Why Are You Here Cattlemen?

Chuck Zimmerman

Polly RuhlandDuring the Cattlemen’s Beef Board meeting at the end of the Cattle Industry Summer Conference we heard a great speech in the form of the report given by CEO Polly Ruhland. She had a very heartfelt and powerful message which I believe shows you the quality of the people representing cattle producers on the staff of the Beef Checkoff. You will be asked a question, “Why are you here?”

Listen to Polly’s report here: Polly Ruhland Management Report
2013 Cattle Industry Summer Conference Photo Album

Ag Groups, Audio, Cattle Industry Conference

Learning About FMC Products at AMS

Cindy Zimmerman

And now a few parting words from our AMS sponsor, FMC Corporation.

ams13-fms-daviesDavid Davies is product manager for some of FMC’s products for fruits, vegetables, and sunflowers. One of those products is BroadAxe. “BroadAxe is a pre-emergence herbicide aimed at the sunflower market,” said David. “It basically will give you really good control of kochia and broadleaf weeds, but in addition it will give you grasses as well, like foxtail.”

Another pre-emergence herbicide FMC is looking at launching in California for tree nuts is Zeus™ herbicide. “What it brings to the table is nutsedge control,” David explains. “In the tree nuts and grapes we will do a multi-year program in order to keep the nutsedge under control.” Zeus is already approved on asparagus, transplanted cabbage, sunflower, mint, horseradish and sugarcane with approvals on alfalfa, citrus, grapes, melon, pecan, pistachio, walnut, tomato and strawberry expected soon.

Listen to my interview with David from AMS here: Interview with David Davies, FMC Corporation

ams13-fmc-timTim Thompson talked about Cadet® herbicide/glyphosate tank mix from FMC. “Cadet’s going to give you extra kick in that tank mix when you’re applying post on corn and soybeans when you’re using Roundup,” he said. “It’s going to give extra help on lambsquarters and small-seeded broadleafs.”

Cadet has been on the market for three years and FMC has seen phenomenal growth in use for both corn and soybeans. “We do expect to see additional crops coming shortly – cereals, dry beans and sunflowers,” said Tim.

Listen to my interview with Tim from AMS here: Interview with Tim Thompson, FMC Corporation
2013 Ag Media Summit Photo Album

Ag Media Summit, Agribusiness, Audio, FMC, weed management

Genscape Believes UDSA Corn Predictions Too High

Joanna Schroeder

On August 6, the Genscape LandViewer team released its corn supply predictions to clients, estimating the corn supply to around least 12.6 billion bushels. Other crop advisory groups as well as USDA is predicting the corn crop to be closer to 14 billion bushels, a number that Genscape believes is too high. The USDA is releasing its latest crop report on Monday, August 12, 2013 at noon EST.

LandViewer - Yield Change Aug 2013“For the supply to meet the high predictions from groups like the USDA, contributions from historically highly productive county-clusters would be necessary, and that doesn’t seem likely,” said Dr. Steffen Mueller, senior director of Genscape’s LandViewer group.

According to Genscape, traditionally highly productive county-clusters, such as many counties in northern Iowa and southern Minnesota, show severe problems this year. In addition to modeling analysis, the LandViewer team has conducted multiple ground verification trips and has surmised that these problem areas will not likely recover to the level necessary to help the country meet the USDA’s total supply estimate. In addition, the national corn crop is an average of three weeks behind, and it will have much higher risk for frost exposure.

LandViewer’s prediction is based on a high resolution geospatial data model combined with extensive ground truthing. Using satellite technology, LandViewer has developed a spatial-based algorithm to predict corn supply on a parcel-by-parcel basis. Corn yield and supply predictions for each of the monitored 1,100 counties were shared with clients on August 6, a week in advance of the USDA reports. The information is useful for grain buyers to master local supply shortages or surpluses. For national grain investors, the LandViewer parcel-by-parcel platform has also proven to be a useful tool to identify risk associated with isolated county clusters.

Agribusiness, Corn, Precision Agriculture

Zimfo Bytes

Talia Goes

    Zimfo Bytes

  • John Brutty has joined Burrus Hybrids as general sales manager with overall responsibility for sales force innovation, dealer relations, and customer services.
  • Ag Processing Inc a cooperative (AGP) announced plans for a major expansion of the Company’s soybean processing plant at Hastings, Nebraska.
  • The Korea Fair Trade Commission has notified Archer Daniels Midland Company of its approval of ADM’s proposed acquisition of GrainCorp Limited.
  • ArborGen announced the results of a genetic comparison study conducted at a mid-rotation aged loblolly pine plantation in Berkeley County, SC.
Zimfo Bytes

Beef Board CEO Reports at Summer Conference

Chuck Zimmerman

Polly RuhlandThe CEO of the Cattlemen’s Beef Board, Polly Ruhland, was on stage this morning for the second general session of the Cattle Industry Summer Conference. I talked with her afterward. She says the new committee structure and format for the conference have generated good feedback. Condensing the agenda into a shorter time frame means that volunteer leaders have to spend less time away from home for one thing.

Polly says this meeting is about strategy where “the rubber meets the road.” So committees are meeting and listening to and providing feedback to contractors about projects in progress or being proposed. She says it’s a process that includes as next steps, board approval of the budget and then work plans will be looked at by the operating committee in September. And then the process starts over again.

You can listen to my interview with Polly here: Interview with Polly Ruhland

You can listen to Polly’s report during the general session here: Report from Polly Ruhland

2013 Cattle Industry Summer Conference Photo Album

Ag Groups, Audio, Beef, Cattle Industry Conference

Get Behind the Wheel of New Holland’s PLM System

Jamie Johansen

new-holland-ag-13-154-editedInnovative technology has evolved agriculture further than most of our grandparents can even fathom. The folks at New Holland Agriculture have done their homework when it comes to their Precision Land Management (PLM) systems.

During their recent First in the Field event, media had the opportunity to jump behind the wheel of all the equipment. But a highlight for many was the chance to see the PLM auto-guidance system in action. I brought my camera along and captured the precision technology in action. Check out how it feels to be behind the wheel and listen to a New Holland representative talk about all the perks of a PLM program.

View photos from the event here: 2013 New Holland Ag Media Event Photo Album

Beef, Dairy, Equipment, Forage, Hay, New Holland, Precision Agriculture

Visiting BASF at RTP

Cindy Zimmerman

basfsouthern-1I was so excited this week to be able to visit the U.S. headquarters of BASF Ag Products in Research Triangle Park, NC for the first time.

The occasion was the BASF Southern Media Symposium, which also coincided with the Southern Weed Science Society‘s annual contest for college students majoring in weed science, hosted by BASF this year. I learned a whole lot about weed science and what BASF has to offer for southern growers, but I am going to wait until next week to start posting about it. I do have the photo album up now for your viewing pleasure. Check it out and check back next week to learn more about SWSS, the student winners this year, and the latest in BASF innovations for the southern acre.

BASF Southern Media Symposium and SWSS Contest photo album

Agribusiness, BASF, Crop Protection, Farming

Farm Broadcasters at AMS

Cindy Zimmerman

ams13-cassidyRight after I did a post this week about why farm broadcasters should attend Ag Media Summit I did run into a couple of farm broadcasters there, including Tom Cassidy with New York-based Ag Radio Network, who was able to visit with some of the InfoExpo exhibitors like Kerry Overton with Koch Agronomics.

Also in attendance to represent the National Association of Farm Broadcasting (NAFB) was Kyle Bauer, general manager of KFRM radio in Kansas, pictured below chatting with Lynn Henderson of AgriMarketing Magazine.

ams13-kyle-lynnNAFB has several members who are also members of the AMS ag media organizations, but as Gary Truitt (Hoosier Ag Today) also pointed out in a comment, Kyle notes that the annual summit falls during a pretty busy time for farm broadcasters. “You’ve got a budget issue of traveling but you also have the time of year when farm broadcasters are covering other events, county fairs and that sort of things,” Kyle said. “And many of our members are one person departments.”

But Kyle says AMS does have much to offer for broadcasters. “A farm broadcaster nowadays is just as likely to have a camera along with his recorder and absolutely everybody is expected to deliver on multiple sources and somehow you have to get that training and certainly here is a good place to get that training.”

Listen to my interview with Kyle from AMS here: Interview with Kyle Bauer, KFRM radio
2013 Ag Media Summit Photo Album

Ag Media Summit, Audio, Media, NAFB

American Soybean Association at AMS

Cindy Zimmerman

ams13-asaSoybean farmers were well represented at the Ag Media Summit this week in Buffalo by American Soybean Association Communications Director Patrick Delaney and president Danny Murphy.

Since I do a daily audio report for Agri-Pulse, I was happy to get to chat with Danny about the policy issues on ASA’s plate at the moment, which start with the ongoing farm bill saga. “It’s really been frustrating, disappointing, I don’t know how many adjectives you can use to describe it,” he said. “It’s really time and I guess it’s easy to question whether the House is really committed to passing a farm bill. They don’t really appear to be.”

The Mississippi farmer says the House is holding up other legislation important to agriculture, like the transportation bill. “Funding bills have to originate in the House so even though the Senate seemed really interested in maybe increasing the barge fuel tax as a source of revenue to get some of the improvements done on the Mississippi on the locks and dams,” said Danny. “The House has been reluctant to have any kind of tax increase … even though the barge owners would really like to see it.”

ASA is encouraging producers to make their views known to their representatives during this August recess and urge them to get to work.

Listen to my interview with Danny from AMS here: Interview with ASA president Danny Murphy
2013 Ag Media Summit Photo Album

Ag Groups, Ag Media Summit, ASA, Audio, Soybean

The Minute from FMC

Cindy Zimmerman

Like an artist who becomes known by one name only, FMC’s Authority Minute will soon become simply The Minute.

ams13-paulI chatted with our good friend Paul Redhage of FMC Corporation at the Ag Media Summit this week, first of all thanking them for sponsoring our coverage from this great event. Chuck usually is the one to cover AMS but since he went with the ethanol motorcycle gang to the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally, it was my great pleasure and privilege to attend this year, thanks to FMC.

FMC’s video podcast series The Authority Minute was the topic of a ZimmCast back in February and Paul tells us that it has become very popular. “For the last year we’ve had this opportunity for growers and retailers to learn more about weed management in soybeans and the Authority line of products,” Paul said. “With the following we’ve had this year, we’ve decided to expand that program.”

That evolution to simply “The Minute” this fall means the program will soon cover corn-related issues on weed management and insect-related issues. “So it’s broadening and we’ll be talking with lots of researchers and growers around the country,” said Paul.

Not only do growers get a chance to learn something new by watching the series, they also get a chance to win prizes. “Anytime a person registers and goes online and watches one of these … 18 digital videos posted on the web, they get credit for it and each week we have a drawing for gift cards…and then a grand prize drawing,” he said.

Listen to my interview with Paul from AMS here: Interview with Paul Redhage, FMC
2013 Ag Media Summit Photo Album

Ag Media Summit, Agribusiness, Audio, FMC