Precision and Data Brings Companies Together

Cindy Zimmerman August 13, 2014

One of the great aspects of the InfoAg Conference is company-to-company communications and partnerships for the benefit of farmers.

We talked with Kevin Krieg, John Deere Intelligent Solutions Group Product Line Manager, about how important it is to work with other companies. “It’s one of the biggest roadblocks to being able to get more adoption of precision technologies – the challenges of being able to get the data from all the different formats, all the different tools, into the ones that can add value to (the farmer),” said Krieg. “What John Deere is trying to do is focus on the grower and what they need to get their job done and we realize it’s not always going to be the John Deere complete solution that’s going to do that.”

Krieg says if that means they have to share the data with other companies and the customer gives them the rights to get that data, “we’re going to enable that and make that happen for the grower in order for them to make that increased profitability for their farm.” Interview with Kevin Krieg, John Deere

An example is how John Deere is working with MapShots AgStudio.

“With our add on menu, you can actually update or upload all of your data,” from most major manufacturers, says Josh Morris with MapShots tech support.

The ultimate goal of precision farming technology is time and money savings, which is why Morris says this third party integration is so important. “Instead of going out to your barn and uploading with a USB stick, you’re able to just link your AgStudio database with your MyJohnDeere account and just transfer your set up cards with your boundaries,” said Morris. Interview with Josh Morris, MapShots support

InfoAg 2014 Photo Album

Coverage of the InfoAg Conference is sponsored by

Audio, Info Ag, John Deere, Precision Agriculture

Corn Based Craft Beer

Cindy Zimmerman August 13, 2014

Plato is quoted as saying “He was a wise man who invented beer.” With craft beers all the rage now, a wise brewery is taking a second look at corn as a main ingredient.

Flying Dog Brewery in Frederick, Maryland calls its new brew Agave Cerveza.

Our latest Brewhouse Rarities release, Agave Cerveza, is the artisanal answer to the easy-drinking, light-bodied beers typically produced south of the border.

Flaked maize makes up one third of the malt bill and highlights the distinctive corn and cracker flavor typically found in Mexican lagers. The agave is added at the end of the boil and lime peel post-fermentation to impart a distinctively zesty character and a crisp, clean finish.

The Washington Post has a nice article about this craft beer and the history of corn and beer brewing. Interesting read will leave you saying, I did not know that!

Since @AgriBlogger is a craft beer connoisseur (I call him a beer snob) I think he will be all over this like fleas on a dog – a flying dog, that is.

Corn

Ann Bares: What Really Matters with Reward & Retention

Joanna Schroeder August 12, 2014

Have you ever wondered if throwing money at your employees as rewards and retention strategies are really working? Well wonder no more – they don’t. The attendees of the AgCareers.com annual 2014 HR & Food Roundtable learned what some better strategies were for reward and retention from Ann Bares with Altura Consulting Group. Here presentation focused on Reward and Retention: What Really Matters.

Bares began her presenting by noting that retention is a double-edged sword. Companies do not want to automatically retain all employees especially today as companies struggle with limited funds. She noted that not every employee may be a good fit for the business and have the right skill sets going forward.

“We have to admit to, own to and learn to be more careful, strategic and selective in how we retain,” said Bares.

It is important, said Bares, to have a retention strategy. She said a retention strategy determines who we need to retain and how we go about doing that. Also, companies need to know enough about their business to understand what skills are needed to succeed.

An effective way to build your retention strategy is to understand the skill sets of your employees. But Bares said virtually no leaders know this information. Here are five questions leaders should know the answers about your key employees:

What are their proudest accomplishments and biggest disappointments? Why?
What activities energize them and drain them?
How would they force rank the following rewards: financial gain, power and influence, lifestyle, autonomy, affiliation, intellectual challenge, competence, recognition, other?
What do they want their legacy to be?
What is their five-year career goal?

Bares said once leaders know these answers, they can better develop an effective retention and reward strategy. Interested in learning more? Bares blogs at Compensation Cafe. Check it out.

Learn more about reward and retention strategies by listening to my interview with Ann Bares: Interview With Ann Bares

View the 2014 AgCareers.com HR & Food Roundtable photo album.

AgCareers, Audio

USDA Predicts Record Corn and Soybean Crops

Cindy Zimmerman August 12, 2014

A little bit more corn and a lot more soybeans compared to last year is what USDA is forecasting in the latest report out today.

U.S. soybean producers are expected to produce a record 3.82 billion bushels in 2014, up 16 percent from last year according to the Crop Production report issued today by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS). Growing conditions were conducive for corn growers who are also expected to produce a record-high crop at 14.0 billion bushels of corn, up 1 percent from 2013 which was also a record at the time.

Due to the increased production, the average farm price was lowered a dime from its July estimate, to a range of $3.55 to $4.25 per bushel, which National Corn Growers Association President Martin Barbre says makes it important to keep demand moving forward. “Now is not the time for our federal policymakers to be cutting into the ethanol standard, imposing undue regulations or going slow on trade agreements,” said NCGA President Martin Barbre. “Our farmers are doing their part, working hard and smart on their farms to bring in a good crop. It’s time Washington removed obstacles and cleared a path so we can sell America’s biggest and most versatile crop at a good and fair price.”

More cotton is also expected in the first production forecast for this year from USDA. Cotton production is forecast at 17.5 million 480-pound bales, up 36 percent from last year’s 12.9 million bales. Area planted to Upland cotton is up 10 percent from last year, while harvested Upland cotton area is expected to be up 37 percent from 2013. Expected harvested area of Pima cotton at 175,900 acres is down 12 percent from last year.

Wheat production is forecast up two percent from the July forecast but down five percent from 2013.

Brian Basting of Advance Trading discussed the new production report, as well as the new WASDE report on the Minneapolis Grain Exchange crop call this morning.
MGEX call on August crop report

Audio, Corn, NCGA, USDA

Illinois Nutrient Loss Reduction Strategy

Cindy Zimmerman August 12, 2014

This is the first of a four part series on Nutrient Management sponsored by FS/GROWMARK

In March of 2013, the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency hosted a meeting of stakeholders to announce the beginning of a statewide Nutrient Reduction Strategy.

Marcia Willhite, chief of the Illinois EPA Bureau of Water, says the first step in implementing this strategy was to get an assessment from the University of Illinois to determine what amounts of nitrogen and phosphorus are being lost to waters. Then they formed a Nutrient Reduction Strategy Policy Working Group composed of government officials, representatives from agriculture, waste water and environmental groups, academia, and technical providers such as NRCS and university extension. “Together we looked at the information provided by the University of Illinois and started to work on strategic actions to reduce these losses to water,” said Willhite, noting that most of the losses came from agricultural non-point sources and waste water discharges.

On the agricultural side, the approach is to identify voluntary conservation practices for farmers and ranchers to implement. “I think a really unique aspect of how Illinois is approaching reducing our nutrient losses is the real leadership that has been shown by the agricultural groups in devising programs that will reach out to farmers, help them understand what happens with the nutrients on their fields, and then demonstrating what practices will be most helpful in reducing those losses,” Willhite said. Among the initiatives developed by the agricultural community is Keep It for the Crop (KIC) by 2025. “I think KIC and programs like it are going to be extremely important in our success,” she added.

At this point in the process, Willhite says the policy group considered a draft of the strategy document and provided comments earlier and it is now being developed for release to the public by early September. “For a 30 day period, we’ll receive comments from the public,” she said. “Once those comments are provided, Illinois EPA and Illinois Department of Agriculture will work together in revising the document.” The final product will then be submitted to the federal EPA for approval.

Find out more about the Illinois work in this interview: Interview with Marcia Willhite, Illinois EPA

As this series continues, we will hear about the N-Watch Program, the impact of N use beyond farm economics, and developing nutrient management plans.

Nutrient Management Series

sponsored by

Audio, Conservation, GROWMARK, Water

WD Farr Scholarship Winners

Jamie Johansen August 12, 2014

Congratulations to two young agricultural professionals who were awarded the WD Farr Scholarship during the 2014 Cattle Industry Summer Conference. Ariel Overstreet-Adkins from Big Timber, Montana and Josh Ison from Batavia, Ohio were honored at the first session by the National Cattlemen’s Foundation and the Farr family.

They each received a $12,000 graduate scholarship. Ariel will use it to finish law school with plans to continue in the cattle industry representing it in Washington. Josh’s plans are taking him to France where he will continue is research studies in pre-harvest food safety.

WD Farr, a third generation Coloradan, pioneer rancher, statesman and banker is known for his extraordinary vision. His dedication to improving agriculture, livestock and water development has resulted in significant changes in farming methods that have influenced the practices of ranchers and farmers throughout the nation.

Listen to my interview with Ariel here: Interview with Ariel Overstreet-Adkins

Listen to my interview with Josh here: Interview with Josh Ison

View and download photos from the event here: Cattle Industry Summer Conference Photo Album

Coverage of the Cattle Industry Summer Conference is sponsored by

Ag Groups, Audio, Beef, Cattle Industry Conference, NCBA

SPADE Digs into Data Sharing

Cindy Zimmerman August 12, 2014

Many booths at the recent InfoAg Conference sported this little sign: AgGateway – SPADE Participant.

We caught up with AgGateway Standards Director Jim Wilson at the John Deere booth to learn more about the SPADE project. “SPADE stands for Standardized Precision Ag Data Exchange,” Wilson explained. As a non-profit industry consortium, AgGateway is facilitating the project which will ultimately benefit growers by better integration of farm equipment with farm management information systems. “It’s about bringing, at this point, over 30 companies together to talk about their field operations processes, the data that flows to support those processes, what the data requirements are per message, and how those requirements map to existing standards or where we might need to create new standards.”

Among the SPADE project members are John Deere, Ag Leader and MapShots. Learn more about the project on the AgGateway website and in this interview with Jim: Interview with Jim Wilson, AgGateway

InfoAg 2014 Photo Album

Coverage of the InfoAg Conference is sponsored by

Ag Leader, Agribusiness, Audio, Info Ag, John Deere, Precision Agriculture, Technology

Zimfo Bytes

Talia Goes August 11, 2014

The NC Biotechnology Center’s AgBiotech Initiative and NC State University’s College of Agriculture and Life Sciences are combining their signature events for this NOT TO BE MISSED two day conference in Raleigh at the McKimmon Conference Center.
GROWMARK is pleased to welcome three employees into new roles within the Agronomy Services Department.
DuPont Pioneer announced that Neal Gutterson, Ph.D., will join the business as vice president of Agricultural Biotechnology (ABT), effective July 21, 2014.
2014 World Ag Expo “Top-10 New Product” winners share their success stories.

Zimfo Bytes

Join the #RealPigFarming Conversation

sara August 11, 2014

I sat down with Cindy Cunningham of the National Pork Board and talked with her about the new campaign they’ve launched called #RealPigFarming. The campaign takes place on major social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter, and its aim is to educate the general public on the pork industry.

“So those real pig farmers – from their barns, from their chores everyday, when they’re outside working, they’re posting pictures. They’re posting information about what they’re doing in that very moment so that people who aren’t on the farms or may not even have an opportunity to get to the farms can learn and can understand and can see what’s happening on those farms and then they also can answer questions that real farmers can’t from consumers.”

The Real Pig Farming Twitter page states #RealPigFarming unites pig farmers, academics, youth, veterinarians and allied industry members to discuss how modern pork production really works.

You can listen to my interview with Cindy here: National Pork Board Interview

Ag Media Summit Photo Album

Coverage of the Ag Media Summit is sponsored by

Ag Media Summit, Livestock, Pork, Swine

Farmer Veteran Coalition to Hold Stakeholders Conference

Cindy Zimmerman August 11, 2014

Organizations that support military veterans pursuing food, farming, and agricultural careers will gather in November to hold a stakeholders conference.

The event will be hosted by the Farmer Veteran Coalition (FVC), in coordination with the Drake University Agricultural Law Center (ALC), November 14-15, 2014 at Drake University Olmsted Center in Des Moines, Iowa.

The conference is being held to “empower organizations to collaborate and provide support to veterans engaged in agriculture.”

As the U.S. ends its longest armed conflicts, we are seeing a groundswell of veterans finding new purpose in farming and ranching. Although they have diverse motivations and aspirations, veterans share unique opportunities and backgrounds that set them apart from other farmers. Many organizations are now serving this population creating a critical need for support, coordination, and collaboration of these efforts.

The conference will be the first to convene local, state, and national service providers to facilitate networking, partnering and educational opportunities. FVC is encouraging all stakeholders from the agricultural and veteran communities to attend: government agencies, trade associations, non-profits, philanthropists, businesses, and university and extension personnel.

The conference is supported by Farm Credit Council, American Farm Bureau Federation, and the National Farmers Union. Additional supporters are welcomed.

AFBF, Ag Groups, Events

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