Weed scientists meeting in South Carolina this week got a look at a new product in the BASF Crop Protection pipeline to help in the war against herbicide resistant weeds.
During the 65th Annual Meeting of the Southern Weed Science Society (SWSS), BASF presented research related to Engenia™ herbicide, the company’s next-generation formulation of dicamba.
“Engenia will be an important new tool for soybean growers battling herbicide- resistant weeds, like Palmer amaranth, waterhemp and marestail,” said Paul Rea, Vice President, U.S. Crop Protection, BASF. “Research presented at the half-day symposium at SWSS showed that Engenia will provide a valuable, new herbicide option as part of a comprehensive weed control system to help growers protect their crops from yield-robbing weeds.”
Engenia will be used with the dicamba-tolerant soybean system currently in development. BASF anticipates making the Engenia submission to the regulatory agency in the United States in 2012. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency approval of Engenia is anticipated prior to commercialization of Monsanto’s Genuity® Roundup Ready 2 Yield® dicamba-tolerant soybean system. U.S. commercialization of the new system for soybeans is expected mid-decade with cotton, corn and canola to follow.
No-Till Farmer’s readers selected their products of the year which were presented at the recent National No-Till Conference and BASF was a big winner again.
Headline® fungicide and Headline AMP™ fungicide were named top no-till products of 2011 for disease control during the 20th Annual National No-Tillage Conference in St. Louis, Missouri. This marks the sixth consecutive year that Headline and/or Headline AMP have been selected as product of the year, as voted by conservation tillage and no-till growers.
“BASF is committed to providing innovative, effective solutions that help growers get the most out of every acre,” said Paul Rea, Vice President, U.S. Crop Protection, BASF. “Headline and Headline AMP continue to be powerful tools for growers looking to control yield-robbing diseases, maximize yield potential and realize Plant Health benefits.”
BASF Crop Protection has announced the addition of Armezon™ herbicide to help corn growers deal with resistant weeds and take advantage of strong commodity prices with more complete, comprehensive weed management solutions.
According to BASF, Armezon helps growers maximize their yields by controlling tough, yield-robbing weeds while being safe to all corn types.
A post-emerge herbicide solution for corn, Armezon controls problematic grasses and broadleaf weeds such as common lambsquarters, waterhemp, giant foxtail and crabgrass – including those with resistance to glyphosate, triazines, PPOs, and ALS inhibitors.
“Armezon is definitely tough on weeds,” said John Sabatka, Post Corn Herbicides Product Manager with BASF. “At the same time, it’s also safe to use on all field and specialty corn, regardless of trait – including the most sensitive varieties.”
Armezon also has a wider window of application when compared to most other post-emerge corn herbicides on the market. It is an excellent cross-spectrum tank-mix partner, which makes it particularly helpful for growers who rely on post applications of atrazine or glyphosate to manage tough weeds.
Find out more about Armezon from BASF.
BASF is sponsoring a series of educational podcasts for the American Soybean Association. Here are three currently in the list that you might be interested in:
This podcast recaps the 2011 soybean growing season with BASF Technical Market Manager, Nick Fassler. Developed by the American Soybean Association, this educational podcast is designed to provide growers with the latest information about soybean production, including ways to maximize their soybean yields. Fassler reviews harvest results and factors affecting this year’s soybean production.
This podcast, developed by the American Soybean Association, provides soybean growers with tips on how to get the most out of every acre for the upcoming 2012 growing season. Nick Fassler, BASF Technical Market Manager, provides growers with the latest information about soybean production, including proactive management strategies to prevent challenging disease outbreaks throughout the season.
Implementing a complete weed management program that incorporates multiple sites of action is a key way to keep resistant weeds at bay and prevent them from damaging yields. In this educational podcast from the American Soybean Association, BASF Technical Market Manager Dr. Dan Westberg discusses the important role that planning and other best practices will play in the future of weed resistance prevention.
At the National Agricultural Aviation Association (NAAA) convention last week I had the opportunity to chat with Chris Wharam, a BASF tech services rep with in North Dakota, about how they help farmers and custom applicators in his state.
Chris was already pretty familiar with the crop protection business before he took the job with BASF, since his family owns Valley Sprayers in Park River, ND. Chris also has a master’s degree in plant pathology from North Dakota State University. “In my role with BASF, I get the opportunity to work with many people all throughout agriculture – including growers, retailers, distributors, university folks, consultants,” he said.
One of the things that BASF does to help aerial applicators is sponsor Operation S.A.F.E. (Self-Regulating Application and Flight Efficiency) fly-ins around the country. “It’s an opportunity for applicators to get their equipment calibrated and do pattern tests,” Chris said. “A little over 1200 planes have gone through these SAFE fly-ins, 150 different locations all over the United States.”
Many aerial applicators, like Valley Sprayers, also do custom ground applications for their clients, which Chris says is very important for cereal crop growers in his part of the country. “We often will make an application of Headline in the tank with our herbicide applications in that 3-5 leaf stage, and growers are consistently capturing a 4-6 bushel yield bump with that application,” he explained. “As the season progresses, we have an opportunity to apply fungicide again at the flag leaf time and our products at that time would be TwinLine® or Headline.” Finally, at flowering time, Chris says they have the head scab product called Caramba®, “again growers are consistently capturing anywhere from a 5-10 bushel yield advantage and reducing the toxins associated with scab infections.”
Among the many ways BASF supports NAAA is by sponsoring the convention kick off breakfast, which always features a speaker with an aviation theme. This year, that speaker was Brian Shul, pilot and author of the coffee table book Sled Driver – Flying the World’s Fastest Jet, which is a compilation of the best photos that he took over many years flying the SR-71 Blackbird. It would make a great Christmas gift for anyone on your list who appreciates military aircraft and/or breathtaking photography! You can order yours at SledDriver.com.
I interviewed Brian at the NAAA about the plane, the book, how he got such great shots, and his continuing love of photography – listen to that conversation in this week’s ZimmCast: Pilot and Author Brian Shul
Those of you who visited with BASF at the 2011 Commodity Classic may have gotten a chance to see corporate magician Jon Petz perform there. BASF liked him so much that they brought him to NAAA to entertain the aerial applicator folks. Jon, pictured here in the middle with some of the BASF crew, is a fun and really interesting guy. Not only is his magic amazing, it’s equally impressive how he works in the BASF message at the same time. Entertaining and educating!
Gary participated in a session with a few other crop protection product companies to provide an update on BASF herbicides and fungicides. First of all, Gary talked about the anticipated registration next year of Priaxor for soybeans. “It gives a brand new mix of fungicides for both controlling existing diseases and providing preventative disease control,” Gary says. “It raises the bar with what Headline is today as the standard in the soybean market, with more consistency, better yield and a higher return on investment for the grower.”
Gary says a new liquid formulation of Facet® herbicide has benefits for rice producers. “We’ve been selling Facet as a dry formulation for years,” he explained. “We’re excited to sell a true liquid because of the ease of handling and we also get better grass and broadleaf activity with it.”
In addition, Gary updated the ag aviators on two new label expansions from BASF, for Prowl® herbicide on pasture grasses and for Headline® fungicide in alfalfa.
When I interviewed Gary, he also talked about the importance of ag aviators to agriculture and the overall goal of feeding a growing population. Listen to or download my interview with Gary from NAAA here: Dr. Gary Fellows with BASF
Like all of agriculture, aerial applicators are facing potentially onerous regulations that could ground them if they are allowed to continue.
The biggest issue they are dealing with right now is the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit program, which National Agricultural Aviation Association executive director Andrew Moore told me just went into effect on Halloween. “It’s kind of a scary regulation,” said Andrew of the regulation which impacts pesticide application near water. “The problem is that it’s duplicative of everything that already exists to protect the environment in regard to pesticide regulation.”
Andrew says the NPDES would require a great deal of paper work on the part of applicators. “FIFRA already regulates the safety of pesticides to water, so this is a completely unnecessary burdensome rule.” In addition, Andrew says they are very considered about lawsuits under the new regulation.
So, NPDES was a big topic at the NAAA convention in Las Vegas this week, where workshops were held and applicators were educated about the current status of the federal rule and where it stands at the state level. Andrew says they are also urging aerial applicators – and really anyone in the agriculture industry – to contact their senators about the issue. “Because we’ve been successful in passing legislation that would exempt pesticide applications over water for FIFRA approved pesticides,” said Andrew. The measure has been passed by the House and has gone through the Senate Agriculture Committee. “We believe we have the votes in the Senate but it’s not being brought to the floor for a vote,” he said.
At this year’s National Agricultural Aviation Association (NAAA) convention, I had the pleasure of meeting a wonderful family that is dedicated to the business of aerial crop protection in North Dakota.
Left to right, they are Jayse Wharam, his mother and father Vernie and Glen, and brother Chris. Glen is the owner of Valley Sprayers in Park River, ND and a member of the NAAA board of directors and Jayce is a pilot with the company. Chris is a tech services rep with BASF in North Dakota, and Verni is the glue that keeps them all together.
Glen purchased Valley Sprayers in 1995 because flying was in his blood. “I remember flying with my dad since I was about three years old,” he said. “Fortunately for me, my two sons have stayed close to that industry as well.”
Jayce and Chris were involved with the business from a very young age. “Some of the earliest memories I have are being at the airport, my dad had a repair shop and worked on small engines back then,” Jayce said, noting that he just finished his 16th season as a pilot with Valley Sprayers.
Chris took a different path and went to North Dakota State University to ultimately get a master’s degree in plant pathology so he could stay involved in the agriculture and ag aviation business on the crop protection products side. He’s been with BASF now for almost four years.
Meanwhile, Verni has been in a totally different industry for the past 40 plus years as a neonatal nurse while at the same time supporting the company at home. “I haul the meals to the airport or out to the field wherever they are. I’m kind of their go-fer,” Verni said, although the men in her life think of her more as a saint.
Listen to my interview with the Wharams here: Wharam Famiy
Aerial applicators really don’t get the credit they deserve when it comes to helping to feed a growing population.
“I do think we’re the unsung heroes,” said National Agricultural Aviation Association president Rick Richter of Richter Aviation in Maxwell, CA. “We don’t get the credit but we don’t ask for it. We just want people to let us do our job to help feed the world. We get satisfaction from doing our job right.”
Rick has been in the business for 32 years and is proud to have his family very involved in his northern California ag aviation company where 95% of their work is rice-related. “My son is becoming an ag pilot,” Rick says. “I just enjoy and love what I do.”
Like all of agriculture, aerial applicators are struggling with government regulations that get tougher all the time, with the most recent issue they are dealing with being the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit program. We’ll hear more about that in another interview.
This year’s winners were Jordan Loewen of Valley Sprayers in Park River, ND and Brad Taylor of Corinth, MS. They are pictured here in the center, Brad on the left and Jordan on the right, between Dr. Gary Fellows of BASF to the far left and NAAA Executive Director Andrew Moore on the far right.
Brad received a $2500 scholarship to help with his ag aviation training. “It means everything to me. You know a lot of people work hard getting into this business and any help we can really goes a long way,” he said. Brad is currently working in Arkansas and the main crop he deals with there is rice. Taylor was sponsored by Dennie Stokes of Stokes Flying Service, which is based in Parkin, Arkansas.
Jordan was sponsored by Glen Wharam of Valley Sprayers, who hired him when he was still a senior in high school. “Now I’ve been working there for four years and got interested in the spraying part and now I’m spraying for that,” Jordan said. “Right out of my senior year I went to airplane mechanics school and Glen helped me out with that.”
We will hear more from Glen and the rest of the Wharam family – a great bunch of folks really dedicated to the work they do helping North Dakota farmers. The diversity of crops they work with in that area include sugar beets, potatoes, wheat, sunflowers, corn and soybeans.
As the spread of resistant weeds continues, the term “site of action” is becoming a factor in managing resistance. BASF wants growers to understand herbicide site of action – and what it means to their weed management plan – because it can spell the difference between losing yield or gaining profit.
BASF offers four tips to unlock the benefits of herbicide sites of action:
Know the tool Site of action is a term used by weed scientists to group or classify different herbicide active ingredients. A critical element in managing or preventing development of herbicide resistant weed populations is employing multiple sites of action during a growing season. Therefore, classifying herbicides by their site of action provides a tool that enables grower and retailers to design an effective weed management program.
“Site of action specifically refers to the biochemical site within a plant where a herbicide has its direct impact on weed growth and development,” said Dan Westberg, Ph.D., BASF Technical Market Manager. “In other words, the site of action is where a herbicide controls a weed.”
Recognize the enemy The Weed Science Society of America has confirmed 13 different species of glyphosate-resistant weeds across 28 states. Some weeds, such as waterhemp, are developing resistance to multiple herbicide sites of action. Waterhemp, along with its close cousin Palmer pigweed, is especially scary because of its ability to produce at least one million seeds from a single plant. That seed production could result in 6.25 million waterhemp plants in one acre if not adequately controlled with multiple sites of action. (more…)
It seems like there is always something new from BASF Crop Protection to make life a little better for farmers.
At the National Association of Farm Broadcasting Trade Talk, I talked with Technical Market Manager Nick Fassler about what is new in the fungicide arena. You might remember that we just chatted with Nick earlier this year at Commodity Classic about the launch of Xemium™ and already there are new fungicides in the pipeline with that active ingredient. “We’ve been real busy developing new fungicides and new uses for these products,” Nick says. “The last two years we’ve been talking about Headline AMP and now we’ve got another new product on the horizon that combines the active ingredient Xemium with Headline to develop Priaxor™.”
Nick says the Headline plus Xemium compound will be registered on multiple row crops and specialty crops – including corn, soybeans, cereals, potatoes and tomatoes. Registration by the U.S. EPA is expected in early 2012.
BASF is also offering several new incentives for growers to get a great start on the 2012 season, according to Corn Market Manager Mike Hofer. “One of them is called ‘Investment Advantage’ which is really a first of its kind in the industry,” Mike said. “It rewards a grower who purchases a high yield package from BASF, which may contain products like Headline AMP for corn, or Headline for soybeans, or Kixor herbicide technology.”
To help growers who purchase this type of package before March 15 better manage their risk, BASF will offer a partial rebate if commodity prices fall below a certain point. “What we’re trying to do is make sure that growers maintain a healthy return on investment,” Mike says.
BASF is also expanding the Headline Advantage offer from BASF has expanded to include more BASF fungicides for the 2012 season with up to 20% savings. In addition, BASF is again partnering with John Deere Financial to bring growers Finance Advantage.
Our friends with BASF Crop Protection were very busy at the National Association of Farm Broadcasting Trade Talk last week and rightly so, since they had plenty of new information to share with farmers.
Pictured here, left to right, are Sandi Wilson, Dr. Dan Westberg and Pat Morrow – about half the team from BASF at NAFB. This was Pat’s sixth year at NAFB and she loves it more every time she attends. “I just really love the farm broadcasters, it’s a hug fest for me,” Pat says. That’s one reason why they are so pleased to be able to be major sponsors at the convention by supporting the broadcast center and providing internet access for broadcasters.
The other reason is purely professional. Farm broadcasters are a great way for BASF to get information about new products and offerings out to growers. I talked with Dr. Dan the Man about two new herbicides for 2012 to help growers manage resistant weeds such as glyphosate-resistant Palmer amaranth and waterhemp – Zidua® and OpTill® PRO. “Zidua herbicide is a brand new active ingredient currently waiting EPA registration,” Dan said. “It is a unique chemistry that has very broad spectrum control of grasses and small seeded broadleaf weeds.” Dan says Zidua will provide the longest lasting residual control for Palmer amaranth and waterhemp in the market. Hence the name – Zidua, as in residual.
OpTill Pro herbicide was specifically developed for soybean growers to control a broad spectrum of grass and broadleaf weeds, including waterhemp. “We’ve taken our OpTill herbicide, powered by Kixor, and we’ve added Outlook® to it,” said Dan. “This makes OpTill Pro a premium residual option that provides burndown and residual control to help soybean growers start off clean and stay clean throughout the season.”
Some companies have been sponsors and Trade Talk exhibitors at the annual National Association of Farm Broadcasting convention for years – even decades! – but this year was the first for AgLeader Technology, one of the nation’s leading precision farming technology innovators.
AgLeader’s Katie Monroe (center) says they were thrilled to join the companies and organizations who support the NAFB. “It’s a great opportunity to talk about our new products and how precision farming can help growers,” Katie said, noting that one of their main topics was AgLeader’s new Versa display which includes all of the most popular year-round precision tools in one small package.
AgLeader Technology also joined with Alltech to sponsor the NAFB Foundation Auction reception on Thursday night.
A former U.S. Senator and the first woman president of NAFB are the newest members of the National Association of Farm Broadcasting Hall of Fame.
Senator Conrad Burns of Montana founded the Northern Ag Network in the 1970s before getting into politics. He was only the second Republican ever elected from the state of Montana, serving for 18 years in the Senate.
The lovely Colleen Callahan, whose married name is actually Burns (no relation to Conrad), becomes the first woman to be inducted in the NAFB Hall of Fame. She was the first female NAFB president and currently serves as Illinois State Director for USDA Rural Development.
I videoed Conrad’s comments after receiving his award and stripped off the audio. Not the best quality, but I am glad I caught it. Some great comments here. Conrad Burns at NAFB
The 68th Annual NAFB Convention is officially underway in Kansas City. Hundreds of broadcast council and allied industry members are already working hard in between catching up with friends we see only once a year!
Our thanks to BASF for providing so much at the NAFB meeting to help farm broadcasters continue to provide “Insight for Agriculture – Every Day” – even when they are on the road and away from the studio. Not only is BASF sponsoring the broadcast room, as always, they are also sponsoring the internet access – which is absolutely necessary and no small expense at any convention.
The photo album is up and will continue to be updated throughout the meeting all week. Stay tuned!
Consumers’ interest in agriculture and personal respect for farmers is high, even in countries where less than two percent of the population works in agriculture, according to the BASF Farm Perspectives Study, which surveyed 1,800 farmers and 6,000 consumers. Yet farmers and consumers also agree that farmers’ reputations remain low. The study, which outlines the way farmers and consumers view the farming profession, its challenges and its support network, revealed surprisingly strong agreement on major issues, including the role of farmers and the major challenges farmers are facing in the 21st century.
The study was carried out in Brazil, India, the United States, Germany, Spain and France in cooperation with the global market research firm Synovate GmbH and Professor Dr. Ulrich Oevermann, Professor for Sociology at the University of Frankfurt.
Both farmers and consumers view farming as a vocation, one that is dedicated to providing nourishment, supporting rural culture and caring for the land. “Steward of the land” or “Caretaker of the land” is farmers’ favorite self-description in all six countries (over 80%), but registers significantly lower with consumers (50-60%). In a related question, many consumers blame farmers for environmental problems, with concerns strongest in Brazil, India and France (38-43%), the U.S. and Germany (23%).
Around 80 percent of farmers and consumers from all countries agree that farming’s primary objective is to feed the world. Consumers show a high level of interest in farming (from 84% in India to 50% in France), but also admit that they do not know enough about farming to judge it properly. The price of food and, conversely, the price of conservation remain obstacles for both farmers and consumers.
The white flag signifying the final lap for growers to enter the BASF Crop Protection Kixor® herbicide technology Road to DAYTONA® sweepstakes is waving.
BASF is sending one lucky winner four tickets to the 54th annual DAYTONA 500® to the Feb. 25, 2012 race along with an expenses-paid three-day, two-night trip to Daytona Beach, Florida. BASF will also be awarding $100 gift cards to 10 additional sweepstakes entrants.
In this week's program Chuck talks with Mike Adams, AgriTalk.
Chuck and Mike often wind up at the same events all over the country so it seemed like a good idea to do a little AgriTalking about the changes they've seen in the ag media landscape.
During the 65th Annual Meeting of the Southern Weed Science Society (SWSS), BASF presented research related to Engenia™ herbicide, the company’s next-generation formulation of dicamba. 
A post-emerge herbicide solution for corn, Armezon controls problematic grasses and broadleaf weeds such as common lambsquarters, waterhemp, giant foxtail and crabgrass – including those with resistance to glyphosate, triazines, PPOs, and ALS inhibitors.
At the 
Last week I attended the 
Among the many ways BASF supports NAAA is by sponsoring the convention kick off breakfast, which always features a speaker with an aviation theme. This year, that speaker was Brian Shul, pilot and author of the coffee table book 
There was magic in the air at the 
During the 
Gary says a new liquid formulation of 
Like all of agriculture, aerial applicators are facing potentially onerous regulations that could ground them if they are allowed to continue. 
Andrew says the NPDES would require a great deal of paper work on the part of applicators. “FIFRA already regulates the safety of pesticides to water, so this is a completely unnecessary burdensome rule.” In addition, Andrew says they are very considered about lawsuits under the new regulation. 
At this year’s 
Aerial applicators really don’t get the credit they deserve when it comes to helping to feed a growing population.
The kick-off breakfast for the 
At the National Association of Farm Broadcasting Trade Talk, I talked with Technical Market Manager Nick Fassler about what is new in the fungicide arena. You might remember that we just chatted with 
BASF is also offering 
Our friends with 
Some companies have been sponsors and Trade Talk exhibitors at the annual National Association of Farm Broadcasting convention for years – even decades! – but this year was the first for 
A former U.S. Senator and the first woman president of NAFB are the newest members of the National Association of Farm Broadcasting Hall of Fame.
The 68th Annual NAFB Convention is officially underway in Kansas City. Hundreds of broadcast council and allied industry members are already working hard in between catching up with friends we see only once a year!
The white flag signifying the final lap for growers to enter the 
In this week's program Chuck talks with Mike Adams, AgriTalk.
