The 2023 Southern Peanut Growers Conference State Updates
At the start of the Southern Peanut Growers Conference I get a chance to visit with each of the state peanut association executives. This year we have a new Executive Director at the Alabama Peanut Producers Association, Libbie Johnson. Along with her are Ken Barton, Florida Peanut Producers Association, Don Koehler, Georgia Peanut Commission and Malcolm Broome, Mississippi Peanut Growers Association.
Topics and issues in the states are pretty similar to last year. Each executive director provides an outlook on the peanut crop in their state. The Farm Bill is of higher importance because we’re getting closer to possible new legislation by the end of the year. We’ll be hearing more about it during the conference. Input costs and other factors are making financial difficulties for peanut farmers. Relatively new on the program this year is a discussion on new non-edible uses for peanuts and newer precision agriculture technology. More stories can be found on the SPGC Blog.
Listen in and hear how things are going in each state.
2023 SPGC - Libbie Johnson, AL Peanut Producers Association (3:46)2023 SPGC - Ken Barton, FL Peanut Producers Association (4:31)
2023 SPGC - Don Koehler, GA Peanut Commission (6:57)
2023 SPGC - Malcolm Broome, MS Peanut Growers (5:04)
Tech Hub LIVE Hears From Farmers
From left – Kyle Daeley, Jason Kieser, Doug Applegate, and Scott Henry
Kyle Daeley, Associate Director- Food & Agriculture, Publicis Sapient, moderated the Farmer Panel General Session featuring Jason Kieser, Creekwood Ag, Illinois; Doug Applegate, Applegate Acres, Iowa and Praxidyn; and Scott Henry, LongView Farms, Iowa. All three are actively involved in improving ag technology.
Kieser, who is CEO of a full-time production row crop operation, believes he will see true autonomous farming in his generation because it is becoming necessary. “Labor’s becoming a tougher thing to find, it’s getting expensive,” said Kieser. “It’s a very real concern….I think it’s going to be necessary to be able to cover the acres we need to cover.”
When it comes to data management, Henry thinks farmers have somewhat moved on from data privacy concerns and have gotten a little calloused. “I’m probably more willy-nilly with my data now,” he said. “If we’re going to work with you, great, I don’t think you’re going to hurt me.”
Applegate has been actively involved with AgGateway for more than a decade and he sees the data standardization connections accelerating. “You think about something like ‘what is a field?’. That takes some time to define but everybody needs to have that standardized perception of that,” said Applegate. “Agriculture is complex. It’s like boiling the ocean.”
Carbon capture and its role in climate smart agriculture is also a hot topic for farmers, especially those who have already been implementing sustainable practices for years.
Listen to an interview with Applegate here:
2023 Tech Hub LIVE interview with Doug Applegate, Praxidyn (8:49)
2023 Ag Tech Awards of Excellence
Tech Hub LIVE 2023 honored industry leaders this week with the CropLife Ag Tech Awards of Excellence, part of the Global Ag Tech Initiative. CropLife Media editor Eric Sfiligoj presented the annual awards.
Legacy Award – Clark Bell, Aqua-Yield
Precision Farmer – Skip Klinefelter
Precision Crop Advisor/Entrepreneur – Erich Eller, Forefront Ag Solutions
Not present to receive his award in person was Simerjeet Virk with the University of Georgia, who was named Ag Tech Educator/Researcher of the Year. Assistant professor and Extension precision agriculture specialist at UGA, Simerjeet has been involved in research on ag tech in row crops since he arrived in the US in 2010 to pursue his MS at Auburn. His current research is evaluating performance of application technology on sprayers and VRT on fertilizer application equipment to improve application accuracy and placement of pesticides and nutrients.
Listen to the awards presentation and comments from the winners here:
2023 Tech Hub LIVE awards presentation (14:31)
Instead of Tech Hub LIVE, Dr. Simer Virk was at the Southern Peanut Growers Conference last week where he talked about some of the precision ag research he is doing.
Dr. Simer Virk, University of Georgia Cooperative Extension precision agriculture specialist
2023 SPGC - Simer Virk, University of Georgia (4:09)
Precision Ag News 7/26
NASA Has a Role in Supporting Ag Tech
It was 1972 when NASA launched Landsat 1, the first satellite designed to study our planet, and with it came a revolution in remote sensing technology for agriculture.
Dr. Alyssa Whitcraft has a lead role in NASA’s two major agricultural programs today and she was keynote speaker for the 2023 Tech Hub LIVE opening general session to a standing room only crowd. She is the co-founder and deputy director of NASA Harvest, an international program, and Executive Director of NASA Acres, which is focused on the U.S., and she has high hopes for the NASA Harvest Consortium to support a new revolution in ag technology.
“I think public science builds a bigger pie, it’s a public good that hopefully enriches our collective ability to provide on-farm solutions,” said Whitcraft. “It’s really about addressing the solutions that we all know are needed.”
Whitcraft believes that NASA’s role in helping build ag tech is for the public good, “If our objectives are to fight climate change, build a resilient agriculture system that feeds us today and into the future, and maintain the U.S. standing as the largest food exporter in the world.”
Listen to Whitcraft’s presentation here:
2023 Tech Hub LIVE presentation - Alyssa Whitcraft, NASA (41:39)
Women in Ag Tech Hold First Meeting
A new organization was born in Des Moines this week at the 2023 Tech Hub LIVE Conference and Expo – Women in Ag Tech or WiAT (pronounced wyatt).
It was a year ago at the 2022 Tech Hub LIVE in Indianapolis that Meister Media Worldwide CEO Gary Fitzgerald mentioned the idea to new CropLive Media Group Editor Lara Sowinski and after a few phone calls it became evident that there was a definite need for such an organization. A group of ambassadors was formed and many virtual meetings were held and the end result was a packed room for the first in-person meeting held on Monday afternoon prior to the welcome party for Tech Hub LIVE.
Organizers initially hoped for 60 women to attend, but registration was topped 80 and the actual turnout was closer to 100. Guest speaker Dr. Karen St. Germain, Earth Science Division Director for NASA, provided a fascinating glimpse into how space technology helps agriculture and also set the stage for a broader discussion on the role of women in the technology space as a whole.
“Women bring a different perspective, they bring different questions, they bring different experience and expertise,” she said. “The quality of the science is all about the quality of the questions you ask.”
St. Germain called the WiAT meeting “energizing” and that was almost an understatement. There was tremendous enthusiasm and participation in the short breakout brainstorming sessions where the women discussed how to promote and grow the group, design mentorship and networking opportunities, and just keep the momentum going. Women who are interested are urged to get in touch with the group through their Women in Ag Tech LinkedIn group.
Listen to this interview with Dr. St. Germain to learn more about what NASA does for agriculture and women in technology.
2023 Tech Hub LIVE interview Dr. Karen St. Germain, NASA (4:26)
Greater Des Moines Welcomes Tech Hub LIVE
Greater Des Moines welcomes Tech Hub LIVE
The biggest crowd for the event yet gathered for fun and games, great food and fellowship with a ’90s theme at Ricochet in downtown Des Moines just a stroll down the sky walk from the conference hotel. The Greater Des Moines Partnership was thrilled to be the Tech Hub LIVE Destination partner and host this growing event.
“Iowa is such a hub for ag technology,” said Melissa Moyer, Economic Development Coordination Manager. “Whether it’s bioscience, whether it’s biotechnology, whether it’s molecular…we have technology to feed and fuel the world and there’s no bveretter place.”
GDMP Executive Director Mike Swesey says they are very happy that Tech Hub LIVE has chosen Des Moines for next year as well. “We’re happy that Tech Hub LIVE has chosen us for three of the first four years and we want to keep this partnership going.”
Listen to an interview with Moyer and Swesey here.
2023 Tech Hub LIVE interview Mike Swesey and Melissa Moyer, Greater Des Moines Partnership (2:46)
Animal Ag News 7/24
Locus Ag Expands Rhizolizer® Biologicals Product Line
Locus Agriculture (Locus AG) has expanded its award-winning Rhizolizer® product line to feature crop-specific formulas that ensure broader availability for farmers looking to boost return on investment by up to $4,000 per acre.
Rhizolizer is a line of agricultural biologicals composed of carefully selected strains of endophytic microbes tailored to specific crops which are designed to colonize roots, promote early root development and boost productivity.
The line expansion includes:
–Rhizolizer Duo for Berries & Melons
–Rhizolizer Duo for Fruits & Vegetables
–Rhizolizer Duo for Vineyards & Orchards
Third-party trials performed through Contract Research Organizations (CROs) confirmed an increase in yield and a return on investment for all crops studied using the new crop-specific Rhizolizer Duo biologicals, including:
Strawberries: up to 1,523 more pounds per acre and $4,190 return on investment
Tomatoes: up to 3,993 more pounds per acre and $2,021 return on investment
Peppers: up to 2,238 more pounds per acre and $880 return on investment
Grapes: up to 1,939 more pounds per acre and $2,277 return on investment
This expansion joins the Rhizolizer row crop line which includes Rhizolizer Duo, Rhizolizer Prime and Rhizolizer Organic for row crops.