Zimfo Bytes 7/14

Cindy Zimmerman

Zimfo Bytes

  • MGEX continues to break open interest records. Another daily record of 105,832 contracts set after Thursday’s activity, with records set almost every day this week.
  • USDA announced that a proposed amendment to the federal marketing order for cranberries allowing the Cranberry Marketing Committee to receive and expend voluntary contributions from domestic sources failed to receive a majority of processor volume, but the original cranberry marketing order, first established in 1962, remains in effect.
  • Charleston|Orwig (C|O) announces the promotion of two client services team members. Alli Hartman and Matt Olson both advance from junior account executives to assistant account executives.
  • Registration is open for the 31st annual Georgia Peanut Tour to be held September 19-21
Zimfo Bytes

Beef’s Environmental Stewardship Award Finalists

Jamie Johansen

The National Cattlemen’s Beef Association’s (NCBA) announced the six finalists in the Environmental Stewardship Award Program (ESAP). The award recognizes the operation’s outstanding stewardship and conservation efforts. This year’s regional winners will compete for the national award, which will be announced during the Annual Cattle Industry Convention in Phoenix, Ariz., in February 2018.

Regional Winners:
– Flying Diamond Ranch in Kit Carson, Colo.
– SFI, Inc., in Nemaha, Iowa
– Munson Angus Farm, in Junction City, Kan.
– Blue Lake Farm in Sharon, S.C.
– Jim O’Haco Cattle Company in Winslow, Ariz.
– Sterling Cattle Company in Coahama, Texas

Ag Groups, AgWired Animal, Beef, Conservation, Environment, NCBA

Monsanto Call Provides Perspective on Dicamba Developments

Cindy Zimmerman

Monsanto held a media briefing Thursday to provide perspective on recent developments with dicamba herbicides.

Monsanto chief technology officer Dr. Robb Fraley and Lisa Safarian, vice president of Monsanto North America, both participated in the call and answered questions from reporters. “Monsanto spent years developing XtendiMax® with VaporGrip® Technology to minimize the potential for off-site movement,” said Safarian. “Like many others in the agriculture community, we are concerned about the reports of potential crop injury.”

Safarian says the outright ban of all dicamba products like Arkansas has done, “will hurt more farmers and not get states any closer to an effective solution.” They are encouraged by the approach taken by Missouri and Tennessee, which have prohibited the use of older dicamba solutions, which are more volatile.

Fraley talked about visiting with farmers in the affected states this week. “The vast majority of farmers that have planted extend beans and cotton on 25 million acres in 34 states and have used the approved over the top XtendiMax® and Engenia formulations have had a great experience,” he said. Fraley admitted he saw soybean fields with “clear symptomology, especially in Arkansas, Missouri and Tennessee” but stressed that there are a variety of potential causes for the damage.

You can listen to or download the briefing here: Monsanto Media Briefing

AgWired Precision, Audio, Herbicide

Censky Nominated as Deputy Ag Secretary

Cindy Zimmerman

Over two months since he took office, Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue is finally getting some nominations to fill USDA positions.

Late Thursday, Perdue announced that President Trump has nominated American Soybean Association CEO Stephen Censky to be Deputy Secretary of Agriculture.

“Our work has only just begun in delivering results for the people of American agriculture, and the experience and leadership skills of Stephen Censky will only enhance our efforts,” said Perdue. “I am extremely pleased with the nomination for this key position and am hopeful that the Senate will take it up in short order.”

Censky has been CEO of the American Soybean Association since 1996 and the association strongly backs his nomination.

“Steve has guided our organization for 21 years and in that time he has proven himself as an effective, dedicated and visionary voice on behalf of soybean farmers nationwide. Nobody in agriculture is better equipped to assist Secretary Perdue in meeting the needs of farmers with practical solutions than Steve. He is a perfect fit for this role and we give him our strongest endorsement,” said Ron Moore, ASA president from Roseville, Ill.

The National Biodiesel Board (NBB) also proudly supports Censky’s nomination. “President Trump’s pick of Steve Censky to be Deputy Secretary of Agriculture is an outstanding step forward for agriculture and the countless related markets, like biodiesel, that play a key role in supporting our economy,” said NBB CEO Donnell Rehagen.

The nomination must be approved by the U.S. Senate, which already has a backlog of about 150 presidential nominations not yet approved.

AgWired Animal, AgWired Precision, ASA, Biodiesel, Soybean, USDA

Bayer Cereals Portfolio on Display in North Dakota

Chuck Zimmerman

The Cereals portfolio for Bayer was on display during the Showcase Plot Tour near Minot, ND. Our presenter, Kevin Thorsness, Technical Services Representative, Bayer Cereals portfolio, gave a very good overview of products for this segment.

Specific products we could see being used in the plots included Varro, Huskie Complete, Olympus and Wolverine Advanced. These products target different type of weeds and can work together for maximum performance. Kevin talks about some of the weeds that have been showing up, including some resistant weeds, which Bayer has products to combat.

This has been a challenging season according to Kevin because the weather turned dry through most of the state, although some areas are in good shape. But as he and others told me, weeds grow even if it is dry. Overall though, Kevin says their products in test plots have been performing very well.

Learn more about Bayer’s cereal portfolio in this interview: Interview with Kevin Thorsness, Bayer Cereals Portfolio

Bayer Showcase Plot Tour – North Dakota Photo Album

Audio, Bayer, weed management

Farm Bureau and FFA Work for Ag Education

Cindy Zimmerman

National FFA CEO Mark Poeschl and AFBF President Zippy Duvall sign a memorandum of understanding

The American Farm Bureau Federation and National FFA Organization have signed a memorandum of understanding to grow leaders, build communities and strengthen agriculture.

The MOU outlines how the two organizations will work together to discover opportunities that benefit both their members and agricultural education students in all 50 states, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. It was signed in Washington, D.C. this week, during a national meeting of state Farm Bureau presidents from across the country.

Together, FFA and AFBF will attract, educate, inspire and prepare students to enter careers in the agriculture, food, fiber and natural resources industry. In addition, the two organizations will broaden the definition of “agriculturally related careers” to encompass the vastness of professions in the industry of agriculture. FFA and AFBF will determine existing connections between county Farm Bureaus and local FFA chapters as well as state Farm Bureaus and state FFA associations. The MOU also allows AFBF to serve as a member of the FFA Agricultural Policy Committee. FFA will use AFBF-branded advocacy resources and materials to train state FFA officers and find ways for FFA and AFBF members to interact during policy discussions or in policy communications.

AFBF, AgWired Animal, FFA

House Ag Hearing on Specialty Crop Innovations

Cindy Zimmerman

The House Agriculture Committee heard testimony Wednesday on technology and innovation in specialty crops as input toward the making of the 2018 farm bill.

“As we look at the farm bill through the lens of the current farm economy, innovation and technology will remain essential for farmers and ranchers to continue producing more food and fiber with fewer resources,” said Committee Chairman Mike Conaway (R-TX).

ASTA’s Andy LaVigne testifies at House ag committee hearing

Among those who testified was American Seed Trade Association (ASTA) President & CEO Andy LaVigne, who stressed that Farm Bill research programs and policies based on sound science are critical to the development of new technologies for plant breeding.

“New and evolving innovations like gene editing represent exciting opportunities for agriculture,” said LaVigne. “However, if policies toward breeding methods are overly burdensome, then smaller, regional companies and the public sector will likely be precluded from fully utilizing these innovations.”

LaVigne’s opening statement prompted questioning from committee members that allowed him to elaborate on the potential for gene editing and the importance of educating the public about plant breeding. “We have an uphill road just to talk about the plant breeding methods we use today,” said LaVigne, noting that most people have little or no knowledge of genetics.

Listen to LaVigne’s opening remarks and answers to questions from Reps. Neal Dunn (R-FL) and Austin Scott (R-GA) – ASTA CEO Andy LaVigne testifies at House ag hearing

Other witnesses at the hearing included California Farm Bureau President Paul Wenger; Paul Heller with Wonderful Citrus; Gary Wishnatzki, owner of Wish Farms in Plant City, Florida; and Driscoll’s CEO Kevin Murphy. Listen to their opening remarks and those of Chairman Conaway and Ranking Member Collin Peterson (D-MN) – House Ag Innovation in Specialty Crops Hearing

AgWired Precision, ASTA, Audio, Biotech, Farm Bill, Seed, specialty crops, Technology

Animal Ag Bites 7/12

Jamie Johansen

ag_wired_animal-ag-bites

  • The National Pork Producers Council (NPPC) and 17 other food and agriculture organizations, representing the vast majority of production agriculture, sent a letter to the Trump administration urging it to refrain from placing restrictions on imports of steel and aluminum. The organizations are very concerned that such restrictions will boomerang against U.S. food and agriculture exports.
  • Boehringer Ingelheim (BI) is launching the new Producers for Progress recognition program to salute dairy producers who have demonstrated a significant commitment to the well-being of their animals by using antibiotics judiciously.
  • The American Angus Association hired Clint Mefford as the organization’s director of communications. He will be responsible for establishing strategy for all communication elements, both external and internal, for the Association and its entities, Angus Productions Inc. (API), Angus Genetics Inc. (AGI) and the Angus Foundation.
  • The National Cattlemen’s Beef Association applaud the inclusion of language in the U.S. House’s Transportation-HUD appropriations bill that will delay for one year a requirement mandating the use of the new Electronic Logging Devices (ELDs) for livestock and insect haulers.
AgWired Animal, Animal Bites

Mark Your Calendars: It’s Bison Hump Day!

Lizzy Schultz

Increased demand for sustainable meat has the bison industry poised to grow significantly this year, and the industry recently announced the “Bison One Million” campaign, which sets sights on helping the North American bison population grow to one million strong this year.

North America’s bison population, once on the verge of extinction in the 1880’s with less than 700 bison, has steadily recovered. Today, an estimated 391,000 bison are in North American private, public and tribal herds, according to National Bison Association (NBA) data. Adding 609,000 head of America’s official mammal to this continent’s collective herd will be no easy or swift feat.

The industry isn’t stopping their efforts at growing herd sizes across the continent. National Bison Association executive director Dave Carter, says the industry is building off the recent increase in consumer demand for bison products with a “Bison Hump Day” campaign in an effort to incorporate bison into dinner menus across America every Wednesday.

“Consumers love bison because the nutritional profile of the meat fits right in with people’s concerns about diet and health: it’s low in fat, high in protein and iron, and it’s got a great cholesterol profile,” said Carter. “It also fits within their interest for natural and sustainable foods. What could be more sustainable than the animal that helped shape this environment over the last several thousand years?”

Those interested in taking part in Bison Hump Day can find information on local producers and restaurants that serve bison products can check out NBA’s website or download NBA’s new Bison Finder app.

Learn more in this interview:
Interview with Dave Carter, National Bison Association

Ag Groups, AgWired Animal, Audio, Food, Meat

Bayer Showcases InVigor® Canola Hybrids

Cindy Zimmerman

The canola was in full bloom for the Bayer Showcase Plot Tour this week in North Dakota, soaking up the spotlight on the latest InVigor® canola hybrids.

U.S. InVigor Sales Lead Kristie Sundeen says the Liberty Link trait canola hybrid just celebrated 20 years on the market and the most recent hybrids with pod shatter reduction technology are gaining in popularity. “It keeps the canola from shattering as we get closer to harvest, so it allows for straight cutting canola,” said Sundeen. “Probably 50 percent of our market has switched from swathing to straight cut.”

Sundeen says this year they have been working on trials to evaluate the agronomics of the InVigor hybrids. “We have two locations looking into everything from the seed size to seeding depth, to hybrid evaluation, seeding rates, a little bit of everything.”

Learn more about Bayer InVigor® canola hybrids in this interview: Interview with Kristie Sundeen, Bayer, InVigor Canola

Bayer Showcase Plot Tour – North Dakota Photo Album

AgWired Precision, Audio, Bayer