High Plains Journal teams with John Deere for ninth annual Small Grain Solutions Program

July 27, 2012 - For the ninth year in a row, High Plains Journal and John Deere teamed up to offer the Small Grain Solutions program, a peer-to-peer networking and educational event that helps top producers in the High Plains improve their bottom line by sharing the latest in innovation, technology, education and profit.

The 2012 program, held in April, stopped in Clinton, Okla. and Dodge City and Salina, Kan., featuring dealers such as Western Equipment, Bucklin Tractor, American Implement, Unruh-Foster Inc., Prairieland Partners, Carrico Implement and Concordia Tractor Inc.

High Plains Journal wants to deliver takeaways with the program. “It could be a complete change of how a farmer looks at his operation, or it could be something as small as taking advice on how he manages his time,” says High Plains Journal editor Holly Martin.

John Deere project managers demonstrated new technology such as tillage equipment and remote access tools for GPS systems, while John Deere Solutions Specialists scouted wheat and canola crops in the field and discussed their findings.

Economist, futurist and keynote speaker Jay Lehr counseled farmers and ranchers on increasing productivity and efficiency to improve the bottom line. One suggestion for managing productivity was to journal the time spent on tasks throughout the day.

Lehr also said consumer attitudes have changed toward the American farmer and encouraged attendees to spend two hours per month inviting the public to their business to explain first-hand the business of farming. “We went from wearing a white hat, riding a white horse, to wearing a black hat on that black horse,” Lehr said. “The better the public’s attitude about farming, the longer the golden age of agriculture will last.”

By Matt Kinsman