Golden Harvest Connects with John Deere Operations

Chuck Zimmerman

Syngenta E-LuminateGolden Harvest announced a collaboration with John Deere on its E-Luminate digital platform at the 2019 Farm Progress Show.

“If I’m a grower and my data is already stored to the John Deere cloud, we have a way for that grower then to share information with us within E-Luminate, in order for us to work together to make better decisions for that grower,” said Justin Welch, Syngenta Digital Commercial Lead for U.S. Seed Business. “We believe by having that grower have his information available to more trusted advisors, they’re going to have a better opportunity to have a higher return on their investment.”

Welch said the E-Luminate service is already very customer focused, delivered through one of 1,200 Golden Harvest seed advisors who use an eight-step process to connect with growers throughout the year.

Listen to the interview here or watch it below: Interview with Justin Welch, Syngenta


2019 Farm Progress Show Photo Album

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#FPS19 Day Two Underway

Carrie Muehling

Day two of the 2019 Farm Progress Show is underway with plenty of sunshine and a full line up of events, including a visit from Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue.

Show Manager Matt Jungmann said late planting for many farmers this year means they are not yet in the field and as a result the crowds are turning out for the event.

“It appears that the optimism of the American farmer means that we’re going to have a great year in 2020 and we’re going to make plans, so we’re going to go to the Farm Progress Show, start the planning process, take step one to put 2019 behind us, and go to work,” said Jungmann, who is National Events Director for Farm Progress.

Jungmann said visitors to the show are enjoying perfect weather after rains came through during set up for the event. New exhibits this year include an area focused on hemp production and the demonstration of a mock pipeline strike with a tiling machine.

Listen to Chuck’s interview with Matt here: Interview with Matt Jungmann, Farm Progress

2019 Farm Progress Show Photo Album

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Precision Ag Bytes 8/28

Carrie Muehling

  • Ag Leader announces GPS 7500 receivers will now support TerraStar-X, providing centimeter-level accuracy to customers across the Midwestern United States, with additional coverage areas coming soon. TerraStar-X delivers RTK From the Sky™ performance, and convergence in under one minute with two centimeter accuracy.
  • The annual SoyStats report has long been the definitive guide to soybeans by the numbers. But now, those seekers of soy knowledge can find these figures not only in the yearly hard copy booklet and online at soystats.com and the ASA website soygrowers.com, but also in a handy new app, sponsored by the Illinois Soybean Association.
  • New to the John Deere round baler lineup for 2020 are the C451R and C461R Combination Round Balers designed to help producers more efficiently cut, bale and wrap all types of forage for higher quality feed.
  • Farm Foundation will bring together a panel of experts Sept. 24, 2019, in Washington, DC, to examine the potential value and benefits of an ecosystem marketplace.
  • To help ag service providers and large-acre producers apply high-volume liquid fertilizers, crop protection products and other solutions more quickly and accurately to a wide variety of fields, John Deere introduces the LS475 Liquid System option for its F4365 High-Capacity Nutrient Applicator.
  • Topcon Agriculture announces availability of its new cloud-based farm management platform integrating state-of-the-art connectivity, cloud services and data analytics. Topcon Agriculture Platform (TAP) subscriptions and cloud connectivity devices — Cloudlynk — will be available worldwide September 2019 and are designed to suit virtually any agricultural machine, implement, or technology.
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Bayer Commits Funding to 4-H and FFA

Carrie Muehling

At the 2019 Farm Progress Show, Bayer announced a $6 million gift over the next five years to support 4-H and FFA youth programs.

“It’s no secret that U.S. agriculture is facing a lot of challenges right now, but there is no better time to invest in the future than now,” said Lisa Safarian, Head of Crop Science, North America. “A landscape of completely new opportunities are developing right now in agriculture, and its youth is going to guide this landscape. Tomorrow’s farmers and leaders are going to be instrumental in advancements in digital technologies and data science that will unlock greater value and enable farmers to continue their efforts to sustainably produce food to feed the world.”

Safarian said these groups cultivate the desire and knowledge to advance agriculture through hands-on activities that strengthen STEM skills, engage with communities and develop strong leadership skills.

“Having this kind of a long-term partnership really does give us the chance at 4-H to plan, and to look ahead as we invest in the future of the agriculture and science workforce of our country to help build our economy,” said Jennifer Sirangelo, President and CEO of the National 4-H Council. “We know that our youth are going to play a critical role in the future of agriculture innovation, and 4-H is uniquely prepared to respond to these needs, not only because of our roots in agriculture, but because of our reach and the diversity of the young people we serve today.”

Echoing the thanks to Bayer for this investment in young people was Mark Poeschl, CEO of the National FFA Organization.

“We recognize that in order for us to grow the 8,600 FFA chapters around the country, we have to continue to invest in teachers – both recruitment of teachers as well as retention of those teachers that are already in the classroom. These funds help us do that,” said Poeschl. “We also believe we have to be the voice of agriculture. We have to teach our young people how to be advocates for agriculture. So advocacy and ag literacy – a second pillar of FFA’s strategic plan – will also be a critical part of the investment that we continue to make in our members around the country.”

Listen to the entire news conference here: Bayer Commits to 4-H and FFA News Conference

2019 Farm Progress Show Photo Album

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NCGA Tackles Waivers, Trade

Carrie Muehling

While celebrating announcements about E-15, National Corn Growers Association (NCGA) 1st Vice President Kevin Ross had the opportunity to share a pointed message with President Trump last spring regarding small refinery exemptions. But recent news out of Washington, D.C. about Renewable Fuels Standard waivers has Ross declaring there is still work to do.

“There’s time for them to do things and get them fixed, but there’s not a lot of time,” said Ross, who farms in southeastern Iowa. “We’ve got a lot of plants that have shuttered. We’ve got a lot of plants that are closing down at a time when we’re coming into harvest and guys need places to go with their products.”

Ross said the administration needs to understand how important the ethanol market is and how hurtful these exemptions are to the renewable fuels industry as a whole, noting that some plants have been operating on a negative margin for nearly a year.

He also acknowledged the difficult trade situation farmers face right now. While encouraged by recent announcements involving Japan, Ross said the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) needs to come before Congress. He also applauded the administration for taking on intellectual property issues within China, but said that country’s retaliation hurts farmers and hurts agriculture.

Listen to Cindy’s interview with Kevin here: Interview with Kevin Ross, NCGA

2019 Farm Progress Show Photo Album

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USDA RMA Responding to Weather Challenges

Carrie Muehling

It’s been a busy year for the USDA Risk Management Agency (RMA) as the weather has thrown plenty of challenges at farmers across the country. Widespread flooding in the spring slowed things down for growers, and RMA responded with the decision to extend the acreage reporting deadline by one week in 14 states. But that wasn’t the only action they took, according to RMA Administrator Martin Barbre.

“Not only do we have a lot of prevent plant, but we have a lot of late planting. Well, obviously with late planting comes late harvest,” said Barbre, who is from Carmi, Ill.

RMA worked with Secretary Perdue’s office to defer interest due on premiums from Oct. 1 to Dec. 1 on spring planted crops to further assist farmers who were forced to plant later than usual this year.

Barbre said visitors to the 2019 Farm Progress Show are asking questions about insurance on hemp production, high risk rated areas, and double crop acreages.

Listen to Cindy’s interview with Martin here: Interview with Martin Barbre, USDA RMA
2019 Farm Progress Show Photo Album

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BASF Sponsors Media Tent at FPS19

Carrie Muehling

Media covering the 2019 Farm Progress Show have a place to escape the outside elements, thanks again this year to a BASF-sponsored media tent. In addition to providing wifi connectivity and meals for working media, BASF works hard to line up helpful content, as well.

“We put some time and effort into having great content and great topics and great spokespeople that the media can come and talk to, and we’ve got them prepped and ready to go,” said Casey Allen, External Communications Manager, BASF Agricultural Solutions. “We always value the chances that we have to work closely with our media and want to provide good content, good opportunities to provide to their listeners and their readers and their viewers, as well.”

The media tent also offers a venue for press conferences and panel discussions on relevant topics like weed control.

Listen to Chuck’s interview with Casey here: Interview with Casey Allen, BASF

2019 Farm Progress Show Photo Album

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Rep. Davis Visits Farm Progress Show

Carrie Muehling

Rep. Rodney Davis (R-IL) spent time Tuesday in his own 13th District, visiting the Farm Progress Show in Decatur.

Davis said the event is a great place to see farmers and agricultural companies alike, and recognized a level of displeasure in the agriculture industry when it comes to trade. He said a vote on the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) is critical and would help farmers to get what they’re looking for, and that’s a market for their products.

“It’s crucial for Illinois because 40 percent of our Illinois ag products are exported to Canada and Mexico, and it has given China leverage to walk away from the table,” said Davis. “It could be the lynchpin. It gives America leverage over countries like China who have been trading unfairly, and it gives us a starting point to be able to get a deal on the floor of the House. I think it opens the floodgates.”

Davis also realizes the ethanol industry is unhappy with recent refinery waivers and said those need to be limited to small refiners in the future.

Listen to Cindy’s interview with Rep. Davis here: Interview with Rep. Rodney Davis, R-IL 13th District

2019 Farm Progress Show photo album

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Farm Progress Show 2019

Chuck Zimmerman

2019 Farm Progress ShowIt’s that time again. Farm Progress Show 2019. Cindy and I are on our way to Decatur, IL for this year’s show.

We want to thank BASF for sponsoring the media tent once again this year. It’s looking like temperatures will be a little cooler but I’ll take air conditioning any day!

We’ll be on site this afternoon to get set up for an early start tomorrow when Carrie Muehling will be join us as we work with companies like GROWMARK, Syngenta, Can-Am and Bayer among others. It’s going to be a busy show. I’ve never had so many invitations to come to exhibits for their media event or to just meet and interview various representatives. I wish we could do them all!

Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue is scheduled to attend the show on Wednesday afternoon, which should be interesting considering the current dissatisfaction among farmers in the Midwest – crop forecasts, refinery waivers, trade wars…etc. Wonder what Secretary Sonny will have to say this week. We know there will be farmers there with plenty to say!

See you at the Show!

Photos

2019 Farm Progress Show photo album

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Animal Ag Bites 8/26

Carrie Muehling

  • Seven food writers recently participated in a food and farm excursion to see first-hand how veal calves are raised. The North American Meat Institute, on behalf of the Beef Checkoff, hosted the tour which included visiting multiple veal farms in Pennsylvania and Indiana. The writers visited with farmers, animal nutritionists, veterinarians, feed representatives and chefs to learn more about the transformation that has occurred in how veal is raised today.
  • A new book, “What Would Jesus Really Eat? The Biblical Case for Eating Meat,” is now available to help arm farmers, ranchers and others in the animal agriculture industry with the information they need to have informed conversations about the complex subject of religion and eating meat. Copies of the book can be purchased exclusively from the Animal Agriculture Alliance at a discounted rate for a limited time. Additional discounts are available for bulk orders. Click here to order your copy today.
  • September 28 and 29, alpaca business owners throughout North America will celebrate the 12th annual National Alpaca Farm Days. Alpaca Owners Association, Inc. invites you to visit participating member farms and ranches during this fun-filled family event. For a complete list of participating farms and ranches, visit www.AlpacaFarmDays.com.
  • University of Florida scientists believe they can develop new antimicrobials that will benefit dairy cattle and, eventually, humans by treating bacteria that normally resist antiobiotics. KC Jeong, an associate professor of animal sciences at the UF Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, plans to use a nearly $460,000 grant from the National Institute of Food and Agriculture to make cattle bacteria less resistant to antibiotics; therefore, more treatable. Humans also may benefit from Jeong’s research because many bacteria in our bodies also resist antibiotic treatments.
  • On July 12-13, 2019, the 8th International Poultry Forum China was held at Hilton Hotel Yantai, Shandong, China. More than 400 industry professionals, entrepreneurs and executives attended the forum representing all areas of the poultry meat and egg industry chain. The International Poultry Forum China was organized by Poultry International China and LyJa Media, in cooperation with WATT Global Media and supported by World’s Poultry Science Association, National Poultry Industry Branch CAAA and Shandong Poultry Industry Association.
  • Marek’s disease—a highly contagious viral disease caused by a herpesvirus—is a constant threat to poultry worldwide. To help improve the control of Marek’s disease, veterinary medical officer John Dunn and his team at the Agricultural Research Service Avian Disease and Oncology Laboratory in East Lansing, Michigan, analyzed Marek’s disease genomes to find out which genes are mostly associated with virulence. The study was published recently in the Journal of General Virology.
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