Kent Engelbrecht of ADM was elected chairman of the National Biodiesel Board in November, marking the first time that company has moved into the leadership position for the organization. “We’ve been involved in biodiesel since 2006,” said Engelbrecht. “We’ve got four plants in North America producing a lot of biodiesel, and that uses a lot of soybean oil, and that …
Most Ag Groups Pleased with Ag Secretary Choice
The agriculture industry had to wait until right up to the end to learn Trump’s choice for Secretary of Agriculture, but now that he’s nominated former Georgia Governor, Sonny Perdue, the agriculture groups seem generally pleased. National Cattlemen’s Beef Association calls him “an excellent pick” to head USDA. “As a lifelong agri-businessman and veterinarian, as well as the two-term governor …
Trump EPA Nominee Questioned on Ag Issues
Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt answered questions about regulatory overreach and his support of renewable fuels during his Senate confirmation hearing Wednesday to serve as administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) under President-elect Donald Trump. Senator Deb Fischer (R-NE), a member of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, first asked Pruitt about making sure the agency is “open, …
Trump Ag Secretary Pick Comes at Last Minute
President-elect Donald Trump will officially round out his cabinet by nominating former Georgia Governor Sonny Perdue as Secretary of Agriculture just a little more than 24 hours before the inauguration. As word about the choice spread Wednesday evening, most agricultural groups were waiting until the official announcement to respond, but one of the first was American Farm Bureau president Zippy …
Trump Team Announces Bayer Merger Promises
President-elect Trump’s transition team updated reporters yesterday on the outcome of meetings last week regarding Bayer’s acquisition of Monsanto. Trump press secretary Sean Spicer says the president-elect received commitments from Bayer CEO Werner Baumann that they would keep Monsanto in St. Louis and “retain 100 percent of Monsanto’s 9,000-plus U.S. workforce and create at least 3,000 new U.S. high-tech jobs.” …
12 Years of Blogging for Biodiesel
AgWired is on location this week in San Diego for the 14th National Biodiesel Conference, which marks our 12th year blogging for the biodiesel industry. The Biodiesel Conference Blog is a perfect example of what we do best as a company – gathering photos and audio from an event and making it available online quickly for anyone who might want …
Vilsack’s New Job is Official
With the inauguration of President Trump just days away, the Cabinet position of Agriculture Secretary remains vacant but former Secretary Tom Vilsack has already moved on and will be taking a new job as president and CEO of the U.S. Dairy Export Council on February 1. “Growing the global market for U.S. dairy products is essential to the future of …
CNH Industrial Names Danford to New Position
CNH Industrial has named Dan Danford to the new position of Industry Relations Manager, Precision Solutions and Telematics (PS&T). CNH Industrial is the parent company of Case IH and New Holland Agriculture and Construction brands. Danford will represent the interests and global strategic direction of CNH Industrial with key precision-facing organizations and partners, with an emphasis in North America and …
USFRA at #AFBF17
One of the new exhibitors at the American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF) 2017 Annual Convention & IDEAg Trade Show in Phoenix this week was the U.S. Farmers and Ranchers Alliance (USFRA), a group that AFBF was instrumental in creating five years ago. USFRA Senior Manager for Affiliate Relations and Ag Communications Paul Spooner chatted with Farm Bureau members at the …
NASDA and @FarmBureau Presidents Town Hall
American Farm Bureau Federation President Zippy Duvall held a town hall meeting with National Association of State Departments of Agriculture President and Louisiana Agriculture Commissioner Mike Strain this week at the 2017 Annual Convention & IDEAg Trade Show to discuss issues critical to American agriculture, including who the next agriculture secretary might be. “The only thing I can tell you …