- Three people are finalists in the annual #RootedinAg Contest, hosted by Syngenta. The competition invites members of the ag community to share the inspiring stories of their mentors. Each 2020 finalist embodies a different aspect of the industry: Hannah Borg, a young farmer from Wayne, Nebraska, who pays tribute to the 86-year-old matriarch of her sixth-generation farming family; Stephon Fitzpatrick, a doctoral student at the University of Maryland Eastern Shore and community leader whose high school FFA adviser set in motion an incredible ag journey; and DeLeon Pope, an independent certified crop adviser in Clinton, North Carolina, who used the lessons his farmer father taught him to create a successful business built on respect, hard work and perseverance.
- An important step forward to driving demand for corn was recently achieved, thanks to the work of state and national corn growers staff and members of the National Corn Growers Association Market Development Action Team. In the most recent Funding Opportunity Announcement, the Department of Energy’s Bioenergy Technologies Office clarified that corn grain is an acceptable feedstock. This means that starch derived sugars, specifically starches from field/feed corn, were clarified as acceptable.
- Steven Schauer has joined the Dairy Business Association and Edge Dairy Farmer Cooperative, where he is helping shine a brighter light on the good work of the sister organizations’ members.
- The Alabama Peanut Producers Association is looking to hire a Communications Coordinator. Please direct cover letters and resumes to Executive Director, Jacob Davis, at jdavis@alpeanuts.com.
- Renewable Energy Group, Inc. announced that the company has hired Trisha Conley to serve as Vice President, People Development effective August 24, 2020.
- The virtual National Agrimarketing Conference runs August 11-13 and registration is still open. All of the content from the event will be accessible on-demand also so you can watch it anytime. Register here https://web.nama.org/events/2020AMC-359/details.
- GROWMARK, Inc. and Southern States Cooperative announced today plans to close on a transaction Sept. 1, 2020, that aligns the organizations operationally to yield increased innovation, growth, and returns for the farmer-owners of both cooperative systems.
- The American Farm Bureau Federation is asking the USDA to extend the application deadline for the Coronavirus Food Assistance Program. AFBF, along with 27 other agriculture organizations, sent a letter to USDA Secretary Sonny Perdue requesting the deadline be pushed beyond August 28, 2020.
