Precision Ag News 10/19

Carrie Muehling

  • The Sustainability Consortium (TSC) announced grant funding for two USDA Partnerships for Climate-Smart Commodities projects that received a total of $135 million to reach underserved farmer populations and support climate-smart agriculture. TSC will receive a total of $480k to support corporate engagement and participation in these efforts over 3 years.
  • Combine harvester sales grew in September 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 stayed above the 5-year average for the second month since April 2022. U.S. total farm tractor sales fell 12.8 percent for the month of September compared to 2021, while U.S. self-propelled combine sales for the month grew 6.6 percent, slowing the previous month’s gains.
  • AgMission, an initiative founded by the Foundation for Food & Agriculture Research and the World Farmers’ Organisation to unlock agriculture’s potential to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, is issuing its first Request for Information (RFI) that seeks input into the development of a new digital integration hub to enhance collaboration between agricultural producers and researchers.
  • SGS announced the expansion of its testing capabilities to include plant genotyping at its crop science laboratory in Brookings, South Dakota. Drawing on the expertise of renowned SGS Institut Fresenius GmbH TraitGenetics Section (SGS IF TG) in Germany, this development will significantly expand SGS’s seed testing and molecular analysis portfolio in North America.
  • Aqua-Yield announced several additions to its senior executive team. Marco Guirado has been appointed Vice President of International Sales where he will oversee the company’s international revenue growth and client experience teams. In addition, Trent Whiting has joined Aqua-Yield as its new Vice President of Sales for the U.S. and Canada, with responsibility for growth strategies and business development for the North American market.
  • More than 16,000 farmers and agricultural organizations representing corn, citrus, grain sorghum, sugar cane, and other crops recently united against EPA’s proposed revision to its 2020 atrazine registration review decision, submitting comments calling for the agency to base decisions on credible scientific evidence. Efforts to help farmers speak out against the proposal were coordinated by the Triazine Network, a diverse coalition of state and national agricultural groups across the nation that rely on atrazine and other triazine herbicides to control weeds. The atrazine comment period ended October 7.
  • A new interactive online tool for visualizing and exploring freeze-date trends and other climate patterns is now available, thanks to a partnership between Purdue University’s Midwestern Regional Climate Center and the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Midwest Climate Hub. The tool covers 25 states in the upper Midwest, the Northeast and Appalachia.
  • Bayer announced that the company has closed the previously announced transaction with Ginkgo Bioworks to begin a multi-year strategic partnership to accelerate research and development of biological products for agriculture. The transaction includes the divestment of Bayer’s West Sacramento Biologics Research & Development site, and its internal discovery and lead optimization platform.
  • To celebrate the start of the first American edition of FIRA, the international agricultural robotics conference, Western Growers debuts an inside look at cutting-edge technologies on the farm that will help ease the industry’s ongoing labor shortage.
  • Esendo fungicide is the latest in AgBiome’s lineup of microbial-based solutions and the first of its proprietary Connate portfolio to receive approval from the Environmental Protection Agency. AgBiome, Inc., a leader in developing innovative products from the Earth’s microbial communities, is the developer of both Howler fungicide and recently EPA-approved Theia fungicide.
AgWired Precision, Precision Ag Bytes, Precision Agriculture

Field Notes from Koch Agronomic Services – Episode 23

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.

Fall Nutrient Planning Brings Spring Success

In this episode, we discuss the importance of incorporating a fall nutrient program into a comprehensive, year-round nutrient plan and how KAS can help growers set up for a successful spring planting season. Lacie Thomas, technical agronomist for KAS, and Zach Havens, KAS territory business manager, also discuss a common cold weather myth, and how protecting fall-applied nitrogen can lead to higher yield potential.

You can listen to the program here: Fall Nutrient Planning Brings Spring Success (10:56)

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, Koch Agronomic Services, Podcasts, Soil

Preliminary Hurricane Losses to Agriculture in Florida

Cindy Zimmerman

Citrus trees downed by Hurricane Ian (UF/IFAS)

According to preliminary assessments by the University of Florida, the combination of seasonal crops, livestock, nursery and aquaculture products potentially lost as a result of Hurricane Ian will likely range between $787 million and $1.56 billion.

“This estimate only accounts for production losses, or changes in expected revenues for the current calendar or market year; citrus, for example, had not yet begun harvesting, and some fall vegetables, like tomatoes and peppers, were already planted,” said Christa Court, UF/IFAS Economic Impact Analysis Program director. “Our preliminary estimate is a range, a wide range, to account for many of these unknowns. What isn’t destroyed might have diminished yield or quality, which will not be apparent for weeks or months, and then even more effects can appear in the long-term.”

Despite heavy flooding prohibiting full assessments of some fields, the researchers collected some visual assessments that indicate what those larger impacts may be. Among their predictions:

Citrus crops are expected to sustain significant production losses ($147 million to $304 million), depending on the level of fruit drop, damage to branches, and impacts due to heavy precipitation and flooding.
Vegetables and melons are expected to sustain significant production losses ($208 million to $394 million), with impacts heavily dependent on the ability (or inability) to replant damaged or destroyed crops.
Livestock operations (beef and dairy cattle, horses, apiculture, etc.) and producers of animal products (milk, eggs, honey) are expected to suffer losses ($113 million to $222 million) due to damaged fencing, power outages and flooding.

Read the full report and listen to Court’s summary:
UF-IFAS Hurricane Ian damage estimate 7:42

Audio, Citrus, Livestock, Weather

Violated by Facebook

Chuck Zimmerman

FacebookHas this happened to you (FB account blocked)? If so, how did you handle it?

It has only been 4 days since Facebook blocked my whole account. Many of my friends have had this happen. Almost all were able to get unblocked. None of them were violating FB standards. This is in part the result of the AI being used to determine what is okay and what is not okay. It’s also in part because of a concerted attack by people who have activist agendas and work hard to cancel those they disagree with. Top that off with actually having your account hacked by some unknown person and it is amazing this doesn’t happen even more often. It’s not just Facebook either.

In my case, I got a notification that someone had reported the business page I have in my account for AgWired. I clicked through but didn’t see what was being reported. Right after that I got a notification that my account might have been accessed by someone and to take steps to secure my account. It was a Chrome browser on a Windows computer in Chicago. I was just about to delete it when my page was completely blocked. I chose to disagree and followed all FB steps which included changing my password, uploading proof of my identity (I used my passport), make remarks about what might have triggered this, etc. So, I’m waiting the verdict. This apparently was focused on my AgWired page on which I post stories using content we create for on-location events, news release distribution, latest episodes of podcasts we produce and more. I have been very careful not to violate any social media standards. I don’t actually know what caused this since I wasn’t given a reason.

This happened during my work in Minneapolis last Friday morning. I am the one who feels violated if anybody and the fact that you can’t talk or chat with anyone makes matters worse. I sincerely hope this gets a positive resolution. From a personally standpoint it has been a great communication mechanism for me and my family as well as my work.

I have communicated with several people who have recently had this happen. It has affected them like me and not all of them have been unblocked. I read posts just recently of a few people I follow on Twitter who have just lost 10-15,000 followers over night. I’ve heard it said that it is a conservative purge prior to the election. I also believe we are being targeted by people who are just plain anti-agriculture.

For you agri-marketers out there. What are your thoughts? People I’ve known who are having this happen include farmers, media and other influencers that I believe you want to reach.

Post Update: I got it back on November 7th. Apparently my account was hacked via my AgWired business page. The interesting thing is that my business pages were not blocked although I couldn’t see them or work on them. So, as soon as I could log in again I checked the AgWired page and found an un-authorized ad center admin. I canceled him immediately but he or they somehow placed ad campaigns that never showed up on the page and were charged to a credit card that I don’t have. FB disabled the account, which btw, doesn’t officially show up in my list of ad accounts. Very strange. I spent too much time on this but have learned a lot. And the main thing is that the Facebook of today is now part of the Metaverse and apparently you automatically have an account there to allow you to do all kinds of things. It is complicated and you would need classes in how to actually use all the elements involved. I’m going to stick to simple and am still waiting on Facebook to delete the activity the hacker did in the time I was blocked. Enough on that.

Social Media

Animal Ag News 10/18

Carrie Muehling

  • The National Cattlemen’s Beef Association denounced Google’s decision to bias consumers against beef through their new sustainability search feature that provides inaccurate climate information on cattle production.
  • The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service released a proposed regulatory framework for a new strategy to control Salmonella contamination in poultry products and reduce foodborne illnesses attributed to these products. The agency is hosting a virtual public meeting on Nov. 3, 2022, to seek input from stakeholders on the proposed framework.
  • The National Cattlemen’s Beef Association reaffirmed support for the National Pork Producer’s Council (NPPC) following Supreme Court oral arguments in the case NPPC v. Ross.
  • Nine-in-ten voters with children in public schools say making sure school meals are healthy and nutritious for children in their community is a priority, according to a new Morning Consult national tracking poll commissioned by the International Dairy Foods Association (IDFA). Ninety-two percent of these parents also indicated that they believe providing milk in school meals is important to a child’s daily nutritional intake, while approximately 8-in-10 parents supported including low-fat flavored milk in public school meals. IDFA shares this information at the start of National School Lunch Week to remind policymakers of dairy’s essential place in school meals.
  • Following R-CALF USA‘s 23rd Annual Convention “Code of the West,” R-CALF USA announced all convention speaker presentations are now available on the R-CALF USA YouTube channel. The “Code of the West” convention was hosted in Deadwood, South Dakota, Aug. 18-19, 2022. At least 25 states were represented with about 400 guests in attendance and several thousand additional guests viewed the convention online.
  • The checkoff-funded Dairy Foods Research Centers network – created to provide innovative, science-backed solutions related to consumer demand and business needs and trends – is celebrating its 35-year anniversary. Dairy Management Inc. provides the structure and oversight for more than 20 universities that comprise the network’s six regionally based centers. This system has supported more than 400 dairy industry companies with research-based solutions related to processing, food quality and safety, ingredients and other areas.
  • Steve Evans, vice president of community development for Smithfield Foods, was recognized with the Future Leader Award at the World Sustainability Congress in Munich, Germany.
  • Wayne-Sanderson Farms has announced a second donation of $500,000 toward construction of Mississippi State University’s new poultry feed mill, bringing the company’s total contribution to the facility to $1 million. With this donation, MSU’s department of poultry science is closing in on the halfway mark for funding their multimillion-dollar research mill facility.
  • The American Farm Bureau Federation was joined by representatives of the National Milk Producers Federation, dairy cooperatives, processors, state dairy associations and dairy farmers from across the country for a successful first-of-its-kind industry-wide Federal Milk Marketing Order Forum.
AgWired Animal, Animal Agriculture, Animal Bites

ZimmCast 700 – NAMA Fall Conference & Export Exchange

Chuck Zimmerman

ZimmCastHello and welcome to the ZimmCast.

We’re reached another milestone. This is episode 700 of the podcast that started back at the beginning of 2005. You can find them all on AgWired.com by searching the category link for the ZimmCast.

This week I’m going to share a few interviews from my week last week in Minneapolis. This includes the NAMA Fall Conference followed by the Export Exchange. First we’ll hear from Matt Coniglio, Farm Progress, and chair of the NAMA Foundation. Next up is Brian Torrey, John Deere, who is the chair for the 2023 Agri-Marketing Conference which will take place in St. Louis next April. He provides a little look ahead for that.

After the NAMA Fall Conference I changed hotels for the Export Exchange which is an opportunity for foreign grain buyers to come visit with farmers, agribusiness companies and the U.S. Grains Council, Renewable Fuels Association and Growth Energy, who partner to put the even on. First up is Ryan LeGrand, U.S. Grains Council President/CEO. Next Ann Lewis of the RFA provides current numbers for the exports of U.S. ethanol and dried distillers grains.

It was a busy week in Minneapolis but later this week I’ll be in the Georgia woods hunting deer. Looking forward to a little R&R.

Listen to the ZimmCast here:
ZimmCast 700 - NAMA Fall Conference & Export Exchange (17:56)

So, that’s the ZimmCast for this week. I hope you enjoyed it and thank you for listening.

Want to sponsor the ZimmCast? Just let me know and we can talk through ideas for your company. I’m AgriBlogger on Twitter or just email me at chuck@zimmcomm.biz.

Subscribe to the ZimmCast in:

Audio, Biofuels, Ethanol, NAMA, RFA

AgGateway Preparing for Annual Conference

Cindy Zimmerman

“Create, Engage, Grow – 2.0” is the theme for the AgGateway 2022 Annual Conference, November 14-16 at the Wyndham Grand Clearwater Beach, Clearwater Beach, Florida.

“We are doing things to create new digital resources, to engage new people, to grow the organization, and to overall bring better data interoperability,” said AgGateway Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer Jeremy Wilson.

The AgGateway Annual Conference is a benchmarking event, where the industry gathers to understand the state of interconnectivity in agriculture, what the association and its membership has accomplished over the past year, and the core initiatives on deck for the year ahead. Wilson says their membership is very diverse from ag retailers, distributors, and manufacturers, to grain and feed companies, precision ag providers, and software and data service providers.

“If you’re involved in any type of agriculture today, there’s a fit for you in AgGateway,” said Wilson. “We’re actually looking at adding some new work in the animal health segment…we’ve also had a couple meet ups around the ag energy side for delivery of liquid fuels.”

Learn more about AgGateway and the upcoming annual conference in this interview:
AgGateway annual conference preview 13:47

ag retailers, AgGateway, Agribusiness, AgWired Precision, Audio, data, Precision Agriculture, Technology

Industry Ag News 10/14

Carrie Muehling

  • High fuel and input costs, market volatility, the war in Ukraine, and the 2023 Farm Bill are just some of the factors driving today’s challenging farm operations. Now is the time to prepare yourself to manage this ongoing uncertainty. Join us online for the 2022 DTN Ag Summit on Dec. 12-13. You’ll gain valuable information from notable experts across the agriculture industry.
  • College undergraduates: Apply for the Agricultural Relations Council (ARC)/Gardner & Gardner Communications internship, being hosted by G&S Business Communications – in Raleigh, N.C. or Chicago – during the summer of 2023. Students interested in applying for the ARC Internship with G&S Business Communications should fill out an application, due Dec. 31. The intern will be selected by Jan. 31.
  • The National Council for Agricultural Education named Dr. Travis Park the director of agricultural education, National FFA board chair and National FFA advisor.
  • Working together was the theme of the annual World Ag Expo Chairman’s Kickoff Dinner at the International Agri-Center® on Saturday, October 8. The event gives the new show chairman a chance to gather committee chairmen, staff, and his friends and family to share a meal and set the tone for “farm show season.”
  • AEI Premium, the online community for agricultural decision makers, presents the third season of its award-winning AEI Presents podcast series: “Nothing Borrowed, Nothing Gained.”
  • The 2022 Annual Conference and Meeting of the American Society of Agricultural Consultants will be held Sunday, October 23 – Tuesday, October 25 in Oklahoma City at the Skirvin Hilton Hotel.
Zimfo Bytes

Export Exchange by the Numbers

Cindy Zimmerman

RFA team in foreground greets Export Exchange attendees

The first Export Exchange since 2018 is underway in Minneapolis this week and organizers are pleased with the turnout.

“We have about 490 registrations as of right now,” said U.S. Grains Council Director of Industry Relations Ellen Zimmerman during the welcome reception Wednesday night. On site registration was busy so they expect to easily surpass the 500 they expected.

“We have five general sessions, about 20 speakers, 32 exhibits, 34 sponsors, 51 countries represented,” she said. “We have just as much time built in for networking breaks.”

The sessions will focus on timely topics related to exports of U.S. corn, sorghum, barley, and the ethanol co-product distiller’s dried grains with solubles (DDGS). But the networking is where the business of the Exchange gets done. Reported sales associated with Export Exchange 2018 included approximately 1.3 million metric tons of grains and co-products worth $403 million traded either at the conference or immediately before or after. The event is co-sponsored by the Renewable Fuels Association (RFA).

Learn more in this interview with Zimmerman.
Export Exchange interview with Ellen Zimmerman, USGC 3:24

2022 Export Exchange Photo Album

Audio, Ethanol, Exports, Grains, RFA, USGC

AFBF Establishes 2023 Farm Bill Priorities

Cindy Zimmerman

American Farm Bureau Federation president Zippy Duvall today outlined the organization’s 2023 Farm Bill priorities. The priorities were identified by a working group of Farm Bureau members and staff from across the country.

In general, AFBF supports continuing current farm bill program funding; maintaining a unified farm bill that includes nutrition programs and farm programs together; prioritizing risk management tools that include federal crop insurance and commodity programs; and ensuring adequate USDA staffing and resources to provide technical assistance.

The priorities include more than 60 recommendations over multiple titles of the farm bill including reference price increases for commodities, more transparency for milk checks, funding for conservation programs, rural development, and streamlining of nutrition programs to get food to those who need it most.

The AFBF board of directors voted unanimously to approve the recommendations. Final approval of policy priorities will be accomplished by a vote of delegates at the AFBF Convention in Puerto Rico in January 2023.

Listen to Duvall’s comments and press conference.
AFBF Farm Bill priorities 27:23

AFBF, Audio, Farm Bill, Farm Policy