A five-minute summary of AAI, regulation, and industry activities for members of the largest state agribusiness association in the nation. | |
2024 Membership Year Statements Mailed | |
Membership Renewals for 2024 have been mailed. If you did not receive a Membership Renewal notice, please contact us to make sure we have the correct address and correct contact for your company.
Not currently a member? Click Here to send us an email so we can follow up with your company and help you get connected to AAI - Where Agribusiness Matters.
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Nominations Open for Iowa CCA of the Year | |
The Iowa Certified Crop Adviser of the Year Award is an annual award designed to recognize a certified crop adviser who delivers exceptional customer service, has shown that they are a leader in their field and are highly innovative and has contributed to the exchange of agronomic knowledge within the agriculture industry. This award celebrates an individual, not a company.
The award recipient will be recognized at the CCA Award Dinner at the Agribusiness Showcase & Conference on February 12, 2024, AND will be nominated by the Iowa CCA board of directors for the American Society of Agronomy's International CCA of the Year Award (ICCA).
The recipient of the International CCA of the Year Award is recognized at both the Commodity Classic and the American Society of Agronomy Annual Meeting. (The international award consists of hotel and travel expenses to the Commodity Classic Meeting and ASA Annual Meeting, $2,000 honorarium, a commemorative plaque, and a one-year membership in the American Society of Agronomy.)
Please take a few minutes of your time to nominate a deserving Iowa CCA today. The nomination can be either for yourself or someone else. The nomination deadline is November 30, 2023.
Click Here for the online nomination form.
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Application Period For INREC Project Coordinator for Batch and Build Projects Closes Monday | |
The Iowa Nutrient Research & Education Council (INREC) is partnering with the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship, Iowa Pork Producers Association, Iowa Select Farms, and other partners on a “batch and build” project. The Pig Farmer Batch and Build Project targets bioreactor and saturated buffer implementation by pig farmers and landowners who utilize manure as a fertilizer source in targeted watersheds. These conservation practices are very effective at reducing nitrate loss from tile drainage.
INREC is seeking candidates to apply for a project coordinator position, who will serve as the primary contact and organizer for project implementation activities including recruiting farmers and landowners, surveying sites, planning construction, and enrolling participants in financial assistance programs.
Download the position description: INREC Project Coordinator
For more information or to apply, contact Ben Gleason, INREC Executive Director, at bgleason@agribiz.org.
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Member Visits -
Davis Equipment
Visit by: CEO Bill Northey
First Interstate Bank
Visit by: CEO Bill Northey
Helena Agri-Enterprises
Visit by: CEO Bill Northey
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October 12
Agribusiness Career Day Subcommittee
10:00 AM | AAI Main Office
October 13
Agribusiness Showcase Committee Meeting
1:30 PM | AAI Main Office Board Room
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Crop Insurance Discounts For Cover Crops | |
The Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship will again offer its crop insurance discount program for acres that are planted with cover crops. Farmers and landowners who plant fall cover crops will have the opportunity to apply for a $5 per acre discount on their spring crop insurance premiums.
Farmers and landowners may start enrolling in the crop insurance discount program on December 1.
To qualify for the program, the cover crop acres cannot be enrolled in other state or United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) cost share programs.
Now in its seventh year, this innovative program has become a model for other states as well as the federal government. To date, nearly 2,000 farmers have enrolled over 1,000,000 acres of cover crops in the program.
More information is available from the crop insurance discount page on the CleanWaterIowa.org website.
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Anaerobic Digestion on the Farm Conference | |
U.S. EPA Region 7, Iowa State University, and the University of Iowa announced that registration is now open for the upcoming conference titled Anaerobic Digestion on the Farm – Optimizing Environmental and Economic Outcomes for Rural Communities and Beyond.
EPA and the universities will host the conference Nov. 6-8, 2023, at Iowa State University in Ames, Iowa. A full conference agenda and registration information are available on EPA’s conference webpage.
The conference will feature presentations, exhibits, and discussion panel sessions covering a variety of anaerobic digestion topics. The conference will also include virtual tours of anaerobic digestion facilities and a poster session. EPA, Iowa State University, and the University of Iowa are accepting submissions for the poster session until Sept. 22, 2023. Please see the conference webpage for details.
Anaerobic Digestion on the Farm Registration Site
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Source: Progressive Farmer
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The EPA rejected a 2017 petition last week from environmental groups that asked the federal agency to require testing and data on whole pesticide formulations and mixtures rather than just active ingredients.
Groups led by the Center for Food Safety also asked the EPA to consider the effects pesticide formulations and mixtures allegedly have on endangered and threatened species.
The original petition requested the EPA to account for the potential toxicological effects of inert ingredients and additives in the testing of tank mixes. EPA was required by a court as part of a legal settlement to act on the 6-year-old petition.
The EPA explained its reasoning in a Sept. 29 letter to the CFS.
"EPA explains in its response to the petition that the agency appropriately assesses, as part of its review, the impacts on human health and the environment and why the additional testing that the petition seeks would not in general provide a better picture of the risks of a pesticide product," the agency said in its letter.
"These assessments evaluate relevant exposure routes for the pesticide(s) and the acute and chronic toxicity data EPA currently receives are sufficient for evaluating the potential risk from the registered use of a pesticide product."
[...] Read Full Story
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The Russia-Ukraine war has split the global tanker business in two. The resulting market is like a high-stakes game of musical chairs in which each player is only allowed to sit in certain seats. If one country snaps up tanker flows, a competing buyer scrambles for the next source — the next chair meeting the geopolitical rules — and so on.
Take the case of diesel. Prices have been on the rise again since July and are now very strong in historical terms. Diesel is in high demand worldwide for trucking and other transportation, and for agricultural and construction equipment.
Russia is the world’s second-largest seaborne supplier. Its exports were sanctioned by the Group of Seven nations and the European Union on Feb 5. Then, on Thursday, Russia halted exports of its diesel (and gasoline) altogether.
In the first round of musical chairs — driven by the Feb. 5 sanctions — Russian diesel that previously went short-haul to the EU was rerouted to Brazil, Turkey, Africa and the Middle East. U.S. diesel that previously went to Brazil switched to the EU, which needed it to replace the Russian diesel it had just banned. The EU also brought in more replacement diesel from the Middle East.
The music has just been cued up for Round 2 of the game.
Russian domestic diesel demand is now particularly high due agricultural machinery consumption in the country’s south. Wholesale prices are rising. In response, the government halted exports and set no timeline for their resumption.
[...] Read Full Story
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After the government twice flooded a farmer’s home and 900 acres, killed his cattle, and insisted he foot the bill—the U.S. Supreme Court will hear the case.
When a new highway flood wall twice trapped Richie Devillier’s land within a figurative bathtub and erased several generations’ worth of toil in 2017 and 2019, Texas state officials refused to pay damages. In 2020, Devillier sued for compensation under the Fifth Amendment, but was told he had no legal grounds to seek compensation from the state.
However, on Sept. 29, 2023, SCOTUS agreed to take Devillier’s case. “This case is about basic government accountability and whether the government has to give you what the Constitution says you’re entitled to. The Constitution says, ‘yes,’ Texas says, ‘no,’ and the Supreme Court is going to decide,” explains Bob McNamara, attorney with Institute for Justice.
Since 1920, the Devillier family has farmed their high-ground land in southeast Texas’ Chambers County, outside Winnie, roughly 60 miles east of Houston. Across 100 years of rice cultivation and cattle production, there were no floods on the Devillier property—until 2017, after the Texas Department of Transportation renovated nearby Interstate 10, raising its height, adding two lanes, and installing a concrete barrier in the median. As a result, with heavy rains, Devillier’s land turns into a lake.
[...] Read Full Story
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Fertilizer additives, an essential component in modern agriculture, play a pivotal role in enhancing the effectiveness of fertilizers and ensuring optimal nutrient absorption by plants. The global fertilizer additives market has been witnessing robust growth, driven by various factors, including:
- Advancements in agricultural technology have paved the way for the development of innovative fertilizer additives. These additives are designed to improve the efficiency of fertilizers, ensuring that plants receive the right balance of nutrients for healthy growth.
- With an increasing focus on sustainable farming practices, there is a rising demand for fertilizer additives that reduce environmental impact. Additives that enhance nutrient uptake and minimize nutrient leaching are gaining traction, aligning with the global drive towards eco-friendly agriculture.
- As the global population continues to surge, the demand for food is reaching unprecedented levels. To meet this demand, farmers are looking for ways to maximize crop yields. Fertilizer additives play a crucial role in achieving this objective by ensuring that plants receive optimal nutrition.
North America has emerged as a significant player in the global fertilizer additives market. The region is characterized by a highly developed agriculture sector and a strong focus on adopting advanced farming practices. In the United States, for instance, the increasing adoption of precision agriculture techniques has led to a greater demand for fertilizer additives that complement these practices.
[...] Read Full Story
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