Tom Burkgren, DVM, Exec. Dir., American Association of Swine Veterinarians, sure seems to love his job. In the middle of an annual meeting with about 1,200 people attending and over 160 speakers you’d think the stress would be showing. But nooo. He’s smiling and tonight he’ll be one of the auctioneers at the AASV Foundation live fundraiser. So even with …
Supreme Court Declines Chesapeake Bay Review
There will be no Supreme Court review of the Environmental Protection Agency’s total maximum daily load (TMDL) restrictions in the Chesapeake Bay region, referred to as EPA’s “blueprint” for restoring the bay. The American Farm Bureau Federation and a coalition of agricultural and builder groups asked the Supreme Court last November to review a lower court ruling that “allows the …
FMC Talks Grower Benefit Programs
The team at FMC is offering growers a number of benefit programs for the coming year, and Retail Market Manager Lester Scott sat down for an interview at the 2016 Mid-South Farm & Gin Show to discuss three programs that benefit southern rice and soybean growers in particular. FMC is offering rice growers a $1 per acre rebate when they …
Issues Facing Swine Producers in 2016
I met Neil Dierks, CEO, National Pork Producers Council, in New Orleans and got to talk with him about issues facing swine producers this year. A big one has to do with food security. He says, “The world is shrinking. Globalization is real which means pathogens can cross borders very rapidly which can raise questions on health in the herds.” …
Record Year At Mid-South Farm & Gin Show
The 64th Annual 2016 Mid South Farm & Gin Show was held last week at the Cook Convention Center in Memphis, Tennessee. The event has been held in the same location since its beginning, and is sponsored by the Southern Cotton Ginners Association(SCGA). The spacious facility offered the 17,000 attendees a four-story trade show, hosting 400 exhibitors from around 40 …
Swine Vets Learn from Other Animal Ag Vets
Prior to the start of the American Association of Swine Veterinarians (AASV) in New Orleans, a group of swine vets heard from their counterparts in cattle, poultry and aquaculture during a Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica (BIVI) seminar. Dr. Nels Lindberg of Kansas belongs to a team of veterinarians known as Production Animal Consultation. For him, the most important controllable factor for …
BIVI Starts Healthy at #AASV2016
Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica Inc. (BIVI) got the 2016 American Association of Swine Veterinarians meeting off to a healthy start Friday with a twist on their traditional pre-AASV Swine Health Seminar, hearing from vets in other animal agriculture fields. “It was a very unique program, different than what we’ve had in the past,” said Dr. Nathan Schaefer, BIVI Professional Service Veterinarian. …
Zimfo Bytes
Rhea + Kaiser announces the promotion of two current staff along with the return of a former employee. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced the selection of Dr. Warren Preston as U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Deputy Chief Economist, effective February 21. Swanson Russell announces three new employees: Max Maguire, Liz McCue and Katie Scherer. Monsanto Company announced it has officially …
Purdue President Calls for End to GMO Attacks
Purdue University President Mitch Daniels on Thursday (Feb. 25) called on leaders in the public, private and nonprofit sectors to push back against the attackers of biotechnology in agricultural production. Daniels was a keynote speaker at the annual Agricultural Outlook Forum in Arlington. “The attack on GMO technology is the most blatant anti-science of the age, but it is far …
Phytobiomes Roadmap Released
A collaboration has released a new Phytobiomes Roadmap that presents a new vision for agriculture to increase health, productivity, and sustainability of current cropping and forest systems. Led by the Phytobiomes organization, the Roadmap, according to the group, outlines a strategic plan for acquiring critical knowledge of how all of the components on a farm interact and affect each other. …