Monsanto Announces Digital and BioAg Product Pipelines

Cindy ZimmermanAudio, Monsanto

Monsanto is still on track to become part of Bayer AG by the end of the year, but in the meantime it is business as usual and that business continues to expand to offer more solutions for farmers. The company made a number of major announcements as part of its Annual Research & Development Showcase on Thursday.

Monsanto subsidiary The Climate Corporation unveiled more than 35 projects in the R&D pipeline, and an expansion of the Climate FieldView™ digital agriculture platform. “Our research is aimed at improving farmer or grower productivity,” said Monsanto Chief Technology Officer Dr. Robb Fraley.

Fraley was joined by Climate Corporation CEO Mike Stern and Chief Scientist Sam Eathington to talk about the new projects. [wpaudio url=”http://traffic.libsyn.com/zimmcomm/monsanto-climate-1-5-17.mp3″ text=”Monsanto/Climate Corporation R&D Pipeline”]

Also, the BioAg Alliance, a collaboration between Monsanto and Novozymes, announced results from its 2016 field trial program and shared an updated research pipeline. “We’re especially excited about Acceleron® B-300 SAT and think it could have a fit on more than 90 million acres,” said Fraley during the Monsanto webcast. [wpaudio url=”http://traffic.libsyn.com/zimmcomm/fraley-bioag.mp3″ text=”Robb Fraley comments on BioAg Alliance”]

It’s #PotatoExpo Time

Cindy ZimmermanEvents, Nufarm, Potato

The first agricultural meeting of the year is underway this week – the annual Potato Expo, which is being held in San Francisco, CA.

Unite with others at high energy networking opportunities and gain practical business solutions at the 9th annual Potato Expo! Join more than 2,000 growers, suppliers, and experts at the largest conference and trade show for the potato industry held in North America.

Potato Expo 2017 offers educational programming covering the top issues facing the potato industry, provides countless networking opportunities with key decision makers, and showcases the latest products and services for potato production, storage, and distribution. Come to share knowledge and gain insight into the industry’s newest offerings and opportunities.

AgWired’s Chuck Zimmerman is on the ground to be our eyes and ears at the expo so stay tuned!

Coverage of the Potato Expo is sponsored by Coverage of Potato Expo is sponsored by Nufarm

AcuRite Announces New Monitoring Solutions

Kelly MarshallAgribusiness, weather

AcuRite is announcing a new addition to their personal weather station technology.  The AcuRite Atlas family consists of three outdoor environmental monitoring models, the AcuRite Atlas 7, AcuRite Atlas 8, and AcuRite Atlas Elite.  Used with the My AcuRite cloud-based software, the system provides a better understanding of outdoor conditions for more educated decision-making.

“Building on our history of delivering world-class personal weather stations, our new AcuRite Atlas and AcuRite Atlas Elite provide a more comprehensive picture of environmental conditions and the potential for hidden dangers in the areas people care about most,” said Jon Balicki, president & COO of Chaney Instrument Co, maker of AcuRite. “When combined with My AcuRite, these new products deliver the value our customers deserve and the tools they need to plan their day with confidence.”

Monsanto Announces New Gene Editing License

Kelly MarshallAgribusiness, Audio, Gene Editing, Monsanto

Monsanto Company has announced another step forward for the future of gene editing.  A global licensing agreement between themselves, the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard will allow the company nonexclusive use of CRISPR-Cpf1 technology – a simpler, more precise tool for improving a cell’s DNA.  Not only does the new system offer greater flexibility in editing, it’s smaller in size also means more options for use in multiple crops.

“The CRISPR-Cpf1 system is a powerful new discovery within the field of genome editing, and we’re excited to license the system and add it to our growing portfolio of genome-editing tools,” said Tom Adams, Ph.D., biotechnology lead for Monsanto. “This system offers a technical step-change by presenting new ways to improve crops for farmers and society alike, offering researchers greater flexibility and new capabilities using this emerging technology to improve agriculture.”

This announcement was part of Monsanto’s R&D and earnings news released Thursday. Monsanto Chief Technology Officer Dr. Robb Fraley talked about the new technology with reporters: [wpaudio url=”http://traffic.libsyn.com/zimmcomm/fraley-gene-editing.mp3″ text=”Robb Fraley, Monsanto on gene editing technology”]

Precision Ag Bytes

Kelly MarshallPrecision Ag Bytes

  • Meister Media Worldwide is enhancing the PrecisonAg magazine to become PrecisionAg Professional. The publication, presented by the editors of CropLife magazine, will be aimed at ag retailers and cooperatives, consultants, Extension specialists, and equipment dealers.
  • The Southern Branch of the American Society of Agronomy is offering a special session in Mobile, Alabama on February 5-7, featuring gypsum.  The session “Gypsum Use in Agricultural Production Systems” will review research findings related to gypsum’s impact on increasing soil water infiltration and reducing P runoff losses from agricultural fields.
  • “SciBabe” kicks off the annual American Soybean Associaion’s Soybean Leadership College.  Held in St. Louis, Missouri on January 10-12, 2017, the event offers trading to current and future industry leaders to effectively promote and communicate key agriculture messages.
  • Isagro USA, Inc. announced an agreement to exclusively distribute Taegro© 2 Biofungicide in North America.  Taegro 2 provides broad-spectrum protection of major soil-borne and foliar diseases in fruit and vegetable crops.

Commodity Classic Early Bird Registration Ends Soon!

Kelly MarshallCommodity Classic

Just a quick reminder that the early bird registration discount for the 2017 Commodity Classic will expire in just a few days!  Thursday, January 12, 2017 will be the last day to take advantage of the lower price.  Member of the National Corn Growers Association, American Soybean Association, National Association of Wheat Growers, National Sorghum Producers, and Association of Equipment Manufacturers can receive additional discounts as well.

All registration and housing reservations should be made online at www.commodityclassic.com. Experient is the official registration and housing provider for Commodity Classic. In order to stay at an official Commodity Classic hotel, reservations must be made only through Experient to ensure favorable rates, reasonable terms and confirmed hotel rooms.

Precision Ag Summit Set for January

Kelly MarshallAg Group, Events

The Red River Valley Research Corridor and North Dakota Farmers Union have teamed up to bring you the 6th annual Precision Ag Summit.  Mark your calendars for January 16-17 and plan on being at the North Dakota Farmers Union Conference Center in Jamestown, North Dakota for hands-on and technical demonstrations of the latest precision technologies.

“One of the themes of the summit this year will be the cost benefit or profitability of precision ag,” said Ryan Aasheim of the Red River Valley Research Corridor (RRVRC). “With the tough economic times farmers are facing, we thought this would be a good way to frame the event. We will have certain sessions focused on profitability with precision ag, cost savings using different technologies and value of data management, imagery data and remote sensing.

Some of the topics that will be highlighted during the summit include:

  • Cost Saving Strategies Using Precision Ag Digital Agronomic, Data Analytics and the Future of Precision Agriculture
  • The Profitability of Precision Ag
  • Strategies for Multi-hybrid Planting
  • Tile Drainage to Manage Salinity
  • Making Drones Work For You

Do You Qualify for Stoneville Legacy Club

Kelly MarshallBayer CropScience, Contest, Cotton

Stoneville cotton seed is celebrating the history of the south with a special Legacy Club to honor growers averaging more than 1,794 lb/acre of Stoneville seed cotton grown on 20- acres or more.  The 1,794 mark was chosen to remember the year Eli Whitney patented the cotton gin.

Those who qualify for membership also have the opportunity to attend a Legacy Club event in their area for a chance to win a Polaris Ranger XP 1000 EPS.  Throughout the spring of 2017, entries will be collected and one name will be drawn at random to receive the Ranger.

“In the Legacy Club, we remember our roots,” Wistehuff says. “Both our growers and our Stoneville cotton seed are deeply rooted in the cotton industry, and that history is what our local events will celebrate.”

Stoneville cotton seed must be planted on 100 percent of qualifying acres between January 1, 2016 and December 31, 2016, and club qualification is open to all 17 cotton-producing states. Growers are encouraged to contact their local Bayer sales rep or agronomic services representative to learn how to sign up, and visit www.Stoneville.com/LegacyClub for more information.

Switchgrass Can Improve Soil Quality

Kelly MarshallConservation, erosion, Research, Soil

In parts of Missouri, Iowa, Kansas, Illinois, Oklahoma and Texas the loss of topsoil leaves growers to work with difficult claypan soil, but researchers at the University of Missouri College of Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources are hopeful about a solution.  Studies show switchgrass, a perennial plant commonly used for biofuels, can build up the soil quality on farms that have lost their fertile topsoil.

“Once a farm loses its topsoil due to erosion, the soil recovers very slowly,” Anderson said. “Switchgrass can be grown efficiently on eroded claypan soils; farmers who have lost their topsoil may want to consider growing this hardy plant. Switchgrass can be harvested and sold as a biomass crop for ethanol production or as fuel for power plants. While demand depends on the current market for biomass crops, this could be an answer for these farmers who otherwise have challenges obtaining good economic returns growing grain crops on eroded land.”