Corn Growers Heading to Hill With Message

Cindy Zimmerman

Corn growers are heading to Capitol Hill this week with a message – they want a farm bill NOW!

“All of the NCGA corn farmers, 127 delegates are in Washington DC, and we’re going to present our message that we want a farm bill now,” said National Corn Growers Association president Garry Niemeyer of Illinois. “And hopefully we’re going to get a rain as well.”

The farmers on the Hill are also talking about the drought, according to Garry. “We still don’t know what the final yields will be and that makes a lot of people nervous,” he said. “We’re very concerned about what the future holds for demand destruction because of the higher prices of corn as well.”

With the clear example of what weather can do to a crop, Niemeyer says getting a farm bill passed is more important now than ever. “Our highest priority is crop insurance,” he said. “That’s the reason it’s so essential and you’ll see on the corn growers on the Hill wearing this pin that says “Farm Bill Now.”

Listen my interview with Garry here: NCGA president Garry Niemeyer

Audio, Corn, NCGA

Like Prima Tech and Share To Win Boots

Chuck Zimmerman

If it ever rains again in Iowa you might need a good pair of boots for the Farm Progress Show coming up. I learned the hard way to bring ’em with me. Here’s a chance to win a free pair.

Just like Prima Tech on their Facebook page and share.

To celebrate the launch of our new boots we are giving away a pair to one of our Facebook friends. Winners will be drawn July 25th from all Shares and ‘Prima’ Likers! Winner’s name will be posted on the Prima Tech Facebook page on July 26th.

To win all you need to do is share this photo and like our Prima Tech USA page! Remember to like our page and not just the photo.

Agribusiness

Getting to Know BASF’s Nevin McDougall

Cindy Zimmerman

Nevin McDougall has been the Senior Vice President, Crop Protection for BASF North America for three years now and his face should be familiar to many in agriculture who have attended Commodity Classic during that time, but he has actually been with BASF since the American Cyanamid acquisition. “Really, with legacy company, I’ve been with BASF for 19-20 years,” he said.

He grew up on a family farm in Canada and has roots in agriculture. “So being involved in agriculture is very comfortable, very natural. I can relate with our customers and what they are trying to achieve, so for me it’s a very good fit,” said McDougall who loves what BASF is doing right now to help farmers. “There’s always something fun to talk about. We have new products, new services we’re offering to growers to do a better job on their own operations,” he said. “My joy and thrill has been working with customers and trying to deliver better solutions than we ever have before.”

Even though BASF, The Chemical Company, is much more than agriculture but McDougall says it is a very important part of the company. “If you look at the amount of research dollars that go into agriculture, we’re talking upwards of $600 million on an annual basis, so it’s a significant commitment to agriculture and innovation in agriculture.”

McDougall is particularly pleased with Headline and the Kixor franchise and is excited about all the more products in the pipeline that add value for growers. “We’re here for the long term,” he said.

Learn more about Nevin and BASF in this interview: BASF VP Nevin McDougall

Audio, BASF

Corn Crop is in Worst Condition Since 1988

Cindy Zimmerman

Drought conditions in the Midwest are “almost historic” with 38 percent of the nation’s corn crop now rated poor to very poor, according to USDA Meteorologist Brad Rippey.

“That 38% represents the highest amount of U.S. corn rated poor to very poor since the end of the 1988 growing season,” said Rippey. “We now see in 13 of the 18 major production states in the U.S., at least one quarter of the corn crop rated poor to very poor.” Leading the pack in low ratings are Kentucky at 77%, Missouri 72%, and Indiana 71% poor to very poor according to the latest USDA crop progress report. At least half the soybean crop in those states is also rated poor or worse.

Rippey says both of the crops are progressing along faster than normal in the hot, dry weather, which is a very bad thing right now.

Corn, Soybean, USDA, Weather

International FarmSight

Chuck Zimmerman

Attendees at the International Conference on Precision Agriculture got the full overview of the John Deere FarmSight strategy from Mark Stelford who does Solutions Marketing in the Intelligent Solutions Group. I visited with Mark afterward.

Mark says that when you look at some of the megatrends in agriculture and outside the industry like demand for food, fiber and fuel between now and 2050 it has really helped John Deere understand what the company needs to do to help drive efficiencies to the producer. So FarmSight is the strategy that helps drive them to the products they are creating. Those are driven by three pillars that include machine optimization, logistics optimization and agronomic decision support. In his comments here Mark says he emphasized John Deere sitting at the table with other companies via AgGateway to create data standards to increase the efficiency of data movement.

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

11th International Conference on Precision Agriculture Photo Album

AgWired coverage of the International Conference on Precision Agriculture is sponsored by John Deere
Ag Groups, Agribusiness, John Deere, Precision Agriculture

Midwest Drought Puts FMC Products to the Test

John Davis

The Midwest drought has hit farmers in the region with a double-whammy this summer. First, obviously, many crops are just withering and dying in the hot, dry conditions. Second, the lack of rain hurt some of the pre-emergence herbicides out there, allowing weeds to choke what crops were able to beat the heat. During the recent Anthem Field Plot Tour, FMC officials got the chance to talk with farmers throughout the Midwest. In Ames, Iowa, Chuck caught up with FMC Midwest Regional Business Manager Randy Young, whose territory covers from Minnesota to Colorado and has seen a wide variety of conditions this year, but everyone is dry. He said FMC’s Authority brands have performed well, and they can’t wait to add Anthem, the herbicide on display during this plot tour, if the EPA approves it for use this fall.

“What I see is a lot of excitement from retailers. It’s another tool in the tool box,” adding that they expect Anthem to bring a lot more flexibility to the market, from early pre-planting application in corn to post-emergence in soybeans.

Listen to Chuck’s interview with Randy here: Interview with Randy Young, FMC Midwest Regional Business Manager

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

Agribusiness, Audio, FMC

Checking Soil is Dusty Work

Chuck Zimmerman

Getting down and dirty during the Indian Creek Watershed Project Field Tour is Roger Windhorn, Illinois NRCS State Office. You can watch his presentation in the video below. Roger had a tough job since it is dry and hot in Illinois and as you’ll see in his presentation, there’s a big lack of moisture even down past four feet in the soil pit he had dug. This meant he needed a water spray bottle to use on a sample he chopped out to show soil coloration! The drought has not only had an impact on crops but also on field test plots. During this stop on the tour the nice breeze we had meant swirling dust clouds through the field. We can only hope they’ve had some rain there by now.

2012 Indian Creek Watershed Project Field Tour Photo Album

AgWired coverage of the CTIC Indian Creek Watershed Field Tour is sponsored by AGROTAIN
Ag Groups, Conservation, CTIC, Video

Wyffels Hybrids Ready for Tale of Two Seasons

John Davis

If you look at the last two summers in the upper Midwest, you couldn’t find a sharper contrast: plenty of rain, too much of it in many cases last year, and bone dry and hot across much of the corn growing areas this year. That’s part of what the folks at the Wyffels Hybrids Corn Strategies event in Vincent, Iowa heard this year. While Chuck reports that the corn looked pretty good on the Harmon Farm, Wyffels’ Adam Ploog says it’s been hit or miss this season in his territory, with “spots where the crop looks decent, hanging in there” to lighter soils and corn in rough shape.

Ploog explained to be ready for these unusual seasons, you have to be constantly changing the lineup. “You’ve got to always be striving to have a few more bushels than the year before,” he said, adding that Wyffels has rolled out several new Genuity® SmartStax® hybrids to meet the challenges of rootworms. “We just continue, continue, continue to spend money on research to really strengthen our lineup to put together a full package for growers.”

Don’t forget, the Wyffels Hybrids Corn Strategies team will be setting up tomorrow, July 18th on Nicholas Farms near Litchfield, Illinois.

Listen to Chuck’s interview with Adam here: Interview with Adam Ploog, Wyffels Hybrids

2012 Wyffels Hybrids Corn Strategies Photo Album

Agribusiness, Audio, Corn

Monsanto Learning More on CTIC Tour

John Davis

The more you learn, the more you know… that seems to be the approach our friends at Monsanto are taking, especially this year when drought is making for some real challenges on Midwest farms. During the recent Indian Creek Watershed Project Field Tour, Chuck caught up with Dave Gustafson, who serves on Monsanto’s sustainable agriculture team and is a board member of the Conservation Technology Information Center (CTIC), one of the organizers of the tour. He pointed out how what he does at Monsanto really goes hand-in-glove with what the CTIC is trying to accomplish.

“One of the things I’ve really been impressed by is the way CTIC is able to get information to growers in a way that actually helps influence their adoption of conservation practices. So Monsanto sees CTIC as playing an extremely valuable role in helping to encourage the greater adoption of conservation practices that really benefits everyone… and not just in agriculture but society in general,” he said.

Gustafson said he’s also learning more about nitrogen management and the adoption of cover crops, a new interest for Monsanto. He said he’s hearing from farmers that cover crops can help with water penetration into the soil, especially important in the drought-stricken Midwest this year.

Listen to Chuck’s interview with Dave here: Interview with Dave Gustafson, Monsanto

2012 Indian Creek Watershed Project Field Tour Photo Album

AgWired coverage of the CTIC Indian Creek Watershed Field Tour is sponsored by AGROTAIN
Audio, Conservation, CTIC, Farming

FMC Shows Potential of Anthem in Field Plot Tour

John Davis

FMC officials are hoping to have EPA approval of their new herbicide Anthem by this fall. In the meantime, this summer they launched a series of plot tours across the Midwest to show off the new product. Chuck caught up with the Anthem Field Plot Tour as it made its swing through Ames, Iowa and spoke with Rick Ekins, FMC Product Manager, who said they wee really able to show the flexibility of Anthem in pre-emergence to later post-emergence treatments.

“The way these trials were set up was really designed to show pre-emerged grass control and pre-emerged broadleaf control, the spectrum of control, as well as residual control you get out of Anthem,” he said. Ekins continued that compared to some competitors, Anthem did have bigger spectrum of control and longer residual out of the low-water soluable product. He also said that Anthem is really showing its worth in water hemp control. “[All herbicides] have to have grass control. But where we’re starting to see separation from Anthem is the water hemp control, whether it’s resistant or non-resistant.” Plus, he said Anthem is showing some great control against lambsquarter, velvet leaf, and even morning glory.

Listen to Chuck’s interview with Rick here: Interview with Rick Ekins, FMC Product Manager

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

Agribusiness, Audio, FMC