ALOT Class XVI Unites

Jamie Johansen February 13, 2015

Agricultural Leaders of Tomorrow (ALOT) is a two year adult leadership training program that targets rural leaders and agricultural producers who have a passion to promote Missouri agriculture and strengthen their rural communities. The program enhances communication and leadership skills, expands knowledge of ag issues and encourages leadership initiative in local communities.

The ALOT Class XVI met last week for their first event and I am proud to say I was one of them. After the initial anxiety wore off I was blown away with the instant comradery the group formed. Over the first three days we hadn’t simply met, we had united.

Columbia, MO was our first stop in the ALOT program that includes ten in-state three day sessions, a week long seminar in Washington D.C., and a two week international experience to a country that impacts Missouri agriculture. Our first meeting included speakers who were experts on farm policy, ag co-ops, aquaculture, economics trends in ag, the climate and personality assessments to name a few.

Kristin Perry, executive director for ALOT, took a few minutes to share the rich history of ALOT and what she thought the take home message was from our first event.

“The program started in 1983 with a Kellogg grant that was sought by Dr. Bruce Bullock, Dr. Daryl Hobbs and Dr. Ron Plain. They wanted to teach people involved in agriculture how to be more involved in policy and leadership positions that would create a positive affect on Missouri agriculture.”

Kristin said her real goal in this program is to help everyone discover their passion and find how they can take an active role in the advancement of Missouri agriculture.

“Read more, listen more, learn more so you can become more involved, better informed and better connected for the future.”

Listen to my complete interview with Kristin and stay tuned as I chronicle our journey of leadership development in the ever-changing world of agriculture. Interview with Kristin Perry, ALOT Executive Director

Ag Groups, Audio

New Boomers from New Holland

Chuck Zimmerman February 13, 2015

New Holland usually has “new” on the lot at the National Farm Machinery Show and this year is no exception. My model in the picture is Todd DeBock, Pro Work Tools lead, New Holland, next to a Boomer 54D compact utility tractor. This is the first public showing of this new tractor.

Todd enthusiastically describes all the newness of the new Boomers. These compacts come in 46 – 54 gross engine horsepower and offer the “convenience of a continuously variable transmission, the comfort of the deluxe SuperSuite™ cab, and the increased torque of new, clean-running Tier 4B emissions-compliant engines. Clean-running Tier 4 engines provide more torque for increased performance, and industry-leading EasyDrive™ CVT transmission drives like a car.” These new Boomers are built for comfort while getting the job done.

Listen to my interview with Todd here: Interview with Todd DeBock, New Holland

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Zimfo Bytes

Talia Goes February 13, 2015

Mycogen Seeds, a wholly owned subsidiary of The Dow Chemical Company and an affiliated company of Dow AgroSciences, opened its new Seed Research and Development facility.
Swanson Russell announces the addition of Brittany Freeman to the account service department of its Lincoln office.
The Advancing the Agriculture Economy Through Innovation summit will be held March 18-20 at CSUs Lory Student Center.
DuPont Pioneer announced the launch of BOLT™ technology – a new herbicide-tolerant trait available in select U.S. soybean varieties.

Zimfo Bytes

Midwest, Midsouth Farm Incomes Continue Decline

John Davis February 13, 2015

Farm incomes continue their declines in the Midwest and Midsouth. A new survey from the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis says that agricultural bankers in the regions reported farm incomes dropped during the fourth quarter of 2014 compared with the previous year. At the same time, the lenders reported a slight increase in quality farmland and a modest decline in pastureland values relative to a year earlier.

Noting that farm income is highly volatile and subject to seasonal patterns, the report revealed a decline in farm income, farm household spending, and capital equipment expenditures during the fourth quarter of 2014 relative to the same period a year earlier. In addition, lenders indicated they expected further declines in all three categories during the first quarter of 2015.

Based on a diffusion index methodology with a base of 100 (results above 100 indicate proportionately higher lender values compared with the same quarter a year earlier; results lower than 100 indicate lower lender values), the fourth-quarter index value for farm income was 78, while first-quarter expectations for 2015 showed an index value of 61.

“Excellent yields have helped offset lower grain prices for most producers for the 2014 crop, but future incomes are expected to be reduced based on average yields and projected prices for the 2015 crop year,” a Missouri lender noted.

The survey also showed quality farmland values across the area were up 0.8 percent during the fourth quarter of 2014 from one year ago. However, proportionately more bankers indicated they expected prices to decrease over the next three months.

Uncategorized

New Holland 3-A-Day iPad Giveaway

Chuck Zimmerman February 12, 2015

You’ll find a lot of giveaways at a trade show but iPads just don’t wear out their welcome. Especially since so many farmers today are using them as farm tools! Here at the National Farm Machinery Show, Farm Industry News even held a session titled, “Farming by Tablet!”

New Holland is doing a 3-A-Day iPad Giveaway that also includes show offers on New Holland equipment. Here’s one of today’s lucky winners. Yes, he’s a happy camper thanks to New Holland. If he’s not an AgNerd yet, he’s now on his way.

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Agrible Launches Morning Farm Report

Cindy Zimmerman February 12, 2015

Agrible, Inc. has just launched the Morning Farm Report, a predictive analytics tool that delivers field-specific data and forecasts to help with decision-making in the field. Designed for growers and agricultural companies, Morning Farm Report uses a subscription model to provide reports and big data views of rainfall, temperature, growing degree days, field work logistics, maximum ground pressures, and yield estimates.

“With Morning Farm Report, we want to provide growers with data that not only helps them with their daily decision making, but with forecasts that help with weekly, monthly, and seasonal planning,” said Chris Harbourt, CEO of Agrible, Inc. “Many of our developers are farmers themselves, so we know what growers are looking for and always strive to create products that we would use ourselves.”

Morning Farm Report launched with four tiered products: Rainfall, Field Intel, Tractor Time Logistics, and Yield Engine. All products are priced for unlimited fields and contain all features found in lower tiered options. For example, a subscription to Tractor Time Logistics also contains all of the features of Field Intel and Rainfall. Users choose a yearly subscription to whichever product best fits their operation. There is also the option to create a custom package based on specific needs.

Developed by an expert team in Champaign, Illinois, Morning Farm Report combines soils data, custom crop growth simulations and weather data to develop its products. Data sources include the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the National Weather Service (NWS).

More information about Morning Farm Report and Pocket Rain Gauge can be found at MorningFarmReport.com

Technology, Weather

FMC Demos 3RIVE 3D at NFMS

Cindy Zimmerman February 12, 2015

You may remember us telling you about FMC’s 3RIVE 3D™ back in November at the NAFB convention.

Here at the 2015 National Farm Machinery Show we got to learn a lot more about this revolutionary system that integrates formulation technology, application technology and active ingredients to increase net planting speed, in-furrow protection and early season success.

FMC’s Matt Hancock says the idea for 3RIVE came from one of their field reps in Missouri. “It all started with identifying a grower need,” he said. “This idea of being able to apply Capture in a more efficient, fewer fill-ups kind of a way came from our rep, Mike Harper, in Missouri.” FMC partnered with Emerge Application Solutions to make it happen and it’s now available for growers this planting season.

Hancock says using the system allows a grower to cover up to 500 acres at a time with 30 gallons of chemistry combined with 130 gallons of water to create an even-flowing foam application. Capture 3RIVE 3D is the first product formulated to integrate with the platform, but Hancock says there is more to come. “We’re already looking at about a 5 year pipeline of products coming in this format,” he said.

Find out more about FMC’s 3RIVE 3D in this interview and watch the video below to see how it works: Interview with Matt Hancock, FMC

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St. Louis AgriBusiness Club Awards Leader of the Year

Jamie Johansen February 12, 2015

The St. Louis Agribusiness Club just named American Soybean Association (ASA) CEO Stephen L. Censky as the area’s “Agribusiness Leader of the Year”.

Since 1981, the St. Louis AgriBusiness Club has presented the prestigious award to a person who has made a substantial contribution to the well-being of agriculture in the St. Louis area, either on a local or national scale. Censky was nominated by Melinda Whittle, Kimberly Magin, and Molly Cline (retired) from the Monsanto Company, as well as by Dick McWard, an Illinois farmer and former Bunge North America executive.

“Steve has continually pursued opportunities for soybean farmers throughout the U.S. to improve their position in agriculture,” they said. “Whether in DC, Beijing, Brussels, or Hong Kong, Steve Censky has sought to maximize the opportunities of both the U.S. Soybean farmers and their very important customers.”

Censky is the American Soybean Association’s (ASA) Chief Executive Officer, a staff position he accepted in April 1996. As ASA’s top executive, Censky is in charge of managing ASA’s legislative, trade policy, international market development, membership and leadership development programs.

Prior to joining ASA, Censky worked in Washington, D.C. for over a decade. He began his career on Capitol Hill as a legislative assistant for agricultural and transportation matters to Senator Jim Abdnor (R-SD). Later he served in both the Ronald Reagan and George H. Bush Administrations at the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), helping to craft the 1990 Farm Bill and eventually serving as Administrator of the Foreign Agricultural Service where he was involved in global trade negotiations and running our nation’s export programs.

Agribusiness

Farm Safety Program Addresses Universal Challenges

Jamie Johansen February 12, 2015

Progressive Agriculture Safety Day®, the largest rural safety and health education program for children in North America, has officially been licensed in Brazil. The program is part of the Progressive Agriculture Foundation® (PAF), and the expansion is made possible through support from Agrium, a leading global agricultural solutions company and long-time sponsor and supporter of the program.

Brazil will become the third South American country to offer Progressive Agriculture Safety Day® events, in addition to PAF’s well-established presence in the United States and Canada. The program has been very successful in Argentina and Uruguay since its start in 2012, thanks to continued support from Agrium.

“The need for agricultural and home safety is universal,” said Susan Reynolds, Interim CEO, PAF. “It’s rewarding to see our curriculum reaching children and communities outside North America. As we enter our 21st year, we will continue to broaden the Safety Day program’s reach to help educate even more communities of children.”

As part of the expansion to Brazil, information on how to plan an event, along with country-appropriate lessons, will be translated into Portuguese. Curriculum is currently available to trained coordinators in English, French and Spanish.

“We are excited to be a part of the expansion of safety training to another key agriculture market in South America,” said Rose Lecky, manager of corporate social responsibility, Agrium. “With the continued support of our retail network, including Agrium, Utilfertil and Agroservicios Pampeanos, more farm communities around the world will receive life-saving information.”

Agrium has agreed to a three-year commitment and will implement the safety program through Utilfertil by Agrium and Agroservicios Pampeanos (ASP).

Ag Groups, International

The Changing Climate from CIRB

Jamie Johansen February 12, 2015

Evelyn Browning-Gariss, The Browning Newsletter, is a historical climatologist who advices the masses about what the coming season will bring. She has spent over 30 years explaining the impact of changing climate on economic and social trends. During last week’s Crop Insurance & Reinsurance Bureau’s annual meeting, Evelyn talked to attendees about what they can expect from a changing climate.

“When you look at climate. The oceans aren’t the elephant in the room, The oceans make up 70% of the Earth’s surface. They are the room, we are in it. What has happened is in 1995 the Atlantic got hotter and in 2006 the Pacific began to trend colder. As a result it has changed the way energy is distributed around Earth. When the oceans change, they change the conditions for us on land.”

She shared that when experts talk about manmade global warming, they are talking about more long-term. But what she is looking for when she advices farmers is what is going to impact the climate for them just three months out. “I have yet to see a farmer or insurance person, who if given three months warning could not figure out a good way to position themselves.”

“One of the things I am seeing is it looks like it is going to return to very dry. No matter how much rain California gets, it’s going to continue to see drought. The Midwest, it looks like after an initial cold Spring, will see it heat up. Farmers are going to see climate very similar to 2010, not that bad. Brace yourself, it may be near normal.”

Listen to Chuck’s complete interview with Evelyn here: Interview with Evelyn Browning-Gariss, The Browning Newsletter

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