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July 13, 2007
Welcome to ASTA's electronic newsletter for members, allies and stakeholders. Please feel free to forward the Seed E-News to others you believe might wish to receive news about the seed industry. Questions, comments and your industry news are welcome — contact Jason Laney at ASTA. Past issues can be viewed here .
In the News ... • USDA/FAS GAIN report: Republic of South Africa, Annual Biotechnology Report
Registration Now Open for the Seed Association of the Americas' First Annual Meeting The Seed Association of the Americas (SAA) will hold its first annual Congress in Buenos Aires, Argentina September 5-7, 2007. The meeting, entitled "Promoting the Seed Business in the Americas" will feature a day-long seminar on intellectual property rights, an active trading floor and meetings on other topics such as phytosanitary matters and biofuels. Sponsorships and trading floor booth spaces are still available. Please note that the "early-bird" registration period has been extended to August 15. For more information on the SAA Congress, please visit www.saacongress.com or contact Alexis Ellicott of ASTA at 703-837-8140.
Registration Open for Next FuSE Educational Unit at Dairyland Seed on August 23rd—Hotel Deadline Approaching
The next Future Seed Executives (FuSE) Educational Unit will be held on August 23 at Dairyland Seed Co. in Clinton, WI. The Ed Unit will feature an exciting agenda including: an overview of Dairyland Seed Co., discussions on staying competitive as an independent seed company and the pipeline for the future, a case study by the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and a VIP tour of the research facility and plots. Click here to register for the Dairyland Ed Unit. Hotel and transportation information is also now posted on the website. A block of rooms has been reserved at the Beloit Inn until August 8, so be sure to make your reservation today by calling the hotel directly at 1-866-362-5507 (ask for the FuSE room block for Dairyland Seed when making your reservation). Click here for a complete schedule of FuSE activities. For more information contact Jason Laney.
A Look Back in ASTA History
In preparation for the 125th Annual Convention, to be held June 21-25, 2008 in Orlando, Florida, the Seed E-News will periodically feature stories looking back at moments in ASTA's rich history. We thought that it would be appropriate to start the series with the newspaper article that highlighted the first day of the inaugural Annual Convention, held in New York City. The following article was originally published in The New York Daily Tribune on Wednesday, June 13, 1883.
If you found this story interesting, we hope that you will be able to attend the 2008 Annual Convention where numerous pictures, stories, and historical objects celebrating the association's history will be on display (including newspaper articles covering each day of the first Convention). If you have a special photo, memory or souvenir that you would like to share for this compilation, please contact Jennifer Lord.
State of the States ...
The Alabama Seed Association (ASA) just concluded their 66th Annual Convention at the beautiful Grand Hotel Marriott Resort in Point Clear, AL. The meeting was held July 13-14 in conjunction with the Summer Meeting of the Alabama Crop Management Association. The meeting combined several networking opportunities with valuable general sessions as well as breakout meetings. The Convention began on Friday with a golf tournament held at the Robert Trent Jones at Lakewood Golf Course. The golf tournament was followed by a welcome reception and an extensive seafood buffet. The programmatic aspect of the meeting started on Saturday morning and included a presentation by Jim Bone, Manager of Field Development at DuPont Crop Protection, on changing roles in the industry. His presentation included new innovations in agriculture and covered renewable energy, food developments, and safety concerns. Following Bone, was James Wallner, Legislative Assistant-Agriculture for US Senator Jeff Sessions (R-AL). His presentation focused on Senator Sessions' efforts to secure drought assistance for Alabama farmers, recent energy legislation, and developments on the Farm Bill. Concluding the morning session was Larry Fillmer, Executive Director of Auburn University's Natural Resources Management & Development Institute (NRMDI). During his presentation, Fillmer commented on water and energy being central issues in AL, bioenergy and bi-product conversion pathways, and how Alabama must increase water conservation and needs better water distribution systems. After a short break, the two groups moved into their breakout meetings. The ASA meeting began with a Southern Seed Association (SSA) update by Tony Harper, SSA President. Harper's comments included a mention of SSA's recently unveiled website, an update on the recent Washington lobbying trip planned in conjunction with ASTA, and an invitation for all to attend the 89th Annual Convention to be held January 18-22, 2008 at the Don Cesar Beach Resort in St. Pete Beach, FL. Jason Laney, ASTA's Director of Membership Services, then gave an overview of ASTA programs and federal and state issues currently facing the seed industry. The conference concluded with the President's Reception and Annual Banquet, where outgoing president, Dennis Bragg and incoming president, Doug Smith were presented with awards by SSA President Tony Harper. Special congratulations to ASA President Dennis Bragg and ASA Executive Secretary-Treasurer Scott Morgan for producing a wonderful event. For more information on state affairs, contact Pat Miller.
New Location for ASTA Guide to State Seed Regulations The electronic Guide to State Seed Regulations was recently relocated to the Government Affairs section of the ASTA web site. Created in early 2007, the guide is available online and provides direct links to key seed trade resources in all 50 U.S states. In addition to seed laws, electronic links to the following information are included for each state: • Contact information for the State Department of Agriculture Any questions or suggested changes to the Guide should be directed to Leslie Cahill.
Climate Change on the Radar of the Grains Research & Development Corporation (GRDC). Climate change and what it really means is a reality grain growers can't avoid, especially when it comes to accessing declining water sources. But to try to fight it alone would mean losing the immediate battle and the war. National, cross industry approaches and increased collaboration are essential to help growers and their support organizations, including the GRDC, pro-actively address climate variability and sustainability issues. And now is the time. Breeding crops more tolerant to drought, improving seasonal forecasting and providing tools and services to growers to manage climate risk are key strategies of the GRDC's new Strategic R&D five year Plan, "Prosperity through Innovation." Read more.
University of Nebraska-Lincoln's Department of Agronomy and Horticulture Offers Three New Distance-delivered Mini-courses.
The University of Nebraska-Lincoln's Department of Agronomy and Horticulture is offering three distance-delivered mini-courses for graduate academic credit at UNL, as well as for noncredit professional development and CEU credit. The mini-courses include: Self-Pollinated Crop Breeding, Germplasm & Genes and Cross-Pollinated Crop Breeding For more information and to view promotional videos about the courses, please visit the department's Distance Education and Life-Long Learning Program website or contact Cathy Dickinson. Individuals interested in taking courses for noncredit or CEU credit can purchase registrations online through the ADEC eStore. Read more including the course descriptions.
Update from the UC-Davis Seed Biotechnology Center – SBC Executive Director Joins Team
The Seed Biotechnology Center is proud to introduce their new Executive Director, Michael L. Campbell. Mr. Campbell became involved with the Center when it was a concept in 1998. He, as the Assistant Dean for College Relations, College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, led the Center through the process of raising funds to build programs and the Center which is now housed in the University of California, Davis (UC Davis) Plant Reproductive Biology building. In 2000, he moved to the University of California, Merced and recently completed his tenure as their Associate Vice Chancellor of University Relations. At the SBC Mr. Campbell, along with Academic Director Kent Bradford, will be responsible for providing leadership in the ongoing development and implementation of building the Center's research and education program. Read more. The ability to modify seeds with specific developmental and compositional changes provides enormous potential to meet the growing global demand for food, but only if those discoveries can be adapted to the biological requirements of seeds as propagules and the pragmatic and economic demands of the marketplace. Thus, the objective of the symposium is to bring together leading public- and private-sector scientists across all aspects of seed biology in a format that emphasizes the connections between fundamental discoveries and their applications in agriculture. Crop scientists will be motivated by the progress being made in model systems, and basic scientists will gain an appreciation of the challenges associated with bringing a concept into practice. A further objective of the symposium is to identify high priority challenges or opportunities that can be targeted by complementary research in model systems, crops and ecological settings. This focus on translational seed biology will demonstrate how public and private funding of fundamental work in model systems is being applied to benefit producers, consumers and the environment, particularly for applications in the regions of the world where the needs are greatest. This international symposium focusing on the transfer of knowledge of seed biology developed through studies of model systems to improve the agricultural and nutritional value of crops is at the University of California, Davis, California from September 17-20, 2007. Early registration is available through July 31, 2007. More information.
Company News and People on the Move — Wyffels Hybrids, headquartered in Geneseo, Illinois is hosting the Corn Strategies: Generation II informational summit for growers, farm managers and agriculture media to learn what experts are predicting for the corn industry in the coming months. This event is open to the public and will feature experts discussing a variety of topics, including how weather, the changing market and supply and demand will affect corn crops in the region. The summit will be held Tuesday, July 31 from 8:30 a.m.- 4:00 p.m. at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Springfield, IL. Featured speakers include:
Upcoming Industry Events
South Carolina Seedsmen's Association
Click here for a schedule of additional industry events
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