The American Seed Trade Association (ASTA) is ending 2019 on a positive note with another successful CSS and Seed Expo in Chicago and a lot of optimism going forward. “There’s a lot of innovation in our industry today,” says ASTA president and CEO Andy LaVigne. “So we see a lot of companies coming into the market, a lot on discovery, …
ASTA Announces Student Video Contest Winner
Recent Iowa State University PhD graduate Kevin Falk was honored as the grand prize winner of the Better Seed, Better Life Student Video Contest for the second year in row during the Opening General Session of ASTA’s CSS & Seed Expo 2019 in Chicago. Falk’s PhD work focuses around harnessing technology to develop high throughput phenotyping platforms and machine learning …
Closing ARA Panel Focuses on Retail Models
The Agricultural Retailers Association (ARA) concluded its annual Conference & Expo in New Orleans last week with a panel discussion on Competing Retail Models moderated by Margy Eckelkamp, editor of AgPro. The panel featured Alexander Reichert, co-founder and CEO of AgVend; Dave Thomas, executive vice president of Helena Agri-Enterprises LLC; and John Demerly, CEO of CommoditAg. “Ag retailers are responding …
#AgRetailers19 is a Wrap
The gavel has been passed and the 2019 Agricultural Retailers Association (ARA) Conference & Expo is New Orleans is a wrap. Rod Wells of GROWMARK (pictured left) was installed as chairman of the association during the closing session of conference, succeeding Troy Johnson of Wilbur-Ellis in the role. “I am proud of the work our board of directors and ARA …
AgLink International Announced at ARA Conference
The formation of new agribusiness entity AgLink International was announced this week at the 2019 ARA Conference in New Orleans, uniting independent rural retailer membership businesses from Australia, the United States, Canada and Brazil. Founding members AgLink Australia, Integrated Agribusiness Professionals (IAP), AgLink Canada and AgriRede have come together to provide an international platform that links independent agricultural retailers serving …
ARA 2019 Retailer of the Year is Premier Ag
Premier Ag was named 2019 ARA Retailer of the Year during the Agricultural Retailers Association convention in New Orleans this week. The award, sponsored by Bayer and AgPro magazine, honors an ARA member retailer company or individual representing quality and prestige within the industry. Premier Ag is the agricultural retail branch of Premier Companies, a farmer-owned cooperative headquartered in Seymour, …
ARA Recognizes BRANDT’s Tim McArdle
Tim McArdle, executive vice president at BRANDT, was honored today with the with the Agricultural Retailers Association Distinguished Service Award for his support of the association and the agricultural retail industry. McArdle’s long-term service to ARA through participating on the board of directors and in officer roles is one reason he is being recognized; however, it is how he stepped …
Agricultural Retailers Association Conference Underway
The Agricultural Retailers Association (ARA) 2019 Conference & Expo is underway in New Orleans this week. The annual gathering draws nearly 600 agricultural retail industry professionals for speakers, educational sessions, a world-class expo and networking opportunities. Tuesday’s events included the ARA Invitational Golf Tournament and the opening of the sold-out expo hall. The industry speaker lineup includes a keynote presentation …
BASF Provides Choices to Soybean Growers
With the 2020 growing season on the horizon, BASF is excited about an expanded soybean portfolio that now includes the Credenz seed brand, several soybean seed treatments, and Liberty herbicide. “One key thing that we’re really focusing on is offering soybean growers more choices to manage their production system in that local environment,” said Nick Fassler, manager of BASF’s technical …
What’s New With FMC
FMC had a lot to talk about at the recent National Association of Farm Broadcasting (NAFB) Trade Talk. Matthew Wiggins, FMC Technical Services Manager, had a couple of new products to discuss. Authority Edge herbicide expected to be approved in 2020; and a new in-furrow fungicide called XY Way 3D. Wiggins also talked about how Lucento fungicide performed in 2019. …