GROWMARK CEO Jeff Solberg had great news for the system’s stakeholders at the Annual Meeting in Chicago Friday. “Our sales this year are $8.5 billion, which is a record level of sales for us,” Jeff said. “A lot of that is price inflation, we’re a commodity based business, but we also have a lot of volume growth there – higher …
BIVI’s New State of the Art Research Facility
It may not look like much on the outside, but the new Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica (BIVI) livestock vaccine research facility in Sioux Center, Iowa is everything a pig could want on the inside. “It’s a state of the art facility,” said Dr. Phil Hayes, BIVI Executive Director for Biologicals Development. “To demonstrate the safety and effectiveness of new vaccines, we …
GROWMARK Annual Meeting is Value Driven
The theme of the 2011 GROWMARK Annual Meeting is Value Driven and there are over 1,000 stakeholders attending the meeting in Chicago this week. I spent a few minutes with Dan Kelley, Chairman of the Board and President of GROWMARK, prior to the opening reception Thursday night about what value-driven means to GROWMARK. “The GROWMARK system has historically been recognized …
NCBA’s Forrest Roberts Wraps It Up
Within all discussions, the core question always asked is, “How do we get more people to eat more beef?” This question was the center of all the business decisions made during the 2011 Cattle Industry’s Summer Conference, explained National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) CEO Forrest Roberts. The purpose of the conference, said Roberts, was to come together and make business …
John Deere Introduces Machine Sync
John Deere unveiled a product that you couldn’t see on the show floor at this week’s product launch. It’s called Machine Sync. This new technology provides “timely, critical information on equipment location, operational status and automates equipment during harvest.” “Having real-time data is critical for equipment operators during harvest,” says Holli Brokaw, AMS product manager for John Deere. “Our new …
BIVI Research Facility Meets VTI Vision
Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica’s (BIVI) new livestock vaccine research facility in Sioux Center, Iowa meets the company’s vision of Value Through Innovation, or VTI, according to Dr. Edward Robb, vice president of research and development for BIVI. “The facility really allows us to test novel vaccine concepts to really see if these ideas can have an impact on the welfare of …
John Deere Product Launch Overview
The S Series Combines introduced this week by John Deere got a lot of attention during the floor show last night. I spoke with Barry Nelson, John Deere Manager, Media Relations, to get an overview of all the products being launched. He says it is the largest product launch in the company’s history. John Deere will be 175 years old …
Riding in a New John Deere 7R Series Tractor
The most fun part of the John Deere product launch is getting in the cab out in the field. I rode along with Jessica Kroug, Program Development Program, 7R Series Tractors. We were in a 7215 R model. See what it’s like in the video below. Our ride and drive track provided multiple real field conditions and situations. The tractor …
A Farm Bill for the Cattle Industry
Kristina Harris Butts is the Executive Director of Legislative Affairs for the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA). She sat down with me during the Cattle Industry Summer Conference to give me an update on a policy that hasn’t been so top of mind for policymakers these past few months due to their work on the budget. And that’s the 2012 …
John Deere is Accelerating Growth
This evening John Lagemann, John Deere Vice President, Sales & Marketing — United States/Canada/Australia/New Zealand for the Agriculture and Turf Division, welcomed us to the biggest product launch in the history of the company. The ag media along with a large crowd of dealers got a great show and then had the opportunity to take to the floor to get …