September 14, 2023

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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Priorities for 2024

In addition to the acknowledgements of service, the September board meeting is an active meeting with transfers of leadership, legislative and fiscal priority decisions, and director and leader changes. The full agenda also included the regular updates from committees, affiliated organizations, and ex officios.

The board was able to hear from Jason Henderson, the new Vice President for Extension and Outreach at Iowa State University. Henderson highlighted his vision for Extension to be collaborative and to focus on helping local communities address their specific needs. Priorities areas for Extension will include digital agriculture and workforce issues.

The legislative committee report provided items of focus for the 2024 legislative session. Items of note include support for the corn checkoff as currently implemented, opposition to central filing, monitoring drone legislation, working on clarifying language for ground storage tank property tax, and supporting increased funding for ag education. The date for the Legislative Breakfast at the capitol hosted by AAI has been set for January 25, 2024.

One important update from the meeting is the changes being made to the Agribusiness Showcase and Conference. The venue has been changed to Prairie Meadows and will take place on February 12-13, a Monday and Tuesday. The event will have programming for the entire industry spread across both days and a limited number of booth spaces for exhibitors.

The following is a list of the AAI Board of Directors for 2024:

Chair - Mark White, Smith Fertilizer & Grain

Chair Elect/Animal Industry Director - Al Muhlenbruck, TriOak Foods, Inc.

Past Chair - Shelly Kruse,GROWMARK, Inc.

Foundation Rep - Kevin Drury, Hedlin Ag Enterprises

AAI Advisory Council - Mark Morrissey

Affiliate Director - Eric Thuente, Creative Planning

At Large Director - Katie Stutsman,Corteva

At Large Director - Renee Hansen, Sukup Manufacturing Co.

At Large Director - Brent Schwenneker, Bayer

At Large Director - Sue Tronchetti, Landus

Crop Production Director - Dan Luers, Koch Agronomic Services

Grain Director - Bill Beukema, StateLine Cooperative

District 1 Director/Treasurer - Joel Nelson, Nutrien Ag Solutions

District 2 Director - Tracy Gathman, Two Rivers Cooperative

District 3 Director/Secretary - Kent Bennis, Rosen's

District 4 Director - Dana Gee, Pro Cooperative

Ex-Officio - Rob Denson, DMACC

Ex-Officio - Jay Harmon, Iowa State University

Ex-Officio - Dan Robison, Iowa State University

Iowa CCAs - Bill Backhaus, BASF

Iowa Seed Association - Jeff Steinback, Remington Seeds, LLC

Get Involved!

The direction and impact of the association is a direct 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 at:

https://www.agribiz.org/benefits-of-membership/join-a-committee/

Congratulations to our winning team at Coldwater!

Congratulations to Reese Drenth, Mark Juhl, Justin Huebner, and Jake Moline, the winning team at the September 13 tournament at Coldwater!

A big thank you to all of the AAI Golf Outing Sponsors for the 2023 season! You made these outings a great experience for all of our participants. THANK YOU!

The USDA September crop production report has come and gone, and the data was seen as somewhat negative given pre-report expectations.

The 2023 U.S. corn yield came in at 173.8 bushels per acre (bpa) which was down from the 175.1 bpa given in August, though above the average trade guess of 173.8 and higher than last year's 173.3.

Almost surprising is that corn yields have held up so well given crop ratings around Labor Day, the lowest since 2012.

The jury is still out however as USDA will release subsequent reports next month, in November, with the annual figures due out in January 2024.

There has been a lot of talk that the past month from mid-August to mid-September, which has featured above normal temperatures and rather sparce rainfall over much of the Corn Belt, has had an adverse impact on grain fill that could result in lower than usual corn ear weights.

Note that the September report did include objective field surveys from USDA enumerators in addition to the results from the farmer-based surveys and data from remotely sensed satellites that formed the basis of the August numbers.

On the other hand, the October and November reports will also include lab analysis measuring kernel weights that will give a more accurate assessment of both state and national corn yields.

[...] Read Full Story

Federal regulators are answering a call from drivers and carriers to fix the review process for questions about the accuracy of safety data.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration is seeking feedback from the trucking industry on a proposed process that involves FMCSA being the final arbiter of alleged inaccuracies in crash and inspection data stored by state agencies.

The proposed change in the review process was triggered by concerns about transparency and uniformity in the way initial Requests for Data Review (RDRs) are addressed at state-level motor vehicle safety offices — and specifically, RDR Reconsiderations.

“Stakeholders note that program offices do not have a uniform process for initial RDR reviews or for handling RDR Reconsiderations,” FMCSA stated in a notice and request for comments published on Wednesday.

“They have also noted concern that RDR Reconsiderations are, in many instances, reviewed and decided by the same reviewer as the initial request. Users are calling on FMCSA to ensure an opportunity for an independent review, with consistently applied standards, for data correction requests.”

Drivers and carriers, along with federal and state agencies, use FMCSA’s DataQs system to request and track a review of safety performance data stored in the agency’s Motor Carrier Management Information System (MCMIS) that they believe to be incomplete or incorrect. (States collect and submit crash and inspection data, including violations documented during such inspections, into state data systems that transmit that data into MCMIS.)

[...] Read Full Story

Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig has announced the formation of the Livestock Protection Innovation Grant Program. The program will provide grant funding to assist Iowa-based companies in the development of safe and effective vaccines that may help protect Iowa livestock from foreign animal diseases.

Though the threat of highly pathogenic avian influenza remains high, prevention and preparedness measures are also being taken to respond to risks posed by African swine fever and foot and mouth disease. The Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship is working in collaboration with farmers, producers, industry partners and federal, state and local officials to be ready to swiftly respond to any threat.

“Protecting Iowa’s nation-leading livestock industry from devastating foreign animal diseases is enormously important to the farm families and local communities that benefit from its $13 billion-dollar impact,” said Naig. “Vaccine development is one of many steps we are taking to help safeguard our farm animals because it is important to have tools available to effectively respond to disease and protect our food supply.”

Innovation is constant in agriculture and Iowa, as America’s Cultivation Corridor, is home to many companies that are developing advanced and cutting-edge tools and technologies that can positively impact this global industry. The Iowa Legislature, with the support of Governor Kim Reynolds, appropriated $250,000 for livestock vaccine development within Iowa during the last legislative session. Applications will be reviewed and scored via a competitive process and grant awards will be made up to $250,000.

[...] Read Full Story

State fairs are known for showcasing the best of each region’s food, culture, and agriculture — and they’re a way for families to have fun while showing their local communities support.

However, not all state fairs are made equally. At least, that’s according to this research by JeffBet.

“Not many studies have revealed their popularity on social media, especially amongst Gen Z and Alpha. This data reveals that the Minnesota State Fair is the most popular on TikTok and Instagram, generating an eye-watering 132 million views on TikTok alone,” said a spokesperson from JeffBet. “Despite housing only approximately 1.7 percent of the U.S. population, Minnesota’s State Fair generates around one in six of total online activity, even beating out Texas to the top spot.”

The company analyzed the number of Instagram hashtags and TikTok views for each state fair to see which ones the public snapped the most. 

1. Minnesota State Fair

Minnesota State Fair was the most Instagrammable and TikToked state fair in the U.S., with over 365,400 hashtags on Instagram and 132 million TikTok views. The hashtag #mnstatefair is the most popular, with 267,427 Instagram posts and 79 million TikTok views. It is the second-largest state fair by attendance behind Texas.

[...] Read Full Story

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