- John Deere and the National Volunteer Fire Council (NVFC) have joined forces to support the new documentary film “Odd Hours, No Pay, Cool Hat.” The film highlights diverse stories of rural volunteer firefighters from across the country and paints a portrait of these brave individuals who serve their communities. The film will soon be released nationally, and producers hope those who watch it will be inspired to sign up to be volunteer firefighters through the NVFC’s “Make Me a Firefighter” campaign.
- Several cotton farmers and their families gathered in Lubbock, Texas, last month to celebrate high-yield achievements as part of BASF’s FiberMax® One Ton Club™, a long-standing tradition now in its 18th year. The club recognizes cotton farmers who produce FiberMax yields of one ton or more. In total, 104 members representing 51 farms made this year’s club following the 2022 growing season. Walker and Erica McAnear of Mustard Seed Farms in Clarendon, Texas, achieved the highest yield with 2,670 pounds of cotton per acre.
- Combine harvester sales in the U.S. and Canada continue to grow while tractor unit sales stay close to their 5-year average according to the latest data from the Association of Equipment Manufacturers (AEM). U.S. self-propelled combine sales, grew 45 percent for the month, leading to the year-to-date gain to stay above 100 percent. Total farm tractor sales in the U.S. for the month fell 12.1 percent versus March 2022 and are down 15.1 percent year-to-date, a slight improvement from the previous month.
- The National Corn Growers Association (NCGA) is launching its fourth Consider Corn Challenge inviting participants to submit proposals for new uses of field corn as a primary feedstock for producing novel sustainable chemicals and products with quantifiable market demand. One to six winners will be selected for the Consider Corn Challenge IV, with a total prize pool of U.S. $250,000, split equally between winners. The submission deadline is June 30, 2023
- The non-profit Soil Health Academy has published detailed case studies examining the operational, production and profitability details of five regenerative farming and ranching operations across the country. The project is funded by the Wells Fargo Foundation and is designed to provide strategic and tactical insights to help guide farming and ranching enterprises as they transition from high-input, chemically dependent conventional agriculture to lower-input, more profitable regenerative operations.
- The American Farm Bureau Federation, in partnership with Farm Credit, is seeking entrepreneurs to apply online for the 2024 Farm Bureau Ag Innovation Challenge. Now in its 10th year, this national business competition showcases U.S. startup companies developing innovative solutions to challenges faced by America’s farmers, ranchers and rural communities. Farm Bureau is offering $165,000 in startup funds throughout the course of the competition, which will culminate in the top 10 semi-finalists competing in a live pitch competition in front of Farm Bureau members, investors and industry representatives at the AFBF Convention in January 2024 in Salt Lake City, Utah.
