Animal Ag News 6/7

Carrie Muehling

  • The National Cattlemen’s Beef Association praised the signing of an agreement between the U.S. and Japan to increase the Beef Safeguard Trigger level under the U.S.-Japan Trade Agreement.
  • Navigating social, environmental and economic issues facing dairy businesses in a world shifting from COVID-19 restrictions took center stage at the 2022 Dairy Sustainability Alliance® Spring Meeting, held May 18-19.
  • FarmFirst Dairy Cooperative applauds the announcement made by the Biden Administration to initiate a second dispute panel over Canada’s most recent actions to delay fulfilling its obligations under the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA).
  • This year’s World Pork Expo at the Iowa State Fairgrounds from June 8-10 is presented by the National Pork Producers Council, marking the organization’s 34th annual event. Thousands of producers and industry professionals will gather to learn the latest technologies and innovations in the field.
  • This June Dairy Month, Dairy Farmers of America (DFA) is turning up the heat with a new ad campaign featuring the “DFA Nerd Herd” that will show milk doesn’t just cut the heat in spicy foods, but it also can help protect the environment by cutting the heat that methane emissions trap in the planet. Launched in 2021, the DFA Nerd Herd is led by farmers along with a team of engineers, nutritionists, veterinarians, technology experts, scientists and more to help educate consumers about how DFA farm families are using renewable energy methods, like wind and solar, creating healthy soil and turning waste into power sources through anaerobic digesters to help protect the earth and reduce our carbon footprint.
  • The American Meat Science Association (AMSA) announced Kaitlyn Compart, director of scientific affairs for Smithfield Foods, Inc., is a recipient of its 2022 Achievement Award. The annual awards program recognizes young professional members who have demonstrated significant contributions to the industry.
  • The Animal Agriculture Alliance announced that a highlights report from the 2022 Stakeholders Summit is now accessible online. The 2022 event, themed “Come Together for Animal Ag: Be Informed, Be Ready, Be Here,” was held May 11-12 in Kansas City, Mo. and attracted a diverse audience of over 385 in-person and virtual attendees.
AgWired Animal, Animal Agriculture, Animal Bites

Agri-Pulse West Summit Announces Speakers

Cindy Zimmerman

The agenda for the 2022 Agri-Pulse Food and Agriculture Issues Summit in Sacramento July 11 is shaping up to include some of California’s most prominent policy makers.

State Senator Melissa Hurtado, the youngest woman ever to be elected to the California State Senate and a representative of a new generation of Latina political leaders, will be the opening keynote speaker for the summit. California’s Secretary of Food and Agriculture Karen Ross, and Wade Crowfoot, Secretary of the California Natural Resources Agency, will also participate in the event which focuses on “Reinventing Resiliency for California Food and Agriculture.”

“If you are involved with food and agriculture, the concept of bouncing back from adversity and being resilient is likely not new. However, another year of western drought, supply chain disruptions, labor challenges and regulatory hurdles have prompted industry leaders to rethink how to adapt, transform and innovate in order to be resilient and stay in business,” said Sara Wyant, Agri-Pulse editor and founder. “Our Summit will focus on the top economic and policy issues impacting California farmers and food companies, including innovations to produce more crops with less water, opportunities to advance climate-smart practices, new strategies for job training and political engagement, and much more.”

The summit will offer participants a full day of presentations and panel discussions at the Sheraton Grand Sacramento in person on July 11, and virtual attendance options are also available. Find out more from Agri-Pulse.

Agri-Pulse, Events, Food

Industry Ag News 6/6

Carrie Muehling

  • Agriculture producers who did not receive the 2017 Census of Agriculture and do not receive other USDA surveys or censuses have until June 30 to sign up to receive the 2022 Census of Agriculture at nass.usda.gov/AgCensus. USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) will mail ag census survey codes for responding securely online to every known U.S. producer this November. Hard copy questionnaires will follow in December.
  • The National Association of Farm Broadcasting (NAFB) is accepting entries for its 2023 NAFB Membership Directory cover photo contest. The winning entry will receive $100, and the photo will be featured on the cover of the 2023 NAFB Membership Directory. The entry deadline is September 30, 2022.
  • The National Corn Growers Association (NCGA) welcomes two interns this summer thanks to the generous support of the Nebraska Corn Board (NCB) and the Nebraska Corn Growers Association (NeCGA). Emma Hoffschneider, who is majoring in agricultural economics and agricultural & environmental sciences communications at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, will be working in the NCGA office in Washington, D.C. Savannah Peterson is interning with the NCGA office in St. Louis, Missouri. Peterson majored in agricultural communications and animal science at Casper College and will begin at Kansas State University this fall.
  • The Kroger Co., America’s largest grocery retailer, launched a digital farmers market in Atlanta, Georgia, in partnership with Market Wagon. Developed as an e-commerce marketplace for local farmers and businesses, the service is a digital platform that offers customers a wide range of fresh, local products.
  • Prof. Louise O. Fresco, President of Wageningen University & Research, was presented the Norman E. Borlaug Medallion by World Food Prize Foundation President, Barbara Stinson, at a special celebration at the university.
  • The Propane Education & Research Council (PERC) recommends that producers initiate discussions with propane suppliers now, as recent weather and global geo-political events continue to introduce challenges to many markets. By having those conversations now, producers can take advantage of early order discounts and other benefits of filling tanks sooner than previous years, while ensuring continuous access to the energy they need throughout the 2022 harvest season and beyond.
  • Ag Supply Chain and Challenges will be the topic for the Agricultural Council of Kansas City’s June 16 monthly luncheon meeting. The panel discussion will be moderated by Tom Brand with NAFB and will feature experts from the meat, dairy, crop, and equipment sectors.
  • Commodity Classic announced Maureen Feck has accepted the role of Show Director and will begin her new job on July 1, 2022.
  • U.S. Farmers & Ranchers in Action took to the global stage at the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in Davos, Switzerland, where food and agriculture were front and center in the conversation for the first time.
Zimfo Bytes

Alltech E-CO2 Helps Lower Dairy Carbon Footprint

Cindy Zimmerman

Alltech has pioneered the use of on-farm environmental tools and assessments to provide opportunities to benchmark and improve efficiency, leading towards increased profitability and sustainability. From individual farms to multinational organizations, Alltech E-CO2 service provides a comprehensive range of advice, tools and services to help measure and improve environmental performance.

Alltech E-CO2 Vice President Matthew Smith says they can help processors improve efficiencies by looking at the carbon footprint of each individual dairy unit supplying their product. “And then you get the opportunity to provide some management advice about how nutrition could be improved which will lower that carbon footprint,” said Smith during an interview at the recent Alltech ONE Conference. Lowering a farm’s carbon footprint goes hand-in-hand with increasing farm efficiency and, therefore, profitability.

Learn more in this interview with Smith.
ONE22 Interview with Matthew Smith, Alltech E-CO2 (7:05)

Did you miss Alltech ONE in person? You can still register to enjoy all of the virtual content. Click here.

Virtual Newsroom

2022 Alltech ONE Conference Photos and Audio

AgWired Animal, Alltech, Animal Agriculture, Audio, Dairy

Alltech Honors Global Ag Journalists at ONE

Cindy Zimmerman

Lindi Botha, South Africa – 2022 IFAJ–Alltech award

The recent 38th annual Alltech ONE Conference (ONE) in Lexington, Kentucky, hosted 65 journalists from approximately 20 countries. Another 213 were in attendance virtually, representing nearly 35 countries. In a presentation during the conference, Alltech presented several awards to honor some of those journalists for their excellence.

In partnership with the International Federation of Agricultural Journalists (IFAJ), Alltech announced Lindi Botha of South Africa as the recipient of the 2022 IFAJ–Alltech International Award for Leadership in Agricultural Journalism. This recognition honors Alltech’s late founder, Dr. Pearse Lyons, who was a passionate storyteller with a great respect for agricultural journalists. Botha is an agricultural journalist and communications specialist and serves as the deputy chairperson of Agricultural Writers South Africa.

Alltech CEO Dr. Mark Lyons presented awards to Sofia Neumann (right) of Chile and Marlene Bernal Munoz (middle), accepting on behalf of Nicolás Gómez Bernal of Ecuador

Alltech also partnered with the Latin American and Caribbean Network of Agricultural Communicators (Red CALC) to present the ninth annual Innovation and Quality Awards in Agricultural Journalism to Sofia Neumann of Chile and Nicolás Gómez Bernal of Ecuador.

Neumann’s winning article, entitled “5 Chilean innovations that will impact the agricultural industry,” was published in Chile’s Financial Journal and addressed the impact of the adoption of research and development in the fruit sector of Chile. Gómez Bernal’s award-winning report, “RAZA 4 joins Latin American countries in defense of their plantations,” published in the newspaper El Productor de Ecuador, focuses on the banana industry as the first export area of many Latin American countries.

Virtual Newsroom

2022 Alltech ONE Conference Photos and Audio

Alltech, Media

Biofuel Groups React to Final RFS Rules

Cindy Zimmerman

The Environmental Protection Agency finalized a package of actions Friday setting biofuel volumes for the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) program for years 2020, 2021, and 2022, and introducing regulatory changes intended to enhance the program’s objectives.

According to the Renewable Fuels Association, the final regulatory actions taken by EPA “bring certainty back to the Renewable Fuel Standard and pave the way for future growth in the production and use of low-carbon renewable fuels”, and will lead to lower gas prices and greater energy security. However, RFA President and CEO Geoff Cooper says they are disappointed with the EPA’s decision to reopen and retroactively lower RFS requirements for 2020, which they believe is entirely unnecessary.

RFA CEO Geoff Cooper interview 6-3-22 (7:32)

American Coalition for Ethanol (ACE) CEO Brian Jennings agreed. “While we strongly object to the unnecessary retrospective cut EPA is making to 2020 volumes, we are pleased the Agency is upwardly revising the 2021 volumes to align more closely with actual consumption and upholding base conventional volume of 15 billion gallons for 2022, along with 250 million supplemental gallons to address the DC Circuit court order in 2017.”

“When President Biden visited an Iowa ethanol production facility in April, he said ethanol reduces our reliance on foreign oil, creates choice and competition at the pump for better prices, creates good-paying jobs and reduces greenhouse gas emissions,” said National Corn Growers Association President Chris Edgington. “Farmers agree, and the increased RFS volumes for 2022 and denial of pending refinery exemptions will advance these objectives and move renewable fuels forward.”

Clean Fuels Alliance America is pleased the final rule recognizes the continued growth of biodiesel, renewable diesel and other clean fuels and establishes readily achievable program obligations. Vice president of federal affairs Kurt Kovarik says they particularly support EPA’s decision to deny pending small refinery exemptions and its consistent finding that the program benefits Americans without hardships for refiners. “EPA’s denial of pending small refinery exemptions for 2019 through 2021 assures our industry that the volumes set today will be fully met, even with compliance flexibilities. This is an important first step in restoring integrity to the program.”

Kovarik says they encourage the agency to quickly finalize new feedstocks pathways, such as that for canola oil.

Audio, Biodiesel, Biofuels, Ethanol, RFA

Brownfield Baby Boom

Cindy Zimmerman

May brought a baby boom to Brownfield’s broadcast news team, according to the boss, Cyndi Young-Puyear.

Brownfield has 12 reporter/anchors, five of them are women, and three of them had babies last month!

Left to right in order of birthing, Rhiannon Branch with daughter Kimber Grace born May 12; Nicole Heslip and son Rory Thomas born on May 25; and Amie Simpson with daughter Olivia Michele born on May 28.

Cyndi says, “Although having 3 Anchor/Reporters on leave at the same time creates a great deal of extra work for the other members of the content creating team, they choose to see the Brownfield baby trifecta as a blessing and have gladly stepped up.”

Congratulations to all! Meanwhile, we are anxiously awaiting the birth of our fourth grandchild any day now.

Media

MN Soybean Farmers “Stepping Up” for Health Care Workers

Cindy Zimmerman

This summer, Minnesota soybean farmers, with the help of the soybean checkoff, are Stepping Up to salute the front line health care heroes throughout the state by donating sets of soy-based Sketchers shoes to thank them for their selfless work.

The goal of the Stepping Up campaign is to give back to local health care facilities across the state, as well as promote the versatility and environmental benefits of soy.

As part of the Stepping Up campaign, Minnesota’s 44 county boards (no other state has an organized county soybean program) are eligible to donate up to 50 pairs of Skechers soy-based GO shoes to a local health care facility, including (but not limited to): local hospitals, clinics, nursing homes and assisted living facilities.

In 2020, Skechers released its GO line of footwear, which uses soybean oil to improve grip, stability and durability. Skechers is using the same checkoff-supported technology featured in Goodyear Tire Company’s line of sustainable soy-based tires, which incorporated soy into its rubber technology.

Using soybean oil not only reduces the use of petrochemicals, but is readily available, renewable and uses soybeans grown right here in the U.S.

“Each year, the Minnesota Soybean Research & Promotion Council (MSR&PC), which is made up of elected soybean farmers from across the state, highlights checkoff-funded, soy-based products – everything from biodiesel to road sealants to tires – in unique ways,” MSR&PC CEO Tom Slunecka said. “These checkoff investments, which ultimately create new and innovative ways to use soybean oil, help us reduce our dependency on petroleum while increasing demand. Thanks to investments made by soybean farmers, more than 1,000 commercially available products use soybean oil.”

From June 1 through Aug. 4, MSR&PC is encouraging farmers and consumers to nominate a health care hero in their community through a nomination form. From those nominations, 20 health care personnel will be selected, and the winning nominees will receive a free pair of Skechers soy-based shoes, courtesy of Minnesota soybean farmers and the soybean checkoff.

Find out more.

Soybean

Truterra’s 2022 Carbon Program Open for 2nd Enrollment

Cindy Zimmerman

Truterra, LLC, the sustainability business of Land O’Lakes, has announced the opening of an additional signup period for its 2022 carbon program. Truterra had its initial enrollment in December 2021 and is looking to drive additional supply through this second opportunity to meet buyer demand. After successful verification, farmers can earn up to $25 per ton upfront for new carbon stored in soils.

The 2022 Truterra carbon program builds on the results generated by its 2021 program, which resulted in more than $4 million in payments to participating farmers, who sequestered over 200,000 metric tons of carbon. Truterra offers farmers greater earning potential by paying based on results – actual carbon stored – rather than a set payment per acre.

“We are extremely proud to be putting money directly in farmers’ pockets for the work they are doing to store carbon in their soils,” said Jason Weller, President, Truterra. “We continue to learn from farmers and ag retailers and improve our program to best fit their needs and support their transitions to more sustainable practices that will hopefully open up new profitability opportunities for their operations and improve their soil health for the long-term.”

Truterra recently announced it would be continuing its relationship with Microsoft as a buyer of carbon dioxide removals in 2022 and 2023, in addition to its purchases through Truterra’s 2021 program.

Get more information from Truterra.


AgWired Precision, carbon, Farming, Soil, Sustainability

Precision Ag News 6/1

Carrie Muehling

  • The Conservation Technology Information Center (CTIC) will be celebrating its 40th anniversary and hosting its 15th annual Conservation in Action Tour in St. Louis, Missouri, September 12 & 13, 2022. Online registration for the tour is quick and easy at https://www.ctic.org/tour.
  • Syngenta Seeds announced that it is offering farmers its NK® Corn Replant Calculator for free, which will help agronomists and farmers make data-based decisions on whether to consider replanting their corn.
  • The recently introduced KestrelMet 6000 AG Weather Station has been updated to provide growers with field-specific data related to evapotranspiration and growing degree days — key factors in managing for enhanced crop performance and more efficient irrigation.
  • AgSensor Solutions, a platform company designed to help sensor creators move agricultural applications to market more quickly, has been named to the Industrial Practitioner Advisory Board (IPAB) of the Internet of Things for Precision Agriculture (IoT4Ag).
  • SynTech Research Group and Alteia have concluded a cooperation agreement to use Alteia’s AI software platform to support SynTech’s services and its clients’ digital information needs. Alteia supports major breeding & crop prop protection companies to enable fast, precise and standardized traits and plant response measures.
AgWired Precision, Precision Ag Bytes, Precision Agriculture