International Drone Expo to Host Drone Pitchfest Competition

Jamie Johansen October 24, 2016

International Drone Expo (IDE) will hold a Drone Pitchfest Competition sponsored by Singh Ventures. The competition is open to domestic and international entrepreneur applicants who are seeking the opportunity to present their ideas and business concepts surrounding the unmanned aerial systems industry.

Five winners will be presented with $100,000 worth of application and/or product development and the opportunity to solicit additional investment and funding from Singh Ventures.

The Pitchfest judging panel is made up of three venture capitalists: Alexander Niehenke, John Stack, and Raj Singh. Alexander Niehenke, principal at Scale Venture Partners, has over a decade of experience in advising and investing in software startups. John Stack, managing director at The McLean Group and leader of the aerospace practice, has more than 20 years experience in global strategy and business development for companies. Raj Singh is the CEO and founder of Singh Ventures, providing services and advice to those seeking help in growing their business.

“This is a terrific platform for entrepreneurs and innovators to share their incredible ideas and business conceptions and potentially take it one step closer to realization,” said Ned Krause of IDE. “The UAV industry is developing at an exceptional rate and many incredible ideas just need that extra bit of funding or that one relationship to make it. The Drone Pitchfest Competition is that opportunity for the doers in the UAV industry and we welcome them to present their concepts.”

The Pitchfest competitors will be evaluated and critiqued in four categories: Presentation, Opportunity, Solution, and The Big Question: Would you get another meeting? Presentation is adjudicated from body language, passion, articulation, and clarity. Opportunity is representative of what is presented, market identification, size and attractiveness, and the target customer identification. Solution is judged off the value of the proposition, differentiation from others, and the financial viability and profitability presented at hand.

Agribusiness, Precision Agriculture

Custom Wheat Harvesting – A Family Affair

Jamie Johansen October 24, 2016

Tracey Zeorian was only 12 years old the first time she traveled along the custom wheat harvesting highway. Her passion for custom wheat harvesting was instilled in her by her grandparents and you could say the rest is history. Once married, she and her husband quickly knew they too wanted to follow in her families footsteps and first loaded up in 1990 to spend their first of many summers on the road with their family.

Tracey and her family’s story is told through the Great American Wheat Harvest documentary by Conrad Weaver and I got to sit down with her during the recent 89th National FFA Convention where she was able to hand out classroom versions of the film to FFA members who visited the New Holland Agriculture booth during the expo.

“Custom harvesting is something that basically puts you into forced family time, which has been awesome. It has created a great family unity bond. It’s something that really gets in your blood and has been a tremendous lifestyle.”

This summer was the first time since 1990 the Zeorian family didn’t set out on the custom wheat harvest journey as a family. Their kids are grown ups now and made the hard decision to stay home.

Tracey’s enthusiasm for custom harvesting was contagious as FFA students swarmed the booth to take home their very own DVD and movie poster. “To be around these kids in blue jackets is amazing. It gives me hope that there is a future for agriculture. Just like the little wheat fields you seeing growing right now. It’s hope to me to know that next year that is something we will be able to harvest.”

Listen to my complete interview with Tracey here: Interview with Tracey Zeorian, Custom Wheat Harvester

Be sure to check out even more action by viewing the 89th National FFA Convention & Expo Photo Album.

Coverage of the National FFA Convention is sponsored by

Agribusiness, Audio, FFA, Harvest, New Holland, Wheat

Meet the American Star Winners from #TransformFFA

Jamie Johansen October 21, 2016

The most prestigious honor awarded to students by the National FFA Organization is the American Star awards and was presented Thursday at the 89th National FFA Convention & Expo in Indianapolis.

The American Star awards – including the American Star Farmer, American Star in Agribusiness, American Star in Agricultural Placement and American Star in Agriscience – are awarded to FFA members who demonstrate outstanding agricultural skills and competencies through completion of a supervised agricultural experience. A required activity in FFA, an SAE allows students to learn by doing by either owning or operating an agricultural business, working or serving in an internship at an agriculture-based business or conducting an agriculture-based scientific experiment and reporting results.

American Star Farmer, Tyler Jacob Schnaithman, Garber FFA Chapter, Oklahoma, began his SAE in the 8th grade and has evolved into a truly diversified agricultural project and is just the beginning to a future career. Listen as Tyler shares more: Interview with Tyler Schnaithman, American Star Farmer

American Star in Agribusiness, Shane A. Mueller, Garretson FFA Chapter, South Dakota, has spent his life working for his dad in the hay field. It began with sheep and restoring some of his dad’s farm equipment now listen as Shane shares more: Interview with Shane Mueller, American Star in Agribusiness

American Star in Agricultural Placement, Brett K. Petersen, Kerkhoven Murdock Sunburg-KMS FFA Chapter, Minnesota, dreamed of farming ever since he was young. In sixth-grade year, he began work at Petersen Farms Inc., a diversified crop farm in west central Minnesota, where he swept the floors and put away tools. Soon, more responsibilities were shared with him and brought him to the stage and this honor.

American Star in Agriscience, Elizabeth A. Renner, West Central FFA Chapter, South Dakota, has been fascinated by the critters that inhabit aquatic areas since she can remember. Listen as she takes us further into her SAE here: Interview with Elizabeth Renner, American Star in Agriscience

Be sure to check out even more action by viewing the 89th National FFA Convention & Expo Photo Album.

Coverage of the National FFA Convention is sponsored by

Ag Groups, Audio, FFA

National FFA Advisor Challenges Members to Be Engaged

Jamie Johansen October 21, 2016

National FFA Advisor Dr. Steve Brown addressed FFA members at the 89th National FFA Convention in Indianapolis, IN during the opening general session. He encouraged not only the thousands in attendance but all 649,355 FFA members from across the country to get the most out of their FFA experience.

“FFA is not a spectator sport. The education, the experience, the understanding, and the strength of your participation will determine your outcome,” he said.

He challenged members to be engaged. “We can’t be scared. We must be bold and we must be brave. We can’t be unprepared or lack the confidence it takes to win the race.”

Listen to his complete remarks here: Remarks from Dr. Steven Brown, National FFA Advisor

Dr. Brown has been a family friend my entire life and I was honored to sit down with him to dive deeper into his message and goals going forward. “Just keep growing. We talk about growing leaders, building communities and strengthening agriculture. Growth is a great goal for us.”

Listen to my complete interview with Dr. Brown here: Interview with Dr. Steven Brown, National FFA Advisor

Be sure to check out even more action by viewing the 89th National FFA Convention & Expo Photo Album.

Coverage of the National FFA Convention is sponsored by

Ag Groups, Audio, FFA

AFBF Lesson Plan Connects Students to Food

Kelly Marshall October 21, 2016

Photo credit: www.agfoundation.org

The American Farm Bureau Foundation for Agriculture is offering pre-K through first grade teachers a Thanksgiving-themed activity. “Thank an American Farmer or Rancher” explains where food comes and asks students to write, draw or create thank you letters and cards for America’s farmers.

The lesson plan, a letter written by a farmer, suggested reading list, and class discussion ideas are available online.

“Most Americans have never been to a farm and didn’t even grow up near one, but they are ready to learn more about where their food comes from,” said American Farm Bureau Federation President Zippy Duvall. “‘Thank an American Farmer or Rancher’ is a fun classroom activity that helps young learners make the connection between farms and ranches and the food they eat.”

Classroom ideas include:
· Complete a free sample lesson from Farm a Month and read a free sample letter from a pumpkin farmer, followed by a discussion about farming in America.
· Pull up a picture of a Thanksgiving Day plate or ask students to name common holiday foods such as turkey, cranberries, green beans, potatoes and stuffing, then discuss the agricultural origins of each item.
· Have students in groups research online to discover where ingredients such as pumpkins, butter, sugar and wheat come from. Give each group one ingredient; don’t tell them what the final product is going to be. Have students present where their ingredient is from and then have the class as a whole guess what the recipe is for!
· Invite a local farmer into your classroom to discuss how he or she produces food, fiber or energy.

Letters produced by the activity will be given to farmers and ranchers at the AFBF Annual Convention in January.

AFBF, Education

AEM Issues Call for Agriculture Infrastructure Ideas

Cindy Zimmerman October 21, 2016

The Association of Equipment Manufacturers (AEM) is asking for help to find answers to the infrastructure challenges facing the U.S. agriculture sector.

On the heels of its recent Rural Infrastructure Summit, AEM has issued a call for papers and research as part of its Infrastructure Vision 2050 thought-leadership initiative.

Specifically, AEM seeks research offering innovative ideas and best practices for how to address the many challenges facing the U.S. agriculture sector and agriculture productivity levels in the context of current and future U.S. infrastructure trends. The call for papers asks for a focus on one of two specific areas: 1) the movement of agriculture products from farm to market or 2) the movement of equipment from farm to farm.

“How we plan to transport agriculture products from farm to market or equipment from one farm to another in the future, relying on our current infrastructure, are crucial questions that AEM wants to help answer,” said AEM President Dennis Slater. “This call for papers provides us with a platform to help shape the future of U.S. infrastructure for both the agriculture community and rural America.”
Participants in the call for papers may be asked to present at 2017 AEM-sponsored events taking place at the National Farm Machinery Show and Commodity Classic.

The call for papers is part of AEM’s broader Infrastructure Vision 2050 initiative, which seeks to elevate the national discussion about the future of infrastructure and ensure that equipment manufacturers are positioned to help the country build its next wave of infrastructure. The deadline for the first round of abstracts is December 1, 2016. Additional information, including complete guidelines and instructions on how to submit can be found at www.aem.org/IV2050AG.

AEM

Summit Agricultural Group Launches Summit Advantage

Cindy Zimmerman October 21, 2016

Iowa-based Summit Agricultural Group has introduced a new service model for farm and agricultural land management that brings the concept of ‘unbundling’ to traditional farm management offerings.

According to Joel Waskow, accredited farm manager with Summit Ag Management, Summit Advantage provides landowners with greater options and flexibility instead of binding them into the current one-size-fits-all approach. “We look at this like a cable company,” explains Waskow. “We all have a lot of channels or services that we don’t use that we have to pay for. With Summit Advantage, landowners can purchase only the services they want.” Summit Ag Management is Summit Agricultural Group’s full-service farm management and advisory unit.

For example, an owner who can manage farm operations but needs assistance in selecting a farm tenant and overseeing the leasing process now has that option through Summit Advantage. Or it might appeal to a landowner who leases the farm on his own, but prefers that others oversee the many aspects of farm operations and management.

Summit Advantage was just launched this month and Waskow says it has already received an enthusiastic response. “Some folks have asked why this hasn’t been offered before,” he said. “We had visited with landowners who only wanted help with one aspect of the management or another … and that’s how we came up with it and the response has been extremely positive.”

Learn more in this interview: Interview with Joel Waskow, Summit Agricultural Group

Agribusiness, Audio

Live in New Holland Booth at #TransformFFA

Jamie Johansen October 20, 2016

Never at a loss for words, New Holland Agriculture’s J Cole Sanford, is the perfect person to toss a mic at. In fact, it has now become a tradition for us to climb a combine or tractor while at events, chat ag and all the new happenings at New Holland. This year at the 98th National FFA Convention we weren’t able to give you a bird’s eye view of the expo floor, but J Cole provided an up close and personal view of their new autonomous tractor, which has caused quite the buzz, and what FFA members can take part in while visiting their booth in Indy.

Be sure to check out even more action by viewing the 89th National FFA Convention & Expo Photo Album.

Coverage of the National FFA Convention is sponsored by

Agribusiness, FFA, New Holland, Video

Sec Vilsack Says Diversity in Ag Key to Future

Jamie Johansen October 20, 2016

Diversity was the simple message Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack shared with FFA members at the 89th National FFA Convention. He encouraged each young person to be proud of our history in agriculture and to use their voice to tell that inspiring story.

“I am here first and foremost today to thank FFA for it’s commitment to diversity. Each of you has the opportunity in a small but important way to advance the cause of agriculture in this country through diversity.”

Listen to his complete message to FFA members here: Agriculture Sec Vilsack Remarks

Following remarks to FFA members, Secretary Vilsack took time to talk ag issues with members of the agriculture media. He continued on the theme of embracing diversity stating it was imperative for the future of agriculture.

Yesterday, USDA announced that they are awarding $7.6 million in grants to support projects that will grow opportunity in rural America through job training and economic development. The grants will support communities in at least 24 states and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, with several projects spanning communities in multiple states.

Listen to the complete presser with Secretary Vilsack where he talks on the above grants, consumer perceptions, GIPSA and when the new Farm Bill might be addressed. Agriculture Sec Vilsack Presser

Be sure to check out even more action by viewing the 89th National FFA Convention & Expo Photo Album.

Coverage of the National FFA Convention is sponsored by

Ag Groups, Audio, FFA, USDA

Illinois 4R4U Partnership Launched

Cindy Zimmerman October 20, 2016

A partnership has been launched between the Illinois Farm Bureau and affiliated county Farm Bureaus, with GROWMARK and a number of FS companies, designed to demonstrate and investigate at the local level the impact and efficacy of 4R nutrient stewardship practices – the right source of nutrient, at the right time, at the right rate, and in the right place.

The 4R field demonstration program, called 4R4U, includes 14 county Farm Bureaus and 11 FS companies in Illinois. “Our county farm bureaus are working with their neighboring FS member companies to really drill down, demonstrate and investigate 4R nutrient strategies at the local level,” says Lauren Lurkins, director of natural and environmental resources for Illinois Farm Bureau.

The focus of the partnership will be on implementation of the state’s nutrient loss reduction strategy (NLRS) with plot tests at the local level that will compare common practices to advanced practices on nutrient stewardship. “We’re taking it back to our expertise and taking those practices back into the field and figuring out how they work in a farmer’s real life,” said Lurkins.

Each partnership will be putting a strategy in place this winter with field demonstration days to be held next year in spring and summer and Lurkins says they are developing a website and social media channels to communicate with growers about the project. Learn more in this interview: Interview with Lauren Lurkins, Illinois Farm Bureau

Audio, Conservation, GROWMARK, Soil

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