Trimble Adds Analytic Tool & App to Connected Farm

Jamie JohansenAgribusiness, Crop Protection, Data, Trimble

connectedfarmTrimble announced that it will be adding a profit and loss reporting feature to its Connected Farm™ Field application—a Web-based field data management tool where growers can manage field boundaries, task data, crop health maps and precipitation data. With the new feature—which includes a user-friendly graphical interface—it is now possible for growers to analyze field profitability and make better financial decisions for their operations. The new functionality in Trimble’s Connected Farm provides growers with a more robust Web-based management solution that emphasizes precision farming data, field profitability, fleet management and agronomic services.

Connected Farm Field provides a scalable and reliable set of management tools for handling large amounts of precision farming task data from a number of different industry sources. This includes both data sent wirelessly from Trimble’s Office Sync solution as well as data from a USB drive using Trimble’s File Sync utility. Connected Farm leverages the latest in cloud technology to ensure that the data is safely stored, backed-up, and only accessible to users whom the grower has selected.

With the easy-to-use profit and loss reporting tool in Connected Farm Field, costs can be assigned to the inputs used within the precision farming data which includes materials, vehicles, implements and operators. In addition, Trimble’s brand-agnostic strategy allows growers to gather information from a variety of industry precision farming systems for use in profit and loss calculations. Integrating this financial information creates powerful profit and loss graphics that can enable growers to determine which fields are most profitable and why.

Read More

Farm Bureau Workshop Shows How to Fly High with UAVs

John DavisAFBF, Ag Group, Agribusiness, Aviation, Farm Bureau, UAV

afbf15-uav-priceFarmers and ranchers at the recent American Farm Bureau Federation’s 96th Annual Convention and IDEAg Trade Show got a better look at the benefits of unmanned aerial vehicles. This news release from the group says the workshop presented by Kevin Price, executive vice president of applied research and technology development at AgPixel/RoboFlight Systems, LLC, showed how the combination of UAVs and multi-spectral image processing could be the next step in precision agriculture, giving farmers almost instant information with greater detail than ever before.

“This will be a technology that changes the way we do agriculture,” Price said.

The concept behind this innovation is simple: the healthier a plant is, the more chlorophyll it produces; the more chlorophyll a plant has, the more green light it reflects. With multi-spectral images reading the amount of green light being reflected by crops and a specialized map (Normalized Difference Vegetation Index), farmers will be able to get an image of their field with all of the trouble spots highlighted.

This map allows a field scout or farmer to find areas with nitrogen deficiency, irrigation lapses, soil erosion, or insect or weather damage. The high resolution images tell farmers exactly where to take action, saving them from the time and expense of treating a larger area. Many of the problems mapping can detect are invisible to an observer standing on the ground.

“I was contacted by the Chinese to teach them how to use drones,” Price explained. “When taking a picture of rice I thought it looked really good, but when the maps came back, directly in front of me was a problem area.”

The agriculture sector is expected to benefit from the use of UAVs 10 times as much as other industries, with rapid adoption. But Price cautions against farmers jumping in with shoddy products and promises of cheap analysis. He says producers need drones that are sturdy and give the information needed.

2015 AFBF Convention photo album

FIGARO to Unveil Smart Irrigation System at UN Meeting

John DavisAgribusiness, Irrigation

FIGAROlarge_DSS System1A new smart, precision irrigation system will be unveiled at the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) meeting in Rome. This news release from FIGARO, an EU-funded international project focused on developing new precision agriculture to improve irrigation management, will present an advanced precision irrigation DSS system at the special meeting this week.

The FIGARO platform V1, a decision support system for water and fertilizer irrigation, acts as a SaaS platform, periodically running leading and approved crop models to provide farmers with on-line recommendations regarding the best irrigation and fertilization schedules for their farms. Data is provided for specific crops and soils, water and climate conditions.

In order to make the recommendations precise, the platform is connected to real-world sensors, and collects environmental and crop-growth data from a wide variety of in-field and remote sensors and data sources including soil moisture, water meters, satellite images and weather stations. The data are fed automatically or manually into the DSS platform models and supply the crop module operating on real-time data.

“As we enter the third year of the system’s development, we are proud to present the highly innovative and advanced precision irrigation DSS system,” said project coordinator Lior Doron, director of the Crop Management Technology department at Netafim Ltd., a world leader in drip and micro irrigation.

The system has already been tested in field tests carried out in nine European countries with very promising results and will be rolled out to farmers and other stakeholders in a series of workshops.

Cargill Highlights 150 Years of Legacy and Innovation

John DavisAgribusiness

cargill_logoIt all started on the heels of the Civil War when in 1865, William Wallace Cargill became the owner of a single grain warehouse in Conover, Iowa. Now, Cargill is celebrating 150 years of that legacy that started at the end of the McGregor Western Railroad and has become one of the largest privately-held enterprises in the world with a new website of stories of that history and innovation.

“We are proud of our legacy and the many people who have created it,” said David MacLennan, Cargill’s president and chief executive officer. “Throughout our anniversary year, we will be reflecting on our past and present, and we’ll use those reflections as a springboard to help us focus our thinking on how we can help our partners and customers thrive in an increasingly complex world.”

In 2015, for example, Cargill will bring together emerging international thought leaders with Cargill Learning Journeys in Africa and China, and will prominently participate in events where improving food security and sustainable food production are core topics.

Cargill also is marking its 150th anniversary with an online collection of stories, highlighting its long legacy of innovation and its commitment to helping nourish people around the world. The stories are an account of the people, decisions and innovations that shaped Cargill as it evolved from its modest beginnings in the American Midwest to a major international marketer, transporter and processor of agricultural, financial and industrial products and services.

The website not only covers the humble beginnings of Cargill but the global power it has become. Check it out here.

BASF Wins Two ‘Product of the Year’ Awards

Jamie JohansenAgribusiness, Award, BASF, Fungicides, Herbicides

basf_edited-1BASF was recognized as the winner of two ‘Product of the Year’ awards at the 23rd Annual National No-Tillage Conference in Cincinnati. Headline AMP® fungicide won for the ninth consecutive time in the fungicides category, and Sharpen® herbicide won for the second consecutive time in the herbicides category.

“Headline AMP fungicide continues to be the fungicide market leader for corn growers, delivering more bushels per acre than any other product on the market,” said Caren Schmidt, Ph.D., Technical Marketing Manager, BASF. “Headline AMP fungicide has set the industry standard for disease control and Plant Health in corn crops.”

On-farm field trials from 2013 show Headline AMP fungicide delivers 11.7 bu/A more than untreated corn. In addition, 83 percent of the National Corn Growers Association’s (NCGA) 2013 National Yield Contest Winners used a BASF fungicide on their operation in 2013.

Sharpen herbicide drives burndown of tough weeds three-to-five times faster than 2,4-D or glyphosate – an important feature for many no-till growers.

Sharpen herbicide is powered by Kixor® herbicide technology, which features a unique chemistry that provides foliar and soil activity on today’s toughest weeds.

“An effective burndown is important for fighting resistant weeds in no-till fields,” said Mark Oostlander, Technical Market Manager, BASF. “Sharpen herbicide controls over 70 broadleaf weeds, including glyphosate-resistant weeds, and gives growers a clean start so they can stay clean throughout the season and increase yield potential.”

The No-Till Product of the Year award winners are selected each year by No-Till Farmer readers. No-till and conservation tillage growers vote for the products most valuable to their farming operation in 13 different categories, including fungicide and herbicide products of the year.

Popularity of Drone Tech Growing

Jamie JohansenAgribusiness, drone, UAS, UAV

The discussion of drones in the ag world is at an all time high. Universities across the country are conducting research of all kinds enabling more opportunities. However, those in the agricultural community are not the only ones interested in investing in the future of drone technology.

USA Today reported that ten news media companies partnered with Virginia Tech to test small unmanned drones to be used in the gathering of news. A few included in the partnership are Gannett, The New York Times Co. and the Associated Press. The research will center around “safety testing of a series of real-life scenarios in which drones will be flown in collecting photos and videos at remote sites.”

“Unmanned aircraft systems can provide this industry a safe, efficient, timely and affordable way to gather and disseminate information and keep journalists out of harm’s way,” Rose Mooney, executive director of the Virginia Tech Mid-Atlantic Aviation Partnership, said in a statement.

What does this mean for those of use involved in the agricultural industry? Time will tell, but the growth and awareness of the potential of drone technology is spreading. This could mean more opportunities for ag even sooner then we thought.

USDA Deregulates Dicamba-Tolerant Traits

Cindy ZimmermanMonsanto, USDA, Weed control

USDA’s Animal Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) today announced “determinations of nonregulated status for Monsanto Company’s (Monsanto) soybeans and cotton that are resistant to certain herbicides, including one known as dicamba.”

monsanto1Monsanto officials say the decision to deregulate Roundup Ready 2 Xtend™ soybeans and Bollgard II® XtendFlex™ cotton “will provide farmers with more consistent, flexible control of tough-to-manage broadleaf weeds.”

“This announcement marks an important milestone for farmers around the world,” said Robb Fraley, Ph.D., Monsanto’s chief technology officer. “Weeds represent a key pest to agriculture operations around the world and limit crops of much-needed nutrients, sunlight and access to available water resources.”

To prepare for commercialization and to further enhance growers’ experience with the technology, Monsanto trained more than 7,500 growers, retail partners and stakeholders on weed management. The company expects to announce commercial intentions in the near future.

The USDA decision is expected to be published shortly in the Federal Register.

Poll Backs U.S. Ag Coalition for Cuba

Jamie JohansenZimmPoll

New Holland ZimmPollOur latest ZimmPoll asked the question, “What do you think about new US Ag Coalition for Cuba?”

There is no doubt the ag community is behind the U.S. Agriculture Coalition for Cuba and it’s goals of re-establishing trade. As time goes by it will be interesting to see how it will open up the market in U.S. food and ag exports.

Here are the poll results:

  • Will benefit all aspects of agriculture – 84%
  • Bad idea – 0%
  • Undecided – 5%
  • Haven’t heard about it – 11%

Our new ZimmPoll is now live and asks the question, Is China’s recent ban on imports of U.S. poultry & eggs justified?

Effective January 8, the Chinese government imposed a nationwide restriction on U.S. imported poultry and eggs following the detection of avian flu in wild birds in the Pacific Northwest. Do you think that China is right on track and it’s better to be safe than sorry or is it completely overkill with no justification for the drastic action.

Ag Engineers to Honor Digi-Star’s NT8000i

John DavisAgribusiness, Award

digistar1A rate control system for spreaders is being recognized as one of the year’s most innovative designs in engineering products or systems for the food and agriculture industries. Digi-Star says its NT8000i Nutrient Tracker Rate Control System earned an American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers (ASABE) AE50 award, an honor to be handed out during ASABE’s annual meeting in Louisville, Ky. in February.

Chris Horton, Digi-Star product development manager, said, “The NT8000i provides the precision control and automated traceability that the spreading industry demands.”

Digi-Star’s general manager Kevin Klubertanz said, “It has been a tremendous joint effort between our North American and United Kingdom development teams to introduce the NT8000i, and we are very excited about its far reaching potential.”

The annual AE50 competition honors up to 50 of the best products chosen by a panel of international engineering experts.

Strawberry Group Gets Research Grants for Soils

John DavisAg Group, Fruit, Research, USDA

calstrawberryThe California Strawberry Commission is getting more than $1 million in state and federal grants to research healthy soils. This commission news release says the research will focus on evaluation of experimental soil borne disease management systems using biologically active soil treatments.

“These recent grant awards will allow us to continue working with the top researchers in the world to find sustainable solutions to managing plant disease and pests in the soil without fumigation,” said Dan Legard, commission vice president of research and grower education. “We look forward to more robust research aimed at new ways to create healthy soil environments for strawberries.”

Continued research to find non-chemical alternatives to fumigants is critical to the future sustainability of California strawberry farmers, who have received global recognition for phasing out methyl bromide to protect the earth’s ozone layer. The loss of methyl bromide has left farmers with only one remaining tool to clean the soil – chloropicrin. While chloropicrin has been used safely for the past 50 years, it does not control all the soil borne disease. In recent years, the state’s strawberry farmers have seen an increase in two diseases: macrophomina and fusarium.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Agricultural Research Service awarded $750,000 for further research into deploying anaerobic soil disinfestation (ASD) and mustard seed meal methods as practical and sustainable options for California strawberry farmers to control diseases in the soil. Also, the California Environmental Protection Agency’s Department of Pesticide Regulation awarded $298,472 to the commission to evaluate soil-borne disease management systems that integrate the use of biologically active soil treatments, such as ASD, in combination with reduced rates of fumigants.