The 2016 Prospective Plantings report out today from USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) shows farmers expect to plant more corn and less soybeans this year. U.S. corn growers expect to plant 93.6 million acres to corn this year, the first increase in corn planted acreage since 2012 and, if realized, will be the third largest corn acreage since 1944. …
China’s Wheat Policies Hurt US Farmers
A 2014 study by DTB Associates revealed that China pays farmers more than $10 per bushel of wheat and subsidizes input costs as well. The U.S. Wheat Associates (USW) and the National Association of Wheat Growers (NAWG) have demonstrated several times in the last few years how policies like this one are hurting wheat trade in the U.S. and other …
#Classic16 Corn and Wheat Scholarship Winners
The number of scholarships presented by BASF Crop Protection and the various commodity organizations at Commodity Classic increases every year. Yea. It’s great to see so many young men and women take an interest in agriculture. We were able to interview some but not all of this year’s winners – but they are all outstanding. The $1000 National Corn Growers …
#Classic16 Celebrates Decade of Scholarships
BASF Crop Protection, the American Soybean Association (ASA), National Corn Growers Association (NCGA), and the National Wheat Foundation (NWF) celebrated ten years of rewarding future agriculture industry leaders with scholarships during the 2016 Commodity Classic last week. A past scholarship winner who now works for BASF as a tech service rep had the honor of presenting the awards this year. …
BASF and Commodity Groups Award Scholarships
BASF Crop Protection has teamed up with the industry-leading commodity organizations behind Commodity Classic to award scholarships to 10 students pursuing degrees in agriculture. BASF presented the students with their scholarships during the 2016 Commodity Classic along with the American Soybean Association (ASA), the National Corn Growers Association (NCGA), and the National Wheat Foundation(NWF). Representatives from the three commodity groups …
Wheat & Sorghum Leaders Highlight Industry Issues
The National Association of Wheat Growers (NAWG) and the National Sorghum Producers (NSP) each held a press conference on issues facing their industries during the 2016 Commodity Classic. Representatives from NAWG discussed several pieces of legislation that will have a significant impact on wheat growers and industry partners, including the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) and GMO labeling laws. Their latest efforts …
Vilsack Makes 7th Appearance at #Classic16
Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack has appeared at every Commodity Classic since he was confirmed, making this year the seventh time he has addressed corn, soybean, sorghum and wheat farmers. “Farmers are the linchpin of this country. They are the heart and soul,” said Vilsack, who concentrated much of his remarks on the importance of the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) for …
U.S. Wheat Associates Directors Elected
The U.S. Wheat Associates (USW) Board of Directors will be under new leadership for the 2016-2017 fiscal year. The board elected officers at their recent meeting in Washington D.C. New officers will begin their duties at the board meeting in July in Fargo, North Dakota. New members include; Chris Kolstad as Secretary-Treasurer, Jason Scott moving from Vice Chair to Chair, …
Wheat Awards
Members of the National Association of Wheat Growers (NAWG) were in Washington DC last week for their annual winter conference and during that time presented awards to friends in Congress. Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA) was presented with the 2015 Wheat Leader of the Year by the NAWG board of directors, including Washington farmer and NAWG president Brett Blankenship. “Senator Cantwell …
NRGene Assists in Wheat Genome Sequencing
The bread wheat genome has now been sequenced. Wheat is one of the most widely grown cereals in the world, and the project will help accelerate global research into crop improvement. The project was led by the International Wheat Genome Sequencing Consortium (IWGSC). Using NRGene’s DeNovoMAGICTM software, the bread wheat variety Chinese Spring genome was assembled. The new data will …