Summer, as usual, has flown by. It has been great to see many of our Association’s members around the state and region during the past few months. Fall and winter are “prime time” for MABA events, and we get rolling this week, starting with the sold out Memorial Golf Outing in Ithaca, MI and the Outlook Conference on Mackinac Island. We return to Lansing on Sept. 11 for the first Ag Club Breakfast of the fall, hosted by Harvest Solar, and have a variety of other upcoming activities. We encourage you to take a moment this holiday weekend to have a look at www.miagbiz.org/events for a full rundown of activities coming up! Here are some notes and photos on our activities the past month in support of MABA members and Michigan agriculture: Cohosting the 2024 AgroExpo Kickoff BreakfastMABA once again cohosted a kickoff Ag Club Breakfast at the 2024 AgroExpo,welcoming a key national dairy industry leader as the keynote presenter. International Dairy Foods Association President & CEO Michael Dykes spoke on Michigan’s robust dairy industry, the importance of Healthy Fluid Milk Incentives and the Dairy Nutrition Incentive program, the dietary guidelines process, HPAI, and building the next generation of leaders. We also heard from MDARD Director Tim Boring, Clinton County Catalyst Executive Director Tim Fair, Consumers Energy’s David Hicks and National FFA President, Michigan native Amara Jackson.We appreciate the support of AgroExpo, AgroLiquid, Clinton County Catalyst and Consumers Energy to make this event possible! MABA delegation joins NASS lockupMABA once again partnered with the USDA National Agricultural Statistics Services for the opportunity to be present for a U.S. Department of Agriculture-NASS Crop Report Lockup at USDA headquarters in Washington. This unique opportunity was made possible through close coordination with the NASS Great Lakes Field Office. Attending a lockup enables grain industry professionals to gain insight into both the methodology and process behind USDA reports, and the robust security measures in place for crop report releases. Attending from Michigan were leaders from with The Andersons, Inc.; Michigan Agricultural Commodities; MDARD; Cooperative Elevator Co. and Advance Trading, Inc. Promoting awareness of treated seed in grainDuring the past year MABA has been made aware of several circumstances where treated seed found its way into grain delivered to elevators. Overall, farmers and grain handlers continue to do a great job of preventing this problem, but this month, ahead of the harvest season we issued a short update to grain handlers and farm organizations reminding all of the “Zero Tolerance” policy in place at elevators for treated seed in grain. You can view it here.Promoting safe practices on farms and at grain facilitiesMABA once again helped promote the National Grain and Feed Association’s fifth annual Harvest Safety Week. Each year at the end of August, NGFA dedicates a week to sharing safety resources particularly relevant to the busy harvest season. This year’s theme encouraged members to “Participate, Prepare, Protect,” by participating in sharing Harvest Safety Week resources, preparing for hazards during the harvest season and protecting the employees that “transform America’s harvest” into food, fuel and fiber. You can access safety resources any time at www.ngfa.org/safety. MABA meets with Foreign Agricultural Service officialMichigan is proud to export billions in food and agricultural products globally each year, supporting jobs statewide. We appreciated today’s focus on exports from MDARD, and the opportunity to hear from U.S. Department of Agriculture Foreign Agriculture Service official Jim Suits in East Lansing. Mr. Suits discussed FAS’ ongoing efforts to create and sustain market opportunity abroad. Looking out for the safety of pesticide applicatorsUpon learning of two reported incidents of individuals impersonating pesticide applicators in Michigan, MABA took action to send an alert to Michigan’s law enforcement and justice organizations. We wanted to be sure law enforcement officers and prosecutors are aware of this situation. Law enforcement did a great job of helping get the word out about this – for example, this message from the Livingston County Sheriff’s Office. The MABA Educational Trust held its second annual fundraising trip to Pine Portage Lodge. 21 MABA members and partners participated this year, helping raise substantial additional funds for the MABA Educational Trust. We plan to continue this new activity in August 2025 and will send out dates soon. Last semester the Trust provided 16 scholarships to young people pursuing agricultural careers. Applications are open right now for next semester and close on October 1, 2024. Visit this link to learn more. MABA President Chuck Lippstreu once again provided a political and policy update for the Advance Trading, Inc. Outlook Conference in Toledo. This is an important annual opportunity for MABA to meet with many of our members at an insightful meeting organized by ATI. We covered key policy topics from the past year, what might be ahead in Lansing in 2025, and of course provided some commentary about the election! PSA: As part of our effort to share information, I continue to join member meetings statewide and provide briefings in person, via Zoom or recorded video message. Just reach out to our office. In the News CCA Spotlight: Keith Leighton, CHS Inc. MABA President Chuck Lippstreu discusses budget provisions A Farm Bill extension simply isn’t enough (Brownfield) Upcoming Events Following the sold-out Memorial Golf Outing and Outlook Conference in early September, we will be hosting several virtual and in-person events: September 11: Lansing Ag Club Breakfast September 13: Virtual Briefing on Testing for Vomitoxin in Corn October 9: Lansing Ag Club Breakfast Visit www.miagbiz.org/events for more!
