Good morning.
Hey... it's Travis. Remember me? 👋
I started this little newsletter more than 2 years (and 1.2 million email sends) ago. And today's the day we finally get to share that someone else is taking the reins.
We're excited to officially announce Magnetic's new long-term home: with Agriculture Future of America (AFA). And there's no better organization to lead Magnetic to its next level.
AFA works to shape transformational leaders in food and ag who make a positive impact -- whether you're on the farm or working for a global agribusiness. AFA's programs foster professional development, career exploration and networking.
You'll still be getting the same ol' newsletter in your inbox twice a week (just with a few more exciting things to come!).
As for me, I'll still be hanging out in the (digital) Magnetic halls: pitching a pun here and there, brainstorming new growth, and helping AFA keep building this awesome community.
So here's to Magnetic 2.0. Thanks for being along for the ride!
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The News:
- No More Trowel and Error for Weed Control
- The Dicamba Dilemma of the "I States"
- Loam Bio Captures Carbon and $73M
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No More Trowel and Error for Weed Control |
Step aside, herbicides. New, tech-savvy ways to weed are showing up and stomping out unwanted plants. From zappers to lasers and weeds to overseeds, innovation is flourishing in the plant annihilation industry.
LaserWeeder: Carbon Robotic’s LaserWeeder moves across fields, sensing and recognizing weeds. With a flash of thermal energy from high-powered carbon dioxide lasers, weeds don’t stand a chance.
But wait, there’s more: The LaserWeeder recently became the industry’s first tech designed to cut back—but not completely cut out—overseeded plants. When set to LaserThinning mode, the AI-powered robot seeks places where vegetable crops were purposefully overseeded and thinned for ideal spacing.
Big broccoli and full-canopy kale, sans herbicides or hand-weeding.
Weed Zapper: If you’re flashing back to the sound of a bug zapper on a summer night, you’re not far off. Weed Zapper electrocutes whatever it comes in contact with, and new improvements make the decades-old approach viable in certain instances today.
So when weeds have outgrown the crop canopy —we’re looking at you, waterhemp—the tool can get 90% or greater control.
LED Destruction: The blue LED light-powered Weed Seed Destroyer is working its way toward commercial availability. It’s an aftermarket system for combines that uses blue light to kill weed seeds before they hit the ground. So far, it’s shown promise on tumbleweed and Palmer amaranth seeds.
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→ Ethanol emergency? A new report says that Iowa’s ethanol industry could lose about $10.3B of production annually, forcing plant closures, if the state doesn’t move forward on proposed carbon-capture pipelines.
→ Grains gaining ground. The USDA 10-year projections are out, and they say U.S. corn production will likely grow, while soybeans will hold steady for much of the decade.
→ Keep it on the docket. The Department of Justice has encouraged a federal court not to throw out a class action lawsuit against John Deere brought by a group of farmers upset about the company’s restrictions on equipment repairs.
→ Beans on the move. The U.S. is expecting future surpluses of soybean meal, and some see Morocco as a potential major export destination.
→ Packers payin’ up. After an investigation into minors working overnight shifts at meat processing facilities, Packers Sanitation Services Inc—which was contracted by meatpacking companies—will pay a $1.5M fine.
→ Shift in the market. According to the USDA, food and ag exports from the U.S. will decline by about 12% over the next 3 years, because of a combo of factors, including inflation, interest rates, and the strong dollar.
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The Dicamba Dilemma of the "I States" |
Skyhobo from Getty Images Signature
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Another day, another rule. The EPA recently announced new regulations regarding over-the-top dicamba application in Illinois, Iowa, Indiana, and South Dakota.
This applies to XtendiMax, Engenia, and Tavium herbicides, in addition to the existing grower and applicator requirements. Here’s what you need to know.
Facts & figures:
- The three dicamba products (XtendiMax, Engenia, Tavium) cannot be applied after June 12 or the V4 soybean growth stage, whichever comes first
- Mandatory pre-season training for XtendiMax, Engenia, and Tavium
- Growers and applicators have to reference the online label within 7 days prior to application to see if there have been any state or federal updates
- The Illinois Department of Agriculture has three additional regulations regarding dicamba that can be found here
EPA Rationale: "Restricting the application to a time when temperature is reduced both on the day of application and in the days following application is likely to reduce the potential for volatilization of dicamba. EPA views these dates as directionally correct to reduce temperatures at which applications are performed." – Lindsay Roe, chief of the Herbicide Branch within the EPA Office of Pesticide Programs' Registration Division
Concern from the industry: "The timing of this couldn't be worse for soybean growers who will plant these varieties. We're 45-50 days out from starting to plant soybeans. Most or all seed and herbicide decisions have been made. And now we have to contend with new cutoffs in the largest soybean producing states in the U.S." – University of Illinois weed scientist Aaron Hager
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Happy National FFA Week to members, teachers/advisors, and alumni!
Do you remember this piece of trivia from your Greenhand FFA Quiz?
The blue corduroy jacket became official dress for FFA in 1933. First worn in Fredericktown, Ohio, the jacket was purchased by Chapter Advisor, ______ ______ for his members. He ordered the blue jackets after seeing them in the window of a hardware store and then had the chapter’s name stitched on the backs of the jackets for his students.
Who is credited with inventing the FFA jacket?
Answer at the bottom of the email.
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Loam Bio Captures Carbon and $73M |
Australian startup Loam Bio is focused on the down under. Under the soil, that is.
Their seed treatment technology uses microbials to help plants store stable carbon, which will increase soil fertility and productivity. It will also help farmers tap into those sometimes-elusive carbon credits.
Carbon capture isn’t a-loam in getting a boost. Loam Bio also captured a $73M Series B funding round. Lowercarbon Capital and Wollemi Capital led the charge, along with Horizons Ventures, Acre Venture Partners, Main Sequence, the Clean Energy Finance Corporation, Grok Ventures, and others.
Where in the world is carbon capture-iego? Australian farmers could benefit this year on their wheat, barley, and canola crops, as the CarbonBuilder seed inoculum and SecondCrop carbon projects reach commercialization in that market.
The U.S. corn and soy markets are in Loam Bio’s sights for 2024, followed by Brazil.
Soundbite: "Loam’s microbial technology enables greater volumes of carbon to be stored in soils for longer periods of time. Increasing the quantity and quality of carbon units farmers can produce per hectare makes participating in carbon projects more economically valuable for farming enterprises." – Guy Hudson, Loam Co-Founder and CEO.
Loam Bio is in a league of their loam, as the technology is the first of its kind to hit the market.
How it works: Seed is coated with CarbonBuilder before it’s planted. Germination happens, and microbes marry the carbon with micro-aggregates in the soil.
And they are now pronounced… stored for the long term.
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Why are you keeping us a secret? Make sure to share Magnetic with friends, family, and coworkers to snag Magnetic goodies when you hit certain referral counts.
Your link:
*Curious where you stand? You can always check your referral hub and see rewards here.
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Gus Linter. The jackets were so popular when his students wore them to National Convention that the delegates made them official dress.
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Written & Edited by Kelsey Faivre, Aaron Dunajeski, Rachel Robinson, Amelia VanLandegen, Ashley Scoby, and Travis Martin
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