TerrAvion, Servi-Tech Partner to Expand Offerings

TerrAvion takes hundreds of low-altitude flights weekly to capture a bird’s-eye view of a farm. It then uploads those images to the cloud within hours so farmers can make informed decisions.

The company not only delivers data, it also provides aerial photographs, NDVI images, thermal images, custom color maps, and histograms at resolutions high enough that you can see an individual plant.

Servi-Tech customers will now have access to those services through a partnership with TerrAvion. Servi-Tech provides agronomic services to over 1,900 growers across seven states. Its crop consulting division has over 1.1 million acres under contract.

The company’s labs analyze soil, water, feed, and fertilizers and consult with growers on issues around soil fertility, disease and insect control, irrigation, and data management.
 
“TerrAvion is providing us with a new way to give our growers NVDI, thermal, and color images, and display them in our data portal,” says Jeff Kugler, CEO of STEPS, LLC.

“TerrAvion’s flights cover larger areas in a much more reliable and cost-effective way than drones or satellites ever could,” says Greg Ruehle, president & CEO for Servi-Tech, Inc.

“We are excited to team up with TerrAvion to give our customers the information they need through aerial imagery to make more informed decisions around irrigation, soil quality, and the health of their plants so they can improve their yield each season.”

“Servi-Tech is a leader in crop consulting and understands how vital imagery and timely data is to growers to improving crop yield,” says Robert Morris, CEO of TerrAvion.

“We are excited to work with their team and help their customers leverage all types of aerial images to help identify problems before they become serious issues that can impact their bottom line.”

The two companies are also exploring ways to offer imagery solutions to a broader client base. To learn more, visit terravion.com.

source: successful farming

3 Big Things Today, January 21

Soybeans Lower in Overnight Trading; Bayer, Monsanto Say They’ll Add Jobs, Invest in U.S.

1. Soybeans Modestly Lower Amid Profit-Taking After Price Jump

Soybeans were slightly lower in overnight trading amid profit-taking after yesterday’s jump in prices.
Futures on Tuesday rose 23¢ as excessive rainfall keeps growers in some parts of Argentina, the world’s third-biggest producer of the oilseed behind the U.S. and Brazil, from planting their crops.

Investors who’d bought contracts when they were recently below $10 likely closed some out and booked profits, analysts said. Some growers see now as a good time to sell beans with prices above the $10.60 mark, adding supplies to the market.

Soybean futures for March delivery fell 3¼¢ to $10.66 a bushel overnight on the Chicago Board of Trade. Soy meal futures lost $3.10 to $345.70, and soy oil gained 0.12¢ to 35.68¢ a pound.
Corn futures rose ¼¢ to $3.65¾ a bushel.

Wheat for March delivery ¼¢ to $4.33¾ a bushel in Chicago, while Kansas City futures fell ½¢ to $4.51½ a bushel.
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2. Bayer AG, Monsanto Pay Homage to Trump, Promise Billions in Investments

Bayer AG, which is planning to acquire Monsanto Co., was the latest multinational corporation to pay homage to President-elect Donald Trump, saying it will invest billions of dollars and create jobs in the U.S. if its merger receives the necessary regulatory approvals.

The news was first reported by Fox Business Network.

Sean Spicer, the incoming press secretary for Trump, told members of the media that Bayer committed to invest $8 billion in research and development, keep 100% of Monsanto’s workforce in the U.S., and add 3,000 domestic tech jobs.

Bayer Chief Executive Werner Baumann and Monsanto CEO Hugh Grant said in a joint statement that the investments will create “jobs that will keep America at the forefront of agricultural innovation and that serve U.S. farmers by delivering better products and services faster.”

Companies have been jumping on the bandwagon, bragging about adding jobs in a bid to appease the president-elect, who’s threatened to impose significant import duties on products made overseas by U.S. companies. Wamart, Ford, and Fiat Chyrsler have all bragged recently about adding jobs or building their products in the U.S.

3. Flood Warnings Abound as Rapid Ice Melts, Jams Cause River Levels to Rise

Some flood warnings are in effect for counties along rivers in several Midwestern states this morning, according to the National Weather Service.

Flood warnings have been issued along several rivers and tributaries in Missouri, Iowa, Illinois, and Indiana as ice that coated roads and cars melts amid rising temperatures, the NWS said.

A flash flood watch has been issued for the Quad Cities in Iowa and Illinois as a levee may possibly fail amid rising river levels due to an ice jam. If the levee fails, flash flooding is likely along the Green River, according to the agency.

Weather maps in the Midwest are otherwise mostly quiet other than some dense fog advisories along the Kansas-Missouri border.

Fadama: 27 rice production groups cleared for funds receipt

Not fewer than 27 rice production groups under the Abuja Fadama III Project have been cleared for fund disbursement.

The Acting Secretary, Agriculture and Rural Development Secretariat, Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA), Dr Musa Aliyu, informed that the groups have received their clearance during the opening ceremony of the pre-disbursement training programme organised for Irrigated Rice Farmers’ Groups.

“It is gratifying to note that the 27 business plans prepared by 27 rice production groups across the FCT have received clearance for disbursement from the National Fadama Coordination Office. It is in view of this achievement that we are organising this pre-disbursement training exercise”.

He said the development was a highlight of the implementation of Fadama III (Additional Financing) in the nations’ capital, especially in rice production.

Aliyu said continual sensitisation and mobilisation had led to preparation of 164 business plans by various production groups across the value chain crops.

The acting secretary however urged the participants to sustain the achievements recorded by Fadama III project towards attaining food security in the FCT.

“As you continue the implementation of your business plans, ensure that all resources at your disposal are put to the best use to ensure a lucrative enterprise,” he said.

The central aim of the Additional Financing (AF) for the Third National Fadama Development Project for Nigeria is to increase incomes for users of rural lands and water resources within the Fadama areas in a sustainable manner throughout the recipient’s territory.

The additional financing will focus on improving farm productivity while increasing performance of clusters of farmers engaged in priority food staples namely rice, cassava, sorghum and horticulture in six selected states with high potential.

Wheat: Yield-increasing enzymes discovered

Botanists at Lancaster University, Rothamsted Research, and The International Maize and Wheat Improvement Centre researched a naturally occurring plant enzyme known as Rubisco, in a bid to explore its photosynthesis-boosting abilities and crop yield potentials.

As part of a landmark research carried out in January, the team measured photosynthesis in 25 genotypes of wheat–including wild relatives of bread wheat (Triticum aestivum)–and found variation exists even among closely related genotypes.

Each type was surveyed to identify superior Rubisco enzymes for improving photosynthesis.

Two of the most efficient were Rubisco from plants known as Aegilops cylindrica and Hordeum vulgare (barley), which both showed promising Rubisco catalytic properties that should be explored in the context of improving photosynthesis, and ultimately grain yield in wheat.

Models suggest that incorporating the new enzymes into wheat could increase photosynthesis by up to 20 per cent under some field conditions.

Wheat is a crucial source of food, providing more than 20 per cent of the calories consumed worldwide. And with projections that the world population will rise to over nine billion by the year 2050, there is increasing pressure to meet global demand for food.

Nigeria’s domestic wheat production is small, at a meagre 70,000 tons.

The crop is mainly grown in the northern states of Bornu, Yobe, Jigawa, Kano, Zamfara, Katsina, Adamawa, Sokoto and Kebbi, where wheat is known by the local name, “Alikama”

Wheat is a winter crop grown only during the cold season for maximum yield. The wheat grown in Nigeria is hard wheat, according to a research scientist at the Lake Chad Research Institute, Maiduguri, Dr. Oluwasina Olabanji.

He reportedly said, “The wheat we are cultivating is not indigenous wheat; it is the exotic varieties. Our materials come from ICARDA and CIMMYT through germplasm exchange. We evaluated these materials and they were bred for tropical climates. They are heat-tolerant.

“Generally, there are two types of wheat; the bread wheat used for making bread and the durum wheat used for noodles, biscuits and confectioneries. The latter has lower gluten, a kind of protein.”

According to him, the average grain yield for wheat in the country is above 2 tonnes per hectare. Research has however shown that this can be tripled if proper varieties and crop management is adopted.

FG to restructure, recapitalise BoA with N500bn

The Federal Government has set up a 21-man steering committee to restructure and recapitalise the Bank of Agriculture.

The committee would commence the restructuring with N500bn and work within the next three to one month to actualise its goal.

Inaugurating the committee in Abuja on Monday, Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, urged the committee to work within a record time to actualise the goal.

He said the restructuring was aimed at revitalising the operations of the Bank to make it more responsive to its mandate.

Osinbajo, represented by the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Chief Audu Ogbeh, said the restructuring, would strengthen the bank as a platform for providing loans to Small and Medium Enterprise farmers and cooperatives among others.

He said the approach was a pre-privatisation strategy preferred by the Federal Government to pave way for the injection of financial and other requisite resources into the Bank.

He said, “It is noteworthy that in its over 20 years of existence, the BoA has faced myriad of challenges which include, poor funding, poor stakeholder buy in, particularly Federal Government agencies and erosion of stakeholders funds.”

Ogbeh, also the Chairman of the committee, said the committee would commence the restructuring with N500bn and work within the next three to one month to actualise its goal.

The minister said the committee was expected to give the Bank a face-lift, look into the issues of staffing, electronic improvement, work in every community nationwide, provide credits to SMEs and to farmers small or big.

Ogbeh said the Central Bank of Nigeria would hand over the Anchor Borrowers Scheme to the Bank after the restructuring to effectively finance agricultural projects.

He said, “There will be a better run financed BOA so that the interest rate will be easily accommodated by farmers. We will recover some of the credits owed by farmers because some of them have offered to pay.”

The CBN Governor and a member of the committee, Mr Godwin Emefiele, described its Anchor Borrowers Programme which started in 2016 as `a success’.

He expressed optimism that the committee would work to ensure that the BOA achieved its aims and objectives in a very short time.

According to him, the loans that are currently given to farmers through the Anchor Borrowers Scheme is in a single digit

“The Federal Ministry of Agriculture is asking us to reduce the interest rate to about nine per cent to enable farmers buy inputs, go to the farm, make a living and feed the country,’’ Emefiele said.
The Managing Director of BOA, Prof. Danbala Danju, commended the Federal Government for its initiative to restructure the Bank.

He expressed regret over the bad and non- repayment attitude of farmers after collecting funds from the Bank.

Danju said the Bank was targeting single digit interest rate on loans to farmers by the end of the restructuring.

The managing director said the Bank would work with the private sector and the international development agencies to actualise their set target

He said, “The Bank needs to be recapitalised to energise the agriculture sector in line with best practices all over the world.

“We expect a restructuring plan that will look at our operating model, human resources and the entire business plan so that agriculture will be properly financed in Nigeria.

“Agriculture has been under-funded and the key challenge is how to source the fund so that we can assist farmers.

“The key challenge now is how we can reconstitute ourselves to properly identify farmers and ensure that when farmers are given loans and support, they pay back.”

The committee is made up of the Ministers of Finance, Industry, Trade and Investment, Planning and representatives from the BOA, ministry of Justice, Bureau of Public Enterprise, among others.
The nine members known as Project Delivery Team, would also assist the committee to deliver on the restructuring mandate.

Farm Hacks: Improvise With Existing Tools to Make Repairs in a Pinch

Rapid and Right-Angle Screw Driver

Do you lack the tool to remove screws in an inaccessible location? Do you need to make quick work of removing stubborn screws without stripping out their heads (when using an electric drill)? The solution here is to use a ¼-inch socket to hold a hex-end driver bit. You’ll need to employ the socket reducer in your set to pair that small a socket to your ratchet. In use, press down on the ratchet head with your hand to provide sure contact with the screw head.

Ready Soldering Clamp

Some fine wire connections require soldering to provide a solid connection. The frustration with this chore is holding the two ends of the wire together and upright while, at the same time, applying a soldering iron and solder wire. Create a make-do soldering hemostat with a pair of needle-nose pliers and a rubber band as shown above. You could use a locking needle-nose pliers, but the locking mechanism can crush the wire coating, which would create a potential short.

Ready Wrench Extension

Are you in need of extra reach to remove a bolt or nut hiding in a hard-to-reach location but you lack an extra-long boxed end wrench or ratchet wrench handle for the job?

A quick solution is to combine two wrenches to create a tool extension. The trick here is to loop the boxed end of the first wrench through the open end of the second tool so they “lock” together. This tool trick has the extra benefit of giving you more leverage to remove stubborn fasteners.

 

Pipe Wrench to the Rescue

Rounded-off nuts or bolt heads can prove a huge challenge to remove even with the use of a locking pliers, which can spin round the nut when extra leverage is applied.
The quick-fix solution is a pipe wrench. Not only are the teeth on a pipe wrench more aggressive than a locking wrench (thus biting deeper into the nut or bolt head) but also the locking action of the bottom jaw forces those teeth into the fastener for a sure hold. An added plus is that the pipe wrench handle is longer to provide more leverage.

source: successful farming

Tire Tool Innovations from Chicago Pneumatic, Ken-Tool, and Craftsman

Chicago Pneumatic Bottle Jack

Chicago Pneumatic’s bottle jacks are engineered with a double-guidance and chrome-plated steel piston made from one piece of metal. Other features include a large base plate, a safety valve to protect against overloading, and a two-piece handle. Model capacities range from 2 tons and a lift extension of 13½ inches (model 81020) up to 55 short tons and a lift extension of 19 inches (model 81502).

Ken-Tool Snap-In Tire Valve Tool

The Ken-Tool model 29850 is specifically engineered for the installation of the snap-in type of rubber tire valve stems used in automotive, light truck, and trailer wheels. The unique tool features a notched polymer rim guard with five fulcrum notches that provide you with the right leverage points to pull and seat a snap-in tire valve in the wheel. Plus, the Tire Valve Installation tool has a full pivoting head to ensure the correct stem angle as the stem is pulled into position on the rim.
The tool retails for $32.99, which includes a lifetime warranty.

Ken-Tool Sidewinder Kit

Ken-Tool’s 17.5 Sidewinder Kit is designed to allow a single person to dismount and mount 17½-inch truck tires. Tools in the kit include the demount tool that lets you apply high leverage to the wheel and tire to separate them, as your weight keeps the wheel and tire assembly from lifting off the ground. The mount and bead holder tools provide maximum leverage and prevent slippage. Included in the kit are a leather rim protector and gap tool.
The kit retails for $349.95

Impact Wrench Designed for Tires

The CP7736 ½-inch impact wrench delivers up to 670 foot-pounds of torque in reverse through its 2-inch anvil to break and then remove tire lugs. Chicago Pneumatic equipped the wrench with a twin hammer mechanism to provide more impacts per minute in addition to a steel motor for longevity.
Other features include three-speed settings in forward operation.
 The list price for the CP7736 is $196.

 

One Wrench Set for All Fasteners

The design of Craftsman’s Extreme Grip five-piece wrench set features movable jaws that create a solid fit on standard, metric, and rounded fasteners.
The suggested list price on the set is $59.99, which includes a lifetime warranty.

Busts Duals Apart

The Ken-Tool Shark Fin separation bag exerts up to 5,000 pounds of force to separate and to remove stuck dual wheels from axle studs and hubs.
Safe to use on steel, aluminum, or chrome wheels and with 15- to 24.5-inch rim diameters, the Shark Fin comes with a 3-foot inflation hose.
Suggested retail price is $499.95.

Tool Set for Truck Tires

Ken-Tool’s deluxe version of the Blue Cobra truck tire service set features all the items shown including the Blue Cobra demount tool that can demount the top and bottom beads on truck tires in seconds. The model 35444 tool set is safe for use on aluminum and chrome wheels.
Suggested retail price is $693.82.

Kano to invest N200m to boost rice production

• Seeks to achieve over 2 million tons in 2017
• Increases loan packages for rice farmers
• Concludes plan to employ more extension workers

The Kano State Government has designated over N200 million in the recently approved 2017 budget to boost rice farming in the state.

This was disclosed by the state’s Commissioner of Information, Mohammed Garba, informing that this was part of the state government’s efforts to increase rice production in the state, generally improve the state’s agricultural sector and complement the Federal Government’s efforts to reduce over dependence on crude oil.

According to him, “rice and wheat farmers were given N150 million loan in 2016 to boost production in the sector, while in 2017 we are planning to increase the loan. All necessary measures will be taken to ensure that the ordinary farmers in the state benefit more from the gesture”.

Speaking further on the efforts of the state government in rice production, Garba noted the success of rice production the state enjoyed in 2016, stating that Kano mustered over 1.5 million tons of rice in the year.

The Commissioner communicated the state’s resolve to increase the production figures in rice to over 2 million tonnes in 2017. He also explained that to this end, the state had concluded plans to employ more agricultural extension workers to assist farmers across the state, with the overarching aim of improving and increasing rice production.

“These extension workers would be going round the farming areas to assist the farmers on how to ensure proper production of rice and wheat,” Garba said.

It could be recalled that Kano produced 1.6m tons of rice in 2016, that the state governor, Abdullahi Ganduje during an interactive session with farmers had revealed that the state produced 1,551,720 tons of rice in 2016, while wheat production experienced a swell increase by 84 per cent. The session included intimating farmers on loan recovery scheme of commercial triumvirate which included the Central Bank of Nigeria, Bank of Agriculture and the Anchor-Borrowers Programme.

Rwanda bans import of poultry products amid Bird Flu concerns

The Government of Rwanda has imposed temporary ban on all imported poultry products from Uganda and European countries due to outbreak of Avian Influenza (bird flu).

In a statement released by the country’s Ministry of Agriculture and Animal Resources, the Minister, Geraldine Mukeshimana informed all Rwandan business operators involved in the importation of poultry products from Uganda and Europe to stop imports

“We call upon all Rwandan business operators importing all poultry products from Uganda and Europe to cease with immediate effect. The disease is of great concern to our poultry industry and to humans,’’ said Geraldine.

Expressing the the need for quarantine efforts to be heightened has become increasingly necessary, Mukeshimana stated that poultry farmers must keep domestic birds indoors to avoid them interacting with wild birds.  He also added that people must stay away from carcass of wild birds and report any case of mass deaths of birds both domestic and wild to any nearest government authority.

The Minister also stressed the need for poultry farmers to ensure essential bio-security measures and standard hygiene precautions as well as early detection, immediate reporting and rapid response.

Meanwhile, Uganda has also confirmed the outbreak of the flu in wild terns – seabirds, and domestic birds which has led to mass deaths of wild birds on the shores of Lake Victoria in the country. This was confirmed in a statement released by the Ugandan Ministry of agriculture.

“The species so far hit by the Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza, or HPAI, are migratory white-winged black terns as well as domestic ducks and chickens’’, it reads.

The outbreak of the flu has also been reported in countries across Europe, including Hungry, Germany, France, Denmark, Czech Republic, Croatia, Romania and the United Kingdom.

FG targets 1 million metric tons of fertilizer by March

Federal government is to provide one million metric tons of fertilizers for wet-season farmers across the country by March this year, the National President of the Fertilizer Suppliers and Producers Association of Nigeria (FESPAN), Thomas Etuh has said.

Speaking to Daily Trust in Kano, Etuh, who is also member of the Presidential Committee on Fertilizer Initiative, said a bag of both NPK and urea fertilizer would be sold to farmers at N5,500.

Etuh explained that members of the committee were in Kano state as part of their assessment tour to the 36 fertilizer companies in the country.

“The aim of the initiative is to encourage local production of fertilizer in order to create more job opportunities for Nigerians, induce reduction of inflation and reduce foreign exchange. We have 63 per cent of the raw materials needed for fertilizer production. We are to import only 37 per cent to our local producers,” he said.

He said the FG has promised to provide enough raw materials to the local producers, saying “we are touring the 36 fertilizer companies in the country to find out the companies that are fit to produce fertilizer for our farmers.”

A representative of Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA), one of the financier companies, Uche Orji, said he was impressed by the commitment of Al-Yum Fertilizer and Chemicals (A F & C) formerly NAGARI fertilizer.

The Chairman, A F & C fertilizer, Aliyu Yusuf assured federal government of quality fertilizer, saying NAGARI is a well-known product all over the country.

Yusuf said the company will comply with federal government’s directives, stressing that “going by the federal government’s plans on fertilizer production, the problem of shortage of fertilizer would be thing of the past in the country.”

He warned workers in the company not to involve in any act capable of destroying the name of the company, as according to him the management of A F & C would not hesitate to punish any worker caught in making substandard fertilizer in the company.

“We will work closely with the federal government to address the problems associated with provision of fertilizer in the country. The FG has come up with good plans and we are ready to support government so that enough fertilizer would be supplied to our farmers in all farming seasons,” he assured.