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| Business Briefs - Feb. 10, 2010 |
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KAFC approves more than $700,000 in loans
LOUISVILLE, Ky. — The Kentucky Agricultural Finance Corp. (KAFC), chaired by Agriculture Commissioner Richie Farmer, approved $700,300 in agricultural loans for projects in the Commonwealth during its regular monthly business meeting Friday.
Five Agricultural Infrastructure loans were approved, for a total of $415,774, and included recipients from Butler, Daviess, Henderson, Lincoln and Webster counties. Also, Beginning Farmer loans totaled $284,526 and included recipients from Daviess, Nelson and Wayne counties.
For more information on the programs offered by the KAFC, contact Bill McCloskey, director of financial services, at 502-564-4627 or visit the KAFC Web page at http://kafc.ky.gov
BASF offering a variety of incentives in 2010
RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, N.C. — BASF and Farm Plan have teamed up to help growers maximize their investment for their 2010 purchases. Under the special program, growers can finance their purchase of two crop protection products from BASF, such as Headline fungicide or Kixor herbicide technology, through Farm Plan, with 0 percent interest through next fall.
To take advantage of the BASF/Farm Plan special offer, growers need to sign up by Feb. 15. This offer is available to Farm Plan Preferred accountholders with a special terms credit limit. In order to qualify, they must make an initial minimum purchase of $10,000, which must be comprised of at least two individual product purchases with a minimum of $1,000 each; additional products are not subject to a minimum amount.
Payment is due in full December 2010. For more details, contact a local BASF retailer or find out more at www.financingoffer.basf.us
In addition, qualified growers may save up to $100 per gallon on their 2010 purchase of Headline fungicide. For full terms and conditions, go to www.headlineadvantage.com or ask a local authorized BASF retailer.
Ag Development invests in projects across Kentucky
LEXINGTON, Ky. — The Kentucky Agricultural Development Board (KADB), chaired by Gov. Steve Beshear, approved $120,350 in three agricultural diversification projects across the Commonwealth during its January board meeting:
The Johnson County Agricultural Advancement Council, Inc. received $114,000. The County Agricultural Investment Program (CAIP) is designed to provide farmers with incentives to allow them to improve and diversify their current production practices. CAIP covers a wide variety of agricultural enterprises in its 11 investment areas.
The Franklin County Conservation District received $3,875 for the Deceased Farm Animal Removal Program, which serves as an interim measure to facilitate the coordination of environmentally sound and cost-effective disposal of deceased livestock for Kentucky producers.
This district also received another $2,475 for the Shared-use Equipment Program, designed to impact a high number of producers who cannot justify ownership expenses associated with certain equipment, by helping them access technology necessary to improve their operations in an economical manner.
SmartStax corn receives import approvals for Korea, Taiwan
INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. — Monsanto Co. and Dow AgroSciences, LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of The Dow Chemical Co., announced they have received import regulatory approvals from Korea and Taiwan for corn grain produced from SmartStax.
The food and feed safety of SmartStax corn was reviewed and approved by the Korean and Taiwan agencies charged with regulating biotech traits. These follow U.S., Canadian and Japanese regulatory approvals announced by the companies in July 2009.
Grain produced from SmartStax corn can now be imported to Japan, Taiwan, Korea, Australia and New Zealand, among other countries.
SmartStax is the outcome of a cross-licensing agreement and research and development collaboration signed in 2007 between Monsanto and Dow. They plan to launch SmartStax on four million-plus acres in 2010. Monsanto will bring the corn product to market as Genuity SmartStax. Dow plans to offer SmartStax through its seed brands which include Mycogen, Dairyland, Renze, Brodbeck, Triumph and Pfister.
HERCULEX hybrids eligible for insurance premium reductions
INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. — Through the Pilot Biotechnology Endorsement (BE) program, hybrids with HERCULEX XTRA Insect Protection are again eligible for reduced insurance premiums in 2010. In previous years, growers have saved more than $3 per acre on insurance premiums, according to Dow AgroSciences.
Also, the BE program has been expanded to include Colorado and irrigated acres in all previously approved states. For 2010, the program for corn hybrids with HERCULEX XTRA and HERCULEX XTRA stacked with Roundup Ready Corn 2 will include irrigated and dry land acres in Colorado, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, Ohio, South Dakota and Wisconsin.
To learn more, visit www.HERCULEX.net
ODNR recognizes educators, marine patrols
CAMBRIDGE, Ohio — The Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) Division of Watercraft recognized the contributions made by educators and marine patrol officers for their support in providing boating safety education programs and boating enforcement and emergency response support to their respective communities.
The Outstanding Boating Safety Education Program Award was presented to Five Rivers MetroParks in Montgomery County. Program Achievement Awards were presented to Toledo Children’s Hospital-Safe Kids Greater Toledo, the Spirit of America Foundation and Kent State University.
Individual awards were presented to Patricia Eichenlaub (Spirit of America, Ashtabula and Lake County) and Pamela Proudfoot and Mike Schabeck (Toledo Children’s Hospital-Safe Kids Greater Toledo).
The Outstanding Marine Patrol Unit Award for 2009 was given to the Summit County sheriff’s office. Marine Patrol Service Awards were given to the office of the Knox County sheriff and to the Muskingum Watershed Conservancy District. The Individual Marine Patrol Officer Award was given to Summit County Deputy Sheriff Patrick Fick.
Ceres, CHOREN assess energy crops for biofuel
THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. — Energy crop company Ceres, Inc. announced it is working with CHOREN, an international leader in Biomass to Liquids technology, to optimize energy crops for thermochemical conversion to advanced low-carbon biofuel. The two-year bioenergy project is funded in part by a grant from the U.S. Department of Energy.
The thermochemical process does not require enzymes or microorganisms; instead, the biomass is gasified under certain heat and pressure conditions producing synthesis gas, a carbon monoxide and hydrogen-rich gas that can be converted into high quality synthetic fuels, intermediate chemicals or electricity.
Ceres will evaluate the composition of a broad range of switchgrass and willow plants, and provide biomass samples to CHOREN for thermochemical processing. The results will be used to identify the most relevant compositional traits, and later, to select the plants and traits that improve conversion and maximize fuel yields.
In addition, Ceres and CHOREN plan to test commercial quantities of dedicated energy crops in a future collaboration effort at the world’s first commercially operating Biomass to Liquids facility in Freiberg, Germany. |
| 2/10/2010 |
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