John Deere is holding its annual Develop with Deere conference in Kansas City this year with almost double the number of attendees of last year. Many more dealers have come to learn what the company has planned for the future. The conference includes presentations from 33 application development companies who are working with John Deere in various ways to integrate …
ZimmCast Features Bad Boy Off Road
Bad Boy Off Road is part of Textron Specialized Vehicles, based in Augusta, GA. That’s where Chuck Zimmerman met Ben White to pick up an Eclipse IS Crew to test drive during the hunting season at the Crystal Pig Hunt Club. Chuck’s hunt club partner and brother, Paul Zimmerman, and he spent some days successfully hunting sharing time on Chuck’s …
#ExEx16 Featured in Ethanol Report
Export Exchange 2016, sponsored by the Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) and the U.S. Grains Council (USGC), was held this past week in Detroit, Michigan with over 400 attendees, including some 200 international buyers and end users from more than 35 countries. The event is held every other year to bring together international buyers and domestic suppliers of coarse grains and …
Ag Groups Step Up Support of Sustainable #GMOs
Agricultural organizations are doubling down on their defense of biotechnology as sustainable, after challenging Dannon for its pledge to eliminate genetically-modified ingredients from some products, citing that it improves sustainability. “There comes a time when we as farmers and ranchers need to step up and challenge when companies misinform consumers,” said U.S. Farmers and Ranchers Alliance CEO Randy Krotz on …
Hundreds in Detroit for #ExEx16
Hundreds of buyers and sellers of U.S. coarse grains and ethanol co-products have arrived in Detroit for Export Exchange 2016 (#ExEx16) and even though they are from more than 30 countries they are busy making connections and building relationships. The event, which has been held every two years since 2010, is co-sponsored by the U.S. Grains Council (USGC) and the …
Summit Agricultural Group Launches Summit Advantage
Iowa-based Summit Agricultural Group has introduced a new service model for farm and agricultural land management that brings the concept of ‘unbundling’ to traditional farm management offerings. According to Joel Waskow, accredited farm manager with Summit Ag Management, Summit Advantage provides landowners with greater options and flexibility instead of binding them into the current one-size-fits-all approach. “We look at this …
AnimalAgCast Goes Solar with Dairy
On this week’s AnimalAgCast, Lizzy Schultz spoke with Peter Gallo, a third-generation farmer and cheesemaker at Joseph Gallo Farms, a dairy farm in the San Joaquin Valley of California. The operation has been a pioneer in sustainable farming practices and recently made headlines following the decision to install a new 2 megawatt (MW) solar array to supply renewable energy on-site. …
Dannon Responds to Ag Groups’ Concerns
The Dannon Company released a statement Tuesday after being called out by agricultural organizations for its plans to phase out GMOs in some major brands for the sake of sustainability. In the letter sent Monday to Dannon head of U.S. operations Mariano Lozano, the farm groups said that the company’s strategy to eliminate GMOs “is the exact opposite of the …
Illinois 4R4U Partnership Launched
A partnership has been launched between the Illinois Farm Bureau and affiliated county Farm Bureaus, with GROWMARK and a number of FS companies, designed to demonstrate and investigate at the local level the impact and efficacy of 4R nutrient stewardship practices. The 4R field demonstration program, called 4R4U, includes 14 county Farm Bureaus and 11 FS companies in Illinois. “Our …
89th Annual FFA Convention Kicks off in Indy
The 89th National FFA Convention has kicked off in Indianapolis, IN and this year’s theme is “Transform: Purpose to Action.” So why transform? By working together, people can transform the message of agriculture. Together, FFA members can continue to educate others on the importance of agriculture. This year’s conference will highlight ways FFA members have spent their time giving back …
GROWMARK Makes Major Energy Investments
GROWMARK announced two major energy-related investments last month that provide benefits for the members of the Illinois-based agricultural cooperative. First, GROWMARK acquired a propane terminal in Plattsburg, Missouri which is connected to the ONEOK pipeline, has 270,000 gallons of storage and the capability to load out two trucks at once. GROWMARK also recently reached an agreement with Suncor to purchase …
GRSB Hosts Global Sustainability Conference
The Global Conference on Sustainable Beef was held earlier this month in Banff, Alberta, and the event featured a diverse group of inspiring keynotes that touched on the global commitment to furthering sustainability efforts. Speakers included Dennis Laycraft, president of the Global Roundtable on Sustainable Beef (GRSB). He explained that the ultimate goal of GRSB is to expand global reach …
ZimmCast Introduces Rice Farming TV
In this new episode of ZimmCast, Chuck Zimmerman speaks with Matthew Sligar, the host of Rice Farming TV, a weekly Vlog. Sligar decided there was a need for this kind of online sharing about farming after talking with people who had no idea that rice was even grown in California. This is exactly what we need today, reports Zimmerman, and …
Disneyland Hosts #CAPCA16 & #Ag Superheros
CAPTAIN CAPCA and Dr. Foe battled it out in the opening credits to this year’s 42nd annual California Association of Pest Control Advisors (CAPCA). The event took place in a great location for a superhero and villain – Disneyland – in Anaheim, California October 16-18, 2016. This year’s theme was Feeding the Nation – Fighting the Fear and the speakers …
EU Farm Agenda Would Hurt U.S. Dairy Industry
Surrendering to a European Union (EU) seizure of common food names would cost the U.S. dairy industry billions of dollars, slash domestic cheese consumption and increase prices for consumers, according to an analysis released today by Informa Economics IEG. The European farm policy agenda, which is focused on using geographical indications (GIs) to unfairly grant European food producers a huge …