REPREVE Launches New Biomass Crop System

Cindy Zimmerman

A North Carolina-based biomass company has launched a brand new system for the production of high-yielding energy crops that can be used for renewable, bio-based products.

repreveREPREVE® RENEWABLES LLC is collaborating with farmers and landowners across the country to use the innovative biomass crop system grow giant miscanthus grass on marginal and underutilized land.

REPREVE developed a comprehensive solution to the challenge of planting rhizome-propagated crops like miscanthus on a commercial scale, according to Jeff Wheeler, chief executive officer. “We’re really excited to be launching this year our new ACCU YIELD™ system,” said Wheeler, explaining that they had to develop specialized equipment to extract and process the rhizomes for planting, and then develop a precision planter to accurately and efficiently plant the crop for the highest yields.

ACCUDROP planter in fieldThe system is comprised of three elements: the ACCU LIFTER™ machine lifts rhizomes from a field in such a manner that reduces damage to the rhizomes thus increasing viability; the ACCU PROCESSOR™ unit sizes and cleans rhizomes for improved germination and quality and the ACCU DROP® planter provides optimal row spacing at varying planting densities to ensure a uniform, consistent and rapid stand establishment.

Farmers and landowners in Iowa, Georgia, North Carolina and Wisconsin are among the first to adopt this inventive approach to diversified land management. “These early adopters of commercial-scale biomass are trailblazers,” Wheeler says. “We provide turnkey solutions to farmers and landowners whereby we plant and harvest the crop. Plus we provide the market for the harvested crop each year.” The crop is marketed to end users for a variety of renewable products, from biofuels to animal bedding.

Learn more in this interview with Wheeler: Interview with Jeff Wheeler, REPREVE Renewables

Audio, Biofuels, Equipment, Ethanol, Farming

BASF: Knowing the Enemy is Key in Weed War

Cindy Zimmerman

weed-warThe first defense in the war against weeds is knowing the enemy, according to BASF Crop Protection.

A recent BASF survey found that 76 percent of growers have made changes to their weed management programs to address weed resistance and proper weed identification is fundamental to any effective control program.

“The first step in weed control is to know your enemy,” said Kevin Bradley, Ph.D., Associate Professor of plant sciences at the University of Missouri. “If you don’t know what you’re going after, you’re probably going to be behind from the very beginning.”

BASFOften, the same weed species will show up in a field year after year, so it is important to know where problem weeds live.

“It’s about characterizing which part of your farm needs certain attention,” said Greg Armel, Technical Market Manager, BASF. “There’s an adage – every year you don’t control weeds, there will be seven more years of fighting that weed. The less you know about what you’re dealing with, the more that weed has a chance to get a foothold in your ground and prevent you from controlling it in an effective manner.”

Newly acquired land, or any major land management changes, requires special attention when scouting and identifying weeds.

Read more from BASF.

Agribusiness, BASF, Farming, weed management

Wake Up Sleepy Head!

Melissa Sandfort

Do you ever have those days when you just wish you could pull the covers up over your head and stay in bed for a few more hours? I certainly do, and so does my son. He’s a bear in the morning – there is no “right side of the bed”, it’s almost always the wrong side. I’m hoping that hanging curtains over his window will entice him to stay put a bit longer to sleep off the crabbiness!

Thank goodness though, he hasn’t hit the stage where he has faked an illness to avoid going to school. And most times if no one else is awake, he’ll just crawl in the chair with a blanket and take a little snooze until someone else stirs.

My grandfather was the oldest of six children and I’m sure his parents heard many excuses as to why to not get out of bed, or do chores, or go to school. But one of his brothers, Charles, found a creative way to avoid waking up.

Listen to Grandpa explain

If that would’ve been me hiding in the closet, I would’ve realized that I needed to use the bathroom, then my brain would’ve started going through the list of things I needed to accomplish that day and I might as well have just stayed up.

Until we walk again …

Uncategorized

Zimfo Bytes

Talia Goes

    Zimfo Bytes

  • John Deere Landscapes (“JDL”), the largest North American distributor of landscaping products, announced the appointment of Doug Black as Chief Executive Officer effective immediately.
  • To help better serve the needs of Maryland farmers, the Agriculture Law Education Initiative, in conjunction with the newly formed Maryland State Bar Association (MSBA) Special Committee on Agriculture Law, has published the 2014 Legal Services Directory.
  • USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack announced additional support and resources for America’s small and midsized farmers and ranchers.
  • The Illinois Nutrient Research & Education Council has published its first annual report, summarizing seven projects that NREC funded in the calendar year 2013.
Zimfo Bytes

More on IFAJ and the FAO Agreement

Chuck Zimmerman

ZimmCast 436As announced earlier this week, the International Federation of Agricultural Journalists has signed an agreement with the FAO. Signing for IFAJ was current President, Marcus Rediger.

This morning I spoke with Marcus via Skype and we talked about the agreement and what it means to IFAJ members (AAEA members here in the U.S.). Information from the FAO will be featured on the IFAJ website in the near future and there will be a new award program announced at this fall’s IFAJ Congress in Scotland. Listen in to learn more in my conversation with Marcus.

You can listen to this week’s program here. IFAJ and the FAO

Thanks to our ZimmCast sponsor, GROWMARK, locally owned, globally strong, for their support.

Subscribe to the ZimmCast podcast here.

Audio, IFAJ, International, Media, ZimmCast

Flooding Southern Style

Chuck Zimmerman

Good morning from ZimmComm World Headquarters. Home of more than 22 inches of rain overnight. That doesn’t count yesterday morning. According to reports I’ve seen we had over 7,000 lightning strikes in a 15 minute period too. We had more rain in one hour between 9-10pm than all of Hurricane Ivan which was our last severe one. I have not ventured out yet because I don’t have a boat :). Here’s a video clip that gives you an idea of what things were like.

So, there you have it. We’ve been using our phone hotspots for internet since we had no cable until just now.

I hope everyone has turned off their sprinkler systems!

Weather

Ag&#8729ri&#8729li&#8729cious – All Things Local Food

Jamie Johansen

Screen Shot 2014-04-29 at 4.16.29 PMAgrilicious launches today. A website that is at the heart of the food movement, providing an exciting way to participate in the local food experience while expanding the family-and-farmer connection. They want to be the go-to source for all things local food – families, farmers, restaurants, grocery delivery and meal kit services, distributers, educators and food industry advocates and experts all come together through Agrilicious to share ideas, connect, and make a difference. Based in Seattle, WA, Agrilicious SPC is a Social Purpose Corporation.

Celebrating the best of food, farms and family – Agrilicious is not just for the foodies, Locavores and farmers, it’s for all those working with farmers to help get local food to the community. Most of all it’s for those of us who are becoming increasingly curious and concerned about the food we eat…where it’s from…and what is actually in it.

In a recent study by Sullivan Higdon & Sink’s FoodThink:
– 70% of consumers would like to know more about where food actually comes from
– 92% think local and organic just tastes better than conventional food
– 79% would like to buy more local food

CEO Duane Dahl says, “Making good food choices has become a priority for all of us, and we wanted to use our team’s expertise to help advance the local food movement. Agrilicious brings together families, farmers and the food industry to share, connect and to make a difference. We are pleased to provide direct access and quality information about local food that is important to the mainstream consumer.”

Agrilicious launch features include:
– Over 100,000 listings and enhanced profiles of all things local food – the most available in one place online today
– Search tools allowing individuals, Agripreneurs and B2B food suppliers to connect online and offline
– Informative, engaging content – food, farming and agriculture news, independent reviews and analysis, columns, education, a blog and featured farms and businesses
– AnswerVille – Have a question related to food, farming or gardening? Get them answered here!
– Agrilicious-TV features informative videos from industry experts, food-related documentaries, and exclusive programming including “In Search of Food.”

Agribusiness, Farming, Food

Walmart Highlights Ag Sustainability Pledges

Cindy Zimmerman

walmartKicking off a new Sustainable Product Expo this week, the CEOs from more than a dozen global companies gathered at Walmart headquarters in Arkansas Tuesday to pledge to increase sustainable food production.

Eight of the largest food companies announced pledges to help ensure that tomorrow’s food supply is affordable and sustainable for the nine billion people projected to inhabit the planet by 2050. The commitments aim to drive more collaboration and efficiency across the current food system. In total, this work is expected to bring eight million acres of farmland into sustainable agriculture programs and eliminate six million metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs).

Among the agricultural companies participating in the event Tuesday was Dairy Farmers of America and DFA CEO Rick Smith offered his pledge to “have more than 90 percent of our nearly 9,000 member farms participating in our Gold Standard Dairy program, or similar efforts toward optimization, by 2020.” This on-farm audit assesses areas including animal care and wellness, environmental stewardship, employee training, and milk safety and quality.

Monsanto chairman and CEO Hugh Grant announced two commitments at the event to help address challenges in the areas of water and nutrient efficiency. First, the company will work to increase water-use efficiency in irrigation across its own global seed production operations by 25 percent by 2020. Grant also pledged that the company “will continue to innovate and advance smarter seeds and precision management tools that enable farmers to use nutrients more efficiently and curb greenhouse gas emissions on one million acres in the United States by 2020.”

Grant held a telephone press conference following Tuesday’s event together with Illinois farmer and former National Corn Growers Association president Leon Corzine. Monsanto Sustainability Commitments

Audio, Dairy, Sustainability

Farm Bureau Urges Ditching of EPA Water Rule

Cindy Zimmerman

afbf-ditchThe Environmental Protection Agency’s proposed “Waters of the US” rule was published in the Federal Register last week – all 111,000 words of it. The American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF) responded with just three words – “Ditch the Rule”.

AFBF Public Policy Director Dale Moore says the “ditch” part comes from the fact that a reading of the rule indicates it would greatly expand EPA’s authority. “Even things as small as ditches and wet spots in a field could fall under their jurisdiction the way they have this defined,” he said.

There are exemptions in the rule for farming operations, but Moore notes there are limitations that could impact beginning farmers and ranchers. “Most of these exemptions apply to farms and practices on those farms that were in place since 1977 forward,” he said, implying that new farmers and ranchers “may find themselves not having access to any of these exemptions.”

Because of the complexity and the length of the rule – more than 370 printed pages – Moore says the usual 90 day comment period is insufficient so part of the “Ditch the Rule” initiative is to get the administration to at least double that time period to 180 days. “This is a very complicated rule – it’s a massive rule,” said Moore.

That’s why Farm Bureau is calling on its members to bring the rule to the attention of local, state and federal lawmakers. “At a certain point this quits being about regulating navigable waters and becomes basically about EPA becoming the federal land use planning in the nation,” Moore added.

Interview with Dale Moore, American Farm Bureau
AFBF, Audio, Farming

IFAJ Signs Agreement with FAO

Chuck Zimmerman

IFAJ and FAOHey AAEA members. What do you think about this new agreement between the IFAJ and FAO? Interested to hear your thoughts. Including from any NAFB, NAAJ or LPC members.

Many people know that I’m not a big fan of the FAO but I do believe that agreements like this are worthwhile so that the main goal of IFAJ on behalf of its membership is accomplished. Taking it as an example should organizations like the AAEA be creating contractual type agreements here in the USA? Listen to IFAJ President Marcus Rediger talk about the agreement below.

FAO and the International Federation of Agricultural Journalists (IFAJ) are joining forces to promote wider global sharing of agricultural information and better highlight FAO’s activities in specialized agricultural media worldwide.

An agreement signed today by FAO Director-General José Graziano da Silva and IFAJ President Markus Rediger outlines various joint activities to be undertaken by FAO and the 3,000+ journalists represented by the 32 national associations that form the IFAJ.

The partnership aims at enhancing knowledge exchange and content publishing related to global hunger and food security, nutrition, sustainable development and the responsible management of fishery and forestry resources, among other issues.

“Partnering with specialized agricultural media can play a critical role in informing the general public and target audiences that together, we can transform the lives of those who suffer from chronic hunger and food insecurity – and that it can be done in our lifetime,” said Graziano da Silva at the signing ceremony.

Under the terms of the agreement, FAO information – including press releases, reports and editorial articles – will be disseminated among IFAJ members to help journalists create public awareness on the necessary actions to end hunger.

This agreement also will feature jointly-organized events and the opening of a FAO news section on IFAJ’s website with extensive information on food and agriculture issues and trends.

A joint FAO/IFAJ award will be created to recognize the work of journalists who significantly contribute to raising awareness on the crucial importance of fighting hunger. “This project will inspire our colleagues to write about these themes that are basic for world agriculture,” Rediger said.

The new partnership also foresees advocacy events related to the International Year of Family Farming (2014) and other UN International Years related to FAO’s mandate.

ACN, IFAJ, International, Media