EFC Systems, Inc., a leading provider of solutions for agricultural retailers, has announced the purchased of AgSolver Inc.’s assets. The acquisition has led to a new Agronomic Planning and Sustainabilty division, headed up by Dr. Dave Muth as Vice President.- With anhydrous ammonia prices looking good this fall, AgXplore is encouraging growers to take a look at a product called NZONE GL, a non-detrimental, calcium-based formulation that’s safe to handle. Studies show the product reduced leaching by 47 percent and delivered an average of 12 bushels more per acre.
- The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Natural Resources Conservation Service plans to invest in 48 new, multi-year projects that build vital infrastructure and conserve natural resources in 20 states or territories through the Watershed Protection and Flood Prevention Program.
Senator Grassley Rallies for Biodiesel
Senator Chuck Grassley (R-IA) visited the Renewable Energy Group (REG) biodiesel plant in Newton, Iowa Tuesday to rally the industry in opposition to proposed EPA actions that would cut volumes of biodiesel under the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS).
“This proposal would drastically undermine biodiesel production,” said Grassley. “Most importantly, it’s contrary to statements made by candidate and President Trump. Whether it’s biodiesel or anything else, I believe a platform isn’t just to run on, it’s also to stand on.”
In late September, EPA put out a “Notice of Data Availability” seeking input concerning potential reductions for biodiesel under the RFS, on top of freezing biodiesel levels for 2019 in the formal proposed rule and decreasing levels for advanced biofuels, which includes biodiesel.
Grassley also talked about his American Renewable Fuel Jobs Creation Act bill, which would extends the biodiesel tax incentive, which expired at the end of 2016, for three years and changing it from a blenders’ to a producers’ credit. The change would ensure that the tax credit incentivizes domestic production without subsidizing imported fuel.
Listen to Grassley’s comments here: Sen. Grassley biodiesel rally comments
Farmers Edge and Planet Bringing Daily Imagery to the Farm
Global decision agriculture leader Farmers Edge™ today announced a strategic partnership with global satellite data company Planet to provide game-changing global monitoring data and platform capabilities to farmers.
Planet operates the world’s largest fleet of earth imaging satellites and Farmers Edge is now a sole distributor for Planet in key agricultural regions, with the right to use and distribute high-resolution, high-frequency imagery from Planet’s three flagship satellite constellations. Farmers Edge customers will be among the first to take advantage of field-centric, consistent, and accurate insights from satellite imagery.
Farmers Edge president and CEO Wade Barnes says this partnership equips Farmers Edge growers with the most comprehensive, most frequently updated, high-quality field imagery in the industry. “At Farmers Edge, providing our customers with the most concise, comprehensive, and consistent data is at the core of what we do,” said Barnes. “We understand the need for more image frequency, that’s why we are partnering with Planet. Daily imagery is a game-changer in the digital ag space.”
Barnes adds that retailers, co-ops, equipment dealers, agronomists, and other important farmer advisers can now “partner with Farmers Edge and leverage this industry changing capability within their business.” Interview with Wade Barnes, Farmers Edge president and CEO
Planet’s unique ability to receive data from nearly 200 satellites daily could help solve agricultural challenges around the world.”We’re able to collect the entire earth on an almost daily basis,” says Andrew Pylypchuk, Planet account executive for agriculture. This will allow farmers to see their fields as they never have before “on the right date, at the right time, and allow them to take the right action.” Comments from Andrew Pylypchuk, Planet account executive for agriculture
Nebraska Farmers Edge grower Randy Uhlmacher says daily imagery can mean catching a problem early enough to prevent yield loss. “We’ve had so much cloudy weather, if you are running once a week and it happens to be cloudy that day, it could be several weeks before you get an image again,” he said. “The more often you can do it, the faster you can pick up changes in your fields.” Interview with Randy Uhlmacher, Nebraska farmer and Farmers Edge user
Alltech Dairy Specialist Knows Cow Comfort
Cow comfort is priority for Tom Lorenzen, dairy specialist with Alltech. Lorenzen visits dairy farms with the goal of looking for problem areas and finding solutions when it comes to the basic needs of the animals.
“Cows don’t lie,” says Lorenzen. “I look and listen to the cows.”
Lorenzen says clean water and a full feed bunk after milking are important to keeping cows happy and healthy. He took the opportunity during the 2017 World Dairy Expo to share some priorities when it comes to cow comfort, including correct free stalls, proper ventilation and adequate parlor space.
Listen to Jamie’s interview with Tom Lorenzen here: Interview with Tom Lorenzen, Alltech
2017 World Dairy Expo Photo Album
Coverage of World Dairy Expo is sponsored by 
Bayer Invests in Youth for Future of Ag
This week there are 100 youth delegates from 49 countries working together to generate innovative and sustainable solutions to global food security challenges and come up with concrete new ideas to drive agricultural progress across the globe. It’s a tall order for the 3rd Youth Ag Summit sponsored by Bayer, but Liam Condon, President of Bayer Crop Science, is optimistic they are up to the challenge.
“We want them to look at real problems that real farmers are facing in real areas today and come up with potential solutions…and we will support them to implement those ideas,” said Condon.
He says the goal of the summit is two-fold. First, each individual is to come up with three things that they promise they are going to implement themselves in their own homes, such as reducing food waste. Secondly, they work as a group on challenges linked to United Nations sustainable development goals and the best ideas will be supported by Bayer.
Learn more in this interview –
Interview with Liam Condon President of Bayer Crop Science
View and download photos from the event here: 2017 Youth Ag Summit Photo Album
WMMB Focusing On Exports, Consumer Trust In Coming Year
This year’s World Dairy Expo was the first for Chad Vincent in his role as CEO of the Wisconsin Milk Marketing Board (WMMB). Vincent says the organization continues to invest checkoff dollars to drive trust, sales distribution and awareness of Wisconsin cheese and other dairy products.
He says exports and emerging markets are a priority, with a focus on Asia and North Africa. But the message to American consumers is just as important at a time when it can be difficult to tell fact from fiction.
“We want to tell the honest truth about farming and farmers and dairy. When people see it coming from the farmers and they hear the truth, it helps us deflect a lot of the misinformation that’s coming at them today and coming at them in the future.”
WMMB also shares that message with students in schools across the country through the Fuel Up To Play 60 program, in partnership with the NFL.
Listen to Jamie’s interview with Chad Vincent here: Interview with Chad Vincent, WMMB
2017 World Dairy Expo Photo Album
Coverage of World Dairy Expo is sponsored by
Keenan Alltech Offers Nutrition Solutions
Visitors to the Keenan Alltech booth at the 2017 World Dairy Expo told National Sales Manager Dan Gard that they appreciate the uniformity of the mix they get when using any of Keenan’s five mixers on their farms. Gard says consistency drives performance on the farm, whether it is a small farm or one of the larger dairies in the country.
Keenan InTouch Nutritionist Eva Griffin says technology plays a big role in today’s mixing systems.
“The farmer knows exactly what to feed the cows, how much to feed and how long to mix it for. The beauty is that a lot of that is in the Cloud, as well, so behind your machine on farm is a whole nutrition support service,” says Griffin.
Griffin says the paddle mixer is a unique design that provides a gentle mixing process, protecting the structure fiber of the mix and working with nature and not against it.
Listen to Jamie’s interview with Dan Gard and Eva Griffin here: Interview with Dan Gard & Eva Griffin, Keenan Alltech
2017 World Dairy Expo Photo Album
Coverage of World Dairy Expo is sponsored by
Animal Ag Bites 10/9
The Food and Drug Administration’s Center for Veterinary Medicine has released a new video discussing antiparasitic resistance in cattle, sheep, goats, and horses.- Alltech has donated $90,000 of its slow-release urea, Optigen, to dairy farms impacted by Hurricane Irma. Optigen provides a high-quality source of protein to give herds energy during times of environmental or production stress.
- The American Angus Association has hired three new team members. JD Rosman and Ali Luety join as communications specialists and Max Steward has accepted a position as video production specialist.
- The 2017 Advances in Animal Ag report from Animal Agriculture Alliance has just been released. The report showcases the industry’s commitment to continuous improvement in animal care, responsible antibiotic use, environmental sustainability, and food safety.
SMART Farmer Katie Roth
Katie Roth and her husband TJ farm with their partners John and Luann Shea in the southwest corner of America’s Dairyland in Wisconsin where they milk Holsteins and grow all of their feedstuffs on the farm including corn, soybeans, alfalfa and wheat. In addition, she serves as one of the U.S. Farmers & Ranchers Alliance’s (USFRA) Faces of Farming & Ranching.
Katie loves her animals and wants people to know how well dairy cows are treated on farms, which is why she spends a lot of her time on the road for USFRA talking about animal welfare.
Learn more about Katie in this edition – SMART Farmer Podcast with Katie Roth, Wisconsin dairy producer
Youth Ag Summit Kicks Off in Brussels
Today marks the kick-off of the 3rd edition of the Youth Ag Summit in Brussels, Belgium, with 100 bright young talents from around the world – including five from the U.S. All here to tackle one of humanity’s biggest challenges: how to feed a growing population in a more sustainable manner. Organized by Bayer, together with the two Belgian young farmers associations Groene Kring (GK) and Fédération des Jeunes Agriculteurs (FJA), the summit aims to address the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to end hunger, achieve food security, and promote sustainable agriculture.
The youth delegates from 49 countries will work together to generate innovative, sustainable and actionable solutions to global food security challenges. Their mission is to come up with concrete new ideas which can drive agricultural progress across the globe and be put into practice back home.
In addition to talks designed to spark their creativity, delegates will have the opportunity to tour EU institutions and meet with European policymakers, visit one of Bayer’s innovative sustainable farming sites, and gain real-world insights into sustainability in action from companies and organizations such as Rabobank, CropTrust, Thought for Food, BioBest, International Society for Horticultural Science, VIB – Flemish Institute for Biotech, Inagro, University Ghent and Ahold Delhaize Group.
Throughout the week, delegates will work to develop “Thrive for Change Projects”; concrete ideas to help achieve the UN SDGs in their communities and countries. Following a pitch process, the strongest ideas will be selected for future funding and development by Bayer.
During the very first Summit in Calgary, Canada, attendees learned how three ideas can turn into three actions. One of Derrick Rozdeba’s, VP of Communications at Bayer Inc. Canada, “3 little things” was making the Youth Ag Summit a recurring global event. I sat down with him to learn how that goal has become a reality.
Listen to our chat here: Interview with Derrick Rozdeba, Bayer Inc.
View and download photos from the event here: 2017 Youth Ag Summit Photo Album