• Titan Machinery Inc. third quarter results

• Rocky Mountain Dealerships Inc. recently provided an update on its search for a new CEO.

• RDO Equipment new location in Hawley, MN.

• Bane-Welker Equipment, LLC announced its purchase of The Equipment Store

• Cervus Equipment Corp. to acquire the assets of Deer-Country Equipment Ltd.

• Vetter Equipment officials announced the company’s purchase of Madsen International

• Johnson Tractor Inc. has acquired W.G. Leffelman & Sons,

• Jenner Inc. has completed the purchase of Tri-Co,

• Blueline New Holland’s three Nova Scotia dealerships acquired by Stu Rath and John Lynn

• Padula Brothers announced plans to open a location in the Connecticut River Valley

• Archbold Equipment Co. named Zach Hetterick CEO of the six-store Case IH dealership complex.

This month we thank the following companies for their membership in, and continued support of, the Farm Equipment Manufacturers Association. We look forward to having these companies, and yours, as members for many more years.

Rabobank predicts that U.S. beef prices will reach record levels and production will post another 2-3% decline in 2015, following a 5% decline in 2014.

U.S. cow slaughter was down 14% in 2014 due to aggressive herd rebuilding, which is expected to continue into 2015, reduced beef availability is expected to continue driving market prices up.

When the Washington state legislature convenes this month, one of the proposals up for debate will be a plan to make farmers who use manure as fertilizer subject to the same regulations as dairies that produce the manure, the Yakima Herald reported.

A program proposed by the state Department of Agriculture would license manure applicators and require farms to develop application plans and keep records as a way to protect surface water and groundwater from pollution, which can occur when too much ma

U.S. manufacturing growth slowed in December, with continuing delays at West Coast ports being cited as a contributing factor, according to the Institute for Supply Management (ISM). Comments from companies surveyed indicated a widespread negative impact on imported materials shipment due to the West Coast dock . .

The Internal Revenue Service has issued the 2015 optional standard mileage rates used to calculate the deductible costs of operating an automobile for business, charitable, medical or moving purposes.

Beginning on Jan. 1, 2015, the standard mileage rates for the use of a car, van, pickup or panel truck are:

New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R) vetoed a politically charged bill that would have banned the use of certain pig crates in his state, reported The Des Moines Register.

Christie called the bill opposing gestation crates a “solution in search of a problem” and “a political movement masquerading as substantive policy.”

A manufacturer of agricultural pumps and equipment seeks a Technical Sales Representative to join its sales team.

Appareo Systems announced it will enter a joint venture with AGCO Corp. to develop technology for advanced machine control systems, according to PrairieBizMag.com.

The venture expands on Appareo’s Intelligent Agricultural Solutions (IAS), business structure, founded by Barry Batcheller and Howard Dahl, that initially created wireless blockage and flow monitors and depth control for beet harvesting equipment. AGCO bought 50% of IAS, buying out Amity Technology Co., for which Dahl serves as president.

This month we thank the following companies for their membership in, and continued support of, the Farm Equipment Manufacturers Association. We look forward to having these companies, and yours, as members for many more years.

Effective Jan. 1, 2015, a revised Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) rule expands the list of severe work-related injuries that all covered employers must report to OSHA.

The revised rule retains the current requirement to report all work-related fatalities within eight hours and adds the requirement to report to OSHA all work-related in-patient hospitalizations, amputations and loss of an eye within 24 hours.

Article titled “Howard Dahl Sees Significant Opportunities and Risks in Russia,” which was based on a presentation Mr. Dahl delivered at the Association’s Fall Convention in Las Vegas, should have been attributed to Lessiter Publications’ Ag Equipment Intelligence

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced that it will not finalize 2014 volume standards under the Renewable Fuel Standard program before the end of 2014.

The proposed rule, issued in November 2013, generated a significant number of comments, particularly on the proposal’s ability to ensure continued progress toward achieving the law’s renewable fuel targets.

• Ohio Ag Equipment, a division of Ohio CAT and an authorized AGCO and CLAAS dealer for the state of Ohio, announced it will acquire

• 21st Century Equipment LLC announced it will acquire Frank Implement Company’s

• Henry S. Miller, past president of Far West Equipment Dealers Association, recently passed away

Bankers are worried about the drop in farm profits and the repayment capacity of their borrowers, said professor emeritus and ag banking consultant David Kohl at the American Bankers Association National Agricultural Bankers conference held in Omaha in November, reported The Progressive Farmer.

An experienced Director of Business Development with agriculture and commercial experience in business planning, and forecasting seeks an opportunity to lead a sales and marketing team.

Professional experience includes:

The U.S. House of Representatives last week voted to pass a one-year extension of more than 50 tax breaks that expired at the end of 2013, including the Section 179 provision allowing a full depreciation deduction of up to $500,000 on most equipment and machinery in the current year. The “bare minimum” measure was the only option left to the House following an Obama veto threat of a deal that would have made certain provisions permanent.

The Obama administration is expected to soon release a contentious and long-delayed environmental regulation to curb ozone emissions, reported the New York Times. The sweeping regulation, which would aim at smog from power plants and factories across the country, particularly in the Midwest, would be the latest in a series of Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) controls on air pollution from smokestacks and tailpipes.

State Rep. Charlie Davis filed legislation this week that would protect employees who don’t give their bosses their passwords. If passed as is, the bill would prohibit employers from firing or disciplining workers who don’t give them access to their online accounts. It also would prevent employers from holding it against job applicants who refuse to disclose their passwords.

Sharply lower gasoline prices through November and higher ethanol quotes have raised concerns about the future of ethanol demand and the potential for lower corn prices, but University of Illinois ag economists Darrel Good and Scott Irwin say “this risk is overstated,” reported AgWeb.com.

We are extremely thankful for our members’ support in many areas over the last 12 months and for the success we have enjoyed in continuing to build a strong association of farm equipment manufacturers.

While numbers don’t tell the entire story, they are an important tool in measuring our success. By the time 2014 draws to a close, we will have added over 70 new members to our Association for the second consecutive year and remain on track to see our total membership top 750 companies in 2015. Much of this success can be credited to current members’ efforts in sponsoring new members.

Having claimed its place in the soda, water, energy drink, and juice markets, Coca-Cola now is going after milk. In a blog post on HoosierAgToday.com, Gary Truitt said the beverage giant is preparing a nationwide launch of Fairlife, a high-end milk, in 2015.

For future meetings, the section’s Board of Governors will offer “Key Sponsorships” to supplier companies. A Key Supplier will pay $1,000 to have its company name featured at serving stations and on printed conference materials. The event will still be listed as the Supplier Section welcome party but will offer increased visibility for the sponsor company.

If you would like your company to become a Key Sponsor for the 2015 Spring Conference in Charlotte, NC, please contact Elaina Jackson at elaina@farmequip.org or 314-878-2304 before January 15.

The anti-GMO movement’s two biggest efforts—ballot initiatives in Colorado and Oregon that would have required labels for genetically altered food—were defeated during the recent midterm elections.

The results in Colorado and Oregon follow similar ballot initiative defeats in California in 2012 and in Washington state in 2013. While the vote in Oregon was very close (800 votes), in Colorado, the vote was more decisive. There, labeling proponents lost by a 2-1 margin. “If this had been two candidates, they’d say the ‘No on 105’ coalition had a mandate, said Don Shawcroft, Colorado Farm Bureau president and co-chair of No on 105.

Top restructuring professionals say U.S. corporate bankruptcy law is broken and are pushing lawmakers for changes that would give struggling companies a better shot at survival, according the Wall Street Journal.

In a recent report from the American Bankruptcy Institute’s Commission to Study the Reform of Chapter 11, industry professionals called on federal lawmakers to pass reforms they say would make the Chapter 11 process cheaper and more efficient, potentially saving jobs and stabilizing the economy.

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced that USDA will offer $5.6 million in grants to 220 producers across the nation to support the production of advanced biofuels, and award more than $4 million in additional grants to advance the bioeconomy and reduce the nation’s dependence on foreign oil.

This week our prime contact at each member company will receive an email with a link to your 2015 Membership Directory/Website preview and edit page. This new system will allow members to easily review and edit all of the information we publish on your company without the need to return printed documents.

IBG Business Services received Acquisition International Magazine’s prestigious M&A Award for Privately Owned Businesses M&A Firm – USA for 2014.

The American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers (ASABE) has completed a project to adopt nationally an international standard, ISO 10448:1994.

The new standard, ANSI/ASABE AD10448:1994, Agricultural tractors – Hydraulic pressure for implements, replaces the withdrawn ASABE standard ASAE S489, Hydraulic Pressure Available on Agricultural Tractors for Remote Use with Implements.

Deere’s fourth-quarter results were stronger than Wall Street expected, but the company says its farm equipment sales and profits will continue to fall as the sector remains weak.

Deere anticipates that its annual net income will drop about 40%, and revenue from agricultural and turf equipment will . . .

This month we thank the following companies for their membership in, and continued support of, the Farm Equipment Manufacturers Association.

Congratulations to these companies on their November anniversaries.

The Farm Equipment Manufacturers Association joined with 375 trade associations and chambers from 50 states representing a wide range of industries to voice strong concerns regarding the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ flawed proposed rule to dramatically expand the scope of federal authority over water and land uses across the U.S. and to call for the proposal to be withdrawn. The effort was led by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.

Vernon Schmidt, the Association’s Executive VP, called the proposal an “unlawful power grab by the EPA to assert federal jurisdiction over local water and land use.” Schmidt said the rule would make it impossible for the manufacturers he represents and the farmers and ranchers who buy their equipment to know what routine business practices could be carried out without obtaining an expensive federal permit. “This administration’s EPA has shown a continued pattern of disregard for business, industry, and farm and ranch families,” Schmidt said.

More than 50 partners in the 25x’25 Alliance have urged the EPA to issue guidance on flex fuel vehicles (FFVs), according FarmIndustryNews.com.

The Alliance wrote a letter to the EPA endorsing the Volkswagen Group of America’s recent request for EPA to issue guidance concerning the E85 weighting factor (“F factor”) for model year 2016-2025 FFVs. The F factor is used to estimate the volume of E85 combusted in FFVs to calculate their greenhouse gas emissions.

The Equipment Marketing & Distribution Association (EMDA) announced that its newly elected officers and directors for 2014-2015 will be:

Farm values in Plains states rose by 2.0%, year on year, for irrigated land and by 1.2% for non-watered plots, the weakest price growth pace since 2009.

“After several years of strong price appreciation… cropland value gains have dropped considerably,” the Fed said, adding that about one-third of bankers contacted for its survey forecast a further decline in values, against only 5% foreseeing an increase.

At our Fall Convention in Las Vegas, when our Dealer Panel was asked, “What can manufacturers do to help dealers with year-end sales?”, their answer was loud and clear: Contact your U.S. Senator and your Representative in Congress and tell them how critical it is to restore Section 179 of the tax code.

Four states—Alaska, Arkansas, Nebraska and South Dakota—passed measures to increase the minimum wage. Alaska’s measure will increase the minimum wage to $9.75 in 2016, the Arkansas measure raises the minimum wage to $8.50 by 2017, Nebraska’s will rise to $9 by 2016 and South Dakota’s goes to $8.50.

By a wide margin, Illinois voters also recommended an increase to the minimum wage, but the vote was nonbinding.

In Alaska and South Dakota, the minimum wage could climb higher . . .

Three out of four U.S. farmers fear data they share with companies offering big data services may fall into the wrong hands or be used without their consent, including for commodity market speculation, according to a survey published this week . .

According to a report on NJ.com, Governor Chris Christie told Iowa pork producers he intends to veto a bill passed by the New Jersey Legislature which bans the use of gestation crates for pigs.

The Republican governor made his intentions clear on a pig gestation crate bill when asked about it last month during a visit to Northwest Iowa.

Crop producers and scientists hold deeply different views on climate change and its possible causes, a study by Purdue and Iowa State universities shows.

More than 90% of the scientists and climatologists surveyed said they believed climate change was occurring, with more than 50% attributing climate change primarily to human activities. In contrast, 66% of corn producers surveyed said they believed climate change was occurring, with 8% pinpointing human activities as the main cause. A quarter of producers said they believed climate change was caused mostly by natural shifts in the environment, and 31% said there was not enough evidence to determine whether climate change was happening or not.

Baker No Tillage – BNT/Cross Slot is undertaking a Direct Public Offering to raise capital to expand it’s North American operations under the Security Exchange Commission via a Private Placement Memorandum (PPM), reported Lessiter Publications.

Ag-Pro Companies announced the acquisition of Mid Georgia Tractor — Jenner Sales has taken over operation of Tri-Co Equipment — Butler Ag Equipment announced the acquisition of Henkens Equipment

Winnipeg-based AGI announced Tuesday it signed an acquisition deal with Westeel’s owner Vicwest Inc. and Irish building materials manufacturer Kingspan Group. Kingspan said Tuesday it will buy Winnipeg-based Vicwest for $12.70 cash per share, pegging the enterprise value of Vicwest at about $350 million.

During its 64th annual Fall Convention held Nov. 3-7, in Las Vegas, NV, the Farm Equipment Manufacturers Association elected and installed the following officers:

President, Mike Kloster, Worksaver Inc.; 1st Vice President, Ric Kirby, Kirby Manufacturing Inc.; 2nd Vice President, Paul Jeffrey, MacDon Industries Ltd.; Treasurer, Robert Atkinson, W & A Manufacturing Company; and Secretary, Stanley McFarlane, McFarlane Manufacturing Co. Inc. Outgoing President Marc McConnell, Art’s Way Manufacturing Co., will serve as an Ex Officio member of the Executive Committee.

Blount International, Inc. announced its results for the third quarter ended Sept. 30, 2014. Third quarter sales were $245.2 million, an increase of 6.3% over the third quarter of 2013. Operating income for the third quarter of 2014 was $23.5 million, compared to $15.6 million in the same quarter last year. Third quarter net income was $16.1 million, compared to $7.7 million in the third quarter of 2013.

Western Kansas Manufacturers Association (WKMA) announced it will change its 3i SHOW dates beginning in 2015. The Association made the decision after giving significant consideration to exhibitor feedback, as well as crop schedules, other farm show dates, and multiple other factors.

Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway has disclosed its latest stock holdings as of Sept. 30, 2014 with the SEC. While the value of its portfolio was unchanged at $108 billion relative to the end of June, and it continued to hold 46 stocks, there were still a number of changes to note.

The U.S. Department of Commerce named AGCO Corp. Chairman President and CEO Martin Richenhagen to the President’s Advisory Council on Doing Business in Africa, reported MarketWatch.com.

Speaking earlier this month at the Association’s Fall Convention in Las Vegas, Howard Dahl reported that the current business climate in Russia and Ukraine offers significant opportunities and risks for equipment manufacturers conducting business there. Dahl, CEO of Amity Technology, Fargo, ND, has been selling farm equipment in Russia since 1991 and has made 73 trips to the region.

“If you’re doing business in the Russian cattle, hog or dairy industry, there are record profits right now,” Dahl said. “The amount of money being made is phenomenal. Potato growers told me in October that they were making $5,000 per hectare in profit.”

The American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers (ASABE) completed three standards projects regarding power take-off drive shafts and related equipment.

The new standards are: