SAN Agrow Announces Launch of Duralev™ Fungicide
Following the recent signing of a distribution agreement with Agrauxine, SAN Agrow crop protection company announces the launch of Duralev™, a breakthrough preventative foliar fungicide that strengthens the company’s sustainable solutions portfolio ahead of the 2026 season.
Duralev represents a new class of crop protection tools. Unlike conventional fungicides, it is composed of a non-living organism that activates the plant’s own defense system through Systemic Resistance Induction (SRI). By priming key defense pathways, crops are better equipped to withstand pathogen pressure throughout the season.
For distributors, Duralev offers a unique and highly complementary addition to SAN Agrow’s fungicide program. The product’s broad crop applicability, OMRI listing, and tank-mix flexibility make it a versatile solution that integrates seamlessly into both organic and conventional programs, giving partners an additional mode of action to differentiate their offering and strengthen market positioning.
Duralev™ is approved for use specialty crops such as tree fruit, tree nuts, grapes, berries, vegetables, potatoes, and leafy greens. Initial market availability will include Arizona, Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Michigan, New Jersey, New York, Georgia, and Florida, with registration in additional market, including California, expected to follow soon after.
98th National FFA Convention & Expo Underway
The 98th National FFA Convention & Expo is underway in Indianapolis, IN. You can find news releases in the convention media center.
National FFA announced yesterday that the National FFA Convention & Expo will continue to be held in Indianapolis through at least 2040. The announcement was made during the kickoff event for the 98th National FFA Convention & Expo, which is expected to bring more than 71,000 FFA members, advisors, alumni and supporters to Indianapolis from across the country.
“We’re thrilled about the opportunity to continue calling Indianapolis home for our convention through 2040,” said Cheryl Zimmerman, National FFA Organization Executive Secretary. “This city has proven time and again to be an incredible partner, welcoming our members with open arms, providing world-class facilities, and helping us create life-changing experiences for students in agricultural education. Extending our convention contract ensures we can keep building on that strong foundation and inspiring the next generation of agricultural leaders for years to come.”
You can find the schedule here and there are many live stream channels to watch if you can’t be there.
Animal Ag News 10/29
Agtonomy Secures Funding for Physical AI Adoption
Ag software and services company Agtonomy has secured $18 million series B funding to accelerate physical AI adoption in agriculture and other off-road industries.
This investment was led by DBL Partners, a pioneering double bottom line venture capital firm renowned for early investments in Tesla, SpaceX, and Farmers Business Network, with participation from new investor Nuveen, one of the world’s largest owners and operators of agricultural land—managing over 2 million acres globally. Existing investors Autotech, Allison Transmission, Rethink Food, and Black Forest Ventures also participated in the round.
“Agtonomy is at an exciting inflection point as we expand our commercial footprint and bring physical AI into everyday field operations,” said Tim Bucher, founder and CEO of Agtonomy.
The new capital will be used to advance Agtonomy’s physical AI platform, expand equipment integrations with OEM partners, and scale commercial deployments across agriculture and adjacent off-road industries with the goal of helping operators cut labor costs and improve safety and sustainability in orchards, vineyards, fields, and managed green spaces.
“DBL seeks out mission-driven, execution-orientated companies that not only disrupt their industries, but also deliver real-world benefits,” said Jake Harris of DBL Partners, who is joining Agtonomy’s Board. “Agtonomy fits squarely into the legacy of DBL’s portfolio by ushering in the next wave of highly-scalable, customer-centric physical AI in a way that delivers tangible performance gains and cost-savings, while setting a new standard for sustainability and profitability in food production and off-road industries worldwide.”
DWFI Podcast 46 – Nebraska Know Your Well Youth Program
This episode of the Water for Food Podcast explores a unique initiative that puts water quality testing directly into the hands of high school students across Nebraska. Sara Brock-Contreras, a PhD student advised by Dr. Dan Snow, joins us to discuss her work on the Know Your Well program — an innovative educational and participatory science effort that equips students with the tools, training, and confidence to test domestic wells in their communities.
Through hands-on learning, students gain a deeper understanding of water quality, local geology, and science communication while generating real data about local water quality. Sara shares how this interdisciplinary program is inspiring and engaging the next generation of water leaders.
Learn more about the UNL Nebraska Water Center’s Know Your Well program at https://knowyourwell.unl.edu/.
Listen here or subscribe on your favorite podcast platform:
DWFI podcast episode 46 26:31
The Robert B. Daugherty Water for Food Global Institute (DWFI) at the University of Nebraska was founded with the mission to have a lasting and significant impact on achieving more food security with less pressure on scarce water resources by conducting scientific and policy research, using the research results to inform policy makers, and sharing knowledge through education and communication.
How to subscribe:
Industry Ag News 10/24
ZimmCast 752 – Farm Journal Ad Insights
Hello and welcome to the ZimmCast. I’m Chuck Zimmerman.
In this episode you’ll learn all about Farm Journal’s new Ad Insight tool which is new to the agrimarketing industry. It’s a first for a digital advertising analytics solution. Talking with me is Prescott Shibles, Farm Journal CEO.
Farm Journal has launched a new ad insights tool, which is the agriculture industry’s first universal digital advertising analytics solution designed specifically for agrimarketers who want to measure, optimize and prove the impact of every digital dollar.
As digital budgets grow and audience attention fragments across channels, agrimarketers need more than siloed reports. They need a single view of what is working and what is not working. Farm Journal’s ad insights tool delivers that clarity, providing a unified, real-time analytics resource that connects all major platforms and ad formats in one place.
“In today’s digital landscape, agrimarketers need more than just data, they need insight, context and confidence,” said Prescott Shibles, Farm Journal CEO. “This ad insights tool delivers measurable value, transparency and performance benchmarks in ways the industry has never had before.”
Listen to the episode here:
ZimmCast 752 - Farm Journal Ad Insights (12:25)
That’s the ZimmCast for now. If you have some exciting news in the agrimarketing world, feel free to contact me for the next episode. Just email Chuck at chuck@zimmcomm.biz.
We hope you enjoyed it and thank you for listening.
Subscribe to the ZimmCast in:
Battle Over Beef
There’s been a lot of back and forth about beef this week between the Trump administration and the U.S. beef cattle industry after President Trump suggested importing beef from Argentina to address high prices. “We would buy some beef from Argentina. If we do that, that will bring our beef prices down,” Trump said to reporters on Sunday.
“The National Cattlemen’s Beef Association and its members cannot stand behind the President while he undercuts the future of family farmers and ranchers by importing Argentinian beef in an attempt to influence prices,” said NCBA CEO Colin Woodall. “If President Trump is truly an ally of America’s cattle producers, we call on him to abandon this effort to manipulate markets and focus instead on the promised New World Screwworm facilities in Texas; making additional investments that protect the domestic cattle herd from foreign animal diseases such as FMD; and addressing regulatory burdens, such as delisting of the gray wolf and addressing the scourge of black vultures.”
In response, the Trump administration released a plan to strengthen the American beef industry. U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins, Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum, Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr., and Small Business Administrator Kelly Loeffler announced a suite of actions, including increased grazing access, cutting inspection costs, and growing markets.
“USDA will immediately expedite deregulatory reforms, boost processing capacity, including getting more locally raised beef into schools, and working across the government to fix longstanding common-sense barriers for ranchers like outdated grazing restrictions,” said Rollins.
The plan also includes enforcement of the voluntary ‘Product of USA’ rule that goes into effect next year ensuring that only products that have been born, raised, and slaughtered in the United States will be eligible to make U.S.-origin labeling claims.
The plan was released in the wake of remarks President Trump made on Truth Social Wednesday. “The Cattle Ranchers, who I love, don’t understand that the only reason they are doing so well, for the first time in decades, is because I put Tariffs on cattle coming into the United States, including a 50% Tariff on Brazil… If it weren’t for me, they would be doing just as they’ve done for the past 20 years — Terrible! It would be nice if they would understand that, but they also have to get their prices down, because the consumer is a very big factor in my thinking, also!”
In a Fox Business interview on Thursday, Rollins discussed the plan, stressed President Trump’s love and respect for farmers and ranchers, and downplayed the significance of the Argentina beef deal, which expands Argentina’s low-tariff beef import quota to 80,000 metric tons annually from the previous limit of 20,000 metric tons.
“Currently, Americans consume 12 million metric tons of beef, 10 million we produce in this country, 2 million we import,” said Rollins. “The Argentinian piece is only about currently 20,000 under a tariff quota… out of 12 million, that would be 20,000 every quarter. This is not a massive influx in the millions of tons, I think, that some have thought of beef from Argentina.”
Listen to Rollins’ comments on Fox here:
Rollins remarks on Fox Business 10/23/25 4:12
Precision Ag News 10/22