AgGrad 30 Under 30 Announced

Chuck Zimmerman

Yesterday on National Ag Day, AgGrad announced winners of the first ever AgGrad 30 Under 30 Awards, a program created to celebrate the young professionals shaping the future of agriculture.

Fourteen judges selected winners from peer and self nominations based on contributions in their career, community, and the industry at large. Winners will be featured on AgGrad’s social media channels and in a special print and online publication.


AgGrad 30 Under 30 2019 Winners By Category Include:
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Agribusiness, Video

Zimfo Bytes 3/15

Carrie Muehling

  • Graduate and undergraduate students are invited to participate in the third annual “Better Seed, Better Life” student video contest sponsored by the American Seed Trade Association, the National Association of Plant Breeders, and the American Society of Agronomy, Crop Science Society of America and Soil Science Society of America. The 2019 contest theme is: “Our Planet, Our Health, Our Food – It all starts with the seed.” Video submissions are due by August 31, 2019.
  • As farmers, ranchers and rural communities grapple with a devastatingly weak farm economy, nearly 200 organizations, including the American Farm Bureau Federation and several state Farm Bureaus, are urging congressional budget writers to reject calls for additional cuts to farm bill programs.
  • National Farmers Union joined the Carbon Capture Coalition in submitting a letter to leaders in Congress to highlight the importance of “carbon capture research, development, and commercial deployment as an essential component of a broader strategy to decarbonize power generation and key industry sectors by midcentury” to meet climate goals.
  • Fifty FFA chapters have received Microsoft FarmBeats Student Kits as part of a collaboration between the National FFA Organization and Microsoft Corp.
  • The National Pork Board named Norman Bessac as its new Vice President of International Marketing. Bessac is currently director of international sales for Tyson Fresh Meats, a position he has held since 2016.
  • Swanson Russell welcomes Dave Garretson, Leen Glenn, Jodi Hoatson, Dustin Smith, Kelli Sweeney and Mollie Wilken.
  • The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Foreign Agricultural Service will host a listening session Friday, March 22, to solicit input from stakeholders with an interest in FAS programs authorized under the Trade Title of the Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018.
  • The Farm Foundation will host a conference on Agricultural Trade in a Time of Uncertainty on April 30, 2019 at the Doubletree Hotel Crystal City in Arlington, Virginia.
  • Ducks Unlimited announced the hiring of Adam H. Putnam as their new CEO effective April 1.
  • Every five years, USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) conducts a program review following the completion of the Census of Agriculture. Based on the latest review, a number of changes have been made and can be found at www.nass.usda.gov/Surveys/Program_Review.
  • U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue announced the initial down-select list of 136 Expressions of Interest received from parties in 35 states vying to become the new homes of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Economic Research Service (ERS) and National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA).
  • Galileo Wheel, cutting-edge developers of next generation farming and construction equipment, are due to launch their new Galileo AgriCup tire this spring.
  • On National Ag Day, AgGrad announced winners of the first ever AgGrad 30 Under 30 Awards, a program created to celebrate the young professionals shaping the future of agriculture. Winners will be featured on AgGrad’s social media channels and in a special print and online publication.
Zimfo Bytes

Bayer Honored at National 4-H Legacy Awards

Cindy Zimmerman

Bayer was recognized for helping foster the next generation of STEM leaders in agriculture with the National 4-H Council’s 2019 Corporate Leadership Award during ceremonies this week in Washington, D.C.

Bayer was recognized for its nationwide partnership with 4-H on a Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) STEM program called Science Matters, which since 2017 has provided more than 25,000 youth across the United States with access to essential agriculture programs and opportunities. In the photo, 2019 4-H Youth in Action winner in Agriculture Addy Battel presents Philip Blake, President of Bayer US, with the award.

“We are proud to receive this prestigious award from 4-H, which honors our longstanding commitment to CSR,” said Blake. “We couldn’t have achieved this without our employees who have dedicated their time to the communities where we live and work volunteering and mentoring 4-H’ers.”

National 4-H Council holds its Legacy Awards event each year to honor those who make life-changing experiences possible for millions of kids and outstanding 4-H youth members who are making a difference in their communities. Bayer was among the many honorees recognized at last night’s 10th Anniversary of the 4-H Legacy Awards including Grammy award-winning singer and songwriter Jennifer Nettles, who received the 4-H Brand Champion Award, and legendary, triple crown winning race horse trainer Bob Baffert, who received the Distinguished 4-H Alumni Medallion.

AgWired Animal, AgWired Precision, Bayer

Happy National Ag Day!

Cindy Zimmerman

President Donald J. Trump has proclaimed today as National Ag Day, the third year that the administration has publicly recognized National Ag Day as a salute to the contributions of America’s farmers, ranchers and agribusinesses.

USDA officials and the chairman of the Senate Agriculture Committee joined members of the agricultural community gathered in Washington DC yesterday evening to kick off the official Ag Day celebration with a reception at the Capitol Visitors Center. Sen. Pat Roberts, Deputy Secretary of Agriculture Steve Censky and California Representative Doug LaMalfa all made remarks at the event, which you can hear in the audio file below.

Today, Censky along with Under Secretary of Agriculture for Trade and Foreign Agricultural Affairs Ted McKinney will take part in the National Ag Day event at the National Press Club. Photo album is started and will include photos from all of the National Ag Day activities. National Ag Day is organized by the Agriculture Council of America (ACA), a nonprofit organization composed of leaders in the agricultural, food and fiber community, dedicating its efforts to increasing the public’s awareness of agriculture’s role in modern society.

National Ag Day Reception Sen. Roberts, Steve Censky, and Doug LaMalfa

2019 National Ag Day Photo Album

Ag Day, AgWired Animal, AgWired Precision, Audio

AMVAC Offers Insect Control Strategies

Cindy Zimmerman

Corn Rootworm pressure has been building across the Midwest since 2016, indicating the pests may be learning ways to survive the traits that are meant to drive them away.

Jim Lappin, AMVAC Crop Marketing Manager for the Corn and Soybean Portfolio, spent a lot of time at Commodity Classic talking with growers about strategies to get better control and better yields. Listen to the audio or watch the video below to learn more.

Interview with Jim Lappin - AMVAC Insect Control Strategies

AMVAC at 2019 Commodity Classic

AMVAC, Commodity Classic, Corn, Insecticides

ForwardFarming with Bayer

Carrie Muehling

One of the topics discussed at the 2019 Bayer Agvocacy Forum was the company’s ForwardFarming initiative, which partners with exemplary farmers from around the globe to host field days where influencers can see what sustainable agriculture looks like in practice. Bayer Project Manager for the U.S. ForwardFarming Initiative Becky Langer said the events provide opportunities to learn what sustainability looks like to different farmers. That looks different for a Midwest corn farmer than it does for a California vegetable farmer. Technology in agriculture is also a hot topic.

“I think one of the greatest takeaways is there are a lot of questions about digital ag and artificial intelligence,” said Langer. “We know that our farmers are doing that, and for them it almost becomes routine because they’re working it day to day. They have to continue to generate that excitement to the outside audiences and helping to explain what that means and how they are utilizing it in their every day operations.”

Langer said the program currently works from a farm in Rock Hall, Maryland, and Bayer will launch additional locations in California and the Midwest in the coming year.

Listen to Kristin’s interview with Becky here: Interview with Becky Langer, Bayer

2019 Bayer Agvocacy Forum Photo Album

AgWired Precision, Audio, Bayer

Precision Ag Bytes 3/13

Carrie Muehling

  • AgBiome Innovations™, the commercial arm of AgBiome™, introduced Lektivar™ 40SC, a novel fungicide (fluazinam) that provides superior control of foliar and soil-borne diseases to include white mold, southern blight, downy mildew, early blight, and many others.
  • TerrAvion announced a new partnership with FarmLogs, an Ann Arbor, Michigan-based farm management software provider. The partnership will allow FarmLogs customers to add high-resolution aerial imagery to their FarmLogs account.
  • Indigo Agriculture and Anheuser-Busch have announced a partnership focused on sustainable rice production. Indigo has committed to delivering 2.2 million bushels of Indigo Rice™ to Anheuser-Busch that is grown with specific environmental attributes.
  • The America Seed Trade Association‘s newest event experience began last June, reinventing the former Annual Convention into the Policy & Leadership Development Conference. This year’s PLDC is June 15-19 in Denver, Colo. For more information on the event, visit the conference webpage.
  • U.S. sales of ag tractors and combines remained in the plus column for February, according to the latest sales data from the Association of Equipment Manufacturers. Total U.S. February 2-wheel-drive tractor sales grew 17.3 percent compared to February 2018, led by under-40-HP machines with a 24.6-percent gain and a 7.1-percent gain for 40-100-HP 2-wheel-drive tractors, while 100-plus-HP 2-wheel-drive-tractors recorded a drop of 2.2 percent.
  • The March/April issue of New Ag International magazine on high-tech agriculture including precision ag coverage is now online.
AgWired Precision, Precision Ag Bytes

EPA Proposes E15 Waiver and RIN Market Rule

Cindy Zimmerman

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released proposed regulatory changes Tuesday that would allow gasoline blended with up to 15 percent ethanol (E15) to receive a Reid Vapor Pressure (RVP) waiver for the summer months, the same as E10. In the same rule, EPA is also proposing changes to the renewable identification number (RIN) compliance system under the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) program.”

Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) President and CEO Geoff Cooper says the proposed rule means EPA is one step closer to making good on President Trump’s promise to allow year-round sales of E15 but finalizing and implementing the E15 regulatory fix remains a tall order.

“That is why we have urged EPA to separate the year-round E15 provisions from the RIN reform provisions, and move forward as quickly as possible to finalize a practical and defensible year-round E15 solution. With ethanol plants shutting down or idling and farmers experiencing the worst conditions in more than a decade, removing the summertime ban on E15 once and for all would send a desperately needed signal to the marketplace,” said Cooper. “We are carefully reviewing the details of the proposed rule and look forward to providing EPA with extensive technical and legal comments to support an expeditious and legally sound resolution of this decades-old red tape barrier.”

Cooper talks more about RFA’s reaction to the rule in this interview:
Interview with RFA CEO Geoff Cooper on EPA rulemaking proposal

American Coalition for Ethanol (ACE) CEO Brian Jennings says they will urge stakeholders to provide public comment to EPA, so a legally-defensible rule can be in place by June 1. “Without a final rule in place by June 1, this year would mark the eighth time, since EPA originally approved a waiver for E15, that fuel marketers in many parts of the country have had to prohibit their customers from purchasing a lower-cost, higher-quality fuel option at the pump during the busy summer driving months,” said Jennings.

Jennings says if EPA does get the rule done in time, it will set a new “land speed record for the agency.” In this interview, Jennings discusses his reaction to the proposal and how ACE intends to provide input and encourage especially retailers to make comments.
Interview with ACE CEO Brian Jennings on EPA rulemaking proposal

A public hearing is being scheduled for March 29 and comments must be received on or before April 29.

Other agricultural and biofuels organizations have weighed in on the proposal and expressed support for at least the E15 part of the rule. National Corn Growers Association (NCGA), Growth Energy, American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF), and National Farmers Union are just a few of the groups that have released statements in support of the rule.

ACE, Audio, Corn, Ethanol, RFA

National Pork Board CEO Shares Export Numbers

Carrie Muehling

National Pork Board CEO Bill Even addressed those attending the 2019 Pork Industry Forum, highlighting a number of issues affecting pork producers today. One of those topics was pork exports, and Even said the NPB has certainly not been idle when it comes to market opportunities.

“Since the year 2000, exports have absorbed 63 percent of your growth from U.S. pork production,” said Even. “Those extra 7.4 billion pounds of pork we produced, 63 percent of it went overseas and about a strong third stayed in the United States. That’s why this export component is critically important.”

Even shared that since 2014, the international marketing budget has increased by 30 percent, with now more than $10 million being spent in that space. He said the top seven export markets for U.S. pork include bright spots like South Korea and Australia where growth is occurring, as well as countries like Mexico and China where trade disputes are negatively affecting export numbers.

Listen to Even’s full report here: National Pork Board CEO report

2019 Pork Industry Forum Photo Album

AgWired Animal, Audio, Exports, Pork

BASF Excited About Revysol

Carrie Muehling

After 10 years of research and development, BASF shared its new Revysol technology with those attending the 2019 BASF Science Behind event, held just before the Commodity Classic in Orlando.

Revysol technology will be part of two new products available for the 2019 growing season, pending registration. More details are forthcoming about Veltyma for corn and Revytek for soybeans, but Scott Kay, BASF Vice President, U.S. Crop, said trials showed promising results.

“If you and I went and walked into a field at a field day and there were no signs, I think we would walk to each and every application where Revysol technology was used, because you would just see the difference,” said Kay. “So I would welcome farmers across the U.S. to take a look and see the difference that technology is going to bring to them on their farms.”

Kay said customers have been getting great new experiences with BASF because of changes over the past year that include more complete conversations and more choices for farmers.

Listen to Chuck’s interview with Scott here: Interview with Scott Kay, BASF

2019 BASF Science Behind Event Photo Album

AgWired Precision, Audio, BASF, Fungicide