With the Senate poised to vote on comprehensive immigration reform this week, USDA held a forum on the issue Friday in Kansas City, featuring Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, former Kansas City mayor and current Congressman Emanuel Cleaver, and representatives of the nation’s dairy industry. “We are blessed by the most productive, most innovative and most hard-working farmers and ranchers,” Vilsack …
Join #TeamAgChat
It’s team building time for the AgChat Foundation. Have you joined the team yet? If you’re active on Twitter then follow or use #TeamAgChat to help the organization reach it’s goal this week of raising $10,000. The #TeamAgChat event is live and will conclude on June 28. I got my donation taken care of and hope you will too. If …
New Trustees and Directors for Farm Foundation
Farm Foundation names three to their Board of Trustees and another two to their Board of Directors. The group says the three new trustees come from the food and agribusiness value chain: Elected were William Buckner, CEO of the Samuel Roberts Noble Foundation; David Cleary, Director of Global Agriculture for The Nature Conservancy; and Jerome Lyman, Vice President, Quality Systems …
Montgomery Stockyards Hosted LMA Event
The 2013 Livestock Marketing Association’s Annual Meeting and World Livestock Auctioneer Championship recently took place in Montgomery, Alabama. The Montgomery Stockyards took the honor of hosting the convention and sponsored the Friday night meal and entertainment. Jerry Etheridge with Montgomery Stockyards met guests at Union Station where the event was held and Chuck met up with him there. The team …
Honey Bee Health at Bayer
Time to add bee care to the endless list of projects Bayer has taken on. During Bayer’s 150th Anniversary attendees had the opportunity to take in the mobile bee exhibit that is touring the country through trade shows and meetings. Robyn Kneed is the project lead for Bee Care at Bayer. She manages the bee camp programs throughout North America. …
NCGA Tools for Water Quality
To help corn farmers understand water issues and ways to enhance water quality on their farms, the National Corn Growers Association has added a video and an interactive educational module to its online learning tools concerning water quality management. The video, titled “Driving Change,” showcases NCGA members describing the practices they are implementing to enhance water quality on their farms …
Danforth Receives IFAMA Award
Dr. William H. Danforth was honored by the International Food and Agribusiness Management Association (IFAMA) with the organization’s inaugural Distinguished Service Award for his significant contributions to education, plant and life sciences, and advancements in agriculture. “Dr. Danforth’s positive influence on agricultural sciences is immeasurable,” said Thad Simons, president and CEO of Novus International, and incoming president of IFAMA. “From …
Farm Bill Blame Game
The shock over the defeat of the farm bill in the U.S. House of Representatives had barely sunk in Thursday when the blame game began. It started on the floor of the House when Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-VA) was giving an update on next week’s schedule and Minority Whip Steney Hoyer (D-VA) asked whether the student loan program would …
Trust the Technology
Choosing how much nitrogen (N) to put on fields isn’t something farmers take lightly. Many factors go into the decision, including past experiences, the timing of application, yield goals, and results from soil tests. That’s where crop sensor products such as OptRX from Ag Leader can help. When the OptRx sensors detect healthy plants, the system will call for less …
Zimfo Bytes
The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced that Walla Walla sweet onion producers will vote from September 14, 2013 through October 4, 2013, on whether to continue their Federal marketing order. The Farm Credit Administration Board has appointed Elizabeth M. Dean as the Inspector General for the agency. Ms. Dean succeeds Carl Clinefelter who retired earlier this year. Dr. William H. …