Farm Bill Listening Session at Sunbelt Ag Expo

Chuck Zimmerman

Opening day of the 2017 Sunbelt Ag Expo featured a Farm Bill Listening Session held in the R.W. Griffin Building and hosted by Rep. Austin Scott (R-GA). Also in attendance were Rep. Rick Allen (R-GA) and Rep. Al Lawson (D-FL) and all are members of the House Agriculture Committee. Georgia Commissioner of Agriculture Gary Black served as moderator.

The session starts with opening statements from the Congressmen and then various interested parties provided statements for them to take back to Washington.

Audio file: Sunbelt Ag Expo Farm Bill Listening Session

2017 Sunbelt Ag Expo Photo Album

Stories from Sunbelt Ag Expo sponsored by Stories from Sunbelt Ag Expo sponsored by John Deere
Audio, Farm Bill, Farm Policy, Sunbelt Ag Expo

GIPSA Rules Withdrawn by Administration

Cindy Zimmerman

The Trump administration today announced it will withdraw controversial regulations under the Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyard Administration (GIPSA) related to the buying and selling of livestock.

The action includes an interim final rule that deals with harm to competition and one proposed related rule issued in the final days of the Obama administration. The interim final rule was scheduled to be implemented this Thursday.

“The concern was that this rule as proposed would lead to unnecessary and unproductive litigation,” said Secretary Sonny Perdue during a conference call with reporters from Europe on Tuesday. “My goal at this point is to make sure that the industry abides by the USDA motto and that is Do Right and Feed everyone.”

Listen to Perdue’s comments here: Secretary Perdue comments on GIPSA rule action

Lawmakers and industry groups applauded the action, including Senate Agriculture Committee Chairman Pat Roberts (R-KS) and House Agriculture Committee Chair Rep. Michael Conaway (R-TX); the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA), National Pork Producers Council (NPPC) and the National Chicken Council.

AgWired Animal, Audio, Livestock, NCBA, NPPC, USDA

Secretary Perdue in Europe

Cindy Zimmerman

USDA secretary Sonny Perdue greets Pope Francis with FAO Director-General José Graziano da Silva

U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue has been on a whirlwind trip around Europe for the past several days, starting with meetings in London before participating in the G-7 ministerial, taking part in World Food Day in Rome and meeting Pope Francis yesterday, and concluding his trip today in Madrid.

“It’s been a very productive trip,” said Perdue during a media conference call this morning. “We’ve had …very frank and direct discussions about some of the restrictions the EU has placed.”

Listen to his opening statement here: USDA Secretary Perdue from Europe

On the call, Perdue answered reporters’ questions about issues such as the this morning’s announced rollback of Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards Administration (GIPSA) rules, European trade, and NAFTA. Secretary Perdue answers reporter questions

AgWired Animal, AgWired Precision, Audio, GIPSA, Trade, USDA

2017 Sunbelt Ag Expo

Chuck Zimmerman

I am here and ready for the games to begin. Here is the 40th Annual Sunbelt Agricultural Exposition in Moultrie, GA. It is a beautiful sunny day with cool temperatures. Kind of breezy but I can deal with that.

This year the show has 1,211 exhibitors with over 100 of them new to the show. Way back in 1978 the show had 410 exhibitors on 25 acres. The show now has 100 acres of exhibits with 600 acres of research farm. Every year the show has a spotlight state and this year it is Tennessee.

I have to thank the sponsor of my coverage of this year’s show which is John Deere. I’m heading that way first to see what the company is offering to southeast farmers.

So, there is more to come and I’ll see you from here soon. BTW. The show hashtag is #sunbelt40.

I’m just getting started but will be sharing photos here: 2017 Sunbelt Ag Expo Photo Album

Stories from Sunbelt Ag Expo sponsored by Stories from Sunbelt Ag Expo sponsored by John Deere
Agribusiness, John Deere, Sunbelt Ag Expo

Hubbard Robo-Max Custom Feed for Automated Systems

Cindy Zimmerman

As robotic milking equipment is becoming more prevalent in the dairy industry, the need for customized feed to use in the systems is increasing, so Hubbard Feeds came up with Robo-Max Computerized Feeder Pellets.

“What we’ve found is that you really need to fine tune what’s going into your pellet formula by having the right amount of starch or energy available right there at the robot,” said Hubbard Feeds dairy nutritionist Jon Pretz during an interview at World Dairy Expo.

Since the systems rely mostly on the animals desire to receive the feed offered through the robot, a high quality, palatable pellet is essential. “What we like to do is increase that starch level as much as we can to get a high-energy pellet into the robot to drive the cows to the robot,” said Pretz.

Learn more in this interview: Interview with Jon Pretz, Hubbard

2017 World Dairy Expo Photo Album

Coverage of World Dairy Expo is sponsored by Coverage of the Farm Progress Show is sponsored by Alltech Coverage of the Farm Progress Show is sponsored by Hubbard Feeds
AgWired Animal, Alltech, Audio, Dairy, Feed, Livestock, World Dairy Expo

Bayer Proves Strong Commitment to Cotton

Carrie Muehling

With lots of things going on in the cotton industry, Bayer is reinforcing its overall commitment to cotton. The company recently opened a new Cotton Breeding Station in Lubbock, and hosted its 2017 Showcase Plot Tour there. The new facility provides a place for the breeding group and trade development group to collaborate at the same site, allowing them to drive innovation more quickly.

“We’ve got the traits growers need, we’ve got the seed treatment packages and we’ve got all these harvest aids and a variety of things that we can just pull this whole thing together and really help the grower achieve their goals at the end of the year,” said Jason Wistehuff, Bayer Cotton Product Manager for North America.

Wistehuff said in field trials continue to provide the basis of the cotton breeding program, with areas like water use efficiency targets for future improvements.

Listen to Chuck’s interview with Jason Wistehuff here: Interview with Jason Wistehuff, Bayer

Bayer Lubbock Tour

AgWired Precision, Audio, Bayer, Cotton

Bayer Crop Protection Portfolio Helps Farmers Fight Challenges

Carrie Muehling

Farmers who use seed treatments and premium seed packages can see early season advantages including better establishment, better root systems and better defense against disease and insect pressure. That was the key message from Bayer Senior Technical Service Representative Russ Perkins at the company’s Showcase Plot Tour in Lubbock, Texas. Perkins covered the company’s crop protection portfolio, sharing a number of products available to fight challenges in the field including insect and disease pressure, as well as weed resistance.

“Glyphosate resistance on the High Plains is obviously here these days,” said Perkins. “The easiest pigweed to control is one that never sees the light of day.”

Perkins encouraged farmers to use the STOP method with regard to controlling resistant weeds.

Listen to Chuck’s interview with Russ Perkins here: Interview with Russ Perkins, Bayer

Audio, Bayer, Cotton, Crop Protection

EPA Announces New Dicamba Rules

Cindy Zimmerman

The Environmental Protection Agency has announced new requirements for the use of dicamba formulations “over the top” to further minimize the potential for drift when applying to dicamba-tolerant soybeans and cotton.

EPA worked worked with impacted states and land-grant universities, as well as Monsanto, BASF and DuPont on measures that will allow farmers to make informed choices for seed purchases for the 2018 growing season.

Label changes that impose additional requirements for “over the top” use of these products next year include classifying the products as “restricted use,” permitting only certified applicators with special training, and those under their supervision, to apply them and requiring farmers to maintain specific records regarding the use of these products to improve compliance with label restrictions. Other restrictions include limiting applications to when maximum wind speeds are below 10 mph (from 15 mph), reducing the times during the day when applications can occur, including tank clean-out language to prevent cross contamination, and enhancing susceptible crop language and record keeping with sensitive crop registries.

American Soybean Association president Ron Moore of Illinois was encouraged by EPA’s label changes to allow farmers to continue to utilize this important tool while also working to protect and prevent damage to non-dicamba tolerant crops. “Moving forward, ASA looks forward to working with EPA, states, manufacturers and our farmers to implement these changes while also seeking the root cause of this issue so new technologies can be used in years to come,” said Moore.

AgWired Precision, ASA, BASF, Cotton, Soybean

Animal Ag Bites 10/16

Kelly Marshall

  • On January 17 and 18, 2018 dairy farmers will attend the Dairy Strong conference and trade show in Madison, Wisconsin.  Those who register before November 1, 2017 can attend for free.
  • The National Pork Board is celebrating a new song titled Porkchop by recording artist Cowboy Troy, American country rapper, Hick Hop innovator and songwriter currently traveling with Big & Rich.  Download the song here.
  • Gostwyck Partners‘ sheep farm in Gostwyck, NSW Australia has been certified by SCS Global Services under the Responsible Wool Standard.
  • The 201 World Dairy Expo has come to an end with a record 884 participating companies.  A Show Summary is now available with complete details about the event.
  • RaboResearch Food & Agribusiness group has released a new report, “Steady Growth Ahead for the U.S. Pork Industry- Outlook Hinges on Increased Exports.”  Contact Sarah.Kolell@RaboAg.com for more information.
  • Novus International, Inc. has raised of $20,000 to help those affected by the recent hurricane in Texas.  As a global animal nutrition and health solutions provider with more than 700 employees in 35 countries worldwide, part of this workforce includes manufacturing and business offices in Texas.
  • The U.S. Meat Export Federation (USMEF) has given their 2017 Distinguished Service Award to Anne Dawson, senior trade advisor for the USDA Foreign Agricultural Service.  The award honors those whose leadership contributes towards achievement of USMEF’s export goals.
AgWired Animal, Animal Bites

Bayer Agrees to Sell Selected Crop Science Businesses to BASF

Chuck Zimmerman

I didn’t see this one coming. Just learned of this announcement and it’s a big one. I’m sure we’ll have more to come. From the Bayer website today:

In light of the planned acquisition of Monsanto, Bayer has signed an agreement to sell selected Crop Science businesses to BASF for EUR 5.9 billion. The assets to be sold generated net sales of approximately EUR 1.3 billion in 2016. “We are taking an active approach to address potential regulatory concerns, with the goal of facilitating a successful close of the Monsanto transaction,” explained Werner Baumann, Chairman of the Board of Management of Bayer AG. “At the same time, we are pleased that, in BASF, we have found a strong buyer for our businesses that will continue to serve the needs of growers and offer our employees long-term prospects.” The transaction is subject to regulatory approvals as well as the successful closing of Bayer’s acquisition of Monsanto.

The assets to be sold include Bayer’s global glufosinate-ammonium business and the related LibertyLink™ technology for herbicide tolerance, essentially all of the company’s field crop seeds businesses, as well as respective research and development capabilities. The seeds businesses being divested include the global cotton seed business (excluding India and South Africa), the North American and European canola seed businesses and the soybean seed business. The transaction includes the transfer of relevant intellectual property and facilities, as well as more than 1,800 employees primarily in the United States, Germany, Brazil, Canada and Belgium. As part of the agreement, BASF has committed to maintain all permanent positions, under similar conditions, for at least three years after closing of the transaction.

Bayer will continue to own, operate and maintain these businesses until the closing of this divestiture. After the closure of the planned Monsanto acquisition, Bayer will continue to be active in these same areas as a result of Monsanto’s current programs, products and offerings.

The base purchase price of EUR 5.9 billion excludes the value of any net working capital and will be subject to customary adjustments at closing, including the value of any inventories transferred to BASF. Bayer will use net proceeds from the announced divestiture to partially refinance the planned acquisition of Monsanto. Bayer will provide an update on the total expected synergies from the Monsanto acquisition latest upon closing of the transaction.

Post Update: You can listen to the BASF Conference Call and download more information here. Here’s the link to the BASF news release.

Agribusiness, AgWired Precision, BASF, Bayer