Bruce Favinger
Retailer: Ty Fickensher (Cooperative Producers, Inc. (CPI)
Paul Loyer
Retailer: Brandon McClure (Morral Companies)
Temple Rhodes
Retailer: Allan Spray (Willard Agri-Service)
Barry and Dan Turner
Retailer: Ed Lane (Crop Production Services (CPS)
State: Indiana
Retailer: Nick Sommers (Crop Production Services (CPS))
Grower: Bruce Favinger
Retailer: Ty Fickensher (Cooperative Producers, Inc. (CPI)
State: Nebraska
What Ty says about the 4Rs:
“The 4R Nutrient Stewardship Program promotes placing nutrients using the most efficient methods to maximize crop production while minimizing underutilized product and environmental impact. Growers implementing the 4Rs choose to be better stewards of the land by being critical of the inputs that are used and the methods that are used to apply them”.
What Bruce says about the 4Rs:
“The 4Rs program is a great commonsense approach to a complete fertilizer plan. It is the way we should all be looking at our fertilizer, and as an industry, agriculture needs to take a proactive approach to the environmental practices that we use and then tell consumers what we are doing and why it is good for a safe food production system”.
Grower: Paul Loyer (Loyer Farms)
Retailer: Brandon McClure (Morral Companies)
State: Ohio
Paul Loyer, Loyer Farms, Marion, Ohio, 3,000-acre corn, soybean and wheat producer nominated by Morral Companies, Morral, Ohio. Specific placement of nutrients at rates determined by GPS-linked information helps the Loyer family boost fertilizer efficiency while protecting the environment. Paul and his sons work with Morral Companies’ Brandon McClure to increase farm profitability while remaining good stewards of the family’s land to maintain its value for future generations, and reduce the potential runoff of nutrients to no-target ares.
What Brandon says about the 4Rs:
“The 4R program is a great way for us to help people understand what we are doing to keep agriculture successful and safe. That’s true for those of us involved directly as well as for people who may reside near it and for all those who may not realize how they are affected by agriculture. Even though we understand that we are doing things in a safe and productive way, others may not. If we do not highlight what we are doing to keep agriculture safe and bountiful, the very population for whom we are producing healthier food and other products may very well limit where we can go in the future with agriculture”.
What Paul says about the 4Rs:
“The 4R program is something we had already been doing on our farm. It allows us to be a better steward of the land we intend to have provide for our families for generations to come. We believe that the implementation of these practices has not only allowed for us to better manage our nutrients, but be more profitable in doing so.”
Grower: Temple Rhodes (Chestnut Manor Farm)
Retailer: Allan Spray (Willard Agri-Service)
State: Maryland
Temple Rhodes, Chestnut Manor Farm, Centreville, Md., 2,200-acre corn, soybean and beef producer nominated by Willard Agri-Service, Maryland. On the eastern shore of Chesapeake Bay, the Rhodes family takes a proactive approach to nutrient management. A strip-till system applies all fertilizer beneath the soil surface, tissue sampling assesses crop need and rates reflect site-specific data. Temple works with Willard Agri-Service’s Allan Spray to make cropping decisions that result in higher nutrient use efficiency and increased farm profitability.
What Allen says about the 4Rs:
“The 4R program is central to what we do as an ag retailer for our customers. Helping our customers maximize nutrient use efficiency is a critical part of both the economic and ecologic well-being of our farming environment. The 4R philosophy is part of all the recommendations we make and also drives our thought process on formulation of the products we sell.”
What Temple says about the 4Rs:
“Many of my farms border the Chesapeake Bay. As I strive to grow and improve my farming operation, the practices of the 4R program are helping me to get higher yields and also be a good steward of the environment”.
Grower: Barry and Dan Turner (Turner Brothers Farm)
Retailer: Ed Lane (Crop Production Services (CPS)
State: Louisiana
Barry and Dan Turner, Turner Brothers Farm, Mer Rouge, La., 5,600-acre corn, soybean, rice and grain sorghum producers nominated by Crop Production Services (CPS), Louisiana. The Turner brothers utilize grid sampling and soil management zones to enhance fertilizer efficiency and three split applications for corn production to ensure they’re meeting the crop’s nutritional needs and optimum yield potential. Barry and Dan work with CPS’s Ed Lane to stay on the forefront of emerging technologies and breakthroughs in science to help maintain the correct balance between their bottom line and being good stewards of the land they work.
What Ed says about the 4Rs:
“As a retailer selling fertilizer and application services, I don’t want to be competitive; I want to be the best. Of the fertilizer we apply, 80-90% of the phosphorus and potash and over 90% of lime is applied variable rate based on grid or zone sampling. This quantifies the value growers have found in this technology. It is our goal at Crop Productions Services to continue to take a very intentional approach to fertilization that is consistent with the 4Rs and helps our customers stay profitable”.
What Dan says about the 4Rs:
“Costs such as fertilizer, seed and equipment have nearlyquadrupled over the last 10 years. This fact alonehas necessitated we adopt practices such as the4R program. It’s a win, win situation. Economics inthis case are driving the bus that delivers higheryields and more profitability by adopting thesenew technologies. At the same time, producers,consumers and the environment are all benefittingwhen we can make sure our inputs such asfertilizer are staying where they are placed”.
Grower: Todd Welch
Retailer: Nick Sommers (Crop Production Services (CPS))
State: Indiana
Todd Welch, Lafayette, Ind., 2,300-acre corn, soybean, wheat and pork producer nominated by Crop Production Services, Indiana. Manure from Welch’s swine finishing facility is balanced with commercial fertilizer through the use of soil management zones, tissue sampling, enhanced fertilizers and split applications. Todd works with CPS’s Nick Sommers to maintain and grow the farming operation to preserve the history, heritage and promise of the future for the next generation.
What Nick says about the 4Rs:
“Along with ourcustomers, all of us at Crop Production Servicesview our role in fertilizer management to be justas vital as our farmers. A strong and responsiblefertilizer recommendation is proactive inproviding an environmentally sound future forour rural communities!”
What Todd says about the 4Rs:
“Our farming operation firmly believes that the proper use of organic and commercial fertilizer is not only vital to our operation, but also economical and environmentally friendly to our natural resources”.
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