GT Mfg., Inc., in Clay Center, Kansas, will be featured in a “How It’s Made” episode on the Discovery Science Channel. Tune in at 8 p.m. (central time) on Thursday, June 4.

A production crew for “How It’s Made” spent 10 hours at GT a year ago; company president Dennis M. Pederson said the footage has been whittled down to 10 minutes that explains to viewers how grain dryers are made. Pederson said the TV crew worked with GT on narration of the piece, but the company has not seen it in its final edited form.

A revenue report from Buhler Industries Inc., shows a $40 million decline in second-quarter revenue from 2014. Revenue for the first six months of 2015 was $124.8, down $48.8 from 2014.

Three Ph.D. candidates from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology won $100,000 for a technology that can scan and analyze farmland to pinpoint crop damage before pests and diseases can spread.

CLAAS has restructured its top management to position itself for continued growth.

With the restructuring, the company’s America President Leif Magnusson has been named President of CLAAS Global Sales – Americas. He will oversee three sales regions: CLAAS of America, Argentina and America Latina.

Bottlenecks at the ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles are forcing some who depend on them to reroute their shipments through other ports, ship by air, or reduce their workforce to offset losses.

Moodie Implement and Frontline Ag announced merger

Brokaw Supply Co. and Riggins Ag Equipment also merged

Dairy prices fell by 2.2% last week to the lowest level since August 2009.

Causing the fallout: Demand for imports is soft while the “spring flush” is underway in the northern hemisphere.

Ag Growth International Inc. (AGI) last week completed its $221.5 million previously announced acquisition of the Westeel division of Vicwest Inc.

Highlights from Association of Equipment Manufacturers monthly Ag Flash Reports for unit retail sales of tractors and combines in the U.S. and Canada. For more information, go to FarmEquip.org/flash.

Mahindra and Mahindra Ltd. (M&M) announced last week it will pay ¥3 billion ($25 million) for a 33% stake in Japan’s Mitsubishi Agricultural Machinery Co. Ltd.

Deere & Co. reported Friday that a weak global farm economy led to a second-quarter profit loss. Earnings fell from $981 million in the second quarter of 2014 to $690.5 million this year, a 30% decline.

Farmers in California have offered to reduce their water use by 25%, which matches a mandatory water reduction that Gov. Jerry Brown (D) called for in cities and towns in April.

The BBC reported that a group of about 350 farmers made the concession after state officials threatened to cut their water rights. The agreement is the first of its kind in more than 30 years, and involves farmers in the delta of the Sacramento and San Joaquin rivers.

Kubota Tractor Corp. and Kubota Credit Corp. will move out of their corporate headquarters in Torrance, CA, and into new space in Grapevine, TX, near Dallas.

Kubota also announced this week it will build a 502,000-square-foot manufacturing plant and expand existing operations in Gainesville, GA.

A new rule from the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) that compresses the schedule between the filing of a petition to unionize and conducting a union election has in its first six weeks altered the labor-organizing landscape.

The Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City reported earlier this month that financial pressures on farmers are bleeding beyond the farm and into rural communities. The data show crop farmers are bearing the brunt of the downturn; livestock producers continue to see better market conditions because of the affordability of grain.

“Mr. Samuel Adams … Allen,” said Clarke President Sister Joanne Burrows. “I knew I was going to … you know, I practiced not to say that.”

The U.S. Department of Commerce has awarded Ace Pump Corporation of Memphis, TN , The President’s “E” Award for Excellence in Exporting. The “E” Awards are presented annually to organizations that have made significant contributions to increasing America’s exports. Only 26 companies received the award.

A non-profit organization committed to closing the “farm to food knowledge gap,” is about to release its first project, a film about a struggling family dairy farm and a conflict that emerges when the family’s Harvard-educated son pushes for high-tech farming processes. The family’s drama plays out against the backdrop of a community where schoolchildren are not getting enough to eat.

A report recently released from the U.S. Department of Agriculture and Purdue University anticipates more jobs in agriculture than graduates in coming years. Researchers expect about 58,000 jobs to open each year of the next five years in agriculture and agriculture-related jobs and only about 35,500 graduates to fill them.

A pinch in global demand for the resource has led researchers in Ohio to explore the possibility of creating a domestic source. In the early growing, the crop shows promise.

The Obama administration on Monday moved ahead with the EPA’s sweeping WOTUS measure to control the nation’s waterways and every imaginable point of connection to those waterways. The initiative has drawn strong opposition from almost every agriculture interest in the nation.

Vernon Schmidt, the Association’s Executive Vice President, called the proposal an “unlawful power grab by the EPA to assert federal jurisdiction over local water and land use.”

Today Schmidt added, “This decision by the administration shows a continued pattern of disregard for business, industry, and farm and ranch families. Given the opportunity to reach a reasonable solution, EPA has chosen to ignore millions of Americans, extending its control over private land. The EPA should not be in the business of regulating irrigation ditches, isolated ponds and other ‘non-navigable’ waters as waters of the United States.”

After 73 years in the farm equipment manufacturing industry, Soo Tractor is closing its doors.

Soo Tractor, a 54-year member of the Association, began in 1942 as Soo Tractor Sweeprake, a name which referred to

Agriculture in America accounts for 3.75 million jobs—farm jobs, of course, manufacturing, transportation, research, and more. That total compares to about 4.3 million jobs in the tech sector, according to Joel Kotkin, who explores demographic, social, and economic trends, and who recently contributed an article to Forbes on “The Uncelebrated Places Where America’s Farm Economy is Thriving.”

Data from dealers surveyed by Ag Equipment Intelligence and Cleveland Research Co. showed that average sales in March were down 8% compared to March 2014. The encouraging news: That represents a 4% improvement over February’s average sales decline.

The U.S. government has approved the use of an additional $330 million in emergency funds to help contain the avian flu outbreak—the worst in U.S. history—and governors of two farming states have issued orders that mobilize state resources and streamline . . .

The USDA estimates that the number of farmers engaged in production agriculture has declined from 6.8 million in 1935 to 2.1 million today.

In 1960, a single farmer fed about 26 people. Today, a single farmer feeds nearly 144 people in the U.S. and abroad.

Read the complete story in the May issue of Ag Innovator, in the mail and online at Farm.Equip.org/AGI.

Congress soon will consider renewing the Livestock Mandatory Reporting Act adopted in 1999. In a column by Stephanie Mercier, Senior Policy and Advocacy Adviser at Farm Journal Foundation, there is consensus in the industry that price reporting has worked.

New Wisconsin law regulating the weight of agriculture-related vehicles on public roads is “unrealistic and unattainable and, consequently, unenforceable.. . . Significant portions of Act 377 are unconstitutional.” Clark County Sheriff Greg Herrick

A nationwide survey recently conducted on behalf of the Renewable Fuel Association indicated less enthusiasm for renewable fuel among respondents living in rural areas compared to their urban and suburban counterparts.

The poll found that among registered voters, 62% of respondents said they agreed with the federal government’s renewable fuel standard (RFS). Nearly one-fifth (18%) said they

A Missouri woman has used the right-to-farm amendment to the Missouri constitution to argue it is her right to grow marijuana in her basement. . .

The Michigan House Agriculture Committee recently passed a bill that would provide an additional $1 million for the Michigan Agriculture and Environmental Assurance Program. The bill, HB-4391, regulates pesticide and fertilizer fees, which provide revenue for MAEAP.

Read more

Topcon Positioning Group announced last week it will expand its TopNETlive network service for global navigation satellite systems to Latin America. In conjunction with hosting partners, new service will be provided in Mexico, Peru, the Dominican Republic, Bolivia, Guatemala, Colombia and Panama.

Estimates from the U.S. Grains Council suggest a tenfold increase in exports of sorghum this year compared to 2012. China leads demand for the grain.

In 2012, the Council, in cooperation with the U.S. Sorghum Checkoff Program, offered seminars to raise awareness in China about the value of U.S. sorghum, which is also known as milo. Since then, said Alvaro Cordero, Manager of Global Trade for the Council, “China’s demand for sorghum has grown to unprecedented levels.”

Ag Growth International Inc. this week announced its financial results for the three-month period ended March 31. The grain-handling and storage equipment maker posted revenue of $94.4 million CA$ for the quarter, compared with $86.2 million during the same quarter last year.

In addition to supporting our efforts on behalf of the shortline equipment industry, members of the Farm Equipment Manufacturers Association enjoy many benefits, including access to free legal advice on human-resource issues from two of the top HR attorneys in the country.

While reviewing invoices is not normally something one enjoys, the bill we receive from our attorneys is an exception. Each line of the invoice represents a member who gained insight into an important issue on personnel or a dealer or distributor contract. We do not learn which companies use the service, but we know many of you appreciate the expert legal advice and value this benefit of membership.

These members represent a collective 150 years of participation in Farm Equipment Manufacturers Association. We mark these milestone anniversaries by thanking them—and each of you—for your commitment to the farm equipment manufacturing industry and the Association that supports it.

The Federal Aviation Administration granted permission for use of the Yamaha Motor Co.’s RMax unmanned helicopter in agriculture operations. The exemption represents the country’s first for a drone capable of hauling and spraying significant amounts of pesticides.

The drone is already in use in Japan, where rice farmers use it to sow seeds directly into paddy fields rather than growing seedlings and transferring them.

Blount International released numbers for the quarter ending March 31. The company’s Farm, Ranch and Agriculture (FRAG) segment reported first quarter sales of $55.9 million, a decrease of $4 million from the first quarter of 2014. The company said the reduction in sales was driven mainly by lower volumes of agriculture attachments and agriculture cutting blades resulting from weaker market conditions.

The National Agricultural Statistics Service recently took a look at the family farm. Here’s what it found:

When an Indiana farmer in 2007 paired a Salford I-1100 with a Valmar 2455 to plant rye grass, it began a partnership that reached a new level last week when Salford Group acquired Valmar Airflo, Inc.

USDA says farmers have planted 87% of their spring wheat crop, which is a 36% increase compared to what was planted by May 10, on average, in the previous four years. States most ahead of schedule are Minnesota, which is 98% planted, compared to a 49% four-year average; and North Dakota, which reports 82% in the ground compared to its 37% average.

Corn in the U.S. is 75% planted, which reflects an 18% increase over its four-year average of 57%. Minnesota shows the greatest percentage increase, reporting 95% planted compared to a 50% four-year average. Wisconsin is also significantly ahead of its average with 75% planted compared to 57% in previous years.

Soybeans are 11% ahead of the four-year average with 31% of plants in the ground. Minnesota again reports the most dramatic gain, with 70% planted by May 10 compared to the four-year average of 17%.

Rice is ahead too with 83% planted this year compared to a 72% average. California is most significantly ahead of its average, reporting 75% in the ground compared to 36% from previous years.

Net sales for the first quarter of 2015 for the Alamo Group were $207.8 million, which is a 20% increase over sales for the same quarter last year. Net income for the quarter was $7.4 million. Both numbers set record highs for the manufacturer’s first quarter.

Sid Miller is the newly appointed Agriculture Commissioner in Texas. He announced in April he wants to overturn current state regulations that ban deep-fat frying and certain carbonated beverage sales in schools. He believes current school-nutrition regulations are too burdensome.

The Italian company reported a 23.9% decline in net sales compared to the first quarter of 2014. That number reflects a constant currency analysis and would increase to 30.5% on a reported basis. Among sharpest declines in the North American markets were a 44% drop in combine sales and a 26% decline in sales of tractors over 140 horsepower. Sales of smaller tractors increased by 2%.

An announcement last week that Chipotle Mexican Grill will no longer use ingredients containing GMOs was regarded largely as a move to charm consumers rather than offer genuine health benefits.

Cheesemakers in Wisconsin produced a record-setting 2.9 million pounds of cheese in 2014. More than one in every four pounds of cheese produced in the U.S. came from the state, says the National Ag Statistics Service. Data is supported by our friends at Sentry…

An agriculture economist from Texas A&M University projects trade with Cuba could generate $1.2 billion a year, but success depends upon more than lifting trade barriers.

The American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers has begun a project to adopt a standard for testing positioning and guidance systems in agriculture and satellite-based auto-guidance systems during straight, level travel.

Members receive 30 minutes of free legal advise from labor attorneys for every question. Call Elaina at (314) 878-2304 for details.

Purdue University reported recently that 38 people became trapped in grain bins in 2014; 17 of them did not survive. That is compared to 33 entrapments and 13 deaths in 2013