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January 30, 2025

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A five-minute summary of AAI, regulation, and industry activities for members of the largest state agribusiness association in the nation.

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AAI IN ACTION

Making Connections With Legislators

The Agribusiness Association of Iowa hosted its annual legislative breakfast at the State Capitol on Wednesday. State legislators, agribusiness leaders, and industry advocates gathered for important discussions on the issues shaping our industry. 


Key topics included:

  • Workforce
  • Agribusiness Operations
  • Innovation
  • Environmental Stewardship


We appreciate the engagement and commitment of our legislators in addressing these critical challenges and opportunities. By working together, we’re ensuring that agriculture and agribusiness remain a top priority in Iowa.


Support A Positive Agribusiness Environment In Iowa

In addition to the AAI Legislative Breakfast, AAI members can connect agribusiness with legislators by contributing to the Agribusiness PAC. Your personal contribution to the PAC helps amplify the voice of agribusinesses and promote a positive environment for agribusiness in Iowa. Personal checks can be sent to the AAI Main Office or you can make a PAC Contribution Online


Quarterly Board Meeting

Following the legislative breakfast, the AAI Board of Directors met for their January meeting. The board discussed current and pending bills making their way through the legislative process. The association will continue to monitor the language and structure of bills supported by AAI and provide industry input related to the priorities of agribusiness in Iowa.


The board also received updates from committees and staff with a focus on the upcoming Agribusiness Showcase & Conference. The event has a sold out trade show, a full schedule of sessions for agribusiness leaders, and is on pace to be an even larger event than last year. There is still time to register for the Showcase, which takes place Feb. 11-12, 2025 in Altoona, Iowa.


Get Involved!

The direction and impact of the association is a result of committee activities. Committees provide input and direction for the Board of Directors actions. You or someone within your company can serve on a committee by emailing aai@agribiz.org, calling the AAI office, or filling out a form online.

Agribusiness Association of Iowa Annual Meeting Feb. 12, 2025 | 1:30 p.m.

The 2025 Annual Meeting will be held at 1:30 p.m. on February 12, 2025, in the Grandquist Room at the Meadows Event Center in Altoona, Iowa, immediately following the Agribusiness Showcase & Conference.

Make An Impact - Be A Scholarship Sponsor

Register to take part in the Agribusiness Career Day Career Fair


RESERVE YOUR SPACE

Eighteen $1000 Scholarships will be given away at the Career Day. Become a Primary Scholarship Sponsor and your business can personally hand the scholarship to the winning student! Plus your company will receive a Career Fair table to promote your business to the future workforce.

View Sponsorship Options


AN EVENT THAT MAKES A DIFFERENCE

Over the past 12 years, the Agribusiness Career Day has impacted thousands of students. Last year, the Career Day hosted 350 students made up of first year community college students with ag-related majors and high school FFA seniors. 


Join us again this year on Feb. 4 at the FFA Enrichment Center on the DMACC campus in Ankeny, Iowa.


Have questions about Career Day? Contact Sally Thompson - sally@agribiz.org or 515.262.8323.

SPONSORED EVENTS AT SHOWCASE

Kickoff Luncheon

Get things started on Tuesday at noon with a panel of leaders from national agribusiness groups followed by the Iowa CCA Years of Service and CCA of the Year recognition.

Tuesday Reception

A reception on Tuesday evening for attendees and exhibitors, which includes a short auction to benefit the AAI PAC and AAI Foundation.

Evening Hospitality

Calcium Products will be hosting a hospitality room immediately following the reception on Tuesday evening. Stop in for food, fun, and the Iowa State basketball game.

Showcase Snack Zones

Sustenance for exploring the sold out Trade Show will be provided in the sponsored snack zones during the afternoon break on Tuesday and the morning break on Wednesday.

Wednesday Morning Breakfast

HOT breakfast Wednesday morning along with a program featuring Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig.

See everything that's happening at Showcase: Full Schedule

Take a look at who you'll meet at Showcase: Attendee List

Register now and be Where Agribusiness Meets.


REGISTER ONLINE

All attendee, exhibitor and sponsor information can be found at


AgribizShowcase.com 

THANK YOU TO OUR SPONSORS


The Mosaic Company - Kickoff Luncheon Sponsor

Davis Equipment - Breakfast Sponsor

FarmChem - Reception Beverage Sponsor

Sukup Manufacturing - Special Session Sponsor

Calcium Products - Hospitality Sponsor

Northland CDL Training - Registration Desk Sponsor

Kahler Automation - Exhibit Hall Snack Zone Sponsor

Wilson Trailer - Exhibit Hall Snack Zone Sponsor

Dentons - Lanyard Sponsor

Hanigan Law Group, PLC - Reception Food Sponsor


General Sponsors:

Nutrien Wholesale | AMVAC Chemical Corp | CHS Inc. | GROWMARK |

UPL | Van Diest Supply Company

Out And About

Iowa Association of Business and Industry  

Attended by: Julie Kenney, AAI CEO


MID-CO Commodities Winter Outlook Conference 

Attended by: Julie Kenney, AAI CEO


Iowa State University Department of Agronomy Chair Candidate Seminar 

Attended by: Ben Gleason, INREC Executive Director


Member and Industry Visits

  • National Grain and Feed Association
  • American Seed Trade Association
  • CropLife America

Visits by: Julie Kenney, AAI CEO

ASSOCIATION CALENDAR

February 4

Agribusiness Career Day

FFA Enrichment Center - Ankeny, Iowa


February 11-12

Agribusiness Showcase & Conference

The Meadows Events & Conference Center - Altoona, Iowa

REGISTER ONLINE


February 12

AAI Annual Meeting

1:30 PM - The Meadows Events & Conference Center - Altoona, Iowa


AROUND THE INDUSTRY

Complete Pesticide Applicator Renewals Online

When renewing commercial pesticide applicator licenses and certification, it is highly recommended that applicators and businesses complete this task online:

Pesticide Bureau Self-Service Portal for License and Certification


The Pesticide Bureau developed a variety of print and video resources to help guide applicators through the submission process, if questions arise. 

Quick guides for new licenses or license and certification renewals


The state of Iowa has more than 25,000 private and commercial applicators. The online portal system provides a more efficient process for licensing and certification.

Certified Commercial Pesticide Applicator Course to be Offered Feb. 18-21

Iowa State University Extension and Outreach and Iowa Central Community College are offering a four-day workshop that will prepare attendees to become certified as Commercial Pesticide Applicators.


This course will focus on materials needed to take the Iowa Core Manual Exam and Categories 1A (Ag Weed Control), 1B (Ag Insect Control) and 1C (Ag Disease Control). In addition, this material will cover local context and real-life application of insect, weed and disease management. Course information will be presented by ISU Extension and Outreach field agronomists.  


The course will take place Feb. 18-21 at the Iowa Central Community College East Campus located at 2031 Quail Ave., Fort Dodge, from 8 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. each day.  


Tuition for the class is $749 and includes the Core, 1A, 1B and 1C manuals as well as other resource materials. Particpants will have the opportunity to take the certification exams each afternoon at the Iowa Central Community College testing center at no additional cost.  


To register, please contact Iowa Central Community College at 515-574-1293 or via this link that will redirect you to the Iowa Central Community College registration page, https://go.iastate.edu/D3TDKS. Registration closes Feb. 11.

HIGHLIGHTS FROM THE NEWS

Take mystery out of Endangered Species Act requirements

Source: Farm Progress

Everyone has a choice when it comes to new requirements associated with applying certain herbicides related to the Endangered Species Act. One option is ignoring the situation and hoping it goes away, or that you are never checked for compliance. Kaitlin Flick Dinsmore believes the far better option is learning how to comply, making any necessary adjustments and recording everything you do. Then you can sleep well every night. If someone asks for your pesticide records, everything is in order.


“ESA requirements are not going away because it is the law,” explains Flick Dinsmore, a consultant based in Missouri and technical conservation agronomist for the Missouri Soybean Association. “They are here to stay. As EPA reregisters current pesticide products and registers new pesticide products, they will have requirements related to satisfying ESA guidelines added to labels.


“The Herbicide Strategy was released in 2024, and an Insecticide Strategy will be finalized in the spring of 2025. A Fungicide Strategy will come later.” Follow this link to find EPA’s Herbicide Strategy.


The first herbicide to go through EPA’s new Herbicide Strategy process was Liberty Ultra, approved in the fall of ’24. It contains glufosinate, the same active ingredient in Liberty, but in a more concentrated form.


[...] Read Full Story

Vilsack appointed CEO of World Food Prize Foundation

Source: AgDaily

Tom Vilsack, who served as U.S. Secretary of Agriculture during the Obama and Biden administrations, has been selected by the World Food Prize Foundation as its next CEO. Vilsack will take the reins of this organization known its prestigious international food award on March 1.


Vilsack’s appointment builds on his longstanding relationship with the foundation, where he served on the Council of Advisors and Board of Directors, helping to shape its mission and initiatives. In addition to his tenures with the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Vilsack served two terms as governor of Iowa and has been involved with several organizations focused on agricultural trade and sustainable food production.


In this new role, Vilsack will focus on expanding the Des Moines, Iowa-based foundation’s global network and will further position the foundation as a leader in addressing global food insecurity. Foundation President Mashal Husain will continue to drive innovative programming, ensuring that the organization remains at the forefront of food systems transformation.


[...] Read Full Story

Iowa Secretary of Ag Weighs In on The H5N1 Battle, Vaccine Potential And Trade Sensitivities

Source: AgWeb

Eggs continue to be a hot topic in the news as supplies are down, prices are up – and expected to go even higher – and consumers are understandably concerned.


At the center of the issue, fanning the on-going problem for poultry and dairy producers as well, is the Highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza A virus (HPAI H5N1).


AgriTalk Host Chip Flory broached the topic with Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig on Tuesday.


At the heart of their conversation was a two-part question – how does the U.S. address the virus and, in the process, prevent any potential negative ramifications on trade?


Naig says the federal government is taking what he described as a three-legged stool approach to addressing the problem in both industries.


He described the three legs of the stool as being USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), individual state animal health officials and industry.


[...] Read Full Story

Iowa Offers a Good Example of Snow Drought This Winter

Source: Progressive Farmer

Weather news headlines in this last half of January have prominently focused on unseasonable, record snow and cold in the southern and southeastern U.S. Meanwhile, much of the primary crop areas of the central U.S. have been largely devoid of snowfall.


Iowa's lack of snow is a clear example of this snow shortage. A look at National Weather Service locations in Iowa that have detailed snowfall information shows limited snow during the 2024-25 meteorological winter months of December and January (through Monday, Jan. 27).


The total December-January snowfall in Des Moines is 4.7 inches, 11.2 inches or 70% below the 1991-2020 average. Waterloo's December-January snow total of 4.1 inches is 14.6 inches or 78% below average. The Dubuque December-January snow total of 5.6 inches is 13.8 inches or 71% below average. Mason City, with just 2.8 inches of snow in December-January, is 16.4 inches or 84% below average. Sioux City's December-January snowfall total of 8.9 inches is 6.8 inches or 43% below average.


[...] Read Full Story

Be Engaged. Be Informed.

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