<b>By LINDA McGURK<br>
Indiana Correspondent</b> </p><p>

GIFFORD, Ill. — Farm income is on the rise, and now optimism about grain prices is beginning to trickle down to other agricultural sectors. During the Midwest Equipment Dealers Ag Expo at Gordyville USA near Gifford, Ill., on Jan. 23-24, farmers from across the region browsed bigger and better machinery, high-tech GPS systems and an abundance of traited seeds.<br>
“The high commodity prices make it nice to be in implement sales right now. A lot of people are upgrading their equipment,” said John Smith, general manager of Kuhns Equipment Co. in Gibson City, Ill.<br>
Smith said AGCO’s DT240 tractor, which sports new front-end suspension and is set up with autoguide and GPS, has become a big seller. “There’s more interest in technology, like autoguidance and mapping systems. Everybody wants all the electronic gadgets out there,” he said.<br>
Steve Schlesinger, manager of Birkey’s Farm Store in Williamsport, Ind., agreed that guidance systems are all the rage right now.
“More and more tractors come guidance-ready from the factory, since more customers are interested in a hands-free operation,” he said.<br>
He’s noticed a growing number of farmers are turning to RTK (Real Time Kinematic) satellite navigation systems, which boast sub-inch accuracy and have lately become more affordable.<br>
“Ten years ago they cost $35,000 to $40,000. Now you can get one for $20,000 to $25,000 if you use your own base station,” Schlesinger said.<br>
In the past, Birkey’s didn’t sell any of the larger combine lines, but the company is seeing increased demand for bigger equipment and has had great success with the Case IH 7010 combine since it was launched last year.<br>
“It’s caught on really well. More farmers have more acres to cover and they want to put bigger heads in front of their combines. And more farmers are growing corn for ethanol production as more plants come online,” Schlesinger said, adding that many farmers are taking the opportunity to invest in machinery right now.
“Sales inquiries and prospective buyers increased last year, and it has continued this year.”<br>
On the seed side, more farmers are turning to the traited seeds, according to John Warriner, a spokesperson of Illini FS in Urbana, Ill. “The triple-stacks continue to grow,” he said.<br>
Illini FS has also noted increasing sales of grain bins, something he attributed to a combination of higher commodity prices, increased production and the fact that local elevators sometimes get full.<br>
Bob Tammen, a grain producer and seed distributor in Danforth, Ill., said the wealth of seed varieties offered today is making it harder than ever for farmers to decide what to buy. While some of Tammen’s clients want all the traits they can get, some smaller farmers are completely against the technology.<br>
Although most seed selections have already been made, he said some farmers are holding out to watch for changes in commodity prices.<br>
“I personally think 30 to 35 percent of the decisions have not been made yet. Farmers are tracking the market to see if they should plant corn or soybeans on those acres,” he said.<br>
With a little more income from the farm, Tammen took the opportunity to buy a used John Deere tractor last year. He was told he was lucky to find one, since so many farmers upgrading machinery at the same time are making it hard for the factories to keep up with demand. That means used equipment, too, is becoming short in supply, some of it just going from one farmer to another without ever being advertised.<br>
Despite the current high grain prices, Tammen said there’s good reason to be cautious when investing in new farm equipment.
“My only concern is if the markets take a dive, the costs for machinery and everything else will stay the same,” he said. “I’d hate to see farmers stick their neck out too far. The big question is if the ethanol plants are going to keep buying our corn or if they will find a cheaper alternative.”<br>