AGRI MECH (January 2016)

(YOUR FARM TECHNOLOGY NAVIGATOR) VOL I | ISSUE 9 | JAN 2016

launched its

Ground Breaker

Press Release

The Woes of Industrial Agriculture Ibraheem Naqeeb, California

“No Till”

Is a Big White Lie

page no

28

GENE LOGSDON Proli ic author Books about agrarian issues Wyandot County, Ohio

February 23 – 24, 2016 · Dolpur Kampa – Dhansura, Aravalli, Gujarat, India

www.dlg-international.com/elddaysindia.html

D

Our Team S K Ali Editor in Chief skali85@gmail.com Raji Naqvi Advertisement Manager rajinaqvi@gmail.com

E D I T O R I A Lents Comm

emand growth in developing nations will result from greater pressure on their farming sectors to be more efficient and productive, resulting in machinery sales gains.

World demand for agricultural equipment is expected to grow 6.8 percent per year through 2016 to $175 billion. Growth will be driven primarily by sales gains in rapidly developing nations -- particularly China, Brazil, and India -- as these countries continue to mechanize their agricultural sectors. Population expansion and strong economic growth in these nations -- and in other developing nations -will put increasing pressure on their farm sectors to become more efficient and productive, resulting in growth in machinery sales.

Agricultural machinery demand in the Asia/Pacific region was more than twice that of any other region in 2011. China and India will be the primary nations fueling future market advances in the region, although other smaller markets, including Thailand and Indonesia, will also expand rapidly. Central and South America will post strong sales gains as well, powered by growth in Brazil and other countries with large, increasingly mechanized agricultural sectors, such as Argentina.

Many of the same conditions that lifted agriculture to new heights from 2007 to 2012 are now combining to deflate it for the years 2016 to 2020. In fact, this "economic reset" has already entered phase one, according to David Kohl, a retired agriculture economics professor at Virginia Tech University and frequent speaker at agriculture conferences. "It will be an economic reset, but not a crash," he explained.

He described the years 2002 to 2012 as a "great commodity supercycle," one of three such cycles in the United State since 1910. Kohl cited significant growth in the demand by emerging nations for U.S. food, fuel and fiber; the ethanol and biofuels boon; this country's strategy of low interest rates; and the favorable value of the dollar.

Sales of large production tractors and combines were impacted this year by some significant trends that we have been seeing all year. Four-wheel drive farm tractor sales were down 15 percent this year and combine sales were down 17 percent.

Despite slower sales, manufacturers continue to introduce new equipment designed to increase efficiencies and performance on farms.

"The bottom line is that the winds of economic change will increase the importance of management skills as producers navigate the dynamic environment. The importance of forging a strong bond between the producer and lender will be critical as players and stakeholders proactively navigate through the economic turbulence that may be converging on the horizon," Kohl said.

S K Ali

Swati Gupta Subscription Manager rkmedcom@gmail.com Gurdeep Singh Graphic Designer gravitygraphic@gmail.com Nidhi Webmaster nidhi@vikilinks.com

Editorial policy is independent, Views expressed by authors are not necessarily those held by the editors.

Registered as Monthly Magazine by Registrar of Newspapers for India. Vide RNI no. HARENG00941 Editorial and advertisements may not be reproduced without the written consent of the publishers. Whilst every care is taken to ensure the accuracy of the contents of AGRI MECH. The publishers do not accept any responsibility or liability for the material herein.

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TOC

06

Table of

CONTENT 28

10

10

14

14 Features Agriculture Equipment 06 Allocate Agriculture Mechanization Program : Government Investment:

22

08

Buying a Guidance System Selecting a guidance system Guidance Application

12

Future of Hydraulics Tractor Hydraulic System Next Phase of Hydraulic System

18

Wind Power Project Building Wind Farms Cash Grant for Wind Farms

Sections

04 | Agri Mech

Articles

06

Press Release

38

News

40

Event Calender

46 January 2016

Editorial Committee Dr. Said Elshahat Abdallah Associate Professor

Dr Gyanendra Singh M.Tech , Ph.D Member Task Force Committee (Agriculture) Government of Madhya Pradesh Member Academic Council, JNKVV, Jabalpur

Agricultural Process Engineering Department of Agricultural Engineering Faculty of Agriculture, Kafrelsheikh University, Kafr Elsheikh 33516, Egypt

Dr Shimon Horovitz Roberto B.Sc. Agronomy Consultant - Open fields and greenhouses Jerusalem, Israel

Douglas Ayirebide Alekiba Production Supervisor Mim Cashew and Agricultural Products Ltd Mim – Brong Ahafo, Ghana

Yash Agrawal Business Development Associate BIS Research

Dr. Joginder Singh Malik Professor of Extension Education CCS Haryana Agricultural University Hisar-125 004 (Haryana) INDIA

Dr. Ghanshyam T. Patle Assistant Professor College of Agricultural Engineering & Post Harvest Technology Central Agricultural University, Imphal, Manipur (INDIA)

Raghavan Sampathkumar Founder & Principal

A. S. Subbarao Sr.Manager - Agronomy SBU - South Agronomy Department NETAFIM, India

Dr. C R Mehta Project Coordinator, AICRP on Farm Implements and Machinery, Central Institute of Agricultural Engineering, Bhopal

SMARTAgBiz, Singapore

January 2016

05 | Agri Mech

Government Does Not Allocate Agriculture Equipment – Adekunle

T

he senior adviser on mechanization to the minister of agriculture and rural development and chairman, Advisory Ministerial Mechanization Committee (AMMC), Dr Ahmed Adekunle, speaks with Ruth TeneNatsa on the efforts of the ministry to mechanize agriculture.

Tell us about the agricultural mechanizationprogramme?

The Advisory Ministerial Mechanization Committee (AMMC) was set up in 2012 to come up with a structure that will deliver mechanization services to farmers and provide knowledge on how to manage the technology, putting into consideration the fact that farmers are limited to one or two hectares of farmland and lack the knowledge

to manage the technology which are also very expensive.

Through the committee, we were able to set up 118 Agricultural Equipment Hiring Enterprise (AEHE) centres in the six geopolitical zones equipped with ve units of tractors, harvesters, threshers and other post-harvest equipment.

The new drive by the minister of agriculture and rural development, DrAkinwumiAdesina, to commercialize and modernize agriculture is aimed at reducing drudgery through the private sector hiring scheme operated under an enterprise structure. Operators of the sectors are the owners of the equipment and service providers while farmers are the core beneciaries.

What is the monetary value of government investment in the mechanization programme?

The federal government is putting N4.6 billion, representing 30 per cent of the total project, in the rst phase while the 65 per cent component is expected to come from the private sector, with Bank of Agriculture being the main partner right now, and 20 per cent coming from the private sector. The total package of N11.6 billion is needed to make 1,050 units of tractor available in three phases. We have operational logistics involved so technically, the whole package is N11.6 billion while N4.6 billion in three phases makes the total package.

06 | Agri Mech

January 2016

How do small holder farmers benet from the scheme?

The enterprise is a demand- driven scheme in a particular area.

We are not allocating tractors to farmers, states or local governments; the scheme is a private sector-driven scheme supported by the government with 35 per cent funding structure.

It is private sector- driven in that government supports with 35 per cent, the banks bring 35 per cent and private sector brings 20 per cent. Centres must be located in demand- driven areas because there is an element aspect of it that is on credit (80 per cent at 7 per cent interest rate per annum) which means the money must be paid back within a period of four years. So you cannot locate it where you cannot get revenue.

How much impact, in terms of agricultural development, has the mechanization programme had?

It took us one and a half years to put this programme together because it entails the hardware, administrative, management and ownership aspects. We all just look at tractors even though we have enough tractors in Nigeria. Our problem is how to manage the cash ow, management and service delivery. Right now, we have distributed 590 units of tractors nationwide. We are currently running 118 AEHE centres each consisting of ve units of tractors, ve power tillers, two threshers and other harvests and post-harvest equipment. In order not to make it business as usual, there was a bidding process after we advertised in the daily newspapers and about 80 per cent of the successful bidders have taken delivery.

Dr. Ahmed Adekunle Agric

January 2016

What have you done to create awareness about the mechanisationprogramme among farmers?

We divided the country into six geopolitical zones. We created awareness in October last year in Kaduna, Enugu and Abuja and will continue in the other geo-political regions. On the publicity, we are just starting and it is very important we get to the people. I have read somewhere that the programme is allegedly being hijacked but like I said, it is won through a bidding process in which the committee, Central Bank of Nigeria and Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development were involved. It was an open bid process that was transparent and clear.

The committee is not operating 100 per cent within the ministry because the funding was made available and the committee was given the power to operate from the side of the Bank of Agriculture. But also, we agree that more needs to be done in creating awareness and we are putting in place strategies and simpler methods of reaching out to the people so that they will know and appreciate what the mechanization programme is all about.

07 | Agri Mech

ings to know before you buy

a guidance system G

l o b a l Po s i t i o n i n g S y s t e m ( G P S ) guidance systems are one of the latest and most popular advancements in farm equipment.

DGPS guidance steering aides guide the operator through the eld and can be used in place of visual marking systems such as row and foam markers. These systems need an operator steering the vehicle at all times and can be accurate up to 20 inches. These systems are prone to drift (short-term repeatability). A typical system will cost between $2600 to 5,000.

The auto-steering guidance systems have the capability to steer a machine across the eld. At the end of the eld, the driver must steer the machine to the next pass where the autosteering system will steer itself as directed.

The task of choosing a guidance system can be challenging and overwhelming because different brands offer different features. Buyers need to decide what their needs are and then choose a guidance system that matches their farming situation. Knowing the answers will help to identify the appropriate guidance system.

08 | Agri Mech

January 2016

January 2016

There are three main sources of differential signal available for use with DGPS-based guidance system.

1. The United States Coast Guard Beacon Signal (USCGBS) is limited to major bodies of water and rivers. The USCGBS is free. As the distance increases (>100 miles) from a beacon tower to the mobile antenna, the signal may be degraded or interrupted by weather or structures.

2. The second differential source is fee-based through commercial differential signal service providers. This differential source is a satellitebased correction signal and is

term repeatability) needs to be as close as possible. The guidance systems will usually have a pass-to-pass accuracy within 20 inches of the desired line. With 20-inch accuracy, a guidance system can be used on a sprayer, fertilizer spreader, tillage equipment and depending on how accurate guess rows are needed, it may be used to plant soybeans. The use of guidance steering aids to plant row crops such as corn or wheat is not recommended at this time. For needed accuracies less than 20 inches, the guidance options to increase accuracy usually require an auto-steering system.

available worldwide.

3. The newest source of differential signal is Wide-Area Augmentation System (WAAS) from the Federal Aviation Administration. This differential source is also a satellite-based correction signal. WAAS has performed well in most applications and can provide a free differential signal for the agricultural user. For guidance steering aids, the accuracy of the different DGPS single frequency correction sources should be similar for ď€ eld applications.

For guidance applications, the pass-to-pass accuracy (short-

To select a guidance system for the farming operation a few issues need to be addressed: What applications will be performed with the guidance system? The guidance steering aid will help in most agricultural operations. The exceptions may be planting. The operator will have to determine the level of error associated with guidance steering aids and planter guess row width.

What equipment will the guidance steering aid be used in? Does the equipment have an enclosure or not? If there is no enclosure then there needs to have a guidance steering aid

09 | Agri Mech

that is waterproof.

Where will the guidance steering aid be mounted? If it is inside a cab, then a suction cup mount will work or placing it on a at surface (if available). If the guidance steering aid is to be mounted on the hood, then the hood should either be metal or have some type of magnetic mount available.

Suction cups are not recommended for the hood. Fiberglass hoods can be difcult to mount guidance systems. The mounting of the guidance display may be a factor in which system suits the operation. Some display units are manufactured for inside the cab only, where others can be used inside or outside of the cab.

Features on the visual display will aid the driver in staying on the desired line of travel such as heading error (look ahead), swath number, or error from desired line of travel. These features help the driver determine the amount of correction needed for turning and staying on desired line of travel.

Make sure the GPS receiver has an update rate that will meet the needs of the guidance system. Most guidance systems have an update rate of 5-Hz to operate efciently and correctly. A faster update rate does not increase GPS receiver accuracy; it provides more location information per second.

10 | Agri Mech

Guidance displays are either a light bar or visual screen.

Light bars come in many versions, but the main premise is a row of lights that indicate where the vehicle is in respect to the desired line of travel. The visual screen may be a computer screen or LCD screen. The visual screen may help when driving curves. Both types of visual displays will aid the driver on the desired line of travel effectively. It is up the driver to determine which type of screen is suitable for the operation.

Many guidance systems have the option (serial port) for a datalogger such as PDA or yield monitor console where an application record or eld information can be collected. This information can be part of the spray record or planting pattern to overlay with future yield data. Some guidance systems will calculate boundary or applied acres, this will depend on the model and specications.

Prices differ when comparing guidance systems. Make sure that the price quoted has all of the necessary components and cables to complete the intended tasks. If an external device uses GPS such as a controller or computer, there may be special cabling needed.

January 2016

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Future of hydraulics

in farm machinery M ost of the world doesn't think tractor hydraulics is very exciting. But engineer Rich Job thinks it is. For instance, Job will tell you how, when he was a boy, it saved his back by lifting implements on the farm.

Job and experts like him also will tell you how hydraulics has advanced from simple lifting to powering implements, taking the

12 | Agri Mech

place of the tractor PTO. The science has advanced so far that in some cases you don't even have to move a lever or touch a switch to get the uids moving in a direction you need them to go. All that's taken over by tiny computer processors on valves and pumps that can shout out commands faster than our minds can even process them.

January 2016

“Today's hydraulic systems are sophisticated engineering systems,” Job says. “They allow the machine operator to perform many functions so that farmers can produce food and ber at a competitive price. Without that, the cost of that food and ber would be dramatically higher.”

Hydraulics is so interwoven into our mechanical systems that we don't even think about it anymore. But that's a mistake, experts say. The science is advancing so rapidly that if we don't stay up on the topic we could

January 2016

miss out on all the benets enabled by uid dynamics.

“Overall, it is important for tractor buyers to understand about hydraulic systems so they can properly and safely operate them,” says Kevin Watts, John Deere service instructor.

“They also won't be able to take advantage of new features if they are not informed about current hydraulic systems.”We've gathered a panel of experts to tell you what you need to know about this fast-changing science.

Jodie Wehrspann Specialized in farm machinery, technology and precision farming. Senior editor of “Farm

13 | Agri Mech

What is the purpose of tractor hydraulic systems?

RICHARD JOB: Basically, hydraulics allows the tractor operator to do tasks that require high effort with a simple push of a lever or ip of an electrical switch, which actuates the hydraulic circuit. In its simplest form, hydraulic pressure and ow can be converted to forces and motion that allow the tractor to perform tasks that an operator

cannot do physically.

SCOTT SCHELLHORN AND KEVIN WATTS: The basic purpose of tractor hydraulic systems is to use uid dynamics [uids don't compress, while air does] to perform work both on and off the tractor. Typical uses on the tractor are braking and steering.

14 | Agri Mech

Implements are the typical use of hydraulics off the tractor, and selective control valves (SCVs) control the volume of ow.

Implements use hydraulic oil to perform a variety of functions such as raising and lowering parts as well as providing power to motors and other devices for mechanical movement.

How has the purpose changed over the years?

JOHN INMAN: When I got started farming as a kid in the '50s, the hydraulic system consisted of something to raise and lower the 3pt. hitch and maybe one remote cylinder to raise a hay rake or plow.

Now you are running sophisticated air planters that have the ability to put down fertilizer at the same time as seed. This is all done through utilizing the tractor hydraulic system, whereas in the past you might have driven those things with a PTO shaft.

SS/KW: Modern farming equipment uses hydraulics for functions that were previously controlled by purely mechanical means. Today's hydraulic systems use electronics to vary

pressure and ow. As a result, hydraulic systems have become more precise and can now be used to control devices such as variable-rate planter seed drives or hydrostatic drive systems and transmissions.

ROGER LEWNO: Implements are getting larger, so hydraulics are being used not only to raise and fold the unit but also to steer and brake the unit. Our Case IH Early Riser 1260 planter uses hydraulics to steer the rear like a re truck trying to get around in the city, and we are offering hydraulic brakes tied into the tractor system to aid in stopping.

What's different about hydraulics now versus 10 or 15 years ago? How has the technology changed?

RL: We are now using pressure ow systems that produce pressure and ow only on demand and to the amount required to perform the operation. Instead of the system being at a “set” pressure and ow, the pressure and ow are controlled.

Fluid is directed by valves that are controlled electronically.

RJ: The difference in hydraulics today versus 10 to 15 years ago is in

January 2016

hydraulics what it needs.

the control capability of today's systems, the volume of uid available and the number of circuits available on the tractors. Today electronic controls allow many more types of functions to be done by hydraulics, such as trailer braking and hydraulic motor operation. The rated ow on some large tractors is now 80 to 90 gpm with up to nine remote circuits available.

JI: Manufacturers have increased the hydraulic capacity in the tractor, adding more remote valves. This has opened the opportunity for implement designers to utilize that hydraulic capability. Again, in the old days we ran a lot of things through the PTO shaft, which meant you had to use chains and have a drive shaft on the implement. Now all you need are a few hydraulic pipes and hoses and you drive the implement directly with the hydraulic motor. So the operation becomes a lot simpler and you reduce the number of parts involved. And you can control it electronically, which gives you a lot better control.

SS/KW: One big change is the use of load sensing to control a variable pump in a pressure- and owcompensated system. This new system allows control of hydraulic ow and power to specic systems upon demand while also saving fuel when no hydraulic functions are in January 2016

use. Also, as previously mentioned, another big change has been the advent of computer-controlled hydraulic systems coupled with precise-machined hydraulic components that allow the electronics to monitor and control all hydraulic systems. These system advances are particularly useful for real-time, minute mechanical movements such as innitely variable transmissions, GPS steering controls, and suspension systems.

What has enabled these advancements?

JI: It is the ability to use electronic control systems to control the hydraulics. When we are able to integrate all the nice things in the hydraulics — like the superior motors and control valves — with electronic controls, then we've just put together an awesome system.

RL: We moved away from mechanical hydraulics, where you as an operator moved a handle and pulled a lever on a spool to activate the system. From there we started using solenoids, which activated the spool, and from the solenoids we started to regulate the time limits that the solenoid can work. So instead of a manual operation, hydraulics is now tied to other functions on the machine so that the machine itself tells the

What are some examples that show just how far the technology has taken us?

SS/KW: Examples include: 1) continued increases in hydraulic capacity to meet customer demand for larger, more complex implements; 2) SCVs that have more precise controls at higher pressure and ow volumes while giving the customer more adjustability for their specic applications; 3) innitely variable transmissions that use electronically controlled hydraulic systems to vary speed and direction of drive train gearing; and 4) cab, seat and chassis suspension systems to provide greater comfort, performance and adjustability for specic applications.

RJ: Electronic headland management is one example of the many system capabilities available in hydraulics today.

RL: Look at what we've done with just the transmission on tractors. On our Magnums, for example, we have linked together a basic powershift transmission with an electronically fueled engine and enabled the operator to select the desired speed.

Then the tractor engine rpm will go up and down, and the transmission will upshift and downshift to nd the most efcient place to operate. We call this our Diesel Saver Auto Productivity Management system.

This is all done through electrohydraulic interaction.

Where is the industry headed? Where is hydraulics going to take us?

RL: I think both interfaces — electric and hydraulic — will continue to be used. So in an electrical over hydraulic portion, you'd have hydraulics to do the work and the electrical to direct when and how the hydraulics will do the work. Take a planter for instance. Maybe the planter is being driven hydraulically, and electrically we can shut off individual rows. The two interfaces are working together to make things happen.

15 | Agri Mech

What's the next phase?

RL: The next phase might come in where you do more work electrically than mechanically with hydraulics. Like with drive mechanisms, maybe we'll go to an electric drive versus a hydraulic drive and/or a mechanical drive. Today we are using transmissions, like a continuously variable transmission or powershift. But if you look at big commercial dirthauling trucks, the engine drives a generator, and the generator drives electric motors that propel the vehicle. I don't know where that technology is today, but it could come.

RL: The use of hydraulics in the future is only limited to what the operators want the tractor to do. With new developments in electromechanical systems, we will probably see some traditional hydraulic functions done by electromechanical systems where they are more cost effective and efď€ cient. Other new uses will come along that will continue the need for hydraulics on tractors.

THE PANEL RICHARD JOB is an engineering consultant (retired from AGCO) who keeps close tabs on emerging technologies JOHN INMAN is an agricultural engineer and farm advisor emeritus with the University of California Cooperative Extension Service SCOTT SCHELLHORN AND KEVIN WATTS are service instructors with John Deere Waterloo Works ROGER LEWNO is a large-tractor marketing specialist with Case IH

16 | Agri Mech

January 2016

Maximize the Benefits in Wind Power Project by Leasing

B

uilding wind farms is big business. The Global Wind Energy Council reports that wind power installations in 2010 represented $65 billion worth of investment and expanded global wind energy capacity by 22.5%. From 2005 to 2009 the world saw an average annual increase in installed wind capacity of 27%, with a high of 32% in 2009. Those new wind farms helped boost renewable energy to account for fully one quarter of global power generation capacity in 2010. A growing share of new wind projects are being built in developing countries, which are rapidly adopting pro-renewables policies. In 2010, China surpassed the United States in total installed megawatts (“MW”) of wind energy capacity. But even in the United States, where electricity demand fell during the 2008/2009 recession, aging power plants and a suite of policies that support a shift toward cleaner energy sources continue to drive

18 | Agri Mech

investment in wind power. In 2008 and 2009, the construction of wind power projects in the United States added 8,500 MW and 10,000 MW, respectively, to our national electricity grid. That accounts for 40% of all new electricity-generating capacity to come online during that period; a bigger share than any other technology. In 2010, 5,100 MW of new wind power projects were constructed. Meanwhile, the size and complexity of projects increased, capped with the nancial close on Dec. 16, 2010 of the largest land based wind farm in the world — the $1.3 billion, 813 MW Shepherds Flat project in Oregon. One key driver of this growth during the recession has been the popular federal Section 1603 cash grant program. Passed as part of the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act of 2009, the Section 1603 program allows certain renewable energy project developers to receive a grant from the U.S. Treasury Department

equal to 30% of the capital costs of the equipment used to make electricity (which, for a wind project, tends to be about 90-95% of total capital costs).

The cash grant can be elected in lieu of the previously (and still) available 30% investment tax credit or the production tax credit. The cash grant provides a lump sum of cash to the owner of the facility, monetizing the benet previously only available as a shield or offset to future tax liability.

The cash grant thus provides additional liquidity to nance construction of new renewable power projects. Absent the Section 1603 stimulus, tax credits alone would have been insufcient to enable so much new investment. In any market, energy project developers typically do not earn signicant enough prots during the early years of operation to be able to use tax credits themselves, and during the recession the outside tax equity investors who stepped in to buy those benets became scarce.

January 2016

The cash grant was set to expire at the end of 2010, but at the 11th hour Congress renewed it for one more year.

The bill that extended the grant, The Tax Relief, Unemployment Insurance Reauthorization, and Job Creation Act of 2010, enacted on Dec. 17, 2010, also created a new tax incentive of 100% bonus depreciation for qualifying capital investments placed in service between Sept.

8, 2010 and the end of 2011.

During 2012, the depreciation bonus is scheduled to continue at a decreased level of 50%.

Now that Congress has renewed the cash grant, and as the U.S. economy tacks toward recovery in the wake of the nancial crisis, growth in the construction of wind energy projects appears to be rebounding above 2010 numbers. Credit markets have

loosened up since late 2008 and 2009, and term lending has increased. Nonetheless, in 2010 we still saw the demand for tax equity from wind power projects exceeds supply. Access to some sources of capital is especially constrained for riskier projects using newer technologies or a larger scale.

Leveraged lease structures can help by both: 1) efciently employing federal and state incentives for wind projects; and 2) leveraging predictable cash ows to attract additional sources of institutional capital.

THE BENEFITS OF LEASING STRUCTURES IN WIND PROJECT FINANCE In a traditional project nancing structured to monetize tax incentives, such as the investment tax credit and bonus depreciation for renewable energy projects, the developer

shares ownership in the project venture with tax equity investors seeking to offset prots from other unrelated business. In such a structure, a developer and a tax equity investor purchase interests in a joint venture created to own the project assets and take on long-term nonrecourse debt from lenders. The project assets serve as collateral for the debt. In a wind deal the project assets typically include wind turbines and related electrical equipment, long-term agreements for the sale of power and possibly its monetizeable renewable energy attributes (renewable energy credits), all project cash ows, and rights to the real property on which the turbines are installed.

In the nite period during which a wind project provides a tax shield, the tax equity investor is allocated a large majority — often over 90% — of the project’s income, loss and tax attributes. After the investor earns a specied rate of return from cash distributions and tax allocations, the ownership of the joint venture “ips” so that the developer holds 90% or 95% of the ownership interests, with the tax equity investor’s stake accordingly reduced. After the ip, the developer often retains an option to purchase the tax equity investor’s remaining interest at fair market value, which can be exercised at predetermined times.

Using a lease structure can benet wind project nancings in January 2016

ALLAN T. MARKS Financing Advisor High Prole Projects Los Angeles, California, USA

either the cash grant or tax incentive context. A lease structure will not always be preferable, of course — the legal framework of the particular policy incentives used to aid nancing, and the unique characteristics of the project itself, such as its construction timeline, size and goals of its developer, will determine how to best expand the pie. Navigating the applicable tax rules requires care. For instance, wind power developers may not use a sale leaseback structure and receive the production tax incentive, because such projects must be owned and operated by the taxpayer.

In a typical sale leaseback structure a tax-advantaged equity investor buys a qualifying wind facility from a developer, and immediately leases the facility back to the developer (or to a special purpose vehicle owned by the developer). The lessee must pay xed rent (or a xed termination value in the event of loss of the assets) to the investor/lessor, for the term of the lease. The lease payments are typically due come “hell or high water,” despite any glitches in the project’s performance or force majeure events. The developer lessee bears all of the operating costs, which are typically paid ahead of rent. At the end of the lease term, the investor/lessor still owns the facility, but the developer/lessee usually retains an option to buy it from the lessor at fair market value.

19 | Agri Mech

In a deal that uses either the cash grant or a tax incentive like the federal investment tax credit, xed rent payments offer the prospect of predictable long-term revenue for the equity investors. This can expand the pool of institutions attracted to the transaction, including those that would not normally purchase membership interests directly in a project venture.

For a project developer, while the risk of defaulting on its loans may increase due to the rigidity of the lease payments to the lessor, the upside also improves, because the project developer immediately captures any prots that rise above those lease payments. In order to manage uctuating revenue ows that mirror the natural intermittency of wind, leveraged leases in wind nancings can be structured with quarterly or semi-annual rent payment periods (rather than monthly), and built-in cash reserves to be funded during high-production times.

Due to the regulations governing the use of federal renewable energy incentives, a lease structure can lend some extra

20 | Agri Mech

exibility in timing. A sale leaseback transaction can close up to 90 days after the facility is placed in service and still receive the cash grant or investment tax credit, whereas a traditional “partnership ip” tax equity investment must achieve nancial close before the facility is placed in service.

The sale leaseback structure also allows a project to be up to 100% nanced by a combination of tax equity in the lessor and debt, whereas in a partnership the developer must often fund a portion of the equity interests.

For developers applying for a cash grant another benet of the sale leaseback structure is that the value of the property that forms the basis for the grant amount is the independently appraised fair market value of the facility when transferred to the lessor, rather than its original cost basis. Thus, once the project has been packaged by the developer and sold to the lessor, the eligible cost of the facility becomes the price of the whole package. If the fair market value is higher than the original cost basis of the facility’s equipment, this can

January 2016

potentially result in a larger cash grant award.

HATCHET RIDGE: A CASE IN POINT Hatchet Ridge, a 101.2 MW wind project developed by a subsidiary of Pattern Energy LP, became operational in October 2010, and less than 90 days later closed a renancing using an innovative sale leaseback structure. The project, located in the mountains of Shasta County in northern California, was the only large-scale wind farm to come online in California in 2010. It was also the rst leveraged lease transaction closed since the 1980s to renance a wind farm already producing and selling power.

The project company, Hatchet Ridge LLC, entered into a power purchase agreement with Pacic Gas & Electric Company to buy the facility’s electricity — the power equivalent needed to serve 44,000 homes — for 15 years. The project generates electricity from forty-four 2.3 MW wind turbines made by Siemens Energy.

The innovative structure of the deal attracted both equity and debt from various institutional investors, each of whom provided funds to the owner/lessor. The owner/lessor used that money to purchase the project from the developer, with an agreement to lease it back. CréditAgricole Corporate and Investment Bank (“CA-CIB”) provided a letter of credit facility. CréditAgricole Securities acted as sole placement agent for debt securities in the project in the form of Pass-Through Certicates designed with a term longer than the project’s power purchase agreement and an attractive coupon. A consortium of insurance companies bought $143 million worth of Pass-Through Certicates, demonstrating the depth of the institutional private placement debt market for renewable energy deals, while another institutional investor acquired the equity in the lessor.

From the beginning, the developer had planned for Hatchet Ridge to elect the Section 1603 cash grant in lieu of the investment tax credit. This meant that the deal required only enough tax equity to take advantage of depreciation benets. The lessor received a cash grant, reducing the effective amount needed to fund the sale leaseback. But by structuring the deal as a sale leaseback transaction, the developer was able to maximize the value of the project’s cash ow to its equity investors as well as to its lenders. Thus, the leveraged lease was the perfect device to attract institutional capital, reducing the developer’s need to tie up its own cash, which can now be redeployed to build other projects.

WHERE NEXT? With the extension of the full suite of federal incentive programs for wind energy projects — this year with increased depreciation benets — and tax equity still elusive, well-structured sale leaseback transactions may continue to help wind projects get nanced. For the right projects, sale leaseback structures can efciently employ many of the incentives designed to spur renewables, while drawing in capital-rich institutions that have not traditionally participated in energy project nance. In today’s policy and market landscape, the leveraged lease has become a valuable tool in the toolboxes of renewable energy developers and nanciers.

January 2016

21 | Agri Mech

The Woes of Industrial

AGRICULTURE IbraheemNaqeeb California

O

ur relationship with the earth changed fundamentally when we began practicing

agriculture some ten thousand years ago. The transition from nomadic to settler life allowed for the evolution of great civilizations, and the growth of human cultures. Agriculture also made possible the increased rise in population, which in turn created the need for more agriculture, and the cyclical relationship between the two put a greater and greater strain on the environment. Civilizations fell when they exceeded the carrying capacity of their locale, or depleted their resource base, and others emerged elsewhere in their stead. However, for the most part the growth continued unhampered as human beings mined millions of years of energy storage. Then came the industrial revolution, followed a century or so later by the green revolution, allowing for greater exploitation of the earth’s resources.

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January 2016

In just these last two centuries the world population has

industrial model of

agriculture is

taken a gigantic leap from one billion to over seven billion

not only

today. Mechanization, the use of fossil fuels, and technological

truly one of the

advancement have brought radical change in how human

survival. The

beings organize their lives, creating novel social and

agriculture

economic structures unprecedented in human history. The

claiming that theirs is the best, most efcient method, and the

agrarian lifestyle was abandoned for the urban lifestyle and

only hope of feeding an exponentially growing population in a

today, for the rst time in human history, there are more

changing world. In this article I will take a closer look at the

people living in cities than rural areas. These changes have

main arguments they put forward and attempt to show how

led to the displacement of food production at the individual,

awed the case for industrial agriculture really is.

local, and community level; food production has now been

The primary argument for the application of industrial

outsourced to multi-national corporations and large

agriculture is that mass production is needed to support an

agribusinesses. The bulk of human population today are

increasing world population and this can only be achieved

consumers rather than producers, and utterly dependent on

through broad acre monocultures, increased mechanization

the global market economy for their daily bread. This

and the use of heavy machinery, chemical fertilizers, and a

detachment has created a crisis of awareness about how and

broad spectrum of biocides, combined with novel scientic

from where our food comes to us, and the true cost of eating.

innovations such as bioengineering. The predominant view is

There have been serious concerns about our farming

that the employment of these conventional methods is the

practices for some time now, but it is only very recently that

most efcient way to produce food and make it available to

these concerns have become a topic of any serious discourse

the public at large at a cheap cost. Alternative methods are

in the public sphere. There is a growing argument that the

regularly vilied as economically inefcient and ineffective, if

green revolution was in fact, anything but green, and that the

not downright implausible. There is an underlying assumption

sustainable, but is greatest threats to human proponents of industrial have responded equally ercely

that things are working well, and since they have worked in the past there is no reason to suspect that they should not continue to do so in the future. Whenever any concerns arise about the soundness of this assumption, they are generally swept under the rug with promises of greater technological xes and scientic miracles. It is a popular — almost religious — belief that science can and will solve all of humanity’s problems.

January 2016

23 | Agri Mech

While monocultures may seem impressive to the sight in terms of the size and scale of the operation, it is an ecological aberration that cannot sustain and support itself as a system and is totally dependent on external sources of energy. Natural systems prefer, and in fact, are dependent on diversity to function as an integrated self-supporting whole. If we look at a natural forest, or any other intact ecosystem for that matter, we will not nd single species of ora and fauna dominating over large areas. Diversity is one of the primary indicators of a healthy ecosystem, and by that standard a monoculture could be compared to a patient on life support.

Unlike conventional agricultural systems, which are supported by articial and external inputs of energy, sound ecosystems are completely selfsufcient. Furthermore, the creation of

monocultures requires a large area of space, which is created by cutting down forests, leveling hills, and otherwise encroaching on natural ecosystems that provide vital services to all life forms.

The management of broad acre monoculture farms is inherently inefcient. Every stage of the operation, from ground preparation for planting to harvesting the crop, requires the use of energy intensive heavy machinery, which also damages and degrades the soil. The practice of plowing, especially deep plowing with heavy machinery, leads to rapid soil loss, and declining fertility. The problem of erosion is further compounded by irrigation, farming on slopes, and leaving a clear eld after harvest, which opens it up to wind and water erosion. The Dust Bowl of the 1930s was a result of such poor farming practices, and resulted in hundreds of tons of soil loss — not to

mention the great human devastation it caused. Soil is the basis of agriculture, and any system that does not value it as such, cannot be described as anything but self-destructive. It is no coincidence then that the industrial model of agriculture developed largely in the temperate climates, which are rich with deep top soils, which made it possible for years of exploitative farming.

However, a look at the rate of topsoil loss as a result of agriculture in comparison with the rate at which topsoil is replenished naturally reveals the mathematical unsustainability of the project. Scientists estimate that topsoil is built “at about 2-4 t/ha per year as uncompact topsoil, but which we remove at a rate of from 40-500 t/year in cropping and soil tillage. Even the most ideal tillage just keeps pace with the most ideal conditions of soil formation, and in the worst cases we

can remove 2000 years of soil in a single erosion season, or one sequence of ood or strong wind over cultivated soils...”

Industrial agriculture is also heavily reliant on fossil fuel based chemical fertilizers, which gives rise to a number of serious concerns. The use of fossil fuels in the manufacturing of these fertilizers adds to the total energy

embodied in the nal product, and the overall inefciency of the process.

According to a study published by the New York University it takes about ten calories of fossil fuels to produce one calorie of edible food. Aside from the concerns about the looming energy crisis, and the unsustainability of fossil fuels, the environmental consequences of using synthetic fertilizers is cause

for legitimate and immediate concern.

Synthetic fertilizers are water soluble, and they leech into the ground water with every irrigation and rain event, polluting our water supplies, which poses a signicant threat to human health. The damage is far greater, and obvious, to river and marine biology, as the fertilizers travel through the ground, to the rivers, and ultimately to

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January 2016

the oceans, leaving behind a toxic trail of death and destruction. Of course, the pollution does not really end there, and keeps returning to the source — us — as the toxicity is biologically accumulated up the food chain to our dinner tables. Chemical fertilizers also destroy the natural fertility of the soil by killing the soil biology that makes nutrients available to plants, requiring heavier and heavier application of fertilizers. As the soil life collapses, so does the soil structure, creating adverse conditions for benecial microorganisms. The gaps left behind are quickly taken over by the bad guys: plant pests; and this leads me to the next topic of biocides.

The disturbance of soil life and structure fosters an environment for weeds and plant pests to thrive. The chemically fertilized plants, due to a lack of proper nutrition, become

increasingly susceptible to pest attacks. The problem is compounded in monocultures, which are nothing less than ‘all you can eat’ buffets for pests.

There is nothing inherently bad about pests or weeds; both are nature’s mechanisms for creating equilibrium and repairing degraded landscapes.

Instead of recognizing the source of these problems, farmers — grossly encouraged by chemical companies — see them as enemies, and react by applying herbicides and pesticides.

Fighting with nature is a lost cause as these weeds and pests evolve quickly to become resistant to the biocides, creating super weeds and super pests, requiring more powerful and more toxic poisons. This creates a violent cycle of abuse, where nature is not allowed to repair itself, and the problem is exacerbated by the continual and increasing application of poisons. The

effects of these biocides, moreover, are not limited to their target species, and have far reaching effects on other life forms; the crisis of the collapsing bee population, now widely recognized in the scientic community to be primarily the result of pesticide use, is but one example. The danger posed to human health is a thorny subject, and it is enough to say that poisoning our food is not a recipe for sound human health.

Additionally, the biocides, like the fertilizers, cannot be contained to the area of use, and end up polluting our water systems.

The problems with industrial agriculture are compounded by climate change, water scarcity, and desertication. The industry has responded to these challenges with promises of a bright future shaped by bioengineering and genetic modication, instead of recognizing

these issues as what they are — nature’s feedback to human activity.

Despite the novelty of these technologies, there is no substantial evidence as to their safety and effectiveness. On the contrary, most scientists agree that these technologies are too new, and not understood well enough to be allowed to be released into the environment. In fact, many

scientists, though their voices are not often heard in the mainstream media, strongly caution against these technologies, and believe that the potential harm far outweighs any perceived benets. While we wait for the scientic community to reach a consensus on the matter it is worth examining the nature and scope of the industry, at the helm of which is

Monsanto.

Monsanto, originally a chemical company, is a multinational corporation with the largest control over the agricultural sector around the globe.

The company has a colorful background, from its involvement in the Manhattan Project to its long list of banned past products such as the notorious Agent Orange used during the

January 2016

25 | Agri Mech

Vietnam War, PCBs, and DDT. It is now public knowledge that Monsanto knew of the adverse effects of many of these products, but suppressed the scientic ndings for years. The name Monsanto is synonymous with Roundup, its designer herbicide, which despite being one of their best selling products, is inherently awed because it does not discriminate between the target species and the desired species. In order to compensate for their bad product, Monsanto began the project of genetic modication to create ‘Roundup Ready’, herbicide resistant crops. Over the past decades Monsanto has purchased numerous small and big seed companies, making themselves the biggest player in the industry. Genetic modication now allows them to patent their seeds, and force farmers to have to buy seeds every season, instead of saving seeds as has been done for the past ten thousand years. This absurd law that allows for the patenting of life is not recognized globally, and in order to bypass the problem of legal enforcement abroad, Monsanto even created ‘Terminator Seeds’ that selfdestruct.

At home, Monsanto has been at constant war with small farmers, harassing them with lawsuits, and

26 | Agri Mech

putting them out of business under the guise of patent violation. The only crime these farmers committed is to be neighbors to farms where Monsanto’s GMO crops are grown, which inevitably cross contaminate surrounding crops, a natural process that the farmers have no control over.

This type of behavior is not unique to Monsanto, and others in the business, such as Syngenta, have been doing much the same. The background and nature of the industry, given its past record and present behavior, is grounds for serious skepticism about their agenda, and it would be nothing short of folly to hand over the future of human sustenance to these companies.

The problem with industrial agriculture is fundamentally a problem of world view. It seeks to dominate nature, seeing it as a giant ATM machine that needs to be cashed out hard and fast. It fails to recognize nature as a living organism that we are all a part of; and that when we hurt nature we inevitably hurt ourselves. Industrial agriculture as a management system is essentially masculine, warlike, and aggressive. Its management solution is to kill life, whether it is through applying biocides, or plowing, or clear-cutting forests. It has little to no consideration for

ecological principles, design in relation to landscape and natural features, and so it inevitably falls into the trap of forced functions. In trying to apply a narrow minded and awed economic paradigm on nature, industrial agriculture destroys its primary resource base, nature itself. The problem of industrial agriculture is not an isolated issue, and is deeply entrenched in the way we think about life itself and our purpose and place on this earth.

As we head into a future of environmental crises, the question of food will become one of the most important questions of our times, along with the question of water and other basic resources. Industrial agriculture has been a chief culprit in bringing about these problems, and has proven itself to be destructive and unsustainable. In order to create a healthier planet and a more sustainable future we must transition to an ecological model of agriculture that takes a holistic outlook to food production and energy accounting, not merely an economic or expedient one.

The way forward is to realign ourselves with nature, and start working with it rather than against it.

January 2016 JANUARY 2016

AGRICULTURE TRACTORS

2010

Palm Mach Sdn Bhd

“No Till”

Is a Big White Lie

T

his will sound like criticism of industrial grain and soybean farmers but if you read to the end, it is really commiseration. “No till,” for those of you who are not up to the minute on farming, is a popular term coined by farm technologists to refer to planting crops without working up a loose, ne seedbed beforehand. The original idea was to plant seeds using a special “notill” planter, in undisturbed sod killed with a herbicide, or into last year’s undisturbed plant residue, particularly cornstalks, thereby reducing erosion. It took lots of herbicides to make it work but that’s another story.

There are still some elds planted this way and they do decrease erosion. But most of the time, “NO TILL” is a big fat b. What it really

28 | Agri Mech

means is “No Moldboard Plow” and because of that we are supposed to believe that farmers are controlling soil erosion.

Instead of the plow, farmers work up the soil with a variety of disks, chisel plows, eld cultivators and turbo tillage tools. When I point out that they are tilling the soil as much as they ever did, in fact more in some cases, with just about as much subsequent soil erosion, they look at me blandly, like I am speaking a foreign language. They don’t want to hear that. They are determined to believe, along with their university and USDA partners, that they are controlling erosion simply because they quit using moldboard plows and use no-till planters.

GENE LOGSDON Proli ic author Books about agrarian issues Wyandot County, Ohio

January 2016

The pretension reaches hilariously ludicrous proportions.

For instance, in “Farm and Dairy” magazine in one issue, there is an article titled: “No-till All the Way.” Immediately above it is a photo of the farm where no-till is being practiced “all the way.” In the photo, behind the farmstead buildings, stretch acres and acres of soil as tilled and bare as a desert. In the body of the article, the text goes on for two columns singing the praises of “no-till” farming until it nally gets down to the truth of the matter and points out that, oh by the way, the farm uses a Case Turbo 330 tillage tool to cultivate rather than a moldboard plow.

In truth, these alternatives to the plow sometimes do control erosion a little better, but not much. What is going on here is denitely not “no till.” It could just as well be called “more till.” Farmers are even returning to fall tillage and in the spring may go over the soil being prepared for corn with two or more cultivations before planting. But as long as they don’t use a moldboard plow they can call it “no-till.”

All you have to do is drive through the cornbelt this time of year to see thousands upon thousands of acres of unprotected soil planted to corn that is eroding badly in this year’s torrential rains. Even where soybeans have been planted into corn stalk residue, the residue has been chopped up and pulverized with cultivation ahead of planting and erosion occurs there too, but not as bad.

Where true no-till is being practiced, that is where the

January 2016

soybeans are planted directly into heavy, undisturbed corn stubble, better erosion control is achieved, but there is a problem. These stalks, mostly from new genetically engineered varieties, are thick and stout and resistant to rotting. So although they help control erosion if left undisturbed, they are too much of a good thing in this regard. They gum up the planter and hold moisture so well that in this wet weather some such elds have not yet been planted. They won’t dry out enough before the next rain.

But when I grumble, I must rst look in the mirror. I grow hardly a half acre of corn in narrow strips, with clover between the strips, on land that is almost level. I plow down (mea culpa) a thick growth of clover for green manure and then rotary-till to mix all that organic matter and plant residue in the top four inches of soil. I piously think of myself as being without sin in the erosion department. Guess what. On one of my corn strips, only 12 feet wide and about 400 feet long, there is, half way down one strip, a six inch gully created by a rain so heavy it melted a salt block in the pasture nearby.

Sometimes I think there is no escape from our fate.

Willingly or unwillingly, humans are destroyers of nature.

As long as we disturb soil on any kind of scale beyond the backyard garden, no matter how good our intentions, we will follow the path of all lost civilizations. Our elds will turn to deserts, our seas to zones of death.

29 | Agri Mech

Tools and Equipment Small Farm

Essential for the

I

n 1981, Ken and I made our rst move out of town. We rented a log house on 40 acres, with a sub-irrigated pasture. We quickly began acquiring livestock, and trying our hands at gardening. But when we moved to the country, we were both driving cars that were quite unsuitable for our ¾-mile-long, rutted, two-track driveway, and our entire tool collection consisted of some odds-andends hand tools that t in a plastic shing tackle box. We never looked back, and wouldn’t dream of returning to town life, but over the years we have acquired a variety of tools and equipment that makes our life on the farm a whole lot easier!

My dad (a guy who could build anything, from any kind of material—wood, concrete, metal ...) taught us to treat tools

as an important investment, so I’ll offer up his advice: Take your time acquiring your tools (and equipment), but get the best quality you can afford and they will serve you for years. Don’t make the mistake of buying every little thing you see; unless you are fabulously wealthy, you can quickly break the bank on stuff that doesn’t get used and ultimately takes up valuable storage space, gets thrown away, or sold at a garage sale for pennies on the dollar. For a tool or implement that will only be used a few times, consider renting it—or bartering for its use with a neighbor.

If you have recently plunged into rural living, or are thinking of taking the dive, here’s my list of items that will help you get started.

Handcarts 30 | Agri Mech

January 2016

Pickup truck: Before we bought our indispensable pickup, we bought an old Chevy Blazer, but what we quickly realized is that an SUV is not, and never will be, a pickup. Pickups are probably the most versatile and useful long-term investment you can make for your farm. They are essential for hauling everything from building supplies to feed, and rewood to sod. Teamed with a trailer (see item 3), you can move livestock and much more. Although a pickup is a big investment, when well cared for (remember to change that oil every 3,500 miles) it is an investment that can last for decades, and good used pickups can often be bought at a reasonable price.

Add a basic topper to your pickup and you can haul items that need to be kept dry, use the truck for camping, or haul small animals. We’ve gotten some entertaining looks at gas stations and other stops over the years, when the topper held a menagerie. Some of my favorites were the time we were driving 30 rather-large turkeys to the poultry processing plant, or the time we had half a dozen ducks and geese, and several big rabbits, hanging out in the back. Goats, sheep, and small pigs are also easily moved under the topper.

Utility vehicle/Compact tractor: Even if you dream of working your land with animals, a tractor or farm utility vehicle (an ATV, or a cargo-ATV, often called a "ute”) is a practical thing to have. Although we like to use our donkeys for packing rewood when time permits, winter often nds us (well, maybe I should say Ken) out with the ATV, equipped with it’s own trailer, bringing in wood.

Compact tractors (see "Taking on a Tractor,” December/January 2004 issue) are versatile pieces of equipment that are perfect for small farms. Depending on the attachments you have, they can do just about anything: mowing acres of lawn, digging a foundation, baling hay, pushing snow, setting fence posts; it’s all possible with a compact tractor.

For those in the under 60-acre category, a ute (see "SmallFarm Utility Vehicles” October/ November 2003 issue) will often do all the work you need done, for less investment

than a tractor, and manufacturers now make attachments ranging from front-end loader buckets to manure spreaders, that are specially designed to work with these rigs. The fat tires, light weight, and low center of gravity make these units easy on the land. If money is not a big issue, and you have a larger piece of land (say 160 acres or more), having both a tractor and farm utility vehicle is the way to go. The tractor can do heavy work, like baling hay, but the utility vehicle can haul supplies, or get you across the farm quickly to move a paddock fence, or check on the stock and crops.

Two-wheel drive trucks, tractors, and utility vehicles are OK for at ground that’s not too muddy, but if you’re in hilly terrain, a snowy climate, or tend to have frequent muddy conditions, invest the extra money up front in 4wheel drive.

Livestock trailer: If you intend to have large livestock (horses, cows, llamas, yaks ...), plan on getting a stock trailer. We don’t actually use our trailer that frequently for hauling livestock, but I still consider it one of the best investments we’ve made in 20-some years of buying. When we do need to haul our animals, we don’t have to try to borrow or rent a trailer, and in between animal trips, we have used it to haul rewood, feed, hay and lumber. During the several household moves we’ve made since we purchased our trailer, it has done duty as a moving van, hauling furniture and household items. And, it often serves as a temporary storage shed.

Although two-horse trailers are readily available, opt for a bigger trailer that can accommodate four animals or more.

Handcarts: This is the rst tool I would invest in!

Priced between $100 and $400 depending on capacity, they

Ms Carol Ekarius is a HF contributing editor, hobby rancher and author of many books, including Small-Scale Livestock Farming (Storey Books) and Storey’s Guide to Raising Sheep.

January 2016

31 | Agri Mech

are a bargain that’s hard to beat. They are lightweight, yet they carry big loads easily. Unlike their single-wheeled cousins, they are sturdy and steady over uneven ground, or through mud or snow, and they are just plain hard to tip.

Best of all, they are balanced in such a way as tobe easy on the back. Some carts come with an accessory that converts them to a trailer for pulling behind a ute or small tractor.

We have used our carts for everything around the farm. In the garden or yard, they’re great for moving topsoil, plants, seed, fertilizer or tools. In the barn, they are handy for cleaning up small piles of manure, or dragging tack from point A to point B. They are perfectly sized for moving a bale of hay, or a few 50-pound bags of feed. We have also brought newborn calves easily from eld to barn in bad weather, with mama tagging along right next to the cart.

Manure spreader: If you are going to have any livestock, sooner or later you need a manure spreader. Even if your animals will spend most of their time on pasture, piles of manure accumulate, and spreading this manure thinly over the land improves soil fertility, reduces contaminated runoff, and helps keep y numbers down. Several manufacturers have come up with compact manure spreaders that are ideal for small farms (see "Tools of the Trade” on page 86). The tractordriven units carry more manure in one trip, and are probably the best way to go if you have a signicant number of animals that are kept in the barn regularly. The

ATV units are good for operations with only a few animals stabled regularly, or with a larger herd that is out on pasture most of the time.

Composter: I love composting. It’s one of the most environmentally friendly practices: reducing the waste going to landlls and incinerators, while at the same time feeding soil and plants. How can anybody not compost?

You can make a homemade compost box, but there are an assortment of commercial units available, starting at about $25 for a perforated polyethylene sheet that creates a 32inch diameter bin, and running as high as several hundred dollars for some of the largest capacity tumbling composters. The tumbling units are attractive for folks with small yards, and are easy to use; they generally yield useable compost the quickest, because they make mixing and aerating easy. They are also animal resistant, reducing worries about rodents and other unwanted visitors. For doit-yourselfers, check local recycling ofces for construction plans—many of which use recycled materials, like tires or pallets. (Pick up a container of worms in the spring at your local bait supplier, and add them to your compost pile or bin to speed things up even more.)

Electric tools: There are dozens of electric power tools available at hardware and home stores, but there are two must-haves for any type of around-the-farm construction project: 1.) A

Manure Spreader 32 | Agri Mech

January 2016

circular saw; and 2.) A drill/driver (preferably the rechargeable battery operated type). Need to build your own compost bin? Out comes the saw and drill.

Hanging a new barn door? Get the saw and the drill.

You’ll nd these two versatile tools are useful for myriad projects, so invest in the best heavy-duty models you can afford. If you plan to do lots of construction and remodeling (thinking about that sunroom addition on the house, or that new barn?), consider adding a heavy-duty reciprocating saw to the electric-tool collection.

Hand tools: Every farm needs a variety of hand tools.

Companies like Sears (with its line of Craftsman tools) and Snap-On (available at many auto parts stores) make hand tools that will last for generations, and that come with a lifetime warranty to prove it. First on my list of items to purchase: A 25-foot and a 100-foot tape measure; a good claw hammer with a comfortable grip; electrician’s pliers; a socket and driver set; adjustable wrenches in several sizes; a screwdriver set with both regular and Phillips head drivers.

Garden tools: Every small farm needs a at spade and a pointed spade for digging. A good digging fork is a multipurpose tool, used for breaking up and turning soil in the garden, harvesting, and for manure cleanup around the barn. My preference for hoes is the collinear hoe designed by gardening guru Eliot Coleman, and available from Johnny’s Selected Seeds. This style of hoe takes the "back-breaking” out of weed control, by allowing you to stand straight up while you work.

Fencing tools: Farms and fences go hand-in-hand. Plan on purchasing a

fence-post driver, a driver is a heavy iron tube that goes over the top of a T-post, and that has handles on the side. You use it to pound the post into the ground. A pair of fence pliers is a great, and fairly inexpensive, specialty tool to have. We are fans of electric fences—they are economical, efcient and safe—but when you have an electric fence, you need a fence tester.

Miscellaneous: We always carry pocketknives when out working, and a "Leatherman” type is a handy all-in-one tool. Heavy-duty ashlights are a must when the lights go out during a heavy storm, or when you need to tend to a livestock emergency in the pasture at 2 am. Garden hoses are a must, but when buying, purchase the longest and strongest available (fall is a great time to nd really good buys on garden hoses). The good ones come with long-term guarantees (often 25 years or lifetime), and we save the guarantee card with the receipt stapled to it, because under farm-use conditions that "lifetime” turns out to be only a few years.

The last miscellaneous tool on the list is a digging bar. We use ours for breaking ice in winter; for digging large rocks out of the garden, construction sites, or fence holes; and for prying apart incorrigible packages!

Pickup Truck January 2016

33 | Agri Mech

Hey “Ag”…

What’s Your Pension Plan?

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or a moment, imagine the global agriculture industry as a person. It is difcult but the aim is to lead us to another and most important question of our lives.

“If the global food & agriculture industry were a person, what are (or should be) his/her pension plans” This series is about analyzing the current situation, identify key issues that need to be addressed and build resilience to manage looming crises in future for the global food & agriculture industry.

Some years ago, I was asked by a Britain-based executive search rm that specializes in food and agriculture domains to write a column in its blog and I chose the theme ‘how young Indians perceive agriculture as a career choice’. In the column, I touched upon some of the entrenched believes among the parents in India on considering their children getting employed in agriculture, perception of the young school kids, college and/or university students, professionals who work in the industry and some interesting insights from my interactions with farmers all along my career.

I wish to clarify that all the points given below are based on my observations, interactions and understanding of the views and

perception on agriculture from different groups of people and are not necessarily supported with statistical evidence.

Agriculture as a career choice?A Student’s perspective As an ordinary middle-class kid from a rural town with no special ambitions norhaving the capacity and information to decide my career choices until I got through the entrance exam even after 12 formal years of schooling, I personied the majority of the Indian school students. Of course, not all decide quite early what they want to become 34 | Agri Mech January 2016

in life and pursue their goals. However, I did not have any idea about agriculture at all since none in my family have any linkages with farming except we had some lands in our native village and my ancestors were absentee landlords. Like millions of my fellow Indians, I went through an education system that has very little relevance to everyday challenges; seldom allows creativity and out-of-the box thinking among students and help them learn to look at the world with different perspectives and ultimately focused on rote memorization without caring to understand anything that is studied. Hence, it is not a big surprise that it did not provide me any directions. However, as a school student, not even in my wildest dreams, I would imagine studying agriculture and prefer it as my chosen career path.Besides the rotten education system, there could be many reasons for it including lack of information, students’ own observations, advises and guidance from their parents and relatives, general trend in employment as they see their senior classmates pass out from school etc.

What do school students generally know about the “Ag” industry?

First of all, there was absolutely no reliable information to explain an ordinary school student about what the agriculture industry really is, how it contributes to feeding the world, how it is done as a business on a commercial scale, who are the major stakeholders and other related issues like environment. No one including those working in agribusiness or in the Government care to talk about the food & agriculture industry at

the schools.That shows the continued apathy towards the industry. This is the trend throughout Asia as the food & agribusiness industry has to catch up a lot to match the business-like structure of the developed Western countries. Hence, there are no organized efforts to provide the school students an opportunity to learn about the career prospects in the agri-food sector.

It is unfair to accuse the “Ag” industry but none of the secondary and tertiary sectors are doing it because it is the usual belief of the parents and the students that the issue of career comes only upon when the students complete 12 years of formal education in school. I believe this needs to change as the world is increasingly becoming dependent on intellectual capital rather and the students need to be developing their skills accordingly. To achieve this, they need to create a strong desire and interest towards some subject and hence there is a great need for them to get to know about different sectors of the economy.

Having felt this need, today students studying in many schools in USA, Canada and some countries in Europe, are becoming aware of the importance of the agri-food industry and appreciate its role in feeding the world through several outreach programs. But such

Raghavan Sampathkumar Founder & Principal SMARTAgBiz, Singapore January 2016

35 | Agri Mech

programs are non-existent in the Asia region.

Ironically, this is the region that has over 4 billion inhabitants and growing faster than the other continents. That means more mouths to feed in future.

But, whether the Asian ag-food sector is prepared for such a challenge is a difcult question to answer.

Though we cannot quantify the impacts of such outreach efforts in improving the level of understanding among school students about the agrifood industry, these will certainly enhance and enthuse at least a few passionate students to choose it whenever they have a choice. Perhaps, this started to happen in the developed West but has not been recognized at all in the developing East including South Asia or ASEAN. Social Stigma and Stratication based on the eld of study Then there is something called social stigma and stratication. If one is studying human medicine, he would be highly celebrated vis-à-vis a person studying agriculture or any other degrees like commerce or arts and literature. And then comes engineering thoughnot all engineering streams are perceived glamorous and prestigious. Civil and mechanical engineering are often pushed down in priority as Information Technology and

36 | Agri Mech

software are the top choices of students passing out from the schools.

Engineering, particularly software, has emerged the most sought after degree since the sector was one of the fastest growing in the country.Vast campuses, work conditions, higher salaries, enticing perks, somewhat superior image bestowed by the peers, family, friends and relatives all are luring the students to opt for it. An agriculture degree will be considered only after one has no chance of getting the previous two. That sums up the perception among the students about various degrees.

It is extremely rare to nd someone who scored top rank in the grade 12 and choose to study agriculture out of his/her own interest. Denitely, I was not one such student who was rather left with no choice but to choose agriculture. However, in retrospection, it is a decision I value more than anything in my life – to study and work in the food & agriculture industry.

There is another important underlying perception issue that is very deeply entrenched in the society.

To be continued…

January 2016

PRESS RELEASE

launched its

Ground Breaker

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aycee Strips & Fasteners Pvt. Ltd (Jaycee) a Component to Agriculture solution provider part of Jaycee Group. Jaycee Group has diversified business interests in the field of OEM, Alternative Power Generation, Automobiles Fertilizers and Pesticides. Jaycee Strips and Fasteners Pvt Ltd is a well renowned name in the field of OEM and Agriculture Industry based out of Amritsar, India is serving major Tractor manufacturers supplying 3-Point Linkages, sheet metal solutions, tie rod, drag link assemblies, front axles beams etc over the past 17 years.

Jaycee forayed into manufacturing of Farm Implements in the year 2013 and has successfully being manufacturing and selling farm implements like Rotavators, Disc Plough, Rotoseeder, Cultivator and Laser Land Leveler through its channel in India.

Jaycee achieved another milestone in the year 2015 with the launch of its Earth Moving attachments for tractors under the brand Ground Breaker during the recently concluded EIMA Agrimech in New Delhi in December. The company plans to launch Front Loader, Tipping Trolleys in the year 2016 to complete the earth moving range.

38 | Agri Mech

The core strength of Jaycee is its infrastructure. It is equipped to handle any kind of machining, fabrication, heat treatment jobs inhouse. The setup includes hydraulic and power presses, CNC turning and Milling centers, Plasma cutting machines, Plating and Painting lines.

The launch of the BH-2100 has been done keeping in mind optimum usage of the tractor by a tractor owner opening avenues of generating extra income during the period when a tractor is not being used for any farming or commercial activity.

It’s easy 3-point linkage attachment to a tractor enables the end user to easily mount and detach the excavator in 15 mins without any major modifications to the tractor. The BH-2100 has independent hydraulic controls ad derives its power from the Tractor PTO. The BH-2100 is best suitable to be used from a 60HP – 120 HP Tractor.

January 2016

NEWS

Fliegl Tracker system pricing details released LANDPOWER has released pricing details for the new Fliegl Tracker system that will be available from April 2016.

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vailable only in conjunction with the FlieglIsobus Weighing System, to set up a whole harvesting operation with the Fliegl Tracker system will cost $11,500.

Additional beacons for trailers cost $150 each.

The system, which recently won the Bluetooth Breakthrough award, is a receiver mounted to a chaser bin or another “hub” machine to record and track grain handling during harvest.

The harvester and grain trailers are fitted with beacons that send grain and truck data so that all information about the yield from harvest to silo is automatically recorded.

New Miller Nitro 6365 boom sprayer gets new drivetrain MILLER has released its latest self-propelled sprayer, with a new propulsion system claimed to reduce fuel consumption.

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on Bent from McIntosh Distribution, Miller’s Australian distributor, said the new model had retained the high underframe clearance, Hydralink suspension and the Quick-Attach system.

He said the new drivetrain optimised the performance of the 6365.

“The new drivetrain has been completely redesigned with variable displacement hydrostatic drive system and planetary torque hubs,” Mr Bent said.

“This means faster response to speed changes through more efficient transfer of power to the ground, even at lower engine rpm, all contributing to a reduction in fuel consumption.

“Early feedback from operators is that we are seeing up to a 30 per cent reduction in fuel consumption with the 6365 when compared to equivalent-sized machines.”

40 | Agri Mech

New styling: The Miller Nitro 6365 selfpropelled boom sprayer has a revised drivetrain for better fuel efficiency.

The 6365 has new styling, with increased access to the engine bay and a redesigned cooling system.

“The cab has a larger full-colour touchscreen display, monitoring engine and spray system functions and includes an integrated rearfacing camera with fulltime rear vision during transport.

“Outside the cab, a full array of LED lights now provides even better night vision than previous models.”

Miller’s Spray-Air system is available with the 6365, and provides airassist and air-atomisation into one spray nozzle system.

The Nitro comes with 4500, 5300 and 6100-litre tank options.

Base retail for the Miller Nitro 6365 with 6100-litre tank, 520 tyres and 36-metre mono boom is $525,000 (+GST).

January 2016

NEWS

ESL Fuels targets farm equipment with new Ultra Gas Oil launch Four years after its purchase of the ex BP Castrol oil terminal in Stanlow and, following a multimillion pound capital investment programme at the Ellesmere Port plant, ESL Fuels is targeting the agricultural equipment sector with the launch of its new Ultra Gas Oil fuel product.

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raditionally, the minimum cetane number (CN) for off road red diesel has started much lower than road diesel at 45, but many modern manufacturers of non-road mobile machinery (NRMM), including tractors, are telling customers they will now only warranty new equipment that meets the EN590 CN specification of 51.

ESL Fuels' Ultra Gas Oil achieves this minimum cetane value of 51 enabling it to offer faster fuel combustion, improved performance, including in cold start situations, and fewer emissions. The new fuel also offers improved built-in detergency which helps remove harmful deposits on critical engine components and protects against the build-up of new ones which can cause power loss.

Combining enhanced detergency with a higher cetane number delivers cleaner, more efficient fuel injection systems which are therefore less prone to pump and injector deterioration or failure. All of this means ESL Fuels can now offer customers an optimum product quality but for only a fractional increase in pence per liter cost.

ESL Fuels' managing director, Stephen Whittaker believes that the farm machinery sector is ready to accept a competitive new market entrant in direct gas oil supply: "Whilst the benefits of a gas oil's higher cetane value are becoming increasingly recognized, product quality has been consistently compromised by pricesensitivity. It's our intention to shake up a market that has traditionally been shaped by fuel wholesalers and distributors and to halt their 'race to the bottom' in terms of standard product quality by introducing a red diesel alternative that, with price taken out of the equation, would be the preferred

January 2016

choice of any discerning specifier."

"Furthermore, because we have complete control over the blend, manufacture and distribution of Ultra Gas Oil we can manage costs so that if there is any price premium for the customer it is almost negligible and far outweighed by engine performance benefits and cost efficiencies over the longer term," said Whittaker.

With a proven pedigree in the manufacture of innovative fuel products going back 16 years, annual sales of some 180 million liters and a successful, longestablished relationship with the UK's largest fuel distributor, ESL Fuels has been able to further transform its business ambitions since its purchase of the Stanlow oil terminal in 2012.

The site holds over 100 storage tanks with a capacity of 35 million liters and has pipeline connections to the neighboring Essar oil refinery as well as dockside connection to Manchester Ship Canal, enabling ESL Fuels to receive, blend and distribute a large amount of fuel products UK-wide. With a dedicated fleet of 15 artic tankers, continuity of supply can also be assured.

Stephen Whittaker continued: "We have already developed a full range of fuels for multiple clients in specific markets such as heavy duty haulage and marine and have to date sold well over half a billion liters of our popular Ultra 35 bespoke heating oil. Our continued expansion of Stanlow and our ability to source and blend premium oils to create new fuels means we are confident that in the agricultural sector Ultra Gas Oil can quickly become just as commercially viable as these established products."

41 | Agri Mech

NEWS

Case IH offers CropScan grain analyser on its MY16 combine harvesters IN LINE with its CNH stablemate New Holland, Case IH will also be fitting its combine harvesters with the CropScan 3000H grain analyser.

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he system is mounted to the grain elevator on the combine and measures grain protein in cereals and oil percentage in oilseeds in real time while harvesting.

Case IH said it is offering it as an extra with the MY16 Axial-Flow 240 Series combine.

“We are giving priority to customers who forward order new Axial-Flow 240 Series combines, allowing them to order the 3000H as an option,”

42 | Agri Mech

said Tim Slater, Case IH hay and harvest product manager.

“Fleet buying customers can order additional 3000H units for other machines in their fleet, if they are buying a MY16 combine.”

While Case IH hasn’t released pricing details, the unit can be fitted to any combine harvester that has a clean grain elevator and can be bought through Next Instruments for $28,500, plus GST.

January 2016

NEWS

Titan, US union file petition against off-road tyres from China, India & Sri Lanka

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itan International has filed petitions with the US International Trade Commission and the US Department of Commerce for relief from imports of off-road tyres from China, India, and Sri Lanka. The petitions were filed jointly with the United Steelworkers union and allege that imports from China and India are being dumped in the US market in violation of international trade agreements and that imports from all three countries are benefitting from improper government subsidies.

“In 2007 Titan won antidumping and countervailing duties on OTR tyres from China, but over the past few years there have been a number of companies putting wheels into the tyres to get around the duties,” stated Maurice Taylor, CEO and chairman of Titan International. “This has become a large problem because some overseas operators have actually advertised on their websites how to beat duties. So our petitions address tyres from China which enter mounted on a wheel or rim. We have also added India and Sri Lanka to this new action. We believe we have strong cases and look forward to the US government conducting investigations.

We urge our government to move expeditiously to investigate the unfair trade practices alleged.

“It is easy to understand why the middle class has decreased and manufacturing has been decreasing during the last 20 years, added Taylor.

“Too many domestic industries have been overwhelmed with unfair trade practices that capture sales of US companies, depressed prices, reduced profitability and inability to maintain facilities and jobs. Titan has been fighting for the last eight years to safeguard the rights of US producers of certain OTR tyres and their workers to conditions of fair trade. Too many other companies have not been able to do

January 2016

so.”

The petitions cover off-road tyres for agricultural, industrial, construction, and mining applications. They cover OTR tyres whether they enter the United States mounted on wheels or un-mounted, though only the tyre is covered. The inclusion of mounted tyres distinguishes these petitions from ones filed by Titan in 2007 on OTR tyres from China. Un-mounted OTR tyres from China are already covered by antidumping and countervailing duty orders that resulted from the earlier case, though entries of mounted tyres from China are not currently subject to those duties.

“Unfortunately, this is the second time we have had to file a case against dumped and subsidized imports of OTR tyres,” said USW International president Leo W. Gerard. “The first time we were successful, but Chinese producers and importers appear to be gaming the system to avoid the duties they owe. And now, subsidized producers in India and Sri Lanka have stepped in to get their own piece of the US market. This is a glaring example of what’s wrong with our nation’s trade laws. This circumvention and intentional abuse of trade laws is destroying jobs here in America. We filed these petitions to correct these harmful practices and restore fair trade to the market.”

In 2014, imports from China, India, and Sri Lanka accounted for an estimated 41 per cent of all such imports from the world, though the actual number is likely higher due to the inclusion of mounted tyres not broken out in the import data. Imports from the three countries have grown significantly since 2012, even as demand in key end use segments has fallen due to declining farm income and low commodity prices.

“This case represents a significant effort by our company to restore conditions of fair trade to the US market for OTR tyres,” stated Maurice Taylor. “We are hopeful that a thorough investigation will show the merits of our case and result in meaningful relief for the domestic industry.”

If the Commission and the Commerce Department reach affirmative preliminary determinations, imports become subject to additional bonding requirements to cover dumping or subsidization amounts finally determined. These anti-dumping and anti-subsidy duties will counter the ill effects of practices that are banned by trade agreements; if orders issue at the end of the investigations, cash deposits equal to the level of dumping or subsidization are required on imports after the publication of the order. Preliminary determinations are likely by summer and final determinations due in early 2017 at the latest.

43 | Agri Mech

NEWS

BKT Is Close to Doubling Its

Tire Production Capacity Tire Production Capacity

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hen its new off-highway tire plant in Bhuj, India, is at full capacity in 2017, Balkrishna Industries Ltd. (BKT) will be able to produce an additional 150,000 metric tons of tires per annum. Its other three plants in India produce 150,000 metric tons combined.

That is a 100% increase in capacity. It is not unrealistic to think BKT will also double its sales revenue from $700 million to well over $1 billion in two or three years.

BKT also has off-highway tire plants in Aurangabad, Bhiwadi and Chopanki, India. Some 2,400 SKUs are produced at the four plants.

The new off-highway tire plant built by Balkrishna Industries Ltd. (BKT) in Bhuj, India, is already running at 46% capacity. In 2017, it will be at full capacity, producing 51-inch OTR tires, ag tires, industrial tires and more.

At the recent grand opening of the Bhuj, India, plant BKT Joint Managing Director Rajiv Poddar talked about the facility like he was a proud father. The "birth" of the plant was not an easy one, and there will be more growing pains, but the end result -- daily production of small and large off-highway tires -- is a reality. Some part of his speech in Mumbai, India is mentioned below: “Changing the game, again and again, means changing the baseline scenario. This ability and attitude, as my father has just outlined, has been a steady feature of our corporate identity. A feature that has given

44 | Agri Mech

us the strength to face the various challenges thrown at us over the years.

At the beginning of this decade, BKT defined its vision whereby it set the overall strategic objective: to achieve the leadership in the off- highway tire market worldwide.

Firstly, we had to decide how much space was needed. The new plant should be capable of producing more than 140,000 MT a year. That was the starting point. We conducted a survey in all departments to find out their needs and necessities, giving them some leeway for wishful thinking.

The objective given to us was very clear. All the machinery should be state-of-the-art. The equipment should be nothing but best in its class, thereby helping us maintain the high standards of quality for which our products are known.

After lot of working and discussions with various machine manufacturers, we concluded that to fulfill our dreams we needed an amount of $500 million.

After a lot of convincing to board of directors, we managed to get their formal approval for a $ 500 million investment, paving the way for us to pursue our strategic vision of global leadership.

Now, the dream started taking shape and turned into a project.

BKT examined and evaluated all major ports in India. The Port of

January 2016

Mundra, in the state of Gujarat, which was already being used by us for exports, turned out to be the most suitable one. It was and is considered a highly efficient hub with great container handling capacities.

This led us to our second challenge of scouting for around 300 acres of continuous land around the port location, to ensure short transportation time between the production site and the logistic hub.

The state authorities of Gujarat were forthcoming to welcome a large industrial site in their territory in view of potential benefits of the local economy, in terms of development of both direct occupation and the induced effects. This definitely facilitated the discussions that we had with numerous land owners to try and convince them to sell their land. After months of discussions we concluded with a positive outcome of negotiations with numerous land owners.

Our state-of-the-art R&D center, which will be completed by early 2016, contains an innovative structure, where research on new polymers is done and new tread compounds are developed.

Our researchers, engineers and technicians can boast of having the most advanced equipment for chemical, physical and mechanical testing.

I firmly believe this is one of the most qualifying and most exceptional features, making Bhuj an unparalleled and peerless site, not only at a national level, but also from a much broader international perspective.

There is another aspect I wish to highlight, namely the environment. The entire production site of Bhuj operates setting new standards in terms of energy efficiency.

In full coherence with BKT’s business model, which has been attentive to environmental aspects ever since, Bhuj includes an area entirely dedicated to plant design and installation, optimizing all site issues related to water and waste management as well as energy autonomy.

In Bhuj, our green motto “reuse-renew-recycle” is fully implemented in terms of respect and care for the environment

January 2016

Arvind and Rajiv Poddar (center and right) answer questions during a Q&A session at a press conference in Mumbai in early December. D.M. Vaidya, president and director, technology, was also on hand to assist

and efficient use of energy and resources.

Over the years, we have made clear that we are willing to seriously play our match on the global chessboard adapting to trends and evolution.

We carefully surveyed the market and observed our competitors before making our moves.Now we feel ready to change the rules of the game, setting new horizons for the challenges to come.

Bhuj is the landmark epitomizing this revolutionary change, matured within our company and organization.

Without ever losing sight of BKT’s fundamental values such as the care for our people, the care for the environment, and the care for our customers, Bhuj has enabled us to play a completely new game from the perspective of exponential growth and aiming at global leadership -- even if we are just at the initial moves and the results are just a little gleam.

The path has been paved, and soon, this gleam will shine bright unveiling the results. What remains to be done is to follow in the footsteps of our founder.

Bhuj has changed the game -- here and today. Thank you”.

45 | Agri Mech

EVENT CALENDAR

EVENT CALENDAR FEBRUARY 2016

AGROEXPO EURASIA 11 – 14 February 2016 Izmir,Turkey

FIMA AGRICOLA 16-20 February 2016 Zaragoza, Spain

AGRITALK INDIA 21- 24 February 2016 Gujarat,India

FIELD DAYS INDIA 23 - 24 February 2016 Gujarat, India

MARCH 2016

SEPTEMBER 2016 AGROTECH 18 - 20 March 2016 Voivodeship, Poland

APRIL 2016

TECHAGRO 03-07 April 2016 Brno-Czech republic

EXPOAGRO 08 - 11 March 2016 Argentina

SAHARA INTERNATIONAL AGRICULTURAL EXHIBITION 24-27 September 2016 Cairo - Egypt

OCTOBER 2016 AGRITEX 11-13 April 2016 Hyderabad,India

AGRARIA 21–24 April 2016 Cluj-Napoca, Romania

JUNE 2016 AGRI ASIA 03 - 05 March 2016 Mumbai, India

SIMA ASEAN 08-10 September, 2016 Bangkok,Thailand

AGRITEC AFRICA 15-17June, 2016 Nairobi, Kenya

Nokka RUSSIA

AGROSALON 03-07 October 2016 Moscow Russia

AGRI WORLD 12-14 October, 2016 Makuhari Messe, Japan

CIAME 26 - 28 October 2016 Wuhan, China

NOVEMBER 2016

JULY 2016 EIMA INTERNATIONAL 09-13 November 2016 BOLOGNA,Italy

INTERNATIONAL IRRIGATION SHOW 09-11 March 2016 Shanghai, China

INTL AGRICULTURAL AND FORESTRY Machinery Export Fair 18-20 March 2016 Guangzhou, China 46 | Agri Mech

AGRO-TECH MINIKOWO 02–03 July 2016 Minikowo, Poland

AGRI INTEX 15 - 18 JULY, 2016 Coimbatore, India

DECEMBER 2016

Kisan Pune 14 - 18 December 2016 Pune, India

Agraria Wels 30 Nov - 03 Dec 2016 Federal state Upper Austria, Austria January 2016