Gravel Roads: The Initial Link
When turning off our state highways and paved county roads, one quickly becomes exposed to an enduring image of rural America – our rural road system connecting farms to the nearby communities. For years, this rather simple, yet essential, infrastructure network has served as the initial link in agriculture’s logistics chain – enabling agricultural bounty to be converted into economic vitality on Main Street and beyond.

CEMSA: Energy Planning and Assessment
The Iowa Soybean Association’s Certified Environmental Management Systems for Agriculture program is working on developing strategies for farmers to measure, understand and conserve resources throughout their operations. One resource vital to farming is energy.

Rebounding from River Loss: Flooded Farmers Regroup Following 2008
Randy Brannaman and his family did everything they could this summer to try and save their farmstead south of Lisbon, Iowa, along the Cedar River. But in the end, the river won out. Today, Brannaman takes the recovery one day at a time. He has returned to the farm to restore what he says an “incredible act of God” very quickly took away.

Surveying the Soybean Pipeline: Researchers Focus Efforts on Several Fronts
Soybean farmers will continue to see their menu of seed trait choices expand in 2009 and into the next decade. Both commercial companies and public university researchers are developing traits through various breeding and biotech processes that will help Midwest soybean farmers address both farm productivity and consumer demand.

Selecting Seed for '09: The Job Starts Now
Many factors contribute to a bumper crop. Some of those, like weather, are out of our control. However, one of the most important pieces of the yield puzzle – choosing the right variety for the right farm – is something you can control.

Consider Seed Investment Protection in 2009
Given the current high-price, high-cost environment, soybean specialists encourage farmers to consider protecting their seed investment.

Row By Row
Knowledge, Management, Timing and Efficiency!