Friday, November 20, 2009
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By Bill Bishop
Ag and Trade | Main Street Economics | Racing For '08/Archive
04/17/2008
Ag and Trade | BioFuels and Energy | Food
04/15/2008

Jesse Jackson came to Appalachia in 1988 — and he kept coming back. In Hazard, Kentucky, he filled the high school gym with people who just wanted to touch him.
Rising prices for gasoline have lowered the price of houses distant from the center of densely populated cities. Will the rural housing market suffer in a time of high gas prices?
Last week was tough, as all major indexes lost about three percent of their value. But the Yonder 40 is besting other measures of economic performance.
Higher food prices find winners and losers among rural companies. Meanwhile, President Bush holds out veto threat on farm bill supported by Democrats.
Crashes involving pickups are twice as likely to cause fatalities than wrecks involving only SUVs or passenger cars.
The global food crisis is leading countries to rethink their bans on genetically modified seed, hoping the new products will increase crop yields.
2007 was relatively good for the rural economy, as rising prices for oil, gas, coal and ag products propelled those industries. Wages for rural jobs rose more than for jobs in the cities.
Yonder 40 outpaces all other indexes, led this week by meatpacking stocks. Smithfield and Tyson rise after South Korea drops its beef ban.
Farming is a shorthand for rural during campaigns. But the assumption that you can talk about agriculture as a surrogate for small towns leaves rural America short-changed.
Yes, food prices worldwide are rising and basic foods are in short supply. But it's hard to put all the blame for riots in Haiti and shortages in India on corn ethanol in the U.S.