New Holland Supporting Ethanol Industry

Chuck Zimmerman

New Holland proudly displayed its support for the ethanol industry during the Farm Progress Show as you can see on the side of the CR6090 Combine. They are the first major manufacturer of farm equipment to do so in this manner. As part of that initiative New Holland has become a partner with Growth Energy and American Ethanol. They are a “Clean Energy Leader!” I learned more about this partnership from Mark Hooper, New Holland Director, Commercial Growth Initiatives.

Here are some of the reasons New Holland supports what Growth Energy and the ethanol industry is doing:

  • Reducing U.S. dependence on foreign oil
  • Energy that is more environmentally friendly
  • Renewable energy that is sustainable over many generations to come
  • Production that produces jobs for rural America – jobs that will not be exported
  • Support and stability for farmers in America and their families

Mark says the partnership helps New Holland get closer to its customers. He says they recognize the impact ethanol has had on its business and farmer customers. Mark says New Holland is actively involved with Growth Energy initiatives and is “going to our dealers and our growers and putting on events across the country where we bring them in and really partner with the local ethanol plant promoting the message of E15, energy independence, food vs. fuel and dispelling the myths that are out there right now.” New Holland currently has a special promotion for Growth Energy members. The company is also a partner with American Ethanol as a NASCAR sponsor.

Listen to my interview with Mark here: Interview with Mark Hooper

2012 Farm Progress Show Photo Album

AgWired coverage of the 2012 Farm Progress Show is sponsored by New Holland and Monsanto Roundup Ready Plus
Agribusiness, Audio, Ethanol, Farm Progress Show, New Holland

Look For Decrease in Equipment Sales

Melissa Sandfort

Our latest ZimmPoll asked the question, ”How will the drought affect farm equipment sales?” At last week’s Farm Progress Show where there was a lot of new equipment on display and the talk was dominated by weather.

Our poll results: sixty-three percent said sales will drop; six percent said sales will increase and thirty-one percent said no impact.

Our new ZimmPoll is now live and asks the question, ”What tillage practice changes will you make due to drought?” The continued dry conditions are changing a lot of things in agriculture. Are tillage practices one of them? What do you think?

a href=”http://www.rkconnect.com/Home.aspx”>ZimmPoll is sponsored by Rhea+Kaiser, a full-service advertising/public relations agency.

ZimmPoll

Monsanto to Launch Acceleron Seed Treatments

Cindy Zimmerman

Monsanto plans to introduce Acceleron® Seed Treatment Products with a new-generation fungicide for soybeans and cotton in the 2013 growing season.

These seed treatment products will contain multiple modes of action to deliver more complete and consistent disease protection, including a new fungicidal active ingredient with defense against Rhizoctonia and Fusarium, continuous protection from seed and seedling diseases and broad-spectrum insect protection.

The products are being evaluated in Monsanto field trials this season. The objective is to compare performance in terms of stand development and total stand survival, vigor enhancement and, ultimately, yield. In some plots, time-lapse photography was utilized to capture differences in emergence and early-season plant growth and health. While the focus is on disease, the trials also compared early-season insect protection.

I had the opportunity to chat with Monsanto Global Technology Soybean Lead Roy Fuchs at the Farm Progress Show. He talked about a number of soybean products in the pipeline for Monsanto, such as Roundup Ready Xtend. “Which is a combination of Roundup Ready 2 Yield plus dicamba tolerance for broader weed control of any glyphosate resistant weeds,” Roy explained, noting that they are hoping to launch that in 2014, pending regulatory approval.

When it comes to glyphosate resistance, Roy says they are stressing multiple modes of action for growers. “We have a program we call Roundup Ready Plus, where we’re actually recommending chemistry from other companies, but the best solution for weed control independent of whose product it is and it’s been extremely successful with growers and helping to manage resistance,” he said.

Listen to or download my interview with Roy here: Roy Fuchs with Monsanto

2012 Farm Progress Show Photo Album

AgWired coverage of the 2012 Farm Progress Show is sponsored by New Holland and Monsanto Roundup Ready Plus
Audio, Farm Progress Show, Soybean

New Pioneer Forages Communications Coordinator

Melissa Sandfort

Caitlin Keck has been named communications coordinator for the DuPont Pioneer global forages team. Keck will provide marketing and communications support for the Pioneer corn silage, alfalfa and inoculants product lines.

Prior to joining the global forages team, Keck was a Pioneer agronomist in York, Neb., with the Pioneer Emerging Leaders Program. Keck is a graduate of the University of Minnesota in St. Paul, Minn., where she received her bachelor’s degree in agricultural education, leadership and communications with a double minor in animal science and Spanish.

Keck brings a solid agricultural background to the forages team. She grew up on a dairy farm near Owatonna, Minn., and was involved in several agricultural organizations during her university career, including National Collegiate Agricultural Ambassador Program, Gopher Dairy Club, Collegiate Agricultural Women, the International Collegiate Agricultural Leadership Program and the Minnesota FFA Association.

Agribusiness, Pioneer

Pride & Progress for GROWMARK in 2012

Jamie Johansen

For 85 years GROWMARK has been a cooperative members could count on and they exhibited that through the theme for the 2012 GROWMARK Annual Meeting, Pride and Progress.

Dan Kelley, Chairman of the Board and President of GROWMARK, explained what pride and progress means to him and how the drought has and will continue to affect GROWMARK’s members.

“We are proud of our history. We are proud of the people who work with us. We are proud of our heritage, but we are also progressing. The last eight years have been the best in GROWMARK’s history in both sales and in a net income standpoint. We know agriculture, like all businesses, change and the speed of change increases everyday. We have to have great people to adjust to those changes and that is how we are going to progress.”

Listen to my interview with Dan here: Interview with Dan Kelley

You can find photos from the event here:2012 GROWMARK Annual Meeting

Also at the annual meeting, five of the cooperative’s 16 director seats, established by geographic zone, were elected and will serve three-year terms. GROWMARK directors elected include:
Rick Nelson of Paxton, Ill.; Kevin Malchine of Waterford, Wis.; David Uhlman of Tremont, Ill.; Dennis Neuhaus of Hoyleton, Ill.; and Allen Tanner of Creston, Iowa.

Agribusiness, Audio, Cooperatives, GROWMARK

Zimfo Bytes

Melissa Sandfort

    Zimfo Bytes

    Farm Foundation Workshop to Focus on Free Trade

    John Davis

    Free trade agreements between the United States and South Korea, Colombia and Panama could mean big growth for U.S. animal products. To help you better understand implications of these agreements, our friends at Farm Foundation are hosting a two-day workshop, Sept. 27-28, 2012, entitled “Emerging Issues in Global Animal Product Trade: Assessing the Effects of Free Trade Agreements on Global Meat, Poultry and Dairy Trade,” at the USDA’s Economic Research Service (ERS) office in Washington, D.C.

    “By eliminating trade barriers, free trade agreements are changing the landscape of the animal products import and export market,” says Sheldon Jones, vice president of Farm Foundation, NFP. “This workshop will highlight ongoing research to examine potential challenges and opportunities for trade in animal products, as well as to identify issues where more information is needed.”

    The free workshop brings together experts from the government, private industry and several agriculture groups. More information and registration (space is limited) are available through this Farm Foundation website.

    Ag Groups, Farm Foundation, International, Trade

    Chilean Avocado Importers Unveil New Logo

    Melissa Sandfort

    The Chilean Avocado Importers Association (CAIA) has launched a fresh new logo in its latest move to distinguish the organization’s product for retailers and consumers.

    “The strategy behind this updated version of the logo was to elevate the country of origin by highlighting the personality of Chile and the seasonality of the product,” said Maggie Bezart, CAIA director of marketing.

    “We wanted to promote this elegant upscale product by incorporating the vibrant red, white and blue colors of the Chilean flag and details such as the ribbon and cursive typeface,” she said.

    In addition to more of a Chilean flair, the new logo was also inspired by the design of a label or seal of freshness.

    Agribusiness

    Monsanto FieldScripts Changing Testing Programs

    Chuck Zimmerman

    Monsanto’s new FieldScripts service, the first from their Integrated Farming Systems, is changing the company’s pipeline and testing programs. During our media visit at the Monsanto Huxley, IA location we learned more about this from Tracy Klingaman. In the video below you’ll see him talking in front of one of their field trial plots.

    Here’s how FieldScripts will work:

    The farmer will provide inputs like field boundaries, yield data, and fertility test results to their seed dealer. The dealer will work with the farmer to select each field to enroll in FieldScripts. Using Monsanto’s extensive seed-by-environment data, the company will deliver a variable rate seeding prescription by yield management zone and a recommendation for the best hybrid for each field. The prescription will be provided through Precision Planting’s FieldView™ app for the iPad® handheld device to the farmer’s tractor. The prescription will then be executed using Precision Planting’s 20/20 SeedSense® monitor and planter control system.

    You can watch a video overview of FieldScripts here.

    2012 Farm Progress Show Photo Album

    AgWired coverage of the 2012 Farm Progress Show is sponsored by New Holland and Monsanto Roundup Ready Plus
    Agribusiness, Farm Progress Show, Precision Agriculture, Seed, Video

    Mobile Technology the Future of Agriculture

    Chuck Zimmerman

    Float Mobile Learning has several new research papers available for purchase that deal with the use of mobile technology and agriculture. According to their infographic forty percent of farmers own a smartphone and ninety four percent own a mobile or smart phone. Of course we know it’s a lot and that’s why we went directly to an app so you can get AgWired easily on your iOS or Android device!

    Here’s one of the papers currently available from Float Mobile Learning:

    Future Uses of Mobile Technologies in Farming, Fishing and Forestry

    The early and rapid growth of mAgriculture in developing areas of the world is due to the fact that in developing countries, mobile phones may be the only widespread computing and communications technology that is avail­able. In contrast to American agricultural publications, African and Asian newsletters and magazines have lots of stories about the use of mobile phones in agriculture all through the 2000s. This indicates that farmers in developed countries in North America, Australia, and Europe have lots to learn from the mobile computing experiences of farmers in developing countries.

    In other words, their present methods of using mobile agriculture have a good chance of being our future in North America.

    According to the company news release “mobile agriculture, or mAgriculture, has existed in other parts of the world for more than a decade, but it has only recently started to flourish in North America.”

    “The trend in North America is to larger farms, increasing automation, and striving for greater efficiencies,” said Float senior analyst Gary Woodill. “Mobile technologies will turn agriculture into more of an information business, as precision farming, geolocation data, and access to immediate market information, all become important. Consumers are also asking for more information about farming practices and the food that we eat, which can be gathered and sent via mobile devices.”

    Agribusiness, Apps, Farming, Technology