Around The Industry

Former Crystal President/CEO ‘Sugar Man of Year’ Honoree

James (“Jim”) Horvath, former president and CEO of American Crystal Sugar Company, was recognized as “Sugar Man of the Year — 2008” during a May luncheon of the Sugar Club in New York City.

Horvath is the 51st recipient of the Dyer Memorial Award, named after the founder of B.W. Dyer & Company, a 106-year-old brokerage company in sweeteners and foods.

A Milwaukee native, Horvath graduated from the University of Wisconsin before beginning his business career at Miller Brewing Company. He joined American Crystal in 1985 as vice president of finance. He was named vice president for joint ventures in 1994, in which capacity he served as chief operating officer of ProGold, LLC, a joint venture with Golden Growers Cooperative in the construction and operation of a corn wet milling plant near Wahpeton, N.D.

Horvath was selected as American Crystal’s president and CEO in 1998. He served in that post until retiring in 2007, completing the longest tenure of head of American Crystal since its establishment as a cooperative in 1973.

During his tenure, Horvath led the Moorhead, Minn.-based cooperative — the nation’s largest sugarbeet processor — through unprecedented growth in production, sales and profitability. Sugar production increased by 55%, company revenues by 80% and total capital investment by 30%.

Horvath was integrally involved in the formation of United Sugars Corporation, which presently markets sugar for American Crystal, Minn-Dak Farmers Cooperative and Florida-based United States Sugar Corporation. He also was a director of Midwest Agri-Commodities, the co-product marketing arm of Crystal, Minn-Dak, Southern Minnesota Beet Sugar Cooperative and Michigan Sugar Company.

Along with serving as board member and chairman of the Sugar Association and as a trustee of the United States Beet Sugar Association, Horvath also represented the sugarbeet processing sector on the U.S. Sweetener Task Force to implement the sugar provisions of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA).

RRV Sugarbeet Museum 2009 Harvest Festival Is Sept. 13

The Red River Valley Sugarbeet Museum in Crookston, Minn., will celebrate its 5th annual Harvest Festival on Sunday, Sept. 13. The event begins with a pork dinner from 11:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. Later, sugarbeet plots will be harvested using methods ranging from hand topping and forking onto wagons, to 1950s-era toppers and diggers.

Two newly restored implements will be featured at this year’s event: a one-row Marbeet harvester mounted on an 88 Oliver, and a one-row John Deere lifter mounted on a Model 50 JD. Additional antique beet machinery also will be on display.

For more details, visit the museum’s website at www.sugarbeetmuseum.com.

SESVanderHave Initiates Sales Of Roundup Ready Varieties

SESVanderHave has announced that as of August 3, growers in the Red River Valley can claim their allotment of Roundup Ready® sugarbeet seed for the 2010 season. Growers will not be asked to sign contracts or purchase orders until the selling season for 2010 planting, which begins in October 2009.

“This is a significant time for our company,” says Nick Revier, director of sales and marketing. “We were number one for a long time with our conventional varieties, and we’ve been a little quiet in the marketplace the last two years. Now that our Roundup Ready genetics are ready, we expect strong demand for our varieties.”

Mark Anfinrud, SESVanderHave sugarbeet seed product manager, has been pleased with the results in the field so far. “We’re seeing some impressive early season numbers with speed of emergence, final stand counts and vigor ratings in the research fields,” says Anfinrud. “Our goal all along has been to come to market with Roundup Ready varieties that are as good or better than our conventionals. So far we’re seeing our additional work pay off.”

SESVanderHave will continue to produce conventional varieties as well. “We know not all growers are ready to plant 100% Roundup Ready,” says Revier. “Some growers still need our Tandem Technology and other disease-specific packages. We’re striving to convert these varieties to Roundup Ready with the plan of having Roundup Ready Tandem Technology by 2013.”

New Compendium of Beet Diseases and Pests Published

The second edition of Compendium of Beet Diseases and Pests is available from the American Phytopathological Society. It is a complete revision of the first edition, updated and expanded to provide current and relevant beet production problems into one comprehensive volume.

This revision was authored by 28 scientists affiliated with 14 different institutions or organizations, and contains nearly more than 300 new images. This edition is organized into several major sections, including a new introduction with brief histories of beet production, botany and breeding.

The remainder of the book is divided into five major parts: biotic disorders, abiotic disorders, postharvest deterioration of sugarbeet, major insect and arthropod pests, and newly emerging issues. Each disease’s description includes a general account of its importance and world distribution, symptoms, causal organism or agent, disease cycle and epidemiology, management, and selected references.

Though emphasizing sugarbeets, the information also pertains to problems associated with other forms of beets, such as fodder, table (red) beet and Swiss chard. The compendium will be useful to field workers, diagnosticians, plant pathologists, extension specialists, agronomists, entomologists, vegetable horticulturalists and others.

This book can be purchased for US $65 plus shipping and handling from the American Phytopathological Society. To order, go to www.shopapspress.org or call (800) 328-7560.

Schlagel Introduces Hydraulic Trip System for Till-N-Plant

Schlagel Mfg. is introducing the “Hydraulic Tri Reset” row unit for their strip-till machine, the “Till-N-Plant.” When the deep tilling shank hits an obstruction, the shank rotates backward and up over the obstruction. A hydraulic accumulator maintains constant trip system pressure and forces the shank to return to working position without stopping the tilling operation. Working depth of the shank can be set from six to 16 inches deep.

Schlagel’s Till-N-Plant strip-till machine with the new Hydraulic Trip System is designed for the farmer who wants the benefits of strip tilling, but has never found a machine tough or versatile enough to run in extreme conditions, such as rocks or hardpan. The unit’s components adjust easily and quickly with either a pin or single bolt.

This machine is available in common row widths as narrow as 20 inches. The Till-N-Plant’s units come standard with a 22-front front flat coulter, 3/4-inch thick tillage shank, 20-inch rear wavy coulters, and dual wheel rear packers. Other options include dry, liquid or anhydrous fertilizer application equipment, row cleaners and one-inch thick shank, trailer hitch and markers.

SipCam Now Distributor for ‘Actinovate’ Biofungicide

SipcamAdvan announced in mid-July that as part of its strategy to further strengthen its proprietary portfolio of biorational plant protection products, the company has been appointed as exclusive distributor for the biofungicide Actinovate® for use in select crops and turfgrass in the United States.

Actinovate, manufactured by Natural Industries, Inc., contains the active ingredient, Streptomyces lydicus strain WYEC 108. Depending on where it is applied, the product protects seedlings, crops or turfgrass roots or foliage, improving nutrient uptake, plant vitality and yield.

Actinovate is effective against a broad spectrum of soil-borne diseases, such as damping off and root rots, and suppresses certain foliar diseases. The product is tank-mix compatible with most chemical fungicides and insecticides, as well as fertilizers. Formulated as a water-soluble powder, it can be applied as a soil drench, or foliar spray.

SipcamAdvan has exclusive distribution rights for potatoes, sugarbeets, soybeans, peanuts, alfalfa, clover, corn, small grains, oilseeds and turfgrass.

2010 Sugarbeet Institute Set for March 17 & 18 in Grand Forks

The 48th International Sugarbeet Institute has been scheduled for March 17 and 18, 2010, at the Alerus Center in Grand Forks, N.D. This annual event, which rotates between Grand Forks and Fargo, is North America’s largest sugarbeet trade show.

Companies desiring preliminary exhibiting information for the 2010 International Sugarbeet Institute can contact exhibits coordinator Bob Cournia at (218) 281-4681. Other ISBI-related inquiries should be directed to Dr. Mohamed Khan, committee chairman, at (701) 231-8596.