03/15/06 Dry beans, part two

It's pretty easy to figure out. Commercial dry bean prices have fallen to about 18 dollars per hundredweight for Idaho growers but they aren't getting many takers when buyers can pay 13 dollars for good quality North Dakota beans. That's why some bean growers like Melba's Brent Zeyer are looking to bean seed as the future. Farm Bureau and Governor Dirk Kempthorne have all been working with Idaho growers as they try to open bean seed markets in Mexico. ZEYER "You know the Idaho Bean Commission has been trying so hard to get into some markets that haven't been tapped yet and it's really tough. And it's expensive and the results are slow." Zeyer says it's hard for his company, Melmont Bean and Seed, one of only two commercial warehouses in southwestern Idaho, to find buyers for commercial beans at prices that let growers can make a profit. That's why he looks for seed opportunities. ZEYER "When I was up in North Dakota, the Idaho Bean Commission sent me there to promote Idaho seed; in Mexico we tried to education them about the value of Idaho seed. But in North Dakota and Michigan they know the value of Idaho seed." Production costs, mostly due to irrigation, put Idaho commercial bean growers at a disadvantage to farmers in North Dakota and Michigan who rely on rainfall. Voice of Idaho Agriculture Bill Scott