Andrew Bond from Top Dog Ag recently spoke to the Wilmington Rotary Club, which meets on Tuesdays at the Clinton Memorial Hospital Conference Center.

Bond said he is a fourth-generation farmer and has been working as a crop consultant since 2017.

Bond also said about farming today: There is a record decline in US net cash farm income; the sell prices are below break-even prices; farmers need to lower cost-per-bushel, increase efficiency.

One newer process: planting hybrids.

Top Dog Ag helps farms find solutions; using VRT – variable rate technology; write programs of how to feed fields/crops; software tells equipment how much of what nutrients/seeds to apply; Top Dog can complete soil testing to determine applications and break it down by the acre; Top Dog uses drones as well. It was a way to diversify the business and to be more effective and efficient with the application of chemicals.

Bond stated industry-wide, maybe 20-30% of growers use technology such as Top Dog Ag to enhance yields.