Weeds

Iowa Farmer Battles Today's Pests While Eyeing Tomorrow's 'Mean Sixteen' Threats

Fri, 12 Dec 2025 19:31:41 GMT

For Worth County, Iowa, farmer Sarah Tweeten, the list of high-priority agronomic threats isn’t a political abstract — it’s a harsh reality she deals with every season.

Farming with her parents, Brian and Julie, and her uncle Roger, Tweeten has been steering the partnership toward more resilient cropping practices since joining the operation in 2021. This includes shifting from conventional tillage to strip tillage and splitting nitrogen applications.

The changes are part of a broader mindset: Protecting yields today from weeds, disease and insects while aggressively preparing for the next generation of agronomic threats. This forward-thinking approach is what led Tweeten to Washington, D.C., earlier this week as a Farm Journal Foundation farmer ambassador to help introduce a new report: “ The Mean Sixteen: Major Biosecurity Threats Facing U.S. Agriculture and How Policy Solutions Can Help. ”

Today’s Battles and Tomorrow’s Warnings
Researched and developed by Stephanie Mercier, PhD, the report takes an in-depth look at 16 significant pest issues U.S. farmers face now or could realistically in the future.

Tweeten is already battling a couple of the problems that underpin the urgency behind the research. For example, Palmer amaranth (pigweed) is gaining ground in her fields and across Iowa. The pervasive broadleaf weed can drastically reduce yields, with studies showing corn yield reductions between 11% and 91% and soybean yield reductions of 17% to 68%.

“We’ve struggled with pigweed as it continues to establish more resistance to our herbicides in our toolkit,” Tweeten says.

Two additional agronomic issues the report details include:

1. Asian Soybean Rust. First detected in the U.S. in Louisiana in 2004, this fungal disease has spread to southern states like Georgia and Mississippi. Scientists warn that warming winters could enable its migration to the Midwest, adding to existing disease pressures.

2. Corn Ear Rot. It can lead to aflatoxin production, making corn unmarketable and posing risks to humans and livestock. Aflatoxin is an issue Pickens County, Ala., farmer Annie Dee says is an ongoing problem for corn growers in her area.

“If we have aflatoxin, it can be impossible to sell the corn,” says Dee, also a Farm Journal Foundation Farmer ambassador.

A more recent threat she references is the impact of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (bird flu) on local poultry farms.

Since January 2022, HPAI has been confirmed in a commercial or backyard poultry flock in all 50 states.

(USDA)

“An important market for us is poultry feed meal, so that’s a constant worry. The trickle-down effect is if we can’t move our corn then we can’t meet our financial obligations,” Dee adds.

Despite agricultural R&D offering a high ROI — $20 in benefits for every $1 spent — the Farm Journal Foundation report notes public funding for ag research has been declining over the past two decades.

“Farmers urgently need sustained support for aflatoxin research and prevention because these risks threaten our yields, our markets and the trust consumers place in American agriculture,” Dee says.

U.S. public spending on ag research and development has been falling for two decades.

(USDA-ERS)

African Swine Fever Has ‘Devastating Potential’
Looking to the future, Tweeten says she is concerned about African swine fever (ASF) and its potential to impact crop farmers as well as hog producers. The highly contagious swine disease hasn’t been detected in the U.S. mainland, but it isn’t far away. ASF has been confirmed in the Caribbean countries of Haiti and the Dominican Republic, roughly 700 miles from Miami, Fla.

“Being a farmer from Iowa, where we have probably eight times the amount of pigs as we do people, an outbreak of ASF would be just devastating to our state,” Tweeten says.

Hogs are among the biggest customers for the corn and soybeans Tweeten and her family grow. If African swine fever were to shut down hog production or exports, it wouldn’t just be a blow to livestock producers – it would hurt the entire agricultural community, she contends.

Read about 5 livestock diseases that could impact U.S. food security and economic stability.

Food Security Is National Security
When it comes to justifying funding for ag research, Tweeten knows there’s competition for every federal dollar. But she believes agriculture deserves a front-row seat — not only because of its economic weight and impact on farmers, but because of its role in national security.

“There’s that argument that food security is national security,” she says. “If there’s one thing COVID made us aware of, it’s that a disruption to our food chain can be terrifying, quite frankly.”

The pandemic made consumers and policymakers more aware of supply chain vulnerability. In 2020, the shock to the supply chain came from a human disease and logistical bottlenecks.

(Sarah Williams Photography)

Next time, Tweeten says, the disruption could just as easily come from animal or plant disease — whether African swine fever in hogs, Asian soybean rust or some other pathogen in crops. She worries about scenarios where farmers could face a fast-moving disease or crop pest while critical tools are still hung up in regulatory delays.

Her message: Farmers need a full toolbox, not one that’s half-built by the time a threat arrives.

“Ag needs to be in a good position when these sorts of emerging diseases and pests come into the country,” she says, “to have the tools in our toolbox ready for farmers to pull out.”

About the Farm Journal Foundation
The Farm Journal Foundation is a farmer-centered, non-profit, nonpartisan organization established in 2010. It works to advance agricultural innovation, food and nutrition security, conservation, and rural economic development.

What in the World is Going On With Glyphosate Prices?

Wed, 19 Jul 2023 22:55:24 GMT

An explosion at a Dow Chemical plant in Louisiana isn’t expected to disrupt ag chemical supplies in the U.S., according to Rabo AgriFinance. That’s as the industry seems to be swimming in supplies of key inputs such as glyphosate, forcing suppliers and ag retailers to cut prices in an effort to get rid of unused supply.

An explosion and fire broke out at a Dow Chemical plant in Plaquemine, Louisiana late Friday night. The site produces several different chemicals, including one used as a fumigant in agricultural products. There hasn’t been any information released about a possible cause, but reports indicate at least six explosions occurred Friday night at a Dow manufacturing site that covers 883 acres. The incident caused a large mushroom cloud of smoke.

The plant is one of Louisiana’s largest petrochemical complexes, and the disruption is sparking flashbacks to what happened in 2021 when Hurricane Ida’s direct hit on Bayer’s largest glyphosate plant pushed the manufacturing site offline for nearly two months. The one event sent severe supply shockwaves through the entire agriculture industry.

Sam Taylor, Farm Inputs Analyst for Rabo AgriFinance, says the incident at the Dow Chemical location on Friday shouldn’t impact availability of ag inputs for farmers.

“I’ve not been given that indication that it will. That’s the feedback that I’ve received,” says Taylor.

Why was the hurricane’s impact such a heavy weight on the entire industry? As strict Covid-19 protocols in China continued to restrict production of active ingredients essential to make products like glyphosate, the hurricane compounded already strained supplies.

According to Reuters, Bayer saw herbicide sales jump 44% in 2022 after Hurricane Ida damaged rival producers and constrained Chinese suppliers failed to plug the gap. Farmers felt the impact in terms of pricing and supplies. In the fall of 2021, glyphosate prices were up as much as 300%, but finding the supply was an even bigger problem reported by farmers. As competitors have been able to return to the market this year, prices have been dropping.

Ag Herbicides’ Supply Problem

Taylor says herbicide prices aren’t falling because of demand issues, it’s a supply problem. A major reason is China. AI production coming back online was a huge boost for overall production as the country accounts for 60 to 70% of global production. With such a production monster now back online, Taylor says it’s also led to a significant drop in global benchmark pricing.

“I think that the global pricing, at the moment, is sub $4 a gallon in China. So, you’ve had that drop from about $16 to $17 a gallon in 2022. It’s now about 25% of what it was,” says Taylor. “That’s the main catalyst of it, and that’s why we’ve seen the kind of the cost curve and shift down as Chinese production is back online. They account for about two-thirds of global production.”

Retailers and suppliers continue to cut the price of glyphosate to help offload expensive inventory in preparation for the fall months. While the prices of both generic and PowerMAX glyphosate products continue to vary widely, it’s a sizable decline from even the beginning of the year.

Glyphosate Prices Tank

In May, one major ag company started offering retailers a $5 per gallon rebate just to push more glyphosate inventory onto the farm level. This week, FBN started offering a pricing special on Willowood Glypho 5, a generic glyphosate product. FBN’s promotion is being advertised as “glyphosate stock up,” offering the product at $13.50 a gallon, if pre-purchased by July 31st. The special only applies to product that will be delivered September to October.

Taylor says while wholesale and retail prices vary, he expects wholesale glyphosate and chem prices to stay low throughout the remainder of the year, especially with the supply situation.

“I would also say that I don’t think the issue is going to resolve itself overnight. I think you’re going to see this rumbling through 2023,” says Taylor.

Taylor points out hints of growing input supplies started at the beginning of the year. Several publicly traded companies mentioned inventories in their earnings report saying it was an industry-wide issue. That created the situation today where input suppliers across the U.S. are sitting on inventory that was purchased at a much higher price than where wholesale and retail prices are today.

Bayer’s most recent earnings report in May signaled the company expects its 2023 financial results to come in at the lower end of the targeted range, not only because of inflation, but a slump in prices of glyphosate-based herbicides from last year’s highs. Bayer’s then CEO told investors the company was forced to reduce expectations of what it can command for glyphosate products.

The Industry is Upside Down

It’s an issue companies and retailers of all sizes are grappling with. AgriTalk’s Chip Flory spoke to the Eric Cowling who’s the CEO of Helena Agri-Enterprises, a large U.S. ag retailer that has more than 350 sales locations across the U.S. Cowling told Flory the supply issue is one that’s still impacting the entire industry.

“It’s one of those things you couldn’t predict. It’s really about supply and demand,” Cowling said on AgriTalk. “We’re probably putting together one of the highest input crops that we’ve ever seen, so that is an impact of the supply situation. We had to buy product to take care of customers for the last two years. Now, you heard the term ‘we’re upside down.’ I think the industry is upside down. If anybody could have predicted the decline over the last 12 months, I’d like to have that conversation to know exactly how they predicted that. I think there’s plenty of inventory. I don’t think there’s excessive inventory. And I believe we’re in a good spot to take care of customers for the next six to eight months, but I’m not sure I can say we’re in a spot to do it for 12 months.”

A Global Supply Chain

Just as Taylor points out, the fluctuations in crop protection and input prices for farmers are ones driven by what’s happening on a global scale.

“I tell our teams that it’s become a global supply chain. So we’re reliant on supplies of things we need to produce products globally, some from China, some from other sources like India,” he says. “As their world changes, so does ours. I don’t think there’s any one blueprint today that we could follow to say this is what we do.”

He says the big input suppliers in the U.S. are dealing with the same issues, which then compounds the supply chain issues for retailers such as Helena.

“When their issues are compounded, it compounds our issues, because we’re looking for the same inert ingredients or things that have to be imported,” he says.

Cowling also told Flory he doesn’t think the industry is in the recovery process yet, something Helena thinks will continue to change the way ag retail does business with farmers in the future.

“We’re in a state of turmoil, so we don’t know what the real world looks like today, and I think the way we’ve procured product in the past, I don’t believe we’ll see those days again,” says Cowling. “We have to use more intelligence tools, the AI tools available, to be better predictors of what we’re going to sell.”

Related News:

New Study Shows Glyphosate Ban Would Drive Up Food Prices

EPA: Glyphosate Can Still be Used Through 2026

Bayer to pull Glyphosate from U.S. Lawn and Garden Markets

This Technology Makes Any Sprayer Smarter

Tue, 20 Sep 2022 04:16:13 GMT

Reducing herbicide usage by 97% pre-emergence and 88% post-emergence, the team at Greeneye Technology are working to make it the ‘next-big-thing’ in sprayer technology .

Since launching its precision spraying system commercially into the US earlier this year, the Israel-based company has been working with early adopter farmers in the Midwest. There, CEO Nadav Bocher and his team are applying their focus to provide farmers with significant savings on their herbicides cost while enabling better efficacy in herbicide application.

Whether it’s saving money on inputs or using more effective products to help farmers achieve better weed control and manage herbicide-resistant weeds, Greeneye Technology has brought to the table a ‘smart’ way of spraying weeds in the field.

The Installation

With the idea of ‘after-market first,’ Greeneye Technology created a sprayer boom designed to retrofit any existing sprayer machine. Much like a skid steer attachment, the entire existing, factory boom is replaced with the fully equipped Greeneye boom.

The one-tank system on the average sprayer is changed out with a two-tank system. The Greeneye aluminum boom uses the existing sprayer line coupled with its own to provide the capability of spraying broadcast residual while target spraying weeds precisely with contact herbicides via the Greeneye line.

The Greeneye boom arrives intact with its 12 graphics processing units (GPU), 24 cameras, 144 sprayer nozzles and pulsating lights, which allows the sprayer to run around the clock.

(Farm Journal)

The Data

Using artificial intelligence (AI) technology, the sprayer gets ‘smarter’ with every pass of a field.

The cameras are set up in a grid-like pattern, where each frame consists of a 10 by 10-inch square. Each camera serves as the ‘eye’ for 6 nozzles. When running through the field, the cameras are scanning the area one meter in front of the machine, which allows the technology to process the images and signal the selected nozzles to engage for application when the boom passes over the identified weed.

As the sprayer runs through the field, data is collected to provide the farmer with valuable insights to be housed in an online dashboard.

The AI scans the photos with high resolution and is able to identify weeds down to the species level, as well as the stages of maturation of each weed.

Operation

According to Greeneye’s sprayer operator, Jackson Bakken, the system is user-friendly. With only a couple more buttons to engage and its own screen, operating the equipment does not require a huge learning curve to overcome.

If a breakdown occurs, Greeneye provides sprayer operators access to a 24/7 ‘hotline’ located in Israel to help diagnose and fix the sprayer from afar.

The sprayer has two modes, green vs. brown and green vs. green. Green vs. brown, used during pre-emergence or a fallow situation, tells the sprayer nozzles to activate on all ‘green’ plant life. The green vs. green mode looks at each frame and deciphers the weeds from the crop.

The sprayer also has a sensitivity range to be determined by the operator and a default program that tells the sprayer to automatically spray if the boom reaches a certain height above ground where the cameras can no longer detect if a weed is present.

On average, Greeneye Technology sprayers can be operated at 13 miles per hour through the field.

Working with early adopter farmers in the Midwest this year, 97% and 88% of chemical usage was reduced for pre- and post-emergence herbicide spraying, respectively.

One farmer who committed acres to Greeneye Technology this year, explains how he could see the Greeneye system as being more manageable for the farmer operator—less chemical sprayed, less fill-ups and fewer people and time committed.

Additionally, with less inputs being used overall, farmers are given the opportunity to use more expensive and more effective product options that may not have been in the budget previously.

The Future of Greeneye

Looking ahead to 2023, Bocher explains that the demand for the Greeneye solution will be greater than supply. This is mainly due to supply chain issues that have hampered the manufacturing of the equipment. However, Bocher still plans to deploy dozens of Greeneye systems in the fields next year.

This year, Greeneye offered its early adopter farmers ‘spraying as a service.’ In 2023, farmers will have the opportunity to purchase their own system, which can be retrofitted to any brand or size of sprayer. A majority of Greeneye users in 2022 have already committed to buying a system in 2023, Bocher says.

Greeneye Technology also plans to move its manufacturing to the Midwest in 2023.

The 2023 model will include a global positioning system (GPS) and provide farmers with a mobile app to display information, similar to its online dashboard. Expanding its precision application capabilities to other inputs, such as fungicides and micronutrients, and introducing further field analysis capabilities will also be priorities in future models.

Currently, Greeneye Technology has focused on corn and soybeans in its initial development, however work has already begun to integrate wheat and cotton to the lineup.

Bocher explains a Greeneye Technology sprayer will be available to farmers in the U.S. via pay-per-acre, purchase or lease options next year.

With the input savings and efficiency of the technology, Bocher believes a system can be paid off within 12-18 months.

At this time, 2023 prices are estimated to be released mid-summer.

The company also recently announced its first in-field testing to take place later this year in Brazil.

“2022 has already proved to be a milestone year for Greeneye Technology, following our hugely successful launch in North America, and we are delighted to announce the next exciting stage in our global expansion,” Bocher says.

Should You Spray Your Own Crops?

Thu, 15 Sep 2022 15:38:50 GMT

The return on your investment could be quick

Is your operation in the sweet spot for owning a sprayer? Of course, every decision has downsides (and a price tag). But, investing in a sprayer for your farm could offer a clear upside.

“Sprayers, on average, have a great ROI,” says Nick Horob, product manager of Harvest Profit . “I’ve seen custom ap-plication cost anywhere from $6 to $10 per acre. It’s common a farmer can spray 1,000 acres per day with a self-propelled sprayer. While every situation is different, an owned sprayer often presents a big ROI.”

In addition, he says, self-spraying offers two key benefits:

Flexibility: You can source the products you want to use and buy them from the suppliers of your choice.
Timeliness: You can spray during the most ideal windows versus being on someone else’s schedule.

While those are big benefits, owning a sprayer does increase your labor needs (especially since you will likely make multiple applications). In addition, you need extra training and face some liability issues, Horob adds.

Any new piece of equipment can be an emotional decision. Before you pull the trigger, put numbers to the situation, says Shay Foulk, Illinois farmer and consultant with Ag View Solutions .

“We farmers often say phrases such as, ‘I know this will add 5 bu. to our bottom line,’ or ‘I think this product is going to give us an advantage,’” he says. “However, there are ways you can put numbers to these decisions.”

Use these factors, Foulk says, to evaluate any on-farm investment:

Grain Price: Projected prices for your main commodities.
Investment Cost Per Acre: How much will it cost to make this enhancement or upgrade?
Yield Improvement Per Acre: This is your educated guess for yield improvement. For sprayers, factor in timeli-ness of spray windows.
Acres: Across how many acres will you use the technology on?
Years of Use: How many years do you plan to use it?

By combining these factors, you can provide a tangible number for discussion with your team as you move forward, Foulk says.

“The important part is knowing the numbers and making an informed decision,” he says.

(Farm Journal)

Sara Schafer uses her Missouri farm roots to cover crop management, business topics, farmland and more.