Southeastern Farmers of the Year Give Back to Communities

Cindy Zimmerman

2022 Swisher/Sunbelt Expo Southeastern Farmer of the Year Robert Saunders of Virginia

The 10 growers honored as the 2022 Southeastern Farmers of the Year in their respective states took the opportunity provided by Syngenta to donate to organizations close to their hearts. Syngenta gave $5,500 in donations in $500 increments to the charity, group or non-profit chosen by each farmer in the 2022 Swisher/Sunbelt Expo Southeastern Farmer of the Year program.

Robert E. Saunders of Piney River, Virginia, was chosen as the overall Farmer of the Year for 2022. Because of this distinction, Saunders received two $500 donations, which he will be donating to the Nelson Memorial Library, which is part of the Jefferson-Madison Regional Library system in his home of Nelson County, Virginia.

“My wife Pat and I chose to donate to the Nelson Memorial Library, which has been serving individuals of Nelson County for 50 years,” he said. “Our donation will benefit all of Nelson County, a place my family has called home for nearly 200 years.” 

The rest of the 2022 Southeastern Farmers of the Year and their charities of choice include:

• Mark Byrd, Danville, Alabama: St. Jude Children’s Hospital

• Chris Sweat, McCaskill, Arkansas: Huck’s Military Care Package Project

• Jerry Dakin, Myakka City, Florida: Gator Wilderness Camp School 

• Scotty Raines, Sycamore, Georgia: First Baptist Church of Tifton 

• Wesley C. Parker, Oak Grove, Kentucky: St. Jude Children’s Hospital

• Michael Lynn Wagner, Sumner, Mississippi: St. Jude Children’s Hospital, Extra Table Mississippi 

• Kevin Matthews, East Bend, North Carolina: Forbush High School FFA

• Keith Allen, Latta, South Carolina: The Miracle League of Florence County 

• John M. Harrison, Philadelphia, Tennessee: Randy Davis Memorial Milk Fund

Sunbelt Ag Expo, Syngenta

Precision Ag News 12/21

Carrie Muehling

  • U.S. farmers not only planted and harvested a large crop successfully in 2022, but they also rolled out some impressive yields in the National Corn Growers Association’s (NCGA) National Corn Yield Contest despite an array of weather challenges.
  • Scott Peterson, a farmer from Miller, South Dakota, won the Ultimate Farm Truck, a custom-built Ford F-350 Lariat Crew Cab, as part of a giveaway sponsored by Pivot Bio. Peterson was awarded the truck during the National Finals Rodeo in Las Vegas. The truck, which was built by Heavy D, Diesel Dave and the crew at Sparks Motors as part of the five-episode show, Ultimate Farm Truck that aired on RFDTV and streamed online, included a laundry-list of farmer-specified features gathered to make the truck one-of-a-kind.
  • The third annual Tech Hub LIVE offers an innovative, forward-looking experience with an expansive range of features encompassing all segments of data driven agriculture and attracts the largest gathering of thought leaders and innovative practitioners. Early registration is now open for the event, which is scheduled for July 24-26, 2023 in Des Moines, Iowa.
  • NK Seeds recently announced several new appointments to its corporate marketing team, who will help drive the brand’s commitment to farmer success: Ana Grau, Head of Marketing, NK Seeds; Matt Dolch, NK Seeds Corn Product Manager; and Jared Benson, NK Seeds Soybean Product Manager.
  • Albaugh announced that the company has received registration from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for AceTM 3.8L ST, a new fungicide seed treatment offering, available for sale spring 2023 (EPA Reg. No. 45002-40).
  • EVOIA, Inc. announced their introductory product has attained key sustainability certifications. AmpliFYR, an innovative seed treatment made from biochar extract, has recently been recognized as compliant with the USDA National Organic Program standards by the California Department of Agriculture (CDFA) and the Organic Materials Review Institute (OMRI). Additionally, AmpliFYR has been certified 100% biobased through the USDA BioPreferred program.
  • Traction Ag Inc., the first cloud-based accounting software delivering solutions to growers across the Midwest, announced a partnership with CropZilla, a data-driven machinery management software. By combining the platforms, users will get a streamlined accounting process for optimizing their equipment fleet and gain a better understanding of their equipment productivity, costs and replacement needs.
  • Indigo Ag announced it has made a second set of payments to farmers in the Carbon by Indigo program. The payments, which total more than $3.7 million, come ahead of the company’s second credit issuance, anticipated for the first half of 2023.
  • Another leading agronomic professional has joined Meristem Crop Performance, one of the fastest-growing crop input suppliers in America. David Sass becomes a Meristem sales representative for the upper western Corn Belt.
  • Farmwave is the latest company to be added to the Ag Startup Engine portfolio, a premier seed program for agricultural startups. As a new addition to the portfolio of companies, Farmwave will continue building out the business and functionality of their product with additional funding through the ASE and their investors.
  • Lindsay Corporation has announced a strategic partnership with Ceres Imaging, an Oakland, Calif., provider of high-resolution imagery analytics with support for precision agriculture. The Ceres Imaging technology will populate high-resolution images in Lindsay’s industry-leading FieldNET® platform.
AgWired Precision, Precision Ag Bytes, Precision Agriculture

The 2023 VISION Conference will Harness the Power of Ag 4.0

Cindy Zimmerman

The 6th Annual VISION Conference, organized by Meister Media Worldwide, returns to the Renaissance Phoenix Glendale Hotel & Spa in Arizona on January 17-18, 2023.

The theme for this year’s conference is “Harnessing the Power of Agriculture 4.0 – Turning Innovation into Reality” and centers around key topics driving Agriculture 4.0: virtual cropping systems, autonomy, AI, climate smart ag, vertical farming, weather mapping, imagery and more.

The VISION Conference is where the full industry ecosystem convenes to map the strategic potential for the advancement of technology in agribusiness, with a focus on the drivers that will succeed in transforming the industry within 3 – 5 years.
The 2023 event will take a focused look at ways data and tech trends will change operations.

Supporters and sponsors include Bio Huma Netics, EFC Systems, Planet Labs PBC, and Raven Industries, AgGateway, and the Agricultural Retailers Association.

Keynote speaker for the event will be Robin Raskin, founder of The Virtual Events Group (VEG), who will share insights on the metaverse and what it means to the agriculture industry. To register for the 2023 VISION Conference, or for more information, visit TheVisionConference.com.

Get a preview of the conference in this interview with coordinators Lara Sowinski, CropLife Media Group and Renee Targos, Editor of AgriBusiness Global.
The VISION Conference 2023 preview (9:20)

AgGateway, Agribusiness, AgWired Precision, Audio, data, Farming, Precision Agriculture, Technology

Humic Growth Solutions Becomes HGS BioScience™

Cindy Zimmerman

Humic Growth Solutions is now HGS BioScience™ with new leadership and a new name and brand identity.

The name HGS BioScience™ is a nod to the company’s expanding product portfolio and dedication to research and development. Newly-appointed chief executive officer Michael Steffeck has committed to making HGS the preeminent provider of functional carbon products in the world.

“We are laser focused on helping farmers use our science to increase their bottom line,” said Michael Steffeck, CEO. “My vision is to create an innovation pipeline and hire the most experienced agriculture leaders to get those products into customer’s hands. HGS partners with retailers to help farmers get more from their land, one of our most precious commodities.”

HGS is poised for rapid growth in coming years under the new leadership of Steffeck. With decades of leadership experience across the agriculture sector, he brings a singular vision to the role of CEO. He has both founded and led major agricultural companies across the U.S.

Recent company innovations include expanding the Performance Granule™ portfolio. Steffeck says HGS also has an advantage in getting its products to market with six North American production facilities.

Learn more about HGS BioScience.

AgWired Precision, Biologicals, Fertilizer, Precision Agriculture, Soil

Field Notes from Koch Agronomic Services – Episode 24

Chuck Zimmerman

The Field Notes podcast series from Koch Agronomic Services breaks down the science and technology behind agronomy to help growers do more with less.

Protect Your Profit by Protecting your Nutrient Inputs

In this episode, we talk with KAS experts about transient deficiency—what it is, how it can affect a crop’s maximum yield potential, and most importantly, how to overcome it. Evan King, technical agronomist for KAS, and Brandon Peterson, KAS product manager, also discuss the KAS solutions growers can utilize to protect their nutrient inputs and their profits.

You can listen to the program here: Protect Your Profit by Protecting your Nutrient Inputs (9:41)

And to make sure you don’t miss an episode, choose an option to subscribe

For Spotify on your computer download the desktop app

Agribusiness, Audio, Fertilizer, Koch Agronomic Services, Podcasts, Soil

Agri-Pulse Newsmakers debuts on RFD-TV in 2023

Cindy Zimmerman

Agri-Pulse Communications is launching its national news show, Agri-Pulse Newsmakers, on RFD-TV, Rural America’s Most Important Network. The show premiers on Saturday, Jan. 7, 2023, at 11 a.m. ET.

“Our editorial team has demonstrated a strong ability to bring people together for high-level discussions that can both inform and engage,” said Agri-Pulse Founder and Editor Sara Wyant. “We have had great success with Agri-Pulse Newsmakers since our launch in February and this is the next step in bringing this unique policy programming to an even larger audience with RFD-TV.”

The new television show features members of Congress, federal and state officials, ag and food leaders, farmers and roundtable panelists for debates and discussions. These issues will be extremely important with the farm bill being debated in a new Congress, along with many other critical ag and food policy issues.

In addition to Agri-Pulse’s unique distribution to Capitol Hill and viewers across the country, RFD-TV will air the 30-minute program as an encore on Saturdays at 11 a.m. ET, rebroadcasting later in the week for 52 weeks. It will also be available for live streaming and on demand on RFD-TV Now.

Agri-Pulse Newsmakers is currently broadcast on Agri-Pulse.com and distributed through other partner channels. It is also available in podcast form on Agri-Pulse.com, iTunes, Google Play and Spotify.

Agri-Pulse, Farm Policy

Animal Ag News 12/19

Carrie Muehling

  • Students from Oklahoma State University and Auburn University took home the top prizes in the Animal Agriculture Alliance’s 2022 College Aggies Online scholarship program. Participants reached more than 8.5 million people online and in their local communities over the course of the nine-week competition. More than $18,000 was awarded in scholarships to students and clubs.
  • National Cattlemen’s Beef Association welcomed Steve Johnson back as Associate Director of Policy Communications. Steve most recently worked for the Office of Spokane County Board of Commissioners in Washington state. He previously worked at NCBA in the D.C. office from 2019 – 2021.
  • The National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) opened the application for public policy internships for the fall 2023 semester. This internship program is conducted in conjunction with the Public Lands Council (PLC) and offers interns an opportunity to support the advocacy work of NCBA and PLC in Washington, D.C.
  • Ralco announced that Dr. Josh Knapp has joined the company as an Associate Swine Nutritionist on their growing Swine Technical Team. Dr. Knapp will be responsible for working with Ralco’s customers and sales team to formulate diets and solve customer problems using patented natural approaches.
  • Updated research, supported by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and U.S. Poultry & Egg Association, quantifies the U.S. poultry industry’s on-farm antibiotic use, including a new section on layer production. The new report shows further improved antibiotic stewardship and commitment to disease prevention within poultry production. As part of its commitment to the transparency and sustainability of a safe food supply, the poultry industry aims to strike a balance between the responsible use of antibiotics “medically important” to human health and keeping poultry flocks healthy.
AgWired Animal, Animal Agriculture, Animal Bites

Industry Ag News 12/16

Carrie Muehling

  • Registration is now open for the Crop Insurance and Reinsurance Bureau’s 59th Annual Meeting. The meeting will be held February 8-10, 2023, at the Hyatt Regency Coconut Point in Bonita Springs, FL.
  • GROWMARK, Inc. announced the election of a new Chairman to its Board of Directors. Kevin Malchine of Waterford, Wisconsin will serve as chairman effective immediately. Malchine previously served as a vice chair on the GROWMARK Board of Directors, in addition to operating a corn and soybean farm with his wife Kelly, and his brother and nephew. He has served on the Board since 2012.
  • A new survey of more than 150 equipment manufacturing companies released today by the Association of Equipment Manufacturers (AEM) warns that U.S. equipment manufacturers continue to face supply chain issues and a persistent labor shortage nearly three years after the onset of the pandemic.
  • The Ecosystem Services Market Consortium (ESMC), US Cotton Trust Protocol, Manulife Investment Management, and Forum for the Future announce the launch of an Eco-Harvest pilot project in Alabama, Arkansas, Texas, and Tennessee. This project will work with cotton farmers to generate high quality carbon and greenhouse gas credits on over 2,300 acres.
  • After five years of outreach and education by farm groups, a new poll shows increased awareness and willingness to talk about the opioid crisis among rural adults, compared to 2017. Sixty percent say adults in their community are more aware of the crisis than they were five years ago, and nearly 8 in 10 adults (77%) report feeling comfortable having a conversation about opioids. However, survey results also reveal that more rural adults believe there is a higher rate of opioid misuse in rural communities than in the rest of the country (urban and suburban areas), compared to five years ago. The percentage of rural adults who say they know someone who is or has been addicted to opioids or prescription painkillers remains close to half. To help increase awareness of mental healthcare resources, American Farm Bureau Federation and National Farmers Union have consistently worked to publicize and compile useful material to help address rural stress, mental health challenges and opioid misuse.
  • The American Soybean Association announced Melanie Fitzpatrick will join its senior management team Jan. 3. Fitzpatrick, who most recently worked as vice president of The Center for Food Integrity and Look East Public Relations, will fill the vacancy of Bill Schuermann, who retired this month after 15 years serving soy in the role.
Zimfo Bytes

Beltwide Cotton Conferences Will Ring in New Year

Cindy Zimmerman

The National Cotton Council and its cooperating partners will welcome in the new year at the 2023 Beltwide Cotton Conferences January 10 through 12 in New Orleans, which for many of us will be the first meeting of the year.

Beltwide is three days of individual reports, panel discussions, hands on workshops and seminars designed to provide attendees with information they need to help producers make key cotton production/marketing-related decisions. A dynamic program, along with the opportunity to network with peers from across the Cotton Belt, make this conference both educational and enjoyable.

Lauren Krogman is the National Cotton Council’s Manager for Marketing & Processing Technology and serves as coordinator of the event. “What the Beltwide Cotton Conferences are is 12 concurrent conferences from sustainability, to consultants conference, and weed conference,” said Krogman.

Something new this year is that independent crop consultants and producers are now offered the same discounted registration rate as students, which is $80 through midnight central time today and only $100 starting tomorrow, compared to $250. “We want to make sure we are getting in as many producers and consultants as we can,” Krogman said.

Learn more about the 2023 Beltwide Cotton Conferences in this interview with Krogman.
2023 Beltwide Cotton preview - Lauren Krogman, NCC 6:23

Audio, Beltwide Cotton, Cotton

Precision Ag News 12/14

Carrie Muehling

  • Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced that the Biden-Harris Administration, through the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is investing an additional $325 million for 71 projects under the second funding pool of the Partnerships for Climate-Smart Commodities effort, bringing the total investment from both funding pools to over $3.1 billion for 141 tentatively selected projects.
  • Due to its achievements in digital transformation, Ceres Solutions has been named the 2022 recipient of The Scoop’s Business Innovation Award, sponsored by EFC Systems by Ever.Ag. The award was presented at the Agricultural Retailers Association Conference and Expo on Dec. 1 in San Diego.
  • CNH Industrial unveiled the next step in alternative power for agriculture at its Tech Day event in Phoenix, Arizona. New Holland Agriculture, one of our global agricultural brands, presented the T7 Methane Power LNG (Liquefied Natural Gas) pre-production prototype tractor.
  • Results are in for World Ag Expo’s 2023 Top-10 New Products Competition. The winners will be showcased February 14-16, 2023 during the World Ag Expo in Tulare, California.
  • JUA Technologies International, an agriculture technology startup that manufactures solar-powered crop dehydrators, has received a two-year, $600,000 Phase II Small Business Innovation Research grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to further develop its technology.
  • ExoPolymer, Inc., a winner of the Consider Corn Challenge II, recently announced a new partnership with CP Kelco, which takes ExoPolymer’s technology one step closer to commercialization. The partnership with CP Kelco will help ExoPolymer scale up production of a polysaccharide-based biopolymer. ExoPolymer is creating a new profile of customizable, polysaccharide-based hydrocolloids that are domestically produced by microbial fermentation using corn sugar as a feedstock.
  • Combine harvester sales remain positive, joined by 4WD units for both the U.S. and Canadian markets, while total tractors fell in both countries according to the latest data from the Association of Equipment Manufacturers. Total U.S. ag equipment unit sales fell overall, though the largest units grew. U.S. total farm tractor sales fell 20.8 percent for the month of November compared to 2021, with the sub-40hp segment leading losses at 27.9 percent.
AgWired Precision, Precision Ag Bytes, Precision Agriculture