Farmers and ranchers are concerned about President Trump’s “Taxpayer First” budget released this week but Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue defended significant cuts to USDA in the name of balancing the budget. “I don’t think there’s any reason to sugar coat this,” Perdue said to reporters on a press call Tuesday. “But I believe the people knew what they were doing …
ZimmCast with @IFAJ Presidents at #ONE17
The most recent four presidents of the International Federation of Agricultural Journalists (IFAJ), representing four different countries, attended this week’s Alltech Ideas Conference and Cindy’s Golden ZimmComm Microphone got a work out interviewing them for this week’s program. Cindy interviewed, in chronological order, past presidents David Markey of Ireland, Markus Rediger of Switzerland, and Mike Wilson of the United States, …
George Blankenship Receives Alltech Medal of Excellence
Alltech founder Dr. Pearse Lyons presented former Tesla Motors, Apple Computer and GAP Inc. executive George Blankenship with the Alltech Medal of Excellence at ONE: The Alltech Ideas Conference in Lexington, Kentucky this week. Alltech’s highest accolade, the medal is awarded annually to someone of great accomplishment and leadership. Previous honorees include former U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell and …
Alltech Celebrates Joy of Disruption
Dr. Pearse Lyons has built a small empire from modest beginnings in Lexington, Kentucky in 1980 and he has done it all by being disruptive. “The question is what disruptive road are you on?” Dr. Lyons asked at the beginning of his presentation during the opening session of ONE: The Alltech Ideas Conference 2017 – Disrupt the Disruptors. Lyons talked …
SMART Farmer Scott VanderWal
In this episode of the SMART Farmer podcast we meet Scott VanderWal, a third-generation corn and soybean farmer and cattle feeder from Volga, South Dakota. In addition to operating the family farm with his father and brothers, Scott serves as vice president of the American Farm Bureau Federation, president of the South Dakota Farm Bureau, and is a board member …
It’s Time to Disrupt the Disruptors
Disruption is everywhere. Disruptive ideas are impacting the way we farm. This year ONE: The Alltech Ideas Conference is centered around creating a world-wide disruption of your own. We are just days away from the awe-inspiring event and spoke with Aidan Connolly, Alltech’s Chief Innovation Officer & Vice President, to learn what Disrupt the Disruptors really means. Aidan said the …
AEM Holds Rural Broadband Access Panel
The Association of Equipment Manufacturers (AEM) hosted Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Bill Northey and representatives from equipment manufacturers John Deere and HammerHead Trenchless for a panel discussion on Capitol Hill on May 18th focused on the expansion of rural broadband access as part of lawmakers’ work this year on infrastructure. The event was in conjunction with Infrastructure Week 2017 and …
Soil Health Institute Announces Action Plan
The Soil Health Institute (SHI) today unveiled the “Enriching Soil, Enhancing Life” Soil Health Action Plan during a National Press Club event. “This is an exciting time to be working in soil health,” said SHI president and CEO Wayne Honeycutt. “The action plan identifies critical goals and priorities. It helps identify key gaps in our knowledge and implementation…and we’ve identified …
Secretary Perdue Testifies at First Hearing
Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue testified at his first hearing as the new head of USDA. The House Agriculture Committee welcomed Perdue to Capitol Hill Wednesday to testify on the “State of the Rural Economy.” Perdue acknowledged that the current state of the rural economy is challenging. “Our farm economy is down about a 50 percent drop in net income …
Nebraska Governor Praises Grain Trade with Mexico
Nebraska Governor Pete Ricketts asked grain industry officials from Mexico and the United States join him Tuesday for a press conference to highlight the importance of Mexico to U.S. agriculture and how the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) has benefited both countries. “Bilateral trade with Mexico has helped grow agriculture in our state over the years,” said Governor Ricketts. …