wines alsoare sold at TheDecanter indowntownDecatur andserved at theBeach Houserestaurant andSliderz inDecatur.

Kentucky plantwill process 60%of wheat grown in that state

By PHIL JACOBSFor the Herald & Review

TEUTOPOLIS — Most ofthe flour that goes into GirlScout cookies and Duncan-Hines cake mixes isprocessed by Teutopolis-based Siemer Milling Co.,which has been processingflour in the town for morethan 125 years.

Rick Siemer, the fourth gen-eration of Siemer millers, hasstood since 1986 at the helm ofthe company, which has sincebuilt an even larger mill inHopkinsville, Ky. It recentlyannounced plans to expand itsKentucky facility.

“We pride ourselves on buy-ing all of our wheat from localand area farmers, both hereand in Kentucky,” Siemer said.“So when you buy a box of GirlScout Cookies or a Duncan-Heinz cake mix you are help-ing by supporting the peoplewho grow the soft and hardred wheat that eventuallybecomes the flour that goesinto these products.”

The company opened forbusiness Nov. 6, 1882, as HopeMills, Uptmor and Siemer,Proprietors.

By 1906, Joseph Siemer andhis son, Clemens J., boughtout Uptmor’s interest andchanged the name to theSiemer Milling Co.

Siemer Milling’s combinedoperations now employ 135people, who process 15 millionbushels of locally grown wheateach year with a current mar-ket value of more than $100 million. They process185,000 tons of wheat productsannually, including flour, branand wheat germ.

Siemer announced in Marchthat construction has begunat its Hopkinsville mill thatwhen finished will more thandouble the original daily out-put.

“The contractor is justnow erecting forms and willsoon begin pouring con-crete,” Siemer said. “Theweather is always a factor at

this time of year.”Economic development offi-

cials in that area welcomedthe expansion plans.

“Siemer Milling Companyhas been a vital ‘value added’partner to the agriculturalcommunity of Hopkinsville-Christian County for the last14 years,” said Lee Conrad,acting director of the Hop-kinsville-Christian CountyEconomic Development Coun-cil. “They have helped createmore than 1,100 jobs in thestate. The expansion will allowthe company to purchase anadditional 3.5 million bushelsof soft wheat from our farm-

ers, and the significance ofthat cannot be overstated.”

The company originallybuilt the mill in 1995 and near-ly doubled its output in 2005.When completed, the plant willprocess nearly 60 percent ofall the wheat grown in Ken-tucky.

Prior to the expansion, theHopkinsville facility was thelarger of the two mills Siemerowns. It also leases a mill inKentucky which adds to itsoutput capacity.

“We have been running theHopkinsville plant at capacityfor some time now,” Siemersaid. “And with some of our

customers expanding alongwith other opportunities in theflour business, we decided itwas time to expand again.”

He said that the design ofthe new facility leaves roomfor further growth. The projectis expected to be completed inApril.

Siemer said the industry haswitnessed the loss of thousandsof mills in the last 100 years.

“A century ago, we had12,000 mills in the U.S.,”Siemer said. “Today, that fig-ure has dwindled to less than200.”

Milling was for a time thelargest industry in the countryin terms of sales, Siemer said.

“Until 60 years ago, millerstried to get all they could fromthe kernel and sold the prod-uct in 25-pound bags as all-pur-pose family flour,” Siemersaid. “By 1930, most of theflour produced in the countrywas used in the home. Today,only 2 percent of what we pro-duce goes into family flour,and the rest is sold to largecorporate customers.”

Today, millers no longer tryto extract everything thewheat kernel has to offer.Instead, they remove all ofthe bran and germ, exceptwhen they are milling wholewheat flour, using a process

called extraction.Most bread flours, all-pur-

pose flours, as well as high-gluten professional breadflours, are milled from theendosperm, the largest part ofthe kernel. The rest of the branand germ are sold off as con-stituents for animal feed.

While most milling compa-nies are prospering, Siemersees bumps in the roadahead.

“Ninety percent of our corn,and 70 percent of our soybeanshave been genetically modifiedto improve yields and makethem resistant to weed killers,for example,” Siemer said. “In

the case of wheat, zero per-cent has been modified.”

Something needs to be doneto improve the wheat, Siemersaid. Otherwise, farmersmight decide to convert wheatacres to corn or soybeans.

“If that happens, we mightbe faced, at some point, withhaving to import more wheat,which would drive up theprice and make us moredependent on the world mar-ket,” Siemer said. “Theanswer is to make wheatgrowing a profitable enter-prise for our wheat farmers.”

[email protected]


Teutopolis-based flour milling company expanding

Photos for the Herald & Review/Phil Jacobs

Lab tech Daphne Gullett analyzes samples from every load of flour that leaves the Siemer Milling Co.

One room in the mill is filled with these large wooden sifters thatmove continuously in all directions.

WHEAT FACTS

1. Americans consume 137pounds of flour per person per year.

2. In 2008, the milling industryproduced 40 billion pounds offlour.

3. Idaho is the largest producerof hard white wheat. Kansas,Nebraska, Colorado and NorthDakota produce most of the hardand soft red wheat, althoughwheat is grown in 42 states.

4. A bushel of wheat produces42 pounds of white flour or 60pounds of whole wheat flour.

5. A bushel of wheat weighs 60pounds.

6. Most varieties of wheat grow

3 to 4 feet tall, but some varietiesgrow as tall as 7 feet.

7. There are six classes ofwheat: hard red winter, hard redspring, soft red winter, Durham,hard white and soft white.

8. The United States is thelargest exporter of wheat.

9. In 2007, the world produc-tion of wheat was 607 milliontons, making it the third-largestcrop after maize at 784 milliontons and rice at 651 million tons.

10. The best flour for breadmaking is milled from hard springwheat with a protein level of 12percent to 15 percent.

Jacobs nurturesDecember’s most importanttree year-round


ARGENTA — Christmasdoesn’t come until December,but farmer Mike Jacobsspends most of the yearpreparing for it.

Jacobs harvests crops that,unlike Central Illinois main-stays corn and soybeans,weren’t as susceptible to thisyear’s wet spring.

So when Christmas timerolls around thisyear, Jacobs isconfident hewill have anabundant sup-ply of trees forcustomers tochoose from atGlenviewChristmas Trees

and Greenery, 9480 CalebRoad in rural Argenta.

“A lot of families come herewho have started a tradition,”Jacobs said. “Now these kidsare bringing their own kidsout. We probably have 1,500 to2,000 families come out whohave a pretty good traditiongoing.”

Customers come out start-ing around Thanksgiving andgoing until the weekendbefore Christmas, Jacobssaid. They come to choosetheir trees and pick up giftsfrom Del’s Popcorn Expressin Mount Zion, which Jacobsalso owns along with his wife,Trudy.

“The ones who have beencoming here for a while knowwhere they want to go beforethey get here,” Jacobs said.

Operating a Christmas treefarm, however, takes morework than just a month latein the fall.

The trees grow only at onetime during the year, startingin late April and for most ofMay, Jacobs said. Then for

several weeks in June leadingup to the 4th of July, Jacobsbrings in a crew of highschoolers to help shear thetrees.

“A lot of them don’t like toget hot and sweaty,” Jacobssaid. “It takes a certain indi-vidual.”

He’s relied on other farmerfriends for help outside in thefall, but isn’t sure how muchthey will be able to assist

with a later than usual har-vest predicted.

Even if weather conditionsare less than ideal, Jacobsstill offers plenty of trees tochoose from on a farm wherehis mother grew up. Fieldsspread on a hilly landscapeabout a mile deep offer treesin various stages of growthsurrounded by flatter landcontaining corn and soybeans.

“You’ve always got several

fields to fall back on,” Jacobssaid. “Rain every few daysdoesn’t bother us. It’s totallydifferent than grain farming.We’ve had great growth andcolor this year.”

There have only been a fewyears Jacobs remembers inwhich he’s lost most of theseedlings that were planted.

Jacobs is not alone in har-vesting Christmas trees. TheU.S. Department of Agricul-ture reports nearly 21 millionChristmas trees harvestednationwide at a value of$399 million. Illinois’ crop wasworth $7.6 million.

They’re grown in all 50states, and Macon Countyranks at the top of Illinoiscounties in the number oftrees harvested with morethan 13,000.

Christmas trees have beensold commercially in theUnited States since 1850.

The trees at Glenview can

be used not only for holidaydecorating purposes, butJacobs said some are used forlandscaping purposes.Because it requires morework and heavier equipmentto dig up a tree for landscap-ing, Jacobs charges more forthose trees.

Selling trees for landscap-ing purposes does help getsome cash flow in the spring,which would otherwise be aslow time of year, Jacobssaid.

Jacobs started running thetree farm in 1980.

“I was young and ambitiousout of college,” he said. “Iwasn’t interested in livestock.I started planting every year,and the next thing I know,I’ve been doing it 30 years.”

With both his businesseswell established but requiringa lot of work, Jacobs hasexplored selling the farmoperation. Like many farmersthese days, Jacobs’ childrenaren’t interested in takingover, so he knows he doesn’tneed to hold onto the farm forthem when the right opportu-nity to sell comes along.

But he’s watched other treefarms stop operations andhopes the same fate doesn’tsomeday come to his.

For the time being,Jacobs plans on juggling histime between Glenview andDel’s.

“It’s stressful if you let toomuch stack up,” Jacobs said.“I really enjoy planting thingsand watching them grow. Ihave a big list of customers Ienjoy seeing every year.”



Christmas in full bloom

Herald & Review/Lisa Morrison

Mike Jacobs walks among the trees at Glenview Tree Farm. It has been a good season so far for thetrees with little insect or fungus problems. Jacobs is also hoping to find a buyer interested in takingover the farm.

By the numbers429 Christmas tree farms in Illinois, placing it 14th in the

United States.

2,164 Christmas tree farms in Pennsylvania, the most in the

country.

6.4 million trees grown in Oregon, the top-producing state.

144,000 trees in Illinois, which ranks 16th.

450,000 acres of land planted with Christmas trees nation-

wide.

6,355 acres planted in Illinois.Source: U.S. Census of Agriculture

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VINEYARDContinued from Page 8Long Creek Vineyards canbe purchased.

“They want to take a bot-tle of wine back home,”Emrich said of customerswho come from out of town.“They pick out somethingfrom a local place. Otherscome in asking specificallyfor Illinois wine or from aspecific winery like LongCreek.”

Wineries such as LongCreek Vineyards help cre-ate an interest in the indus-try, and the area could ben-efit from a wine trail suchas in Southern Illinois, saidMike Delaney, another ofthe Decanter’s owners.

Jody Fisher said peoplehave also discovered thatthere is a wine out there forevery occasion and it’s theperfect accompaniment toone of America’s otherfavorite activities: eating.

“People who don’t have awine with their eveningmeal just don’t know whatthey are missing,” headded. “It wakes your tastebuds up to where you canappreciate what food reallytastes like.”

The wines that bathethose taste buds have to bea feast in themselves, andgetting the strange alchemyright is what makes wine-making such a fascinatingbusiness, according to hiswife.

“Making a wine you areproud of is a mixture of artand chemistry,” Terri Fish-er said. “It’s lots of workbut it’s also a form of artis-tic expression.”

Staff Writer Chris Lusvardi contributedto this report. [email protected]|421-7977

Planting a few seedson five acres didn’tkeep up with demandfor J&WProduce

By PHIL JACOBSFor the Herald & Review

PANA — Customers of J&W Pro-duce in rural Pana buy what theyneed and leave their money in anunattended can on a table.

“We have always used the honorsystem,” said owner Joe Weishaar,who operates the business with helpfrom his wife, Wendy, daughtersSavannah, 10, and Amanda, 19, andson, Zach 22, of Springfield.

Joe and Wendy Weishaar grew upon farms near DeKalb, but eventu-ally, like the words of an old blue-grass song, “...(they) left the plowin the field and went to look forjobs in town.” Joe took a job withEffingham Equity, and Wendy even-tually went into property manage-ment.

But, in time, they missed therural life they had known sincechildhood.

So, in 2001, they became posterpeople for the old axiom that youcan take the boy out of the countrybut not the country out of the boy,or the girl for that matter. Theybought the patch north of Pana andmoved back to the bucolic lifestyleof their youth.

“When I was still working andtrying to get this business off the

ground, I picked several bushelsof sweet corn before I went towork and spread them out on atable in the front yard,” JoeWeishaar said. “Customers wouldcome by during the day, take whatthey wanted and leave theirmoney in the jar. All our produceis grown locally, and we guaran-tee its freshness.”

The Weishaars began the busi-ness on a five-acre patch a half-mile north and a half-mile west ofthe Rosebud Cafe at U.S. 51 andIllinois 16. He added more fruitsand vegetables as time permitted,but it soon became clear that heneeded more room.

“I wanted to add more berries,more corn, more tomatoes and fruittrees, and to do that, I realized Ineeded more acreage,” JoeWeishaar said. “So, in 2006, when Iheard that a 30-acre patch, locateda mile south of Pana, was going onthe auction block, we went to thesale and bought it. In the three

years since, we’ve planted more ofeverything really, and even addedan orchard with an assortment ofapple and peach trees.”

The business has now become afull-time job that takes JoeWeishaar to farmers markets inSpringfield twice-a-week and Panaon Fridays. Besides picking pro-duce for the markets, which takes afull day prior to each sale, they alsohave to supply the many customerswho come to the house, such asTom and Lorraine Jones of Pana.

“We have been buying producefrom Joe since he opened,” TomJones said. “We liked the sweetcorn and tomatoes, of course, butwe really liked the raspberries. Mywife, Lorraine, has made a lot ofwonderful jelly over the years.”

Lorraine Jones acknowledged herjelly-making efforts.

“It’s the best produce we’vefound, and it’s reasonably priced,”Lorraine Jones said. “We go therequite often for some things, but we

are now looking forward to theapples that will be ready later on inthe season. We were eagerly await-ing his wonderful peaches, but theentire crop sold out in a couple ofdays, so we’re hoping Joe has a big-ger crop next year.”

Cindy Latonis of Pana agrees.“It’s excellent produce and it’s so

convenient,” Latonis said. “I wentto the farm a few days ago, and hedidn’t have what I was looking for,so I left him a note with my nameand number on the pad he providesfor the convenience of his cus-tomers. He called me back laterthat day and said he would bring itto the next farmers’ market, whichis just around the corner from thePana News where I work. How’sthat for convenience? Once he evenbrought the items to the newspa-per.”

The Weishaars built a large toolshed in 2007 that might one daybecome a store.

“That’s all in the future, ofcourse,” Joe Weishaar said. “But aswe continue to add various items tothe list of things we offer our cus-tomers, and as the two-and-one-halfacre orchard reaches full produc-tion over the next couple of years,we are going to need room to dealwith all of that and opening a storemight be the answer.”

In the fall, the family offerstours, bonfires, pick your ownpumpkin and hay rides, and a cornmaze may also soon make its wayto the drawing board.

“It’s a good life,” Joe Weishaarsaid, musing back over the years.“The best thing is, we have met alot of wonderful people, some ofwhom have showed up out here tohelp us get a crop in.”

[email protected]


Growing into a full-time farm

Photos for the Herald & Review/Phil Jacobs

Joe Weishaar has grown J&W Produce, along with his wife, Wendy, from five acres to a 30-acre, full-time farm. They selltheir produce at farmers’ markets in Springfield and Pana, as well as their home in Pana.

J&W Produce uses an honor system to pay for produce, and they leave paper andpen in case customers want to leave a note or make a special request.

If you goDIRECTIONS: Take U.S. 51

one mile south of Pana to

County Road 100 North. Turn

left, go a quarter-mile.

ON THE WEB:

jnwproducepatch.com

CALL: 562-7062

HOURS: Mid-June through

October 31, 7 days a week

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