New NAMA App

Chuck Zimmerman

For the National Agri-Marketing Association, there’s a new app in town.

NAMA is very excited to announce our new and improved mobile app, just in time for the 2017 Agri-Marketing Conference!

Make sure you download the new app – or update to the new version – so you can stay up to date while you are in Dallas next week! This new app will make it easy to keep track of your schedule while you are onsite at conference AND you can stay current with everything NAMA when you get back home!

The NAMA app gives you access to:

• the NAMA Membership Directory
• all chapter meeting information
• the latest NAMA news

Download the NAMA app on iTunes or Google Play today!

Powered by iNet Solutions Group and sponsored by Penton Ag

Apps, NAMA

ASTA Pleased with New International Seed Standard

Cindy Zimmerman

The American Seed Trade Association (ASTA) is pleased with the passage of a final International Standard for Phytosanitary Measures (ISPM) for Seed during the recent International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC) in Korea.

American Seed Trade Association (ASTA) Senior Director of Seed Health and Trade Ric Dunkle, who attended the IPPC, says ASTA has been advocating for a seed ISPM for nearly 20 years.

“We’re trading seed on an international level at an unprecedented rate,” Dunkle explains. “As you increase the volumes and amounts, numbers, different kinds of seed moving around the world, you increase the potential for seeds moving around unwanted pests and disease.”

The snag is that currently countries make their own phytosanitary measures as they see the need, creating different regulations and measures for the same seed across the globe.

“What this standard does is attempts to provide sort of uniform guidance to countries in how to regulate seed movement so these phytosanitary measures can become more harmonized and more predictable,” says Dunkle. “If we can get those [regulations] harmonized from one country to another around the world, then the trade environment becomes much more predictable and certain to our seed industry.”

Dunkle expects the process to take a year to 18 months for countries to amend legislation or regulations.

Hear more about what the new standards will mean here: Interview with Ric Dunkle, ASTA

ASTA, Audio, International, Seed, Trade

USDA Gearing up for 2017 Census

Cindy Zimmerman

USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service is gearing up for 2017 Census of Agriculture, which will be mailed to all known farmers and ranchers in the nation at the end of this year.

The census is conducted every five years by and is a complete count of all U.S. farms, ranches and those who operate them. “The Census of Agriculture remains the only source of uniform, comprehensive and impartial agriculture data for every county in the nation,” said NASS Administrator Hubert Hamer. “As such, census results are relied upon heavily by those who serve farmers and rural communities, including federal, state and local governments, agribusinesses, trade associations, extension educators, researchers, and farmers and ranchers themselves.”

Producers who are new to farming or did not receive a Census of Agriculture in 2012 can sign up to receive the 2017 Census of Agriculture report form by visiting www.agcensus.usda.gov and clicking on the ‘Make Sure You Are Counted’ button through June. NASS defines a farm as any place from which $1,000 or more of agricultural products were produced and sold, or normally would have been sold, during the census year (2017).

USDA

A Little Lesson on the Water Markets

Jamie Johansen

Mammoth Trading’s President, Richael Young sat on a panel during the 2017 Water for Food Global Conference called, “Drought, Water Risk and the Context for Water Markets.” Drought risk management was positioned as a focal point as panelists discussed the water transaction outlook, water policy trends and the role of public versus private investment in water markets.

Mammoth Trading develops and operates market-based solutions to water resource challenges. Many places have active water markets but they are often decentralized and informal. Richael said they come in and help to reduce search and transaction costs for individuals.

“Mammoth Trading creates Smart Markets or electronic clearing houses that help automate the process of matching individuals who are interested in buying and selling water rights and automating the process of regulatory compliance,” Richael said.

There are a number of transactions people can make around water including: water leases, permanent transactions, pooling, rotational agreements, inter-annual water exchanges, etc. During the panel, Richael shared how farmers have been utilizing water markets over decades and how we are just shedding light on the extent of those occurrences.

“Water markets have emerged informally as a tool for farmers and communities to share water resources. If you can give communities the tools to move water resources to when and where they are needed, a wealth of risk management is provided,” Richael said.

The future of water rights was also discussed. Richael said more and more we are trending towards ways to give individuals the flexibility to use their water resources to best fit their needs. “We are also looking at ways to develop water markets that work well for communities. It’s not about taking water from one basin and exporting it to another. This is about how we can use water locally in a way that works best for that community,” Richael said.

Listen to my complete chat with Richael to learn more about the water market history, some misconceptions and more on the future: Interview with Richael Young, Mammoth Trading

View and download photos from the event here: 2017 Water for Food Global Conference Photos

Ag Groups, Audio, Water, Water for Food

Wet Weather Delays Corn Planting

Cindy Zimmerman

Many planters around the Corn Belt were sitting idle last week as wet weather continued to delay planting progress at the start of the season, much to the dismay of farmers anxious to get into the fields.

The latest crop progress report from USDA this week shows corn planting progress at six percent falling behind last year at this time and the five-year average. Progress is ahead of schedule in Texas at 60 percent planted now, but Kansas is well behind at just nine percent when the average is twice that. Illinois at six percent is half the average and Missouri has only 17 percent of the crop planted compared to the average of 25 percent and last year’s record progress at this time when over half of the crop was already in the ground.

Cotton planting is running right around the five year average at eight percent and sorghum is also about average at 21 percent.

Corn, Cotton, Planting, sorghum, USDA

Moving Africa from Rain-Fed to Irrigated Farming

Jamie Johansen

Now founder and CEO of KickStart International, Martin Fisher, at first wasn’t quite sure what he wanted to do with his life. A Fullbright scholarship took him to Africa for a year to look for the potential use of technology and engineering in development. That one year turned in to 17 years in Kenya. Martin presented his case study at the 2017 Water for Food Global Conference where I was able to sit down with him to hear his story and grasped a better understand of the challenges of farming in sub-saharan Africa.

Through those years Martin came to the simple conclusion that when you are poor anywhere around the world your #1 need is a way to make more money. With the goal to help millions of people globally make more money, KickStart International was formed. Martin said in sub-saharan Africa the majority of the poor are farmers, therefore his mission focused on moving farmers from rain-fed farming to irrigated farming.

With the focus of low-cost irrigation, Martin and his team developed a line of human-powered irrigation pumps called MoneyMaker Pumps. The pumps are mass produced and distributed across Africa through small local retail shops. KickStart has a team on the ground who educates the farmers about irrigation and it’s impact on their farms. Over 300,000 pumps have been sold globally, but the job isn’t done when a pump is sold. They then track the impact the pump has on the family. Martin said well over 75% of the families take a major step out of poverty.

Listen to my complete interview with Martin here: Interview with Martin Fisher, KickStart International

Listen to his case study presentation during conference here: Case study on MoneyMaker Pumps

View and download photos from the event here: 2017 Water for Food Global Conference Photos

Ag Groups, Audio, Food, Irrigation, Technology, Water, Water for Food

Ag Media Summit on the Summit

Chuck Zimmerman

The Summit is on the ZimmComm Schedule. Is it on yours? It will be the 19th annual Agricultural Media Summit—the largest gathering of crop and livestock media professionals in the U.S. at Snowbird Resort outside of Salt Lake City, Utah.

If you’re looking for the best place to promote your company or organization’s products and services, then you’ll want to be at the 19th Annual Ag Media Summit at Snowbird Resort, July 22-26, 2017. This annual get-together, the largest meeting in the United States of the ag industry’s top writers, editors, photographers, publishers and ag communicator specialists, begins with pre-meeting events on Saturday, July 22, followed by the AMS program July 22-26. We invite you to participate as a sponsor or an exhibitor at our InfoExpo or both, and be a part of this important agricultural media event.

The Ag Media Summit is a joint meeting of the American Agricultural Editors’ Association, the Livestock Publications Council and the Connectiv Agri-Media Committee. This industry-wide gathering of agricultural communicators offers one of the best opportunities for professional improvement and industry networking. More than 600 attend this event each year, and the InfoExpo annually exceeds 75 booths.

Ag Media Summit, Media

Fluency Agent Advanced Helps Farmers CARE

Cindy Zimmerman

The Bayer CARE initiative has been encouraging growers to be good stewards of the land for five years and now Bayer is making that goal more attainable with Fluency Agent Advanced, which was introduced by the company at Commodity Classic.

The CARE acronym stands for:

  • Communicate planting activities to neighboring beekeepers
  • Be Aware of wind speed and direction during your planting
  • Reduce the amount of dust potentially released during planting
  • Ensure seed is planted correctly

Bayer’s Ron Reichert and Melissa Chu at AgVocate Forum

Fluency Agent Advanced is the newly reformulated seed lubrication for corn and soybeans that can be used at the time of planting, like other lubricants, but goes a step further with “Reducing” dust. “Fluency Agent Advanced really does more than other seed lubricants, says Bayer Seed Growth product manager, Melissa Chu. “To start off from a stewardship aspect, Fluency Agent Advanced further reduces the amount of dust and active ingredients potentially released during planting, thereby reducing the potential exposure to pollinators. So it really is an excellent tool from a stewardship aspect.”

What kind of stewardship benefits are growers really looking at? The lubricant can reduce dust by 88 percent, says Ron Reichert, application technology manager for Bayer Seed Growth. If you look at the insecticide portion, that can be reduced by 69 percent. “With the Fluency Agent Advanced we’re just driving that lower level even lower,” Reichert explains.

Learn more in this interview: Interview with Melissa Chu and Ron Reichert, Bayer

Audio, Bayer, Bees, Seed

Positive Innovation in a World of Sustainability

Jamie Johansen

Elanco Animal Health’s seminar at the Central Plains Dairy Expo highlighted the role of innovation in the dairy industry. Dr. Roger Cady, Global Sustainability Lead, Scientific Affairs & Policy for Elanco talked about the positive impact of innovation on the I-29 Dairy Corridor which includes Nebraska, Iowa, Minnesota and South Dakota.

“Producers along the I-29 Corridor are recognized as leaders in making milk production and dairy products among the most sustainable in existence – not only in the United States, but also in the entire world – by embracing the concept of continued progress and innovation,” said Cady.

He said communicating sustainability progress to retailers and consumers is key as they are the “second gatekeeper” regarding what they will and will not accept for sale in their outlets based on what they believe is sustainable food production.

“While sustainability has become a complex issue, at its core, it really is about being a farm operator in 20 years from now and passing a successful farm to the next generation,” said Cady. “What it is not about is regulation and retail mandates. When something is sustainable, all benefit: people, animals and the planet.”

As we meet the demand for a growing world, Cady said we cannot afford to do away with innovation that helps farmers produce food in a safe, healthy manner and protects our planet along with the animal’s welfare.

Listen to my complete conversation with Dr. Cady here: Interview with Dr. Roger Cady, Elanco

Agribusiness, Animal Agriculture, Audio, Dairy, Elanco, Environment, Sustainability

Agri-Pulse Announces Promotion and Intern

Cindy Zimmerman

Agri-Pulse is promoting Jason Lutz to Marketing Manager and gaining Allison Luety as an editorial intern this summer.

Since joining the Agri-Pulse team in 2012, Lutz has become involved in virtually all areas of the business, including subscription sales, technical support, product development, management, marketing and advertising sales responsibilities.

Lutz is also actively involved in helping other small businesses succeed through tourism and promotion, serving as the President-elect for the Camdenton, Missouri Chamber of Commerce.

Luety will join the Agri-Pulse editorial team in Washington, D.C. in May, where she will cover hearings and events, writing for the company’s subscription-only newsletter and web site.

Luety grew up in South-Central Wisconsin on her family’s farm where she was immersed in production agriculture. Currently, Luety is a student at Iowa State University majoring in Public Relations, Ag & Society. She previously held internships with FarmHer.com, the American Royal, AgSolver, American Farm Bureau Federation, National Pork Board and the Iowa State Daily.

Agri-Pulse