Peanut Growers Gather to Work and Play

Cindy Zimmerman July 20, 2012

The 14th annual Southern Peanut Growers Conference kicked off Thursday with the usual scoop of southern hospitality at the ice cream registration reception.

Georgia Peanut Commission Executive Director Don Koehler is very excited about this year’s meeting of the Alabama, Florida, Georgia and Mississippi peanut producers.

“It’s our biggest conference we’ve ever had, largest attendance. We’ve got more sponsors, we’ve got more going on,” Don says. “What’s really important is we’ve got a fantastic program this year.”

That includes sessions today on a variety of topics such as nutrition and research, and an update on the farm bill situation from the Chairman of the House Agriculture Committee on Saturday. Don says peanut growers are much happier with the bill developing in the House, since the Senate bill basically left them out of it. “There’s no safety net for our farmers (in the Senate bill),” he said. “The House has given us a little better safety net and we’re very appreciative to Chairman Lucas.”

We’ll be posting all of the SPGC happenings on the SPGC blog.

Listen to my interview with Don here: Don Koehler Interview

Check out the SPGC photo album

Audio, Farm Bill, Peanuts, SPGC

GROWMARK: Uniting for Conservation is Refreshing

John Davis July 20, 2012

Different groups coming together for a common good… that’s the name of the game on the recent Indian Creek Watershed Project Field Tour. Chuck caught up with one of our good friends from GROWMARK, Howard Brown, manager of agronomy services and one of the participants during the tour. He said it was refreshing to see various groups coming together to promote that common cause: conserving resources.

“It’s not about selling one thing or promoting one idea. It’s collectively a systems approach to nitrogen management,” Brown said. He added that if farmers dedicate themselves to only one approach to nitrogen management, they will fail. The dry summer was a classic example of that this year. If farmers only put all their nitrogen on at once post-emergence, they wouldn’t see much value out of that nitrogen because the rains didn’t come. And that also sets up more nitrogen runoff later on. Brown suggested an incremental approach to nitrogen application to minimize any liabilities. It’s just part of GROWMARK’s overall approach to making things work better for their member owners.

Listen to Chuck’s interview with Howard here: Interview with Howard Brown, GROWMARK manager of agronomy services

2012 Indian Creek Watershed Project Field Tour Photo Album

AgWired coverage of the CTIC Indian Creek Watershed Field Tour is sponsored by AGROTAIN

Agribusiness, Audio, Conservation, CTIC, Farming, GROWMARK

Precision Farmer of the Year From Australia

Chuck Zimmerman July 19, 2012

The recipients of the 2012 PrecisionAg Awards of Excellence were honored during the International Conference on Precision Agriculture. Thanks to Paul Schrimpf, group editor of the CropLife Media Group, for the photo since I could not stay for the luncheon at which the awards were presented. Pictured are the award winners with Elliott Nowels (l), Director of the PrecisionAg Institute, which manages the awards. I did get a chance to visit with the Precision Farmer of the Year, David Cox, DAVCO, and learned more about how he’s using precision agriculture on his sugar cane farm in Australia. You can listen to that interview below.

Three outstanding individuals have been chosen to receive the 2012 PrecisionAg Awards of Excellence, an annual program honoring exceptional achievement in precision agriculture adoption, use, and education. The awards are sponsored by the PrecisionAg Institute and its supporting partners. This sixth class of recipients included for the first time a grower from outside the United States. Below is the 2012 class of recipients:

Crop Adviser/Entrepreneur Award

Darryl Starr, Advanced Ag Solutions, LLC, Lafayette, IN

Educator/Researcher Award

Terry Brase, Kirkwood Community College, Cedar Rapids, IA

Precision Farmer of the Year Award

David Cox, Ayr, Queensland, Australia

Listen to my interview with David here: Interview with David Cox

11th International Conference on Precision Agriculture Photo Album

AgWired coverage of the International Conference on Precision Agriculture is sponsored by John Deere

Ag Groups, Audio, Farming, Precision Agriculture

FMC’s Anthem to Slay the Dragon of Waterhemp

John Davis July 19, 2012

Weed control and management was a big topic of discussion during the recent Anthem Field Plot Tour in Ames, Iowa, and one weed seems to be standing out this summer more than the rest. “Waterhemp is currently THE dragon,” said Dr. Mike Owen of Iowa State University. “It’s the one that is the big problem. It’s the one that’s going to increase in prominence, in importance, in resistance to herbicides, and in its difficulty to control.”

Owen told Chuck during an interview that he believes Anthem by FMC, hopefully released this fall by the EPA, will do a good job in helping farmers slay that water hemp dragon and whatever else might be bedeviling their fields. “It’s a good, solid product. It’s one that I think is very important.” He added that Anthem is in the family of herbicides that control long-chain fatty acids… which makes it good at controlling the small seed broadleaf weeds, such as waterhemp and lambsquarters.

Hear more of what Owen told Chuck here: Interview with Dr. Mike Owen of Iowa State University

You can find photos from the event here: FMC Anthem Field Plot Tour Photos

Agribusiness, Audio, FMC

Time for the Southern Peanut Growers Conference

Cindy Zimmerman July 19, 2012

The SPGC blog is ready for the 14th Annual Southern Peanut Growers Conference being held Thursday through Sunday, once again at the Edgewater Beach Resort, Panama City Beach, Fla.

This will be the 5th year that the annual conference of peanut growers from Alabama, Florida, Georgia and Mississippi will be covered start to finish on this blog in photos, audio and video.

The three-day event provides farmers an opportunity to learn more about the industry and issues affecting them while also enjoying a relaxing time at the beach. This year’s conference general sessions provide farmers with information on how the peanut industry is helping fight world hunger, legislative updates, uncontrollable costs on the farm and peanut research. In addition to the conference sessions the event focuses on the family by offering a ladies program and a golf tournament.

The legislative update will be of particular interest this year with Congress in the midst of negotiating a new farm bill and one of the major players in the process will be attending SPGC. House Agriculture Committee chairman Frank Lucas (R-OK) will be able to enlighten conference goers on the current status of farm legislation and what might happen next.

I will be the SPGC blogger once again this year as Chuck has back to back events and he is jealous that I will be seeing one of our favorite groups from college that we never did see. Atlanta Rhythm Section will be entertaining the peanut growers on Saturday night, courtesy of Syngenta. I’m pretty excited about that!

SPGC is a great industry meeting that we enjoy attending every year – just the right mix of work and play! Check out the SPGC blog for all the highlights.

Peanuts, SPGC

Going for the Good Stuff

Melissa Sandfort July 19, 2012

Last week was county fair week and that means one of our local towns was filled with carnival sights, funnel cake smells and 4-H animal sounds. Our son loved every minute of it and the entire time I kept thinking how much better this all was when I was a kid – funny how growing up ruins everything.

Getting to see all of the animals was the highlight of the weekend. And much to my surprise, I never was asked, “Mommy, can we have chickens? Can we have a rabbit?” He seems to be content with black kitty and our horses.

We were touring the goats (which were my son’s favorite) when I caught sight of the smartest one in the show arena. Can you see him sticking his head through the fence chowing down on the bag of feed? I had to laugh and think to myself – “Follow your nose little guy! That’s right – it’s 100 degrees and if you can get a little extra nourishment, the judges will never know.”

As our son grows and is able to “do” more at local events, I get a clearer picture of where our summer days are headed…showing our horse Thelma in 4-H. I’m just not sure I’m ready for a goat yet.

Until we walk again …

Uncategorized

Ag Leader Technology Good Fit with Wyffels

John Davis July 19, 2012

Over the past few days, we’ve been talking a lot about how the seeds from Wyffels Hybrids are important for producers to get the most out of their land. With a high-quality product like Wyffels, you also need to combine it with the right kind of technology that helps make sure you are getting the right amount of corn in the ground to maximize those planning efforts you might have put together with your seed rep. That’s where our friends at Ag Leader come in. During the recent Wyffels Hybrids Corn Strategies event, Chuck talked with Rick Hofer from Ag Leader, who said their automation equipment helps farmers be more precise.

“With our SeedCommand products, we have automatic shutoffs for row units, which [helps you] save 5-10 percent on your seed costs… which affects your bottom line,” he said. Hofer also gave us a nice rundown on some of the new and even soon-to-be-released equipment from Ag Leader, which they were able to show off as part of the Wyffels Hybrids Corn Strategies event.

Hear more of what Rick had to say to Chuck here: Interview with Rick Hofer, Ag Leader Technology

2012 Wyffels Hybrids Corn Strategies Photo Album

Ag Leader, Agribusiness, Audio, Corn, Precision Agriculture

USDA: Conservation Project Tour a “Real Gem”

John Davis July 19, 2012

You can’t underestimate the value that an event like the recent Indian Creek Watershed Project Field Tour. “It’s a real gem,” Ivan Dozier, Illinois State Conservationist with the USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) told Chuck during one of the stops on the tour. He said he’s been involved in water shed planning for a long time, and it makes him feel good to see this project being so successful.

During the tour, Dozier said he’s been most impressed by the number of producers who are willing to take the chance with their livelihoods to have these conservation test plots. And he’s also pleased to see so many people from around the country coming out and seeing for themselves how it works. “Those people look at what’s going on here and start sharing some of those ideas, take them back with them, so they don’t have to start from scratch everywhere. They can start trying things in their areas.”

Listen to Chuck’s interview with Ivan here: Interview with Ivan Dozier, Illinois State Conservationist, USDA-NRCS

2012 Indian Creek Watershed Project Field Tour Photo Album

AgWired coverage of the CTIC Indian Creek Watershed Field Tour is sponsored by AGROTAIN

Agribusiness, Audio, Conservation, CTIC, Farming

Drought Drawing National Attention

Cindy Zimmerman July 18, 2012

The widespread drought is now garnering national attention, with Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack today meeting with President Obama on the situation and giving a press briefing at the White House.

Calling it the “most serious situation we’ve had in 25 years,” Secretary Vilsack said the president is fully informed about the damage being inflicted by the weather on crops and farmers. “61% of the land mass of the United States is currently characterized as being impacted by this drought,” said Vilsack. “Our hearts go out to the producers, the farm families who are struggling with something they have no control over.” As of today, about one third of the counties in the United States are designated as secretarial disaster areas.

Vilsack said the drought will likely have an impact on food prices down the road, but warned that it may lead to price-gouging. “If people are beginning to see food price increases now, it is not in any way, shape or form related to the drought,” he said.

Best comment from Vilsack that is getting lots of airplay – “I get on my knees every day, and I’m saying an extra prayer now. If I had a rain prayer, or rain dance, I could do, I would do it. But right now the focus needs to be on working with Congress.” That comment was in response to a Christian media reporter’s question about whether Vilsack thought it was a good idea to have a national day of prayer and fasting for relief from the drought.

Great to listen to the questions from the mainstream media relating to agriculture that reflect how far removed they are indeed from the farm.

Listen to or download Vilsack’s press briefing here. Vilsack Drought Briefing

Thanks to USDA Radio’s Gary Crawford for sending me the briefing audio and @usdapress for tweeting the photo of the secretary and the president.

Audio, USDA

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