A five-minute summary of AAI, regulation, and industry activities for members of the largest state agribusiness association in the nation. | |
AAI Main Office Closed for Good Friday | The AAI Main Office will be closed on Friday, April 7, 2023. The office will be reopen as usual on Monday, April 10. | |
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Recycle Clean Pesticide Containers | |
The Ag Container Recycling Council (ACRC) is the trade association of the ag chemicals industry, responsible for supporting proper recycling of ag containers nationwide. The program currently operates in 46 states and collects ALL types of ag chemical containers including pesticides, animal health, specialty pest control, micronutrient, biologicals, fertilizer, and/or adjuvant product containers. Over the past 30 years, the ACRC program has recycled over 240,000,000 pounds of container plastic! The program is fully funded by its member companies who are the manufacturers of these products. Collection of containers takes place through ACRCs network of contractors.
ACRC would like to stress that the container cleaning criteria used by ACRC contractors, is not the contractors standard, but is the ACRC standard which is ultimately the EPA standard. This standard was established in the EPA 2006 Container and Containment Rule, requiring 99.99% removal of each active ingredient. A simple way to articulate this standard is “CLEAN means CLEAN, with NO residue seen.” Staining is fine, but residue is not.
ACRC has many collection sites that continually demonstrate the ability to meet these standards with minimal (0 – 10%) rejects. Visit the ACRC website for educational details about rinsing. Several best practices include 1) rinsing at the time of use 2) triple or pressure rinsing until rinsate is water clear and 3) field applying the rinsate. Remember, CLEAN means CLEAN, with NO residue seen!
Additional Information About Rinsing: https://www.agrecycling.org/
Find a Container Collection Site
View List of ACRC Members
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Proposed Rule Removes SBOC As Grading Factor | |
The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Agricultural Marketing Service has proposed a rule that would remove Soybeans of Other Colors (SBOC) as a grading factor in soybeans. In recent years SBOC has caused issues with some shipments of beans. The issues were entirely due to the existence of SBOC as a grading standard causing the rejection or downgrading of otherwise high quality beans. This issue was addressed for attendees at the recent AAI Grain Grading Workshops.
Comments are being accepted on the new rule until May 1.
View the proposed rule on the Federal Register:
United States Standards for Soybeans
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WATCH THE AGRIBUSINESS REPORT | |
Nutrient Use Efficiency Trials | |
Pattern Ag is seeking growers to conduct strip trials to evaluate nutrient use efficiency (NUE) of in-furrow biological products in corn. In addition to NUE, participating corn fields will be evaluated for foliar diseases via residue testing and scouting. Pattern Ag will provide soil and residue sampling and genetic analysis, scouting, and incentive payments.
There are many different biological products and in-furrow fertilizers out there. This program provides data to evaluate them for NUE and pathogen management. If you are interested in participating, email Ben Gleason at AAI, bgleason@agribiz.org.
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USDA announced it is investing $1 billion in grants to help agriculture producers and rural small businesses make energy-efficient improvements. The grants will be funded by the Inflation Reduction Act and allocated through the Rural Energy for America Program. USDA began accepting applications for this program on April 1.
White House National Climate Advisor Ali Zaidi says the Biden administration’s approach is to expand clean energy affordability for people in every zip code, which will in turn expand opportunities. According to him, America is becoming a “magnet” for private capital investment in clean energy, lifting up rural communities in different ways
“This administration is taking bold action to make sure that all Americans are able to unleash the opportunity that clean energy represents to help lower bills and cut costs for families and small businesses, and to make sure that we are boosting the resilience and the reliability and the security of our energy grid and our energy resources,” Zaidi says. “You know, oftentimes, the story of climate change is told as a story of gloom and doom, with the raging fires and the surging seas and the droughts wreaking havoc on ranches and farms across the country. What's important is to look at how we can sturdy ourselves and make ourselves more resilient in the face of these challenges.”
Included in the funding is $144.5 million set aside for underutilized technology. The REAP program is part of the Biden Administration’s Justice40 initiative that mandates 40% of certain federal investments go to marginalized or underserved communities as well as those overburdened by pollution.
[...] Read Full Story
Click for Additional Grant Information
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The latest Purdue University-CME Group Ag Economy Barometer suggests that farmer sentiment is continuing to drop this year as the barometer fell 8 points to a reading of 117 in March. Both the Index of Current Conditions and Index of Future Expectations declined 8 points in March leaving the Current Conditions Index at 126 and the Future Expectations Index at 113.
The Purdue University-CME Group Ag Economy Barometer sentiment index is calculated each month from 400 U.S. agricultural producers’ responses to a telephone survey. farmer
Though this month’s survey didn’t include any questions directly related to bank closures, it revealed that rising interest rates are an increasing concern for farmers. Some farmers were also quick to respond with concerns over the banking industry’s problems and their potential effect on the economy while weighing in on open-ended survey questions.
Although there wasn’t much change in the Farm Capital Investment Index which only dropped one point from a month prior, respondents seemed to illustrate a change in perspective. Rather than saying that increased prices for machinery and construction were a top reason to avoid large investments, increasing numbers of respondents (34 percent, up from 27 percent in February) indicated that rising interest rates were the primary reason.
Short and Long-Term Farmland Value Indices moved in opposite directions in March. Short-term indexes asking about farmland value expectation in 12 months, fell 6 points this month to a reading of 113. Meanwhile, the long-term index, which addresses outlook over the next five years rose 5 points to 142. The short-term index this month represents the weakest reading since September 2020, and is 32 points lower than last year with one in five producers saying that they expect farmland values to wean in the next 12 months.
[...] Read Full Story
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Source: Progressive Farmer
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A conveyor belt of major snowstorms has covered Arlen Foster's Minor County, South Dakota, farm like a blanket this year.
Though he anxiously waits for the melt, not much will change on his land.
Like a faithful friend, a puddle will reappear behind a tree belt on a 0.8-acre tract of Foster's farm, as it has for generations.
"Yes, we again have 6-foot-plus drifts in the tree belt, but the effects on the puddle remain the same as they have been over the years," Foster told DTN.
What he hopes will change eventually is his ability to farm that stretch of ground.
For more than a decade, Foster has been unable to farm the tract because the USDA's Natural Resources Conservation Service says the puddle is a wetland that cannot be touched if the farm is to remain in USDA programs.
In recent weeks, attorneys for Foster made yet another legal argument before yet another court -- this time the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit.
Foster hired a wetlands consultant in recent years, who determined the small tract of land was not a wetland. He sought review of his wetland status and was denied despite scientific proof in his favor.
[...] Read Full Story
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Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig recently recognized organizations and individuals who have made exceptional contributions to the state’s agriculture community. Naig presented Ag Leader Awards to Agriculture in the Classroom, Central Iowa Shelter & Services, John Mortimer and John Lawrence at the 11th Annual Iowa Ag Leaders Dinner held at the FFA Enrichment Center in Ankeny, Iowa, on March 21.
“The Ag Leader Award recognizes the inspiring individuals and outstanding organizations positively impacting all aspects of Iowa agriculture,” Naig said. “This year’s Ag Leader awardees have demonstrated tremendous leadership in many areas, including conservation, livestock production and promotion, agriculture education, workforce development and community betterment.”
The 2023 recipients of the Iowa Ag Leader Awards are:
- Agriculture in the Classroom, Leadership in Agriculture Education
- Central Iowa Shelter and Services, Leadership in Community
- John Mortimer, Outstanding Service in Agriculture
- John Lawrence, Outstanding Service in Agriculture
[...] Read Full Story
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THE AGRIBUSINESS REPORT
Follow host David Geiger on Twitter:
@geigerreports
Watch daily broadcast live:
KCRG-TV Cedar Rapids
WHO-TV Des Moines
KYOU-TV Ottumwa
Watch online any time:
https://agribiz.org/report
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