The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is seeking information from the public on protocols that may be considered for inclusion in a new Greenhouse Gas Technical Assistance Provider and Third-Party Verifier Program, the main program of the Growing Climate Solutions Act. The input is being collected through a Request for Information and will be considered in the preparation of a proposed rule to establish the program.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Office of the Chief Economist announced the appointment of Kent Lanclos to USDA’s World Agricultural Outlook Board (WAOB), serving as Chair of the Interagency Commodity Estimates Committee (ICEC) for cotton, responsible for the cotton forecasts in the World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates (WASDE) report.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Foreign Agricultural Service is accepting applications from current and potential U.S. exporters for a trade mission to Vietnam, Sept. 9-13, 2024. Participants will attend events in Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi, and will also have the opportunity to engage with visiting buyers from Burma (Myanmar), Cambodia and Thailand.
Seven FFA student members have been named U.S. Presidential Scholars — one of the nation’s highest honors for high school students — for their accomplishments in academics, the arts, and career and technical education. Of the 3.7 million students expected to graduate from high school this year, more than 5,700 candidates qualified for the 2024 award and only 161 students received the honor. A complete list of 2024 U.S. Presidential Scholars is available at http://www.ed.gov/psp.
Cornell University student Jake Zajkowski has joined the Agri-Pulse team of journalists as an intern this summer in Washington. Zajkowski is writing and conducting research for the Agri-Pulse and Agri-Pulse West newsletters and also contributing to the Agri-Pulse DriveTime podcast and Newsmakers TV show at Agri-Pulse.com. An Ohio native, he is a junior agriculture science major at Cornell, with experience as a farm broadcaster for the Ohio Ag Net, a staffer in the Ohio Legislature, a strategic partners intern with the Ohio Farm Bureau and an international dialogues intern for the World Food Prize Foundation.
Machinery Pete, LLC, a leading online marketplace for used farm and construction equipment, announced its partnership with FBN Finance, a trusted provider of agricultural financing solutions including farm equipment loans. FBN Finance will be the premier finance partner for MachineryPete.com, offering farmers a direct link to FBN Finance’s secure and straightforward application process.
American Vanguard Corporation announced that, after 35 years in the agrochemical industry, Executive Vice President & Chief Operating Officer, Bob Trogele, will be retiring effective May 31, 2024. Mr. Trogele joined the company’s principal operating subsidiary, AMVAC, in January 2015 to focus on growing the business across multiple product lines and geographies, achieving greater profitability, and establishing a pipeline of future opportunities through innovation and strategic relationships.
Syngenta Crop Protection announced that Riley Titus has accepted the position of state affairs lead, effective May 20, 2024, reporting to David Flakne, head of U.S. State Affairs. In this role, Riley will oversee the management and implementation of legislative and regulatory priorities and stakeholder relations in key states within the western corn belt, mid-South and mid-Atlantic regions. He joins a team of four who advocate for and support the U.S. business.
Register now for the June Luncheon Meeting of the Agricultural Business Council of Kansas City: State Ag Issues featuring Kansas Secretary of Agriculture Mike Beam and Missouri Director of Agriculture Chris Chinn on Thursday, June 6, 2024 from 11:30 AM – 1:15 PM at the American Royal in Kansas City.
Cotton Australia has announced the finalists in the 2024 Australian Bayer Cotton Grower of the Year award and the AgriRisk High Achiever of the year award, with the results to be announced at the Cotton Conference on the Gold Coast in August.
On May 23, 2024, the National Association of Wheat Growers’ (NAWG) CEO Chandler Goule attended the White House State Dinner with President William Ruto and First Lady Rachel Ruto of the Republic of Kenya. Goule was chosen to participate in this event due to President William Ruto’s background in agriculture.
Purdue University researchers are developing biodegradable materials that retain water in a cleaner, more sustainable way and have much less environmental impact. Senay Simsek leads a team of researchers in Purdue’s College of Agriculture using cellulose extracted from hemp and refined through a sequence of treatments to create the patent-pending, superabsorbent materials. Simsek is a professor in and the head of the Department of Food Science, and holds the Dean’s Chair in Food Science.
