Tuesday January 30 Ag News

Nebraska Farm Bureau Foundation 2018 Teachers of the Year Announced

The Nebraska Farm Bureau Foundation has selected two teachers as their Nebraska Agriculture in the Classroom 2018 Teachers of the Year. The Teacher of the Year is awarded to two outstanding teachers that incorporate agriculture into their classroom through innovative ideas and lessons.

Stephanie Wolf, a special education teacher at Brady Public Schools in Brady and Jennifer Johnson, a third-grade teacher at Sutton Public Schools in Sutton were honored.

“Both Stephanie and Jennifer demonstrate how teachers can use agriculture as the context for hands-on teaching in a standards-based curriculum. They are engaging the next generation in critical thinking about where their food, fiber and fuel comes from, and we are happy to recognize and reward their important work,” said Megahn Schafer, executive director of the Nebraska Farm Bureau Foundation.

Wolf brings agriculture into her classrooms with the Lincoln County Farm Bureau Learning Barn, live animals, and hatching chicks in her classroom. She also brings in her own knowledge of life experiences on the farm to help the students understand and connect to their projects.

“By bringing in the live animals and showing the kids where their food and fiber come from, it gives them real-life experiences that they might not otherwise have,” said Wolf. “Through these real-life interactions, the student learns much more than just from a book.”

Mrs. Wolf enjoys the Eggology unit the most. To keep the lesson interactive and hands-on, students help setup the incubator, build a pen, and watch the chicks hatch from the shells in the springtime. Students stay involved by feeding and watering the chicks while learning of the important job farmers and ranchers have to their livestock every day.

Jennifer Johnson teaches in Sutton, Nebraska a farming community, so she was shocked when her students struggled to answer her question of “What is agriculture?” That is when she knew she needed to do more this year with agriculture.

Johnson incorporated agriculture into her classroom by transforming her classroom into a farm.

“I knew it was going to be a lot of work, but I also knew this was a class that needed hands-on learning and would learn from these activities,” she said.

She asked the students to dress up like someone who lives on a farm. When the students came in the next morning, they were in awe. They saw straw bales, a saddle, feed, barns, farm equipment, books, magazines, and animals. The rest of the morning, the students discussed each item and how each was used on the farm. In the afternoon, Johnson invited a rancher to visit the classroom and talk about their jobs and how the animals had to be taken care of every day, even on weekends and holidays and in all kinds of weather.

“This activity brought to life agriculture in Nebraska and how important it is to know where your food is coming from,” Johnson said. “In this day and age, we have many types of learners, and my hope was to reach these students in one way or another to appreciate agriculture and life in Nebraska,” she continued.

Each teacher is being awarded an all-expense paid trip to the National Agriculture in the Classroom Conference in Portland, ME on June 26-29. The conference brings educators together from all over the United States to collaborate on how to incorporate agriculture into their curriculum and engage students. Teachers will have the opportunity to attend tours of local ag businesses and farms in the area.



ACE encouraged by Pruitt’s ethanol statements

Brian Jennings, CEO of the American Coalition for Ethanol (ACE), releases the following statement in response to Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Scott Pruitt’s hearing before the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee today: 

“ACE members are grateful Administrator Pruitt is committed to completing the review of EPA's legal authority to provide RVP relief for E15 and higher blends and that he reiterated the Agency's interest in how high-octane fuels can meet fuel efficiency standards. 

“RVP relief is not only a commonsense step EPA can take to provide regulatory relief to fuel marketers, it is also the quickest way to take pressure off RIN prices. E15 blending nationwide will increase ethanol blending which will increase the supply of RIN credits and help bring down their price.  For those interests seeking lower RIN prices, RVP relief is indeed a "win-win" solution.

“Administrator Pruitt is to be commended for inviting comment on the role high-octane fuels can play in helping meet future vehicle fuel economy and emission standards.  It is well-documented that blends in the range of E25-40 deliver meaningful efficiency and emission benefits at a low pump price.  We continue to work with other stakeholders to make sure high-octane fuel containing ethanol becomes a reality.”



USDA, FDA Announce Formal Agreement to Bolster Coordination and Collaboration

U.S. Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue and FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb, M.D. announced at the White House today a formal agreement aimed at making the oversight of food more efficient and effective by bolstering coordination between the two agencies. The formal agreement outlines efforts to increase interagency collaboration, efficiency and effectiveness on produce safety and biotechnology activities, while providing clarity to manufacturers.

“Today, Commissioner Gottlieb and I signed a formal agreement to promote coordination and the streamlining of capacities and obligations on shared concerns and jurisdiction,” said Secretary Perdue. “Congress passed the Food Safety Modernization Act and assigned responsibilities to the USDA and the FDA. The USDA has the knowledge and expertise to support the FDA’s work related to farming. We at the USDA have a motto: Do Right, and Feed Everyone. We believe this joint effort will help us move one step closer to that goal.”

The FDA and the USDA have worked closely over the years to oversee the nation’s food supply. The USDA oversees the safety of most meat, poultry, catfish and certain egg products while the FDA has authority over all other foods such as dairy, seafood, produce and packaged foods. The USDA and the FDA are partnering in many key areas, including the implementation of produce safety measures and biotechnology efforts.

“Secretary Perdue and I share a deep commitment to further strengthening our nation’s food safety system in the most effective and transparent way,” said FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb, M.D. “Over the last several months, the Secretary and I have worked closely and identified several areas where we can strengthen our collaboration to make our processes more efficient, predictable, and potentially lower cost to industry; while also strengthening our efforts to ensure food safety. This agreement not only formalizes this ongoing coordination, but presents a great opportunity to expand those efforts through better integration and increased clarity to the agriculture and food processing sectors. Our coordination with these sectors plays an integral role in helping to keep our nation’s food supply safe and secure.”

This agreement is the agencies’ newest initiative to expand those efforts and take new steps to streamline regulatory responsibilities and use government resources more efficiently to protect public health. It aims to increase clarity, efficiency and potentially reduce the number of establishments subject to the dual regulatory requirements of the USDA and the FDA. For example, when a facility, such as a canned soup facility, produces both chicken noodle soup and tomato soup, it is currently subject to regulation by both agencies. The agreement tasks both government organizations with identifying ways to streamline regulation and reduce inspection inefficiencies, while steadfastly upholding safety standards for dual-jurisdiction facilities. This can reduce costs on industry and free government resources to better target efforts to areas of risk.

The agreement also commits the USDA and the FDA to identify ways the agencies can better align and enhance their efforts to develop regulatory approaches to biotechnology, as each agency works to fulfill commitments outlined in the September 2016 National Strategy for Modernizing the Regulatory System for Biotechnology Products and the more recent Task Force on Agriculture and Rural Prosperity Report. These initiatives established a vision for increasing transparency, predictability and efficiency of the regulatory processes for biotechnology products.

The agreement also calls for the FDA and the USDA to enhance their collaboration and cooperation on produce safety activities. The FDA is implementing the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA), which shifts the food safety paradigm from one of reaction to prevention of foodborne illness. Under FSMA, the FDA coordinates with state and/or territorial government agencies, which will conduct most farm inspections under FSMA’s Produce Safety rule.



Statement of Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue Regarding President Trump’s State of the Union Address

U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue today issued the following statement regarding President Donald J. Trump’s State of the Union Address:

“President Trump’s unifying address to the nation recounted this administration’s impressive achievements in its first year, which have strengthened the economy for all Americans, including those who do the important work in the agriculture sector.  The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act is already helping workers and will allow agricultural producers to invest more in their operations and their own families. President Trump’s optimistic vision for the nation includes massive investment in infrastructure, which will be a boon to a rural America that sorely needs such improvements. The president's emphasis on fair trade gives me confidence that he will strike deals that benefit all parts of the American economy.  Additionally, his focus on eliminating burdensome regulations is freeing up agricultural producers and removing obstacles to productivity. This is a president who has rural America and agriculture close to his heart, as his words and deeds clearly demonstrate.”   



NAWG CEO Responds to State of the Union Address

Tonight, President Donald Trump delivered his first State of the Union Address as President. NAWG CEO Chandler Goule provided the following statement in response:

“While the President addressed many issues of importance to the American people, it was unfortunate that he did not focus more of his remarks on agriculture.

“Much like a strong infrastructure plan, agriculture is also essential for helping Rural America move forward. The Farm Bill provides all farmers with access to programs that allow them to produce abundant and quality crops while using fewer inputs, thus facilitating not only rural economic growth but also a safe and affordable food supply for all Americans.

“The President also called on Congress to end sequestration on Defense. Sequestration has had significant effects on domestic programs, including Farm Bill programs, negatively impacting farmers. Removal of sequestration shouldn’t be limited to Defense programs.

"As we consider our place in the world stage, let's make sure that we preserve smart trade deals that keep American wheat producers in a strong position. This includes remaining in NAFTA and moving ahead with bi-lateral trade agreements.

“We appreciate the President continuing to talk about the need to enforce our trade deals and commend the Administration’s work to ensure countries like China are living up to its commitments on wheat trade.

“NAWG looks forward to continuing to work with the Administration on ways to improve the livelihood of the American wheat farmer.”



NFU Urges Follow-Through on President’s Promises Regarding Trade and Infrastructure

In his first State of the Union address, President Donald Trump continued his promises to turn the page “on decades of unfair trade deals” and to rebuild the nation’s “crumbling infrastructure,” both issues of major concern for American family farmers and ranchers.

National Farmers Union President Roger Johnson issued the following statement in response to the president’s remarks:

    “Family farmers and rural residents are looking to President Trump to deliver on his promises to fix the nation’s failed free trade agreement framework and crumbling rural infrastructure.

    “The President, rightly so, spoke to how our past trade agreements disadvantage the working class, family farmers and their communities. These agreements operate under a failed framework that the president can begin to fix by replacing NAFTA with an agreement that addresses our massive trade deficit and lost sovereignty. Unfortunately, President Trump has gone about this in a fashion that isn’t conducive to positive relations with our trading partners. The administration must produce a better NAFTA and avoid massive market disruption through a NAFTA withdrawal.

    “We also appreciate the President’s attention to current infrastructure woes. There is clearly a growing need for significant federal investment in our nation's roads, rails, broadband, locks and dams. We urge the administration and Congress to move swiftly in developing the promised comprehensive infrastructure package.”



Y-TEX Corporation Launches New TRI-ZAP™ lnsecticide Cattle Ear Tags

Y-TEX Corporation, one of the leading global suppliers of livestock identification and pest control solutions, today announced the launch of its new TRI-ZAP™ Insecticide Ear Tags for beef and dairy cattle.  Featuring three proven active ingredients, new TRI-ZAP tags represent a major advancement in the control of horn flies, face flies, lice and Spinose ear ticks.

“TRI-ZAP combines the repellency of zetacypermethrin and the killing power of abamectin with the synergistic effects of piperonyl butoxide to create the most effective fly control product on the market today for pastured beef and dairy cattle,” stated Dr. Mike Fletcher, Vice President of Research & Development for Y-TEX.  “TRI-ZAP stops both pyrethroid-resistant horn flies and hard-to-control face flies from feeding on your cattle and stealing your profits.  Our data shows the more resistant horn flies are to zetacypermethrin, the more susceptible they are to abamectin, making this combination an ideal part of any rotation strategy to manage horn fly resistance.”

In addition to its new TRI-ZAP tags, Y-TEX markets a full line of insecticide ear tags and strips, including GardStar® Plus, OPtimizer®, PYthon®, PYthon® Magnum™, Warrior™ and XP 820® brands.  The company also offers Brute® Pour-on and GardStar 40% EC Spray insecticides for cattle.

“With the introduction of our new TRI-ZAP tags, along with our new Y-Tags™ one-piece identification ear tag system, Y-TEX offers the broadest, most advanced line of livestock ear tags on the market today,” noted Glenn A. Nielson, President of Y-TEX Corporation.  “Whether a beef or dairy producer is looking for insecticide tags, ID tags or both, we have the products to meet their exact needs.”



Syngenta stresses the importance of a start-clean, stay-clean approach to manage resistant marestail

Marestail, also known as horseweed, is top of mind for many corn and soybean growers preparing for the 2018 growing season. Because of its ongoing threat, Syngenta stresses the importance of a start-clean, stay-clean residual herbicide strategy to help maximize crop yields and manage future resistant marestail.

According to Purdue University, marestail was one of the first glyphosate-resistant weeds identified in U.S. row crops. It’s been reported in more than 10 states since its initial occurrence in 2000. Marestail seeds are highly mobile and can easily spread to new areas. This is especially concerning as each plant can produce up to 200,000 seeds and grow up to 6 feet high.

“Once you have a 4-inch horseweed in your soybeans, it becomes a major limiting factor,” stressed Bryan Young, a weed scientist at Purdue University. “If it’s ALS-resistant, we don’t have those herbicides to use on it. If you’re in a glyphosate system, you don’t have an option unless you go to dicamba- or glufosinate-tolerant soybeans.”

According to the United Soybean Board, marestail populations with evolved resistance to glyphosate and ALS-inhibiting herbicides are widespread, and it is easier to control the weed in the seedling, or rosette, stage. In addition, it has two primary periods of emergence, late March through June and then late summer through late fall.

"If you don’t get marestail early in the spring with spray, you’ll need a tillage tool to uproot them or cut them out of the ground. Otherwise, they are just there for the rest of the season," said Joe Humes, a soybean, corn and wheat grower in Wyaconda, Missouri. "The most important thing to stress to growers is to not cut rates and watch weed height because the bigger it gets, the harder it is to kill. Some guys want to wait and do it all in one pass, and the weeds just get too big. At a certain point, they can’t be controlled."

For corn growers, Syngenta offers Acuron® and Acuron Flexi pre-emergence herbicides, both containing bicyclopyrone, a herbicide technology, which is designed to complement the other active ingredients in the premix to deliver broader, more consistent control of tough weeds other products are missing. A two-pass system works well in areas where marestail has a strong late-season presence and can include a post-emergence application of Halex® GT corn herbicide for an additional mode of action. For the best results, Syngenta recommends applying Halex GT in a tank mix with either atarazine or dicamba.

“A two-pass program is pretty much standard. In my programs, I plan ahead for that,” said Brad Hemeyer, a grower in Gilliam, Missouri. “I try to get out to my fields as early as I can, as far as burndown options. And I’m looking more into fall application, too, especially in our no-till fields with marestail problems.”

For soybean growers, Syngenta offers effective weed control solutions, including Boundary® 6.5 EC herbicide for pre-emergence marestail control and long-lasting residual.

In addition to residual herbicides with multiple non-ALS, non-glyphosate modes of action, growers can adapt to manage the spread of resistant marestail through a variety of other methods.

"There are so many practices that help growers maintain the viability of their herbicide tools," said Dane Bowers, Syngenta herbicide technical product lead. "Crop rotation, cover crops, cultivation and harvest weed seed control are some of the ways to develop a truly diversified program, one that does not depend solely on herbicides. There may be an additional investment up front, but the return on investment is strong over time if we can prevent resistant weeds, like marestail, from developing."

Backed by decades of research and development, Syngenta has been at the forefront of introducing herbicides with multiple, effective modes of action to help fight resistance. The Syngenta Resistance Fighter® program provides education, local recommendations, and a comprehensive herbicide portfolio to help growers and retailers effectively manage resistant weeds in their area.



Farm Dog and John Deere Launch Joint Project to Develop Variable Rate Spray Technology

Farm Dog and John Deere have launched a joint development project to develop variable rate spray technology for pest and disease management.  The project is supported in part by a $900 thousand grant from the Binational Industrial Research and Development Foundation (BIRD Foundation) and delivers the next stage in the companies' collaboration to reduce pesticide use, increase yields, and promote environmental sustainability.

"This is a step change for pest and disease management," said Liron Brish, CEO and co-founder of Farm Dog.  "Growers spend more than $60 billion per year on pest and disease management yet still suffer $500 billion worth of crop losses per year.  The combination of Farm Dog insights with John Deere equipment will finally provide growers with the tools needed to make the best in-field decisions for optimizing treatments, increasing yields, and promoting sustainability."

The companies have been working together since 2016.  Building on prior integration of the Farm Dog platform with John Deere Operations Center, this next phase extends data sharing and leverages John Deere's ExactApply spray equipment capabilities.

"The John Deere Operations Center is an open platform that gives producers the opportunity to connect their machine and production data with other software tools and drive deeper insights into their farms," said Lane Arthur, Director of Digital Solutions at John Deere.  "This integration demonstrates our commitment to providing producers with tools to increase the efficiency and profitability of their operations."

In this next phase, both companies will work jointly to design and test variable rate spraying solutions.  Development will occur simultaneously in Israel and Iowa over the next 18 months.

Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds commended both companies on their relationship.  "I would like to congratulate Farm Dog and John Deere for being awarded the BIRD grant. This collaboration is a perfect synergy between Israeli innovation and Iowa software and manufacturing skills.  Together, these two companies will lead farm production into the future."