Win Autographed New Holland/Tyler Hubbard Poster

Chuck Zimmerman

Tyler Hubbard and MeHello Florida Georgia Line fans. This past weekend I had the opportunity to meet Tyler Hubbard, the Georgia part of the band, during a pre-concert Meet and Greet. I’ll be sharing an interview with Tyler as part of my mini-series of the New Holland Voice of the Next Gen Contest party weekend. Thanks to Tyler’s photographer for the photo.

New Holland Tyler Hubbard PosterNew Holland brought the five contest finalists and a friend to Hershey, PA, to meet Tyler and see the concert. Each contestant sang a short piece of the band’s hit, Dirt. Additionally, local New Holland dealers brought in some customers to hang out with us and enjoy the show. Which was great btw.

I snagged an extra autographed poster of Tyler Hubbard that was made for the occasion and am giving it away this week. All you have to do is put your name in comments to be entered or message me on Twitter or Facebook. Entries will be taken through 5pm, central on Friday. I’ll mail you this poster to put into the frame of your choice.

I took a lot of photos of the fun on Saturday which you are encouraged to view, share and enjoy: New Holland Tyler Hubbard Next Gen Photo Album

Agribusiness, New Holland

Former FFA Member Donates to Ag Ed

John Davis

ffa_logoA former FFA member from Texas is donating money to support agricultural education teachers. This news release from FFA says Herman Wilson of Houston was inspired by his ag ed teacher in east Texas more than 62 years ago. Now he’s giving back in the form of $250,000 to establish an endowment to kick start a multi-level initiative.

“We want other investors to put their money where their thoughts are,” Wilson said. Wilson and his family believe that teachers who can motivate students are the heart of FFA. .He believes teachers must be recognized and rewarded for their work, so they’ll want to continue in the profession. In addition, he believes FFA needs to find ways to attract college students to agricultural education.

Currently, there is a critical shortage of agricultural education teachers who serve as FFA advisors. It was because of this need, that the Wilsons donated the funds. The funds are earmarked solely for developing a plan to attract and retain FFA advisors and agriculture teachers. This endowment is the first of its kind.

“The Wilson’s generosity will make it possible for FFA to continue the good work of furthering agricultural education,” said National FFA Organization CEO Dr. Dwight Armstrong. “FFA advisors and agricultural educators make a huge impact on our students, and thanks to the Wilson’s generosity and passion for agricultural education, the organization can continue to recruit and retain strong teachers. We are extremely appreciative of the Wilson’s efforts in helping FFA continue the mission of premier leadership, personal growth and career success for our students.”

Ag Groups, Education, FFA

BASF Starts 150th Year With Higher Sales

Cindy Zimmerman

basf-150BASF’s 150th anniversary year is off to a great start, due in a large part to the chemical company’s innovative crop protection business. Compared with the first quarter of 2014, sales grew by 3% to €20.1 billion ($22.5 billion USD) in the first quarter of this year. Sales in the Agricultural Solutions segment rose by 15% to €1.9 billion ($2.1 billion), as a result of increased contributions from Europe and North America.

“Our chemicals and our crop protection businesses performed very successfully; earnings in these segments increased significantly,” said Dr. Kurt Bock, Chairman of the Board of Executive Directors, at the company’s recent shareholders meeting.

2015 is a special year because BASF turned 150 on April 6. “It is a special accomplishment for a company to reach its 150th anniversary. This would not have been possible without the many employees who worked for BASF in the past and work for BASF today,” said Bock.

Based on the number of registered patents, BASF is one of the 10 most innovative companies in the world. More than 10,000 researchers work at BASF worldwide.

In addition, BASF has announced Wayne T. Smith is the new Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of BASF Corporation, headquartered in Florham Park, New Jersey. He succeeds Hans Engel, who as Chief Financial Officer for BASF SE, will relocate to the company’s global headquarters in Ludwigshafen, Germany, and assume additional responsibilities on BASF’s Board of Executive Directors.

Agribusiness, BASF, Crop Protection

Pakistani Companies Tour US Cotton Belt

John Davis

cottonRepresentatives from Pakistani companies are touring the U.S. cotton belt. The tour is going on now through May 9. It’s put on by Cotton Council International (CCI), the National Cotton Council’s export promotions arm, and shows the key textile executives from 11 Pakistani companies the ins and outs of American cotton production, processing and marketing.

At this point in the 2014-15 marketing year (which ends on July 31, 2015), Pakistan ranks as the eighth largest U.S. cotton importer with current U.S. export commitments to Pakistan of 335,000 bales — up from 169,000 bales in the 2013-14 marketing year.

This trade mission’s 11 participating Pakistani companies collectively are expected to consume about 1.8 million bales in this marketing year of which 184,000 bales, or 10 percent, will be U.S. cotton.

CCI President Dahlen K. Hancock, a Ropesville, Texas, cotton producer, said, “We believe there is potential for even greater sales of U.S. cotton to this growing market. This event will enable CCI to provide some high level Pakistani textile manufacturing executives a better understanding of U.S. raw cotton’s merits including our fiber’s superior quality and our industry’s outstanding reputation for timely delivery.”

Stops on the tour include New York , cotton research in North Carolina, and meeting with exporters in the cotton belt’s four major regions.

Cotton, International, Trade

Zimfo Bytes

Talia Goes

Zimfo Bytes

Zimfo Bytes

2nd Annual Fields-of-Corn Photo Contest

Chuck Zimmerman

NCGA Fields of CornThe National Corn Growers Association has just kicked off its second Field-of-Corn Photo Contest. The entry period is May 1-November 30, 2015.

The National Corn Growers Association is calling on photographers to help tell the story of farming field corn in America. The goal is to capture high-resolution photos of growing corn from seed to harvest, the women and men who grow it and their families.

For many, May 1st is early in the corn season, but perhaps you’ll see a beautiful rainbow or other aesthically pleasing photo-op to capture.

NCGA is a strong proponent of safety on the farm. Please make sure no one is in harm’s way for your contest photo, or endanger yourself taking the photo. To learn more about farm safety click here.

Ag Groups, Corn, NCGA, Photography

Cal-Davis Tops in Ag, Veterinary Sciences

John Davis

ucdavis_logoThe University of California, Davis, is rated as the top school in the world for teaching and research in agriculture and forestry as well as veterinary sciences. This news release from the university says the information comes from the QS World University Rankings and is the third consecutive year that UC Davis has been ranked first in ag and forestry.

The organization ranked UC Davis in 27 of the 36 subjects covered. This was the first time the subject area of veterinary sciences was included in QS rankings. UC Davis is the only University of California campus this year that was ranked first in any of the disciplines ranked by QS.

The organization ranked UC Davis among the top 50 universities in various subjects, including environmental sciences (15), biological sciences (29), earth and marine sciences (41), history (42), and statistics and operational research (50).

“These rankings reconfirm that our faculty and researchers are respected the world over and that their work is making an impact throughout the globe,” said UC Davis Chancellor Linda P.B. Katehi. “This is a proud day for UC Davis and for all our faculty, staff, students and alumni.”

The UC Davis College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences was founded in 1905 and has more than 6,200 undergraduate students in 27 majors and more than 1,000 graduate students in 45 graduate groups and programs.

Agribusiness, Forestry, Research, University, Veterinary

Support for Food Labeling Act

Cindy Zimmerman

cfsafHundreds of organizations representing various sectors of the food and agriculture industry signed on to a letter to members of the U.S. House of Representatives this week asking them to support the Safe and Accurate Food Labeling Act.

The groups representing the Coalition for Safe Affordable Food urged members of Congress to consider co-sponsoring the bill introduced last month by Reps. Mike Pompeo (R-KS) and G. K. Butterfield (D-NC) that would “ensure people across our nation continue to have access to consistent science-based standards for food labeling.”

coppock-araAmong the 373 organizations signing the letter is the Agricultural Retailers Association (ARA) and president Darren Coppock says they are also working to get a companion bill introduced in the Senate. “I’m encouraged that there’s bipartisan support for the issue and that it’s moving forward in the House,” said Coppock during an interview at NAFB Washington Watch this week. “What the Pompeo-Butterfield bill has put together is a good compromise that satisfies the needs of those asking those questions (about GMOs).”

During the interview, Coppock also addressed another piece of legislation important to ag retailers which would provide an important fix to the Clean Water Act NPDES permitting rule. “That extra layer of regulation provides no benefit to the environment or society, it’s just an additional cost and burden for applicators,” he said. ARA has been working on getting the fix for the past four years and they are hopeful it will pass this year. “I think the chips are better lined up this time to get action on both sides of the Hill,” Coppock added.

Listen to the interview with Coppock conducting by Agri-Pulse reporter Spencer Chase: Interview with Darren Coppock, ARA president and CEO

ARA, Audio, Biotech

Senators Call for Revised WOTUS

Cindy Zimmerman

A bipartisan group of U.S. Senators today introduced a bill that would repeal EPA’s “Waters of the United States” (WOTUS) proposal.

EPA Ditch the RuleThe senators, including John Barrasso (R-WY), Joe Donnelly (D-IN), Jim Inhofe (R-OK), Heidi Heitkamp (D-ND), Pat Roberts (R-KS) and Joe Manchin (D-WV), jointly introduced the Federal Water Quality Protection Act, directing EPA and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to issue a revised WOTUS rule that “does not include things such as isolated ponds, ditches, agriculture water, storm water, groundwater, floodwater, municipal water supply systems, wastewater management systems, and streams without enough flow to carry pollutants to navigable waters.”

“After working together for months, we’ve introduced a strong bipartisan bill that will protect America’s waterways – and America’s farmers, ranchers and landowners. Our legislation gives the EPA the direction it needs to write a reasonable rule that will truly protect our ‘navigable’ waterways,” said Barrasso. “Our next step is to work together to ensure this bill moves quickly through Congress.”

“No one wants cleaner water or better land conditions than the families who live on American farms,” said Donnelly. “That is why it is incredibly important that the EPA rewrite the Waters of the United States rule with input from the people who live and work on the land and alongside these waters every day.”

Agriculture groups are already responding positively to the move urging Congress to act swiftly, before the rule is final, so agencies can re-craft the rule to ensure it is practical and addresses the concerns of farmers, ranchers and business owners across the country.

Audio of press conference: Senators introduce bill to revise WOTUS

Audio, EPA, Water

Mixed Signals on Biotech from EU

Cindy Zimmerman

euMixed signals regarding biotech crops coming from the European Union last week have left representatives of the agriculture community shaking their heads.

First the EU announced it would allow member nations to ban the import of food and feed containing biotech ingredients, and then a few days later announced the approval of 17 biotech traits for import.

“I’m just characterizing it as flat goofy,” said American Farm Bureau Federation president Bob Stallman. “Doing business that way is going to make it very difficult for us to do a transatlantic trade agreement with them.”

National Corn Growers Association public policy director Zach Kinne says the opt out policy for EU nations creates a lot of uncertainty going forward. “It would really just be a nightmare when you look at the supply chain and importing of the crops that we produce,” he said, adding that other major exporting countries like Argentina and Brazil are also expressing concerns. “Hopefully we’ll see them withdraw that.”

American Soybean Association first vice president Richard Wilkins of Delaware says the opt out policy would definitely have a negative impact on US soy trade with the EU, but the trait approval news is very positive. “The deregulation of the four soybean biotech events that we’ve been waiting for means that we can now move towards full commercialization of high oleic soybeans.”

During NAFB Washington Watch this week, Spencer Chase with Agri-Pulse interviewed all three of these representatives. Interview with Bob Stallman, AFBF Interview with Zach Kinne, NCGA Interview with Richard Wilkins, ASA

AFBF, ASA, Audio, Biotech, Exports, International, NCGA