Held each year in Chicago, CSS 2017 & Seed Expo is America’s largest seed industry convention with the latest information on seed treatment, plant breeding innovation, the agricultural economy forecast for 2018, emerging global disease threats and more. This virtual ag newsroom, courtesy of ASTA, includes links to photos and audio content available free of charge for digital or print …
#FarmBill18 Listening Session in Missouri
The Missouri Farm Bureau hosted a listening session on the 2018 Farm Bill at Lake Ozark, Missouri this week featuring: – Ranking Member House Ag Committee, Rep. Collin Peterson (D-MN) – Rep. Vicky Hartzler (R-MO) – Chairman Commodity Futures Trading Commission, Chris Giancarlo – Former Congressman Kenny Hulshof – Retired Economist, American Farm Bureau Federation, Dr. Bob Young, – Senior …
White Paper Explores Opportunities for U.S. Ag in Cuba
Two leading advocates for normalizing trade with Cuba announced the release of a new white paper, Opportunities for U.S. Agriculture in Cuba: A White Paper, that examines how 16 farm states could benefit if the U.S. repeals longstanding restrictions on food sales to the island nation. The paper was produced by Cuba Trade Magazine and the U.S. Agriculture Coalition for …
Valagro Showcases Innovation at Biostimulants Congress
One of the gold sponsors at the 3rd Biostimulants World Congress in Miami this week is industry pioneer Valagro. The company is headquartered in Atessa, Italy with a product distribution network covering more than 80 countries, with a focus on California, Florida, and the Midwest in the United States. In this interview, Valagro USA country manager Mario Mastrangelo talks about …
Kansas Farmer Testifies at Ag Technology Hearing
“Technology in Agriculture: Data-Driven Farming” was the topic of a hearing last week before the Senate Commerce Subcommittee on Consumer Protection, Product Safety, Insurance, & Data Security to examine the potential benefits of advancements in agricultural technology and the collection and utilization of data in farming. The only farmer to testify was Justin Knopf from Gypsum, Kansas, who talked about …
National Thanksgiving Turkey Presented to POTUS
National Turkey Federation Chairman Carl Wittenburg presented the National Thanksgiving Turkey named “Drumstick” to President Trump. The turkeys were raised with the involvement of 4-H members from Douglas County, Minnesota: Kodi Bundermann, Kayla Egenes, Katie Kent, Christina Kuismi, and Kerryn Lund under the supervision of the Wittenburgs. The names for the birds were suggested by school children through the Minnesota …
Survey Shows LibertyLink System Rates Highest With Growers
Results from an independent market research survey of growers in 21 states conducted by Kynetec have found that the LibertyLink® system by Bayer was the highest rated trait platform of the year. The study found that 97 percent of growers who planted LibertyLink this year rated it “good” to “excellent,” beating out both new and established platforms currently on the …
Biodiesel Documentary Premieres
The biodiesel industry is spotlighted in a new Discovery Impact documentary “HOT GREASE” which makes its on-air debut November 16 at 9:00 Eastern. The film features footage from National Biodiesel Board (NBB) events, as well as interviews with NBB Director of Communications Jessica Robinson; former Senator Byron Dorgan (D-N.D.) and Gene Gebolys, founder and CEO of World Energy. NBB Director …
ZimmCast from the #NAFB17 – Part 2
Hello folks. The ZimmComm Team is in post-NAFB Convention recovery which includes editing and publishing interviews and other content we created in Kansas City last week. This week’s program includes feature interviews with our sponsors who help make everything happen. In the program we’re featuring interviews with FMC’s Mike Krull about the FMC/Dupont integration, GROWMARK’s Tim Berkland about their Enduring …
Larson Dairy Reacts to Animal Activist Video
One of the most well-respected dairy operations in the nation was the subject of an underground animal activist video that was released this past week. Larson Dairy in Okeechobee, Florida is owned by Woody Larson, who bought the operation from his father Red Larson, who started in the dairy business in 1947. His son Jacob is also involved in the …
Corn Crop Increase Surprises
USDA surprised many with the crop production forecast out this month estimating a two percent increase from last month for corn. Based on conditions as of November 1, yields are expected to average 175.4 bushels per acre, up 3.6 bushels from the October forecast and up 0.8 bushel from 2016. If realized, this will be the highest yield on record …
SMART Farmer Jeremy Brown
In this edition, we hear from a Texas farmer who grows both organic and traditional cotton and peanuts, as well as other crops. Jeremy Brown is one of the U.S. Farmers and Ranchers Alliance (USFRA) faces of farming, which has given him the opportunity to engage with the non-farm public on the highly emotional topic of biotechnology and GMO crops …
Ibach Sworn in, Northey Still on Hold for USDA
Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue traveled to Omaha yesterday to swear-in new Under Secretary for Marketing and Regulatory Programs Greg Ibach in his home state. During the swearing-in ceremony, Perdue expressed his disappointment that Bill Northey was not also being sworn in at the same time, after his nomination was put on hold last week by Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) in …
USFRA Supporting Food Evolution Movie
The U.S. Farmers and Ranchers Alliance (USFRA) is supporting a new film that offers an independent investigation into biotechnology that concludes GMOs may well be a force for good to feed the world. Food Evolution, which is now streaming on Hulu, was commissioned by the Institute of Food Technologists (IFT), and directed by Academy Award®-nominated director Scott Hamilton Kennedy. USFRA …
Secretary Perdue at 90th FFA Convention
Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue attended his first National FFA Convention this week and held a press conference to take questions about various topics, prior to addressing the group’s opening general session. Perdue appeared at the press conference with six members of the FFA policy committee and was asked about a number of topics, including the 2018 farm bill, trade and …