Precision Labs Focus on Life Span of Droplet

Jamie Johansen

Precision Laboratories’ Total Spray Droplet Management considers the entire life-cycle of the drop. This ensures quality spray mixes, improved target placement and optimized retention and coverage. While in Snowbird, Utah at the 2017 Ag Media Summit, we stopped in to chat with Jim Reiss, senior vice president of product development at Precision Labs, to learn more.

“Total spray droplet management is centered around our belief that we can enhance the performance and safety of applications by focusing on factors in the tank, through the air, and on the target,” Reiss said.

As we know, newer herbicide technologies have a strong emphasis on drift control. Reiss said minimizing off-target spray drift is very important, but the entire life span of the spray droplet is what is essential – from the tank to plant absorption.

Listen to my complete interview with Jim to learn how Total Spray Droplet Management works in the tank with applicator control, limits drift through the air and how kinetic energy reduction enhances droplet absorbtion. Interview with Jim Reiss, Precision Labs

View and download photos here: 2017 Ag Media Summit Photo Album

Coverage of the Ag Media Summit is sponsored by
Coverage of the Ag Media Summit is sponsored by FMC
Ag Media Summit, Agribusiness, AgWired Precision, Audio, Herbicide

SMART Farmer Jeanette Merritt

Cindy Zimmerman

Jeannette Merritt is our SMART Farmer for this episode – an Indiana farm girl and former agricultural journalist who is raising crops, hogs and kids with her husband and serving the industry in many capacities.

Jeanette is a 4th generation farmer, a Purdue University graduate, Director of Checkoff Programs for Indiana Pork and serves on the Indiana Soybean Alliance board and the board of the U.S. Farmers and Ranchers Alliance (USFRA) – to name just a few of the hats she wears.

Learn more about Jeanette in this episode – SMART Farmer Podcast with Jeanette Merritt, Indiana farmer

Subscribe to the SMART Farmer podcast

Learn more about USFRA and SMART Farm

Audio, Pork, Soybean, USFRA

The Kings of Hay & Forage

Jamie Johansen

All our German speaking friends already know that Krone translates to king in German. We spoke with Dave Patterson, Krone NA, during the recent Ag Media Summit to learn what makes them the ‘kings of hay and forage’ production globally.

“Our customers and dealers are critical to our strategy and to our success. We are unique. We are a family-owned German company. We don’t answer to stockholders, quarterly earnings reports or others things that can restrict a true focus on the customer, their needs and our long-term investments,” Patterson said.

When it comes to focus, two areas spring to the top. The first is product innovation driven by customer feedback. People are number two. Krone hand-selects people in sales, service and marketing that can deliver.

Even with a downturn market, learn how Krone has sharpened their focus in Chuck’s complete interview with Dave here: Interview with Dave Patterson, Krone

View and download photos here: 2017 Ag Media Summit Photo Album


Coverage of the Ag Media Summit is sponsored by
Coverage of the Ag Media Summit is sponsored by FMC
Ag Media Summit, Agribusiness, AgWired Animal, Equipment, Farm Machinery, Forage, Hay

Court Decision Sides with Ethanol Interests

Cindy Zimmerman

U.S. biofuels interests were pleased with an appeals court ruling Friday that ‘EPA erred in how it interpreted the “inadequate domestic supply”
waiver provision’ of the Renewable Fuel Standard in setting volume obligations.

The Americans for Clean Energy v. Environmental Protection Agency ruling by the court vacates EPA’s decision to reduce the total renewable fuel volume requirement in 2016 and remands the rule to EPA for further consideration.

We hold that the “inadequate domestic supply” provision authorizes EPA to consider supply-side factors affecting the volume of renewable fuel that is available to refiners, blenders, and importers to meet the statutory volume requirements. It does not allow EPA to consider the volume of renewable fuel that is available to ultimate consumers or the demand-side constraints that affect the consumption of renewable fuel by consumers.

“We are still reviewing the decision, but the fact the court has affirmed our position that EPA abused its general waiver authority by including factors such as demand and infrastructure in a waiver intended to be based solely on available supply is a great victory for consumers and the RFS program,” said Renewable Fuels Association president and CEO Bob Dinneen.

The National Corn Growers Association calls the ruling “a win for farmers, the biofuels industry, and consumers” which affirms that the EPA did not follow the law when it reduced the 2014-2016 renewable fuel volumes below levels intended by Congress. “The court held that EPA was wrong to interpret the phrase ‘inadequate domestic supply’ to mean ‘inadequate domestic supply and demand.’ We agree with the Court that effectively adding words to the law through this interpretation simply exceeds EPA’s authority.”

Americans for Clean Energy includes a number of organizations, including the American Coalition for Ethanol, BIO, Growth Energy, the National Corn Growers Association, National Sorghum Producers and the Renewable Fuels Association.

Corn, Ethanol, NCGA, RFA

Airbus Provides Satellite Imagery for Solutions

Kelly Marshall

Sky Rubin is part of the Ag Solutions Team for Airbus, one of the largest aerospace companies to be building and operating satellites.  You’ll find their imagery in large agribusinesses like Bayer, The Climate Corp, and J.R. Simplot, who use it in their portals to provide actionable intelligence to growers.

When asked what makes Airbus stand out, Rubin says it’s all about resolution. “Airbus operates some of the highest resolution satellites in the world.  […] There are two twin satellites and they collect 50 centimeter imagery, so for precision ag, especially high value crops, it’s very useful.  And the frequency is very important.  We can collect weekly, or even daily in certain areas or for certain projects.”

For farmers looking for this kind of high resolution imagery, Rubin suggests going to companies like their newest partner, SatShot, to find growers services.  Learn more about Airbus in my full interview here: Interview with Sky Rubin, Airbus

2017 InfoAg Conference Photo Album

Coverage of the InfoAg Conference is sponsored by
Coverage of the InfoAg Conference is sponsored by John Deere Coverage of the InfoAg Conference is sponsored by CropTrak
AgWired Precision, Audio, Info Ag

Animal Ag Bites

Kelly Marshall

  • A new report from RaboResearch Food & Agribusiness, “Foraging for Higher Prices” explores hay prices and the impact on dairies. Members and journalists may request a copy by contacting RaboResearch Report Requests/Media Inquiries, Sarah Kolell, at (816) 350-4811 or Sarah.Kolell@RaboAg.com.
  • The July Dairy Market Report is ready for download from the National Milk Producers Federation website.  Indicators suggest milk prices have rebounded from their earlier spring lows.
  • Students wishing to apply for the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association and Public Lands Council 2018 Spring and Summer public policy and law clerk internships must submit their applications by August 15, 2017.
  • Register now to attend the CattleFax Trends+ Cow-Calf Webinar being held on August 30, 2017 at 5:30 MT.  The seminar will provide an overview of the beef and cow-calf industry through the end of 2017 and into 2018.
  • Alltech is hosting a webinar on the topic of trace minerals and their role in livestock health and performance.  Register for this event taking place Thursday, August 3, 2017 at 2:00 EST.

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AgWired Animal, Animal Bites

Perdue Remarks on Bilateral Talks in Mexico

Jamie Johansen

While meeting with Mexican Secretary of Agriculture José Calzada Rovirosa, U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue today held a teleconference for U.S. media.

The two leaders engaged in bilateral talks, including a panel discussion with U.S. and Mexican producers, several agricultural site visits, and a joint press conference – seeking to build on the U.S. and Mexico’s well-developed track record of collaboration on agricultural trade issues, and on the personal relationship forged when Perdue hosted Calzada in Savannah, Ga., last month.

You can find his complete remarks and questions from media here: Secretary Perdue Remarks from Mexico

Ag Groups, AgWired Animal, AgWired Precision, Audio, International, Trade, USDA

John Deere and Granular Collaborate

Cindy Zimmerman

John Deere and Granular are working together on a product development and co-marketing agreement that gives John Deere customers more tools to measure and improve their financial performance.

Under the terms of the agreement, the two companies will work to further integrate Granular’s leading Farm Management Software (FMS) product and the John Deere Operations Center. Certain Granular FMS functionality will be offered free-of-charge to Operations Center users in the U.S., Canada, Australia and New Zealand, so that producers who choose to share their machine data with Granular can measure their profitability at the field and sub-field levels. In addition, the companies will launch a program that rewards John Deere Dealers who work with Granular to serve common customers.

AgWired Precision, John Deere, Precision Agriculture

Drone Nerds Show Off at InfoAg

Kelly Marshall

As self-proclaimed “ag nerds” here at AgWired, we were excited to meet the Drone Nerds at the recent Info Ag Conference in St. Louis, Missouri.  Brian Grant, Director of enterprise sales, talked about the company’s dealer network and the service provided to help growers get the right drone setup for their operation.

He also showed off some pretty cool toys.  Of course, there are the drones we’ve typically seen at such shows; small units that take pictures and videos, use a software platform to interpret data, and provide insights farmers can act upon.  At InfoAg, however, Drone Nerds showed off their spraying applicaion drone, one that picks up where a smaller drone leaves off.  This drone takes the information provided and heads back out to the field to apply, say, insecticide to an area of infestation, taking off and coming right back to you when it needs a new battery or a refill of crop protection products.

Once you understand what the problem is, Grant says, this drone lets you do something about it.  That’s how you make sure your yields at the end of the year are what they were forecast to be.

Learn more about Drone Nerds and the spraying application drone in my full interview with Grant here: Interview with Brian Grant, Drone Nerds

2017 InfoAg Conference Photo Album

Coverage of the InfoAg Conference is sponsored by
Coverage of the InfoAg Conference is sponsored by John Deere Coverage of the InfoAg Conference is sponsored by CropTrak
AgWired Precision, Audio, data

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Kelly Marshall

  • The International Federation of Agriculture Journalists and Swiss Agriculture Journalists are hosting a press tour in Lucerne on September 22-25, 2017. The topic will be “Food Security, Free Trade and Sustainability.”
  • The American Feed Industry Association welcomes Victoria Broehm as the new director of communications. She will lead the association’s media relations and strategic communications efforts and serve as editor of the AFIA Journal and other member and media communications.
  • Pope Francis has shown support for those facing hunger in East Africa by symbolically donating €25,000 to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
  • The National FFA Organization has announced finalists for the 2017 top achievement awards: American Star Farmer, American Star in Agribusiness, American Star in Agricultural Placement and American Star in Agriscience.  The finalists will be interviewed and one winner for each award will be recognized at the 90th National FFA Convention & Expo, Oct. 25-28 in Indianapolis.
  • Twenty nine students have been selected by the World Food Prize Foundation and the U.S. Department of Agriculture to receive the prestigious Wallace-Carver Fellowship.  These paid summer fellowships will allow the students to collaborate with world-renowned scientists and policymaker at leading USDA research centers and offices.
  • American Farmland Trust and Growing Food Connections have announced a national guide called GROWING LOCAL: A Community Guide to Planning for Agriculture and Food Systems, showcasing ways to strengthen the food system through planning, policy and public investment.
  • Charleston|Orwig is celebrating their 25th anniversary, starting with an employee day at the Waukesha Country Fair.  It was the first of “25 Feed Good Deeds” the company will host over the next year to commemorate.

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