Agribusiness Showcase & Conference Holds Summer Workshop for Iowa CCAs


The 2016 CCA Summer Workshop was a combination of hands-on demonstrations in field plots and classroom discussions. The workshop was held on August 8 at the Iowa State University (ISU) Field Extension and Education Lab (FEEL) in Boone, IA. FEEL is a 23-acre teaching and demonstration facility dedicated to providing a hands-on learning experience for crop production professionals. Each of the instructors at FEEL is a subject-matter specialist familiar with crops, soils, or pest problems throughout Iowa.

Each year the Agribusiness  Showcase & Conference holds a summer workshop for Iowa Certified Crop Advisers (CCAs). The workshop tuition is included in the February conference ticket price. All other tuition is $50 for individuals who are interested in earning Continuing Education Units (CEUs).

The morning sessions during the summer workshop not only covered important crop management topics. Discussions and plot demonstrations ranged from corn & soybean disease, nutrient deficiency, and corn root worm. After lunch ISU Dean’s Professor in the College of Ag and Life Sciences, Matt Helmers, gave an update to nutrient management in Iowa.

We are pleased to share that AAI CEO, Joel Brinkmeyer, also spoke to the group in the afternoon. Brinkmeyer touched on a variety of subjects, including an update on the Des Moines Water Works lawsuit and how it affects agriculture/agribusiness.

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Joel Brinkmeyer, Agribusiness Association of Iowa CEO, speaks to a room of 60 Iowa Certified Crop Advisers during the summer workshop at the ISU Field Extension Education Lab in Boone, IA.

Other afternoon speakers included, Clare Lindahl, Conservation Districts of Iowa; Tim Recker, Land Improvement Contractors of Iowa & Iowa Producer; Tim Palmer, Iowa Learning Farms Farmer – Madison County speaking on cover crops in Iowa.

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Left to Right: Tim Palmer, Learning Farms Farmer, Clare Lindahl, Conservation Districts of Iowa, Tim Recker, Land Improvement Contractors of Iowa and Farmer spoke to the CCA Summer Workshop on Cover Crops in Iowa and their experiences with utilizing the conservation tool.