Mosaic Sponsors World Conservation Ag Conference

John DavisConservation, CTIC, Monsanto

wcca1The Mosaic Company is joining several other agribusiness giants, including Dow AgroSciences, Monsanto and Seed Hawk, Inc., as a platinum sponsor of this summer’s 6th World Congress on Conservation Agriculture (WCCA). The conference runs June 22-25, 2014, in Winnipeg, Manitoba.

“At Mosaic, we work hard to help farmers sustainably produce more food per acre,” said Rick McLellan, Mosaic Senior Vice President – Commercial. “Mosaic supports the World Congress on Conservation Agriculture because of our shared commitment to advancing modern agriculture techniques and careful resource management.”

WCCA will provide an opportunity for more than 600 people from around the world to meet on conservation issues. During the conference, attendees will talk to leaders in conservation agriculture, network with peers from around the world, engage in policy discussion and learn about the latest research. The conference is hosted by CASA, a network of conservation agriculture organizations across North America, with the Conservation Technology Information Center (CTIC) and Soil Conservation Council of Canada (SCCC) coordinating the Congress planning committees.

Organizers say the program will revolve around three themes of conservation agriculture:

Sustainable Intensification: Conservation agriculture (CA) allows producers to intensify cropping systems to increase production sustainably without undue expansion in land area devoted to agriculture.

Climate change: A well-designed CA system contains a diversity of crop types and healthy soils that give producers more options for adjusting to changes in rainfall patterns or growing-season temperatures while also contributing to climate change mitigation.

Innovative Adoption: The best teacher of interconnected farming practices is someone who has successfully mastered them. Innovative CA practitioners, researchers and service providers will share their experience and knowledge.

More information is available here.

Veris Brings More Truth to MapShots Products

John DavisAgribusiness, Audio, MapShots

mapshots-14-eric-lundFiguring out how to integrate good information into precision farming equipment was part of the recently completed MapShots Customer Conference in Atlanta, Ga. One of MapShots’ integrating partners in the field is Veris Technologies, a Kansas-based firm that looks to bring a bit more truth to the information generated.

“Veris is latin for truth,” explained Eric Lund with Veris. He said having veracity in the information his company gathers on the soil is key to integrating Veris’ technology into MapShots’ AgStudio software to provide crop management applications for the agriculture industry. “We manufacture soil sensors. These are on-the-go implements that a grower would pull across a field, and as he pulls it across, it’s collecting GPS location data and soil measurement data. And from that, a map is generated that shows various soil properties and soil variabilities within the field.”

But having that information is a long way from making it something a producer can use. That’s where the partnership with MapShots comes in. Eric said MapShots takes the verified information generated by Veris and turns it into a plan for how to use the precision farming equipment on that field, varying the inputs for various parts of the field. “We generate the data. It has to be turned into a prescription with some agronomic input and transmitted out to a controller [through a program such as MapShots’ AgStudio].”

Eric believes that there will be more adoption of this type of application throughout the world, as his own company has customers in 40-some states and 40-some countries across the globe. He said making the right integration of good data with the program that can best use that information is key to precision farming success.

“Maps don’t make anybody any money sitting on the shelf.”

You can listen to Chuck’s interview with Eric here: [wpaudio url=”http://zimmcomm.biz/mapshots/mapshots-14-veris-eric-lund.mp3″ text=”Interview with Eric Lund with Veris”]

You can find Chuck’s photos from the event online here: 2014 MapShots Customer Conference Photo Album

Better Monitoring with New MAS System

John DavisGeneral

LBMS Premium System1Monitoring liquid applicators can be a literal pain in the neck as operators have to crane around to watch gauges for no-flow and low-flow applicators. But the folks at custom liquid handling equipment maker Mid-Atlantic Services (MAS) have a new CDS-John Blue Electronic Liquid Blockage monitoring system that will allow you to keep a closer eye on those systems without even turning around.

This allows for immediate correction which saves money, before yields are diminished. A flow monitor in the cab delivers both a visual cue as well as an audible alarm. A flashing LED light points out the row where the problem exists.

MAS President Mike Boyle believes that this is a valuable device. “By identifying the problem as it happens, farmers can make the correction right away during liquid application. The CDS-John Blue monitoring system can be used with cloudy or dark liquids. This is a huge improvement that will have a significant impact for our customers when placing liquid fertilizer while planting or sidedressing.”

MAS officials say the LBMS can be shown on a standard wired display in the cab, and there’s even a free app for the iPad.

AgStudio Driving a Growing MapShots

Chuck ZimmermanAgribusiness, Audio, MapShots

Ted MacyLast week at the MapShots Customer Conference I had that pleasure to visit with founder Ted Macy. MapShots, Inc., is a software development company that provides crop management applications for the agriculture industry and is now a subsidiary of Dupont Pioneer. Their AgStudio software provides clients with powerful, yet easy to use tools for managing large amounts of agronomic crop production data.

Ted says he and his wife Nancy started the company “a long time ago.” He says a milestone moment was the introduction of the Ag Leader Technology yield monitor back in 1993. That provided them with a vision of what the software would look like to be able to work with “iron of any color.”

AgStudio was the main topic of many of the presentations at the conference. Ted says they built the product from the ground up to be a total crop record keeping solution. It is now a very comprehensive product that is being integrated into all aspects of managing a farming operation. MapShots brought in representatives from many partner companies to talk about their services and how they are working to integrate them into AgStudio.

You can listen to my weekly ZimmCast podcast program to learn more about MapShots here. [wpaudio url=”http://zimmcomm.biz/zimmcast/zimmcast427-2-10-14.mp3″ text=”MapShots and AgStudio”]

DuPont, Iowa Sheriff Partner for Farm Watch Program

John DavisAgribusiness

dupontfarmwatchDuPont is partnering with a county sheriff’s office in Iowa to establish the state’s first Farm Watch program to enhance security and safety of rural residents and farmers. DuPont and the Story County Sheriff’s Office will work together in this off-shoot of the National Sheriffs’ Association’s Neighborhood Watch and Farm Watch.

“Farm Watch helps reduce opportunities for crime to occur in farming and rural communities,” said Paul Fitzgerald, Story County Sheriff. “Essential to this is encouraging people to report suspicious incidents to law enforcement officials as they occur and also share the information with other Farm Watch members. As well as helping to deter crime, this strengthens community spirit with everyone working together to protect their property.”

“Farmers often have a great deal of capital spread over a large expanse of land,” explained John Pieper, director of the DuPont Cellulosic Ethanol Development Program Office. “Some stock and equipment is portable and can be relatively easy to steal. While property can never be made totally secure, becoming a Farm Watch member undoubtedly reduces the risk of becoming a victim of farming or rural crime. DuPont has a vested interest in central Iowa and wants to help enhance the safety and security for all community members.”

DuPont says the goals of the program include: reducing opportunities for crime to occur in farming and rural communities; strengthening community spirit; improving communication between the farming community and the police; and encouraging people to report suspicious incidents as they occur.

Farm Watch will also offer practical crime prevention advice to farmers and landowners, to help ensure their property and goods are as secure as possible, as well as providing a marking system and signs to indicate participation in the program.

There will be an informational meeting on March 6, 2014, at the Gates Memorial Hall in Nevada, Iowa from 6:00 to 7:30 p.m.

AgNerds Love MapShots Customer Conference

Chuck ZimmermanAgNerd, Audio, MapShots

MapShots ConferenceThe MapShots Customer Conference is almost over in Atlanta, GA. I thought you might enjoy this interview with official AgNerd, Keith Baker, Baker Ag Services, a Dupont Pioneer seed agency in Indiana.

Keith saw me wearing my ZimmGlass and that started an enjoyable conversation about the new technology I’ve been trying out as a member of the Google Explorers program. He and his sons try to stay no the cutting edge of new technology. He says he came to this conference to learn about the newest products like MapShots AgStudio. Like at a lot of conferences he’s enjoying the networking with fellow agnerds to share ideas and information.

You can listen to my interview with Keith here: [wpaudio url=”http://zimmcomm.biz/mapshots/mapshots-14-baker.mp3″ text=”Interview with Keith Baker”]

2014 MapShots Customer Conference Photo Album

Grant Applications for Conservation Innovation Efforts

Talia GoesConservation, USDA

The U.S. Department of Agricultureusda-logo (USDA) is accepting applications for competitive grants to develop and accelerate conservation approaches and technologies on private agricultural and forest lands.

“Conservation Innovation Grants (CIGs) have contributed to some of the most pioneering conservation work on America’s agricultural and forest lands,” said Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack. “It’s an excellent investment in new conservation technologies and approaches that farmers, ranchers and forest landowners can use to achieve their production and conservation goals.”

About $15 million will be made available nationwide by the USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS). State and local governments, federally recognized Indian tribes, non-governmental and educational organizations, private businesses and individuals are eligible to apply.

Vilsack said priority will be given to applications that relate to nutrient management, energy conservation, soil health, air quality, climate change, wildlife, economics, sociology, environmental markets, food safety, historically underserved groups, or assessments of past CIG projects.

Farm Bill Signed

Cindy ZimmermanAudio, Conservation, Farm Bill, Government

President Obama traveled to Michigan State University to sign the Agricultural Act of 2014 on Friday, calling it a bill that has “a lot of tools – it multi-tasks.”

fb-signing“Despite its name, the farm bill is not just about helping farmers,” President Obama told the small crowd invited for the signing. “Secretary Vilsack calls it a jobs bill, an innovation bill, an infrastructure bill, a research bill, a conservation bill. It’s like a Swiss Army knife.”

The president made note of the conservation efforts funded by the bill. “So that our children and grandchildren will be able to enjoy places like the Mississippi River Valley and Chesapeake Bay,” he said. “It helps rural communities grow, it gives farmers some certainty, it puts in place some important reforms.”

Listen to some of the president’s speech here: [wpaudio url=”http://zimmcomm.biz/government/fb-signing-edit.mp3″ text=”President Obama farm bill signing”]

NRCS and Forest Service Partner for Forest Health

Cindy ZimmermanConservation, USDA

NRCSUSDA has announced a multi-year partnership between the U.S. Forest Service and the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) to improve the health forest ecosystems across the nation. Under Secretary for Natural Resources and Environment Robert Bonnie made the announcement this week in Helena, Montana, near the site of the Red Mountain Flume/Chessman Reservoir, one of the first areas to be addressed through the partnership. Another area to be targeted is the San Bernardino/Riverside County area of California which experienced catastrophic wildfires a decade ago.

“NRCS and the Forest Service have the same goal in this partnership – working across traditional boundaries and restoring the health of our forests and watersheds whether they’re on public or private lands,” said Agriculture Under Secretary for Natural Resources and Environment Robert Bonnie.

Ag Leader Wants You to Know About the Value of Data

Joanna SchroederAg Leader, Audio, Data Collection, IA Power Farming Show, Software

Ag Leader Tyler AndersonWhy should we care about data I asked Tyler Anderson with Ag Leader during the 2014 Iowa Power Farming Show. Anderson said we should care about data. So I asked the next logical question, “How do we know if it worked?”.

“We can check to make sure the data worked by reading the information we’ve recorded out in the field in our SMS Advanced Software program,” explained Anderson. “By looking at the maps we can make sure we’re not having any mechanical problems we didn’t see out in the field, but we can also confirm we’re actually getting results from the practices we’re doing.”

This, said Anderson, is what Ag Leader calls “the value of data”. He explained that growers spend all this money on precision technologies and farm equipment but how do you know if it’s actually having an effect? Using Ag Leader’s SMS tools, a grower can start analyzing various elements of the data or even analyze data across the entire operations.

Anderson said the data is also valuable because not only can you look to see what happened during the current year, but also using it to plan for the future.

Learn more about the “value of data” in my interview with Tyler Anderson: [wpaudio url=”http://zimmcomm.biz/agleader/iowapower-anderson-14.mp3″ text=”The Value of Data”]

Click here to view the 2014 Iowa Power Farming Show photo album.

Sponsored by Ag Leader Technology