Three Organizations Partner for Pollinators

Kelly MarshallBees, Company Announcement, pollinators, USDA

general-millsThe U.S. Department of Agriculture hosted an announcement between themselves, General Mills, and the largest and oldest pollinator conservation organization, the Xerces Society this morning. The three organizations are joining together to protect the habitats of pollinators on hundreds of thousands of acres of farmland. The project is a five-year, $4 million commitment to provide the technical assistance for planting and protecting wildflowers and flowering hedgerows. The goal is 100,000 acres in the next five years.

xerces-societyIn North America alone, bees are responsible for over $25 billion in agricultural production each year. In addition to improving the yield of many crop species, research demonstrates that pollinators such as bees may also improve the nutritional value and commercial quality of some crops.

“Pollinators supply one-third of the food and beverages that Americans consume,” said Jerry Lynch, Chief Sustainability Officer at General Mills. “As part of General Mills’ global commitment to treat the world with care, our investment will help pollinators to continue to play a key role in sustainable food production in the U.S.”

nrcs“To date, our work with NRCS has resulted in hundreds of thousands of acres of new or improved habitat,” said Scott Hoffman Black, Executive Director of the Xerces Society. “This partnership will allow us to expand conservation support in the Midwest, Northeast and California, reaching many more farmers and bringing greater benefits to the pollinators on which we all rely.”

Listen to the press conference here: [wpaudio url=”http://traffic.libsyn.com/zimmcomm/nrcs-pollinators.mp3″ text=”General Mills, Xerces Society, and NRCS Press Conference”]

#ARA2016 Receive Welcome From Florida FFA President

Kelly MarshallAg Group, ARA, FFA

ara-16-ffa-welcome Who better to welcome members of the Agricultural Retailers Association to Florida for their annual conference than William Jameson, the Florida State FFA President and symbol of agriculture’s future?

Florida stands tall in the agriculture industry, growing more than 300 types of commodities from fresh produce like grapefruit and sweet corn to beef and field crops. The state also boasts 65,000 students enrolled in agriculture classes and 18,000 in the FFA organization.

But just as critical to food production, says Jameson, is the contribution of retailers.  “Your work as agriculture retailers is just as important. You supply farmers and ranchers with the products and services they need; products like seed, nutrients, crop protection, feed, equipment and technology, and also provide consulting services, including things such as crop scouting, soil testing, field mapping, custom planting, application and development of nutritional management and conservation program. The agriculture program needs you and we need you.”

If there’s anything Jameson already knows about farming, it’s that agriculture isn’t for the feint of heart. The industry has faced challenges for generations and it needs farmers and the people who make their work possible to feed the world. Be proud of what you do, Jameson concludes.

Listen to Jameson’s welcome remarks yourself and be proud of the future of the industry as well: [wpaudio url=”http://traffic.libsyn.com/zimmcomm/ara-16-ffa-jameson.mp3″ text=”Welcome Remarks, William Jameson, Florida State FFA President”]

Lots of photos being uploaded here: 2016 ARA Conference & Expo Photo Album

Coverage of the ARA Conference and Expo is sponsored by Coverage of the ARA Conference and Expo is sponsored by FMCCoverage of the ARA Conference and Expo is sponsored by Ag Retailers Association

AGCO Honors Star Operators

Cindy ZimmermanARA, Equipment

ara-16-agco-awardAGCO Corporation presented its 11th annual Operator of the Year award at the Ag Retailers Association convention and expo this week in Orlando. The award, which recognizes the best custom applicators across the country, was given this year to Tony Kornder of Genesis Growing Solutions in Le Sueur, Minnesota.

“We’re proud to have recognized the agricultural industry’s hard-working custom applicators with this special award for more than a decade,” said Mark Mohr, tactical marketing manager at AGCO Corporation.

Kornder has 19 years experience as an applicator and applies on about 35,000 acres each year. Kornder is also a member of his company’s safety committee and a fifth-generation family farmer.

ara-16-agco-finalsAll of the AGCO Operator of the Year finalists were honored at the ARA convention. In addition to Kornder, the finalists were Ken Funk of CHS Elburn in Newark, Illinois; Joel Waterman of Hamel Seed & Farm Supply in Worden, Illinois; and Ronnie Peterson with Crop Production Services in Dothan, Alabama.

Ag retailers across the country nominated more than 40 applicators for the 11th annual Operator of the Year. A panel of judges at AGCO then evaluated submissions based on skills, dedication, customer service and community involvement.

2016 ARA Conference & Expo Photo Album

Coverage of the ARA Conference and Expo is sponsored by Coverage of the ARA Conference and Expo is sponsored by FMCCoverage of the ARA Conference and Expo is sponsored by Ag Retailers Association

What’s Your Reaction to EPA’s Levels for Biofuels?

Jamie JohansenZimmPoll

zp-nh1Our latest ZimmPoll asked the question, “What are you most thankful for this year?”

Family, friends, food and freedom…no doubt the simple majority shined in our Thanksgiving poll.

Here are the poll results:

  • Family – 13%
  • Friends – 3%
  • Food – 0%
  • Freedom – 0%
  • All of the above – 80%
  • Other – 3%

Our new ZimmPoll is live and asks the question, Should EPA increase biofuels use?

EPA set final levels for biofuels use in 2017 under the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) last week that are in line with the 2007 Energy Independence and Security Act, calling for the maximum 15 million gallons of conventional ethanol for the first time and increasing volumes for biomass-based biodiesel. What’s your reaction to that?

#ARA2016 Keynoter Provides Political Insight

Kelly MarshallAg Group, ARA

ara-16-rothenberg Stuart Rothenberg knows the word “nonpartisan” is suspect, but as the Founding Editor of The Rothenberg & Gonzales Political Report, that’s what he strives to be. In his recent keynote address to the members of the Agricultural Retailers Association, Rothenberg talked about the recent Presidential election, and how it was big in more ways than one.

It was big because the outcome was stunning in many respects, Rothenberg said. It’s more than an upset in the polls, but because someone like Trump has never won a major election in this country, or indeed, in any country in the world. He lacked a plan, a political strategy, and basically convention of any sort, but the American people chosen him for those very reasons.

Of course, it was also big because the difference in votes between the 2008 election and this one were pretty tiny, considering the number of overall votes. But while they were small, they were significant. More than one key win was obtained by slight margins on both sides that Tuesday night, but the results were immense.

Listen to more of Rothenberg’s thoughts in this excerpt from his keynote address: [wpaudio url=”http://traffic.libsyn.com/zimmcomm/ara-16-rothenberg.mp3″ text=”Keynote Address, Stuart Rothenberg”]

Lots of photos being uploaded here: 2016 ARA Conference & Expo Photo Album

Coverage of the ARA Conference and Expo is sponsored by Coverage of the ARA Conference and Expo is sponsored by FMCCoverage of the ARA Conference and Expo is sponsored by Ag Retailers Association

Farm Equipment Exports Down 14 Percent

Kelly MarshallAEM, Equipment, Exports

aemThe first three quarters of the year show a 14 percent drop in U.S. agriculture equipment exports compared to the same time frame in 2015.  That’s a difference of more than $5 billion, says the Association of Equipment Manufacturers (AEM).

Europe and Central America continued to be the growth leaders with Asia leading the double-digit declines for the other world regions, according to AEM, citing U.S. Department of Commerce data it uses in global market reports for members.

“In the third quarter of 2016, U.S. agriculture equipment exports to the world continue to decline, and the year-over-year third-quarter exports were lower than year-to-date, with a 17.6 percent Y/Y decline, the highest Y/Y quarterly decline this year so far,” reports Benjamin Duyck, director of market intelligence.

“The ag equipment industry continues to suffer from a global ag downturn in large part due to low commodity prices. While some countries might benefit from their higher commodity production levels, the U.S. manufacturers are watching from the sidelines as a strong dollar is making them less competitive in the global marketplace. Of course, the strong currency is a problem that plagues all U.S. exports.

“Our expectations for the fourth quarter remain subdued as the U.S. dollar is experiencing its longest rally in 16 years. With the global economic malaise, the slowdown in emerging markets and the negative interest rates seen in several economies’ bond markets, investment is flowing to the U.S. and U.S. stocks, driving up demand for our dollar, inadvertently affecting our competitiveness abroad.”

CommonGround Celebrates Six Years

Kelly MarshallAg Group, NCGA, USB, Women

commongroundCommonGround is celebrating its sixth year of connecting urban and suburban women with farm women who wish to tell the story of agriculture. The program, supported with checkoff dollars from the National Corn Growers Association of and the United Soybean Board, began with 15 female farmer volunteers from five states. Now the program boasts nearly 200 farm women from 19 states, including two of your AgWired editors.

Despite the growth, the focus is still the same: finding ways to have conversations surrounding the job of growing food.

Direct family and friends to the Facebook page to ask their questions bout farming.

#ARA2016 Tackling Hot Industry Issues

Cindy ZimmermanARA, Audio

2016 ARA ConferenceThe Agricultural Retailers Association Conference & Expo being held this week near Orlando, Florida is tackling some of the industry’s hottest issues, according to Leroy Startz, ING Capital, who has chaired the conference for the past eight years.

“Lot of activity going on in the mergers and acquisitions world – how is that going to impact the retailers with regard to supply chain and product availability?” said Startz. “We’re also focused on regulatory issues, talent, and networking.”

Startz says they have several first time exhibitors in the new technology area of the Expo this year. “There’s a lot more technology, a lot more use of drones,” he said. “The real key is what type of services they can provide through the retailer and how measurable is that going to be.”

Learn more about the convention, which wraps up today, in this interview: [wpaudio url=”http://traffic.libsyn.com/zimmcomm/ara-16-startz.mp3″ text=”Interview with Leroy Startz, ING Capital”]

Lots of photos being uploaded here: 2016 ARA Conference & Expo Photo Album

Coverage of the ARA Conference and Expo is sponsored by Coverage of the ARA Conference and Expo is sponsored by FMCCoverage of the ARA Conference and Expo is sponsored by Ag Retailers Association

Trelleborg Earns SIMA Innovation Gold Medal

Kelly MarshallAgribusiness, Award, Equipment, Soil

trelleborg-vip-2Trelleborg has earned top honors at the 2017 SIMA Innovation Awards with a gold medal for their newly developed Variable Inflation Pressure (VIP) system.

These soon-to-be-launched tires were developed in conjuncture with AGCO FENDT.  It consists of an autonomous wheel that can self-adjust the tire’s pressure based on the load from the combine.  This innovation optimizes the tire’s footprint to reduce soil compaction.

Paolo Pompei, President Trelleborg Agricultural and Forestry Tires remarked, “To receive the ‘SIMA Innovation Award’ Gold Medal is a tremendous honor for us. It gives us great pride that the agricultural industry recognizes Trelleborg’s long-standing commitment to developing innovative solutions.”

Enthusiasm Growing for Climate Corp’s FieldView

Kelly MarshallAgribusiness, Data, Monsanto

nafb-monsanto-rick-myroup The Climate Corporation‘s FieldView platform has only been on the market for two seasons, but Rick Myroup is pretty enthusiastic about how far the program has come in such a short amount of time.

“The adoption has been rapid.  It’s really been exciting to see how farmers have gravitated to the system and have really seen the benefits of seeing all the data and using data science to make decisions,” Myroup told me at the recent Trade Talk event at the National Association of Farm Broadcasting convention.

As Senior Director of Commercial Marketing, it’s Myron’s job to help farmers understand the power of data science and how the FieldView platform makes it convenient and easy to make sure that data isn’t just sitting around. Farmers have always collected data, be it in binders or notebooks, but putting it together into decision-making material is harder. Field View allows growers to put the layers together and have it waiting at their fingertips on a phone or iPad.

The team at Climate Corp hopes to build on the success of FieldView with several new products that should be available within the next few years.  Look for tools that make it possible to analyze data, not just by field but by drawing a circle on a specific area of the field and noting its exact stats.  Nitrogen monitoring on a sub-field bases is just around the corner as well.

The most important thing for growers to know, Myroup concluded, is that their data is working for them.  Find out more about making that happen in my full interview: [wpaudio url=”http://traffic.libsyn.com/zimmcomm/NAFB-16-Myroup.mp3″ text=”Interview with Rick Myroup, Climate Corporation”]

View and download photos from the event here: NAFB Convention Photo Album