Pioneer Hi-Bred and MapShots announced Pioneer will acquire controlling ownership of MapShots Inc. This new relationship will allow Pioneer to extend its Pioneer FIT mapping service and information available through GrowingPoint Web site record-keeping service. Kip Cullers of Purdy, Mo., won the Missouri Soybean Association’s 14th Annual Yield Contest with the top overall yield with 117.1 bushels per acre using …

The R-CALF USA Board of Directors is pleased to announce that the group’s 10th annual convention and trade show will take place Jan. 23-24, 2009, at the Best Western Ramkota Hotel in Rapid City, S.D. Individuals interested in precision agriculture should mark their calendars for the next edition of the popular Information Agriculture Conference, set for July 14-16, 2009, at …

More than 450 employees at Bayer CropScience raised 3,561 lbs. of food during the company’s annual East Wing versus West Wing (of the building) Food Drive competition. Bayer CropScience will again make a $50,000 donation which allows the Food Bank to purchase the food, as well as the backpacks, and administer the program at 19 sites in five counties, which …

Trimble announced it has acquired the FastMap and GeoSite software assets from KOREC (www.korecgroup.com). The acquisition will allow Trimble to expand its Mapping and Geographic Information System solutions to provide optimized software and professional services in Europe, Africa and the Middle East. Results from replicated strip trials harvested by Iowa Soybean Association On-Farm Network growers show that fall-applied anhydrous ammonia …

MANA Crop Protection introduces Pyrimax 3.2SL cotton herbicide for the 2009 season to provide broad-spectrum control of tough weeds, including those resistant to glyphosate. AgraQuest Inc., announced that it has received EPA registration for its new insecticide REQUIEM. REQUIEM, which has demonstrated control of whiteflies, aphids, mites, thrips and other pests in more than 600 trials and grower demos, is …

Arendt’s Holstein Resort, Inc. was named Minnesota’s 2008 Producers of the Year by the Minnesota Milk Producers Association at the Midwest Dairy Expo on Dec. 9 in St. Cloud, Minn. Mark and Kathi Arendt own and operate Arendt’s Holstein Resort near Mazeppa, Minn., along with their son Nate and his wife Mindi. The Appaloosa Horse Club is now accepting applications …

Rising production costs and uncertain profit margins have risk-averse farmers ready to cut corn plantings in 2009 in favor of soybeans, which could see another substantial jump in popularity next spring, according to latest Farm Futures survey. The daily volume of 7,363 contracts traded Dec. 10, 2008 topped the former daily Minneapolis Grain Exchange (MGEX) record. The new daily record …

Members of CHS Inc., have selected six producers to serve three-year terms on the farmer-owned cooperative’s board of directors.: Dan Schurr, Richard Owen, Curt Eischens, Bruce Anderson, Jerry Hasnedl and Greg Kruger. AgriLabs introduces Colostrx 130 Colostrum Replacer, a complete replacement option for maternal colostrum. Colostrx 130 Colostrum Replacer contains a full 130 grams of globulin protein protection in every …

Seven former U.S. Secretaries of Agriculture provided perspectives on today’s agriculture and offered advice to the new Obama Administration during the 90-minute “Conversation With the Secretaries” as part of the Food and Agricultural Policy Summit. C-SPAN coverage can be viewed here. Alltech is proud to announce AgRootsTV, an online initiative showcasing farmers operating with a responsibility to sustainable farming practices. …

The National Milk Producers Federation announced that Dana L. Brooks, a veteran government relations professional with experience at both the state and federal levels, has been hired to serve as its new Senior Director of Government Relations. Brooks will start on Jan. 1, 2009. Makhteshim Agan of North America, Inc., announces the addition of Brent Cranfill to its commercial team …