Here’s an excerpt from the letter to the FCC:

Earlier this week we published results of our ZimmPoll that showed a majority think the LightSquared proposal would be good for ag/rural America. However, most of those positive responses all came at nearly the same time.

The Insect Forecast website is ready to start pest tracking in May with new enhancements for the 2011 growing season to increase farmer awareness about above-ground pests that can threaten their fields. The new features include the tracking of western bean cutworm pressure in the Midwest, in addition to the annual migration of corn earworms from the South to Midwestern corn fields.

Also new this year, starting May 6, farmers can sign-up online at www.insectforecast.com to receive e-mail alerts when these insects pose a risk in their areas.

Developed by climatologist and meteorologist Mike Sandstrom, the Insect Migration Risk Forecast (IMRF) monitors the daily migration of damaging pests, such as corn earworm, from May through September. It analyzes moth trapping data and weather patterns to issue one, two and three-to-five day forecasts.

The IMRF is being sponsored again this season by Monsanto Company and offered to farmers as a tool of its Genuity® trait brand.

For my mother, who grew up on a farm in Iowa, it was hard to imagine how far technology would advance agriculture in such a short time. For instance, the introduction of broadband would be a welcome surprise for many. It’s hard to fathom living without internet access; however, in the past, those in rural America did not have as much access as those living in urban areas. Fortunately, this is changing. According to Pew Internet, adults living in rural America have witnessed high-speed usage grow from 38% in 2008 to 46% in 2009. Many of these adults are farmers.

With the introduction of broadband also came the introduction of many precision agriculture technologies. For example, Ag Leader’s new SMS Mobile Technology helps farmers gain important information. The technology is designed to run on their handheld Mesa Rugged Notepad and provides a platform for farmers to gather information such as soil tests, scouting records and documentation of test trials. With the help of a wireless broadband network, farmers can instantaneously transfer the data to his SMS desktop software. The data can be combined with previous data and take his crop management to another level – a level that is designed to improve his profitability.

While this technology is still somewhat in its infancy, access to wireless communications has offered possibilities not before thought possible. Precision agriculture is taking full advantage of this technology. Each year, data integration and programs are more effective and easier to use as adoption among growers increases.

According to Tim Murphy, in a 2002 article, “Broadband Connection Highs and Lows Across Rural America“, the census found that half the farms in the country were connected to the internet in some way whether it be via broadband or dial-up. By 2007, the percentage of farms connected rose to 56.5 percent. As precision ag comes of age, I expect to see greater growth in the adoption in broadband in rural America. Why? Because broadband and precision ag, together, are helping to change the face of agriculture in a positive and profitable way.

Farm Industry News offers a fascinating look at some of the current technology.

After being on the agriculture market for almost a decade, telematic systems that once were thought to be useful mostly to large farming and custom application operations with far-flung equipment fleets are beginning to offer features that smaller operations may find attractive as well.

The newest systems offer remote diagnostics of power equipment, real-time combine monitoring and on-the-go transfer of prescription application, as-applied and yield maps. GPS-based features like current location, field and transport speeds, and idling versus working time also are becoming more sophisticated.

Read the rest of the story.

SpraySmarter.com is an online culmination of years of sprayer manufacturing and customer support expertise. The site offers brands like Hypro, TeeJet, Banjo and Raven precision-ag products combined with an intuitive shopping experience and an array of application-focused tools intended to supplement the visitor’s spraying knowledge including tip selection calculators, video tutorials, a spray-focused forum and more. Matt Hays, CEO of Equipment Technologies and SpraySmarter.com, explains, “Our goal with SpraySmarter.com is to transfer the vast spraying expertise of ET to an online shopping experience that doesn’t simply sell sprayer parts; it gives the user an experience that is as close to the traditional parts counter as possible.” Hays adds, “The tools on our site act as an aid in the online buying process, provide a place for applicators to collaborate online and really position SpraySmarter.com as a destination.”

ET boasts a same-day fulfillment rate of 98% on all parts orders and many of those orders come from the thousands of calls received by ET sprayer support specialists. Kevin Covey, parts and service manager for Equipment Technologies and SpraySmarter.com, commented, “Through the volume of calls we receive and our just-in-time inventory philosophy, we have taken the traditional manufacturer support model and turned it into a true competitive advantage.” Covey adds, “We are constantly in touch with applicators; we know it is time to take our competitive advantage to the internet – it’s just a natural progression.”

www.ETsprayers.com

www.SpraySmarter.com

Bill Moffitt wants to offer farmers and ranchers the ability to open up a laptop computer anywhere on their homestead and have Internet connectivity.

Recently Moffitt, the founder and president of Ayrstone Productivity, LLC, announced that an affordable system is now available.

The Ayrstone AyrMesh wireless network makes it possible to conduct Internet-based tasks within visual range of an AyrMesh Hub in the office or in the yard.

Priced at $249, the AyrMesh Hub is about the size and weight of a small transistor radio and designed for indoor or outdoor mounting.

It’s 40 times as powerful as the Wireless Local Area Network (Wi-Fi) routers usually found in homes. Moffit says the AyrMesh Hub is as powerful a Wi-Fi device as allowed in the United States.

“The networking solutions that have been available for agriculture have tended to be very expensive and difficult to put into place,” Moffitt said. “We wanted to offer a network originating in the homestead that builds a wireless network that people can afford and use easily.”

To learn more about the history and how this system works, read the story.

Last week the AgChat Foundation was announced. This farmer led group “is designed to empower more farmers to leverage social media as a tool to tell agriculture’s story. The Foundation will educate and equip farmers and ranchers with the skill set needed to effectively engage on Twitter, Facebook, blogs, YouTube, Linkedin and other social media services. It will give them knowledge to unlock new tools to effectively tell their story. Research shows that social media is a growing opportunity for farmers to have a stronger voice in educating people about the business of growing food, fuel, feed and fiber.” You can find more information on the AgChat Foundation website.

Let’s meet board member Mike Haley. Mike is a fifth generation grain and cattle farmer in northern Ohio. Mike believes not only in raising healthy crops and animals, but also working to ensure that future generations will be able to continue to do the same. This not only means that Mike must continuously work to ensure that his farm is operating in a sustainable way, but also that others understand what farmers are doing on a daily basis to ensure that they are acting in a socially acceptable manner. “Social media is a valuable tool that allows us to communicate with others across the country about our farming operation while we are working on daily tasks.” In my interview with Mike we talk about farmer use of social media and what we hope to accomplish with the AgChat Foundation.

You can listen to my interview with Mike here.

I spoke with Marketing Manager, Ryan Molitor,about Slingshot. He says Slingshot represents a breakthrough in connectivity, online services and hardware. It can deliver advanced RTK correction signal technology and high speed internet using wireless in the cab.

You can listen to my interview with Ryan below:

AG CONNECT Expo Photo Album