Know Your Farmer Know Your Food Compass

Chuck Zimmerman

I couldn’t participate in today’s USDA webinar about their latest project but did get this information to share.

Today, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack and Agriculture Deputy Secretary Kathleen Merrigan unveiled the Know Your Farmer, Know Your Food (KYF) Compass, an interactive web-based document and map highlighting USDA support for local and regional food projects and successful producer, business and community case studies. While hosting a live webinar to highlight USDA’s work over the past three years, the Secretaries emphasized how local and regional food systems across the country create additional economic opportunities for farmers, ranchers and food entrepreneurs, expand healthy food access and meet growing customer demand.

“USDA works every day to strengthen American agriculture, drive job growth and support farm-family income,” said Vilsack. “The KYF Compass highlights how USDA support for local and regional food systems has brought additional opportunities to our country’s farmers, ranchers, processors, distributors and food entrepreneurs. The stories and maps in the Compass underscore how diverse and innovative American agriculture can be.”

The KYF Compass is a digital guide to USDA resources related to local and regional food systems. The Compass consists of an interactive U.S. map showing local and regional food projects and an accompanying narrative documenting the results of this work through case studies, photos and video content.

Farming, Food, USDA

BASF Looks Toward Weed Control Future

Cindy Zimmerman

With glyphosate resistance continuing to grow nationwide as a threat to crop yields in fields throughout the country BASF Crop Protection kicked off the 2012 Commodity Classic with presentations on research, innovations and techniques to help prepare growers for the future of weed control at the sixth annual “Science Behind” media symposium.

BASF Vice President U.S. Crop Protection Paul Rea says resistant weeds are a significant challenge for growers. “And innovation is one of the keys to solving that challenge,” he said, noting that BASF is planning the release of three new herbicides this year – Armezon, OpTill PRO, and Zidua. “BASF invests close to $2 million every day in R&D which makes us a very good partner for growers who are looking for new technologies to increase their yield.”

Listen to or download Paul Rea interview: Interview with Paul Rea

BASF is also planning the release of Engenia™ herbicide, an advanced dicamba formulation, that will be ready when dicamba-tolerant crops make the market in a few years. “We have a long track history with dicamba,” said Steve Bowe, BASF Biology Group Leader. “With our latest formulation advancement Engenia it takes that another step forward.”

Listen to or download Steve Bowe interview: Interview with Steve Bowe

Dr. Dan Westberg, BASF Technical Market Manager, says using multiple sites of action is one way to fight the resistance issues. “In particular, we need to get back to using pre-emergence herbicides in soybeans, so that we provide a strong foundation of weed control and post emergence applications will be more effective,” he said. Scouting, proper planning, and cultural and mechanical strategies should also be considered.

Listen to or download Dan Westberg interview: Interview with Dan Westberg

2012 BASF Science Behind Photo Album

Coverage of the 2012 Commodity Classic Show is sponsored by BASF and New Holland
Audio, BASF, Commodity Classic

BASF Science Behind the Future of Weed Control

Chuck Zimmerman

For the 6th year BASF is holding a “Science Behind” event prior to Commodity Classic. This year the theme is The Science Behind the Future of Weed Control. A Grand Ole Opry studio is the perfect venue for this event where ag media are hearing from university researchers as well as product specialists from BASF.

The event is providing a “closer look at the new innovation in development, Engenia herbicide, an advanced dicamba formulation with low-volatility characteristics for improved on-target application. Engenia will help control more than 100 of the annual broadleaf weeds that farmers are battling in their crops today, including glyphosate-resistant Palmer amaranth, waterhemp and marestail.”

I’m collecting our photos from the event here: 2012 BASF Science Behind Photo Album

Coverage of the 2012 Commodity Classic Show is sponsored by BASF and New Holland
Agribusiness, BASF

Challenged To Think Beyond Yield Growth

Chuck Zimmerman

Challenging the ag journalists attending the Bayer CropScience Ag Issues Forum to think about global food security differently was Gawain Kripke, Director of Policy & Research, Oxfam America. He started his presentation by saying that he would bring up some provocative ideas and he did. For example, he says Oxfam wants an end to “excessive” speculation in commodity markets, for investors to move to small scale food producers and says our food system is “broken.” I didn’t hear how this would be accomplished. What’s the incentive for speculators and investors? Part of the theme of his talk was to think beyond yield growth. However, increasing yield has to be part of the solution to world hunger does it not? I do agree with comments made during yesterday’s session about the need to find a way to better distribute food, especially to the poor. Not sure that because we have that problem it means our food system is broken. What do you think? Take our current ZimmPoll on this very question too!

You can listen to Gawain’s here: Gawain Kripke Remarks

2012 Bayer CropScience Ag Issues Forum Photo Album

Agribusiness, Audio, Bayer

Zimfo Bytes

Melissa Sandfort

    Zimfo Bytes

  • Ohio Brownfield Ag News radio network is pleased to announce it has partnerships with 47 radio stations that are carrying Brownfield programming.
  • The Farm Journal Foundation announced its Farmers Feeding the World campaign’s largest single commitment to date, with a $1 million grant to Heifer International.
  • The economic nuts and bolts of paying farmers, ranchers and other landowners for providing environmental services will be examined at a conference April 17-18, 2012, at Resources for the Future, Washington, D.C.
  • Hay producers can now determine the moisture content of the hay they are baling on the go with the Advanced Baler-Mounted Hay Moisture Tester from John Deere.
    Zimfo Bytes

    Entertainment By Josh Turner

    Chuck Zimmerman

    As you might have expected, Josh Turner was a big hit as the evening entertainment for the Bayer CropScience Ag Issues Forum.

    We had a full afternoon of provocative speakers and lots of interviews were conducted. Then it was time for some good food and relaxation with our friends at Bayer and in the ag media. Then Josh Turner took the stage with his band and played for at least an hour. I don’t think any of us expected a full set and he was great, playing the songs the crowd wanted to hear like, “Long Black Train” and “Why Don’t We Just Dance.” There are some more photos of Josh in our event photo album.

    2012 Bayer CropScience Ag Issues Forum Photo Album

    Agribusiness, Bayer

    We’ll Be Planting More This Year According To ZimmPoll

    Chuck Zimmerman

    In our latest ZimmPoll we asked, “What will be planted this year?” It’s that time and everyone seems to have their own idea about what it will be. 45% of respondents said More of both, 32% said More corn less soybeans and 12% each said More soybeans less corn and Less of both. USDA is estimating corn acreage will be higher this year and the highest since 1944 with soybean acres nearly the same as last year. What do you think?

    Our new ZimmPoll is now live and asks the question, “Is our food system broken?” During the Bayer CropScience Ag Issues Forum one of our speakers was Gawain Kripke, Oxfam America. He told us “our food system is broken.” I think the statement was made out of frustration that we produce more food than we can eat in this country and a huge amount goes to waste. Since we don’t have a system to get waste food to those who need it they seem to believe the food system is broken. I think it’s a provocative statement and would love your thoughts.

    ZimmPoll is sponsored by Rhea+Kaiser, a full-service advertising/public relations agency.

    ZimmPoll

    Commodity Classic Preview From NCGA President

    Cindy Zimmerman

    Getting to the Commodity Classic in Nashville a day early to attend the Bayer CropScience Ag Issues Forum, I was happy to find National Corn Growers Association President Garry Niemeyer of Illinois available to do some pre-convention interviews.

    Garry is looking forward to a great, big Classic this year – with registration already at a record level. “We have 5,400 people showing up for this – the largest by almost 25% that we’ve ever had,” Garry told me. And that’s just pre-registration! Actual numbers will increase this week with on-site registrations.

    Garry says NCGA will be setting policy this week at the meeting and among the main issues will be recommendations for a 2012 Farm Bill, assuming there is one this year. “We have adopted the Aggregate Risk and Revenue Management program that has been put forth by Senators Brown, Thune, Durbin and Dick Lugar. Hopefully, we’re going to move that policy forward because that makes the most sense to us,” Garry said.

    Other issues of concern to corn growers include maintaining the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS2) and protecting against government over-regulation.

    Listen to or download my interview with Garry here: Garry Niemeyer Interview

    The Commodity Classic – which is the annual meeting of corn, soybean, wheat and sorghum producer organizations – officially kicks off on Thursday. Our coverage this year is once again sponsored by our good friends at BASF and New Holland.

    Coverage of the 2012 Commodity Classic Show is sponsored by BASF and New Holland
    Audio, BASF, Commodity Classic, Corn, NCGA, New Holland

    The Growing Problem of Food Waste

    Chuck Zimmerman

    Food waste is a growing problem. That was the message from Kai Robertson, Director, Food, Beverage & Agriculture Practice, BSR, during the Bayer CropScience Ag Issues Forum. I visited with Kai right after her presentation. She startled many of us attending when she presented a statistic from EPA (estimate) that more than 67 billion pounds of food end up in a land fill each year. To put that into perspective, that’s enough food to feed four meals a day to all the 47 million people in the United States at or below poverty level for a year! Clearly there’s a need to do something about it.

    Kai says there are a number of things we can do and pointed to the EPA “Food Waste Recovery Hierarchy” which can be thought of as the 3-R’s of food, “Reduce, Recycle, Reuse.” She says consumers can be more cognizant of what they do with food leftovers. In the food distribution chain there needs to be a system to collect perfectly edible food that’s leftover. She says it would also be helpful to have some regulatory policies set to address this situation.

    You can listen to my interview with Kai here: Interview with Kai Robertson

    2012 Bayer CropScience Ag Issues Forum Photo Album

    Agribusiness, Audio, Bayer, Food

    Welcome From Bayer CropScience

    Chuck Zimmerman

    One of our first speakers at the 2012 Ag Issues Forum is Dr. Mathias Kremer, Head of Global BioScience for Bayer CropScience. He says he wanted the takeaway message from his welcoming remarks to be an understanding of what Bayer CropScience stands for which is “an organization which sees itself as one of the solution providers to the global problems we have and food supply and problems for the farmers in the field. And everything is driven by innovation.” He says the products and innovation they have “have the right team and right spirit and passion behind it.” I asked him about worldwide acceptance of biotech crops and he says there are areas with large areas of adoption but he’s not optimistic the resistance in Europe will change soon.

    You can listen to my interview with Dr. Kremer here: Interview with Dr. Mathias Kremer

    2012 Bayer CropScience Ag Issues Forum Photo Album

    Agribusiness, Audio, Bayer