Mississippi Farm Bureau Federation officials hosted Bayer Crop Science officials, Mississippi Department of Agriculture and Commerce officials, Mississippi State University Extension Service officials and Mississippi producers for a meeting in Memphis, Tennessee on Wednesday to discuss concerns facing agriculture producers in Mississippi, as well as the Monsanto and Bayer Crop Science merger.
“That’s kind of what I want to address a little bit is, what’s changed in our company,” Doug Rushing, Director of Industry Affairs for Bayer Crop Science, said. “Mississippi has been a key state for our business. If you’re a producer, hopefully nothing changes, other than the word Monsanto begin replaced by Bayer. Our products are the same and the people working on them will stay the same.”
Greg Ferguson, Technical Agronomist for Bayer Crop Science, gave the group an update on the Dicamba label process and answered general questions about the herbicide.
“There is no label update,” Ferguson said. “We don’t know where things stand at this moment. We know we’re close to a new label, but we can’t speculate when.”
Following a lengthy discussion about problems surrounding Dicamba, Rance Morgan, Area Business Manager for Bayer Crop Science, addressed technology fee concerns. His question and answer session was followed by Mississippi State University personnel comments on pest management issues.
To conclude the meeting, Rushing presented an update on the Glyphosate Roundup Court Case ruling recently determined in California.
Mississippi Farm Bureau Federation President Mike McCormick said the meeting was extremely informational to all of its participants.
“The purpose of this meeting was to get everyone in the same room to address concerns each stakeholder is facing,” McCormick said. “I believe we were able to discuss several pressing issues and come to a better understanding on what our Mississippi farmers and ranchers would like to see from Bayer Crop Science.”