Scott Odle, Spectrum founder, spent his life in conventional farming, growing up on an Indiana farm, studying agricultural economics at Purdue University, working for Cargill, and then returning to his family farm. Not too many years ago, Odle admits he was “aggressive” on using genetically modified corn traits on his Indiana farm. But over time he started questioning the value of GM seed, and realized non-GMO was performing better. “I was gaining seven to ten more bushels per acre with non-GMO,” he says.
While consumer demand for non-GMO foods is growing rapidly, Odle sees the growth of non-GMO at the farm level also. “We’re seeing more farmers growing non-GMO,” he says. The main reason is simple economics: growing non-GMO is more cost-effective. Non-GMO seed costs about half as much as GM seed. “They are asking ‘am I getting value from the (GMO) traited product?’” Odle says. “They will have to ask that question or go broke.”
To help on your non-GMO journey, Scott highlighted these recent articles as great sources of information…
“Broken RIBs” – Progressive Farmer
Research shows refuge-in-a-bag corn may accelerate the development of some insect resistance.Researchers are most concerned about the use of RIB for ear-feeding pests such as the corn earworm. Click here to read this article.
“Pests March On – Insect, Weed Resistance Likely to Plague Farmers in 2017” – DTN The Progressive Farmer
Darwin’s theory of evolution was on plain display this past year, as insects and weeds pushed many chemical and genetic crop protection tools to their breaking point. A wealth of confirmed and suspected insect resistance to a number of Bt crops took many off guard in the 2016 growing season and is pushing growers to evaluate the way they use traits and inputs to ward off pests. However, scientists say the problem had been mounting for years. Click here to read this article.
“Illinois studies offer farmers insight into starting cover crops” – Illinois Farmer Today
Cover crops can be tricky things to grow successfully with weather challenges and timing, but a three-year college trial shows that, so far, most herbicides aren’t the culprit if cover crops fail. “Most herbicides don’t offer much of a problem when applied properly,” said agronomist Gordon Roskamp at a cover crop field day at Illinois Central College in East Peoria Nov. 3. “If there is a drought, we’d see more significant damage.” Click here to read this article.
“Debate about genetically modified crop yields” – Iowa Farmer Today
Are genetically modified (GM) crops needed to feed the world? There are proponents on both sides of this debate: Those who insist GM crops already are boosting the world food supply and are especially needed as the world’s population increases; and those who claim non-GM crops reduce environmental hazards and can out-yield GM crops while also saving input costs for pesticides and seed. Click here to read this article.
“Herbicide resistance big issue at ICM Conference” – Iowa Farmer Today
Herbicide resistance is a big problem in agriculture, weed experts said at the 28th annual Integrated Crop Management Conference at Iowa State University in Ames. Mike Owen, ISU agronomy professor and weed specialist, didn’t beat around the bush in explaining why. “I do not think we’re successful in weed management because of the rise of weeds,” said Owen, associate chairman of the Department of Agronomy. “We are not considering the long- term implications of weeds.” Click here to read this article.
“Ins and outs of applying fungicides on corn crop” – FarmProgress.com
THESE are popular questions this time of year: Does a fungicide application on corn pay? Should we use fungicide applications on corn? How can we make them pay on corn? Fungicides have been a popular topic since the Asian soybean rust discovery in the U.S. in 2004. Yes, that was on soybeans, but since then, the basic manufacturers of fungicides and the retail industry have stepped up their promotion of fungicide application on both corn and soybeans. And there has been ample reason to use fungicide on corn. We have occasionally seen damaging levels of gray leaf spot, northern corn leaf blight and eyespot in Iowa since that time. Click here to read this article.
“New Look At Seed Costs” – Progressive Farmer
What’s sacred about seed costs? Next to cash rent and fertilizer, they are the third-highest expense on crop farms. In practice, they’ve somehow been exempt from savings. Bruce Magoon, a 2015 corn yield champion from Tennessee, thinks that needs to change. He argues you don’t necessarily sacrifice yields or profits by trimming your seed budget. He entered a non–genetically modified (GM) corn yield of 271 bushels per acre in the National Corn Growers Association National Corn Yield Contest in the no-till, strip-till nonirrigated class. Click here to read this article.
“Plant populations trend downward” – Illinois Farmer Today
Regarding plant populations, farmers are finding that while less may not mean more, more doesn’t necessarily mean more either. There is a definite trend of lower plant populations, both in corn and soybeans. Ed Rohrer, a seed operations supervisor with Monsanto, said soybean growers are putting fewer seeds in the ground. “As the markets get tighter, guys are looking at their plant populations,” he said. “What we’re seeing is a down trend in that 120,000 to 130,000 plants per acre, no matter what the row width is.” Click here to read this article.
“Farmers look to cut production costs in 2017” – Iowa Farmer Today
Stagnant crop prices have farmers in the Midwest searching for places to cut expenses. Fortunately, many input costs are also relatively low. Still, the annual anticipation of the coming planting season will likely include the use of a sharp pencil, as producers seek to minimize expenses. “They’ll be looking at any place they can, starting with seed,” said Dennis Bowman, a University of Illinois crop specialist. Click here to read this article.
“Starter fertilizer for corn not necessarily a boost” – Wisconsin State Farmer
Corn farmers in Minnesota and across the northern Corn Belt often must plant in cold, damp spring soils that can slow early season growth. This can impact yield at harvest time — and farmers’ bottom lines. One way farmers in these colder regions deal with the problem is to apply starter fertilizer directly to their corn seed at planting. This direct application of starter fertilizer is known as in-furrow application. In-furrow application has its own risks. Direct contact with the chemical fertilizer can damage seedlings. Still, in-furrow is a common way that farmers in areas with cooler spring temperatures attempt to beat the cold soil blues. The assumption is that in-furrow allows farmers to plant their corn earlier than they otherwise could. This means a longer growing season and, they hope, greater yield benefits. Click here to read this article.
For additional information about Scott’s non-GMO journey, click here to read this article.
