A five-minute summary of AAI, regulation, and industry activities for members of the largest state agribusiness association in the nation. | | AAI Helps Welcome USDA Secretary Rollins on First Official Visit to Iowa | | |
AAI was honored to join the Iowa ag community as USDA Secretary Rollins made her first official visit to Iowa. During her visit, AAI board chairman Al Muhlenbruck joined a roundtable discussion hosted by Governor Reynolds and Secretary Naig, addressing key issues impacting the industry.
The conversation covered a range of critical topics, including the ag economy, trade and tariffs, biofuels, foreign animal disease preparedness and response, Proposition 12, and rural prosperity. Chairman Muhlenbruck emphasized the importance of strong agricultural policies that support farmers and ag business, enhance market opportunities, and ensure the resilience of our rural communities.
We appreciate Secretary Rollins’ commitment to engaging directly with industry and business leaders, and we look forward to continued collaboration on these important issues. AAI remains dedicated to advocating for policies that strengthen our members and the broader agricultural economy.
| | Nationwide Agribusiness Honored At Ag Leader Dinner For Grain Bin Rescue Initiatives | |
At the 13th Annual Iowa Ag Leaders Dinner held on March 31 in Ankeny, AAI member Nationwide Agribusiness was recognized as with an Ag Leader Award for Leadership in Community.
Sec. Mike Naig provided the following overview for this honor:
Nationwide Agribusiness has taken great steps to improve farm safety and save lives, reaching millions through marketing campaigns about grain bin and all-terrain vehicle (ATV) safety. Launched in 2014, Grain Bin Safety Week strives to increase awareness of the importance of following safety practices and protocols when working in and around grain bins. The campaign includes media and social engagement, as well as resources for first responders to obtain life-saving equipment.
Nationwide Agribusiness works with the National Education Center for Agricultural Safety based in Peosta and other partners to provide emergency personnel with grain bin safety equipment, rescue tubes, and hands-on rescue training. Since 2014, the partnership has provided hands-on rescue training to more than 332 fire departments in over 32 states. The work is already documented to have saved 13 lives. Nationwide also works with ATV Safety Institute and Recreational Off-Highway Vehicle Association to promote safety training programs that can help improve operator safety and prevent costly accidents — both on and off the farm.
Watch the Ag Leadership Award video
| | INREC Completes Data Collection for 2024 Nutrient Reduction Survey | |
The Iowa Nutrient Research & Education Council (INREC) has completed its eighth year of surveys to measure progress for the Iowa Nutrient Reduction Strategy. The survey is a collaboration with ag retailers and Iowa State University and utilizes a first-of-its-kind approach to using ag retailer records to track progress made by Iowa farmers with the adoption of in-field conservation practices such as cover crops, nutrient management, and reduced tillage.
Three INREC survey liaisons visited over 70 randomly selected ag retail locations completing over 700 surveys. Ag retailer cooperation is critical to ensure a statistically number of surveys are completed.
We appreciate the attention and cooperation from ag retailers and their agronomists.
The survey data will be aggregated by question to maintain security and confidentiality. The aggregated results will be sent to the Center for Survey Statistics & Methodology at Iowa State University for statistical processing. Past results and methodology can be found at Progress Measurements - Iowa Nutrient Research + Education Council. A webinar recording that dives into the survey results and insights can be watched here: Unveiling the Data: Webinar - Iowa Nutrient Research + Education Council.
AAI is an INREC member organization and supports the efforts to quantify and expand the impact of the Iowa Nutrient Reduction Strategy.
| | Iowa DOGE Portal Now Open for Public Suggestions | |
Governor Kim Reynolds has launched a new initiative to improve government efficiency across Iowa. Through an Executive Order, the Governor established the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) Task Force, bringing together business leaders and local government officials to explore ways to streamline operations and maximize the value of taxpayer dollars.
Now, Iowans can contribute to this effort. The DOGE Task Force is accepting public suggestions through an online portal, inviting innovative ideas on how to make state and local government more effective and efficient.
Key areas of focus include:
- Maximizing return on taxpayer investment
- Leveraging emerging technology, including artificial intelligence
- Enhancing workforce and job training programs
For more details, see the Governor’s official press release.
| | Spring Grain Grading Workshops May 6 & 7 - Registration Now Open | | |
AAI Grain Grading Workshops
May 6-7, 2025
Location:
Ziegler CAT
1500 Ziegler Drive NW
Altoona, Iowa 50009
Member Registration - $130
Non-Member Registration - $155
Grain Grading Workshop sessions begin at 8:30 a.m. and end at 3:30 p.m. Lunch is provided.
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These one-day hands-on workshops feature the latest information on grain quality. The Grain Grading workshops address and display many different grain samples but emphasize corn and soybeans. Participants will learn about the grading and appeal process, the official U.S. grades, and how to obtain a representative sample. Attendees also will learn how to recognize major grain damage factors.
Workshop registrants are assigned on a first come, first-served basis and each workshop is limited to 30 seats per day. The same workshop is held on both days, so participants only need to attend one session.
The AAI Grain Grading Workshops are under the direction of Federal Grain Inspection Service inspectors from the National Grain Center.
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Iowa Ag Leaders Dinner
Attended by: Julie Kenney, AAI CEO
MidAmerican CropLife Association Lunch and Learn
Speaker: Julie Kenney, AAI CEO
Iowa State University Seed Science Center Director Interviews
Attended by: Julie Kenney, AAI CEO
Member and Industry Visits
Visit by: Heath DeYoung, AAI Membership Director
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April 10
AAI Board Of Directors Meeting
10:00 a.m. - AAI Main Office Board Room
May 6
AAI Spring Grain Grading Workshop
8:30 a.m. - Zeigler CAT, Altoona, Iowa
May 7
AAI Spring Grain Grading Workshop
8:30 a.m. - Zeigler CAT, Altoona, Iowa
| | Stutsman to present Hertz Lecture at Iowa State April 15 | |
Mark Stutsman will share the major lessons learned from his family's 91-year-old agriculture business and how these experiences can help navigate the evolving ag industry during the 2025 Carl and Marjory Hertz Lecture on Emerging Issues in Agriculture. The lecture will take place April 15 at 4:30 p.m. in 127 Curtiss Hall on Iowa State University’s campus.
The event is free and open to the public. College of Agriculture and Life Sciences students attending the lecture will be eligible to receive one of five $500 Hertz Lecture scholarship awards by swiping their student ID at the lecture’s conclusion.
Stutsman, chief operating officer and third-generation family member of Eldon C. Stutsman, Inc., will present “The Stutsman Journey: What We’ve Learned Over 90 Years in Ag Business.”
A 1985 Iowa State farm operation and Alpha Gamma Rho alum, Stutsman went on to earn his MBA from St. Ambrose University. He serves on several agricultural organization boards, including the Agricultural Retailers Association, the Iowa Environmental Protection Commission, The Fertilizer Institute and WestLink Ag.
Full Lecture Information
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Source: Successful Farming
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As a sixth-generation farmer, Jeff O’Connor has seen his family farm change through the generations. The one common thread is a love of taking care of the land.
“I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard my family say, ‘Take care of the land, and it’ll take care of you,’” the Kankakee, Illinois, farmer said. “It’s made it easier for me to look at different ways to take care of the land as we learn more about the science behind what goes on in the soil.”
Bringing science to actionable and practical insights to reduce nutrient runoff has been the task of a multi-state effort, developed in response to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) 2008 Gulf Hypoxia Action Plan. The plan called for 12 states in the Mississippi, Atchafalaya, and Ohio River basins to reduce the amount of nitrogen and phosphorus in their rivers making their way to the Gulf of Mexico, also known as the Gulf of America, where they contribute to the hypoxia or dead zone. “It’s a voluntary initiative,” explained Laura Gentry, director of water quality science at IL Corn. “States were given a couple of directives, but the main one was to reduce nitrogen and phosphorus losses by 45% by 2035.”
[...] Read Full Story
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Time will tell how history remembers April 2, 2025. According to President Donald Trump, people will look back on the day he’s dubbed “Liberation Day” and remember it as the moment American industry was “reborn” and its destiny “reclaimed.” Despite warnings from economists of higher inflation and damaged international relations, Trump believes tariffs will in time make the nation “good and wealthy.”
Beginning at midnight April 3, his theory will be put to the test. Per his executive order, the U.S. will impose a minimum 10% tariff on all imported goods. On April 9, additional tariffs will be imposed on nations that levy higher tariffs on U.S. products, as calculated by Trump officials.
Currently, that amount will be roughly half the current duties levied on the U.S. For example, Trump officials say Japan imposes 46% tariffs on U.S. imports. In response, the United States will levy a 24% tariff on Japanese goods.
Trump’s executive order includes a clause authorizing higher tariffs on countries if they respond with additional tariffs of their own.
A 25% tariff on imported automobiles will go into effect at midnight April 3 as well. So far, it remains unclear how this will impact farm equipment.
[...] Read Full Story
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Producers surveyed across the United States intend to plant 95.3 million acres of corn in 2025, up 5 percent from last year, according to the Prospective Plantings report released today by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Agricultural Statistics Service.
Planted acreage intentions for corn are up or unchanged in 40 of the 48 estimating states. Acreage increases of 400,000 acres or more from last year are expected in Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska, and South Dakota. If realized, the planted area of corn in Idaho, Nevada, North Dakota, Oregon, and South Dakota will be the largest on record.
Soybean growers intend to plant 83.5 million acres in 2025, down 4 percent from last year. Acreage decreases from last year of 300,000 or more are expected in Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska, North Dakota, and South Dakota. Record high acreage is expected in New York and Ohio.
[...] Read Full Story
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Source: DTN Progressive Farmer
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On the cusp of the 2025 U.S. crop season -- and even as heavy flooding rain looms over the northern Delta and the southeastern Midwest -- new research by hydrologists from Australia, South Korea and the United States find that Earth is getting drier. In fact, the Earth may have lost so much soil moisture that it cannot be fully recovered due to climate change.
The research project was recently summarized in the journal Science. Lead scientists were University of Melbourne (Australia) Hydrology Professor Dongryeol Ryu and Ki-Weon Seo, a hydrology professor at the Seoul National University (South Korea). Research results have been summarized by a number of news and information providers including the Associated Press, Australia Broadcasting Corporation, Carbon Brief and Inside Climate News.
The research finds that the Earth lost more than 2,614 gigatons of moisture between 2000 and 2016. That loss of soil moisture is so large that it surpasses the melting of Greenland's ice sheet in contributing to sea level rise. The research also found that soil moisture loss is affecting the wobble in the Earth's rotation.
[...] Read Full Story
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