AgSwag Golden Update
Right across from the ZimmComm booth at the Agri-Marketing Conference was AgSwag. I got out the ZimmComm Golden Mic for an update interview with Jordan Van Trump and used his AgSwag Golden Ticket for a free cap. I picked the limited edition “Farm Strong” cap you see Jordan wearing.
You may wonder about the AgSwap Golden Ticket. It has nothing to do with our well-known Golden Mic or Golden ZimmComm Mic Award winners. Instead, think Willy Wonka and the gold ticket to get into the Chocolate Factory. In our interview Jordan explains and how it has spawned a new venture for his company.
The Van Trumps not only farm but have several ventures like their own farm show, FARMCON. The next one will be January 8-9, 2025 in KC, MO. Besides FARMCON, Jordan updates us on the Van Trump Report and Farm Tank. There’s more but I’ll let him talk about it in our interview.
Interview with Jordan Van Trump, AgSwag
NAMA24 Jordan Van Trump, AgSwag 6:48
Chris Turner Joins Pivot Bio as Chief Commercial Officer
Sustainable agriculture company Pivot Bio announces the appointment of industry veteran Chris Turner as Chief Commercial Officer to lead the company’s global growth agenda and commercial sales organization. He will be a member of Pivot Bio’s executive leadership team, reporting to Chris Abbott, CEO.
“Chris is a highly regarded, results-oriented leader in the ag industry, and we couldn’t be more excited that he is joining our team,” said Chris Abbott, CEO of Pivot Bio. “With nearly three decades of industry experience, Chris has effectively led extensive global commercial, strategic and operational teams. Chris certainly exemplifies commercial leadership with a consistent focus on performance and results.”
Turner joins Pivot Bio from Bayer Corporation, where he has served as Head of the U.S. Crop Science division. Before joining Bayer, he was with Monsanto Company for more than 20 years. Raised on a farm in Northeast Missouri, Turner earned a Bachelor of Science degree in agriculture from the University of Missouri and continues to participate in the operations on his farm.
Vilsack Explains SAF Tax Credit for Farm Broadcasters
USDA photo – Vilsack speaks to NAFB members
“You need to understand this because you’re the folks who have to explain that it’s a point system,” Vilsack told the farm broadcasters. “And if you get enough points, you qualify for an enormously beneficial tax credit, which is how you start industries.”
Vilsack discussed the importance of the tax credit guidance and what it means for agriculture. “The key message here for farm country is, you’re in the game,” said Vilsack. “For the first time ever, we have a recognition by the IRS that climate smart agriculture has a positive impact on reducing greenhouse gases and carbon storage.”
Listen to some of Vilsack’s remarks to NAFB:
USDA Sec. Vilsack to NAFB members 16:03
Farmer Consultant Digs Into SAF Tax Credit Guidance
Mitchell Hora, Continuum Ag, on panel at 2024 National Ethanol Conference
To qualify under the guidance, corn farmers have to do cover crop, no-till, and enhanced efficiency fertilizer, while soybean farmers are required to cover crop and no-till. However, Hora says it’s unlikely anyone will qualify this year under 40B. “The crop you grew last year probably didn’t qualify for all these check the box items and you definitely didn’t have a written plan, which is what’s required,” said Hora. “The crop we’re going to grow this year…nobody is really going to make any tax credits.”
The good news is that this lays the groundwork for 45Z. “There’s a very high chance that they actually switch away from this check-the-box program to use the actual GREET score, which is what we want,” said Hora. “It does lay out very clearly what qualifies and how to verify and prepare ourselves.”
Hora also noted that the revised GREET model in the guidance included a major surprise when it came to indirect land use change (ILUC). “We’ve been thinking that the indirect land use change would go up…but they did the opposite. It actually went down a little bit!….Massive win for American farmers,” said Hora.
There were over 400 farmers and other stakeholders on Hora’s webinar which ran for an hour and still was not able to address all the questions. Continuum Ag has its TopSoil® Summit coming up June 3 in Riverside, Iowa which will be focused on Carbon Intensity to help prepare for the SAF tax credits. Continuum recently introduced CI Certification as a product for farmers to earn premiums for producing lower carbon intensity grain while ensuring secure data control.
Listen to Hora’s summary of the 40B SAF tax credit guidance:
Mitchell Hora, Continuum Ag 12:53
DPH Bio Receives BioAgTech Innovator Award
DPH Bio VP of Strategy and Marketing Brad Holzworth (left) and President and CEO Mick Messman with award at BioAgTech World Congress
“RegenAphex is the culmination of DPH Biological’s unwavering commitment to unlocking the potential of the biological industry for improving crop production and land stewardship,” said Mick Messman, president and CEO of DPH Biologicals. “We are honored to be recognized by the BioAgTech World Congress and look forward to helping increase product development to meet farmer and consumer demand for more sustainable practices.”
First selected by the Congress Scientific Committee, finalists presented to a live-voting audience. During his presentation, Messman detailed RegenAphex’s potential to unlock value and accelerate agriculture’s transition to a more balanced biological approach through industry channel collaboration.
SAF Tax Credit Guidance Affirms Climate Smart Ag
Tuesday afternoon the U.S. Department of the Treasury and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) released guidance on the Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) Credit established by the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA).
The guidance released today will “catalyze innovation in the aviation industry and incentivize the production of cleaner and more sustainable aviation fuels,” said U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen during a House Ways and Means Committee hearing.
US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen 1:04The new 40B GREET model will recognize GHG reductions from carbon capture and sequestration (CCS), renewable natural gas, and renewable power used to produce ethanol for qualifying SAF and include a “safe harbor” pilot program for corn ethanol produced with bundled climate-smart agriculture (CSA) practices.
Renewable Fuels Association President and CEO Geoff Cooper says they view this as a starting point. “We are encouraged that, for the first time ever, this carbon scoring framework will recognize and credit certain climate-smart agricultural practices. We’re also pleased to see the integration of other carbon reduction strategies—like renewable process energy and carbon capture and sequestration—into the model.”
American Coalition for Ethanol (ACE) CEO Brian Jennings says while the announcement a step in the right direction, it’s not likely to make a difference this year. “With the 2024 planting season underway and the expiration of the 40B credit on December 31, 2024, Treasury’s SAF guidance speaks more to the Administration codifying the important role CSA practices play in decarbonizing liquid fuels than the amount of ethanol-to-jet that will qualify for the 40B credit,” said Jennings. “Ultimately, we need to enable farmers and ethanol companies to recoup value from these tax credits for their investments to reduce GHG emissions.”
Jennings says ACE is leading USDA-funded Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP) projects that will generate scientifically significant datasets of the GHG reduction benefits of CSA practices used to produce ethanol in various regions across the country. “We look forward to continued engagement with Treasury, USDA and DoE with respect to how the GREET model will apply to 45Z, which will not require bundling of CSA practices,” said Jennings.
Learn more in this interview:
ACE CEO Brian Jennings on SAF tax credit guidance 15:40
AgTech PR Introduces Advisory Board
AgTech PR, a global communications firm specializing in agriculture technology, has announced its inaugural Advisory Board of women leaders driving transformative change in agriculture who will provide AgTech PR with industry insights and strategic guidance to help advance the organization’s purpose.
“When I founded AgTech PR, I set out three objectives: to champion technology that adds tangible value to our food system; to collaborate with smart, passionate people; and to help lift up women in agriculture,” said Jennifer Goldston, AgTech PR founder and CEO. “As the agtech landscape advances, the know-how and experience of these advisors will help us continue to build and protect our clients’ brand reputation.”
AgTech PR represents a range of start-ups and scale-ups in ag and food technology. With an ag tech-savvy team skilled in PR, marketing, and digital communications, the company remains steadfast in its commitment to supporting entrepreneurs at every stage of their journey.
Comprised of four independent and diverse members representing the global agriculture and agtech community, the composition of the Advisory Board mirrors the distinct ethos of the company:
Julie Borlaug, Borlaug Foundation & Borlaug Consulting
Bonnie Brayton, Fulcrum Global Capital
Erin Fitzgerald, Erin Fitzgerald Consulting
Sherry Frey, NielsonIQ
“There is a great need for clarity at a time when investments are not yet in line with demand by farmers and consumers,” Goldston said. “With our inaugural Advisory Board, we are creating the freedom and space to learn, adapt and grow as communicators and discover innovative ways to support the future of ag tech.”
Liechtenstein Group Invests in PowerPollen
International investment company the Liechtenstein Group, known for its commitment to sustainable agriculture and innovative technologies, is leading a funding round in Iowa-based company PowerPollen, which has developed a unique technology that allows pollen to be collected, preserved, and applied on-demand.
PowerPollen’s patented technology and hardware collects pollen from male plants, and then preserves the viability of the pollen up to four years for future application. Using a custom applicator, the pollen can be applied precisely at the right time and under ideal conditions in the fields. Yield improvements of over 20 percent with corn seeds significantly contribute to improving global food security. Targeted pollination “on demand” reduces the need for male plant rows, leading to reduced land use, as well as lower water and resource consumption.
In recent years, PowerPollen has proven its technology through successful partnerships with industry leaders, such as Bayer and Corteva for corn, and BASF for wheat, and underscores the value of leveraging scale-up innovation, like PowerPollen, to meet the world’s goals for more sustainable food production.
In addition, the Liechtenstein Group has also established a promising joint venture between PowerPollen and RiceTec to advance PowerPollen hybrid rice
Hybrid rice, with a 20 percent or higher yield advantage over conventional pure line varieties, remains a cornerstone of global food security. Traditional rice cultivation poses escalating environmental and economic risks, including groundwater depletion, methane emissions and labor challenges. Enabling better hybrid rice pollination systems has the potential to increase the global rice value and sustainable production.
“We are absolutely convinced of the technology and its importance for more sustainable agriculture and global food security. For RiceTec, our rice seed company, the technology also has enormous potential to further increase the efficiency of this staple food crop for billions of people worldwide,” said Johannes Meran, CEO of the Liechtenstein Group. “Through RiceTec genetics and PowerPollen’s technology, we can unlock untapped efficiencies in hybrid rice production, setting the stage for a significant leap forward in global food security and climate change mitigation.”
ZimmCast 730 – AWIS and Nitrogen Pulse
Hello and welcome to the ZimmCast.
Cindy and I celebrated our 20th anniversary of ZimmComm at the Agri-Marketing Conference in KC, MO. We got to see and talk to many of our friends and clients and talk about the “old” days and what we think is on the horizon. We’ve needed to make changes, go in different directions and learn new skills as so much has changed, most especially just before and through the pandemic years. We’re looking ahead to the future discussing some new ideas and making some changes once again.
In the meantime, I’ll be on my annual retreat the end of the week and right on to Washington, DC for The Future of Food & Farming: The Modern Celebration of Ag on the National Mall, working with AEM. After that I’ll be on the road to the AgGateway Mid-Year Meeting in Des Moines, IA.
So, let’s dive in to this episode with Karl Harker, AWIS and Scot Benson, Nitrogen Pulse. These companies are cooperating on tools for farmers to better manage their nitrogen use, tied into weather data. You can learn more about it in our discussion.
Listen to the episode here:ZimmCast 730 - AWIS and Nitrogen Pulse (33:33)
That’s the ZimmCast for this week. I hope you enjoyed it and thank you for listening.
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