AgWired

Farmers and growers who visited to Monsanto’s Mobile Greenhouse at the 2008 Michigan Ag Expo say they’re impressed to see the proof is in the soybeans, so to speak. Now, most say, they only thing left to do is see how the Roundup Ready 2 Yield soybeans perform during their first year in live farming field production.

I caught up with a couple growers at the Mobile Greenhouse to see what they think about Monsanto’s “next generation” soybeans.

You can listen to my interview with Matt Breithaupt here. Matt owns a 400 acre farm in Buckley, MI. He says 75 of those acres are used for his soybean crop.
mi-ag-expo-breithaupt.mp3

You can listen to my interview with John Schultz here. John works at Crop Production Services in Cass City, MI and owns a farm in Unionville Michigan where he plants 1,000 acres of soybeans.
mi-ag-ex-08-schulz.mp3

That is… soybean profits. Monsanto‘s Roundup Ready 2 Yield soybeans weren’t only a hit with the adults. The ag company’s mobile greenhouse unit seemed to intrigue the kids at the 2008 Michigan Ag Expo just as much, if not more. I mean, what spells out curiosity more than ear-to-ear grins and hands splayed on the glass and noses just centimeters from being smashed up against it?

You can’t help but wonder if these little kids are getting some big ideas on the “potential profits” Monsanto says its Roundup Ready 2 Yield soybeans will offer farmers and growers. While parents are thinking soybeans might offer some cushion in the pocketbook, I have a hunch the kiddies are thinking “not so fast!”

Monsanto‘s “Summer of Soy” tour is all about one thing: Roundup Ready 2 Yield soybeans. Representatives say the “next generation” crop boasts unsurpassed weed control, produces more “power in the pod” with more beans per pod and offers farmers and growers more than $45 per acre profit potential. Monsanto says its “advanced science” technology uses extensive gene mapping to identify specific DNA regions in soybeans that are found to have a positive impact on yield.

Steve Flanders is the AM Area Manager for Monsanto. He says the Roundup Ready 2 Yield soybeans are producing 7 to 11 percent more yields than the first generation of Roundup Ready soybeans. This, he says, translates into 3 to 6 more bushels per acre – something Steve considers to be revolutionary.

I spoke with Steve about Monsanto’s Mobile Greenhouse and “Summer of Soy” tour. You can listen to my interview with Steve here:
mi-ag-ex-08-flanders.mp3