This isn’t the first time Steve Sonka has been a keynote speaker at Info Ag in St. Louis, Missouri, but last time he spoke he focused on Big Data. Today his message has changed. “Big data is only part of the opportunity in production agriculture,” Sonka told me. “I talked today about digital ag. What that refers to is the …
Update on FMC’s Dupont Transaction
During the InfoExpo at this year’s Ag Media Summit I visited with Tom Becker, FMC Retail Market Manager, and got an update on the pending transaction with Dupont. Tom says expectations are that the deal will be finalized during the 4th quarter this year. FMC is acquiring certain products from Dupont which Tom says will put the company into the …
Setting Peanut Priorities for the Farm Bill
Every farm bill gets a little more difficult to pass with an increasingly urban Congress, which is why the peanut industry needs an advocate like Bob Redding in Washington, D.C. Redding has already been involved in early farm bill preparations, such as the first House Ag Committee listening session held recently in Gainesville, Florida. Today, he will attend the Senate …
Bayer Building on Credenz Momentum
Credenz® soybeans continue to build momentum. This year, Bayer released 10 new Credenz soybean varieties with smart genetics and even more are expected for 2018, pending label approval for Balance® Bean herbicide later this year. “We’re launching a new trait, the Balance™ GT soybean, which will be an exciting new trait for growers to use for managing resistant weeds,” said …
Congressmen Talk Farm Bill at Peanut Meeting
U.S. Representatives Mike Rogers (R-AL) and Austin Scott (R-GA) both shared their perspectives on the new administration, gridlock in Congress, and the outlook for a 2018 farm bill at the 2017 Southern Peanut Growers Conference Saturday. “It’s going to be a tough fight, I don’t want anybody to fool themselves,” said Rep. Rogers about getting the next farm bill passed …
Peanut Growers Navigating the Marketplace
The theme for the 19th annual Southern Peanut Growers Conference theme is Navigating the Marketplace and this marks the 10th year in a row for us to attend and populate the conference blog for this great group of farmers from Alabama, Florida, Georgia and Mississippi. This is the second year the event has been held at the Sandestin Resort on …
ZimmCast with FLM Harvest CEO
We recently published the announcement about the Harvest PR & Marketing acquisition by FLM+ and I thought it would be interesting to have a conversation with Rob McClelland, president/CEO, of what will now be known as FLM Harvest. So, that’s this week’s program. Rob and I have a conversation about how this deal came to be and what it means …
U.S. Rice Heading to China
History was made this week when an agreement permitting US rice exports to China was signed during bi-lateral trade meetings held in Washington DC. An inspection of US rice mills and packaging facilities by the Chinese phytosanitary authorities is the next step to take place. The first exports to China will take several months but will provide a boost to …
Arkansas Cattlemen Take On the Black Headed Vulture
Cattle producers seek depredation order from the U.S. Fish & Wildlife service allowing producers to control an invasive vulture species stalking and killing livestock. I was recently in North Central Arkansas where I saw first hand the devastation the Black Headed Vulture leaves in its wake. Adam McClung, Executive Vice President, Arkansas Cattlemen’s Association (ACA), said, “The Black Headed Vultures …
Senator Blasts Ethanol from the Floor
As over 200 corn growers were meeting in the nation’s capitol this week, Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-OK) blasted corn ethanol in an attempt to kill legislation that would allow 15% ethanol blends to be sold year round, instead of being restricted in some areas during the summer months. Inhofe began his speech by complaining that “the fossil fuel industry has …