Ever since we’ve been hearing about the whole drone issue in Washington, DC I keep hearing this phrase in my head. But of course farm fields are being droned, by farmers themselves, and for good reasons. Here’s a great story on the subject. Helicopters are just plain cool, especially if you can operate them by remote control. The Aerial Precision …
BIVI Panel: Observe, Be Patient & Help Others
All this week we’ve been hearing from some of the presenters at the annual Boehringer Ingelheim (BIVI) Swine Health Seminar for swine vets held in San Diego. A panel session that featured Dr. Darin Madson from Iowa State University; Dr. Jim Lowe, a private livestock veterinary consultant in Illinois; Dr. Edgar Diaz, associate director of swine for BIVI; and Dr. …
Roberts Seeks to Cut Fat from SNAP
Senator Pat Roberts (R-KS) has introduced legislation that he says would “restore integrity to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), commonly known as food stamps, to save $36 billion in taxpayer dollars while ensuring those in need still receive benefits.” Roberts found all kinds of little ways to cut SNAP spending waste and fraud that adds up to some substantial …
Pigs Start Coughing Long Before Our Brains Hear It
Understanding how early in the production chain a disease actually starts will give veterinarians a better chance at stopping it before it becomes a problem. “Twenty percent of those pigs are coughing before our brain will let us hear that,” Dr. Jim Lowe, a private livestock veterinary consultant in Illinois, told attendees of the annual Boehringer Ingelheim (BIVI) Swine Health …
Iowa – 4th Largest Corn Producer in the World
Did you know that if Iowa were a country, it would be the fourth largest producer of corn in the world? Iowa would be behind the number one corn producer, the U.S. followed by China, who has about the same number of acres in production but only 2/3 the production. Number three is Brazil, who with the drought is ahead …
Vaccination Sharply Lowers In Utero Disease Transfer
In utero transmission of Porcine Circovirus Associated Disease (PCV2) is more common than we might think, and vaccinations can make a world of difference to lower those transmissions from sows to their unborn piglets. That was the message veterinarians at the at the Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica (BIVI) Swine Health Seminar heard in San Diego. Dr. Darin Madson, Assistant Professor of …
ENOGEN: Profitable Hybrid for Corn Farmers
Growers looking for a more profitable corn crop should consider planting ENOGEN corn. Ethanol producers looking for more gallons from a bushel of corn should look to farmers growing ENOGEN corn. I learned about the emerging corn trait designed specifically for ethanol production from Jeff Carver who is the ENOGEN Accounts Manager for Syngenta, when we spoke during the Iowa …
Monsanto Xtend’s Products for Growers
The team at Monsanto is excited to start talking about their new line of products called Roundup Ready Xtend Crop System. Their goal is to help maximize yield potential and weed control through effective and economical weed management. During the recent Commodity Classic, Chuck talked with Michelle Vigna, a Monsanto representative, about the product’s features and when growers can take …
Leaked USDA Email Makes News
*UPDATED WITH USDA STATEMENT* A leaked email from a USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service field office is in the news today as evidence that the Obama administration wants to make the sequester cuts “as painful as possible.” According to the email, the USDA budget office directed the APHIS field office regarding flexibility of spending cuts for aquaculture, “However …
Precise Disk Drills from New Holland
Just how important is it to plant seeds precisely as you’d like to? Very important. That’s why New Holland has come out with a new series of disk drills. Whether seeding into summerfallow or stubble, New Holland’s new P2000 Series disk drills slice through crop residue to ensure precise, uniform seed placement with very low soil disturbance. Both the new …