RRFN Names New Farm Broadcaster – The Red River Farm Network announces the addition of Whitney Pittman to its farm broadcast team. Pittman will begin her duties at RRFN on October 31. Pittman is the northwest area membership and marketing specialist for the Minnesota Farm Bureau Federation. Previously, Pittman was the farm broadcaster and social media director for R & J Broadcasting at Ada, Minnesota. Pittman was raised on a cattle operation near Bagley, Minnesota and is a graduate of Iowa State University with a degree in journalism and mass communications with agriculture business and animal science minors. Pittman joins Don Wick, Randy Koenen and Cierra Dockter on the Red River Farm Network farm broadcast team.

Russia Wants Sanctions to End – Russia has threatened to quit the Black Sea grain deal, saying it is dependent on the United States and other Western countries and the end of sanctions. Speaking to a United Nations official, a Russian diplomat said Western sanctions have prevented it from exporting fertilizer. Russia said that was part of the original agreement and must be addressed if the humanitarian grain lane is to remain open.

Black Sea Grain Deal at Risk – The Black Sea grain deal is in jeopardy if the United Nations inspect the drones that have been attacking Ukraine. A 2015 UN resolution made it illegal for Iran to export these weapons. Russia’s deputy ambassador denied the allegations and warned his government will reassess its collaboration in the humanitarian grain corridor if the investigation into Iran continues. The grain deal is scheduled to expire next month, but negotiations are underway to extend and expand the deal.

Xi Returns for a Third Term – The Chinese Communist Party has elected Xi Jinping to an unprecedented third term. The party also named the seven-member standing committee and an advocate for free markets and private enterprise was dropped from the inner circle. During the weekend, Xi said the goal is to restore China’s role as a political, economic and cultural leader. That includes more control over China’s food supply.

Hope for Port, Rail Labor Issues – During the American Association of Port Authorities annual meeting, White House Supply Chain Envoy Stephen Lyons discussed current labor issues. Lyons was optimistic about the negotiations between the longshore and warehouse union and the Pacific Maritime Association. Regarding the threat of a rail strike, Lyons remains hopeful the deal can be ratified before the end of the year.

Poor Service Problems – Grain shippers have faced poor rail service throughout 2022. The USDA Grain Transportation Report points to improvements in the second half of the year. As of October 12, grain origin dwell times were down 43 percent from their peak in mid-May. However, dwell times are still up 35 percent from one year ago. Unfilled grain car orders were down significantly from the peak in late June, but up over 400 percent from the same time last year.

One Step Forward, Two Steps Back – A major union rejected the tentative contract agreement with the railroads, renewing the risk of a rail strike. “It’s not like our rail system was operating full throttle before, but we were hoping to see rail service improve during this difficult time,” said Mike Steenhoek, executive director, Soy Transportation Coalition. “A strike would obviously be a major step backward and halt economic activity.” Steenhoek wants Congress to step in and remove the possibility of a rail strike. “This is something that our economy and agriculture does not need.”

River Levels Dictate Grain Movement – The Mississippi River’s water levels have become too shallow for many barges to effectively navigate. “Water levels really dictate whether barges are moving, how much grain is loaded in them, and how many barges a single tugboat can pull,” explains Danny Munch, economist, American Farm Bureau Federation. “Last week, they reported 20-to-27 percent reduction of volume that barges can move. They also limited the amount of barges a tugboat can pull.” The backlog in barge movements has pushed costs for shippers incredibly higher. During the week of October 4, average barge tariffs reached record levels at over 2,000 percent their underling benchmark and was up 50 percent from last year.

Supply Chain Improvements in ’23 – After significant challenges this past year, Bayer Crop Protection Area Business Manager Troy Sayler expects to see relief for the 2023 growing season. “However, I think because of 2022  it’s top of mind for growers,” said Sayler. “Traditionally, they’ve always looked to prepay seed and fertilizer, but prepay and supplies will also be top of mind for crop protection products.” For farmers, the supply chain issue began with a shortage of glyphosate. “If we look back to 2022, we had the hurricane that hit our Luling, Louisiana plant that really hurt our ability to supply the market and it caused a lot of panic in the marketplace. I want growers to know we’re in a much better spot with Roundup PowerMax 3 and RT 3 supplies; the Roundup will be there to supply the market in 2023.”

Global Events Ripple Through Fertilizer Market – Farmers have been feeling the pain of high fertilizer prices since last year. Farmers Business Network Chief Economist Kevin McNew cites the latest FBN fertilizer report. “The bad news for farmers is fertilizer values are not going to get cheaper anytime soon; there are widespread global problems causing ripple effects through fertilizer.” The report also surveyed farmers and found that while application rates remain steady, crop rotation changes favored higher wheat acres. McNew says nitrogen fertilizer prices are being affected the most. “It’s all tied to natural gas and everything happening globally that’s driving the prices.”

Above Average Yields Realized in Northern Red River Valley – After a late start to the season, Wilbur-Ellis District Sales Manager Chris Wharam is pleased with the harvest results. “In early June it was looking like potentially in eastern North Dakota, and northwest Minnesota, we may be looking at 40-to-60 percent prevent plant in certain areas,” said Wharam. “Mother Nature cooperated the first couple of weeks of June and here we are in a lot of cases harvesting exceptional yields and quality.” Wharam, who is based in the Grand Forks area, feels this is a good opportunity to make decisions for next year. “Harvest time is always a great opportunity to really evaluate cropping plans, being mindful of herbicides that were utilized and what that might mean from a rotational restriction. If weather cooperates, taking the opportunity to get some fall fertilizer applied certainly takes that pressure off the spring.” While fertilizer has been in the headlines, Wharam says there is enough inventory on hand to handle fall applications.

Pretty Respectable Yields – Kris Folland farms near Halma, Minnesota and is still plucking away at soybeans. “We’ve had some wet weather here where we got behind. We’re probably about 70 percent done, but still have hundreds of acres to go.” Folland describes the yields as “pretty respectable.” The soybeans are dry now, but “we were fighting green plants a couple of weeks ago.”

Working on Corn and Flowers – In northwestern North Dakota, Dakota Agronomy Partners agronomy sales representative Jenna Whalen says the small grains and canola are done and the end of the soybean harvest is in sight. “It’s basically corn and sunflowers left.” Whalen says most yields have been good. Whalen is based at Mohall.

Corn Matters – Minnesota Corn Growers Association provide innovation grants to scientists, farmers, and researchers. Hear more in the latest Corn Matters, presented by Minnesota Corn.

‘Wild’ Harvest Week in Southern RRV – CHS Country Operations Key Agronomy Specialist Jon Stabler expects rapid corn harvest progress this week. Logistical challenges could slow harvest a bit. “Some issues with trains at this point might slow corn harvest a little bit. I’m sure a lot of guys will be fertilizing this week too before it gets really cold.”

Facing a Storage Shortage at Harvest – The derecho that swept through the Dakotas and Minnesota May 15th spread debris and damage throughout the region. Salem, South Dakota farmer Dawn Scheier was forced to replant all but one field. Scheier is now dealing with a shortage of grain bins during harvest. “We could be done with harvest if we had grain storage. We could actually be harvesting today, but we have to wait for two more bins to be built to put our corn harvest in.” Scheier says they’re in a race against time. “We’re worried corn may start dropping ears or going down, but that’s more so our south fields that got hit by hail. Hopefully, the yields improve the further north we go.”

ACSC Sugarbeet Harvest Coming to an End – American Crystal Sugar Company General Agronomist Joe Hastings says the co-op has had shutdowns due to heat and freezing temps during the same week. Hastings remains happy with harvest. “The daily sugar content has been great, probably around that 19 percent. I think the yearly average will be around 18.5 percent. We expected tonnage to be down because of our late planting but they still responded very nicely so it wasn’t a complete skunk.”

Beet Stock Value – “Last week was one of the busier American Crystal Sugar Company beet stock trading weeks ever in October,” says Jayson Menke, Acres & Shares broker. For the week 598 shares traded between $4,450 and $4,500 per share for an average price of $4,481.77 per share.

Sugar Content Makes up for Lost Tonnage – Sugarbeet harvest at Southern Minnesota Beet Sugar Cooperative will likely finish the harvest this week. “It looks like we’ll be at about 26.5 tons and about 17.5 sugar content average,” said Todd Geselius, vice president of agriculture. “The tonnage isn’t great, but there’s really good sugar content to make up for it.”

Oahe Harvest Rolling Along – Oahe Grain, General Manager Tim Luken says harvest is rolling right along in the Onida, South Dakota area. “We’re kind of dumping a little bit of milo, sunflowers, and corn, but soybeans are all wrapped up. Corn yields around here are right at 110-to-170 bushels an acre.” Luken says yields are average to slightly above average for most crops.

Potato Harvest Completed – The potato harvest is finished across the Northern Plains. Northland Potato Growers Association Executive Director Donavon Johnson says it was a good year. “It turned out better than expected given the late spring.” Dry soil conditions delayed harvest in some areas. “When you go south of Grand Forks, it was dry. There were growers waiting for rain that didn’t really come and decided to get out what they could for potatoes. You go north of Grand Forks and there was an abundance of rain that many growers said was perfect for harvesting.”

Wet, Dry, Wet – In central Indiana, the soybean harvest is nearly done and the corn harvest is off to a good start. Brad Downing, who farms in Greentown, Indiana, says the growing season started very wet. “The crop was planted a solid three weeks later than usual and there were wetter, cooler conditions,” Downing told RRFN. “We went into June and went about five weeks with no rain at all. The extremely dry conditions were followed by tremendous rainfall in July and August and by the end of August and September, we went back to no rain at all.” Yields in central Indiana are expected in the 60-to-low-70 bushel per acre range for averages.” Field averages for corn are in a range of 200-to-230 bushels per acre.

Planning Ahead for Weed Control – Sitting in a combine gives farmers a good view of what weed strategies worked and which ones didn’t. BASF Central Region Tech Service Representative Dan Melaas says two weeds stuck out as being problematic this year. “Kochia is typically our biggest foe. Because of the drought, kochia got out of control in certain areas and put a lot of weed seed in the ground. Waterhemp was also an issue. It just seems to be getting worse and worse all the time.” Melaas encourages farmers to implement early-season weed control. “Make sure to put down a good residual product and once that’s done, do some early scouting. Making sure weeds are three inches or less really helps keep weeds at bay.”

Dry Bean Scene – In this week’s Dry Bean Scene, Columbia Grain International Location Manager Matt Brown and Stony Ridge Foods Owner Jessica Wrobleski give insight into harvest in northeast North Dakota and west central Minnesota. The Dry Bean Scene is brought to you by SRS Commodities, Northarvest Bean Growers Association, Johnstown Bean Company, and BASF.

Northern Plains Basis Remains Stable – Large soybean export inspections indicate a good export pace out of the Pacific Northwest. Global Commodity Analytics and Consulting President Mike Zuzolo says beans are still finding their way down the Mississippi, too. “We are getting more barges down the river with soybeans, probably at the expense of corn and wheat, but we’re also getting more out of the Pacific Northwest.” Zuzolo says Northern Plains basis levels have remained stable in the face of widening basis at river terminals because of the PNW movement. “It’s a blessing in disguise for your area to get a better profit per acre on what you’re currently combining. As far north as Cincinnati, we’re still running about a $1.25 under for corn. The last three months, we’ve seen about a $1.50 swing in the upper Ohio River, so that’s something to watch to see if it migrates north.”

Egypt Releases Feed From Ports – The Egyptian agriculture ministry plans to release corn and soybeans each week to meet the demand of the livestock and poultry sector. The grain had been stuck in the port due to a dollar shortage, influenced by a lack of confidence in the Egyptian currency and investors pulling out of the short-term government debt markets. Media reports of poultry farms being forced to destroy birds due to feed shortages resulted in the decision.

Fall Crop Insurance Prices Being Established – October is the time period that sets the harvest price for crop insurance for the fall harvested crop. “Corn is up over 16 precent from where the base price was set,” reports Rich Morrison, vice president of farm services, NAU Country. “Soybeans are down about four percent from the base price; sunflowers are up about five-to-six percent from the base price set this spring.” Soybeans have had a revenue decline since the spring base price was set while corn has seen a price increase. “With corn, you would have to have a bushel loss because of the increase in price in order to have a revenue loss, but soybeans could see some revenue losses without much of a drop in yield.”

A Dramatic Market Swing – Volatility in the dollar index allowed the grain markets to bounce off its lows Friday. AgriSompo North America market analyst Sterling Smith says a volatile 140-point swing in the dollar index occurred within one minute Friday. “News dropped that the Fed was going to raise interest rates by another 75 basis points and I saw instantaneous volatility that I haven’t seen since 2008. The interest rates dropped, the dollar reversed course and the S & P was looking at a pretty sizeable loss; all of that changed almost immediately after the news hit.”

Fielding Questions – In the latest edition of the Fielding Questions podcast, Geoff Blegen of SVP Insurance with AgCountry Farm Credit Services highlights Pasture, Rangeland and Forage Insurance. “There is an opportunity to protect your investment or potentially get money back if they need to buy hay or get more pasture ground,” said Blegen. This podcast is a collaboration between AgCountry Farm Credit Services and the Red RIver Farm Network.

Soybean Planting Off to a Good Start in Brazil – Soybean and Corn Advisor President Michael Cordonnier says it was a good week. “The long-term forecast calls for a drier south and wetter eastern Brazil so both areas may get what they want in the next week or two.”  Dry weather in Argentina has delayed the start of planting. “Argentina continues to have problems. They had a few showers this week, but it was too light to ease any long-term dryness.”

Drought Impacts on Forage Production – Nearly 72 percent of North Dakota is experiencing some level of drought. North Dakota State University Extension Livestock Environmental Stewardship Specialist Miranda Meehan says forage quality is normal for this time of year, however the lack of rain could stunt growth for next year’s forage production. “More moisture would help with tiller growth for next year’s forage.” Meehan says grazing intensity will play a large role in spring regrowth. “We have a pretty high risk of having tiller mortality because of the drought stress right now.”

Determining Winter Hay Needs – Forages are a critical part of feeding programs to make it through northern winters. North Dakota State University Extension Livestock Systems Specialist Janna Block recommends farmers conduct a thorough hay inventory for the upcoming feeding season. “You need to have your bale count, bale weight estimate, livestock inventory, average livestock weight and take those times the number of days in your feeding period.” Block says livestock producers can have a more accurate estimate if you take into account forage quality. “As forage quality increases, digestibility increases so cattle are able to eat a little bit more. You also have to take into consideration if you’re feeding bulls, cows, steers, or heifers.”

What’s Hot, What’s Not in the Markets – The size of the cattle herd is shrinking and that’s being reflected in the markets. In this week’s edition of What’s Hot, What’s Not in the Markets, Martinson Ag Risk Management President Randy Martinson says the cattle are one of the bright spots in the marketplace. One of the big challenges in the markets is harvest pressure.

Cattle Numbers Tighten – USDA released a bullish Cattle on Feed Report on Friday. The total inventory of cattle and calves nationwide declined one percent from one year ago. September marketings rose four percent and placements were down four percent.

Cow Slaughter Climbs Sharply – According to a report published by Steiner Consulting Group, the sharp increase in cow slaughter resulted in higher-than-expected slaughter numbers. Through September, about half a million more cattle were slaughtered than the same period last year. Steer slaughter during this time was actually down 157,000 head. Heifer slaughter, however, increased by 377,000 head, for 5.2 percent, and beef cow slaughter was up over 13 percent.

MN Beef Update – Dairy farmers, veal producers, and beef cow producers all have a voice at the Minnesota Beef Council and Minnesota State Cattlemen’s Association. Hear more in the latest Minnesota Beef Update.

Enrollment Open for Dairy Safety Net Program – The enrollment period is now open for USDA’s Dairy Margin Coverage program. Dairy farmers have until December 7 to sign up for the safety net program. With margins shrinking in the dairy business, the National Milk Producers Federation is urging farmers to sign up for the maximum coverage.

Milk Production Increases – Milk production in the 21 major dairy states totaled 17.5 billion pounds in September, up 1.6 percent from one year ago. South Dakota had the largest surge in milk production, up nearly 15 percent. That is due to the size of the cow herd growing by 25,0000 head. Minnesota and Wisconsin milk production rose by a fraction oof a percent.

Co-ops Build Economic Power – Co-ops are everywhere! They provide nearly every good and service imaginable and they are a great choice for buying local and keeping jobs in the community. Nearly a million of U.S. farmers belong to a cooperative. October Co-op Month has been recognized nationally since 1964. RRFN’s celebration of October Co-op Month is sponsored by North Dakota Farmers Union and Associated Milk Producers, Inc. and its Dinner Bell Creamery.

Near Record HPAI Losses – More than 47 million birds have died due to this year’s outbreak of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza. 2015 was the record for death loss with 50.5 million birds claimed by the virus. Turkey meat production is forecast to be down six percent from last year, which will cut into the turkey supply for the holiday season.

Thune, Durbin Lead Bipartisan RVO Request – South Dakota Senator John Thune and Illinois Senator Dick Durbin are leading a bipartisan group of lawmakers in asking the Environmental Protection Agency to expand the renewable volume obligations. EPA is going through the rulemaking process for the Renewable Fuel Standard and the lawmakers are asking for regulatory certainty for biofuels. The letter was also signed by Minnesota senators Amy Klobuchar and Tina Smith.

Savings With E15 – A new study by Growth Energy found that nationwide access to E15 could save drivers billions in annual fuel costs, while creating new jobs. Growth Energy CEO Emily Skor says E15 has already saved consumers dollars. “This summer, consumers saved as much as $1 a gallon when they filled with E15. If we as a nation switched to E15, consumers would save over $20 billion in annual fuel costs.” Skor says the next step is to allow E15 to be allowed year-round in all 50 states. “Right now, we’re looking at outdated fuel regulations that were made before E15 was even available.”

MFU Minute – Listen to the latest MFU Minute to hear the newest policy actions of Minnesota Farmers Union.

Seeking Support for E15 – A coalition of biofuel and agriculture groups is asking Minnesota Governor Tim Walz to help find a regulatory solution that will allow the year-round availability of 15 percent ethanol blended fuel. Minnesota leads the nation in the number of fuel retailers offering higher blends of ethanol, but the EPA needs to make a regulatory change so E15 can be sold during the summer season. The letter was signed by the Minnesota Bio-Fuels Association, Minnesota Farm Bureau, Minnesota Farmers Union, Minnesota Corn Growers Association, POET and Green Plains.

Beige Book: Volatile, but Healthy Farm Economy – The Federal Reserve’s Beige Book says the U.S. economy expanded at a modest pace through early October. According to the update from the Minneapolis Fed, 80 percent of farm lenders said income increased during the quarter. Rising production costs and the lack of rain remain concerns. The Beige Book is released two weeks before the Fed’s next monetary meeting, which is scheduled for November 1-2.

Well Grounded – To put a land deal together, how do you make the closing go as simple and painless as possible? In the latest Well Grounded podcast, Acres and Shares Farmland and Beet Stock Broker Jayson Menke and Red River Farm Network farm broadcaster Randy Koenen visit with Aaron Rosten from Grand Forks Abstract.If you ever buy or sell land, this podcast is a ‘must-listen.’

Steady Growth in Farm Lending – The Kansas City Fed reports the size of farm operating loans is up nearly 25 percent from last year. Commodity prices are high, but the expense side of the ledger is also increasing. Interest rates of agricultural loans increased sharply.

PUC Receives Pipeline Paperwork – Summit Carbon Solutions has filed its paperwork with the North Dakota Public Service Commission The pipeline will take liquid carbon dioxide from 32 ethanol plants in Minnesota, South Dakota, Iowa and North Dakota and move it to underground storage in western North Dakota. With the pipeline, the ethanol plants will have access to markets with low-carbon standards, including California.

Easements Secured for Carbon Pipeline – Summit Carbon Solutions Executive Vice President Wade Boeshans says the easement agreement process is moving along quite well for the carbon pipeline with over 160 miles of the proposed pipeline route in North Dakota confirmed. ‘We’ve secured easement agreements with over 500 landowners in North Dakota.” Boeshans says this project will be beneficial for North Dakota’s energy and agricultural businesses.

National Security Concerns Cited Over Fufeng Project – North Dakota Senator Kevin Cramer was on Newsmax to discuss the proposed Fufeng corn wet milling project in Grand Forks. Fufeng is a Chinese-owned company. Cramer said he and North Dakota Senator John Hoeven oppose this effort. “We both believe strongly that Grand Forks should reject this opportunity and look somewhere else,” said Cramer. “We’d be more than happy to help them find a better tenant for that land than Fufeng and the Chinese Communist Party.” Cramer is concerned about the United States being too reliant on China.

At the Nexis of Agriculture and Technology – Grand Farm broke ground for its new permanent site just outside of Casselton, North Dakota. Former North Dakota governor and U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Ed Schafer was part of the ceremonies. “Grand Farm projects will demonstrate the future of agriculture where autonomous machinery will be operated without humans.” Schafer said the state is at the forefront of agriculture technology. “North Dakota is at the top on a global scale in our production methods, processes, and equipment technology.” Since 2019, Grand Farm has deployed over 350 agriculture technology projects and has worked with over 55 partner organizations.

LA Adopts Plant-Based Solutions – The Los Angeles City Council voted unanimously to endorse a plant-based treaty initiative. This movement is asking cities to pressure national governments to end the global deforestation linked to animal agriculture, incentivize a plant-based food system and support a transition to more sustainable jobs and healthier people.

Region Shines in Yield Contest – National Wheat Foundation Project Manager Anne Osborne says the national wheat yield competition had entries from 27 states this year. “Our region did very well with seven winners; six from North Dakota, and one from Minnesota. Matthew Krueger from East Grand Forks, Minnesota was second in the Dryland Spring Wheat category with 113 bushels per acre, and Jon Wert from New England, North Dakota took third with 108 bushels an acre.” Spring wheat growers who exceeded their county averages were all from North Dakota. “Jordan Christman, Austin Kautzman, and Greg Messer all from western North Dakota exceeded their county average by about 179 percent.” A new national yield record was set in the irrigated winter wheat category at 231.37 bushels per acre by Rylee Reynolds of Twin Falls County, Idaho.

MN Wheat Minute – The National Wheat Foundation has released the results of the National Wheat Yield Contest. East Grand Forks, Minnesota farmer Matthew Krueger placed in the dryland spring wheat category. Hear more in the latest MN Wheat Minute.

Learn About Ancient Grains in NCI’s Most Recent Handbook – The Northern Crops Institute has released the Ancient Grains of the Great Plains Handbook. The booklet is an overview of the broad category of crops known collectively as Ancient Grains. It is designed to be easy to read and understand, and provides introductory information on Ancient Grains for farmers, supply chain participants, agricultural entrepreneurs, food, feed, and fuel processors, retailers, and consumers. In contrast to other publications that go into great detail to describe crops and their uses, this booklet is designed to provide you, the reader, with a broad outline of the wide range of crops that can encompass the term ancient grains.For more information on resources from NCI or to order this publication, go online.

Largest U.S. Flour Mill Celebrates 100 Years – The North Dakota Mill is celebrating its 100^th anniversary. According to North Dakota Mill Manager Vance Taylor, the facility continues to grow. “We just finished an expansion early in this calendar year that added another 11,000 hundredweights of capacity or 1.1 million pounds per day and that takes us to a total of six million pounds of finished product per day,” explains Vance Taylor, president/general manager, “It’s kind of fun to say that we’re the largest single-site mill in the United States and the 8th largest milling company overall.” The spring wheat and durum coming into the mill is described as above average. “We’ve got a really great wheat crop to work with, we’re averaging 63 pounds test weight on this new crop here which is amazing.” The North Dakota Mill reports first quarter profits of $2.3 million. That’s down from $3.3 million one year ago.

Ag and Food Summit Coming to Minneapolis – The Minnesota Ag and Food Summit will be held Thursday, November 10 in Minneapolis. “We’ll kick off with our economic outlook, go to our luncheon program with the distinguished service award and State of the State of Agriculture from the governor,” said Tamara Nelsen, executive director, AgriGrowth. “We follow lunch with a political panel that’ll look at the election results.” The AgriGrowth meeting provides a unique networking opportunity for farmers, ag leaders and lawmakers. Registration can be done online.

Canola Minute – In this week’s Canola Minute, Executive Director Barry Coleman talks about their involvement in the Culinary Institute of America’s Worlds of Flavor International Conference.

National FFA Convention Ticks Closer – The National FFA Convention kicks off this week in Indianapolis. “We’ve been pretty busy preparing and working with chapters across the country,” said Kristy Meyer, communicaitons manager. “We’re expecting close to 65,000 people.” The flood of blue jackets boosts the Indianapolis economy, but also supports community service. “This year we’ll have about 2,500 members out in the community serving 15 local non-profits.” RRFN will report from the FFA convention.

Blue & Gold Gala Debuts – The North Dakota FFA Foundation is hosting its first-ever Blue and Gold Gala November 5 in Fargo. “We just noticed that we weren’t getting as much attendance at the North Dakota State Fair Auction so we decided to branch out to something a little different,” explained Beth Allen, executive director.  A meal, entertainment and mini FFA contests are planned. Tickets for the Blue and Gold Gala are still available at ndffafoundation.com.

New Name, Same Chemistries – BASF has introduced a new weed control option called Beyond Xtra. Beyond and Raptor have always contained the same chemistry, but targeted different cropping systems. Beyond Xtra will be available for all crops labeled for Beyond and Raptor, including wheat, sunflowers, canola and dry beans. Beyond Xtra is available for the 2023 growing season.

Partners in Biological Technologies – Bayer has closed on a previously announced deal with Ginkgo Bioworks to develop biological products for agriculture. This is a multi-year strategic partnership which will focus on crop protection, nitrogen fixation and carbon sequestration through its biologicals platform.

Dealing With Weed Resistance – Resistance management must be part of the weed control strategy. That advice comes from UPL Technical Services Manager Ryan Bryant-Schlobohm. “We know in the past and this year we’ve got problems with resistant kochia, we want to make sure that we’re identifying a type of product that fits well and has good efficacy on the weeds that we’re battling.” UPL’s BATALIUM AMPED has received federal registration and is awaiting regulatory approval at the state level. It is a post emergence product for spring and winter wheat. “It can be applied anywhere from once the weed reached 2 weeks up to 60 days before harvest; it is a true post emerge product with a wide application window,.”

Rob-See-Co Announces Acquisition – Nebraska-based Rob-See-Co has purchased another independent seed company called Federal Hybrids. Federal Hybrids is a regional seed company based in Iowa. With the acquisition, Rob-See-Co becomes the 14^th largest seed company in the United States.

New Ownership for Sunrich – A private investment firm, Pacific Avenue Capital Partners, has acquired the Sunrich sunflower and roasted snack division of SunOpta. Sunrich General Manager Kent Johnson will become the new CEO. The company is based in Crookston.

AURI Update – The Agricultural Utilization Research Institute is launching the Ag Innovation News Podcast. Hear more in the latest AURI Update.

Pilgrim’s Pride Price-Fixing Charges Dismissed – The Justice Department has dropped the charges against two former executives with Pilgrim’s Pride. The pair was facing allegations of price-fixing. Earlier this year, five other poultry industry executives were acquitted of similar allegations.

October is Co-op Month – Cooperatives are controlled by their members, who actively participate in setting policies and making decisions. October Co-op Month is a time to recognize the cooperative principles of honesty, transparency, equity, inclusiveness and service. Co-ops Build Economic Power’ is the theme for this year’s October Co-op Month celebration. This salute is sponsored by the North Dakota Farmers Union, Associated Milk Producers, Inc. and their Dinner Bill Creamery.

Fire Damages Fertilizer Blending Site – An investigation is underway regarding a weekend fire at the Wilbur Ellis fertilizer plant near Moses Lake, Washington. The high-speed fertilizer blending facility had a capacity of 22,000 tons.

RIPE Grows Ag Leadership Roster – Rural Investment to Protect our Environment is a nonproft group developing a program that would pay farmers equitable payments above the cost of implementing the conservation practice. RIPE has expanded its board. New board members include Alana Petersen of Petersen Group/Canary Consulting, who worked on the staff of Minnesota Senators Tina Smith and Al Franken. Another new board member is Bill Beam, who was the deputy administrator for farm programs at USDA from 2018-2021.

Job Opportunities in Agriculture – The Red River Farm Network encourages you to check out the Job Opportunities in Agriculture tab on our website. AURI, R.D. Offutt Farms and Dakota Ingredients are among those posting jobs right now. If your farm, company or organization is looking for high quality job candidates, contact RRFN’s Don Wick or Kolleen Wick to be featured in this multimedia job posting.