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Who Makes What Where

January 24, 2012 by sabrina829

 

This interactive map shows where U.S. machinery companies build their equipment. Use the arrow buttons to move about the map. Use the + and – buttons to zoom in and out. Scroll over a flag to see what each company builds in that location.

To check out this interactive map on Agweb.com, click on the map image above.

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Food for Thought

January 23, 2012 by sabrina829

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Warm Winter Creates Need to Manage Stored Grain

January 23, 2012 by sabrina829

Warm weather the first half of this winter has increased the potential for problems in stored grain.
 
“Grain needs to be either dried or stored at a cool temperature to prevent mold growth,” says North Dakota State University Extension Service grain drying expert Ken Hellevang. “If the stored grain is dry, the warm winter temperatures will not cause storage problems. But if the grain is not dry, the warm temperatures may be a concern. The potential for insect problems also increases at warmer temperatures.”
 
For example, cereal grain at 18% moisture content can be stored for up to about 200 days at 40 degrees and 90 days at 50 degrees, but only about 15 days at 80 degrees. For each 10-degree increase in grain temperature, the allowable storage time is reduced by about one-half.
 
The allowable storage time increases at lower grain moisture contents. At 70 degrees, the allowable storage time increases from about 30 days for cereal grain at 18% moisture to 45 days at 17% moisture, 70 days at 16% moisture and 200 days at 14% moisture.
 
Insects are dormant below about 50 degrees, so keeping the grain temperature below 50 degrees if possible is important, Hellevang says. If the grain temperature is kept below freezing during winter storage, insects can be killed.
 
Read the full article on Agweb.com
 

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Permanent Damage Caused by 2011 Flooding

January 23, 2012 by sabrina829

When the water in the Mississippi River rose to 58 feet with a forecast of 60 feet or higher in May 2011, the emergency plan to naturally or intentionally breach the levees, established over 80 years prior, was put in motion.  The flood of 1937 did top the frontline levee and water passed into and through the New Madrid Floodway, but being flood-free since then caused area landowners to oppose the plan being put into action.
 
“After a delay due to a legal appeal from area landowners, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers was finally given permission by the U.S. Supreme Court to open the floodway, but by that time, the Mississippi River was 4 feet higher than planned for,” said University of Illinois researcher Kenneth Olson. “The initial additional force and depth of floodwater caused more damage to buildings and more deep land scouring than was predicted. The strong current and sweep of water through the Birds Point, Missouri, breach created deep gullies in 133,000 acres of Missouri farmland, displaced tons of soil, and damaged irrigation equipment, farms, and homes.”
 
Olson has followed the drama of the deliberate flooding closely and believes it will create long-lasting, if not permanent, agricultural damage to hundreds of acres of land. The rushing water gouged large deep gullies on parcels of land adjacent to the blown levees and on some distant fields. The land was also covered with a thick sand deposit and in some areas adjacent to where new crater lakes were formed.
 
“Reclamation efforts by the Corps of Engineers included patching the frontline and fuse plugs levees with the sand, and topsoil was trucked in,” Olson said. “The former 60.5 feet fuse plug and the 62.5 feet  front line levee was rebuilt, raising it initially to 51 feet and then, after input from local farmers, to 55 feet. Proper drainage in the area has been restored, but the unanticipated fields with large and deep gullies located five miles from the levee breaches will not be repaired very easily.” Olson believes that even if the fields of gullies are reclaimed, the soils are likely to have lower productivity.
 
Read the full article on Agweb.com
 

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USDA says Rural Development progress made

January 19, 2012 by sabrina829

The head of the USDA Rural Development Office says the work they’re doing is having a positive impact on Rural America. Undersecretary Dallas Tonsager says the 2011 Rural Development Fiscal Year 2011 Annual Report shows they have invested almost $29 Billion dollars and “created or saved an estimated 440-thousand” jobs through the rural business cooperative, utilities and housing programs…

“Provided housing opportunities for over 143,000 families, upgraded community facilities across the country, supported improvements to the national electric grid, funded renewable energy projects, expanded access to affordable, high-quality internet service for rural residents throughout the Community Connect and other broadband programs.”

Tonsager says they were able to spur much of that growth without taxpayer dollars…

“Roughly 63% of our fiscal year 2011 investments served to increase access to capital for rural businesses, communities and homebuyers without a direct cost to the federal government.”

Read the full article here.

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Mobile App Now Available For the National Farm Machinery Show

January 18, 2012 by sabrina829

The National Farm Machinery Show continues its tradition of meeting demands of its attendees by offering a mobile app for the February 15-18 show.

The first-ever mobile app, called “NFMS ’12,” for the National Farm Machinery Show

is now available for free on smartphones (iPhone, Android and Blackberry) and features an interactive exhibitor map and listings, seminars and speakers, Championship Tractor Pull schedules, and Louisville area information to plan your trip to the largest indoor farm show in America.

The mobile app will include frequent updates right up to the opening day of the show. “NFMS ’12″ also will provide digital information from exhibitors, text alerts, product updates and instant connectivity, all in the palm of your hand. Text alerts and mobile updates on what’s happening during the show are also features.

“In addition to the product-packed NFMS Show Guide, the mobile app will contain all the information needed to plan your visit and also help make your days at the National Farm Machinery Show very full and productive,” says Allen Barkve, general manager of Farm Industry News.

Social media will also be incorporated into the app to connect attendees (hashtag: #nfms12). To find additional information about the show, connect with National Farm Machinery Show by following it on Facebook and on Twitter @nfmslouisville.

The free application can be downloaded by searching “NFMS ’12″ in the Apple Store, Android Market and BlackBerry’s App World or by clicking here.

The National Farm Machinery Show is the largest indoor farm show in the United States and has provided agricultural resources for the past 47 years, helping farmers to make their operations more productive and profitable. The National Farm Machinery Show is held at the Kentucky Exposition Center in Louisville, located at the junction of I-65 and I-264, less than five

minutes from the Louisville International Airport. The show is open daily from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Admission to the show is free, and parking is just $8 per vehicle.

For more information, visit www.farmmachineryshow.org.

 

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Hot Topics in Ag

January 18, 2012 by sabrina829

 

John Deere Sets World Record With Combine Constructed from Food: It’s a new world record! John Deere’s Project “Can Do” created a full-sized combine made entirely from food – 308,448 cans of food and 11,268 bags of food to be exact… Read More

World Ag Expo Celebrates 45th Anniversary: World Ag Expo will celebrate 45 years of excellence February 14-16, 2012 in Tulare, California. The largest annual agricultural exposition of its kind, World Ag Expo touts more than 1,400 exhibitors who display cutting-edge agricultural technology and equipment on 2.6 million square feet of show grounds… Read More

Wheat Prices Fall as Winter Plantings Rise: Wheat prices tumbled Thursday as a government report showed the nation’s farmers had planted winter wheat on much more of their land this season amid last year’s higher prices and easing drought conditions in Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas… Read More

Pinpoint Your Farms Weather: AgWeb users can now view current weather conditions, forecasts and rainfall down to the field level with AgWeb’s new and interactive Pinpoint Weather Forecast tool… Read and See More

 

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The consideration cycle leading up to a purchase can last over a year.

January 17, 2012 by sabrina829

Today’s modern farming operations are continually exploring ways to improve production. The challenges that come with increasing productivity also create a compelling need to make the right purchase decision. Whether it’s acquiring more acres, upgrading equipment, selecting new inputs or adding the latest technology, farmers are taking a very measured approach to making sure they “get it right.”

Adding to this challenge is the fact that many of these important purchase decisions are made by more than one person, such as a father and son(s) or father and daughter(s). This unique decision-making dynamic has many agri-marketers asking, “How do multi-generational farming operations make major purchase decisions?”

Read the full article on Agribranding.com

 

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Farming Through the Unthinkable

January 17, 2012 by sabrina829

Sometimes life doesn’t go as planned. It certainly didn’t for the Dell family of Maryland. A succession plan must be flexible to accommodate for the unthinkable. A situation that Greg Dell, the patriarch of the family, never thought he’d have to experience.
“I had in my head the plan, how I thought it was going to go and now it’s…,” Greg says referring to the snag they hit in the planning process after the death of Tommy in an accident during last year’s harvest. Together the family continues to farm and with the leader ship of parents, Greg and Della, the siblings continue to plan for succession despite the loss of Tommy, a brother and integral part of the day to day farm operation.
“After the accident was shock, and then we went to survival mode and now we’re through spring and through the shock and hopefully there will be more progress,” says Shannon Dell, Tommy’s widow.
Tommy’s younger brother Doug has begun spending more time on the farm, learning from his dad Greg, and Shannon still plays a large role in the day to day operation doing the accounting and helping with the seed business.
“Life’s chaotic, but life goes on, and we’re going on just as I think Tommy would have wanted us to go on,” Shannon says.
Read the full article and view a video on Agweb.com

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More Young People Are Getting Into Farming

January 10, 2012 by sabrina829

New numbers on farmers won’t be available until the agricultural census is done next year, but those in agriculture point to some good signs: Enrollment in university ag programs has increased, as has interest in farmer-training programs.

That’s good news to the government. More than 60% of farmers are over the age of 55, and the Agriculture Department’s Poppy Davis said without young farmers to replace retirees, the nation’s food supply could be vulnerable.

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack has called for 100,000 new farmers within the next few years.

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