- With the Caterpillar Development Bursary Fund, IFAJ encourages members to pursue the extraordinary in search of personal professional development and wider IFAJ progress. Scholars must complete their travel by May 31, 2020. They must also be prepared to make a presentation, send a poster or deliver a written report to the 2020 IFAJ Congress in Denmark in June 2020. Any member of an IFAJ member guild in good standing may apply. Visit the IFAJ website for rules, details and an online application today! Application deadline is December 20, 2019.
- The National Pork Board has named two new executives to its leadership team. Bryan Humphreys has been named the vice president of producer, state and industry relations, and Jacque Matsen has been named vice president of strategic communications. Both will assume their new roles Dec. 16.
- Some of the nation’s leading agriculture experts and well-known personalities will be featured on the Main Stage during the 2020 Commodity Classic held Thursday, Feb. 27 through Saturday, Feb. 29 in San Antonio, Texas. Registration and housing for the 2020 Commodity Classic are now available at www.CommodityClassic.com. A complete schedule of events and additional details are also available on the website.
- United States Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer and U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue are pleased to announce that the Trump Administration has reached an agreement with the government of South Korea on market access for U.S. rice. Under the agreement, Korea will provide access for 132,304 tons of U.S. rice annually, with an annual value of approximately $110 million. Korea also agreed to important disciplines to ensure transparency and predictability around the tendering and auctioning for U.S. rice.
- Yakima Chief Hops, the leading grower-owned hop supplier for the craft beer industry, welcomes four additional family farms to its list of owners – the first time the ownership group has expanded since 2014.
- In a lead up to the Sustainable Agriculture Summit in Indianapolis, the Ecosystem Services Market Consortium (ESMC) and the Foundation for Food and Agriculture Research (FFAR) jointly announced on November 19 the award of $10.3 million from FFAR to establish the research component of ESMC that supports the development of a national environmental credit marketplace.
- AJ Cisney, Chair of the Board of Directors for UnitedAg and the Education Committee, announced that the Directors awarded 10 Vocational Scholarships for the 2019-2020 calendar year. For more information, visit www.unitedag.org.
- Farmers and ranchers take home just 12.1 cents from every dollar that consumers spend on their Thanksgiving dinner meals, according to the annual Thanksgiving edition of the National Farmers Union Farmer’s Share publication.
- Long-time independent agronomist Brock L. Taylor, of Clovis, has be named to the Nuffield International Farming Scholars – USA Board of Directors.
- The Association of Equipment Manufacturers announces the newest inductee to the AEM Hall of Fame: Mary Andringa of Vermeer Corp.
- The Association of Equipment Manufacturers announced its 2020 officers as well as directors elected to the AEM Board of Directors and AG and CE Sector Boards at its recent annual business meeting. The 2020 Chair is Jeffrey Reed, President & CEO, Reed International/VSS Macropaver.
- EFC Systems, Inc. announced Amy Krauth has been named Vice President, E.R.P. Sales. In this new role, Krauth will lead the team dedicated to selling the Merchant Ag Enterprise Resource Planning solution.
- Farm Foundation is pleased to announce the names of six exceptional students who have been named 2020 Farm Foundation Cultivators. The 2020 Cultivators are: Adam Bitnner, Iowa State University; Sara Gammon, Kansas State University; Sara Klopatek, University of California, Davis; Conner McDaniel, Oklahoma State University; Joni Shaffery, California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo; and Chloe Smith Lopez, University of Florida.
- Lawain Biermann, farm manager at Hertz Farm Management in Cedar Falls, Iowa, was named the 2019 Professional Farm Manager of the Year. The award, co-sponsored by Syngenta, Farm Journal’s AgPro magazine and the American Society of Farm Managers and Rural Appraisers, recognizes farm managers who display excellence in client service and a commitment to agriculture.
- The Agricultural Retailers Association commends the Environmental Protection Agency in its issuance of the Risk Management Program (RMP) Reconsideration Final Rule.
- U.S. Farmers & Ranchers Alliance (USFRA) recently seated its 2020 Board of Directors and elected members to the Executive Committee. Chip Bowling, representing the National Corn Growers Association, will serve as chairman of the organization for a second year.
