John Deere Introduces New Combines

Carrie Muehling

Farmers can choose from two new John Deere combines as they look toward harvest in 2021. The company is introducing the X9 1000 and X9 1100 combines, as well as new front end products.

Harvesting Product Manager Matt Badding compared the new X9 1100 combine to the current S790 model.

“When we’re talking about high yielding, high moisture corn, we can look at an increase in capacity up to 50 percent over today’s S790, said Badding. “So a substantial increase in capacity, but with that, we can also look forward to saving over 20 percent in fuel.”

Badding encouraged growers to contact a local John Deere dealer for more information. He participated in the National Association of Farm Broadcasting virtual Trade Talk event.

2020 NAFB Interview with Matt Badding, John Deere harvesters (3:38)

Audio, Equipment, John Deere, NAFB

Industry Ag News 12/29

Carrie Muehling

  • The U.S. Departments of Agriculture and Health and Human Services hosted a virtual event to announce the release of Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2020-2025. The latest edition of the guidelines was built upon Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2015-2020, with updates grounded in the scientific reviews of the 2020 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee, along with comments received from the public and input from federal agencies.
  • The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced that President Trump has named Dr. Carrie Castille as the new, permanent director of the National Institute of Food and Agriculture. Dr. Castille will start her new role on Monday, January 4, 2021.
  • The American Farm Bureau Federation recently appointed farmer and rancher members to the organization’s Promotion & Education and Young Farmers & Ranchers committees. National committee members are nominated by their respective state Farm Bureaus. Learn more online: Promotion & Education and Young Farmers & Ranchers.
  • Meristem Crop Performance Group, LLC and Ag To Go, LLC announce a new strategic supply agreement to serve farmers in eastern states. Under the new relationship, the Meristem Crop Performance product line becomes a key component of Ag To Go’s new crop input offering and Ag To Go becomes Meristem’s ally in helping farmers all along the Atlantic Seaboard from Maine to Florida make the most of every dollar they spend on crop inputs.
  • During the Sorghum Checkoff’s annual meeting—held virtually to adhere with COVID-19 guidelines proposed by the Center for Disease Control—five board directors were reappointed or sworn in on the checkoff’s board. After being appointed by U.S. Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue, these directors will serve three-year terms starting December 2020 and commencing December 2023.
  • As opportunities for producers to connect with each other and the companies that serve their operations have become more difficult, an impressive and growing list of sponsors is showing support for the 2021 Top Producer Summit, which is being offered in both in-person and online formats in February. Leading companies including BASF, Beck’s, CASE IH, Fendt, Indigo Ag, Pioneer and Pivot Bio are taking a leadership role by supporting the event.
Zimfo Bytes

Animal Ag News 12/28

Carrie Muehling

  • The nation’s largest union for meatpacking workers and the association representing meat producers joined forces to urge all 50 U.S. governors to urgently prioritize COVID-19 vaccination for frontline meat and poultry workers across the United States, in accordance with official Centers for Disease Control guidance. In a new joint letter to governors, the United Food and Commercial Workers International Union and the North American Meat Institute emphasized that quickly vaccinating the sector’s diverse workforce of some 500,000 employees across the country will maximize health benefits, especially in rural communities that often have limited health services, while keeping Americans’ refrigerators full and our farm economy working. Click here to read the full letter to governors.
  • House Agriculture Committee Chairman Collin C. Peterson of Minnesota pointed to multiple provisions to benefit dairy farmers in the new COVID-19 relief compromise package passed by the House and Senate and signed by President Trump.
  • As of Dec. 1, there were 77.5 million hogs and pigs on U.S. farms, down 1 percent from December 2019 and down 1 percent from Sept. 1, 2020, according to the Quarterly Hogs and Pigs report published by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Agricultural Statistics Service.
  • The Animal Agriculture Alliance announced that its 2021 Stakeholders Summit, set primarily for May 5-6, will be hosted virtually and themed “Obstacles to Opportunities.” The annual Summit brings top thought leaders in the industry together to discuss hot-button issues and out-of-the-box ideas. In addition to announcing the theme and virtual format for 2021, the Alliance also issued a call for proposals to speak at the event.
AgWired Animal, Animal Agriculture, Animal Bites

Thank God It’s Christmas

Cindy Zimmerman

This year our Christmas message comes from a relatively unknown but very appropriate Christmas song by Queen called Thank God It’s Christmas. These lyrics have never been so true:
“Oh my friends it’s been a long hard year – But now it’s Christmas, Thank God it’s Christmas.”

We here at ZimmComm are especially grateful to God this Christmas after this very long, hard year. We have been so blessed and as we anxiously await the coming of the Lord we continue to pray for the our nation and the world.
“What came to be through him was life, and this life was the light of the human race; the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.” (Jn 1:4-5)

Thank you to all of our friends and may God abundantly bless you in this season of Light.


Video, ZimmComm Announcement

Season’s Greetings from Alltech

Chuck Zimmerman

Alltech Season's GreetingsWe wish you and your family a healthy, happy holiday season.

Please enjoy this musical gift, featuring winners of the Alltech Vocal Scholarship Competition performing Christmas classics.

May the new year bring you peace, joy and all that makes your heart sing!

Click here for some world class holiday music.

Since 2006, the Alltech Celebration of Song, along with Dr. Everett McCorvey and the University of Kentucky Opera Theatre, has brought the magic of holiday music to downtown Lexington, Kentucky. The uplifting renditions of Christmas classics feature winners of the Alltech Vocal Scholarship Competition, which helps talented singers pursue their musical dreams. The celebration also features special guest performances by renowned musical artists. We hope you enjoy this collection of some of our favorite performances from over the years.

Alltech

Holiday Greetings from IFAJ

Chuck Zimmerman

Happy Holidays from IFAJHere are a couple of excerpts from International Federation of Agricultural Journalists President, Lena Johansson. She shares the news that the Denmark IFAJ Congress 2021 will be virtual like this year and we all hope we can meet in person in 2022! Here’s the caption from the photo: “Winter in Sweden: Rudolph with friends, no doubt on their way to Father Christmas. Photo by: Gunnar Andersson”

It’s been a long time since we had the opportunity to meet in person. And I’m afraid it’s going to be a while. Our colleagues in Denmark have really done everything to be able to arrange a congress in 2021 but came to the conclusion that travellers and sponsors still won’t be ready for an in-person meeting by next summer. Sadly, that means that we won’t have the opportunity to meet at a congress next year either and we are now trying to adjust the schedule of future congresses according to the new circumstances.

In the beginning of 2021, we will also start to plan for another e-congress and we are very eager for input to make it a great event. If you have any ideas about how we can make it both professionally useful and personally enjoyable, please don’t hesitate to contact someone in the Presidium or at the Global Office. Maybe you have connections to someone who could be an interesting speaker at a webinar? Or you know someone who might be interested in sponsoring our digital event? Would you like to help organize a session or two?

I also want to thank you all for my first six months as IFAJ President. It has been inspirational and gratifying, and IFAJ has been a real glimmer of light for me during this year. As difficult as this year has been around the world, so many people from IFAJ have brought people together, shared news and insights and been examples of hope to each other.

I wish you all a Better New Year 2021 and hope to meet you digitally or personally soon again!

IFAJ, Media

Precision Ag News 12/23

Carrie Muehling

  • John Deere has entered into an allied distribution agreement with Smart Guided Systems to sell and support its Smart-Apply Intelligent Control System through the John Deere dealer channel in the U.S., Canada, and Australia.
  • For much of the past century, the invasive pink bollworm wreaked havoc in the southwestern United States and northern Mexico – inflicting tens of millions of dollars in damage annually to cotton on both sides of the border. A multifaceted strategy combining genetically engineered cotton with classical pest control tactics eradicated the pink bollworm from cotton-producing areas of the continental U.S. and Mexico, according to a new study published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
  • U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue announced a significant step in modernizing regulations of agricultural animals modified or produced by genetic engineering. The U.S. Department of Agriculture will be moving forward with an Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking to solicit public input and feedback on a contemplated regulatory framework that would modernize our system into a scientifically-sound, risk-based, and predictable process that facilitates the development and use of these technologies for U.S. farmers and ranchers under USDA’s authorities. This initiative follows President Donald Trump’s Executive Order on agricultural biotechnology that called upon federal agencies to make regulatory improvements to rectify some of the long-standing barriers to innovation for U.S. agriculture.
AgWired Precision, Precision Ag Bytes, Precision Agriculture

Happy Holidays – Daugherty Water for Food Global Institute

Chuck Zimmerman

Happy holidays from all of us at the Daugherty Water for Food Global Institute!

As we come to the end of 2020, we reflect on an unprecedented year in many ways — with a new set of challenges, but also some unexpected opportunities. With the help of our board, staff, faculty fellows, students and partners, we saw measurable progress in our mission to improve water and food security, despite moving most of our work remote.

We have our many partners — within the University, locally and around the globe — to thank for our continued success in a trying year and hope to reconnect with many of you in person in 2021 or beyond.

Please enjoy a special message from Executive Director Peter G. McCornick by clicking the video link above. Best wishes for a peaceful holiday season and a new year filled with health and happiness.


Water for Food

Happy Holidays from NAMA

Chuck Zimmerman

Happy Holidays from NAMA

The NAMA staff wishes you a safe and happy holiday season! Thank you for being part of the NAMA community. In the coming year we will continue to connect you to the people, tools and programs you need to position yourself and your organization for success.

Please note the NAMA office is closed and will re-open on January 4. We will be checking email over the break.

Sincerely,

Jenny Pickett
Sherry Pfaff
Janae Prewitt
Debbie Brummel

NAMA