GROWMARK Reports Estimated Year-End Financials

Cindy Zimmerman August 28, 2015

At the GROWMARK annual meeting in Chicago today, CEO Jim Spradlin reported the estimated year-end financial results for the cooperative to stakeholders in attendance.

For fiscal year 2015, the unaudited, estimated sales for GROWMARK are reported to be $8.8 billion with pretax income is estimated at $140 million. An estimated $61 million in patronage refunds will be returned to GROWMARK member cooperatives and farmer-owners.

“We remain committed to foundational principles that honor the wisdom and direction of our founders. We are focused on the future, and the sustainability of our System, and as a result, we must constantly pursue excellence in all we do,” said Spradlin.

Energy, Agronomy, and Retail Grain Units all achieved business growth and recorded earnings above expectations, while the retail supplies group performance was slowed due to a softening Ag economy and plenty of weather-related challenges this summer.

The Energy Division reported 2.2 billion total volume gallons and six million gallons of lubricants were sold this year. 2015 will be the Energy Division’s best year ever, recording internal gross income in excess of $70 million. The Seed Division reported sales exceeding 4.7 million acres in 2015 with total net income for the Seed Division expected to be the second best on record. Sales volume for the Plant Food Division, now known as the Crop Nutrients Division, will exceed 3.2 million tons, the fifth consecutive year of record volume. And the Grain Division, which announced a new Retail Grain Partnership being formed in Northern Illinois, generated $19 million in income in FY2015.

Keeping the Farm in the Family

Jamie Johansen August 28, 2015

We are seeing fewer and fewer young people returning the their family operations and just because you are blood doesn’t mean you have a right to the farm. Succession planning is one step many families forget about when it comes to the future. AgriLegacy is a growing Midwest company whose main focus is helping farm families keep the farms in the families and provide guidance in preserving a farm for heirs and minimizing potential estate taxes. I met with Wes Hentges, co-founder of AgriLegacy, during the Missouri State Fair to learn more about what they can offer farm families.

“We have a process we call Cultivating Future Generations. How do we bring them back to the farm? How do we make sure there is a place for them and that they have the right skill set to be on the farm? And that they aren’t just looking for a job, they are looking for a lifestyle and a career. We want to make sure they can add something to the farm that improves their quality of life and the farms at the same time.”

Wes says it’s about an opportunity and you have to take that opportunity and make something of it. Cultivating Future Generations has to be a process that people think through. It’s not about a person’s last name or sense of entitlement.

If you would like to learn more about preserving your family legacy, join the AgriLegacy team for their 8th annual farm succession event on January 19, 2016 in St. Joseph, MO. Register for the event and find a complete list of speakers here.

Listen to my complete interview with Wes to learn more about what AgriLegacy provides farmers and ranchers across the country when it comes to succession planning. Interview with Wes Hentges, AgriLegacy

Agribusiness, Audio, Farming

Champion Corn Grower at @BASFAgProducts Event

Cindy Zimmerman August 28, 2015

He’s only been farming for less than ten years, but already Randy Dowdy of Valdosta, Georgia has made quite a name for himself by making history last year with a yield of nearly 504 bushels per acre in the National Corn Yield Contest.

During a BASF media event in Tennessee this week, Dowdy talked about his philosophy when it comes to farming. “Being a first generation farmer, I didn’t have preconceived notions so we had to learn a lot from smarter people around us instead of re-inventing the wheel,” said Dowdy. “You have to be a student of the crop…you have to have data and understand the science behind it.”

Dowdy is all about trying new things but his ultimate goal is return on investment. “You can spend $2000 on a crop, but if it only nets you $2000, what did you gain? So the goal is to be profitable, that’s what’s going to help you be sustainable,” he said.

While Dowdy expects to be getting some more big yields in corn this year, he’s been getting a little more into soybeans. “I don’t want to be one dimensional…we need rotation and we need other crops, we can’t just mono crop,” he said. “It’s been a learning experience…I’m taking notes and walking the field.”

As he said, Dowdy likes to learn a lot from “smarter people” around him, and those include BASF representatives who have been thrilled to help him achieve bigger yields and continue pushing the envelope. “You use people that you’ve built a relationship with that have that trusted adviser status, they’re not just trying to sell you something but they’re helping you reach that ultimate goal of making more money and being successful,” he said.

Listen to my interview with Randy here: Interview with Georgia farmer Randy Dowdy

Watch a video of part of his comments in the field at the BASF event in Tennessee below:

” frameborder=”0″ allowfullscreen>

BASF Southern Media Event in Tennessee

Audio, BASF, Corn, Farming, Soybean, Video

Farm Broadcaster Wins Ethanol Media Award

Cindy Zimmerman August 28, 2015

Tom Riter of WNAX in Yankton, SD was awarded this year’s American Coalition for Ethanol (ACE) Excellence in Media award at last week’s annual meeting in Omaha. Riter is pictured here receiving the award from ACE Director of Communications Chuck Beck.

Riter is a veteran farm broadcaster and a native of Rock Rapids, Iowa. He is a regular contributor to the National Association of Farm Broadcasting news service on issues pertaining to the ethanol industry.

Congrats, Tom!

2015 ACE Annual Meeting Photos

ACE, Ethanol, Media, NAFB

Judge Blocks WOTUS

Cindy Zimmerman August 27, 2015

The day before the controversial rule formally known as the Waters of the US (WOTUS) was to be implemented, a federal judge in North Dakota has blocked it from taking effect.

U.S. District Judge Ralph Erickson of North Dakota on Thursday issued a preliminary injunction against implementation of the Clean Water regulation, saying a group of 13 states was likely to succeed in their lawsuit challenging the Environmental Protection Agency regulation as unlawful. The judge gave two reasons for his decision: “(1)it appears likely that the EPA has violated its Congressional grant of authority in its promulgation of the Rule at issue and (2) it appears likely the EPA failed to comply with requirements when promulgating the Rule.”

North Dakota is one of the 13 states and Attorney General Wayne Stenehjem said he was pleased with the ruling. “This is a victory in the first skirmish, but it is only the first,” said Stenehjem. “There is much more to do to prevent this widely unpopular rule from ever taking effect.”

The Attorney General for another state in the lawsuit, Missouri’s Chris Koster commented “In issuing the preliminary injunction, the federal court sent an unmistakable message to the EPA: You have gone too far. Missouri’s land and water resources should be regulated by officials accountable to the people of the state, not by arbitrary standards dictated from Washington DC.”

The ruling was just released at the very end of the day on Thursday, but reaction from farm organizations opposed to the rule is expected to be forthcoming any time now.

EPA, Water

Clinton Unveils Ag Plan, Gets Vilsack Support

Cindy Zimmerman August 27, 2015

With a John Deere tractor as a backdrop, Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton went where no candidate has gone yet – into a detailed discussion on agricultural issues.

Introduced by former Iowa governor and current Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack, Clinton discussed her plan to support rural America and agriculture during a visit to Ankeny, Iowa Wednesday. Clinton’s plan includes investments in rural areas and rural transportation, streamlining the process for community banks, investment in water and broadband infrastructure, and improving USDA grant programs. Other facets of the plan includes making production of agricultural products more profitable for farmers, promoting the use of clean energy and renewable energy sources, and expanding opportunities for those in rural communities by expanding Head Start, affordable education, and affordable healthcare.

Introducing Mrs. Clinton, Vilsack made his support for her as a candidate clear. “This is a woman who will listen to us, who will fight for us,” said Vilsack. “I and my wife will always remain loyal to our friend Hillary Clinton.”

Mrs. Clinton came out strongly in support of the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) and talked about changes she wants to make in agricultural support at the federal level. “As president, I’ll make sure that federal resources like disaster assistance and crop insurance go to farmers and ranches who need it the most, not those who have the biggest businesses or the best connections,” said Clinton. “We will change the formula.”

Listen to Vilsack’s introduction and Clinton’s speech here: Hillary Clinton on Ag in Iowa

Audio, politics

New John Deere Self-Propelled Forage Harvesters

Chuck Zimmerman August 27, 2015

Quite a few new products were put on display for those of us in ag media this week. That includes three new models of the 8000 Series Self-Propelled Forage Harvesters.

“We took the momentum from the 8000 Series rollout last year and added to an already stellar lineup of forage harvesters,” says Tim Meister, division manager, marketing with John Deere. “The three new models make the John Deere SPFH lineup even stronger with the ability to deliver optimal harvesting speed, reliability and forage quality.”

Growers can choose from three new models:

8300, 483-horsepower with a Tier-IV Final 13.5-liter engine
8700, 755-horsepower with a Tier-II, non-EGR 19.0-liter engine
8800, 832-horsepower with a Tier-II, non-EGR 19.0-liter engine
Each model can be equipped with HarvestLab™, an advanced crop analysis and documentation component that uses constituent sensing to improve forage quality.

Headers for the SPFH machines include the John Deere Small Drum Rotary Harvesting units from 6-12 rows, John Deere Large Drum Rotary Harvesting units from 6-10 rows, and the all-new 9 Series Hay Pick-ups. All the John Deere headers are automatically speed-matched to the length of cut.

You can listen to my interview with Tim here to learn more: Tim Meister, John Deere

John Deere 2016 Product Reveal Photo Album

Agribusiness, Audio, Dairy, Forage, Hay, John Deere

The Commercial UAV Expo

Chuck Zimmerman August 27, 2015

We keep hearing that it’s “the year of the drone.” Here’s more proof of that. The first ever Commercial UAV Expo is slated for October 5-7 in Las Vegas and AgWired is a supporting media sponsor.

To learn all about it I visited with Lisa Murray, Diversified Communications. Lisa says that not only is there a precision agriculture segment of the program but she believes anyone involved in precision agriculture will benefit from seeing how other industries are using UAV’s.

In the Conference Program, UAV industry experts will share key insights into the issues end-users face when implementing UAS, including systems selection and integration; developing enterprise workflows, guidelines and policies; data management and integration; and legal, safety and regulatory considerations. Plenary sessions and panels cover topics of interesting to all end-users regardless of industry while breakout sessions focus on UAV technology, applications and opportunities in the vertical markets listed above.

Here’s a list of companies that are exhibiting.

You can get registered here. A full conference registration is $250 if you register before September 15.

Listen to this week’s program here to learn all about it: Commercial UAV Expo

Subscribe to the ZimmCast podcast here.

The ZimmCast

sponsored by

Locally owned, globally strong.

Audio, Events, Precision Agriculture, ZimmCast

Hutch, KN Native Wins USFRA’s I am FARMLAND Gator

Jamie Johansen August 27, 2015

When Hutchinson, Kansas native John Wildin put his entry form into the I Am FARMLAND sweepstakes box during the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association convention this past February, he never dreamed he would win a John Deere Gator.

The promotion was the brainchild of the U.S. Farmers and Ranchers Alliance (USFRA) to help create awareness about the documentary FARMLAND and encourage the agriculture community to help bring the film to consumers across the country. To draw people into USFRA’s booths, John Deere, a long-time USFRA supporter, donated a coveted Gator. It worked. Thousands of people at agricultural trade shows across the country not only entered to win but have since viewed and purchased copies of the documentary.

“When I got the call I let it go to voicemail, and then even after I called them back [USFRA] I still didn’t believe I had won,” said Wildin whose great grandfather homesteaded on the Arkansas River. “The utility of the vehicle out on a farm in this day and age is just incredible. We’ve got big plans for it.”

When Chuck Studer, Director, Industry Relations with John Deere was approached about the I Am FARMLAND sweepstakes, they donated the Gator without hesitation. Studer, who is also a USFRA board member, said they wanted to support the FARMLAND promotion because it was an opportunity to give individual ranchers and farmers the opportunity to engage in the story of agriculture and share that message with food consumers across the country.

Find audio, video and photos from the event at AgNewsWire.com.

Ag Groups, USFRA

John Deere Adds to 6 Series Tractor Lineup

Chuck Zimmerman August 27, 2015

John Deere has added to its popular 6 Series of tractors and I got to discuss the features with Kory Ross, Product Manager, Waterloo Works.

John Deere adds the 6E Series Tractors to the 6 Family Tractor lineup, which features enhanced performance, added versatility and greater value to the existing family of high-horsepower utility tractors.

The design on the new 6E Series initially began with upgrading the pre-existing 6D line. “We took a solid, simple workhorse in the 6D and made it even better with upgrades, like easier operating functions,” says Kory Ross, product marketing manager for John Deere. “We improved it and added so much value that we felt it earned a whole new name – the 6E Series.”

You can listen to my interview with Kory here who also talks about a new 6M tractor: Kory Ross, John Deere

John Deere 2016 Product Reveal Photo Album

Agribusiness, Audio, John Deere, Tractor

Page 758 of 2,395
←
1
...
757
758
759
...
2395
→