Illinois Department of Agriculture (IDOA) Director Jerry Costello II is citing an uptick in highly pathogenic avian influenza as the reason the agency extended a ban on poultry exhibitions through next month. 

In this wide-ranging conversation with RFD Radio’s Rita Frazer, Costello discusses this year’s "wild" planting season, expectations from the state budget process and what prompted IDOA to extend the poultry exhibition ban in county fair season. 

The following interview has been edited for length and clarity. 

COSTELLO: We’ve unfortunately, recently, had some more positive detections in the state, so we’re trying to be prudent. Better safe than sorry. 

Unfortunately, this will get into some of our county fair season. It’s very early on… There are six county fairs, but I think only two of them actually had poultry exhibitions. 

It’s a difficult decision to make, but we always want to err on the side of caution when it comes to foreign animal disease. 

I’ve been [IDOA] director for five-and-a-half years. Avian influenza, in some way shape or form, we’ve dealt with the entire time I’ve been director. 

It has flared up, gotten worse, in probably the last year-and-a-half or so. 

A lot of times, according to the wild bird migration, especially waterfowl, you’ll see things take a dip toward the end of the migration or the beginning of summer.

That really hasn’t occurred as much this year. Obviously, we’ve had a different weather pattern than we normally do, so we’re hoping that’s the case — that it can be attributed to the weather pattern and not just a big spread of avian influenza. 

But the suspension, again, is taking place. It has taken place and will continue to take place until June 10. 

FRAZER: Director, just to confirm: This is just for poultry. Is there any restriction on dairy exhibiting? 

COSTELLO: It is only poultry. 

FRAZER: Let’s slide into RFSI [Resilient Food Systems Infrastructure], the importance of that program. I know you’ve been watching, for the last several weeks, the USDA funding as it pertains to that program and how it affects us here in the state. What do we know today? 

COSTELLO: We’ve been in talks with the USDA back and forth. Unfortunately, the Trump administration cut monies out of LFPA [Local Food Purchase Assistance Cooperative Agreement Program] — or our local food purchase program. 

In RFSI… we weren’t exactly sure what was going to occur again. We’ve been in talks with the USDA; the talks seem to be going well. 

It looks like — knock on wood, hopefully — the program will be turned back on. 

So, that’s $6.4 million in grants and it’s to rebuild the resilience of the middle of the food supply chain. Many times this can be the most expensive part of produce, fruits and vegetables, for many farmers. 

It’s [having] that refrigerated trailer, that refrigerated truck, it’s after harvest but before retail sale and making sure that the product can be kept a little bit longer. 

It’s an extremely important aspect for producers. 

So, again, $6.4 million. It seems like this is going to be turned back on. It’s a grant that’s reimbursable, so you actually spend the money and then you’re reimbursed by the federal government through the state. It’s a pass-through grant. 

FRAZER: Let’s stick with numbers as a topic. You talked about the budget, the appropriation process, what the budget will look like. It’s an important time at the [state] Capitol. 

COSTELL: It’s a very important time at the Capitol. 

First of all, I want to tell you that five-and-a-half years ago when I came to the Department of Agriculture, we had 299 employees.

We’ve got 435 employees … hoping to hire a couple more. 

There’s a couple of areas I would specifically point out. One of them is meat and poultry processing. 

Five-and-a-half years ago we were at, I think, 72 or 73 inspectors. We’re at 105 now, which is the largest number ever that we’re aware of in the history of the Department of Agriculture.

As you know, food processing is so important to the food supply chain. 

I bring all of these things up because we’ve had pretty consistent budgets. The budgets have grown. 

Gov. [JB] Pritzker has been a huge proponent of the Department of Agriculture, growing the Department of Agriculture over the last five-and-a-half years. 

We are going into what is most likely going to be a pretty tight budget year. Right now, our proposed budget is roughly flat. So last year, we were right at about $200 million. 

This year, proposed, we’re at about $207 million. 

We’ll see what the actual, implemented budget looks like. Then we have to look at what actually takes place with the federal government. 

So, there’s a lot of things up in the air. A lot of what I would say are cautionary moments right now, as far as what the actual implemented budget looks like. 

A lot of it will be according to what happens with the Trump administration and with Congress and in the budget that they pass — how that reflects or implements certain programs in the state budget. 

FRAZER: You mentioned planting progress and the giant difference, Director, between the north and south and east and west. This is a wild planting season. 

COSTELLO: It is a wild planting season. 

What people have to realize is different regions are not always reflected in the overall number of what’s going on. 

Weather patterns over the last couple of years have really changed. It used to be that you would typically have more of a drier scenario in southern Illinois and wetter in northern Illinois. 

The last couple of years, that’s really flip-flopped and it’s been wetter in southern Illinois. 

So, I’ll give you corn planted — and this is for the entire state as of [May 12] — 54% for the state, the five-year average is 60%.

Soybeans planted: 51%. The five-year average there is 48%, so statewide, [we’re] a little ahead of the normal average on soybeans planted.

If you look at southern Illinois, there are just a ton of fields that have not been able to be planted.

So, you’ve got central to really north-central Illinois where a lot of farmers are done planting and have been done planting for a while, whereas I was talking to a 73-year-old farmer last week who told me, ‘Jerry, this is the first time in my lifetime that [I] didn’t have a single seed in the ground at that time.’ And he was very, very worried and had been farming with his family since, essentially, like 14-years-old.

It just goes to show the vast difference as far as as the climate in our state, right now, and in moisture levels.

FRAZER: Just because you mentioned the stressful weather patterns and stress on farmers in general… If there’s any number that we should all memorize and keep right up front of mind is 833-FARM-SOS

COSTELL: If your mind is not healthy, it doesn’t matter how physically healthy your body is. 

Keeping yourself physically healthy, eating good, nutritional food, is very, very important. 

But all of that helps to feed the mind. 

Anybody who’s having any questions from a mental perspective, strains and stress from planting, finances, whatever the case may be: 833-FARM-SOS. 

It’s 100% confidential. They can reach out on a text. There’s an email option, a farm family resource initiative, as well as six free telehealth visits — digitally, over the internet with a telehealth professional. 

It’s 100% confidential, so please do not hesitate. 

The stigma on getting help for mental health — we’ve got to break through that. It has to go away because it’s honestly a crisis in the United States and farming is such a risky occupation on so many different levels. 

Unfortunately, the suicide rate is a lot higher in agriculture than it is in other occupations. So, again, 833-FARM-SOS.

FRAZER: We’ve covered a lot of ground, as we always do, but if you can boil it down, we’ll actually close today with your Director’s 3. 

COSTELLO: There’s a lot going on right now, a lot of instability, insecurity, a lot going on at the federal level which bleeds over into the state level in any way, shape or form. 

What I think is the most important point I can make is it’s more important now than ever for all of us to work together, rely on each other, try to get away from the Republican, Democrat aspect of things and just do what’s best for our state and our country. 

The tariff situations are obviously affecting farmers.

I think right now, if you look at the overall tariff situation, we’re at about 17% for the United States. A couple of months ago, under the previous administration, it was 2.5%. Costs are going up. 

There’s a lot of stress and strain and I would lead that back into what we talked about before: If you have issues, if you have problems … it’s so important that you’re taking care of yourself. 

Or, if you see your spouse having issues, your child having issues, don’t be afraid to have an intervention and to help them. 

You may be saving their life and helping them get back on-track to a healthier and more productive future.