Illinois Corn Marketing Board to elect 2008 members<br>

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — Five seats are up for election this year on the Illinois Corn Marketing board. Corn growers who would like to run for a three-year term on the board in districts 1, 4, 7, 10 and 13 may start circulating nominating petitions.<br>
Petitions may be obtained from county extension offices and the Illinois Department of Agriculture (IDOA). They must be returned by May 15. Producers must be at least 18 years old, have produced and marketed corn during the 2007 commodity year, reside in the district to be represented and have submitted a petition by the filing deadline to become a candidate.<br>
The election will be held July 8. For more information, call the IDOA at 217-782-6675 (TDD:  217-524-6858), or write to the Illinois Department of Agriculture, Bureau of Marketing and Promotion, P.O. Box 19281, State Fairgrounds, Springfield, IL 62794-9281.<br>
Counties holding corn board elections are: District 1 – Boone, McHenry, Lake, DeKalb, Kane, Cook, DuPage, Kendall and Will; District 4 – Whiteside, Lee, Bureau, Stark, Marshall and Putnam; District 7 – Woodford, McLean, DeWitt, Macon, Piatt and Moultrie; District 10 – Scott, Morgan, Sangamon, Greene, Jersey, Calhoun and Macoupin; District 13 – Marion, Clay, Richland, Lawrence, Jefferson, Wayne, Edwards, Wabash and White.<br>
Dow AgroSciences acquires Triumph Seed<br>

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. — Dow AgroSciences LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of The Dow Chemical Co., announced it will further expand its plant biotechnology business with the acquisition of Triumph Seed of Ralls, Texas.<br>
Triumph Seed began its seed business in 1965. Today, it markets sunflowers, corn and sorghum across the United States and in approximately 25 countries. Triumph has been one of the industry leaders in sunflowers and was the first company in the industry to market worldwide “short stature” sunflower hybrids.<br>
The agreement includes all commercial, production, research and development assets of the business. Noble Koepp, president and owner of Triumph Seed, will continue to work with the business in a number of leadership and strategic planning activities.<br>
Dow AgroSciences will continue to market Triumph seed under the Triumph brand to complement the company’s current Mycogen Seeds business. Along with the acquisition, Dow has named John Monko as general manager of Triumph Seed. He most recently served as district sales manager in North Carolina and has worked for Dow for more than 28 years. He will be relocating to Texas.
Financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed.<br>

HAT launches energy update, expanded weather coverage<br>

CLERMONT, Ind. — Hoosier Ag Today (HAT) has announced the creation of new programming dealing with the energy sector. The cost of energy is a major factor in the farm economy; and, with the rise of the renewable fuel industry in Indiana, energy has also become a market for Hoosier farmers.<br>
The daily “Energy Update” will include crude oil, gasoline, E85 and ethanol prices, along with analysis and trends in the energy market. In addition, the prices being paid by Hoosier ethanol and biodiesel plants for corn and soybeans will also be included. Those interested in keeping up with the energy market can listen to this report on HAT radio stations across the state and online at www.hoosieragtoday.com<br>
A special webpage will feature energy prices updated throughout the day and news about the energy and renewable energy industries. Gary Truitt, HAT president, said it is the only agricultural media organization in the state offering this kind of information.
To better track the critical weather developments this growing season, HAT has expanded its coverage to include two Indiana Farm Forecasts per day. Designed specifically for Indiana by meteorologist Rob Wasson, these reports feature long-range projections and vital climatological data such as soil moisture levels, growing degree days and evaporation rates.