You Just Never Know …

Melissa Sandfort

20150820_083609… what you will find when you live on the farm. This morning, I was downstairs working at my computer with the windows open when I heard an odd noise. I grabbed my phone and stepped out on the back deck.

This is what I saw.

What these two were doing in our yard, or how they got there, is beyond me! I’ve seen deer right beside our house, turkeys and a red fox. But this was a fun surprise!

So if ever the kids complain about living so far out of town, I will show them this picture and remind them how very lucky they are (even though they weren’t here to see them!).

Until we walk again …

Uncategorized

More Internet on the Farm

Cindy Zimmerman

usda-farmer-computerA new USDA-NASS report shows that internet access on the farm continues to grow.

According to the Computer Usage and Ownership report, 70 percent of U.S. farms and ranches now have access to internet, up three percent from 2013.

DSL remains the most popular method for accessing internet, accounting for 30 percent of all farms and ranches with internet access. Despite remaining in the lead, however, the DSL access is down 5 percent, from the 35 percent of farms that used this method in 2013.

In contrast, wireless connection, which accounts for 29 percent, and satellite connection, which accounts for 21 percent of the U.S. total, showed significant growth in the past two years. Share of farms using these two methods went up 5 and 4 percent respectively.

According to the report, 43 percent of U.S. farms use computers for their business operations. Crop growers, at 47 percent, are more likely than livestock producers to use computers for business. In the livestock sector, 39 percent of producers use computers for business.

Some of the most popular internet uses on the farm include conducting business with a non-agricultural website and accessing federal government websites, 44% of respondents use it for both of those reasons. Farmers also report using the internet for purchasing agricultural inputs (19%) and marketing activities (16%).

Farming, Internet, USDA

Perry Says Americans Fed Up with DC

Joanna Schroeder

Former Texas Governor Rick Perry’s main message on the Des Moines Register soapbox at the Iowa State Fair this week was about getting America back to a constitutional country. Citing the 10th amendment, he stressed that power and decision making needs to go back to the state and to the people, as intended by our founding fathers, and taken away from a corrupt Washington, D.C.

Rick Perry“I’m mad as hell and I’m going to do something to change it,” said Perry, who also wants to secure the border and strengthen the military. “People have belly full of decisions made 1,500 miles away instead of right here in this state,” he said. “I think it was Dwight D. Eisenhower who said It’s pretty easy to farm when your plow is a pencil and you’re 1,500 miles away from the farm. And that’s what we’re seeing today as we see this continual consolidation of power in Washington, D.C.,” added Perry.

Throughout his speech he said continually said he would bring the constitution back as a guide for the country – a place we got away from and need to go back to in order to bring back strength, prosperity and the American dream to the people. However, the former state agriculture commissioner for Texas did not take questions nor did he address energy or ag in any detail while on stage.

Listen to why former Texas Governor Rick Perry wants to be president: Rick Perry at the Iowa State Fair

Click here to read our coverage of the Des Moines Register Presidential Soapbox series at the Iowa State Fair.

Agribusiness, Audio, politics

Biodiesel 2015 and Beyond

Chuck Zimmerman

Biodiesel & Bioheat ForumThe Minnesota Soybean Research & Promotion Council is conducting a first ever event today in Mankato, MN. The event, “Biodiesel 2015 & Beyond: A Biodiesel/Bioheat Forum,” brings together biodiesel industry market developers, researchers and a number of representatives of east coast oil heat and fuel companies. The open forum is providing an educational look at what’s going on in the biodiesel industry and the work being done to develop bioheat as a good heating fuel option for the northeast.

The program was divided into two sessions moderated by Tom DiBacco, broadhead. In the first session we heard from Paul Nazzaro, Nazzaro Group, NBB Petroleum Liaison, providing an overview of biodiesel markets. He is followed by John Wenzel, FC Stone, who talked on emerging markets. Next up was John Huber, National Oilheat Research Alliance and Michael Trunzo, New England Fuel Institute who spoke about Bioheat and the evolution of Oil Heat.

Although I plan to share personal interviews with each of these presenters I thought I’d go ahead and let you listen to the first session which ends with a question and answer session.

You can listen to the session here: Biodiesel/Bioheat Forum Session 1

You can find a lot of photos from the forum here: Biodiesel/Bioheat Forum Photo Album

Ag Groups, Audio, Biodiesel, Biofuels, Soybean

Kasich Supports #Ag But Rubio Stays Silent

Joanna Schroeder

During the question portion of Ohio Governor John Kasich‘s time on the soapbox during the Iowa State Fair he stressed that he supports agriculture. Due to rain, Florida Senator Marco Rubio cut his remarks short and did not directly address the topic.

John KasichOhio Governor John Kasich shared his “bootstrap” story and shared other antidotes rather than really hitting hard on any particular issue. However, during the question portion he was asked his position on agriculture. He answered, “I’m for agriculture. You listen to Terry Branstad [Iowa Governor] and you think about traditional agriculture but what we really have to do is begin to think about how agriculture is going to look like in the next 20 or 25 years. I believe there are so many products that can come from traditional agriculture that can improve the lives of all Americans. And I keep pushing our people to think about that, to use our universities to do the research and to make sure that agriculture and business is closely linked together so that we can spawn new industries out of agriculture.”

“We’re lucky in Ohio,” Kasich continued. “We found natural gas and one of the great things about that is it’s allowing us to become energy independent. So we don’t have to kowtow to the Saudies anymore when it comes down to conducting our foreign policy. We need to look into the future on all of these things, on agriculture, on energy.”

Listen to why Ohio Governor John Kasich wants to be president: John Kasich at the Iowa State Fair

Marco RubioFlorida Senator Marcus Rubio also shared his “bootstrap” stories when he took the stage. Rubio’s parents immigrated from Cuba. He noted that America doesn’t owe him, he owes America. He also said that he wants to continue living in a country where what his parents did for him he can do for his children. But that dream, he said, is slipping away. How can the country bring back the American dream? He said the first step is addressing the economy. “We’re not just facing an economic downturn, we’re facing an economic revolution….We need to modernize economic policies so we can compete with the rest of the world.”

He also stressed the need to keep our people safe and noted that America is not fully utilizing its energy resources. Like many before him, other than a passing comment, he did not address energy, environment and agriculture.

Listen to why Florida Senator Marcus Rubio wants to be president:Marcus Rubio at the Iowa State Fair

Click here to read our coverage of the Des Moines Register Presidential Soapbox series at the Iowa State Fair.

Agribusiness, Audio, politics

Zimfo Bytes

Talia Goes

Zimfo Bytes

Zimfo Bytes

#Ag Not on Republican Soapbox Agenda

Joanna Schroeder

Apparently agriculture is not a main agenda item during the Iowa State Fair for many Republicans. During the Des Moines Register’s Soapbox series speeches, Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker, Hewlett-Packard CEO Carly Fiorina and Senator from South Carolina Lindsey Graham failed to discuss any ag issues in detail and only Walker and Fiorina made comments but only when answering crowd questions. I may be going out a limb here, but in a state where one of the top economic earners is the agriculture industry, and you are at a state fair where agriculture is the spotlight, you’d think it would be an important point of discussion. Well, there are still a few speeches to go so maybe there is still hope. Well if not ag, then what are their issues? Let’s take a brief view.

All the candidates want to take the power out of Washington, D.C. and bring it back to the state houses and to the hard working people. All of the candidates also believe that our debt needs to be reigned in and replaced with a bi-partisan balanced budget.

Scott WalkerScott Walker is calling for the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to be reigned in. He said they are killing the farmers (he was referring to WOTUS, or the Waters of the U.S.) and is pushing for an all above energy strategy. He approved the Keystone Pipeline on the first vote and continues to do so. In terms of climate change he said that there needs to be a balance between sustainable environment and a sustainable economy. He does not support the “ethanol mandate” or the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) but because it is in place and there is an industry based on the legislation the country needs to support the bill. However, he is pushing for consumer choice at the pump through market access and availability at the pump for higher blends of ethanol. His state has offered grants for retail stations, especially those independently owned, to be able to put flex fuel pumps and offer additional ethanol blends.

Listen to why Wisconsin Governor wants to be president here:Scott Walker at the Iowa State Fair

Lindsey GrahamLindsey Graham spent the majority of his time discussing his military strategy. He said there are, “Too many terrorists. Too much debt. Too few jobs.” He has been in the Air Force for 33 years and spent time in Iraq and Afghanistan while he was in the reserves. He stressed that he is the first candidate to push to go back to war not end war. “If I’m elected we going to go back and pound them into the sand,” he said of Iraq. He did not address energy, environment or agriculture so we’ll have to continue to follow his campaign to see if and what his stance is on these issues.

Listen to why Senator Lindsey Graham wants to be president here:Lindsey Graham at the Iowa State Fair

Carly FiorinaWhile some candidates didn’t use any of their time to take questions, Carly Fiorina dedicated the majority of her time in answering questions. Like others, she believes the minimum wage should be increased but not uniformly; rather, the pay should be comparable to the cost of living which is different not only from state to state but from city to city. She too took aim at the EPA and stressed innovation rather than regulation will be more effective. And like Walker, she too doesn’t support ethanol mandates and believes they should be phased out. Needless to say, this position is not too popular in country’s largest ethanol producing state. Similar to Graham, she did not directly address agriculture or the environment.

Listen to why Carly Fiorina wants to be president here:Carly Fiorina at the Iowa State Fair

Click here to read our coverage of the Des Moines Register Presidential Soapbox series at the Iowa State Fair.

Agribusiness, Audio, Biofuels, Environment, Ethanol, politics

Clements Joins NAFB as New Service Editor

Kelly Marshall

NAFB LogoNational Association of Farm Broadcasting (NAFB) welcomes Micheal Clements as their News Service Editor.  He comes to NAFB from KFEQ in St. Joseph, Mo where he was Farm Director. Micheal has been covering rural and agricultural issues for nine years.

“Micheal brings his ag reporting experience and broadcast journalism skills to the NAFB News Service desk,” says Tom Brand, NAFB Executive Director. “His experience behind the mic is a big asset for developing and producing stories for NAFB New Service clients. We are excited to have Micheal on board.”

Duties of the News Service Editor include producing stories for clients, working with member of NAFB to distribute audio and updating the daily story feed.  Micheal will also take the lead with News Service Clients.

“I’m excited for the opportunity to provide daily news stories for NAFB stations and their audiences,” says Micheal. “NAFB member stations provide daily agricultural news for farmers and ranchers nationwide, and I’m looking forward to continuing to report on agriculture issues as part of the NAFB staff.”

Micheal earned a Bachelor of Science in Broadcasting and minor in Journalism from Northwest Missouri State University. He is an avid outdoorsman, and recently finished the MR-340 Kayak Race on the Missouri River, starting in Kansas City, Mo. and ending in St. Charles, Mo. Please help us welcome Micheal to NAFB. He can be reached by phone at 816.431.4032, ext. 104 or by email at news@nafb.com.

Agribusiness, Journalism, NAFB

Agri-Pulse Open Mic with POET’s Jeff Broin

Cindy Zimmerman

Agri-Pulse Open Mic this week features Jeff Broin, Executive Chairman of POET.

open-micAt 22, Jeff Broin managed a small South Dakota ethanol plant. Today POET is the world’s largest producer of renewable fuels. In this interview, Jeff Broin shares the direct and indirect benefits of the Renewable Fuels Standard and warns of the domestic and global implications if Washington steps back from its commitment to renewable fuels. Broin says the future of the domestic renewable fuels industry hinges on the EPA’s volume standard announcement later this year.

Click here to listen to Agri-Pulse Open Mic with Jeff Broin of POET.

Agri-Pulse

Online Data Tool from FarmLink, Progressive Farmer

Kelly Marshall

FarmLink_logoArriving for the 2016 planting season, growers will soon be able to subscribe to an online tool through DTN/The Progressive Farmer and FarmLink.

The two companies have announced an agreement to develop a new dashboard product to help farmers evaluate productivity.  Combining DTN/The Progressive Farmer’s local weather stations and cash market information from FarmLink allows for a new product that will give farmers personalized information.

DTN Progressive FarmerIn the past, farmers only had access to prior yield data and current market information to use for decision making. The new overall dashboard will include a forward looking view of yield potential, local market value, weather effects on crop conditions and the impact on profitability.

“As we’ve collected and analyzed yield, soil, weather, and other relevant data sets during the last five years, we’ve developed the most robust, actionable agriculture indices in history. As data and farm analytics become a key driver of a farmer’s business management tools, collaborations like this will help transform agriculture by increasing the profitability and sustainability of farm operations,” said Dave Gebhardt, Chief Strategy Officer for FarmLink. “We share DTN/The Progressive Farmer’scommitment to providing real-time, actionable information to farmers, which is exactly what this partnership will do.”

“By leveraging the power of FarmLink’s unique field database, benchmark, and advanced analytics, DTN/The Progressive Farmer continues to bring industry leading tools to help farmers access and understand information that can affect their overall profitability,” said Matt Bradford, Vice President-Agriculture for DTN/The Progressive Farmer. “Through this partnership between DTN/The Progressive Farmer and FarmLink, farmers will have access to deeper insights to inform grain marketing, agronomic, and farm management decisions.”

“Never before have farmers and their trusted advisors been able to access this level of market, agronomy and farm management information, every day – all in one place,” said Bradford.

“We believe data science and technology will transform agriculture, and the collaboration between DTN/The Progressive Farmer and FarmLink is a key part of achieving that mission,” said Gebhardt.

Agribusiness, data, Marketing, Precision Agriculture, Technology, Weather