On-Farm Research Helps Find Palatable Solutions

Everyone is vitally aware of how brittle the farm economy has been, yet it seems like every agriculture periodical that I read discusses all the challenges. This movie quote illustrates the current state of our industry,

“I’m drowning and you are describing the water.”

We don’t need ag magazines and experts to “describe the water.” We need someone to toss us a life vest, or a plausible solution! That’s why I’m concentrating on solutions to help create stability.

Granted, these solutions don’t come easy. You must be being willing to do something that you may not have done in the past. Another quote comes to mind,

“For things to change, you need to change. For things to get better, you need to get better.”

This quote has some personal and professional reflective value. Th e world agriculture market is becoming more competitive and aggressive. We must get more efficient domestically, and we must find ways to differentiate our products on a global scale. We must look beyond quantity of the crop produced to qualitative components, such as amino acids, fatty acids, omega 3, 6, 9 composition and more. This resonates deeply with the consumer. Not only does increasing the quality of our corn add value, it also helps us build “marketing muscle.”

For years, research has looked for corn silage products that are stable on the acre. Then researchers looked into delivering the very best nutritional matrix. The delicate balance is so important that early adopters are designing on-farm experiments to test their management systems. I’m excited that Phil Long is merging technology with a vision of the future with Latham’s Seed-2-Soil precision agriculture program services. Little details like better starch and fiber digestibility in grain also make big differences.

The image below illustrates the value of feeding hybrids with softer starch. We continually provide good data to help you make better seed product selections and transform research into useful on-farm results.

2018 corn silage data is available on Latham’s website. Feel free to contact me if you have any questions about setting up an on-farm research trial for forage products. In 2019, be open to exciting possibilities – and to trying something new on your farm!