Cub Cadet LX Series

Three gear-driven models – Lx410 (41 hp.), Lx 450 (45 hp.), and Lx490 Turbo (48.5 hp.) – launch the Lx Series from Cub Cadet. These machines have been designed to offer increased loader and three-point lift capabilities.

“The Lx Series combines brute strength with premium comfort to offer exactly what you want – a stronger, tougher line of tractors that not only are capable of delivering against a wide range of applications, but also make the ride enjoyable,” says Todd Adair, Cub Cadet Yanmar national marketing and sales manager. “We’ve designed these new models to lift more, shift easier, and provide all-day comfort that not only will exceed expectations, but also will set new ones.”

Features include a four-cylinder, direct-injection Yanmar engine, and a HydraReverser for seamless, on-the-fly shifting between forward and reverse. With Performance Link Technology, all parts of the drivetrain work together precisely for smooth control, more usable horsepower, and less wear and tear.

The three-point lift system can hoist up to 2,760 pounds; the curved boom loader is capable of handling up to 2,493 pounds.

The operator station includes tilt wheel, hydraulic power steering, full suspension seat, twin toolboxes, auxiliary lights, and electro-hydraulic PTO engagement.

Mahindra 5010

The 5010 Series is available in three models: 5010 4WD open-station gear drive 9X3, 5010 4WD cab gear drive 9X3, and 5010 4WD cab hydrostatic drive.

Each features a four-cylinder, 49-HP. engine, a three-point lift capacity of 3,314 pounds, one remote valve, tilt steering wheel, flat operator’s deck, and a suspension seat.

The constant-mesh 9X3 speed forward-reverse transmission is included on both the open-station gear drive and the cab gear drive models. The cab hydrostatic version has a hydrostatic twin-pedal three-range transmission.

The ML150 loader will be featured on the 4WD open-station gear drive, while the ML155 loader will be a feature on the other two models. This loader has a lift capacity of 2,991 pounds (at pivot pins) and has a skid steer design, which allows for quick change outs.

“The Mahindra 5010 tractor is a workhorse that not only is packed with power, but also is packed with value,” says Mike Hilderbrand, Mahindra’s vice president of marketing and organizational development. “For an attractive price, Mahindra customers will receive the big push, pull, and lift power they expect from a Mahindra tractor and be covered by our five-year power train warranty.”

 Mobile Crusher concept is fully adaptable to all mobile crushing needs, it set up a new range of business opportunities for contractors, quarry operators, recycling and mining applications.Vipeak mobile crushing plant can eliminate the obstacles of the crushing places and circumstances, and offer the high efficient and low cost project plants for the client.

The research team, which is based in the Polangui Campus of Bicol University in Albay, is composed of Engr. Arnulfo Malinis, Engr. Eleanor Balute, Engr. Estrella Calpe and Engr. Herminigildo Lizano. In addition to a plaque, medal and certificate, the team took home P150,000 cash prize.

Malinis explained that the development of such machine helps address the need for appropriate postharvest processing facility for agricultural products in the countryside to enable farmers to add value to their produce and make it possible to sell these products at higher prices.

Malinis said that the crop processing machine can process ginger rhizomes at a rate of 80 kilogram (kg) per hour, pandan leaves at 20 kg per hour, lemongrass leaves at 25 kg per hour, and arrowroot tubers at 80 kg per hour. It is powered by 1 hp motor and requires 1 person for an 8-hour operation.

The researchers recommended, however, that the crops are fresh upon processing to obtain the best results.

The utilization of crop processing machine can be further maximized when combined with other equipment to make up a processing system designed for the production of a specific commodity.

For instance, the crop processing machine can be integrated in the mechanical process of producing ginger brew and powder from ginger rhizomes in combination with other equipment such as washer, crystallizer, and micromill, which are also developed by Malinis’ team.

The crop processing machine also works well as a component of a processing system for the mechanical production of arrowroot starch and flour. This project, which Malinis conducted with Engr. Salvador Albia and Engr. Christopher Pacardo also of Bicol University Polangui Campus, won third prize in the Outstanding Utility Model category of the 2009 National Invention Contest.

Malinis said that the ginger brew, ginger powder, arrowroot starch and flour produced using their locally developed machines are of high quality but are half cheaper than the commercially available products of their kinds in the market. He said that a buyer from Metro Manila has recently expressed interest in marketing their ginger powder.

The crop processing machine costs ?95,000 per unit. This investment can be recovered in two years if the machine is used for a single product, or one year when used for processing various products.

Malinis said that there are now around 15 units of the crop processing machine sold in Bicol region and nearby provinces. Bicol University partners with Kolbi, a local fabricator, for the manufacture of the machine.

OTHER OUTSTANDING INVENTIONS
Other outstanding inventions named in the 2009 Invention Contest’s Tuklas Award category were the Rex Compost Tea Brewer invented by Capt. James Fos Reamon which got the second prize, and the Manufacturing Process for Hard Carrageenan Capsules developed by researchers from the Industrial Technology Development Institute of the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) which got the third prize.

Another notable invention was the so-called Magichanic Oil by Johnny Sy of Bagiuo City, which bagged the first prize in the Outstanding Utility Model category. Magichanic oil is an engine oil additive mixed with plant oils and is claimed to maximize the performance, fuel efficiency and combustion of vehicle engine, thereby saving on fuel and extending its life. Users attest that Magichanic Oil is environment-friendly and helps increase their profit due to the protection and additional mileage that it gives to their vehicles.

Claro Santiago Jr. of the University of Perpetual Help in Las Pifias got the second prize under the Outstanding Utility Model category with his invention called medical bandage from mushroom mycelium.

On one hand, the team of Rubelyn Del-fin, Milagros Nillo and Flory Libunao got the second prize in the Outstanding Creative Research category or Likha Award, with their entry titled “Commercialization Potential of Suksuk for Handwoven Silk Fabric.”

Young scientists also had equally outstanding inventions. One of them is the team of high school students from Arturo Eustaquio Science High School in Zamboanga City who produced biodegradable plastics (BIOPLASTEM) from shells of brown shrimps through polymerization. Their research bagged the first prize in the Student Creative Research category or Sibol Award high school level, and WIPO Gold Medal and Certificate Award in the same category.

Special awards include the 2nd Chemrez Green Chemistry Awards which honored contestants who embody the ideals of green chemistry in their inventions and research projects. Green chemistry is the design of chemical products or processes that reduce the use or generation of harmful substances and enable efficient resource utilization.

Another was the Philippine Development Alternatives Foundation, Inc. Award for Agricultural Productivity which recognizes the need to mobilize, encourage and support strategies for technology development innovation and adaptation.

The 2009 National Invention Contest and Exhibits was organized by the DOST through the Technology Application and Promotion Institute.

These new hybrids will be sold by Garst, Golden Harvest and NK Seeds. The new hybrids, available for planting in 2011, offer growers additional choices to maximize yield performance under various growing conditions and soil types.

“Syngenta is offering growers a more complete lineup of outstanding corn hybrids for 2011, built on the top-line genetics, cutting-edge technology and proven performance of our three seed brands,” says Eric Boersma, Corn Portfolio Manager in a university report. “With the breadth of our expanded corn portfolio, growers will be able to find the hybrids they’re seeking to thrive in their fields and maximize yields.”

Syngenta is especially excited to introduce 41 hybrids available with the Agrisure Viptera 3111 trait stack. The Agrisure Viptera 3111 trait stack combines the Agrisure Viptera trait with the Agrisure 3000GT triple stack. This breakthrough corn trait package controls more pests than any other trait combination on the market. The Agrisure Viptera 3111 trait stack not only controls 14 pests but also improves grain quality. Corn earworm, which historically has had no viable control solution, is highly susceptible to the Agrisure Viptera trait.

Other trait versions within the new product line-ups include the Agrisure 3000GT triple stack, the Agrisure GT/CB/LL trait stack and the Agrisure GT trait, Syngenta leaders say.

My husband grew up in Hamburg, my mother-in-law still lives just east of town (away from the flood threat), and we spend a lot of time there. One of our favorite summertime activities is floating down the Nishnabotna River — which runs on the east side of Hamburg — with our friends.

Ever since the talk of flooding began, it has been a popular topic of conversation on Facebook. Now that the rising waters draw nearer to Hamburg, and area residents are packing up and heading for higher ground, they’re using social media to try and help each other, and to stay on top of the latest updates.

The news is changing fast in Hamburg. From worst-case-scenario predictions of 10 feet of water on the flagpole in the middle of Main Street (about four miles east of the Missouri River), to updates that the Army Corps of Engineers is mounting an effort to save the town by adding to and repairing levees. Different sections of town have been evacuated. Certain roads are closed. Natural gas has been shut off in town.

Iowa State University Fremont County Extension has launched a Facebook community page entitled “2011 Fremont County, IA Flood Support”. Before information is posted, it is double and triple checked through Fremont County and City of Hamburg personnel. Other counties affected by flooding are creating Facebook groups as well.

The Fremont County page is a one-stop shop for flooding information, forecasts and Army Corps of Engineers reports, road closings, and shelter information. It is also proving to be very useful in organizing people. Events like sandbagging and helping the owners of the town motel evacuate are listed, and drop-off points for donations are also offered. Members can subscribe to receive text updates from the page.

Residents are also asking for — and offering — help on an individual basis:

•”If anyone needs to park trailers, vehicles, etc., we have an empty lot behind our house,” writes Amber D.
•”I am available to help Monday and Tuesday and have a truck to help move anyone that needs it,” offers Leslie H.

•Rhesa L. offered a vacant house in a nearby town for storage.

•”I will offer daycare to children of families who need to pack and move,” says Angie W.
•Tera L. offered a shaded lot in a nearby town for evacuated residents to park their campers and stay, free of charge.
•Michele F. posted an offer to temporarily house and care for dogs in her kennel.

Hamburg City Clerk Sheryl Owen is also making the most of this page. She has posted information on needs and news, and has asked residents evacuating the town to let her know where they are going.

The page also serves as an information clearinghouse for former Hamburg residents and people who have loved ones living there. Clifford G. echoes many posts with his message on the page: “God be with the victims, the workers and their families!”

But, that phone didn’t even have caller ID. It was simple. It had a single purpose.

Now, flash forward a couple decades. Robertson now has a state-of-the-art Android smartphone on which he can make and receive calls, keep up with email, use the web and manage farm data and records through applications.

“Today, as predicted then, your cell phone is now your do all computer, phone, text, email, Internet, phone book, Twitter, Facebook, weather radar, grain market ticker and a list of apps and downloads for whatever else you’re into,” Robertson says. “It is your way to stay connected to the world. You can literally do everything you need to do in your office on your phone while sitting in your vehicle  or café or wherever. You’re connected.”

So, you’re connected now. What are some of the specific ways these devices can streamline your farm business work? It starts before you even buy your new phone. When you’re making that purchase decision, don’t get too technical. Make your comfort level the initial top priority, says Neil Mylet, central Indiana farmer and founder of LoadOut Technologies, a high-tech ag startup company.
•Start a new mobile web experience with the new m.Agriculture.com
•Learn more: Get more ag info on the go

Mylet says it’s all about finding the device with which you’re most comfortable and one that accomplishes everything you need. Right now, for example, though his company develops applications for the latest iPhone and Android platforms, Mylet says he uses an older Blackberry phone for his farm, as it meets his current data needs.

Once you’ve chosen the device that meets your needs, think about your workplace. The farm is not the kindest environment for electronics like smartphones, so don’t overlook the importance of protecting that device.

“Most phones are not built to withstand the harsh environment of agriculture,” Mylet says. “If you’re making the transition to a smartphone, definitely invest in a good case. It’s definitely worth the investment.”

“When I’m combining corn, I want to be able to bring up historical yield data as I am going through the field and see a comparison between the last time I planted corn on that field. Maybe the variables that caused the yields they did. If it was a thing that we can control, we want to be able to control those things to make each field more profitable,” Lewis says. “The biggest thing for me is having all my financial data, my notes, etc., with me at all times.”

Lewis also uses his phone’s camera to document things like equipment performance while in the field. With this tool, he’s seen a direct correlation between its use and payback on the farm.

“I use the camera quite a bit and also the video camera, to record things that aren’t working and things that are working. Things that I can document and act on later. Places where I need tile, for example, for future reference,” he says. “We added some different closing wheels to our planter, and I just wanted to document how they looked when we went through no-till, something that had been disked and field cultivated as my brother planted just to see the difference in how it looked while he was planting.”

When you’re looking at the different applications of your smartphone on the farm, be sure you don’t overlook the more basic functions of the device. “Breaking down in the field and calling the dealer from the field can elicit help on the spot or knowledge of whether parts are in stock or we have to ‘make do,’” says Kirkton, Ontario, farmer Bob Smith. “Several salesmen now call me on the cell since they know they will get me, not the answering machine.”

Looking ahead, Mylet says a growing trend will be the adoption of more location-based services, or applications that can track data based on specific geographic location. Look for programs that can allow farmers to specifically track field conditions through geo-targeted photos and videos, for example, to lead the way.

Add to that more “streaming data” services in the near future. As mobile data infrastructure improves and farmers can get solid signal in rural areas, new applications will use real-time streaming services to collect more field data on the fly, making every in-field decision an informed one.

“I think people will find we like a lot of data, we want it right now and we want it on the devices we use,” Lewis says. “As the broadband and rural networks catch up, the instant data will catch up, between the cab, servers, devices, etc.”

But, some wonder how ‘connected’ you need to be. Though new communication tools like smartphones “will have an influence on every aspect of our lives” moving forward, as Mylet says, it’s important to find balance. Robertson says, though he’s benefited greatly from new communication tools like Twitter on his smartphone, he also makes a point to “unplug” when he can, making his Android smartphone another tool — albeit a high-tech one — in his farm’s toolbox.

“I have made a lot of money with my Twitter account the last two years give or take a month. Not in selling a service or product on Twitter, but just in having the largest research community in the world reporting information to me that allows me to make farm decisions quicker,” Robertson says. “But I don’t need play-by play-information taking up my day and phone call after phone call in between those Tweets or texts to keep my hands busy on the phone versus on the work at hand.

“I haven’t left the world of technology…still on Twitter, Facebook and blogging, just taking a break and listening to the cows moo, the birds chirp, the wind blow and the bugs talk while I work,” he adds.
Now what? How will you use your smartphone? Farmers say it’s important to first identify the specific parts of your business for which you want to use your smartphone. Instead of jumping in and downloading every app you think you might use, consider how you can best use the new tool, then find the means through which you can get that done.

Take crop data, for example. Michael Lewis uses his Apple iPhone to keep track of historical yield data in his fields near Bayard, Iowa. It gives him a way to compile and track long-term data and make informed decisions on the fly.

The soybean harvest in the United States is off to a slow start this year. Probably unknown to most is the fact that our five percent completion pace as of this past Sunday was the fourth slowest since 1987, with only 1993, 1996, and 2009 being years with less harvested by September 25.

We are going to change that in a big way though, as I think that there will be a huge amount of soybeans that will get cut in the Midwest between now and the middle to latter parts of next week. No rain is forecast for areas west of the Mississippi River for today through about Thursday of next week, and with vast amounts of soybeans now ripe and ready to be harvested in that area, we will be seeing the combines really rolling and some states in the western Corn Belt may take nearly half of this year’s soybean crop in that period.

It is going to be a different story for a while to the east of the Mississippi River, as it is wet right now and three more days of “damp” weather is forecast there. Saturday morning will dawn dry though in the eastern Corn Belt, and that area will likely stay dry through about Friday of next week so eventually there too we will see a lot of soybeans eventually get cut.

While I think that the national soybean harvest progress figure for next Monday’s report will still be about 16 to 18 percent done, we may very well be around half done with the national soybean harvest as of October 9.

Towards the end of next week it does look like things will be getting wetter again for the Nation’s midsection. We will probably start to see some rain develop in the northern Plains for about October 6, in the western Corn Belt for about October 7, and across much of the Nation’s midsection by October 8. Amounts may not be real heavy, but normal to above normal amounts are forecast.

That is true for the hard-red winter wheat belt of the southern Plains as well, where some rain should start falling by around October 8 (after the next ten days remain dry in that area).

That’s the message being delivered by the animal health company, Elanco, to audiences around the world. They’ve developed a corporate mission to that effect, and this week they brought it to the World Pork Expo in Iowa. Director of sales Rob Aukerman was the presenter, and he reminded pork producers of how easy it is to get so caught up in the day-to-day of running our own businesses, we don’t see the big picture: the world needs more food.

By the year 2050, we’ll have 9 billion people in the world, nearly 50% more than now, he said. “We’ll need 100% more food to feed all of them at an adequate standard,” he said. “We might get 20% of that from better management of resources, and 10% from more tillable acres. But 70% of that increase will have to come from efficiency-improving technology. We need to open the door wide to adopting all current and future technology.”

Aukerman told the audience that hunger is really the number one health problem in the developing world, and lack of food is responsible for more deaths than war, AIDS, malaria, and TB combined. “It’s estimated that 25,000 people die every day from hunger worldwide.”

And lest you think it’s a problem confined to the Third World, he said there’s more hunger in industrialized nations like the U.S. than most people know. “One of five kids in the U.S. deal with food insecurity daily. Even in Iowa, it’s one in six kids.”

What consumers really think Aukerman took a hard swipe at the elements of U.S. society that would seek to curtail the adoption of technology in the food system. There are a few people who have put up roadblocks in the food chain, and convinced retailers that customers don’t want any technology. Elanco is not convinced of that, and commissioned a couple of major studies about consumer attitudes on food. Bottom line: About 95% of consumers buy food on the basis of taste, cost, and nutritional value, in that order. Technology is not a top issue with them. “Another 4% are lifestyle buyers, and they buy food on the basis of luxury, organic, and local issues,” he said. “Of course, we can move back and forth between groups at times, and these are not absolutes. But the point is, the 95% are voting positively for technology, or are at least neutral to it. That’s what the data says.”

The final 1% of consumers are what Aukerman called fringe buyers. They are well-financed, sometimes militant, very patient, and get more attention than they deserve as they call for restrictions on technology in the food system.

Elanco has taken this message to food retailers and others, to show them that most consumers just want quality, affordable food that is good for their families. “It’s been well received, and hopefully we’ve dispelled the myth of where consumers stand on technology. Some of those people [retailers] have made changes to the way they display and label food products.” Elanco feels that there are only about 500 people who are the key influencers of the global food chain, and they intend to get to every one of them with this message.
Aukerman summarized by saying there are five reasons to be hopeful about the future for feeding the world:

1) The scientific, economic, social, environmental, and consumer issues and needs are aligning now.

2) Consumers are making it clear they want their choice of tasteful, affordable, and nutritious food.

3) There’s a relatively small number of people who can change attitudes.

4) There’s a shift in retailer decisions on food technology.

5) There’s a new regulatory consistency and predictability in place now that should pave the way to a record amount of innovation.

Elanco has put their money where their mouth is. Every employee now is given a half day per quarter away from work to do something with their family to reduce hunger locally or globally. “In agriculture, we all need to personalize the issue, experience the need to feed people,” Aukerman said. “It changes the way you think about what you do. Engage the food chain in whatever circle of influence you have. Support the majority of people who stand up for technology.”