Supporting the ag machinery sector

Mar 20, 2020

Industry organizations are asking governments to consider members of the sector essential to state economies

By Diego Flammini
Staff Writer
Farms.com

The U.S. farm equipment sector is calling on state and federal governments to support the industry during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Agricultural Retailers Association (ARA) asks departments of the Trump administration to ensure the ag equipment sector can provide necessary services to farmers.

Among the suggestions, the ARA requests the Department of Transportation to renew a waiver that allows non-commercial drivers to help with ag retail deliveries. The ARA also asks that the Department of Homeland Security designate ag retailers as critical infrastructure, a March 19 letter to President Trump says.

The letter also includes suggestions for the Department of Labor and the Environmental Protection Agency.

“Food supply won’t happen without food production,” Daren Coppock, president and CEO of ARA, wrote in the letter. “It is vital that this supply chain continue to operate and move essential products for delivery to farmers during any mandatory shutdowns.”

Other equipment organizations are asking state representatives to act during the COVID-19 crisis.

The Association of Equipment Manufacturers, Associated Equipment Distributors and the Equipment Dealers Association sent letters to the governors of all 50 U.S. states asking these politicians to designate manufacturers, suppliers, dealers and service technicians as essential to the economic continuity of the individual states.

With planting season approaching, the industry “has an obligation to ensure that (farmers) have access to the equipment and parts, as well as the repair and maintenance services they need,” the letter says.

Farms.com has reached out to members of the farm equipment industry for comment.

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.