Big Data, Tech Advancements in Morris Hansen Lecture

John DavisAgribusiness, Data, technology, USDA

nass-logoThis year’s Morris Hansen Lecture will look at the role data and advancements in technology play in official statistics and privacy, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) wants you there. The 24th annual version of the event will be held in Washington, D.C., at the USDA’s Jefferson Auditorium, Jan. 20, 2015 from 3:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m

This year’s keynote speaker, Danny Pfeffermann, Ph.D., will discuss the potential use of big data; increasing data accessibility while maintaining privacy and confidentiality; possible uses of data obtained from web-panels; addressing the problems of response burden and nonresponse; mode effects and proxy surveys; integration of statistical and geospatial information. Dr. Pfeffermann is Professor of Statistics at the University of Southampton in England, the National Statistician and Head of the Central Bureau of Statistics for Israel, and current President of the International Association of Survey Statisticians.

The lecture series was established by the Washington Statistical Society to honor Morris Hansen and his pioneering contributions to survey sampling and related statistical methods during his long and distinguished career at the U.S. Census Bureau.

This lecture is free to the public, but advanced registration is required and can be made online here: www.nass.usda.gov/Education_and_Outreach/Morris_Hansen/index.php

Sharper Focus for Beltwide Cotton Conferences

Cindy ZimmermanAudio, Cotton, technology

beltwide-15This was the second year of the new format for the Beltwide Cotton Conferences with more focus on consulting and technology. Coordinator Dale Thompson with the National Cotton Council says the consultants conference has taken on more importance in the new format.

“These are the people that producers depend on to get information,” said Thompson. “And they depend on consultants more and more in this day of technology increasing every day.”

Consultants conference coordinator Bill Robertson with the University of Arkansas says technology has has really changed the focus of the cotton conferences from how they used to be held. “When you go back to the 1990s, attendance at the Beltwide was over 5,000 and a large portion of them were producers,” said Robertson, who notes that was before the real explosion in cell phone or internet use. “A lot of producers are relying on the help they get from consultants in the decision-making process,” he added.

Listen to interviews with Thompson and Robertson from the Beltwide Cotton Conferences in San Antonio. [wpaudio url=”http://www.zimmcomm.biz/cotton/bwcc-15-dale-thompson.mp3″ text=”Interview with Dale Thompson”] [wpaudio url=”http://www.zimmcomm.biz/cotton/bwcc-15-bill-robertson.mp3″ text=”Interview with Bill Robertson”]

2015 Beltwide Cotton Conferences photo album

International Year of Soils Kicks Off at USDA

John DavisSoil, USDA

IYOSoils1The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has kicked off the International Year of Soils, a time to highlight the importance of healthy soils for food security, ecosystem functions and resilient farms and ranches.

“Healthy soil is the foundation that ensures working farms and ranches become more productive, resilient to climate change and better prepared to meet the challenges of the 21st century,” Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said during an event [Tuesday] at USDA headquarters. “We join the world in celebrating this living and life-giving resource.”

With an increasing global population, a shrinking agricultural land base, climate change and extreme weather events, the nations of the world are focusing their collective attention to the primary resource essential to food production-the soil. The United Nation’s Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), working within the framework of the Global Soil PartnershipThis is an external link or third-party site outside of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) website., spearheaded the adoption of a resolution by the UN General Assembly designating 2015 as the International Year of Soils. The year of awareness aims to increase global understanding of the importance of soil for food security and essential ecosystem functions.

“Most people don’t realize that just beneath our feet lies a diverse, complex, life-giving ecosystem that sustains our entire existence,” said Jason Weller, chief of USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS). “We are helping producers unlock the power of soil health as part of an important and very successful national campaign. Our campaign demonstrates our renewed commitment to soil conservation and soil health.”

More information is on the NRCS’s soil health webpage or the International Year of Soils webpage.

Pioneer Sorghum Growers Score Big in Yield Contest

John DavisAgribusiness, Award, Contest, Dupont Pioneer, Sorghum

dupontpioneerGrowers planting Pioneer brand sorghum hybrids did pretty well in the most recent national yield contest. This company news release says Pioneer sorghum picked up three of seven first-place finishes and nine of the 21 national categories in the 2014 National Sorghum Producers (NSP) Yield and Management Contest, with growers using Pioneer 84G62 brand sorghum won five of the nine national titles, and 33 of 81 state titles won using Pioneer brand sorghum hybrids.

The top-yielding national winner was Henson Land & Cattle of Hockley, Texas, where Pioneer® 84P80 brand sorghum was used in a conventional-till irrigated environment to achieve 245.94 bushels per acre, very near the world record of 249. Other national winners using Pioneer® brand sorghum hybrids were found in Arkansas, Illinois, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska and Pennsylvania across many of the categories.

“We are incredibly proud of the way Pioneer® brand sorghum hybrids performed in the 2014 NSP Yield and Management Contest,” said Doug Pilkington, DuPont Pioneer senior marketing manager, Lincoln, Neb. “Our high-yielding products, coupled with implementation of the very best management practices, shows what is possible for sorghum growers in the United States.”

“Our sorghum research program also helps ensure that growers who use Pioneer sorghum hybrids experience strong performance year in and year out,” he said. “We continue to expand our investment in research to improve our products and the defensive traits that protect top yields.”

Winners will be recognized on Friday, Feb. 27 during the 2015 Commodity Classic in Phoenix, Arizona.

Precision is Focus of IDEAg Innovate Conference

Cindy ZimmermanAFBF, Events

afbf-2014Innovation and technology will be in the spotlight at the American Farm Bureau Federation’s 96th annual convention, which begins this weekend in San Diego.

Brand new this year is the IDEAg Innovate Conference and Trade Show that will feature topics such as managing agricultural big data, the use of drones for farming purposes, precision agriculture and Internet strategies for farmers and ranchers. The IDEAg conference will be held from 8:00 to 10:30 am on Saturday, the trade show will be open from 9 am to 4 pm on Saturday and 10:30 am to 3:30 pm on Sunday.

AFBF’s Dan Durheim says a survey of Farm Bureau members guided the planning for convention this year. “And what they told us is ‘give us more opportunity to engage with the commercial people.'” said Durheim. “It’s really finding that sweet spot behind what we do really well, which is policy work and advocacy, as well as making our trade show more robust.”

The events and exhibits on Saturday and Sunday will be open to all farmers, ranchers and agricultural professionals, not just Farm Bureau members. There is no fee for Farm Bureau members to attend but they are encouraged to register online at annualconvention.fb.org. Non-members may attend the IDEAg conference by paying $75, in addition to $10 to attend the trade show, by registering online at annualconvention.fb.org.

The convention itself begins on Sunday and includes two dozen workshops covering a variety of topics and issues. Topics include how to become a more effective advocate for agriculture, big data, the latest technology trends, updates on economic issues affecting today’s farmers, and skills and ideas leaders can take home and apply at their county and state Farm Bureaus.

Learn more at annualconvention.fb.org.

NASA’s Soil Moisture Active Passive

Jamie JohansenAg Group, Satellite, Soil

smapScheduled for launch on Jan. 29, 2015, NASA’s Soil Moisture Active Passive (SMAP) instrument will measure the moisture lodged in Earth’s soils with an unprecedented accuracy and resolution. The instrument’s three main parts are a radar, a radiometer and the largest rotating mesh antenna ever deployed in space.

Remote sensing instruments are called “active” when they emit their own signals and “passive” when they record signals that already exist. The mission’s science instrument ropes together a sensor of each type to corral the highest-resolution, most accurate measurements ever made of soil moisture – a tiny fraction of Earth’s water that has a disproportionately large effect on weather and agriculture.

To enable the mission to meet its accuracy needs while covering the globe every three days or less, SMAP engineers at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, designed and built the largest rotating antenna that could be stowed into a space of only one foot by four feet for launch.

“We call it the spinning lasso,” said Wendy Edelstein of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, California, the SMAP instrument manager. Like the cowboy’s lariat, the antenna is attached on one side to an arm with a crook in its elbow. It spins around the arm at about 14 revolutions per minute.

Combining the radar and radiometer signals allows scientists to take advantage of the strengths of both technologies while working around their weaknesses. “The radiometer provides more accurate soil moisture but a coarse resolution of about 40 kilometers [25 miles] across,” said JPL’s Eni Njoku, a research scientist with SMAP. “With the radar, you can create very high resolution, but it’s less accurate. To get both an accurate and a high-resolution measurement, we process the two signals together.”

Learn more about the project here.


EPA Reopens Neonic Comment Period

Cindy ZimmermanAgribusiness, Government, Pesticides, Soybeans

ag-voiceThe U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has reopened the comment period on an agency assessment regarding the use of neonicotinoid seed treatments in soybeans.

The “Benefits of Neonicotinoid Seed Treatment to Soybean Production” assessment was released as part of the EPA’s review of clothianidin, imidacloprid, and thiamethoxam seed treatments, all classified as neonicotinoids. The assessment found neonics to be of “little or no” benefit to soybean producers, but industry reports on all crops have been done that dispute the EPA findings.

The original deadline for commenting on the assessment was December 22. The new deadline is January 23, 2015.

USDA Test Measures Health-Promoting Compounds

John DavisFruit, Government, USDA, Vegetables

usda-logoA new test is giving better information on the health-promoting compounds in fruits and vegetables. This U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) news release says scientists at the agency have devised a new analytical method for detecting and measuring concentrations of phytochemicals called “polyphenols” in plant materials, also referred to as “phenolics,” the class of health-promoting compounds found in certain foods and beverages.

At the ARS Eastern Regional Research Center (ERRC) in Wyndmoor, Pennsylvania, scientists first reported on the new test and used it on a variety of samples of beverages, grains and flaxseed. They used the new laboratory method to measure the amount of phenolics in various food samples by mixing them with Fast Blue BB diazonium salt. Under alkaline conditions, diazonium salt specifically couples with phenolics to form stable complexes that can be directly measured. The team then compared the new Fast Blue BB method to results using a traditional assay called Folin-Ciocalteu (FC). The results suggested that FC does not assess all phenolics present during tests and inadvertently measures other compounds besides phenolics.

While the Fast Blue BB method, as originally developed at the ERRC, was aimed at measuring phenolics only in plant tissue that does not contain chlorophyll, other ARS researchers reasoned that the test should also work with green vegetables if the test is modified.

ARS plant physiologist and national program leader Gene Lester led another study in which he and colleagues modified the Fast Blue BB assay so that it could be used to test green plant material. The scientists used the modified method to gauge the amount of total phenolics in different spinach cultivars grown under different production conditions. They showed that the Fast Blue BB can now be used universally to accurately assess total phenolics for all fruit and vegetable plant tissues.

The study was published in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry in 2013.

Cultivating Master Farmers Program Offers Opportunities

John DavisAg Group, Growmark

Learning from someone who has “been there and done that” can be some of the most valuable lessons of all. That’s why GROWMARK, along with the other sponsors, including 1st Farm Credit Services, Farm Credit Illinois, Illinois Farm Bureau, Monsanto, and Prairie Farmer are looking for applicants for the Cultivating Master Farmers (CMF) program for the class of 2017.

Now in its tenth year, the Cultivating Master Farmer program has provided expert farm and family guidance from folks who have walked the walk. This unique mentoring program links young farmers with a wealth of information from Prairie Farmer’s Master Farmers.

cultivatingmasterfarmersClasses of approximately 10 young farmers (21 to 35 years old) and 10 Master Farmers are selected for the two-year program, which features six ag-related events. The Class of 2015, which graduates in July, toured the Chicago Farmer’s Market, the Federal Reserve, and the Chicago Mercantile Exchange. They also heard from acclaimed speakers on estate/succession planning, diversification on the farm, marketing strategies, how to give back, and managing working relationships with family members.

Like previous classes, incoming CMF members will have plenty of opportunity to hear from a top-notch slate of speakers. However, the real backbone of the program is the round-table discussion, where young farmers learn from Master Farmers and vice versa. Upon the completion of the two-year program, most participants have developed lasting relationships that continue to yield solid farm advice even after the program’s conclusion.

Young farmers need to get their applications in by March 31, 2015. They must be residents of Illinois, be between the ages of 21 to 35 as of Dec. 31, 2014, and actively engaged in production agriculture. They also must be willing to actively participate in the two-year program. Couples are encouraged to apply.

More information is on the GROWMARK website.

Hagie Mfg. STS Wins CropLife IRON Product of the Year

Jamie JohansenAgribusiness, Award

Amber-Kolhaas-and-Eric-Sfiligoj-Product-of-the-Year copyHagie Mfg. is proud to announce that the STS Application Series has been selected as the 2014CropLife® IRON Product of the Year. CropLife IRON Editor Eric Sfiligoj presented the award to Hagie representatives at the American Seed Trade Association (ASTA) show in Chicago, IL.

“We started the CropLife IRON Product of the Year to acknowledge the best product of the year in Ag retail equipment,” says Editor Eric Sfiligoj. “And in all the years of conducting this competition, no product has come close to receiving the overwhelming number of votes from our readers as Hagie did this year.”

“Hagie Mfg. is in the business of solving problems. This unique business approach allows us to distinctively focus on providing solutions for optimal growth and the long term success of our customers,” states Alan Hagie, President & CEO. “We appreciate the market recognizing the value that our application solutions deliver to operations and to their bottom line,” added Hagie.

CropLife IRON readers annually select five products introduced during the current calendar year that they considered “the best of the best.” Readers vote for one month on their favorite among these five nominees to determine which product was the “year’s best.” For 2014, Hagie Mfg.’s STS Series self-propelled sprayer was selected as the best of the year by almost 64% of the CropLife IRON readers, who voted out of a total of just under 2,000 votes cast.

“We never set out to win awards, but to make a real impact, a real difference in the economic drivers that face retailers and producers in today’s market conditions; providing solutions to end customers,” commented Travis D. Stallkamp, Chief Operating Officer/COO. “That is impossible to accomplish without great innovative people taking care of these customers. We are honored that all the hard work of these people, has resulted in this award. We are humbled by the customers that voted for us,” added Stallkamp.