Possible Record Yields – The Red River Farm Network Crop Tour, presented by Pioneer, kicked off the week in the west. Mike Hagens, who is a sales associate with Quantum Ag North, at Steele, North Dakota, said the corn is standing tall and is in the early dent stage. “It was planted the 27^th of May; we did end up with 70 mile per hour straight line winds that did strip quite a bit of the leaves. We’ve had darn near 14 inches of rain here this summer and it’s about as wet as we can remember. For August this is pretty green.” Hagens is looking forward to a good harvest season. “There’s going to be some record yields this year 200-plus (bushels per acre) on dryland corn and possibly 50-to-60 bushel soybeans and maybe 70s.” Watch the interview. 

‘A Great Problem to Have’ – Paul Hagen leads Mid-States Ag, which is based in McClusky. “Probably the biggest complaint I have from customers is that there’s all these four-bean pods and they want to know what they’re supposed to do with all the extra soybeans,” Hagen said with a smile. “It’s a great problem to have.” The crop started with decent moisture which transitioned to a long period of hot, dry weather. “Fortunately, we’ve had just enough rain at just about the right times.” The early soybean varieties are turning yellow and the pods are full. “I know last year we ranged all the way across the 30s. This year I would hope it’s going to be better than that.”  The Hagen interview is online. 

Optimism for Sunflower Crop – The final stop of the RRFN Crop Tour Monday tour was at a sunflower plot in the Garrison area. The flowers were somewhat short in stature. “I’m sure that has to do with the lack of moisture, but the heads are looking amazing,” said Jason Foss, North Shore Seed. “There’s nice full heads and that’s where the money’s being made anyway.” Foss said he would be disappointed if sunflower yields weren’t in the ton range. The later-planted canola is performing better than the early-seeded crop. Pioneer Field Agronomist Larry Lunder believes the moisture situation in his western North Dakota territory is in the best situation in years. “I almost hate to talk about it because you feel like you’re going to jinx it.” Dryland corn, sunflowers and soybeans all look very good. “This might be the best one (soybean crop) I’ve ever seen in my career and that spans a little while.”

Langdon Crop is ‘Somewhat Surprising’ – The Red River Farm Network team traveled to Langdon, North Dakota to kick off the second day of the annual crop tour. The local crop looks good, especially considering the dry growing conditions. Brock Mitchell, who owns Ag365, reports wheat and peas are being harvested and yields have been “somewhat surprising.” Standing in front of his Pioneer corn plot, Mitchell said most of the corn is at three-quarter milk line. “A week or ten days should finish a lot of it off on the early corn. As we get to the later maturities, we’re looking at two or two-and-a-half weeks yet.” Ag365 Sales Associate Jace Ramberg reports area growers are starting to desiccate canola. “We’re looking at another week-to-ten days before we get into harvest which is fine because a lot of the wheat is just coming off now.” Here’s the interview. 

GDU’s Ahead of the Norm – Donny Allmaras of Allmaras Ag hosted RRFN at a soybean plot near Oberon. “The soybeans are well on their way and very close to maturity; we’re at the point where we’re going to be able to handle a frost in the next couple weeks perfectly.” The local crop enjoyed good moisture to start the season, but transitioned into a long dry spell. Understandably, the lack of moisture took a toll on the poorer soils. However, the soybeans look very good on the better ground.” Corn got beat up by the extreme heat, but Allmaras is looking at a fantastic corn crop. “If we had a planting date of May 18, we’re sitting with about 1,750 growing degree units. The Pioneer 80-day corn needs 1,900 growing degree units to finish, so we’re really close.” Later maturing varieties will probably need until mid-September to hit black layer. Watch the interview.

Corn is ‘On Track’ – At Fessenden, Joey Allmaras showed off corn that is just starting to dent “so I’d say we’re right on track.” The area started the season fairly wet, faced a dry period and is now sitting in good shape for moisture. What’s his projection for the crop? “The combine will tell that story.” The interview can be found on the RRFN YouTube channel. 

Field Day Coincides With Crop Tour – Sunshine replaced the haze from the Canadian wildfires for the third day of the Red River Farm Network Crop Tour, presented by Pioneer. Page, North Dakota-based Page Seed at Agronomy hosted its annual field day near Colgate Wednesday. “This plot has had about 4.5 inches of rain since planting on May 11, which is about six inches short of normal,” reports Paige Elsner, who owns the agency with her sister, Debbie Midstokke. “It looks great, and I don’t know how it looks so good when we missed a few key rains.”  Most of the soybeans in the area are in the R6 stage and filling pods. Elsner is “pleasantly surprised” with the pod counts and yield potential. GDUs are about 250 heat units ahead of `normal. “Our 88-day corn should black layer in about a week.” The interview is online.

‘A Garden of Eden’ – When RRFN arrived, cement was being poured for the new Aligned Ag facility at Wimbledon. Matt and Bethany Peterson brought the RRFN team to the adjacent soybean plot. Matt told RRFN this may be one of the few years when area growers may harvest a good corn crop and a good wheat crop. “We had a period with less heat during flowering and I think is resulting in these small grain yields. For corn, we had heat at other times of the year to push us forward so we don’t have a repeat of 2019 where he have an early frost.” While it is a dry year across much of the Dakotas and Minnesota, the Wimbledon area has had too much rain at times. “We had some three-to-five inch rains in an hour which washed some areas out so harvest may be interesting.” Overall, the moisture has been beneficial. Peterson even called his territory “a Garden of Eden.” Watch the interview. 

A Dry Pocket at Binford, ND – Brandon Krueger, who operates Innovation Ag at Binford, hosted the final stop of the RRFN tour Wednesday. “We’ve been lacking some rains in Binford and further west, but as you move further south and east, we’ve been catching some nice rains.” In the drier pockets, the corn and soybeans are starting to naturally synthesize to get ready for harvest, but the crops are green as ever as you go east. “From where we started this spring to where we are now, I am very impressed with the corn and soybeans.” Krueger said some of his customers are starting to kill edible beans. Most of the local wheat acres will be finished by the end of the week. During the interview, Krueger also highlighted the agency’s new facility and site. Watch the interview.

Drought Stress – Luke Forness operates Black River Ag at Dorothy, Minnesota and hosted the first stop on Day #4 for the Red River Farm Network. Sufficient rains have been lacking in the region. “If you look at the later maturing soybean varieties, there is some aborting of pods and we may lose that top end in my area,” said Forness. “It looks like the earlier stuff is taking advantage of the rains in June/July and look to have good pod fill.” There is some tip-back on the drought-stressed corn. “The early 80-day corn is seven-to-ten days out for black layer.” Here’s the interview. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JIFNmBa8-LI

Beneficial Moisture at Oklee, MN – Farmers in the Oklee, Minnesota area caught rains that were missed by a large share of the Upper Midwest. “We had a lot of rain in June and we had a really good of shot of rain in the first week of July,” reports Ross Hegge at Hegge Seed. “I expect our corn is a really nice crop. I don’t see hardly any tipback with a nice even stand and great emergence this spring.” Most of the corn is dented and will be at black layer within two-or-three weeks. Hegge is also feeling good about the soybeans. “I think it is going to be one of our better bean crops. There’s definitely going to be a lot of residue; they’re really tall and with that, hopefully, comes a lot of bushels.” Watch the video.

Wheat, Corn, Soybeans Perform Well in TRF Area – Mother Nature has been a blessing in the Thief River Falls area. Ken Rivard leads K-Star Ag Services and said the crops are surprisingly good. “Three weeks of cool weather in June made one heck of a wheat crop. Corn pollination is good and the soybeans seem to be filling up as well.” There were some pollination issues in the drier and sandier areas, but Rivard expected it to be a lot worse. There is some corn that has black layered and more will likely happen after the heat this weekend. A farmer in the nearby Badger area has started his soybean harvest. The video interview is online. 

Spotty Rains – The Larimore, North Dakota area has been exceptionally dry for the past two months. Shaun McCoy, McCoy Pioneer Seed, says the rains have been spotty. “We’ve got a field that’s had an inch more rain on one side and the other side didn’t get any; that changes things a lot.” Some soybean fields are grass green and others are turning. “There’s fields that are turning won’t have any leaves on them in five or six days with this heat, so that’s pretty crazy.” Regarding corn, Shaun spoke about the importance of harvest management. “Focus on fields that are maturing the quickest, you could see cob drop and standability issues if plants have been cannibalizing those stalks.” This fall marks an important milestone for Dennis McCoy.  “Forty years ago in October of 1983, I was approached by Pioneer to sell wheat seed. It’s extremely exciting to see what the company is offering now and new products in the coming years.” The video is on RRFN’s YouTube channel.

Canola Cut in Grand Forks County – Growing canola in Grand Forks County is a relatively new phenomenon. “It’s shown to be a good crop we can grow on some of the poorer ground here west of Grand Forks in the Reynolds and Thompson area,” said Mike Stenvold of Stenvold Ag Service. Harvest is underway and the farmer’s goal was for a ton crop.  “So far, we’ve been seeing around 2,400 (pounds per acre) so no complaints.” Stenvold said there are soybeans that will be ready for harvest in the upcoming week. “Everything’s going to happen at once. With some luck, we might have the timing to get some soybeans and some corn off before sugarbeet harvest takes over.” The interview is online. 

Soybeans Starting to Turn in Southern RRV – South of Sabin, Minnesota, early maturity soybeans are starting to turn. The longer maturities are still green and filling out the top pods. “I would imagine toward the end of September we’ll be doing some combining,” said Tanner Thompson of Prairie’s Edge Agri-Service. Soybeans faced an overabundance of insects. “You name it, we had it,” said Thompson. “Cover worms, spider mites and, a first for myself, we found bean leaf beetles. It’s really heartbreaking when you see a pod laying on the ground that they’ve clipped.” Watch the interview.

An ‘Unbelievable’ Wheat Harvest – Fertile, Minnesota farmer Kevin Leiser is preparing to harvest his dry edible beans after finishing the wheat harvest. “The wheat harvest was kind of unbelievable. Everyone thought the wheat wouldn’t be that good, but it ended up being one of the best crops we’ve had.” According to Leiser, a new higher-yielding variety that he tried was true to its name, but protein was a little low.

Poor Falling Numbers – University of Minnesota Extension Small Grains Specialist Jochum Wiersma has been fielding calls about poor falling numbers. Heavy fog and cool overnight temperatures are potential contributing factors. He suggests waiting to harvest fields that you suspect sprout and prioritizing others. Wiersma also warns against mixing the crop. “It’s not the average when you bring it to the elevator. Blending a lot that’s at 200 and a lot that’s at 400 does not give you a Hagberg Falling Test of 300.”

Fighting Excess Moisture During Harvest – Grand Forks, North Dakota farmer Paul Sproule has started harvesting his spring wheat crop. It looks like it’ll be a long harvest season ahead. “Test weight is great and yields have been surprising for us and our neighbors.” Sproule has a system to combat the heavy morning dew. “We’ve been taking it off at 16-to-17 percent moisture. Some of it goes into an air bin, otherwise it goes into our dryer until we get it down to 13.5 (percent).”

Wheat Harvest Put to Bed – Near Jamestown, North Dakota, Terry Wanzek has completed wheat harvest. “The wheat yields were better than I expected. I thought early heat had hurt it a little bit, but we were in the 60 bushel range and we are quite pleased with that.” Wanzek anticipates a pretty decent pinto bean crop. A lot of the corn and soybeans are close to maturity and look promising.

Surprising Barley Harvest – Doug Reimers has started barley harvest near Jamestown, North Dakota. While zthe height was stunted by early heat, Doug Reimers, Jamestown, says the barley yield wasn’t impacted. “The crop we’ve been combining is probably half height, but the yield is still there. Late rains filled out the heads.” Other fall crops could use a drink, but seem to be holding steady. There may be some spotty pollination issues in the corn. “Soybeans look like they’re going to be a fantastic crop this year. There are a lot of three and four bean pods. We’re really excited to get into soybeans.” Listen to the full interview with Doug Reimers here.

Harvesting A Diverse Mix of Crops – U.S. Custom Harvesters Inc. Vice President Paul Paplow is back in North Dakota harvesting a variety of crops, including durum, flax, field peas, mustard, canola, and lentils. Timely rains helped the crop near Ray, North Dakota. “Canola is right around 40 bushels. The crops by the Ray area are doing better than other areas. In the Fortuna area, it’s closer to 25-30 bushels.”

Heat Slows Harvest Progress – The American Crystal Sugar Company pre-pile harvest has seen a few heat delays. “Depending on what we need for beet inventory, we’re going to shut down early in this heat,” said Joe Hastings, general agronomist. Final yields are forecast in the mid-28-ton range.

A September Weather Outlook – This summer’s hot and dry weather will continue to influence the weather pattern going into fall. World Weather Incorporated Senior Ag. Meteorologist Drew Lerner expects mid-September to be very cool. “I’m not suggesting we’re going to have a colder-than normal autumn, but I think the air is running low on humidity.” Lerner expects the drier air to amplify cold fronts leading to possible frost and freezes in September.

SD Corn Comments – In this week’s edition of South Dakota Corn Comments, South Dakota State Fair Assistant Manager Candi Briley previewed the fair schedule.

EPA & Corps Issue New WOTUS Definition – The Environmental Protection Agency and Army Corps of Engineers have issued its final rule amending its definition of the Waters of the United States. This change was necessary after a recent Supreme Court decision. The EPA plans to lead a webinar detailing the updated WOTUS definition on September 12.

Revised WOTUS Rule Does Not Apply to 27 States – Due to a federal court injunction, the updated Waters of the United States rule does not apply in North Dakota and 26 other states. The WOTUS definition implemented before 2015 is in place for these states. North Dakota Senator John Hoeven remains opposed to the rule, describing it as ‘regulatory overreach’ without public input.

WOTUS Change Draws Ire of Farm Groups – North Dakota Agriculture Commissioner Doug Goehring says the updated WOTUS rule only changed the scope of WOTUS rule minimally. The 23 states that do not have an injunction are bound by the rule. “We’re still concerned because dry ditches, subsurface water, drainage ditches are still in the rule itself which circumvents a state’s authority.”

2023 Farm Bill Faces Hurdles – According to Russell Group President Randy Russell, the farm bill is facing a few hurdles before it can cross the finish line. Nutrition programs will likely be a point of contention, especially with House Republicans only holding a four seat margin. “As you pick up Republicans because you make changes to SNAP, you likely lose Democrats so it’s a real balancing act.” Food security is considered national security and Russell sees that coming up in the farm bill debate. “Issues like foreign investment in U.S. farmland is going to be looked at very closely.” The recent issue with the Chinese company buying farmland near Grand Forks was a catalyst to bring this issue to the forefront. Listen to the full interview with Randy Russell here.

Farm Futures Forecasts ’24 Acreage – Farm Futures Magazine is out with its projections for the 2024 planting season. The media outlet is calling for corn acreage of 93.1 million. That’s down from a 94 million acre crop this season. Farm Futures is estimating soybean plantings at 85.4 million acres. That’s up 2.5 percent from this season. Spring wheat seedings are forecast at 14 million acres, up nearly eight percent from the 2023 crop.

Heat Could Impact Basis – It is still difficult to nail down accurate yield projections. MinnStar Bank Farm Management Analyst Kent Thiesse expects to see a lot of variability. “There’s probably going to some above average yields, but there’s probably going to be a lot of yields that come in below their long term APH yields.” With a wide range in crop conditions, Thiesse expects some areas to see basis improvements going forward if yields turn out lower than expected. Hear the full interview with Kent Thiesse here.

Black Sea Grain Deal on the Agenda – The Turkish president is planning to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday to discuss Black Sea grain exports. Turkey and the United Nations brokered the deal for the Black Sea Grain Initiative in 2022. However, Russia withdrew from that agreement this summer. Turkey is trying to convince Putin to rejoin the grain deal which allowed Ukraine to export grain through the Black Sea.

Outbidding Each Other to Get Through Panama Canal – Water levels on the Mississippi River are low, impacting barge movement once again this fall. The Panama Canal is also dealing with major restrictions due to very low water levels. Only 32 vessels are allowed to cross each day, down from 40 one year ago. The Panama Canal Authority allows shippers without reservations to skip the line by participating in an auction. Advance Trading Risk Management Advisor Tommy Grisafi is monitoring these transportation costs. “There was a vessel that paid $2 million to get through the Panama Canal,” said Grisafi. “It’s like you’re on StubHub, people are outbidding each other four, five, six times that would be the normal amount because of the huge backlog of ships.” Late last week, there were 115 vessels waiting in the queue to move through Panama Canal. Watch the interview.

Register Now for NCI’s Next Market Update Webinar – The Northern Crops Institute is hosting a Market Update: Special Edition webinar on Wednesday at 8 AM. This special edition will feature Jim Peterson, policy and marketing director, North Dakota Wheat Commission. During his hour-long webinar, Peterson will give an overview of the current situation in the U.S., Canada and the rest of the world. For more information about the webinar and to register, go online.

West Coast Port Contract Ratified – Members of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union have ratified a new six-year contract for dockworkers on the West Coast. The deal includes a 32 percent salary increase. Seventy-five percent of the union workers voted in favor of the contract.

AURI Update – The Agricultural Utilization Research Institute is hosting a three-part webinar series. Learn more in this AURI Update.

Interest Rate Hikes Likely – The Personal Consumption Expenditures price index rose 3.3 percent in July. That’s up from three percent in the June report. This rate is down from the peak of seven percent last summer, but it remains well below the two percent growth rate sought by the Federal Reserve Bank. The inflation rate is being monitored closely as the Fed considers additional interest rate increases.

Harvest Prices Announced – The Revenue Protection crop insurance harvest prices have been announced. Spring wheat is at $7.97 per bushel, down from $8.87 per bushel in 2022. Durum is at $9.09, down from $10.11 per bushel last year. The harvest price for barley is $4.39, down from $5.59 per bushel last year. The harvest prices for corn and soybeans will be announced at the end of October.

Corn Matters – National Corn Growers Association Director of Political Policy Anne Thompson is encouraging farmers to submit their comments for the 2023 Farm Bill. Hear more in the latest Corn Matters, brought to you by the Minnesota Corn Growers Association.

Revamping Dry Bean Fertilizer Guidelines – University of Minnesota Extension Soil Specialist Dan Kaiser is working on revamping fertilizer guidelines for dry edible beans. Kaiser says it’s been years since the guidelines were reviewed. “Specifically, we’re comparing black beans, navy beans, and dark red kidney beans to update some of the older data.”

Dry Bean Scene – Northarvest Bean Growers Association President Eric Jorgenson gives us a pre-harvest update in this week’s Dry Bean Scene. The Dry Bean Scene is sponsored by the Northarvest Bean Growers Association, Johnstown Bean Company, Sharpen Fungicide from BASF, SRS Commodities and Heads Up Plant Protectants.

Driving Prices Higher – Amherst, South Dakota rancher Warren Symens says the future of the cattle industry looks to be optimistic with the U.S. cow herd at an all-time low. “When there’s less beef, it drives prices higher, especially at the cow-calf level.” Feed and input costs continue to be one of the biggest challenges livestock producers face. “The price of feed isn’t getting any better and the cattle feeder is kind of getting caught in the middle.”

The Missing Piece of the Puzzle – The Biden Administration has made it a goal to insert more competition into the meatpacking industry through smaller processing plants. Faulkton, South Dakota rancher Troy Hadrick is gearing up for the opening of a new packing plant in his hometown. “The goal for us is to find a place for customer harvesting for our branded beef program. We’ve got the beef and we’ve got the customers, but no where to process them.” The facility would be able to process 25 hogs, cattle or bison per day. Hadrick discussed the project during the South Dakota Cattlemen’s Association’s Regional Roundup in Faulkton.

MN Beef Update – Minnesota State Cattlemen’s Association Executive Director Kaitlyn Root talks about policy issues at the forefront in the latest Minnesota Beef Update.

Drought Triggers LFP in North Dakota – North Dakota Farm Service Agency Executive Director Marcy Svenningsen says with drought progressing in northern North Dakota, eight counties are now eligible for the Livestock Forage Program. The list includes Bottineau, Rolette, Towner, Cavalier, Ramsey, Benson, Pierce and McHenry counties. “This means those ranchers with reduced forage from pastures are eligible for a forage payment. When you hit D3 drought, that automatically triggers a payment.” During 2021 when North Dakota suffered from a widespread severe drought, LFP paid out $83 million.

Soybean Business Helps Drive the Economy – The U.S. soybean industry has a total economic impact of $124 billion. That includes $86 billion from soybean production and nearly $10 billion from soybean processing. These results come from an independent study commissioned by the National Oilseed Processors Association and the United Soybean Board.

Walz Heading to Japan – Minnesota Governor Tim Walz will lead a trade mission to Japan next week. The Minnesota delegation will participate in the Midwest U.S.-Japan Association Conference, which brings together business leaders from both countries. The trip will be September 10-13.

A ‘Golden Opportunity’ – Minnesota launched a new coalition to grow the sustainable aviation fuel industry. Minnesota Governor Tim Walz says crop-based biofuels are the future of the aviation industry. “It’s not going to happen overnight, but I’m incredibly proud that our agricultural industry is at the forefront of this industry. There’s a golden opportunity for a sustainable biofuel.” Walz says Minnesota has what it takes to lead the sustainable aviation fuel industry. “We have America’s top-rated airport, we have experience and capacity to produce biofuels and we have a refinery.”

Grant Funds for Grand Farm – The North Dakota Commerce Department is awarding a $10 million matching grant to Grand Farm. The announcement was made during the Autonomous Nation Conference in Fargo.

Northern States Have New White Mold Tool – Viatude fungicide is new white mold protection for soybeans in the northern soybean production states. The Corteva Agriscience product offers preventative and curative action to reduce disease infection. Viatude is also labeled for use in canola. A limited supply of this product was available this year with additional supply expected in 2024.

Seed Treatment Lineup Expands – Corteva Agriscience has expanded its LumiGEN seed treatment portfolio. LumiTreo seed treatment is a three-way premix fungicide with three modes of action. LumiTreo will be available next spring.

Short-Stature Corn Collaboration – Bayer and Pairwise have announced a new five-year, multi-million dollar agreement with a focus on short-stature corn. Pairwise is a food and agriculture company known for bringing the first gene-edited food to the U.S. market. Short-stature corn is designed to protect the crop from severe weather and extreme winds. It also allows for more precise application of crop inputs.

Uniting Under the Channel Brand – Channel is introducing its new enhanced brand which unites the Channel seed brand with ten Bayer regional brands. The regional brands include Gold Country Seed, Rea Hybrids, Kruger Seeds and Jung Seed Genetics. Starting in the fall of 2024, these regional brands will transition over to the Channel product portfolio with a new Channel name.

A New Record Soybean Yield – A Georgia farmer has set the world record soybean yield with an average just under 207 bushels per acre. Alex Harrell harvested the crop August 23 and verified by the University of Georgia Extension. The record soybean yield was with an Asgrow variety.

Sales Down Slightly for Syngenta Group – The Syngenta Group has announced financial results for the first half of the fiscal year. Sales totaled $17.5 billion, down three percent from last year. Sales were lower for Syngenta Crop Protection and ADAMA, especially when compared to strong quarters one year ago. Syngenta’s seed business grew nine percent to $2.5 billion. The seed business in North America rose 14 percent.

Canola Minute – In this week’s Canola Minute, Northern Canola Growers Association Executive Director Barry Coleman talks about the upcoming Canola Expo.

Autonomous Weed Control Project Underway in ND – KWS Seeds is collaborating with an AI-driven robotics company called Aigen. The two companies are working on a project using Aigen’s on-farm robotic fleet to identify and remove weeds in sugarbeet fields. The robots work autonomously to improve weed control without the use of crop protection products.

Titan Machinery Announces 2Q Financials – Titan Machinery’s second quarter revenue totaled $642.6 million, up nearly 30 percent from one year ago. Company officials said the growth was balanced across its equipment, parts and service business segments.

Titan Machinery Expands Down Under – West Fargo-based Titan Machinery has entered into a purchase agreement to take over the largest Case IH dealership group in Australia. The price tag for the O’Connors dealership group is $63 million. This deal is expected to close before the end of the year.

RRFN Hosting Market Outlook Forums – Join the Red River Farm Network at the Big Iron Farm Show in West Fargo on September 12-14. Each afternoon, RRFN hosts industry-leading market analysts for a conversation about the markets. The analysts on the stage include Jerry Gulke, Tommy Grisafi, Randy Martinson, Kristi Van Ahn, Bryan Doherty, Allison Thompson, Bret Oelke, Betsy Jensen and Randy Zimmerman. The market outlook forums begin at 1:30 daily. If you can’t be there in person, the forums will be streamed online. The RRFN forum schedule is online. 

Merger Meetings – The boards of the Thompson Farmers Co-op Elevator and Valley United Co-op will host informational meetings and special stockholder meetings Wednesday night to discuss the proposed merger. The merged entity would have a dozen locations in the central Red River Valley.

Bodine Named the Incoming President/CEO for Mosaic – Mosaic Company President and CEO Joc O’Rourke is retiring. As of January 1, Bruce Bodine will take over as company president. Bodine has held a number of executive roles with Mosaic.

Abbott Named as New Pivot Bio CEO – Pivot Bio announced Chris Abbott as the new chief executive officer, effective immediately. Pivot Bio co-founder and current CEO Karsten Temme is set to become chief innovation officer.

AgReliant Genetics Announces Leadership Change – Brian Barker is the new CEO and president of AgReliant Genetics. Most recently, Barker was with Corteva Agriscience. David Pugh has also joined Ag Reliant as the chief financial officer and vice president of finance. Pugh had a similar role at Elanco.

Daly Named Interim Director – South Dakota State University Agricultural Experiment Station Director Bill Gibbons has retired. Gibbons, who was also the associate dean of research, spent 36 years with SDSU. SDSU Extension Veterinarian Russ Daly will serve as the interim director.

Honors for Brad Rugg – Minnesota Milk Producers Association presented its Bruce Cottington Friend of Dairy Award to Brad Rugg. Rugg was recognized during the State Fair Open Class Dairy Show for his career of service to the dairy industry and 4-H youth.