More than 350 Attendees Worked together to Solve The Precision Agriculture Puzzle together

Feb 08, 2017

Lessons learned from farmer panel the highlight of the conference

By Farms.com

More than 350 precision ag enthusiasts attended the 4^th annual Farms.com Precision Agriculture Conference and Ag Technology Showcase held in London January 31 and February 1^st. “The 2017 conference was the largest of its kind in Canada,” says conference organizer Lindsay Gariepy.

Throughout the conference the challenges of precision agriculture were explored and discussions centered around using these new tools, working together, and integrating them together to benefit the farmer.

The 2017 conference opened with an overview of the precision agriculture industry, and then focused on the macro-trends impacting technology adoption in farming. Breakout sessions included topics such as SoilOptix top soil mapping system, adding value to grain through precision information systems, use of satellite imagery to predict corn stover yields, and machinery and agronomy working together to name just a few.

“The international presence at the 2017 conference, with both speakers and attendees from all over the world, provided participants with unique perspectives and innovative approaches to precision agriculture, making this conference a worthwhile event for everyone who attended,” says Farms.com Executive Vice President Joe Dales.

The conference had participants from Canada, United States, Ukraine, Dubai, and China.

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This year, as in previous years, the highlight of the Precision Agriculture Conference was the Farmer Panel. The panellists shared successes and lessons they have learned with conference participants. The panel was moderated by Lisa Prassack, Prassack Advisors, and panellists included:

Chuck Baresich, Haggerty Creek
Eric Dietrich, Hugh J. Dietrich Farms Ltd
Josh Boersen, Bradi Farms
Mark Brock, Shephard Creek Farm Ltd.

A wide variety of exhibitors were eager to display their products and services to the enthusiastic crowd of attendees. “The networking between famers, agronomists and agribusiness throughout the conference was tremendous, the connections made and stories shared are valuable to everyone who attended”, says Farms.com Advertising Manager Andrew Bawden.

The 2017 conference hosted exhibitors such as A & L Laboratories to Hoskins Scientific Limited and John Deere Dealers of Ontario to BASF. International and local companies involved in agriculture were sponsors of the event: A&L Canada, Ag Business & Crop Inc, AgCareers.com, Agromart Group, BASF, Bayer, Climate Field View, Deveron, DuPont Pioneer, Farm Credit Canada, Hensall District Cooperative, Planet Labs, Pride Seeds, Farms.com AgBuyers Guide, and Better Farming magazine.

The 2018 conference will be hosted in London, Ontario on January 30 and 31.

Video: Evolution of Beef Cattle Farming

The Clear Conversations podcast took to the road for a special episode recorded in Nashville during CattleCon, bringing listeners straight into the heart of the cattle industry. Host Tracy Sellers welcomed rancher Steve Wooten of Beatty Canyon Ranch in Colorado for a wide-ranging discussion that blended family history and sustainability, particularly as it relates to the future of beef production.

Sustainability emerged as a central theme of the conversation, a word that Wooten acknowledges can mean very different things depending on who you ask. For him, sustainability starts with the soil. Healthy soil produces healthy grass, which supports efficient cattle capable of producing year after year with minimal external inputs. It’s an approach that equally considers vegetation, animal efficiency, and long-term profitability.

That philosophy aligned naturally with Wooten’s involvement in the U.S. Roundtable for Sustainable Beef, where he served as a representative for the Colorado Cattlemen’s Association. The roundtable brings together the entire beef supply chain—from producers to retailers—along with universities, NGOs, and allied industries. Its goal is not regulation, Wooten emphasized, but collaboration, shared learning, and continuous improvement.