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Business Briefs - Aug. 12, 2009

Beck’s begins construction on foundation seed facility

ATLANTA, Ind. — Beck’s Hybrids announced it has begun renovation and new construction on a Foundation Seed Facility located near Sharpsville, Ind. The facility is located at the former Adler Seed plant along U.S. Highway 31 just south of Kokomo.

Beck’s purchased the Adler facilities earlier this year and has begun renovation in preparation for the new seed drying, cleaning and conditioning facilities that will allow Beck’s to handle small lots of foundation seed.

The new construction includes additional drying facilities designed to dry ear corn for seed in 30 bushel bins for maintaining purity, plus a building for seed cleaning, sizing and treating, which will also include a color sorter to further enhance seed quality.

Beck’s is a family-owned and -operated seed company that serves farmers in Indiana, Illinois, Ohio, Michigan and Kentucky.

Dreyfus becomes Indiana’s 1st BQ-900 biodiesel producer

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. — The Louis Dreyfus Soybean Processing and Biofuel Plant of Claypool, Ind., recently became Indiana’s first BQ-9000 certified producer.

BQ-9000 is a voluntary fuel quality assurance program overseen by the National Biodiesel Accreditation Commission and adopted by the National Biodiesel Board and the Canadian Renewable Fuels Assoc.

BQ-9000 couples the foundations of universally accepted quality management systems with the product specification, ASTM D 6751, and has become the premier quality designation in the industry. The program covers storage, sampling, testing, blending, shipping, distribution and fuel management practices.

The Louis Dreyfus plant opened in August 2007 and is the world’s largest integrated soybean-based biodiesel plant, with an annual production capacity exceeding 88 million gallons of soy biodiesel for blending into fuel. The facility also processes nearly 50 million bushels of soybeans annually and produces more than 1 million tons of soybean meal each year.

International Feed & Poultry Expo registration now online

ARLINGTON, Va. — Online pre-registration for the 2010 International Feed and Poultry Expo is available. Sponsored by American Feed Industry Assoc. and the U.S. Poultry and Egg Assoc., the expo is scheduled Jan. 27-29, 2010, at the Georgia World Congress Center in Atlanta.

The pre-registration fee is $35 and the deadline is Jan. 8. On-site registration is $60 – no checks, no refunds, and no substitutions. To register online, go to www.ipe10.org

New for 2010 is the unique “Members to Atlanta” program, which will waive the registration fee for attendees from member firms of either association engaged in the production of poultry, egg and feed products. The program is supported through the sponsorship of expo exhibitors, who will be identified with the customers they sponsor and recognized at the show. Visit
www.ipe09.org/M2A/index.cfm to see if you are eligible.
The Expo will feature the latest technology, equipment and services used in the production and processing of feed and poultry products. Look for upcoming information on AFIA’s International Educational Forum on Jan. 28 and the third annual Pet Food Conference on Jan. 26-27.

For more information, contact AFIA’s Sarah Novak at snovak@afia.org or Alexa Stanco at astanco@afia.org or call 703-524-0810. You may also visit www.ife10.org for the most up-to-date information leading up to Expo.

Cargill announces partnership with ENERGY STAR

MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. — Cargill announced an enhanced commitment to protect the environment by becoming an ENERGY STAR Partner. Cargill’s voluntary partnership with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s ENERGY STAR program means it will work toward improved energy efficiency and performance across its facilities.

The company’s efforts to measure, track and improve its energy performance will be supported by the resources and tools offered through ENERGY STAR. As part of its involvement, Cargill will:

•Measure and track the energy performance of its facilities where possible by using tools such as those offered through ENERGY STAR
•Support the ENERGY STAR Challenge to encourage improved energy efficiency of commercial buildings
•Encourage employees to learn about the benefits of energy efficiency and to implement appropriate energy efficiency measures
•Use the ENERGY STAR tools to assess energy management at its facilities

Cargill joins with 30 percent of America’s Fortune 500 companies participating in ENERGY STAR. More than 83,000 buildings across the country measure and track their energy performance, accounting for more than 14 billion square feet of space. The familiar ENERGY STAR logo found on thousands of appliances and other household goods is recognized by more than 75 percent of U.S. consumers.

In 2007, Cargill further demonstrated its commitment by joining the Chicago Climate Exchange, a voluntary, legally binding greenhouse gas emissions reduction, registry and trading program.

NCGA President’s Award goes to Sen. Johanns

WASHINGTON, D.C. — National Corn Growers Assoc. (NCGA) President Bob Dickey presented the President’s Award to Sen. Mike Johanns (R-Neb.) during NCGA’s Corn Congress in Washington. The President’s Award is given annually to a leader who has worked to advance issues important to corn growers and agriculture.

Johanns served as Nebraska’s 38th governor from 1999-2005. He was sworn in as the 28th secretary of the USDA in January 2005. During his time at USDA, NCGA stated he worked to expand foreign market access for U.S. producers, promoted the growth of the renewable fuels industry and advanced cooperative conservation.
Additionally, Johanns developed an in-depth farm bill proposal based on 52 farm bill forums held in 48 states.

8/12/2009