5 Key Takeaways from the 2024 Commodity Classic
March 6, 2024 The annual Commodity Classic is one of the major trade shows for the agricultural industry. At this year’s event in Houston, TX, the CropLife crew was on hand and here are the five key developments we saw while there.
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Another Record Attendance Year
As one of the premier trade shows in North America, the Commodity Classic has regularly drawn several thousand visitors to its annual gatherings. And since the Commodity Classic came back in 2022 following the COVID-19 shutdown, each year’s show has been attended by a growing number of people compared with the prior year’s event.
And the 2024 Commodity Classic was no exception. Overall, the four-day show, held in Houston, TX, attracted almost 12,000 attendees from across the agricultural landscape – another record-setting number! Besides attending numerous educational sessions and company-hosted events, visitors to the 2024 Commodity Classic were able to visit with hundreds of agricultural suppliers at the George R. Brown Convention Center, spread out across the complex’s first and third floors.
The Secretary of Ag Speaks
One of the highlights of any Commodity Classic is an address from the sitting Secretary of Agriculture on the state of the industry. At the 2024 General Session, held on March 1, Tom Vilsack spoke to the audience regarding some of the positives and negatives currently impacting the entire marketplace. This included topics as the effect of lower commodity prices and global issues such as the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war on agricultural trade. He also addressed several government initiatives involving access to affordable fertilizer.
“We’ve spent a considerable amount of time looking at the challenge the high price of fertilizer has on all producers,” said Vilsack. “The President directed us to put together a program to begin more production of domestic fertilizer. To date, we’ve funded 40 projects in 25 states to expand access to fertilizer supply and promote other alternatives.”
AI Innovations on Display
As has been the case for numerous winter trade shows, ag technology was on display at many 2024 Commodity Classic exhibitor booths. In addition to several examples of drones featured on the third floor of the convention hall, long-time tech innovator Raven Industries highlighted several of its newer products, such as the Sense & Act from Augmenta (the winner of the 2023 CropLife IRON Product of the Year award).
Of course, many folks that follow developments in ag technology over the past year have continually looked for examples of artificial intelligence (AI) at recent trade shows. And at the 2024 Commodity Classic, there were a few of these on display. For example, consider John Deere. Besides having the company’s See & Spray Ultimate exhibit on hand, John Deere also announced that users of Hagie STS sprayers in 2025 will have access to the See & Spray Premium system. An AI-powered weed-sensing system, See & Spray Premium activates individual spray nozzles when target weeds are “seen” by boom-mounted cameras.
“The availability of See & Spray Premium on Hagie STS sprayers means that more farmers and custom applicators will have access to one of the most powerful tools available for maximizing cost-efficiency and in-field productivity,” said Tim Deinert, Manager of Application Equipment.
New Pest Aids
Obviously, as the 2024 season gets ready to kick into high gear, attendees at the 2024 Commodity Classic were keenly focused on the myriad pests that cause yield problems throughout the growing cycle. Among these, resistant varieties of weeds, insects, and diseases dominated much of the dialogue.
To this end, many 2024 Commodity Classic exhibitors highlighted their current product offerings in the crop protection category that are expected to aid with control efforts. This included BASF, UPL, FMC, Syngenta, Vive, and Valent.
Then there were a few companies that talked about their new herbicide offerings for the 2025 growing season. One of these was Corteva Agriscience, which discussed its new Enversa brand. This new brand received EPA registration in December 2023 and, pending state registrations, is expected to be available for use on soybeans, cotton, corn, sorghum, peanuts, and sugar beets next year.
“Enversa is a residual herbicide that will handle some of the toughest, hard-to-control broadleaf and grass weeds that farmers face today,” said Shawna Hubbard, Strategic Marketing Manager. “This will be the first soybean and cotton herbicide in Corteva’s portfolio to feature a proprietary encapsulated acetochlor component to help protect plants from emerging weeds.” She added that the brand complements tank-mix partners by allowing Enversa herbicide to move from the leaf surface and drive to the soil, resulting in a residual barrier around the soybean or cotton plant.
Meanwhile, Bayer Crop Science is readying its Convintro brand for a U.S. launch – hopefully in time for the 2025 growing season or shortly thereafter. Featuring the active ingredient diflufenican, Convintro can be used by growers to target such problem weeds as waterhemp and Palmer amaranth. According to Marcel Mesquita, Senior Marketing Communications Manager, the herbicide can be used for burndown and preemergence applications.
“Diflufenican has been used for years in Europe, managing broadleaf weeds in crops such as lentils and winter cereals,” said Mesquita. “It features a completely new site of action for Palmer amaranth and waterhemp control in soybean and corn.”
Soybean Seed Developments
Plenty of agricultural market watchers have predicted that soybeans will be an incredibly active segment of the industry over the next few years, particularly as efforts to expand renewable diesel production across the country grow. And based upon the amount of activity in the soybean seed sector at the 2024 Commodity Classic, this prediction would seem to be spot on.
First up, at its annual Science Behind Agriculture event, BASF representatives discussed how the company’s Xitavo soybean seeds continue to make an impact on the marketplace. For 2024, said Marc Hoobler, Canola & Soybean Agronomy Lead, BASF is introducing 10 new Xitavo soybean seed products that provide protection against soybean cyst nematodes.
Also in soybean seeds, Corteva Agriscience’s Pioneer brand announced the introduction of its new Z-Series soybeans for the U.S. and Canadian markets. “Z-Series soybeans represent the next step forward for soybean farmers, with a generational leap in yield potential and agronomic performance,” said Liz Knutson, Pioneer U.S. Soybean Marketing Lead. She added that Z-Series soybeans employee advanced genetics which help them be more resistant to common soybean diseases such as white mold and sudden death syndrome.
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