RFA Ethanol Podcast

USDA Celebrates $3 Billion for Climate-Smart Commodities

Cindy Zimmerman Leave a Comment

Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack traveled to Pennsylvania to celebrate investing over $3 billion in 135 projects under the Partnerships for Climate-Smart Commodities since its creation in September 2022.

Among the projects Secretary Vilsack highlighted during his address in Hershey were:

A project led by Farm Journal that is expanding climate-smart markets for specialty crops, beef, pork and other commodities while incentivizing Pennsylvania farmers to implement practices like cover crops and grazing management, and providing technical assistance and data-management support to track outcomes.

The Iowa Soybean Association’s Midwest Climate-Smart Community Program, which now has over 1800 farms enrolled in climate-smart production. The resulting corn, soy, sugar beats and wheat supply insetting markets where corporate entities aim to reduce their greenhouse gas footprint.

A project let by TH Cattle Company is quantifying the soil and biomass impacts of climate-smart ranching practices and rewarding livestock producers through premiums for added-value beef. Over 5,000 acres of ranchland are participating by implementing climate-smart grazing practices that will enable access to these markets.

Listen to Vilsack’s remarks:
Vilsack in Hershey, PA (26:41)

Audio, climate, Sustainability, USDA

Terviva Offers New Biofuel Feedstock Grown on Trees

Cindy Zimmerman Leave a Comment

Agricultural innovation company Terviva has announced an investment from Chevron Renewable Energy Group to help scale production of pongamia for low carbon renewable fuel.

“Crude pongamia oil can be converted into biodiesel, renewable diesel, or sustainable aviation fuel (SAF). In working with Chevron Renewable Energy Group, we can increase the availability of feedstocks for production of these fuels while promoting our mission to revitalize agricultural land and communities. This relationship benefits stakeholders up and down the value chain, from farmers cultivating pongamia to fleets looking for lower carbon fuels,” said Naveen Sikka, founder, and CEO of Terviva.

Pongamia growing in Central Florida

Pongamia is a regenerative, permanent tree crop that stores carbon and produces a bean pod that can be used in turn to produce food, feed, and fuel. Terviva has been developing elite pongamia cultivars over 15 years of research trials spanning nearly 2,000 acres in Florida, Hawai’i and Australia. “Terviva’s pongamia trees produce three or more metric tons of beans per acre, which feature a high oil content,” said Sikka.

Terviva recently expanded its executive leadership team to include Simmarpal Singh as Chief Operating Officer, previously serving as CEO-India for COFCO International and prior to that for Louis Dreyfus India. Singh will focus on strengthening the upstream and midstream processes to expand the footprint of Terviva and pongamia across India, the U.S., Australia, and other parts of the world. “I think there is huge potential around pongamia,” said Singh. “I look forward to leveraging my deep experience in farming, origination, manufacturing, and international stakeholder management to work in a new commodity value chain that directly contributes toward improving our global climate.”

Learn more about Terviva and pongamia in this interview with CEO Naveen Sikka and COO Simmarpal Singh.
Interview with Terviva (19:04)

Audio, Biodiesel, Biofuels, Farming, Feed, Food

ZimmCast 736 – Syngenta Advancing Innovation

Chuck Zimmerman Leave a Comment

ZimmCastHello and welcome to the ZimmCast.

In this episode I am going to share some audio from the recent Syngenta Media Summit 2024 that was held in the new crop protection facility in Greensboro, NC. I am grateful for the opportunity to be with a group of agricultural journalists and have personal time with Syngenta leadership. You’ll hear more about the new facility.

I have created a virtual newsroom on AgNewsWire that contains photos as well as interviews and other audio for ag media to use.

I’ve picked out the welcome we had from Jeff Cecil, Head of North America Crop Protection Marketing, in the form of a one on one interview about advancing innovation for the US grower. After that you’ll hear closing comments from Vern Hawkins, Regional Director, North America President. He focused on advancing American agriculture.

That’s the ZimmCast for now. Please let me know if you have ideas for a future podcast. Just email me at chuck@zimmcomm.biz.

Listen to the episode here:
ZimmCast 736 - Syngenta Media Summit Focus on Advancing Innovation (38:13)

I hope you enjoyed it and thank you for listening.

Subscribe to the ZimmCast in:

Agribusiness, Audio, Crop Protection, Media, Syngenta, ZimmCast

Animal Ag News 10/16

Carrie Muehling Leave a Comment

  • The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced $11.04 million in funding to support dairy businesses and producers under the Dairy Business Innovation Initiatives (DBI) grant program, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced at the World Dairy Expo in Madison, Wisconsin. The initiatives support small and mid-sized dairy businesses in the development, production, marketing, and distribution of dairy products.
  • As National School Lunch Week begins, the International Dairy Foods Association (IDFA) reports that its Healthy School Milk Commitment is responsible for reducing added sugar levels by 10 percent in flavored school milk between the 2023 and 2024 school years. The Commitment was launched in April 2023 by 37 school milk processors representing approximately 95 percent of the school milk volume in the United States. Since that time, added sugar in flavored school milk, such as chocolate milk, has declined from 8.2 grams per serving to 7.4 grams per serving. In the past year alone, school milk processors have removed 2.7 billion grams of added sugar, equal to 5.9 million pounds.
  • Prairie Farms Dairy, Inc., took top honors in the National Milk Producers Federation’s annual cooperative communications contest, winning five categories and the competition’s “Best in Show: Writing” award. A farmer-owner of Michigan Milk Producers Association (MMPA), Doug Chapin, received NMPF’s Farmer Communicator of the Year award. Edwardsville, IL-based Prairie Farms also took one second-place finish and two third-place finishes in the competition, which recognizes the top communications efforts among NMPF’s member cooperatives. The Best of Show: Writing award was given for Prairie Farms’s article, “R-Homestead Holsteins – 150 Years of Family Tradition.”
  • Following a successful Protein PACT Summit focused on turning sustainability goals into action, the Meat Institute elected key new officers, Executive Board members and full Board of Directors members for 2025. James Snee, Chairman of the Board, President and Chief Executive Officer of Hormel Foods, was elected to serve as the Meat Institute’s incoming Chairman in January of 2025. He has been a Meat Institute Executive Board Member since 2017 and an officer since 2022.
  • Edge Dairy Farmer Cooperative will present an informational webinar on navigating permitting challenges on October 29 from 10:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. CST. The webinar will discuss common challenges farmers face when applying or reapplying for WPDES permits. Those interested in attending the webinar can register online.
  • The National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) released a report analyzing data collected in a nationwide tax survey of America’s cattle producers. With the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act set to expire at the end of 2025, NCBA collected this survey data to better understand how key tax provisions, such as Death Tax relief and business deductions, impact family-owned cattle operations.
  • The National Cattlemen’s Foundation (NCF) is now accepting applications for the 2025 CME Group Beef Industry Scholarship. Ten scholarships of $1,500 each will be awarded to outstanding students pursuing careers in the beef industry. The application deadline is Nov. 8, 2024, at midnight Central Time. For more information and to apply, visit www.nationalcattlemensfoundation.org. Scholarship winners will be announced during CattleCon 2025, Feb. 4-6, in San Antonio, Texas.
  • The Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), a division of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), will now fund Virtual Fencing (VF) projects for producers. VF is a precision livestock management tool that creates an enclosure, barrier, or boundary without a physical fence. VF allows real-time automation of grazing management from a smartphone or computer. Livestock are fit with a collar that generates audio warnings and electrical stimuli. Already used in Europe, New Zealand, and Australia for many years, VF rollout is currently underway in the United States. Several domestic vendors recently completed pilot projects and have begun supplying VF to United States producers. In partnership with NRCS, Green Lands Blue Waters (GLBW) developed a set of materials providing an introduction to VF for NRCS field staff, grazing educators, and other conservation agriculture professionals.
  • USPOULTRY and the USPOULTRY Foundation announce the completion of a funded research project, aimed at developing six vaccines for reovirus in turkeys, by researchers in the Department of Veterinary Population Medicine at the University of Minnesota. Made possible by an endowing Foundation gift from West Liberty Foods, the research is part of the Association’s comprehensive research program encompassing all poultry and egg production and processing phases.
  • U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) called on the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to provide immediate assistance for Wisconsin farmers impacted by the sudden closure of Pure Prairie Poultry, which has left poultry farmers in Wisconsin staring down crippling financial losses without feed and a processor for their birds.
    • AgWired Animal, Animal Agriculture, Animal Bites

    Syngenta Crop Protection and Taranis Announce Partnership

    Cindy Zimmerman Leave a Comment

    Syngenta Crop Protection and Taranis today announced a multi-year collaboration to bring Artificial Intelligence (AI)-driven agronomic productivity and conservation-focused innovation to agricultural retail partners in the US.

    Over the next three years, the partnership will focus on supporting ag retailers in the adoption of Taranis’ AI-powered agronomic platforms so retail partners can benefit from AI-derived leaf-level remote scouting insights and generative AI (GenAI) agronomic recommendations.

    Syngenta will extend a unique offer focused in the Midwest to support targeted retailers’ adoption of Taranis’ AI-driven intelligence platform providing leaf-level 0.3mm/pixel resolution threat detection of weed species, insects, diseases and nutrient deficiencies. The service will enable retailers to remotely scout more acres, more comprehensively, from anywhere they access the platform, and to easily prioritize the fields that require the most immediate attention. Paired with Ag Assistant™, the Taranis GenAI agronomy engine, retail advisors can generate data-driven expert agronomic recommendations that save time and allow them to act decisively to help their grower-customers protect their crops using Syngenta’s market-leading crop protection portfolio, resulting in yield-enhancing crop management practices that improve retailer and grower productivity and profitability.

    Ongoing development between Syngenta and Taranis will support the continued advancement of AI-powered agronomic platforms, including technology and features from Syngenta’s Cropwise platform with Taranis’ leading crop intelligence solution and will target innovation in areas including conservation agronomy, agricultural productivity, and AI-enabled agronomic solutions.

    (Syngenta-Taranis press release)

    Agribusiness, Agronomy, AgWired Precision, AI, Precision Agriculture, Syngenta

    Alltech Releases 2023 Sustainability Report

    Cindy Zimmerman Leave a Comment

    Alltech has just released its annual Sustainability Report for 2023, which demonstrates its purpose of “Working Together for a Planet of Plenty®,” reducing its environmental impact and advancing the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals.

    2023 highlights include:
    Alltech has reduced its Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions by 19.8% from its 2021 base year. It aims to reduce its Scope 1 and 2 emissions by 42% by 2030 (from its 2021 base year) and its Scope 3 emissions by 25% by 2030 (from its 2023 base year).
    Alltech completed 19 energy efficiency projects. It conducted 31 energy efficiency project feasibility studies and six renewable energy project feasibility studies. The company invested $3.85 million in efficiency projects in 2023, resulting in the reduction of 8,990 metric tons of CO2e.
    Alltech completed 74 core product life-cycle analyses across its top seven specialty ingredients and 17 production facilities.
    Alltech was awarded three EcoVadis sustainability medals in 2023.
    Alltech Serdán was recertified in 2023 as Empresa Socialmente Responsible (ESR).
    Alltech was accredited by the Pet Sustainability Coalition for the third year in a row.
    Sixty team members participated in the Women in Food & Agriculture Mentorship Program.

    “2023 was another milestone year for Alltech as we advanced our mission and vision of Working Together for a Planet of Plenty,” said Dr. Mark Lyons, president and CEO of Alltech. “In the five years since it was launched at the Alltech ONE Conference in Kentucky, Planet of Plenty has become a strategic driver of our business and an accelerator of what is even more important: our impact. Through new partnerships and ongoing collaboration with trusted allies we’ve worked alongside for decades, we continue to drive progress toward our shared goal of a world of abundance for future generations.”

    Alltech is currently promoting the first feature-length documentary for Planet of Plenty, a three-year exploration of the true impact of cattle on our world called World Without Cows which aims to broaden the conversation about the role of cattle and to inspire deeper reflection about their role in the vitality of our planet.

    Read the report.

    AgWired Animal, Alltech, Animal Agriculture, Sustainability

    RaboResearch Launches Frutonomía Fresh Produce Podcast

    Cindy Zimmerman Leave a Comment

    Rabobank FinanceRabobank’s RaboResearch Food & Agribusiness (F&A) team today announced the launch of a new podcast called Frutonomía to explore the challenges, trends and opportunities for the global fruit market.

    Presented primarily in Spanish and co-hosted by horticulture and fresh produce analysts David Magaña and Gonzalo Salinas, each episode of the podcast will highlight individual fresh fruit markets, taking an in-depth look at lemons, mandarins, avocados, cherries and blueberries, among others.

    The podcast will also feature interviews with industry experts and discussion on regional fruit markets with a focus on the United States, Brazil, Chile, Mexico and China. In particular, Latin America is a leading global supplier of fruits and vegetables to critical geopolitical markets, and could supply two to three out of every five fruits and vegetables globally by 2050 based on historic production and export performance.

    The most recent episode features guest Vonnie Estes, Vice President of Innovation, International Fresh Produce Association, IFPA, as they dive into the latest changes in the U.S. fruit market, as well as a look at new developments at the highly anticipated IFPA Global Fresh Produce and Floral Show.

    The Frutonomía podcast is already taking its show on the road to this week’s Global Fresh Produce and Floral Show October 17-19 in Atlanta, Georgia.

    Food, Podcasts, Produce, Research, specialty crops

    Protect The Harvest Ceasing Operations October 31

    Chuck Zimmerman Leave a Comment

    Protect The HarvestI’ve watched Protect The Harvest over years when they first started in 2011. In fact, it as at the 2014 Ag Media Summit that I interviewed Forrest Lucas and a couple of other guys about starting this effort. You can hear that interview below here: Protect The Harvest Interview 9:11

    Protect The Harvest will cease operations effective Oct. 31, 2024, citing ongoing funding challenges that began during the COVID-19 pandemic. The organization was created in 2011 as a non-profit educational and advocacy effort to promote and defend American farmers and ranchers, improve food security, protect property rights, ensure animal welfare, and support outdoor sports such as hunting and fishing. Protect The Harvest has focused on informing stakeholders about important issues, protecting against a myriad of ongoing threats and responding when appropriate.

    “Over the past two-and-a-half years we’ve been diligently working to secure funding that would allow Protect The Harvest to continue operations going forward, but the current economy has made it challenging for many individuals and organizations that have supported us in the past,” said Dr. Mike Siemens, Protect The Harvest executive director. “It’s been frustrating and disappointing to see the number of issues we confront multiply while our resources to address them have diminished. It’s also heartbreaking because we hear from so many stakeholders about how much they value Protect The Harvest and the work we do. Now, other organizations will need to step up to fill the void.”

    “Since Charlotte and I created Protect The Harvest, we’ve helped many people, some who have become good friends, and we’ve accomplished a lot,” stated Forrest Lucas, founder and chairman of the board. “We’ve fought, and won, a considerable number of important battles that threatened property rights, would restrict freedoms and liberties America was founded on, make it more difficult to produce food or own animals, would curtail hunting and fishing, or would result in greater food insecurity. We have made many friends, enlightened many Americans, and fought the good fights to preserve the nation’s principles and values, but the time has come to pass the torch to others who will promote and defend A Free and Fed America™.”

    Ag Media Summit, Animal Activists, Animal Agriculture, Audio

    Industry Ag News 10/14

    Carrie Muehling Leave a Comment

  • The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced an additional $250 million in automatic payments for distressed direct and guaranteed farm loan borrowers under Section 22006 of the Inflation Reduction Act. This significant step continues USDA’s commitment to keeping farmers and ranchers financially viable and support for agricultural communities.
  • U.S. Department of Agriculture Under Secretary for Trade and Foreign Agricultural Affairs Alexis M. Taylor announced that USDA has awarded more than $25 million to support eight projects under the new Assisting Specialty Crop Exports (ASCE) initiative. USDA launched ASCE in January 2024 as part of the Biden-Harris Administration’s commitment to create more, new and better markets for U.S. producers and agribusinesses both at home and abroad. The innovative partnership between USDA and the specialty crops sector focuses on projects to address the non-tariff trade barriers that hinder U.S. exports of fruits and vegetables, tree nuts, horticultural crops and related products.
  • The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) will hold its biannual Data Users’ Meeting on October 15-16 starting at 12 p.m. ET virtually via Zoom. This meeting is free and open to the public. Registration is required. The Data Users’ Meeting is held to share recent and pending statistical program changes with the public and to solicit input on these and other programs important to agriculture. The event is organized by NASS in cooperation with the World Agricultural Outlook Board, Farm Service Agency, Economic Research Service, Agricultural Marketing Service, Foreign Agricultural Service and U.S. Census Bureau.
  • According to the Crop Production report issued by USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), corn production is forecast at 15.2 billion bushels, up less than one percent from the previous forecast, but down one percent from last year; soybean growers are expected to increase their production 10 percent from 2023, forecast at 4.58 billion bushels.
  • Farm Foundation, an accelerator of practical solutions for agriculture, is pleased to announce that Timothy Brennan has been selected as their vice president of programs and strategic impact, a new role reflecting the increased emphasis on prioritizing work with clearly defined impact.
  • The Farm Credit System Insurance Corporation has revised its primary logo to incorporate the great seal of the United States. The revised logo better reflects FCSIC’s role as a U.S. government entity and includes the date (1988) of its creation by Congress. FCSIC has also made major revisions to the content on its website (FCSIC.gov).
  • FFA members and supporters from across the country will celebrate agriculture and agricultural education during the 97th National FFA Convention & Expo in Indianapolis. This time-honored tradition will be held Oct. 23-26.
  • U.S. food and farm facts are featured in a new ag literacy resource available from the American Farm Bureau Foundation for Agriculture. How and where food in America is grown and who purchases it are at your fingertips in the new Food and Farm Facts book and pocket guide.

    • Harley Janssen, a farmer and leader with over 20 years of experience in agriculture, construction and off-road technology, has joined the National Corn Growers Association (NCGA). He will serve as the director of outputs and measurements, a newly created position at the organization.

  • Bushel, an independently-owned software technology company focused on developing digital tools for the agricultural supply chain, has released a special report based on its 2024 State of the Farm survey data, highlighting significant changes in payment trends within agriculture. Bushel’s 2024 State of the Farm Special Report: Payments in Agriculture reveals a notable 12 percent decrease in paper check payments to farmers over the past year, reflecting a broader industry shift towards digital solutions. Despite this shift, over 70 percent of grain settlements are still processed via paper checks, even as the USPS warns of increasing fraud risks. However, the use of digital payment platforms has surged, with adoption rates climbing from 39 percent last year to 76 percent this year. The report identifies key demographics driving this change, including younger farmers and those with aggressive growth plans. Nearly 50 percent of those respondents are now using or planning to use digital payment options.
  • The Georgia Department of Agriculture (GDA), in a partnership with the Georgia Foundation for Agriculture (GFA) and in support by the Georgia Farm Bureau (GFB), has launched the Weathered But Strong: Hurricane Relief Fund to aid farmers and ranchers facing devastating losses from Hurricane Helene. The fund aims to raise $1 million by December to provide direct financial aid to those impacted by the storm. Visit www.SupportGeorgiaFarmers.org to donate online or download the forms for check contributions.
    • Zimfo Bytes

    Working with an Ayrmesh HubDuo

    Chuck Zimmerman Leave a Comment

    HubDuoNeed some high quality and speedy wifi on your farm or home? I have been testing the new Ayrmesh HubDuo at ZimmComm World Headquarters. It has performed perfectly and very simple to install. I actually replaced an original Hub that has worked for us since January of 2011! I am getting full signal inside as well as outlying buildings across our yard. In particular, what we affectionately call Alligator Alley, it’s an extra office fully equipped that I use for different projects. Besides the strong signal I’m measuring higher wifi speed than I was getting. So, I’m happy to recommend this device as well as any Ayrstone products to all you AgNerds out there.

    The new AyrMesh HubDuo is an outdoor, high-power, meshing WiFi access point, like the existing AyrMesh Hubs, with one important difference: it is the first Hub to use dual-band technology. The new HubDuo is designed to deliver very high-speed outdoor WiFi to nearby devices, and standard high-speed WiFi at longer distances. Like the AyrMesh Hub2x2, using MIMO the AyrMesh HubDuo can provide broadband-class WiFi to hundreds or even thousands of acres of property.

    The AyrMesh HubDuo is available now at the Ayrstone store: https://ayrstone.com.

    Learn more in an interview I conducted with Bill Moffitt when the product was announced.
    Ayrstone president Bill Moffitt 2:21

    Audio, Internet, Technology