The recent ASTA 2018 CSS and Seed Expo was a great venue for BASF to showcase its Seed Solutions business, including the launch of Vault® IP Plus seed treatment and Obvius® Plus fungicide seed treatment. “We decided we were going to create a whole new business unit in North America … a seed solutions business really focused on seed treatments,” …
Precision Ag Bytes 12/19
Ceres Imaging, which provides science-backed aerial images to growers, has announced the release of its new Cumulative Stress Index. The index combines Ceres Imaging’s various imagery indices into a single metric to assess overall plant stress over a growing season and strongly correlates to actual yield results. Topcon Agriculture announces the release of the NORAC Tillage Depth Control system, leveraging …
FMC Working on Soybean Gall Midge Control
A new pest is popping up in soybean fields across the country – the orange gall midge. “It’s a very tiny fly that lays its eggs in the stem of a soybean plant,” said FMC Agricultural Solutions subject matter expert Bob Hooten during an interview at the annual NAFB Trade Talk last month in Kansas City. Bright orange maggots develop …
USGC Releases Latest Corn Harvest Quality Report
A warm and moist growing season resulted in near-record yields and good quality for the 2018 corn crop, according to the U.S. Grain Council’s (USGC) 2018/2019 Corn Harvest Quality Report. The report revealed the majority of 2018 corn crop conditions were rated as good or excellent during the growing season, leading to strong plant health, good kernel size and a …
Latest AEM Ag Tractor and Combine Report
The latest Association of Equipment Manufacturers’ (AEM) Ag Tractor and Combine Report from November shows overall sales remained positive. U.S. Sales of self-propelled combines gained 9.2 percent in November compared to last year, and U.S. sales of 4-wheel-drive tractors increased 60.7 percent month-over-month. November year-to-date U.S. sales showed a 16.6 percent growth for combines and 15.9 percent growth for 4-wheel-drive …
USDA Launches ReConnect Program
USDA is offering up to $600 million in loans and grants to help build broadband infrastructure in rural America. Telecommunications companies, rural electric cooperatives and utilities, internet service providers and municipalities may apply for funding through USDA’s new ReConnect Program to connect rural areas that currently have insufficient broadband service. “High-speed internet e-Connectivity is a necessity, not an amenity, vital …
Former Agriculture Secretaries Meet
Just days after the passing of former Secretary of Agriculture Bob Bergland, four former secretaries met with current Secretary Sonny Perdue to discuss the latest agricultural issues. Those in attendance included former Secretaries John Block (1981-1986), Dan Glickman (1995-2001), Ann Veneman (2001-2005), and Mike Johanns (2005-2008). The Secretaries discussed several issues including trade, wildfires, agriculture research, infrastructure, cell-based meat, and …
USFRA Announces New Chair, Board Members, and Podcast
Maryland crop farmer Chip Bowling, representing National Corn Growers Association, is the new chair for the U.S. Farmers and Ranchers Alliance (USFRA) elected last month at the coalition fall board meeting along with new executive committee and board members. Bowling, who is the fourth chairman of the group, is joined by a new executive committee: • Vice Chair: Scott VanderWal, …
Praise for Farm Bill Soil Carbon Pilot Program
Several organizations are pleased that the new farm bill includes a climate-friendly soil carbon pilot program. The American Coalition for Ethanol (ACE), Environmental Entrepreneurs (E2), the National Corn Growers Association (NCGA), and the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) thank the Farm Bill conferees for including language in the 2018 Farm Bill to establish an Environmental Quality Incentive Program (EQIP) pilot …
BASF Looks Forward to 2019 Growing Season
BASF continues to educate growers about one of the newest products available for the 2019 growing season in LibertyLink GT27. The new technology will offer tolerance to three different herbicide groups: Liberty, glyphosate and HPPD, pending approval. “Because it’s the first technology that you can use Liberty and glyphosate with, it really allows them to address a broad range of …