Palm Desert, CA is a place you really have to want to go to. It is beautiful but can take some effort to travel to. But apparently a lot of Agricultural Retailers Association members really wanted to attend their annual conference. According to Daren Coppock, ARA President/CEO, attendance was strong. Much stronger than they even hoped for. In my last …
Soybean Leader Loves LibertyLink Real Yield Radio
This soybean grower is not using the LibertyLink system (yet). But when he listens to Cindy on Bayer CropScience’s LibertyLink Real Yield Radio it has him thinking. Real Yield Radio is the radio portion of the current Bayer CropScience campaign airing nationally. The grower is Greg Anderson, Nebraska soybean grower and industry leader. Greg is currently serving on the National …
Welcome to #ASTACSS and Seed Expo
Seed industry representatives from around the globe are gathered in the Windy City this week for the 70th Corn and Sorghum Seed Research Conference, 45th Soybean Seed Research Conference, and Seed Expo 2015 – better known at CSS 2015 and Seed Expo. “It’s in Chicago and it’s at the end of harvest, so all the seed companies get a chance …
Pirkle Receives #ARA2015 Distinguished Service Award
The Agricultural Retailers Association presented its 2015 Distinguished Service Award to Billy Pirkle, who has served as chairman of ResponsibleAg, an industry initiative which kicked off last year at this time. The organization assists fertilizer facilities with federal regulatory compliance through education, training and certification. “Agricultural retailers are already committed to stewardship and safety,” said Pirkle, who is Senior Director …
California FFA Welcomes #ARA2015
The president of the California FFA Southern Region addressed members of the Agricultural Retailers Association (ARA) meeting in Palm Desert, California last week, on behalf of the 79,000 FFA members in the state. “The FFA is giving its members the skills needed to build health communities, a strong nation, and a sustainable world,” said Samuel Looper as he welcomed ARA …
California FB President Addresses ARA
The president of the California Farm Bureau Federation welcomed members of the Agricultural Retailers Association (ARA) to his state this week for their annual meeting. Wenger talked about the importance of the agricultural industry in the United States and his home state. “As we see that today (farmers) are less than two percent of the population and in California farmers …
The Debut of Sage – A Creative Marketing Agency
BCS Communications has changed its name to Sage, A Creative Marketing Agency. The name change reflects a new strategic direction and personality of the agency nearly 13 years after it was founded by company partners Leigh Ann Cleaver and Kelly Schwalbe. Last night the team celebrated the change and I took the opportunity to chat with them both. Leigh Ann …
Farm & Food Partnerships – A New Paradigm
The topic was “The New Paradigm: Farm + Food Partnerships to Meet New Consumer Demand.” Our opening keynote speaker at the Agricultural Retailers Association Conference & Expo was Steve Peterson, Retired Director of Sourcing and Sustainability, General Mills. Steve actually just recently retired and is now farming full time on his farm in Minnesota. Steve told us that he has …
Agri-Pulse Open Mic with Sen. Joe Donnelly
Agri-Pulse Open Mic this week features Sen. Joe Donnelly. The Hoosier Democrat is an outspoken critic of the Environmental Protection Agency’s WOTUS rule. In this week’s interview, Donnelly suggests legislative action may still be possible to thwart the agency’s new regulations. Senator Donnelly shares support for the Export Import Bank, has hopes for child nutrition reform and feels an urgency …
Updates from Case IH at #NAFB15
The Case IH team was out in full force for the 2015 NAFB Trade Talk in Kansas City. One highlight for the well-known equipment company is their 20-year anniversary of tracks on their Steiger tractor. Mitch Kaiser, marketing manager for the Steiger tractor line, said the 2016 enhancements set the bar for high performance, operator experience and all around improvements. …