| Feed Energy News - 2010 Edition 1 |
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Iowa Egg Industry Symposium @ ISU
 Account Manager Bruce Lindquist joined more than 120 attendees at Iowa State University’s annual Iowa Egg Industry Symposium on November 11th. “This event continues to be an important venue for those of us with interests in all areas of egg production,” says Lindquist. “Attendees tend to be proactive in egg production issues and symposium content always connects with timely industry concerns.” The morning session provided excellent information regarding FDA’s new Salmonella enteritidis monitoring requirements from control in laying flocks to testing options for rapid detection. The event is hosted by ISU’s College of Veterinary Medicine and Extension with the program planning led by Dr. Darrell Trampel, Extension Poultry Veterinarian and Poultry Diagnostician.
Iowa Turkey Federation Winter Meeting  Account Manager Cal Halstead began his 2nd year as Vice President of the Iowa Turkey Federation at ITF’s Winter meeting November 30-December 2 in Des Moines. “As always,” says Halstead, “Gretta and Sheila put together a well-organized, informative, and relevant program. And as always it is a fun meeting.” Part of the fun was a friendly turkey carving contest at Tuesday night’s banquet. The competition was stiff including NTF President Joel Brandenberger, ITF President Tim Doyle, and Iowa Deputy Secretary of Agriculture Karey Claghorn but Halstead rallied and brought home the “fastest carver” certificate.
“It was good to greet and meet several attendees who are relatively new to the turkey growing business,” commented Halstead. “The active involvement of these young growers in the ITF adds an important perspective to our organization.” AgGateway 4th Annual Conference Held in November  As a participant at AgGateway’s 4th annual conference, CEO Bob Riley says “This organization’s conference motto “Thriving Today & Building for Tomorrow Through e-Business,” describes the direction well. From my involvement with the American Feed Industry Association’s Information Technology Committee since 1999, through the inclusion of AgGateway as a partner in the connectivity project of the feed industry in 2005, our strategic goals of providing value to our Feed Energy customers is taking shape.” Riley has been a proponent of the electronic transfer of information within the industry from the beginning, and the current project should bring to fruition all the years of planning and hard work. "Soon, we will begin beta testing of a complete electronic transfer package with a selected trading partner and hope to bring a finished product to the industry in 2010." AgGateway serves all sectors of the agriculture industry, by educating, promoting and expanding participation in e-business. |
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| Feed Energy Company Earns Safe Feed, Safe Food Re-certification |
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| All Veg 4000
All Veg 4000 is a carefully manufactured natural energy source scientifically derived from products of vegetable oil-seed processing. Naturally rich in antioxidants, AV4000 assures you of the highest energy source available for nutritional and industrial applications. AV4000 can be relied upon to contain 4000-4050 kilocalories of metabolizable energy/pound. Click here for more information. |
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| Mike Van Weelden’s Service Tip
In this issue of the newsletter we shared with you information about the new effective dates of the SPCC regulations and what steps you should be taking to get ready. Let’s take a closer look at spill containment as it relates to FEC. FEC has a published procedure that is posted on our website - click here to view - so you have easy access to what we have been trained to do in the event of a spill of some type. Remember, if the spill is over five (5) gallons it must be reported to the DNR or other responsible agency. Spill containment is such a critical element of the regulations. If you would like help in assessing a location for a new installation or on the development of a containment plan for an existing tank(s), Feed Energy stands ready to lend a hand. Now for the real service tip – if you do not have a check valve on your system we strongly recommend that you install or have someone install one. Taking this proactive approach is one of the best things you can do as part of your overall spill prevention plan. |
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| 2010
January 27-29 - International Poultry and Feed Expositions - Atlanta February 7-9 - Minnesota Grain and Feed Association Annual Convention - Mankato February 9-10 - Agribusiness Showcase & Conference (AAI) - Des Moines February 10-13 - National Turkey Federation Annual Convention - San Antonio February 24-25 - Nebraska Poultry Industries Convention - Columbus, NE March 10-12 AFIA - Purchasing & Ingredient Suppliers Conference - San Antonio March 15-17 - Midwest American Dairy Science Assoc. & American Society of Animal Science - Des Moines March 16-18 - Midwest Poultry Federation Convention - St. Paul June 9-11 - World Pork Expo - Des Moines June 9-11 - Minnesota Turkey Growers Association Summer June 15-17 - Iowa Turkey Federation Summer Meeting - Altoona, IA September 14-16 - Iowa Poultry Association Fall Festival - Okoboji, IA November 29 - December 1 - Iowa Turkey Federation Winter Meeting - West Des Moines, IA |
| Feed Energy - Bridging Today to Tomorrow |
 This past fall I shared how we are striving to build a sustainable business model, and in March I look forward to exploring with you our new ventures to promote business excellence and growth. Today I want to bridge the “sustainability” topic between the Feed Energy of today and tomorrow, and talk about the principles that apply to us, and possibly to your business.
In presentations I give around the region, I tie together the fields and markets of hydrocarbon-based energy, ethanol and biodiesel production, crop production, animal feed, resource conservation, and policy development. All of these areas impact Feed Energy and your business as well. Economic, environmental, and social policy changes from Washington to Bejing can have unintended consequences, affecting the decisions of policy makers, businesses, farmers, consumers, and future generations. How can we protect our livelihoods and by extension the society and environment in which we live from the adverse effects of these decisions? The strategies that we employ at Feed Energy to reduce negative impacts are extensions of our ever-present Vision and Mission:
Instinctively - Transform - Resources - Products - Services - Astound! These six words surround everyone at Feed Energy, providing a foundation to prevail amidst the turmoil of the shifting tides of public policy. Feed Energy has charted a course that provides stability to our customers and suppliers as well as our employees, guided by principles that honor our responsibilities to the society and environment in which we live and work today and in the New Year. |
| Winfield Solutions and Feed Energy – A Proud Partnership |
 When you talk with Joe Gednalske about the future of production agriculture, you can literally hear the increased excitement in his voice when he begins to speak about what a great time it is to be in the industry. Joe is the Product Development Manager for WinField Solutions, LLC (www.winfieldsolutionsllc.com) which is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Land O’Lakes. “When you begin to look at population growth projected for 2050 and the fact that it is imperative that genetic engineering efforts are successful, there are just so many opportunities (and challenges) waiting to be tackled,” he states. “If I was starting my career all over again I can’t think of a thing I would rather do than be a participant in this adventure.”
Joe has already made his mark in the area of crop protection and seed as a 25-year employee of WinField Solutions and Land O’Lakes. The South Dakota native tells us that he currently is working in the Crop Protection Products division of the company, focusing on the development of the AgriSolutions branded product line featuring herbicides, insecticides, and fungicides. WinField Solutions is a wholesale supplier to co-ops around the country. In addition to AgriSolutions crop protection products, WinField Solutions brands also include CROPLAN GENETICS seed. According to Joe, WinField Solutions is backed with unrivaled technical services and knowledge and their products deliver outstanding solutions and value for the agricultural industry.  The AgriSolutions™ brand of crop protection products helps growers get it done right the first time. The product line includes more than 120 research-based and field-tested adjuvants, herbicides, insecticides, fungicides, seed treatments, grain protectants and micronutrients, all manufactured in their Omnium facilities. With the AgriSolutions™ brand, growers have access to experienced agronomists who use their expertise to deliver customized crop protection solutions that address local growing conditions. The result is increased grower confidence and higher profit potential.
We asked Joe about some of the trends he’s been observing in the markets he serves, and he was quick to point out that in the last 10 years he’s seen a great deal of change in the way crop protection is delivered. “We’ve moved from delivering crop protection exclusively via chemicals applied in the field to the use of protective genes in the seeds. This technology allows for the use of certain kinds of crop protection products, which might otherwise be harmful to a crop for which the protection is not genetically engineered into the seed,” he states. Joe also stated that he feels U.S. farmers are profitable for the most part and things look good for the near-term. “Our job is to strive to find new and innovative products that will help farmers make more money.” On the other hand, he worries about regulations that continue to put up hurdles that are hurting farmers because they tend to increase costs. One of the exciting areas of innovation where Joe has been spending quite a bit of time is the point where Feed Energy comes into the picture in working with AgriSolutions. Feed Energy’s AV4000 is used as part of a spray adjuvant system. This allows sprayed crop protection products to be more “sticky” in post application which ultimately allows them to be more effective over longer periods of time. “The fact that Feed Energy also has a patent on the same material for UV protection is really an added bonus for us,” Joe concludes. Bruce Lindquist, Feed Energy Account Manager adds, “The use of AV4000 as an adjuvant may be a niche market for us but it is one which allows us to serve the needs of our customers when they need our help.” We want to thank Joe for taking the time to talk with us and sharing his “view of the ag world” and for giving us an opportunity to hear more about what WinField Solutions and AgriSolutions are working on to help farmers build a more positive future for themselves and the world they help feed. |
| EPA Changes Spill Prevention Control and Countermeasures (SPCC) Compliance Date to November 2010 |
 The EPA has once again changed the compliance date for all facilities covered by the oil SPCC regulations. The new compliance date, which is a change from November 2011, is the seventh in a series of changes dating back to 2002. The compliance date is the date by which EPA requires covered facilities (almost all FEC customers are affected) to prepare or amend, and implement their SPCC plans in accordance with all revisions to the original regulation. Since full compliance is a mere eleven months away, FEC thought it might be beneficial to review some of the basics of the regulations that might be relevant for FEC customers.
Once again we call on Mike Van Weelden, Feed Energy’s Customer Service Manager and Safety Coordinator, to help us sort through the implications of this regulation and what needs to be accomplished to meet the compliance criteria. “First and foremost.” states Mike, “everyone who stores 8,000 gallons or more needs to have a written plan completed and in place by the deadline. In addition to the plan, folks will need to build containment (see photo for an example) which needs to be designed to hold 110% of the capacity of their largest tank,” he continues. “There is no ‘grandfather clause’ in the regulation so everyone must meet the same requirement.” There is also a monthly tank integrity reporting requirement which is an area which can be easily overlooked. Farmers are now included in some of the SPCC regulations, which means that they are now required to clean up any spilled diesel fuel, used oil or gasoline and dispose of the contamination in an approved method. “The EPA has set up the farmer program to be self-policing,” states Mike. “That is not necessarily the case for those livestock producers or feed mill operators who have the potential to do more environmental damage if a spill occurs. If a spill is over five gallons it must be reported to the DNR or other required reporting agency.” Feed Energy is taking a proactive approach to helping customers meet the deadline for compliancy. If you click here, you can access the SPCC Planning Form on the EPA website. If you have questions or need assistance, please contact Mike or your Account Manager, and they will help guide you through the process or we can provide a sample plan to use as a guide. “This new regulation also has implications for Feed Energy,” states Cal Halstead, Account Manager. “FEC has its own procedures if a spill occurs, which you can access on our website by clicking here. We follow the same basic, common-sense guidelines that our customers should follow. If our driver is delivering fat or any liquid product and there is a spill, it’s imperative to have a procedure in place – allowing the spill to contaminate a nearby creek or waterway is not an option. In fact,” he adds, “we would encourage our customers to give a copy of their completed plan to their Feed Energy Account Manager so it can be shared with the FEC driver who will then have the plan in case there is a spill.” We also asked Mike if there are some actions, which could be taken which would help reduce the potential damage from an unintentional spill during unloading, particularly in an area that is not protected by a containment barrier, and he gave us some great guidance in this area. “I would encourage everyone to install a check valve as a part of their containment plan. This is the most effective method of dealing with a possible backup or hose breakage during the time a tank is being filled,” he states. “When you are unloading at the rate of 30 gallons per minute, it doesn’t take long before you have a real mess on your hands.” He also encourages frequent inspections. Actions such as opening the door under the tank to look for signs of leakage (stains from the fat), and inspecting the vent pipe are both good proactive practices. “If you are installing a new tank system, you really need to be aware of its location relative to streams, field tile systems and other runoff pathways,” he says. "The last thing you want to be doing is trying to explain to the DNR how your fat got into a stream and created some type of environmental issue.” Mike sums up by stating that there are really three key words that you need to remember in looking at this regulation – contain, report, clean-up. “If you keep these words in mind, and you have a written plan in place, you should have no problems,” he concludes. |
| Survey Question Report |
 Tim Doyle is Lucky Winner of Vikings Tickets Tim Doyle, the Live Production Manager at Sara Lee’s Storm Lake facility, took our survey in the last issue of this newsletter and was the lucky winner of the six Minnesota Vikings tickets. You may remember that we asked our readers to tell us if they thought that the Vikings would be the last team Brett Favre would play for in his long and record-making career. Only one of the respondents’ thought that this would not be the last stop for the ageless Favre. Tim, whose name was drawn at random from all of those who completed the survey, took five Storm Lake production workers to the Week 14 game between the Vikings and the Cincinnati Bengals. The Vikings prevailed 30-10 and while it was not the most stellar of days for Favre (192 yards passing), a win is still a win according to Tim! The post-game report to Sara Lee Account Manager Bruce Lindquist was that a great time was had by all and that Tim (and his group) is looking forward to the next Feed Energy contest! Thanks to all who completed the survey. |
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