Livestock and poultry producers are filing a petition with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) seeking a waiver from the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) in light of the current drought situation likely to cause feed shortages. “We need a waiver now,” said Randy Spronk of Minnesota, National Pork Producers Council president-elect. “I and NCBA support American ethanol,” said National Cattlemen’s Beef …
Astronaut Kelly to Keynote Farm Bureau Meeting
Farm Bureau officials are excited to announce that retired astronaut Mark Kelly will be the keynote speaker at the American Farm Bureau Federation’s 2013 Annual Meeting, Jan. 13-16, 2013, in Nashville, Tenn. While Kelly is known for his work in space, he is also a loving caregiver to his wife former Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, who survived an assassination attempt in …
BASF On-Target Application Academy Schedule
BASF On-Target Application Academy events were held in various locations this past month and more are upcoming. Developed by Bob Wolf, Ph.D., of Wolf Consulting and Research, TeeJet Technologies and BASF, with insight from a grower roundtable, the On Target Application Academy is a one-of-a-kind educational opportunity to provide growers extensive hands-on training for better awareness of herbicide application best …
Zimfo Bytes
Collectively, Randy Shryock and Ron Wall represent more than 35 years of experience in exceptional creative writing and video production and now bring that to Osborn Barr. The Farm Equipment Dealership Minds Summit, set for January 30, 2013, will be guided and presented by Lessiter Publication’s Dealership of the Year alumni group as well as industry experts in the agricultural …
Precision Tech Detects Citrus Greening Disease
A disease causing some real problems for citrus growers in the U.S. is citrus greening disease, also called Huanglongbing or HBL. The bacterial disease poses no threat to humans, but its effect on the trees can be devastating. Discovered in Florida in September 2005, HBL is being closely monitored. But that monitoring can be quite labor intensive and costly. At …
House to Consider Farm Bill Extension
Despite the fact that the House Agriculture Committee has a new farm bill ready to go to the floor for a vote, leadership decided late on Friday to instead vote this week on a one-year extension of the current legislation, coupled with an extension of disaster aid for livestock producers. The reason is the drought, according to House Agriculture Committee …
Newbies to Precision Ag Credit Pioneers for Success
Getting more out of your fields… that’s the name of the game in agriculture these days, and precision techniques are helping farmers optimize those yields to their fullest potentials. Success by some pioneers in the field is helping more new companies also offer more products. At the recent International Conference on Precision Agriculture, Chuck caught up with Nick Koshnick (on …
NCBA Federation Div. Approves Comm. Structure
The NCBA Federation Division, which we’ve known as the Federation of State Beef Councils, is chaired by Craig Uden, fourth generation cattleman from Elwood, Nebraska. I visited with him to find out what’s on the agenda for the Federation here at the Cattle Industry Summer Conference. Craig says the main issue before the Federation here is the committee restructuring. He …
2012 W. D. Farr Scholarship Recipients
During the Cattle Industry Summer Conference two graduate students, one studying animal science and the other agricultural water management, received the 2012 W.D. Farr Scholarships from the National Cattlemen’s Foundation. The $12,000 awards recognize superior achievements in academics and leadership and will allow the students to further their study in fields that benefit the cattle and beef industry. The scholarships …
NCBA Leading Forward
National Cattlemen’s Beef Association CEO, Forrest Roberts, gave a passionate speech this morning during the closing business session at the Cattle Industry Summer Conference. He encouraged everyone to keep “leading forward.” I visited with him beforehand to find out what his vision is for NCBA moving ahead and he focused on three key areas, Challenge, Change and Courage. He says …