Camso Unveils New Roading Track At #NFMS16

Taylor Truckey February 13, 2016

Camso unveiled a newly improved roading track at National Farm Machinery Show this week. Eric Blondeau, head of Wheels and Tracks in the Agriculture department at Camso, spoke with AgWired to share how the new roading track will benefit customers.

“We’ve taken the best roading track on the market and made it even better,” says Blondeau. “Our new roading track promises best in-class durability and speed when travelling from one field to the next.

Although Camso is a ‘Road-Free Company’, they do invest research and development in products that will help their customers have piece of mind when getting work done. In this case, traveling from field to field. The new roading track gets you from field to field and with a 20% improvement in lifetime performance Camso’s new roading track is sure to be the longest lasting currently on the market.

“We really focus on our cost per hour. This is the acquisition cost divided by the number of hours farmers can expect from their tracks. On that metric, we see a gap of 30-40% with our competition. That is really where farmers get their moneys’ worth and stand out.” explained Blondeau.

The roading track will be available through Camso distributors, on their website, or you can stop by their exhibit, #6820, through today at the National Farm Machinery Show.

Learn more about how the roading track will benefit customers in Eric’s interview: Interview with Eric Blondeau, Camso

2016 National Farm Machinery Show Photo Album

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Audio, Equipment, Farm Machinery, National Farm Machinery Show

Zimfo Bytes

Talia Goes February 12, 2016

Join NAMA & AAEA at the Commodity Classic on Friday, March 4, 2016 in the New Orleans Convention Center, Room: 342, at 4:30 – 6:00 p.m for a cocktail reception.
The inaugural AgroExpo, hosted by AgroLiquid on the company’s research farm, just north of St. Johns, Michigan, will be held Aug. 16-18, 2016.
The Soil Health Institute (SHI) announced that it has selected one of the nation’s top agriculture leaders to be the organization’s first ever president and chief executive officer.
The future may not be so bright for the Illinois’ agriculture industry, one of the state’s leading economic drivers, if more agricultural education teachers aren’t recruited and retained, and soon.
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Science and Technology Directorate (S&T) announced the winners of the National Bio and Agro-Defense Facility (NBAF) Think-and-Do Challenge.

Zimfo Bytes

FMC 3RIVE 3D™ Wins Award at #NFMS16

Cindy Zimmerman February 12, 2016

The FMC 3RIVE 3D™ application system received a 2016 FINovation award from Farm Industry News during the National Farm Machinery Show this week in Louisville.

“This is the marriage of application technology and formulation technology that allows growers to plant as many as 500 acres on a single fill,” said FMC portfolio manager Rick Ekins of the system, which is used for in-furrow application of Capture® LFR® insecticide. “It’s a very small, compact, simple system … and it’s a low volume of water applied per acre.”

Last year when we talked about the system at NFMS, it was still a pilot program, but this year it is expanded. “We had 35 growers across the Corn Belt who put this product on and we’ve gained a vast amount of experience from that first year that we’ve incorporated into new system improvements for the 2016 crop year,” Ekins said, adding that the system pretty much accomplished all that they intended in the pilot year. “They were getting 500 acres out of a single fill, and it was a very easy system to manage and fill through the precision controls, and we did install it on a number of planters of all brands.”

Learn more in this interview: Interview with Rick Ekins, FMC

2016 National Farm Machinery Show Photo Album

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Audio, Equipment, FMC, Insecticides, National Farm Machinery Show, Technology

USDA Designates $58.25 Million for Plant Pests, Disease

Kelly Marshall February 12, 2016

The USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) will be designating $58.25 million from the 2014 farm bill to fund 434 projects that will help protect U.S. crops from plant pests and diseases.

“Through the Farm Bill we are working with our partners and stakeholders to not only ensure the global competitiveness of our specialty crop producers but to fight back against the destruction caused by invasive pests,” said Vilsack. “The projects and centers funded through this effort are helping to develop and put in place the strategies, methods and treatments that safeguard our crops, plants, and natural resources from invasive threats.”

Already the APHIS has funded more than 1,200 projects that have made it possible to quickly detect and respond to invasive species, such as the old world bollworm, bark beetle and spotted lanternfly, among many others.

pesticides, Research, USDA

Emerging CIRB Leaders Build Future of Crop Insurance

Kelly Marshall February 12, 2016

Sheri Bane kicked off the 2016 Crop Insurance and Reinsurance Bureau Annual Meeting with her opening remarks. When Chuck Zimmerman caught up with her later he was able to learn more about the organizations first year with the Emerging Leaders Program.

“We had company representatives nominate up and coming leaders within their organizations,” Bane explains. “Those six people began the program late last year. They came to Washington D.C., they visited with legislative offices. They have been in what we call the bowels of the RMA, the NCIS, all the places where they can really learn what makes crop insurance run and how the processes work and how the interaction between the government and the private companies play out.”

Like farmers, the demographics of the crop insurance business is nearing retirement. Members who have been navigating the politics since the inception of crop insurance are now focusing on passing along their knowledge to a new generation. The young, fresh energy is what CIRB is looking for, Bane says, to build the relationships with the people in the agriculture offices who will be moving around D.C. as their own careers grow. These connections will be valuable.

Bane encourages crop insurance companies to nominate new faces for the next round of the program. Participants take part in trips and meetings usually reserved for employees who have worked their way up in the company, but these opportunities allow the transfer of knowledge in a small industry.

You can hear more about the program in Chuck’s interview here: Interview with Sheri Bane, COUNTY Financial and CIRB Chair

2016 CIRB Annual Meeting Photos

Insurance, politics

WOTUS Strikes Back

Kelly Marshall February 12, 2016

Farmers and ranchers will need the force to be with them as the EPA has struck back with an even more extreme version of the Waters of the U.S. Rule. Known as the Chesapeake Blueprint, the new rules will severely regulate and burden farms, possibly removing thousands of acres from production agriculture.

The American Farm Bureau Federation is once again assembling their rebel strike team and has released a new Star Wars themed video explaining the controversial Blueprint.

Farm Bureau has asked the Supreme Court to review the Blueprint. They are expected to hear the case on Friday, February 19.

Ag Groups, EPA, Water

AEM Ag Chair at #NFMS16

Cindy Zimmerman February 12, 2016

Jim Walker with CASE IH, who serves as chairman of the Association of Equipment Manufacturers (AEM) Ag Sector board, talked about what he expects for the future of the industry during an Ag Executive Outlook panel at the National Farm Machinery Show this week.

Walker says increasing profitability with precision will be key. “Really the technology of precision farming is working with the input people, working with the manufacturers, and tying all that together is what’s going to drive more profit per acre,” he said. As in many industrial sectors, Walker notes that technology moves faster than “hard iron” – “So we have to be able to rely on the experts in the technology field that’s evolving daily and be able to adapt it to our products.”

Coming up quickly after NFMS is Commodity Classic, and this will be the first time AEM’s AgConnect will be part of the show. “We love the affiliation with Commodity Classic because it’s one of the few shows that’s really centered around the end user, geared toward the betterment of the producer,” said Walker. “We think we add value and we’re hoping we attract a wider clientele for Commodity Classic.”

Listen to my interview with Jim here: Interview with AEM Ag Chair Jim Walker, CASE IH

2016 National Farm Machinery Show Photo Album

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AEM, Audio, Commodity Classic, NFMS, Precision Agriculture, Technology

Farm Income & Land Values Fall in Midwest, Midsouth

Kelly Marshall February 12, 2016

The fourth quarter of 2015 continued to show a decline in farm income through the Midwest and Midsouth. The survey, conducted by the Agricultural Finance Monitor and published by the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, was comprised of responses from agricultural banks in the boundaries of the Eight Federal Reserve District. That area includes all or part of Arkansas, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Mississippi, Missouri and Tennessee.

The value of quality farmland, ranchland or pastureland also declined during this period.

During the fourth quarter, bankers reported a continued drop in farm income compared with the same period a year ago. Based on a diffusion index methodology with a base of 100 (results above 100 indicate proportionately higher income compared with the same quarter a year earlier; results lower than 100 indicate lower income), the farm income index value was 28. This was the sixth consecutive quarter that this value fell below 100, and the lowest level recorded since the survey began in 2012. Looking ahead at the first quarter of 2016, an even greater percentage of bankers indicated they expect income to continue to decline.

Amid the ongoing downturn in farm income, farmers and ranchers continued to scale back spending in the fourth quarter of 2015. Values for the index for household spending and the index for farm capital equipment expenditures again fell to their lowest levels since the survey began in 2012. Bankers expect expenditures in both categories to continue to decline in early 2016.

“Crop and cattle prices are down, but input costs are rising at a slower pace, a Kentucky lender said. “I expect capital expenditures to decrease along with devaluation in farm real estate.”

Quality farmland saw a decline of 2.5 precent compared to 2014. Ranchland or pastureland fell 5.3 percent. Most bankers reported that they expect land prices to continue to fall in 2016. At the same time cash rent for farmland dropped 9.5 percent but cash rent for pastureland rose by 8.6 percent. Bankers also believe cash rent for both land types will decline in the near future.

Regarding farmland returns and sales, 77 percent of the lenders said they expect a slightly positive return on farmland for landowners in their regions of up to 5 percent. Thirteen percent of the lenders expected higher returns of 5 to 10 percent, but 10 percent were looking at a negative return.

Investors were more divided when it came to their expectation of the volume of land sales in 2016. Nearly half forecast no change, 31 percent look for sales volume to increase and 22 percent felt land sale opportunities would decrease.

The final question posed to bankers was in regards to the amount of farmland they saw being purchased by farmers. A majority of lenders reported that more than 50 percent of the buyers were farmers in their area.

Agribusiness

New Holland Ag Introduces PLM RTK+

Lizzy Schultz February 11, 2016

During this week’s National Farm Machinery Show in Louisville, Kentucky, New Holland formally introduced the PLM RTK+ correction program, the first cellular-delivered RTK correction signal on the market, and several representatives were on-hand to discuss the diverse array of features and benefits this technology will offer producers across North America.

“The big idea is that as our farmers and producers are spreading out more and more, they want to have a correction signal that goes with them everywhere they go,” said Luke Zerby, PLM Marketing Manager for New Holland, during an interview at the 2016 National Farm Machinery Show. “This is a signal service that we’re going to have here, the first major OAM in North America that can offer it, that will have complete coverage across North America.”

This system is the most advanced of its kind, using a cellular signal that allows the signal to be spread much further than traditional radio RTK systems. The signal is available and consistent with sub-inch accuracy anywhere within the network.

Once fully rolled-out, customers will be able receive correction signals from Northern Canada to the southernmost parts of Texas, as well as coast-to-coast across the US, as long as cellular data signals are available with a signal subscription.

“It’s hard to keep a continuously accurate radio frequency on an operation, and with obstacles like mountains, trees, and buildings in the way, you would lose a direct line of sight with a continuous radio signal,” said Zerby, “But with a cellular signal you won’t have that, you’ll have a continuous signal throughout.”

RTK+ launched last week to the dealer body, and interested customers are encouraged to contact their local dealers for more information about the technology and how to subscribe.

Listen to Jamie’s full interview with Luke here:
Interview with Luke Zerby, New Holland

View and download photos here: 2016 National Farm Machinery Show Photo Album

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Ag Groups, Audio, Equipment, New Holland, NFMS, Precision Agriculture, Technology

Thanks New Holland for the Bird’s Eye View

Jamie Johansen February 11, 2016

For the best view at National Farm Machinery Show, America’s largest indoor farm show, you must climb high. For this opportunity I turned to our friends at New Holland Agriculture. J. Cole Sanford, New Holland product specialist, climbed their CR6.80 combine with me to share the latest on the new model launched late last year.

“The smaller machine really goes after the mixed farmer market. If you are a producer with a livestock operation and still running some cash grain, this is the machine for you. It comes in at about 325 horsepower and boosts up to 378. This can serve as a replacement for the CR9040 that we had in the previous model years.”

I dubbed J. Cole the combine nerd. You can’t hide his enthusiasm for the equipment and as he chats with attendees they can glean information from him and shear joy for the machines capabilities.

2016 National Farm Machinery Show Photo Album

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Agribusiness, Farm Machinery, New Holland, NFMS, Video

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