USDA Helping Farmers Prepare for Climate Change

Cindy ZimmermanAudio, Bayer CropScience, climate, USDA, water

bayer-aif15-hohensteinMany in the agricultural community may not be aware that USDA has an office which is charged with helping farmers prepare for climate change. Climate Change Program Office director Bill Hohenstein (pictured left) talked some of their work during the Bayer CropScience Ag Issues Forum last week in Phoenix.

“We’re concerned about climate change,” he said during an interview with Chuck. “Climate change has the potential to create risks for farmers, and we want to make sure we’re positioning agriculture to deal with the changes we’ll be facing over the century.”

Hohenstein says USDA is taking a practical, pragmatic approach to climate change and paying attention to what the science says. He sees USDA’s role as one that works with farmers on practical matters, such as managing risks – drought and pests, just to name a couple, and staying ahead of those risks. Plus, he says they have to consider the role agriculture does play in contributing to greenhouse gases and how to minimize ag’s affects on climate change. “We have a broad, practical program that provides a lot of benefits to farmers in managing risks.”

He added that USDA understands that climate risks are different in the different regions of the country and has tailored its responses based on what is more normal for a region, for example, what a drought means to the desert southwest as compared to drought in New England.

Hohenstein directed farmers and producers wanting more information to check out USDA’s Regional Climate Hubs webpage.

[wpaudio url=”http://www.zimmcomm.biz/bayer/aif-15-hohenstein.mp3″ text=”Interview with Bill Hohenstein, USDA Climate Change Program Office”]

2015 Ag Issues Forum Photo Album

Yield Champs Share Tips at #Classic15

Cindy ZimmermanAudio, BASF, Commodity Classic, Corn, Soybeans

Two yield rocking champions played to a standing room only crowd at the 2015 Commodity Classic in a session sponsored by BASF Crop Protection on how to get the most out of your acres.

classic15-basf-kipAlways a crowd pleaser, world champion soybean grower Kip Cullers of Missouri hammered home the importance of happy plants and packing starch. “You keep that plant alive, happy, healthy and growing,” said Cullers. “Keep the factory alive, keep packing starch, increase your seed weight, you kernel size, and that’s just the way it works.”

“It’s a total system approach,” he added. “You gotta do everything right to the best of your ability and hope Mother Nature works with you.” [wpaudio url=”http://www.zimmcomm.biz/basf/classic15-basf-kip.MP3″ text=”Interview with Missouri farmer Kip Cullers”]

classic15-basf-hulaNational Corn Yield Contest multiple winner David Hula of Virginia put his advice in the form of the Farmer’s Hand to Success.

“Starts out with the thumb for a positive attitude – thumbs up,” said Hula. “Then your index finger, what you can point to that you did right or wrong.”

The middle finger Hula calls the “mechanical finger” and represents equipment, the ring finger represents relationships and the importance of seed. “Because that is emotionally driven but it’s very important to us,” he explains. The whole palm represents gratitude to the Good Lord in prayer. Amen! [wpaudio url=”http://www.zimmcomm.biz/basf/classic15-basf-hula.mp3″ text=”Interview with NCYC winner David Hula of Virginia”]

2015 Commodity Classic Photo Album


2015 BASF Science Behind Photos

Coverage of Commodity Classic is sponsored by
Coverage of Commodity Classic sponsored by John Deere Coverage of Commodity Classic sponsored by Propane Education and Research Council

NCGA Good Steward Award at #Classic15

Cindy ZimmermanAg Group, Commodity Classic, Corn, NCGA, sustainability

classic15-ncga-stewardThe National Corn Growers Association honored Mike Shuter of Indiana with this year’s Good Steward Recognition Program during last week’s 2015 Commodity Classic convention and trade show. The award recognizes one U.S. farmer annually who is demonstrating leadership in sustainable corn production.

“When it comes to finding practical solutions to conserve and better natural resources on the farm, Mike Shuter has a mind you want to make sure you tap,” said NCGA President Chip Bowling. “His tireless enthusiasm for discovering new methods for improving his soil, preserving water quality and improving the profitability of farming makes everyone take notice. Mike has really proven a superior commitment to sustainability through innovation.”

The program and award funding was provided by the Howard G. Buffett Foundation as part of its Harvesting the Potential campaign to raise awareness among U.S. farmers of the importance of conservation agriculture.

2015 Commodity Classic Photo Album

Coverage of Commodity Classic is sponsored by
Coverage of Commodity Classic sponsored by John Deere Coverage of Commodity Classic sponsored by Propane Education and Research Council

Deere Sponsors Policy Panel at #Classic15

Cindy ZimmermanAFBF, Ag Group, Audio, Commodity Classic, John Deere

John Deere sponsored an ag policy panel at the 2015 Commodity Classic, moderated by our friend Sara Wyant with Agri-Pulse, and featuring the policy specialists from the American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF) and National Farmers Union (NFU).

chandler-marykayAmong the issues NFU’s Chandler Goule and AFBF’s Mary Kay Thatcher discussed was EPA’s pending Waters of the U.S. proposal

“Waters of the U.S. is by far the biggest issue we face right now,” said Thatcher. “It would be wonderful if we could simply eliminate this rule but EPA administrator McCarthy intends to finalize the rule in April so it will them be up to us to get to Congress and make it a little less objectionable.”

Goule says NFU went to EPA with the rest of agriculture to participate in the rulemaking. “We submitted over 15 pages of comments, we told them what a ditch is,” he said. “But the theory of just ditch the rule is going to leave uncertainty.”

Thatcher and Goule addressed a number of other issues, such as farm bill implementation, trade, and the Renewable Fuel Standard, and our intrepid intern Taylor Truckey interviewed both of them after the panel about their viewpoints.

[wpaudio url=”http://www.zimmcomm.biz/commodity-classic/classic15-deere-afbf.mp3″ text=”Classic15 Interview with Mary Kay Thatcher, AFBF”] [wpaudio url=”http://www.zimmcomm.biz/commodity-classic/classic15-deere-nfu.mp3″ text=”Classic15 Interview with Chandler Goule, NFU”]

2015 Commodity Classic Photo Album

Coverage of Commodity Classic is sponsored by
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MyJohnDeere Operations Center Connectivity

Cindy ZimmermanAudio, Commodity Classic, Data, John Deere, technology

classic15-deere-press1John Deere has made several significant advancements in the area of intelligent precision solutions in the past six months and at Commodity Classic we learned more about how these tools help growers connect with trusted advisers.

Pat Pinkston, John Deere Vice President for Technology and Information Solutions Agriculture, introduced a panel consisting of a farmer, an agronomic services provider, and a John Deere dealer who talked about how they are using some of the new innovations, which includes the John Deere App Center introduced in January.

“You can get one application that will connect you to all of the applications that John Deere has introduced for mobile devices,” said Pinkston.

LtoR: Ron Milby with GROWMARK Agronomy; Illinois farmer Ken Dahlenberg, Justin Blanchette with AHW

LtoR: Ron Milby with GROWMARK Agronomy; Illinois farmer Ken Dahlenberg, Justin Blanchette with AHW

The panel highlighted the connectivity of the MyJohnDeere Operations Center, introduced in August. Farmer Ken Dahlenberg of east central Illinois talked about how he works with his crop consultant and John Deere technical specialist as a team.

“Over the last few years we’ve created a lot of data – from planting to spraying to fertilizing to harvesting,” said Dahlenberg. “Now we have the ability with My(JohnDeere) Operations Center to get that information seamlessly and move it forward through agronomy decision making processes but also being able to look at the machine if it’s not operating or recording properly.”

Dahlenberg says he can send data as he is harvesting to his consultants at GROWMARK cooperative Illini FS and they can make recommendations on the spot. GROWMARK Agronomy Marketing Executive Director Ron Milby says that is something he really likes about MyJohnDeere wireless data transfer. “It actually can seamlessly go from Kenny’s machine to our software and that data can drive insight,” said Milby, who adds that the technology is also helping ag retailers service customers better.

Justin Blanchette says his John Deere dealership AHW in Dwight, Illinois has a centralized support center with a staff of seven to help farmers like Ken keep the data moving. “We’re there to be the ‘easy’ button,” he said.

Find out more here: [wpaudio url=”http://www.zimmcomm.biz/commodity-classic/classic15-deere-press.mp3″ text=”John Deere panel press conference at Classic15″]

2015 Commodity Classic Photo Album

Coverage of Commodity Classic is sponsored by
Coverage of Commodity Classic sponsored by John Deere Coverage of Commodity Classic sponsored by Propane Education and Research Council

CTIC Talks Soil Health at #Classic15

John Davisagronomy, Audio, Commodity Classic, Conservation, CTIC, USDA

classic15-cticGood crops start from healthy soils, so it only makes sense that the Conservation Technology Information Center (CTIC), a national, public-private partnership that promotes environmentally beneficial soil practices, was a part of this year’s Commodity Classic in Phoenix, Arizona.

Cindy caught up with Karen Scanlon, CTIC executive director, who said her organization is celebrating 2015 as the International Year of Soils.

“[CTIC] has always supported soil health by promoting conservation systems as a great combination of practices that can build up soil quality and protect other resources while being a productive and profitable system for farmers,” she said, adding that CTIC was handing out gummy worms and recipes at Commodity Classic so families can have a fun way to learn about soils.

CTIC was also part of the recent Soil Health Summit in St. Louis, Missouri, part of the Soil Health Partnership. Scanlon said it’s partnerships like that one, which includes ag groups and agribusinesses, that builds better understanding for all parties interested and having a stake in soil health.

“It was great to see the farmers participating, and I was really encouraged by all the interest farmers have in trying these practices and being part of something new and how eager they were to share what they were learning,” she said.

CTIC has several more items in the works, including a cover crop survey they’ve just started and the next CTIC Conservation in Action Tour, Aug. 11-12 in Minnesota.

Listen to Cindy’s conversation with Karen here: [wpaudio url=”http://www.zimmcomm.biz/commodity-classic/classic15-ctic.mp3″ text=”Karen Scanlon, CTIC executive director”]

2015 Commodity Classic Photo Album

Coverage of Commodity Classic is sponsored by
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Biotech Among Top Issues at #Classic15

Cindy ZimmermanAg Group, Audio, Commodity Classic, Corn, Sorghum, Soybeans, wheat

classic15-asa-1 Trade, taxes, biotechnology, farm policy and government regulations are the main issues of concern to the commodity organizations who make up the Commodity Classic. Leadership of the American Soybean Association (ASA), National Corn Growers Association (NCGA), National Association of Wheat Growers (NAWG), and National Sorghum Producers (NSP) all held press conferences Thursday to talk about their top priorities.

Under the category of biotech, ASA president Wade Cowan of Texas says they plan to promote a national certified non-GMO label for consumers who want to know. “It doesn’t help consumers if they have a label that says from one tenth to 100% is GMO – 99% of things on the shelf would have a GMO label,” he said.

ASA chairman Ray Gaesser got into more details about their ideas on GMO labeling and first Vice president Ray Wilkins discussed the organizations trade priorities. [wpaudio url=”http://www.zimmcomm.biz/commodity-classic/classic15-asa-press.mp3″ text=”Classic ASA press conference”]

classic15-ncga-chipNCGA president Chip Bowling also talked about biotechnology and trade issues. “We will fight to remove trade barriers and expand overseas markets for US corn. We will support trade promotion authority legislation and normalization of trade with Cuba, a market with great potential for US corn and corn products.”
[wpaudio url=”http://www.zimmcomm.biz/commodity-classic/classic15-ncga-press.mp3″ text=”Classic NCGA press conference”]

classic15-wheat-pres

The new president of NAWG is Brett Blankenship of Washington who stressed the importance of trade to wheat farmers particularly in his region of the country. “I farm in the Pacific Northwest and the PNW states are trade dependent, and the percentage of wheat exported out of the PNW is closer to 90% of production,” he said, compared to the 50% average nationwide. “The Pacific Rim countries are vital.”

[wpaudio url=”http://www.zimmcomm.biz/commodity-classic/classic15-nawg-press.mp3″ text=”Classic NAWG press conference”]

classic15-nsp-lust

National Sorghum Producers discussed the increased demand for sorghum in export and food markets; export markets represent 52% of the total market share for sorghum. NSP and Sorghum Check-off representatives stressed the importance of increasing sorghum acres to fulfill demand, and the opportunities that creates for growers. Speaking on behalf of the NSP board, CEO Tim Lust says “The demand today far exceeds the supply. From a checkoff standpoint, our goal is to continue to create these opportunities.” Sorghum usage in today’s food market is also a rapid growth area for the sorghum industry.
[wpaudio url=”http://www.zimmcomm.biz/commodity-classic/classic15-sorghum-press.mp3″ text=”Classic NSP press conference”]

2015 Commodity Classic Photo Album

Coverage of Commodity Classic is sponsored by
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Iteris Signs Precision Ag Weather Agreement

Cindy ZimmermanIteris, Software, technology, weather

iteris-logoIteris, Inc. has signed an agreement with AgRenaissance Software LLC to integrate Iteris’ ClearAg™ Select high-resolution, field-level weather information into AgRenaissance’s FieldX™ suite of software for agricultural producers, agronomists and applicators.

Iteris’ ClearAg solution provides agribusinesses with actionable field-level weather and soil information needed for the data-driven decision making required for efficient crop management, resource allocation, and risk reduction and mitigation. ClearAg is a series of application programming interfaces (API’s) and mobile application products that can be readily integrated with third-party agricultural software applications like FieldX from AgRenaissance. FieldX is an easy-to-use, record-keeping tool for agricultural producers, agronomists and applicators. The FieldX suite includes PC software, an iPad® app, and a cloud-based data storage system.

Read more from Iteris.

Vilsack Announces Base Acres Extension at #Classic15

Cindy ZimmermanAudio, Commodity Classic, USDA

vilsackSecretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack spoke to over 7000 agricultural producers and industry members during his 6th appearance at Commodity Classic on Friday. Sec. Vilsack began by stating that he “was in the presence of greatness” and went on to thank farmers for all that they do on a daily basis. He also thanked farmers for their work on the Farm Bill when it came to grassroots support and involvement in motivating legislation.

Vilsack addressed concerns surrounding the Farm Bill and announced a one-time extension by the USDA for producers to reallocate base acres and update yields for 2014 Farm Bill programs ARC and PLC. The final day to update information is now March 31, 2015. For more information, growers can contact local FSA offices.

He was met with applause when he went on to address water conservation concerns, “American farmers have done an amazing job with stewardship, they have cared deeply about the land, they know the condition of every acre of soil they farm. They understand and appreciate the impact and importance of water better than anyone else because their livelihood depends on that soil and that water.” Vilsack referenced the number of producers engaged in conservation programs, the acres enrolled, and knowledge and commitment that producers have to taking care of the land.

Listen to Secretary Vilsack’s complete remarks and press conference here: [wpaudio url=”http://www.zimmcomm.biz/commodity-classic/classic15-vilsack-address.mp3″ text=”Vilsack Addresses Commodity Classic”] [wpaudio url=”http://www.zimmcomm.biz/commodity-classic/classic15-vilsack-press.mp3″ text=”Vilsack Press Conference”]

2015 Commodity Classic Photo Album

Coverage of Commodity Classic is sponsored by
Coverage of Commodity Classic sponsored by John Deere Coverage of Commodity Classic sponsored by Propane Education and Research Council

Public Comments Open on USDA Conservation Easements

John DavisConservation, USDA

usda-logoThe U.S. Department of Agriculture has opened up the public comment period for proposed rules designed to help producers protect working agricultural lands and wetlands. This agency news release says USDA is now accepting comments on its interim final rule for the new Agricultural Conservation Easement Program (ACEP), a consolidation of three previous conservation easement programs into one to make it easier for diverse agricultural landowners to fully benefit from conservation initiatives.

“Since 2009, USDA has worked with producers and private landowners to enroll a record number of acres in conservation programs. This interim final rule takes into account recommendations from agricultural landowners and conservation stakeholders about how to better streamline and enhance conservation easement processes,” [Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack] said.

USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) administers ACEP, a voluntary program created in the 2014 Farm bill to protect and restore critical wetlands on private and tribal lands through the wetland reserve easement component. ACEP also encourages farmers, ranchers and non-industrial private forest landowners to keep their private and tribal land in agricultural use through the agricultural land easement component. ACEP also conserves grasslands, including rangeland, pastureland and shrubland.

Under ACEP’s agricultural land component, tribes, state and local governments and non-governmental organizations that have farmland or grassland protection programs are eligible to partner with USDA to purchase conservation easements. NRCS easement programs have been a critical tool in recent years for advancing landscape-scale private lands conservation. In FY 2014, NRCS used $328 million in ACEP funding to enroll an estimated 143,833 acres of farmland, grassland, and wetlands through 485 new easements. In Florida, NRCS used ACEP funds to enroll an additional 6,700 acres in the Northern Everglades Watershed, supporting the restoration and protection of habitat for a variety of listed species, including the Wood Stork, Crested caracara, and Eastern Indigo Snake. In Georgia, NRCS used these funds to complete the Roundabout Swamp project by enrolling 270 acres of the Carolina Bay to help restore and protect the entire bay ecosystem to historic hydrology and vegetation.

USDA says the land easements offer many benefits to landowners and citizens, including protecting productive working lands being converted to non-agricultural uses. Other benefits include environmental quality, historic preservation, wildlife habitat and protection of open space.