2005 Year in Review

Weekly Update for August 15, 2005

ISA Presents Endowment to ISU - The Illinois Soybean Association (ISA) and Illinois State University (ISU) signed an agreement last Friday for an Endowed Soybean Support Fund of $300,000. The fund will be used to support research and education within ISU and its Department of Agriculture. More specifically, the fund will support activities and programs that encourage the retention and recruitment of critical faculty and researchers. The ISU Foundation will administer the fund with the Chair of the Agriculture Department serving as the fiscal agent. They will operate with input from an advisory committee consisting of representatives of ISA and ISU. The annual earnings of the endowment will be matched by ISU.

Soyfoods Contest Winners Announced at State Fair- Linda Cifuentes of Mahomet took home top honors for her “Simply Soy Salad” in this year’s “Cooking for Health, Cooking with Soy” competition at the Illinois State Fair. She will receive $100 for her winning entry which featured black soybeans, soy cheese and Smart Menu steak-style strips combined with sliced strawberries and mandarin oranges and topped with roasted soybeans. Naomi Green of Springfield received second prize of $80 for her Tempeh Paté Pinwheels. The third place of $60 went to Deborah Steele of Springfield for her chilli entry. The Illinois Soybean Association sponsors the annual contest. Winning recipes will be posted on the Illinois Soybean Association web site at Illinois Soybean Association.

Soybean Growers Celebrate Signing of Energy Bill - President Bush signed the new Energy Policy Act of 2005 last week at a ceremony in Albuquerque, N. Mex. The official signing represents the culmination of much effort to include provisions benefiting soybeans, including the extension of the federal excise tax credit through December 2008. The legislation also includes a new agri-biodiesel producer credit and the establishment of a 7.5 billion gallon renewable fuels standard. The excise tax credits amount to a one cent tax reduction per percentage of “agri’-biodiesel blended into petroleum diesel. The reduction is only one half cent for biodiesel from other sources, making soybean oil more attractive as a raw material.

by  Editor, theCity1.com
August 25, 2005