New Coalition Advocates For NAFTA Preservation

AFBF, Ag Group, AgWired Animal, AgWired Precision, Corn, trade

More than 30 organizations have joined to form Americans for Farmers & Families (AFF), a coalition dedicated to preserving and modernizing the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) by educating political leaders about its importance to agriculture. The groups represent growers, refiners, producers, transporters, retailers and consumers, including major industry organizations such as American Farm Bureau, Corn Refiners Association, National Corn Growers Association, and National Pork Producers, to name a few.

“Farm Belt voters supported President Trump by a three-to-one margin in the last election and they are counting on President Trump to improve NAFTA in the modernization negotiations,” said John Bode, president and CEO of the Corn Refiners Association and a member of AFF’s leadership committee.

As part of the effort, AFF will be launching an educational campaign to highlight the positive impact NAFTA has had for Americans and lay the groundwork for an updated trade agreement that preserves America’s strong economic standing for decades to come. Since NAFTA took effect in 1994, food and agriculture exports have more than quadrupled and account for 25 percent of American exports. One in every 10 acres of American crops is for export to NAFTA partners.

“NAFTA has opened markets for America’s farmers and ranchers, and U.S. agricultural exports to Canada and Mexico have quadrupled under the agreement,” said AFBF president Zippy Duvall, also a member of AFF’s leadership committee. “The current negotiations should build on that success.”

Cold Tolerant Berseem Clover Provides Frost Seeding Option

AgWired Animal, AgWired Precision, ASTA, Cover Crops, Hay

As cold as it has already been this winter in so many areas, Frosty Berseem Clover might be just the ticket for farmers and ranchers implementing frost seeding into their hay and pasture systems.

Grassland Oregon was recently awarded a patent for Frosty Berseem Clover, making it the first cold tolerant berseem clover suitable for frost seeding in the United States and Canada, surviving in trials with temperatures as low as 5 degrees Fahrenheit and zero snow cover. Extended growing seasons, higher yields, increased establishment rates and convenience are just a few of the benefits to frost seeding, according to Jerry Hall, director of research for Grassland Oregon.

“Frost seeding is the broadcasting of seed onto the frozen surface of the soil. Ideally, it is done at a time when there is either no snow or a minimal amount. The freezing and thawing cycle of the soil surface will allow for the seed to work into the top .25 inches of soil,” Hall explains. “Seeds will then germinate and begin growing as soon as weather conditions become favorable – allowing producers to gain a couple of weeks of growth versus waiting for the soil to firm up enough to drill the seed in.”

Hall says Frosty Berseem Clover is excellent for frost seeding into declining alfalfa fields and also blends nicely with alfalfa due to its similar quality and appearance.

Learn more.

Agri-Pulse Launches Breeding Edge Editorial Series

Agri-Pulse, AgWired Animal, AgWired Precision, ASTA

Agri-Pulse has launched a new seven-part editorial series, “The Breeding Edge,” focused on new scientific discoveries, genetic research, and systems for precision breeding for producing food, protecting the environment, and improving animal health.

“Animal and plant breeders are trying out a set of powerful new tools which have the potential to revolutionize agricultural practices and provide consumers with more healthy and safe food options,” says Agri-Pulse Editor Sara Wyant. “But few people truly understand how these new innovations can help farmers and ranchers and ultimately improve human health. And that’s a big risk when you consider how some previous agricultural innovations have been accepted by consumers.”

“In addition to being more efficient and economical, newer breeding methods hold tremendous potential for both public and commercial plant breeders in developed and developing countries, and can be used across all crops, including food, feed, fiber and fuel crops,” explained Andy LaVigne, President and CEO of the American Seed Trade Association (ASTA). “To ensure the full potential of new and emerging breeding tools, it’s critical that we have a policy environment, both domestically and internationally, that allows for, and encourages, continued innovation.”

ASTA is one of the sponsors of the new series, together with Genus, Syngenta Seeds, National Pork Board, Monsanto, Dupont Pioneer, United Soybean Board, and the National Corn Growers Association. New innovations in agricultural technology will also be discussed at the Agri-Pulse Ag & Food Policy Summit, scheduled for March 21 in Washington, D.C.

Precision Ag Bytes 1/17

AgWired Precision, Precision Ag Bytes

  • The Honey Bee Health Coalition announced that it has awarded $40,000 to four innovative projects aimed at improving honey bee nutrition and supporting honey bee and pollinator health. The awards, announced at the 2018 American Bee Research Conference, are part of the Coalition’s inaugural Bee Nutrition Challenge.
  • Syngenta has licensed NRGene’s GenoMAGIC, a cloud-based big data analytics platform, to evaluate, predict, compare and select the best genetic makeup for crop molecular breeding and genomic selection. The agreement is on a non-exclusive, multi-year basis.
  • SkySquirrel Technologies Inc. and VineView Imaging, leading providers of aerial imaging and crop diagnostics for vineyards, have announced a merger of the two companies. The merger is effective Jan. 16, and the companies plan to begin integrating operations, customers, global partners and employees immediately. The combined company, which will operate under the name VineView, uses drone and airplane-based hyperspectral imagery to provide wine growers with essential information about the health of their grapevines. VineView’s specialized data products allow growers to optimize yields, improve grape quality and reduce damage from environmental factors like grapevine diseases and frost.

New Bayer Cotton Varieties Focus on Yield

AgWired Precision, Audio, Bayer, Cotton, seed

Five new Bayer cotton varieties are available in limited quantities for 2018 planting to give growers more options.

“Choosing the right variety for the right field to harvest the right yield is paramount to successfully managing a cotton crop,” says Jason Wistehuff, Bayer product manager for FiberMax® and Stoneville® cotton. “These new varieties combine with our existing variety lineup to ground the season in sound science.”

The new 2018 varieties for FiberMax are:

FM 2498GLT – Adapted to the High Plains, Rolling Plains, Oklahoma, South Texas and East Texas.
FM 2574GLT – For dryland production on the Rolling Plains, also offers high gin turnout

The new 2018 varieties for Stoneville:

ST 5471GLTP – Broadly adapted for the Mid-Atlantic, Southeast, Delta and South Texas.
ST 5818GLT – Mid-Atlantic, Southeast, Delta and South Texas.
ST 5122GLT – Widely adapted to the Mid-Atlantic, Southeast, Delta, East Texas and Northern Rolling Plains.

“Our variety lineup is proof of our commitment to deliver varieties with the high yield potential, premium quality, herbicide tolerance and disease and insect resistance growers need to choose the right seed for the right field,” Wistehuff says.

Wistehuff talked about Bayer’s commitment to cotton in a recent interview with Chuck at the new Bayer Cotton Breeding Station in Lubbock, Texas: Interview with Jason Wistehuff, Bayer

Bayer Lubbock Tour

Precision Ag Bytes 1/10

AgWired Precision, Precision Ag Bytes

  • BRANDT has released a product finder mobile app, available for iOS and Android. The BRANDT Product Finder app will give users the ability to search and mine BRANDT’s entire portfolio of US agriculture products. Each BRANDT product will feature a label, safety data sheet and brochure. Users will be able to save documents for quick retrieval and offline viewing by adding them to their “library”. There are more than 300 products in the BRANDT portfolio.
  • The BioAg Alliance, Monsanto’s and Novozymes’ collaboration to improve crop harvests through products containing naturally-occurring microbes, has announced an updated research and development pipeline. Among the highlights is the Corn BioYield 2 project, which advanced to Phase 4 (pre-commercial) in The BioAg Alliance R&D pipeline and is expected to be branded as Acceleron B-360 ST, pending regulatory approvals. The BioAg Alliance also announced the achievement of a significant milestone in the Corn BioYield 3 project. Over the past four years, researchers have screened thousands of microbes across multiple sites to find out which microbes deliver the highest increase in crop yield. A small group of top performers have now been selected for commercial evaluation and development.
  • Dr. B. Todd Campbell, a research geneticist at the USDA Agricultural Research Service’s Coastal Plains Soil, Water, and Plant Research Center in Florence, S.C., is the recipient of the 2017 Cotton Genetics Research Award. The announcement was made during the 2018 Beltwide Cotton Improvement Conference, which convened as part of the National Cotton Council-coordinated 2018 Beltwide Cotton Conferences. In recognition, Dr. Campbell received a plaque and a monetary award.

Trump Puts Rural America in the Spotlight

AFBF, AgWired Animal, AgWired Energy, AgWired Precision, Audio

President Trump’s address to the American Farm Bureau Federation 99th annual convention this week in Nashville definitely brought agriculture some positive publicity, mentioning the word farmers over 25 times in his speech, more than any of the previous three presidents in all of their official speeches combined. Granted, that is just a guess but I feel safe in saying that if someone were to be able to fact-check it!

Farm Bureau estimates 7400 watched the president’s speech in person or on the Livestream, and thousands more have watched it since. Among those watching from home was former AFBF president Bob Stallman, who said it was the first convention he has missed in 30 years. The speech was also carried live by RFD-TV, Fox News and CBS. Agri-Pulse and RFD-TV were both granted interviews with the president. It was definitely a very big deal.

President Trump’s commitment to rural America with the signing of two presidential orders that will help increase broadband access out in the countryside, something that his Rural Prosperity Task Force made a high priority, was also a very big deal to many of the thousands at the event. Jamie interviewed a number of attendees to get their reactions, including FFA and 4H members, state Farm Bureau presidents, the Missouri Director of Agriculture and Mrs. Zippy Duvall. Listen to some of the comments here: Reaction to President Trump at #AFBF18

Watch President Trump video
AFBF President Trump Photos

2018 AFBF Convention Photo Album

President Trump Addresses Record Farm Bureau Crowd

AFBF, AgWired Animal, AgWired Energy, AgWired Precision, Audio

“Farm country is God’s country,” said President Donald J. Trump at the conclusion of his remarks to a record crowd at the American Farm Bureau Federation 99th annual convention in Nashville.

“100 is so much cooler,” Trump said. “I’ll just have to come back again next year.”

The president hit all the high notes to please the crowd that helped elect him to the White House, from lower taxes to increasing rural broadband access, but only briefly mentioned trade and NAFTA, which farmers are most concerned about when it comes to administration policy. He focused on eliminating unnecessary regulations. “Oh are you happy you voted for me,” the president said as he talked about “ditching the rule” – the Waters of the U.S. or WOTUS, which Farm Bureau stridently opposed.

Listen to President Trump’s entire remarks here – President Trump at #AFBF18

Watch President Trump video archive
Find links to all AFBF convention content.

2018 AFBF Convention Photo Album

Ag Secretary Sonny Perdue at #AFBF18

AFBF, AgWired Animal, AgWired Energy, AgWired Precision, Audio, USDA

U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue set the stage for his boss and our president Donald J. Trump to address the largest general farm organization in the country Monday.

Perdue highlighted accomplishments of the Trump Administration related to agriculture and discussed the importance of trade and NAFTA in particular to U.S. agriculture. “To get a deal, we need all sides to seriously roll up their sleeves and get to work,” Perdue said. “We have put a number of proposals on the table to modernize NAFTA, and critically for agriculture, to address key sectors left out of the original agreement – dairy and poultry tariffs in Canada. Now, we want to see our negotiating partners step up and engage so we can get the deal done.”

Perdue also noted that USDA has been rolling back excessive regulations following a directive from President Trump, including WOTUS, the Waters of the U.S. rule which was the subject of Farm Bureau’s Ditch the Rule campaign. “You know, sometimes a mud puddle is just a mud puddle,” Perdue said. “We don’t need the federal government coming in and regulating everything to death.”

The secretary also officially presented the findings of the President’s Interagency Task Force on Agriculture and Rural Prosperity.

Listen to Perdue’s address here: USDA Secretary Sonny Perdue at AFBF18

Click here to watch it on video.

2018 AFBF Convention Photo Album

WATCH LIVE or click for archived video
Watch President Trump live from AFBF starting at 3:00 pm central.

Farm Bureau Excels at Instant Convention Content

AFBF, AgWired Animal, AgWired Energy, AgWired Precision

The communications team for the American Farm Bureau Federation is really getting a workout for the organization’s 99th annual meeting in Nashville this week with President Donald Trump attending Monday afternoon. Over 200 registered media and room for only 90, having the vast majority of the convention schedule being changed at the last minute, and just dealing with the logistics of a presidential presence will make Monday a challenge for even the most seasoned professionals. But, no matter what, you will be able to see the president’s speech live, or go back and watch it later – and you will have photos and audio almost immediately after it is over.

In fact, you can find the majority of the main activities at the AFBF convention live-streamed, archived, photographed, and audio filed, with multiple press releases, through the Farm Bureau convention media guide. With the help of state Farm Bureau communications specialists, the AFBF communications team has always been the best at providing content for media. Chuck was one of those state staffers at Florida Farm Bureau who was brought on the AFBF team for the 1985 convention in Hawaii. They were using some of the earliest satellite technology to send both audio and video back to the mainland for some media, but they were also shipping video stories on cassette using the latest express shipping services and getting audio content sent via telephone. News releases and photos were still mostly sent by mail but they were using some of the earliest facsimile machines at the time.

AFBF has always kept up with the latest in communications technology, so now you can watch and record it live as it happens, get high resolution photos, and subscribe to audio feeds from the event via podcast. Jamie will be on the ground there for President Trump’s address Monday and we will have an AgNewsWire virtual newsroom page set up for her photos and interviews, but here are the links to various content sources from AFBF:

Convention photos
Live streaming video and links to archived videos
B Roll Video
Audio files

Farm Bureau is really the epitome of an organization that excels in providing virtually instant digital content from their conventions. AgNewsWire is a way for smaller organizations to get content from their own meetings produced and distributed to a wider audience. It’s what we do best, and we learned a lot of it from working with Farm Bureau over the years.