Improving Rural Broadband Service

Talia GoesAgribusiness, Financing, USDA

usda-logoAgriculture Secretary Vilsack announced loans to help finance the construction of broadband networks in rural Iowa, Minnesota, Oregon and South Dakota. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) remains focused on carrying out its mission, despite a time of significant budget uncertainty. Today’s announcement is one part of the Department’s efforts to strengthen the rural economy.

This funding announcement will provide almost $40 million from USDA’s Rural Utilities Service (RUS) to install fiber networks to improve telecommunications capability in the three recipients’ service areas. USDA’s Telecommunications Loan Program finances infrastructure that enables access to a seamless, nationwide telecommunications network.

The following recipients have been selected to receive telecommunications loan financing. The funding is contingent upon the recipients meeting the terms of the loan agreements.

Iowa
Keystone-Farmers Cooperative Telephone Company will receive a $7.6 million loan to upgrade its plant and complete a Fiber-to-the-Premises (FTTP) network to help meet the current and future data needs of its customers in Benton and Tama counties.

Oregon
Colton Telephone Company will receive a $7.3 million loan to complete an FTTP network to provide enhanced broadband services for its customers.

South Dakota and Minnesota
Interstate Telecommunications Company, Inc. will receive a $24.9 million loan to upgrade its plant and complete an FTTP network to provide enhanced broadband services for its customers.

Data Management’s Future at New Holland

Jamie JohansenAudio, Farm Progress Show, New Holland, technology

chuck-fps-55New Holland Agriculture turned heads at the recent Farm Progress Show and one of those head-turning displays was the Precision Land Management System (PLM). The team showcased the in’s and out’s of the cutting-edge technology and were on hand to answer any and all questions from attendees.

Chuck took advantage of the opportunity and chatted with New Holland’s Chris Carrier about what farmers saw on display in their exhibit. Chris also shared where the future was headed with New Holland’s PLM package. “Data management, that’s where you see the future of the market going. And we are working on a more advanced package for that.”

Now that we have this data, Chuck asked Chris, “What do we do with it?” Chris said that being able to make decisions more efficiently, the ability for growers to make more informed decisions and transfer data in real-time are the key elements to the use of the data.

Chris shared that the consumer adoption rate has increased as they have learned more about it and became more versed with these new features. He added that it is easy for growers to see the payback on the product as well.

Listen to Chuck’s complete interview with Chris here: [wpaudio url=”http://zimmcomm.biz/farm-progress/fps-13-new-holland-carrier.mp3″ text=”Interview with Chris Carrier”]

2013 Farm Progress Show Photo Album

Raven Industries Announces UHarvest

Talia GoesAgribusiness, Data Collection, Harvesting

ravenRaven Industries, Inc. and Unverferth Manufacturing Co., Inc. are excited to introduce UHarvest: a first-of-its-kind grain cart system that provides more accurate yield data and streamlines how data is shared between machines in the field. UHarvest is the first grain cart system to integrate a moisture sensor on the cart itself, which will provide operators with more accurate yield data as it is loaded from the combine.

Features:
• ISObus compatible. UHarvest works with existing virtual terminals already in the cab, reducing cab clutter and eliminating the need for a stand-alone monitor.
• Tablet interface. Output from multiple grain carts in the field will now sync together, providing instant and accurate data for field records and accounting to interface on Windows, Android or Apple tablet devices.
• Streamlined data management. Manage data from a single grower or the whole farm with field data structure and the ability to track operators and individual grain cart data along with other equipment and the data collected by them.
• Powered by Slingshot. Connectivity in the field with Slingshot allows data to flow wirelessly, removing the need to transfer via USB devices, and provides important yield data even faster and more efficiently. Slingshot allows access to this data through a secured, online account that owners and managers can access wherever they have an internet connection.

UHarvest will be available in 2014. Visit Unverferth at tradeshows this summer to see it in action, or visit an Unverferth dealer for more information about ordering your system.

Monsanto Invites Farmers to Follow a Field

Cindy ZimmermanAudio, BASF, Farmers, Monsanto, Soybeans, Weed control

Monsanto is encouraging farmers to “Follow-A-Field” in order to learn more about the next innovation in soybean and cotton weed control.

extend-follow-fieldThe Follow-A-Field initiative from Monsanto is an interactive experience featured on XtendFollowAField.com that follows three farmers as they take their Roundup Ready 2 Xtend™ soybean fields from burndown through harvest as part of the Monsanto Ground Breakers® Field Trials Under Permit program. The initiative will include testimonials, videos and photos captured from the three growing sites in Missouri, Illinois and Minnesota.

Michelle Vigna, Monsanto Roundup Ready Xtend launch manager, says the goal of the program is to prepare farmers, retailers and applicators to effectively use Roundup Ready 2 Xtend soybeans with a diversified weed management plan such as Roundup Ready PLUS® Weed Management Solutions. “By bringing dicamba tolerance as an option within soybeans, it’s a totally new mode of action for helping manage tough-to-control and resistant weeds,” she said.

Monsanto has been working with BASF on the development of the herbicide to use with the dicamba-tolerant soybeans. BASF has already applied for registration of Engenia™ herbicide in anticipation of regulatory approval. Pending regulatory approval, Vigna says they hope to introduce Roundup Ready 2 Xtend™ soybeans in time for the 2015 growing season. [wpaudio url=”http://zimmcomm.biz/monsanto/monsanto-vigna.mp3″ text=”Interview with Monsanto’s Michelle Vigna”]

Growth Energy Praises New Holland Biofuels Support

Cindy ZimmermanAudio, Ethanol, Farm Progress Show, New Holland

At the 2013 Farm Progress Show, representatives from Growth Energy were pleased to be part of the New Holland Club Blue event for dealers and customers.

fps13-growth-cnh“New Holland is a fantastic company, they produce top notch equipment, but they also are willing to step up for rural America,” said Growth Energy CEO Tom Buis. “What we’ve seen over the last few years is New Holland take the lead in promoting biofuels.”

Buis says Growth Energy members participate with New Holland on promotional deals – in fact, one will be held next week at Absolute Energy plant in Lyle, Minnesota.[wpaudio url=”http://zimmcomm.biz/farm-progress/fps13-newholland-buis.mp3″ text=”Interview with Tom Buis, Growth Energy”]

Growth Energy co-chairman retired U.S. Army General Wesley Clark praised New Holland’s support for national security. “New Holland is the first, most visionary and innovative company (that) saw what this ethanol movement means for America, for national security and for American prosperity,” said Clark, who adds that company vice president Abe Hughes, who serves on the Growth Energy board, has been a real leader in helping reach out to the American farmer. Abe is pictured here at the Farm Progress Show with Wesley and Tom.[wpaudio url=”http://zimmcomm.biz/farm-progress/fps13-newholland-buis.mp3″ text=”Interview with Wesley Clark, Growth Energy”]

2013 Farm Progress Show Photo Album

Do You Plan to Upgrade Your SmartPhone?

Talia GoesZimmPoll

zp-nhOur latest ZimmPoll asked the question, “ Do you contact your members of Congress?”

Our poll results:
• When issues are important to me 41%
• Never, what’s the point? 32%
• Who is my member of Congress? 14%
• Other 9%
• Often call or write 5%
• Visit offices and go to town hall meetings 0%

Looks like our poll respondents are at opposite ends of the spectrum. Almost half are motivated to act when issues arise and the other half would rather have nothing to do with grassroots policy matters.

Our new ZimmPoll is now live and asks the question “Planning to buy new iPhone or upgrade?” Apple has announced two new iPhone models, the 5S and the 5C, and they will be available soon. Are you satisfied with an older model or do you camp out on the sidewalk in anticipation of the next new thing? Or are you still happy with a phone that just makes calls without the bells and whistles? Let us know.

What’s New In Herbicide Products at Bayer

Jamie JohansenAudio, Bayer CropScience, Farm Progress Show, Soybeans

chuck-fps-peters-augustBayer CropScience is making the fight against weeds a little easier with their soybean herbicide products. The recent Farm Progress Show was a great outlet to share the new and exciting products available for growers nationwide.

Chuck spoke with Eric Peters, Soybean Herbicide Product Manager for Bayer CropScience, during the event and Eric went into more depth about Balance Bean, Balance GT and Liberty products for soybean growers.

“One of the exciting things we’ve had here recently is we did get US approval the Balance GT for Soybeans. It is the new soybean system that has dual herbicide tolerance. It is a HPPD based herbicide, so it’s a different mode of action for soybean growers than what they have had to work with. It will be a total system to provide weed control to growers that offers a good strong broad spectrum soil residual with reactivation combined with the post-merge control of glyphosate to offer a season long control through canopy closure.”

Lauren August, Brand Manager for MS Technologies, walked by during the interview so Chuck took advantage of that and asked about the collaboration and working relationship with both companies.

“The relationship is great. We have been working with Bayer for awhile now. We first introduced the Liberty Link system together and we have been working together ever since.”

“It’s a big step. Just allowing growers to plant multiple modes of action is going to be a big thing for their fields. They are really going to be able to combat some weeds that maybe they haven’t been able to. It’s also going to give them another tool in their tool belt to continue fitting those tough weeds.”

Listen to Chuck’s complete interview with Eric and Lauren here: [wpaudio url=”http://zimmcomm.biz/farm-progress/fps-13-bayer-peters-august.mp3″ text=”Interview with Eric Peters & Lauren August”]

2013 Farm Progress Show Photo Album

Coverage of the 2013 Farm Progress show is sponsored by Bayer CropScience, Growmark and New Holland

MTS Sensors Advance Precision Farming Technology

Cindy ZimmermanGPS

mtsA leading global supplier of high-performance test systems and position sensors has announced multiple enabling technologies for the precision agriculture industry, including position feedback sensors to enhance the performance of GPS-guided systems.

MTS Systems Corporation Temposonics® in-cylinder magnetostrictive sensors are designed for use in several applications, including position feedback and control for steering applications and position control of various farm implements. “MTS Temposonics sensors are being incorporated into global position sensing (GPS) and joystick-controlled steer-by-wire agricultural equipment to enable the operator to have better awareness and control of the equipment,” said Bill Bachrach, General Manager of MTS Sensors.

MTS sensors feature a durable in-cylinder design that is resistant to dust, water and other environmental factors, and provide repeatable measurement feedback that is accurate to within a few microns. The sensor design meets the performance requirements of rugged terrain conditions, resulting in fewer in-field failures, highly precise position and motion feedback, and simplified operations that enhance safety.

Read more from MTS.

Fertilizer Use in Argentina

Cindy Zimmermanagronomy, Audio, Fertilizer, International

ifaj13-profetilFertilizer use is on the rise in Argentina, which is a major contributor to increasing yields in that country. We found out more about that during the International Federation of Agricultural Journalists (IFAJ) Congress in Argentina.

We visited Profertil, a joint venture with Canada’s Agrium and the nation’s largest fertilizer producer. “The use of fertilizer technology has improved a lot,” said Profertil commercial manager Pablo Pussetto. “More or less, 80% of all the urea consumed in Argentina is supplied by Profertil,” he said.

Argentine crop yields have doubled in the past two decades as fertilizer use has increased 10 fold with farmer education. “We cannot continue mining our soil to make our agricultural practice,” said Pussetto. “We need to replenish the nutrients in every system.”

The approach to farmers in Argentina is similar to the 4R message in the United States – the right source, the right rate, the right time, and the right place. “The concept is not to use a lot of fertilizer but to use the correct fertilizer, the correct amount of fertilizer in order to maximize not only economic value or yield but at the same time make your crop more sustainable,” Pussetto said.

Argentina supplies much of its own nitrogen and urea fertilizers, but needs to import phosphate from other countries, including the United States, as most of the soils in the major producing area are phosphate deficient. [wpaudio url=”http://zimmcomm.biz/ifaj/ifaj13-pablo-profertil.mp3″ text=”Interview with Profertil’s Pablo Pussetto”]

2013 IFAJ Congress Photo Album