Yesterday was a brand new day for BASF as the Chemical Company marked its entry into seeds, non-selective herbicides and nematicide seed treatments. BASF closed on its acquisition of businesses and assets from Bayer, and has renamed the division from Crop Protection to Agricultural Solutions. “It strengthens our market position in agricultural solutions and creates new opportunities for growth,” said …
Stoneville Varieties at Milan No-Till Field Day
The Milan No-Till Crop Production Field Day is one of the most far-ranging agricultural field days in the nation. This year’s event started out with cool weather and a good crowd. “Although we’ve diversified the field day program over the years, our goal remains the same as the first No-Till Field Day — to provide farmers with in-depth information that …
Peanut Growers Pleased with Farm Bill Provisions
Peanut industry lobbyist Bob Redding spoke with those gathered at the 2018 Southern Peanut Growers Conference about key provisions in this year’s farm bill. Important items Redding discussed included a $535 reference price and $355 marketing loan, as well as a separate peanut payment limit. Redding also spoke about storage and handling provisions, which he called a target in this …
ASTA Responds to EU Ruling on Gene Editing
The European Union Court of Justice ruled this week that gene edited crops should be treated the same genetically modified organisms (GMOs). The court ruled that “organisms obtained by mutagenesis are GMOs within the meaning of the GMO Directive,” however it does not apply to gene-editing techniques which “have conventionally been used and have a long safety record.” The American …
AMVAC THIMET Helps Fight Tomato Spotted Wilt
AMVAC insecticide THIMET is a tried and true organophosphate for the control of sucking pests, mites and other major insects in a wide variety of crops, including peanuts. AMVAC technical service rep Wen Carter says THIMET also helps protect against tomato spotted wilt virus. “Over the past 4-5 years we’ve seen an increase in incidence of tomato spotted wilt virus …
EPA Approves Sorghum Oil as Biofuels Pathway
Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Andrew Wheeler yesterday announced the approval of sorghum oil as an eligible feedstock under the Renewable Fuel Standard during a signing event at EPA headquarters in Washington, D.C., with sorghum farmers and other stakeholders. In December 2017, the EPA released a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) concerning renewable fuels produced from sorghum oil under the RFS …
USDA Announces Trade Disruption Relief for Farmers
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) will take several actions to assist farmers negatively impacted by recent trade actions. President Trump directed Secretary Perdue to craft a short-term relief strategy to protect agricultural producers while the Administration works on free, fair, and reciprocal trade deals to open more markets in the long run to help American farmers compete globally. Specifically, …
Growth Energy Ad Stresses Ethanol’s Importance to Farmers
Growth Energy has a new television ad running that casts a spotlight on the repeated calls from rural America for pro-biofuel policies from President Trump and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). “Rural America is hurting, and these communities are counting on President Trump and his administration to uphold his promise to support biofuels,” said Growth Energy CEO Emily Skor. “The …
NewLeaf Symbiotics Offers New Class of Biologicals
NewLeaf Symbiotics launched a new class of agricultural biologicals this year. Terrasym™ nutrient-enhancing products are natural, beneficial biologicals called M-trophs. Terrasym 401 is a seed treatment for soybeans that maximizes the yield potential by enhancing plant nutrition and Terrasym 402 is a bio-complement applied to peanuts that provides season-long performance and significantly higher yields. Both products are marketed through a …
New FMC Fungicide for Peanuts Coming Soon
FMC Agricultural Solutions joined the Southern Peanut Growers Conference family this year as a new sponsor. Regional sales rep Cindy Kurtz was pleased to attend the event and talk about what they have to offer peanut farmers, including a new fungicide with expected registration in 2019. “Lucento is going to be a fantastic product for peanut farmers in the southeast …