Agri-Trend to support Deere dealers
STAFF – Eight major John Deere dealerships in the West and Ontario will work with an Alberta-based ag consulting firm to help farmers set up Deere precision ag systems.
The Agri-Trend Group of Companies has signed on for a “channel distribution agreement” with the dealerships, in which Agri-Trend will train and support inhouse dealership personnel who will work directly with farmers.
“This alliance will make it easy for a farmer to adopt variable-rate application, merge layers of yield maps with soil zones or use GPS information to drain a field,” Robert Saik, CEO of Red Deer-based Agri-Trend, said in a release.
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Saik said the company’s Agri-Trend Geo Solutions wing has “successfully integrated satellite and aerial imagery with John Deere’s GS2 and GS3 variable-rate sprayers to create prescription pesticide maps based on in-season vegetative intensity.”
Buying land elsewhere
REUTERS – Chinese edible oil firm Julong Group said Beijing may provide subsidies this year to local companies buying up plantation land outside the country as China seeks to secure food supplies.
Sun Wei Jun, an official with Julong Group, said the government would like Chinese firms to own more food estates overseas.
Julong Group, the largest unlisted edible oils processor in China, has already ventured into oil palm estates five years ago on the Indonesian side of Borneo island and now has a land-bank of 100,000 hectares.
John Connolly new AFC executive director
John J. Connolly has been named new executive director of the Agriculture and Food Council (AFC).
Connolly has spent many years in senior management positions with the Canadian government, including most recently as special adviser with the International Markets Bureau and director of market development for the Asia-Pacific Region. His many accomplishments include being awarded the Citation of Excellence by Parks Canada, the Departmental Award of Excellence from Canadian Heritage, and the Excellence Award from Agriculture and Agri- Food Canada.
“AFC is proud to welcome a leader of John’s experience to mentor its team of dedicated staff and advise the board of directors,” council chair Heather Broughton said in a release.
