The full economic contribution of the food and agriculture industries is estimated to be nearly $7 trillion. The industries account for nearly one-fifth of the country’s economic activity, directly contributing $2.7 trillion to the U.S. gross domestic product and supporting more than 40 million jobs^[1]. The key to the success of these industries is millions of farmworkers. The COVID-19 pandemic put a spotlight on the importance of these workers and their contributions to our nation’s food security, and simultaneously highlighted challenges of labor instability, irregular migration, and the need for increased labor protections in order to increase the resiliency of our food system and supply chain.

To address these challenges, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) in coordination with the other federal agencies will develop a pilot program utilizing up to $65 million in American Rescue Plan funding to provide support for agricultural employers in implementing robust health and safety standards to promote a safe, healthy work environment for both U.S. workers and workers hired from Northern Central American countries under the seasonal H-2A visa program.

The program will aim to improve the resiliency of our food and agricultural supply chain and advance several major Administration priorities:

• Driving U.S. economic recovery and safeguarding domestic food security by addressing current labor shortages in agriculture. Even before the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, agricultural employers were struggling to secure a stable workforce. The pandemic has only exacerbated this problem, threatening our domestic capacity to produce a safe and robust food supply. This pilot program will help address this shortage by expanding the potential pool of workers.
• Reducing irregular migration through the expansion of legal pathways. The Biden-Harris Administration has taken numerous steps to address the elevated levels of irregular migration from Northern Central America. The H-2A visa program offers a lawful pathway for individuals from these countries to come to the United States to engage in temporary or seasonal agricultural work. An effective H-2A visa program is critical to the resiliency of the food and agricultural supply chain. This pilot program will aim to address challenges that both workers and employers face in utilizing the program.
• Improving working conditions for farmworkers. Strong working conditions are critical to the resiliency of the food and agricultural supply chain. Through this pilot program, USDA will support efforts to improve working conditions for both U.S. and H-2A workers and ensure that H-2A workers are not subjected to unfair recruitment practices.

USDA will provide opportunities for stakeholder engagement as the program is developed. USDA will also partner with the United Farm Workers of America (UFW) through a technical assistance cooperative agreement to inform USDA of the challenges faced by agricultural workers and to inform development of the pilot program. UFW will work with relevant stakeholders, including farmers, farmworkers, farmworker advocates, and unions, to ensure that the agency benefits from a wide range of views. After the consultation and program development phase, USDA intends to launch a competitive pilot program ahead of the growing season in early 2023.

Source: USDA

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Third-quarter sales in the Agricultural Products segment were $4,660,000 compared to $3,671,000 during the same period of fiscal 2020, an increase of $989,000, or 26.9%.  Year-to-date Agricultural Product sales were $12,017,000 compared to $9,695,000 during the same period in fiscal 2020, an increase of $2,322,000, or 24%. The company attributes the large increase in revenue to a strengthening agricultural economy that is producing five to ten-year highs in commodity and livestock prices along with government assistance programs that provided farmers with much-needed government assistance during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The company saw a 71% increase in grinder mixer sales year on year, a 60% increase in beet equipment, and is showing a 13% increase in manure spreader sales year on year. Art’s Way is seeing continued demand in the fourth quarter with the current ag backlog up 269% from a year ago. Supplier delays have improved but are not gone completely. Further price increases before the company’s early order program will be necessary to maintain strong margins on products.

Consolidated net income was $56,000 for the three-month period ended Aug. 31, 2021, compared to a net loss of $(424,000) for the same period in fiscal 2020. Consolidated net loss for the nine months ended Aug. 31, 2021 was $(195,000) compared to $(1,663,000) for the same period in fiscal 2020. Art’s Way has now reported two straight quarters with net income. The overall health of the agricultural economy has stabilized its primary business segment while operational improvements have increased productivity in this time of high demand.

President and CEO of Art’s-Way, David King reports,

“I am very pleased with our third-quarter performance as the company continues to see positive results from our operational improvements. Our team continues to show impressive execution despite the challenges of supply chain disruptions, shortages of skilled labor, and inflationary pressures. To address these ongoing issues our team is working closely with suppliers to ensure delivery of critical parts, deploying industrial robots to alleviate labor shortages, and implementing new pricing to offset escalating costs.  Favorable market conditions increased sales, and a strong backlog supports our positive outlook for the fourth quarter of 2021 and the first half of 2022.”

Source: Art’s Way

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Jason Perez, CEO of YARDZ, makers of the premier independent rental management tool in construction, announced that Westley Parks has been named Chief Operating Officer of the company. As COO, Parks will hold a number of responsibilities, including management of all YARDZ strategic partners. He will also work closely with the YARDZ sales team and will interface with key customer accounts.

Parks is a 35-year veteran of the equipment rental industry and the former Chief Operating Officer of Neff Rental. As COO, he was an integral part of Neff’s growth and expansion, and eventual sale to United Rentals, where he served as a Region Vice President until early 2019. Parks began his career at Hertz Equipment Rental. He joined Neff in 1995 as Southeast Region Manager. In 1998, he was promoted to Atlantic Region Vice President, a position he held for 17 years before assuming his COO role.

Perez will rely on Parks’ extensive industry experience to help guide the company’s strategic expansion.

“You don’t find people with Westley’s breadth of experience just growing on trees,”

said Perez.

“His knowledge, industry connections, and vision are unparalleled. We expect him to be an integral part of the ambitious growth plan we’ve mapped out to increase our customer satisfaction while spreading the Yardz message to new prospects.”

A 1984 graduate of the University of Georgia, Parks holds a degree in advertising. He lives in Camden, SC, with his wife Laurie.

YARDZ is an Atlanta-based, construction tech company that helps companies manage their inventory of both owned and rental equipment more efficiently. Utilizing an intuitive and user-friendly interface, the YARDZ integration and collaboration tool is completely brand-agnostic, allowing customers to connect to their rental companies as well as see their own equipment yards all in one place.

ABOUT YARDZ

Founded in 2018 by construction industry veterans Jason Perez and Josh Schuyler, YARDZ offers the most powerful software for tracking rental and owned equipment. The YARDZ tool helps companies better understand exactly what equipment they have in their inventory and where it’s located. This saves time and money by eliminating duplicate rentals; displaying all equipment contracts and their provisions; and ensuring that available equipment is sent to the jobs where it is needed most. While originally intended for construction companies and crews, it is adaptable to a wide range of vertical markets. Suppliers who use YARDZ can also build stronger relationships with contractors and gain more rental business. Flexible pricing and multiple product versions make YARDZ applicable for companies of all sizes.

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ARA’s comments focused on the areas that have been identified by its members as priority issues, which include the following:

• Infrastructure: Investment in rural roads and bridges, railroads, ports and inland waterways, and rural broadband are critical to keeping the entire food system moving.
• Crop input production and regulation: ARA has always strongly supported a science- and risk-based regulatory system which fosters innovation, values the environmental benefits that using biotechnology enables agriculture to achieve, and recognizes the long and safe track record of plant and animal breeding along with the overwhelming evidence of the safe use of genetically engineered plants and animals. By protecting existing and emergent technologies that support production, American farmers and ranchers become more sustainable and strengthen the food supply long-term.
• Energy: ARA supports federal policies that increase domestic energy production resulting in reduced production costs for crop input materials manufactured in the United States.
• Labor: ARA favors reforms to the H-2A guest worker visa program to be more inclusive and less complicated for the employer. Additionally, ARA supports reforms to the Farm-Related Restricted Commercial Driver’s License (CDL) program, more commonly referred to as the Seasonal Ag CDL program.
• Pro-growth economic policies: ARA supports policies that will aid in its members finding a more business-friendly marketplace in which to operate. There are several barriers to entry within the American tax code that could be amended to protect ag retailers’ freedom and license to operate. These pro-growth policies will also positively impact the nation’s food supply chain and its resiliency.
• Food equity: Maintaining the ability to grow and produce food is at the heart of the American food system. This effort is led by America’s agricultural retailers working with their farm and ranch customers. Every item that consumers eat in the United States and around the world starts out being grown or produced before it eventually makes its way to the consumer’s plate.

“There is no easy fix to the supply chain disruptions facing the agriculture industry and any solutions need a multi-pronged approach including, but not limited to, issues of infrastructure, crop input production and regulation, energy, labor, pro-growth economic policies, and food equity,”

said ARA Director of Public Policy Hunter Carpenter.

“Any long-term solutions to addressing the challenges we face in supply chain disruptions will only be found through the continued partnership between the agricultural retailer, their farmer customers, and regulating authorities.”

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“There has been a notable increase in customers’ propensity to proceed with capital expenditure in all of the main application segments and this has enabled us to make a better start to the current year than originally anticipated. New orders are up by around a third compared with the first quarter of 2020. This growth, combined with a book-to-bill ratio of 1.35, gives us cause for optimism about the months ahead. At the same time, we have significantly improved our profitability. This is in no small part due to the effects of cost savings that we have already achieved thanks to the rigorous implementation of our efficiency program,”

said CEO Dr. Frank Hiller.

Significant order growth; year-on-year rise in revenue

On the back of better than expected market demand, new orders received by Deutz in the first three months of this year jumped by 30.3% compared with the first quarter of 2020 to reach €464.8 million. All of the main application segments recorded double-digit percentage increases.

Unit sales of Deutz engines rose from 31,546 to 32,249. Including Torqeedo’s electric drives for boats, the Group sold a total of 38,384 engines and motors, compared with 40,069 in the first quarter of 2020. Consolidated revenue went up by 1.1% to €343.4 million due to a favorable product mix compared with that in the prior-year period.

Significant improvement in operating profit

EBIT before exceptional items (operating profit) improved significantly to a profit of €0.8 million in the first three months of this year (Q1/2020: loss of €11.8 million), partly due to the increasingly noticeable effect of cost savings resulting from the restructuring that was initiated in 2020. Furthermore, the figure for the prior-year period had been squeezed by payments to suppliers going through insolvency proceedings. The EBIT margin before exceptional items improved to 0.2%, compared with minus 3.5 % in the first quarter of 2020.

Group guidance for 2021 raised

Having made a better start to the new year than expected, Deutz is raising its full-year guidance for 2021. Based on current information, the Company anticipates unit sales of 140,000 to 155,000 Deutz engines (previously: at least 130,000), resulting in an increase in revenue to between €1.5 billion and €1.6 billion (previously: at least €1.4 billion). In view of the continued successful expansion of the service business, we still anticipate that service revenue will increase to around €400 million.

The Company had originally expected to at least break even in terms of EBIT margin before exceptional items in 2021 but now predicts that this margin will be in the range of 1.0% to 2.0%.

The supply situation remains difficult

The above guidance has been issued on the basis of current business performance and the current supply situation. The ongoing coronavirus pandemic and problems with the global supply of semiconductors are continuing to create uncertainties, making it impossible to accurately predict the potential impact on business performance, for example as a result of supply shortages. Difficulties with the supply of some components are expected to continue until at least the third quarter.

The quarterly statement for Q1/2021

The full quarterly statement for the first quarter of 2021, including the final results, will be published as scheduled on May 6, 2021.

Source: Deutz

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Power Systems is taking advantage of the crisis to prepare for a shift in its business model towards integrated solutions for drive-power and energy needs in the post-COVID era – with a special focus on sustainable, climate-friendly technologies. This is being aided by a reorganization featuring special business units for “Sustainable Power Solutions” and for China as well as investments in new technologies and site facilities.

Profitable despite revenue hit

“The COVID-19 crisis hit us hard, but we are still profitable, albeit not as profitable as in previous years. However, this is proof positive of the resilient nature of our business,”

said Andreas Schell, CEO of Rolls-Royce Power Systems.

Profit in the commercial marine segment was adversely affected by the pandemic-related collapse in tourism, among other factors.

Shipyards closed down temporarily, hitting the yacht business, and economic uncertainty in many sectors of the economy led to a slowdown in capital investment and, in particular, shelving of plans to purchase power generation solutions. Public sector sales remained stable.

“The relatively good result for the year is largely down to a strict cost and liquidity management regime which we have applied throughout to mitigate the impact of the drop in revenue,”

emphasized CFO Louise Öfverström. The company says it saw signs of an initial recovery in the second half of the year, however extensive lockdowns in many parts of the world since then continue to dampen customers’ willingness to invest. 

Öfverström continued:

“We expect an improvement in order intake during the first half of 2021, converting into a recovery in sales from the second half of the year with revenues returning to approximately 2019 levels in 2022.

Impact of the pandemic well under control

Ensuring employee health while maintaining production so that customer orders can be fulfilled was one of the key challenges in this pandemic year.

“We managed this very well without having to stray off our chosen transformation path,”

said CEO Andreas Schell.

Three acquisitions drive activities as a solution provider

Despite the financial challenges presented by COVID, Power Systems acquired three businesses last year in order to be able to ramp up activities as a solution provider to customers in a variety of markets. In 2020, Power Systems acquired Kinolt, a Belgian company making uninterruptible power supply systems using rotating flywheels, and Servowatch, a British ship automation manufacturer, as well as taking a majority stake in Qinous, now Power Systems’ microgrid competence center.

The companies are being integrated into the Power Systems division.

“The Rolls-Royce Group enabled us to make these investments in our future in 2020 despite exceedingly difficult economic conditions. This illustrates the great confidence the Group has in us, particularly with regard to climate-friendly and environmentally friendly solutions,”

continued Schell.

Major investment – from fuel cells to production facilities

The company will be continuing down its transformation path in 2021 with selective investment in climate-friendly products, fully integrated solutions, and existing site facilities, as well as continuing to drive the company’s established lines of business.

“This year and last year, the larger-scale investments we made alone in extending our production sites up to a high double-digit-million amount. This is another way we are using the time of crisis to emerge stronger,”

said Dr. Otto Preiss, member of the board for R&D and operations.

Production of the MTU EnergyPack battery storage containers is being expanded to over 50 containers per year at the company’s Ruhstorf facility in Lower Bavaria. In just twelve months, Power Systems has already made its mark on the market for renewable and smart energy solutions with interesting orders, for example in the South Pacific, Costa Rica, Australia, and Norway.

Hydrogen, the fuel of the future

In Friedrichshafen, the company is working hard on ways to exploit hydrogen as the fuel of the future:

“We’re convinced that hydrogen has a key role to play in the green energy revolution,”

stressed Schell.

A demonstration emergency power generator using fuel cell technology is expected to go live in the first half of the year. Developers are also working on hydrogen engines and engines using methanol-based on climate-neutrally produced hydrogen.

Millions being invested in core business

“These major investments in our future are being funded by proceeds from today’s core business. It is the mainstay of our division, which is why we continue to invest heavily in it,”

said Schell. The materials management center in Kluftern near Friedrichshafen will be expanded this year and next. Among other things, the Friedrichshafen assembly line for MTU Series 2000 engines is to be moved temporarily to the 10,000 sqm facility, which has already been approved, to allow refurbishment of the existing plant. Other major investments include a machining center for large engine housings, completion of the plant expansion in Mankato, and the microgrid at the Aiken plant (both in the US), hydrogen infrastructure for the Friedrichshafen and Augsburg plants, and test stand refurbishments.

Newly positioned for customer proximity, the green energy revolution, and new markets

The fundamental strategic course of the Power Systems division is also reflected in its reorganization, which will take effect on 31 March.

“Our transformation to a solution provider requires us to be even closer to customers so that we can make it clear to them what benefits we can now offer them. After all, we’re already so much more than an engine maker,”

Schell continued.

The core business featuring propulsion and drive solutions for vehicles – from combine harvesters to mining machines – and ships are to be pulled together under Mobile Power Solutions. All activities involving diesel and gas engine-powered power plants, from combined heat and power plants to emergency power supplies for safety-critical facilities, will come under Stationary Power Solutions.

The Sustainable Power Solutions unit is of particular importance. It will manage closely all existing and future innovative solutions for more climate-friendly and more environmentally friendly drive power, propulsion, and electrical power supplies. These will range from energy storage containers and fuel cells to the production and use of synthetic fuels. It will promote the use of new technologies for the green energy revolution across all areas of application and ensure that switching to new, climate-friendly solutions is as easy as possible for the company’s customers.

The task of a unit entitled ‘Power Solutions for Greater China‘ will be to continue to develop the growing markets in China.

“We have been positioning ourselves increasingly well in China recently, and just at the end of the year, we signed a sensational contract there for 1,000 engines. We want to become even more successful in this fast-growing market, but the Chinese market requires a special approach. That’s why we need an independent business unit there that can meet Chinese requirements specifically and individually,”

said Schell, explaining this move.

“The new organization is the next logical step in implementing our PS 2030 strategy,”

he added, emphasizing:

“2021 is the year we’re going to transform into a solution provider.”

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AGCO Corporation released the latest update of its Application Crop Tour findings. The AGCO Crop Care Team designed this year’s AGCO Application Crop Tour to show several best practices to maximize the effectiveness of a weed-control program.

Darren Goebel, AGCO director of Global Agronomy and Farm Solutions, says:

“When it comes to controlling weeds, there’s this battle going on between productivity, efficacy, and drift control. Growers want to get over as many acres as they can without having to stop and refill the sprayer. But with today’s contact herbicides, they need to get good coverage while also ensuring that the product they’re spraying reaches its intended target.”

Proper sprayer set-up is key to achieving desired weed-control results.

Using demonstration plots of LibertyLink crops, cotton in Georgia, and soybeans in Illinois, the AGCO team examined the effects of ground speed, sprayer nozzles, droplet size, carrier volume, and sprayer boom height.

Jason Lee, the AGCO agronomist, and farm solutions specialist, says that regardless of treatment, the biggest takeaway from the plots in Illinois was the importance of weed-control timing. Because the plots did not initially experience much weed pressure, the agronomists waited for more weeds to emerge, which allowed some troublesome waterhemp plants to get quite large.

“The problem with waiting for a full flush of weeds before spraying is that some weeds will get way too big and really hard to control. We should control weeds when they’re small: four inches or less in height.”

Lee explains, adding that applicators should read and follow all product label instructions.

Based on what he observed in the Georgia cotton plots, Goebel recommends applying at least 15 gallons of carrier volume per acre, using nozzles that produce a coarse droplet.

“If you’re going to use nozzles that produce larger droplets, you really should bump the water up some more to ensure you’re getting good coverage,”

he says.

Sprayers equipped with pulse width modulation systems help ensure applicators are maintaining constant pressure, rate, and droplet size no matter the speed at which the application occurs.

Another application factor the AGCO team evaluated was boom height. Goebel says that the coverage penalty for improper height can be severe. The team compared the coverage and weed control achieved with booms at 20 inches and 60 inches above the target.

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