MACHINERY

Monarch's MK-V Dairy Tractor Rolls Out Autonomous Feed Pushing

Wed, 05 Feb 2025 15:28:36 GMT

Monarch Tractor announces its first-in-class, fully-autonomous Autodrive feature is now commercially available on its MK-V driver-optional dairy tractor (EV or diesel) , according to a press release from the startup.

“Autonomous feed pushing offers value to dairy farmers by improving efficiency and increasing milk production,” says Praveen Penmetsa, CEO and co-founder of Monarch Tractor. “It allows the dairy farmers to focus on what matters most – the health and well-being of their animals.”

Autonomous feed pushing helps dairy farmers manage through labor shortages, and the ability to monitor feed pushing remotely while tending to other critical tasks ensures cows can be consistently fed every hour.

Additionally, the “smart tractor” is armed with Monarch’s Wingspan Ag Intelligence and WingspanAI technology stack , which tracks performance data while 360-degree cameras record video footage for real-time and historical insights. The MK-V Dairy is also a mobile power bank with 12v, 110v, and 220v plugs.

Monarch is hosting an in-person Autodrive demonstration at a working dairy on February 12, at 3 p.m. in Tulare, California, during World Ag Expo. Monarch reps and engineers will be on hand to talk to attendees and give them the opportunity to engage with the tractor. Reservations for the demonstration can be made here.

If you can’t make it to California next week, Monarch says dairy farmers can reach out and set up a demonstration at their farm.

John Deere Expected To Announce More Layoffs Next Week

Thu, 18 Jul 2024 19:17:10 GMT

Deere & Co. is planning to announce layoffs of salaried employees on July 24, 2024, according to an email sent to employees on July 15. This announcement comes as part of a series of workforce reductions the company has been implementing in recent months.

Key points about the upcoming layoffs:

• The layoffs will affect an undetermined number of salaried workers globally.

• Employees will be notified of the layoffs beginning on Wednesday, July 24.

• Salaried employees whose jobs do not require them to be onsite are asked to work from home from July 24-26 and postpone business travel.

• A global all-employee meeting will be held to provide more details about the workforce update.

• Employees being separated will receive information about severance offers and separation details.

The company cites several reasons for these layoffs:

• Declining customer demand

• Rising costs

• Prevailing economic uncertainties

• Insufficient results from previous cost-containment strategies, including a global hiring freeze

This announcement follows a series of recent layoffs by Deere & Co.:

• 345 Waterloo workers to be laid off effective September 20, 2024

• 280 employees at a Moline, Illinois factory, 299 at John Deere Davenport Works and 111 at John Deere Dubuque Works, all effective August 30, 2024

• Various other layoffs at facilities in Moline, Urbandale, Des Moines, and Waterloo in May and June 2024

In total, Deere & Co. has laid off nearly 2,000 workers between September 2023 and July 2024. The company’s financial performance has been declining, with a 15% decrease in revenue reported in the second quarter of 2024 and lowered profit forecasts for the full year. These layoffs are occurring against a backdrop of declining farm income, with USDA projecting a 25.5% decrease in net farm income for 2024 compared to the previous year.

Deere issues statement backing away from DEI.

Deere & Company issued a statement on the social media platform X that they are changing their policies on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI), noting they have already focused their sponsorships on “supporting the business and brand” with their non-profit sponsorships centering on “priority areas” including hunger, economic development, eliminating poverty, science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM), agriculture education, and supporting veterans and the military.

Our customers’ trust and confidence in us are of the utmost importance to everyone at John Deere. We fully intend to earn it every day and in every way we can. pic.twitter.com/8BgyPyQJQo
— John Deere (@JohnDeere) July 16, 2024

Moving forward, Deere said it would “no longer participate in or support external social or cultural awareness parades, festivals, or events,” and that they will focus their business groups on “professional development, networking, mentoring, and supporting talent recruitment efforts.” The company said they would reaffirm that the existence of diversity quotas and pronoun identification “have never been and are not company policy.”

This decision comes in the wake of recent controversies and public backlash over the company’s previous DEI initiatives. The move aligns with similar actions taken by other companies in the industry, such as Tractor Supply, which recently abandoned its DEI objectives and discontinued support for non-business-related activities.

Oh, Deer — What A Day on the Farm!

Deer are both majestic and maddening. They make for an exciting pursuit during hunting season, but they also wreak havoc on vehicles, tires and fields.

With approximately 36 million deer in the U.S., those who call rural America home know deer-vehicle collisions are common, especially in October, November and December. Based on this November 2022 study , around 2.1 million deer-vehicle collisions occur annually, causing more than $10 billion in economic losses.

According to State Farm annual analysis , the top 10 states for animal collision, of which deer are the leading cause, are:

West Virginia
Montana
Michigan
Pennsylvania
Wisconsin
Mississippi
Iowa
South Dakota
Virginia
Rhode Island

A Farm Journal reader shared this run-in with a buck.

Deer – semi collision

(Farm Journal)

The Buck Stops Here
In addition to vehicle damage, unsuspecting tractor tires are often no match for deer sheds hiding in fields. Can you relate to these photos shared by fellow farmers?

Deer shed in tire

(Farm Journal)

Deer shed in tire

(Farm Journal)

Deer sheds in tires

(Farm Journal)

If you’ve had one of those horrible, no good, very bad days, or captured someone else’s, share it with Farm Journal. Whether you picked up a deer shed or sunk a piece of machinery in a mudhole, email images to whataday@farmjournal.com.

Shoo Deer — Not In My Field

Deer are a real pest when they graze, trample and bed down in crop fields. Depending on your crop’s stage, this can have economic consequences.

“Deer will feed on immature corn tassel tissue in the whorl during mid- to late-June and also on developing ears in early- to mid-August at the milk stage,” says Bob Nieslen, a retired Purdue University Extension corn specialist. “The decapitated plants usually survive, and ear development will continue through pollination and on to maturity, though the ears are usually less than full size.”

Thieves In Search of Antler Treasure
Awaiting the annual guarantee of antler drop in late winter or early spring, thieves hop private property lines to steal from those who manage. Lust or greed, the lure of shed treasure is a powerful pull to the public, despite purple paint, posted signs and fences.

Whitetail legend Steve Snow is on alert for shed poachers. Like a hot-nose coonhound, he zigzags through timber looking for fresh boot prints — the telltale sign someone is up to no good.

Snow is in hot pursuit of stolen sheds — a dose of frontier justice.

READ: Monster Deer Madness: Iowa Farmer Nabs Antler Thieves, Busts Multistate Shed Ring

Monster Buck Finds Its Way Back Home
Speaking of thieves, when 14-year-old Dave Richmond’s monster buck was stolen , he never gave up hope finding the spectacular rack. Following 14 years of cold-nosing dead-end trails, Richmond was stunned to receive an anonymous message: “I know where your deer is.”

Dumbfounded, Richmond was unable to accept the claim: “Impossible. Just no way. I figured it had to be someone pranking me.”

Two days later, he received a second message, along with an unmistakable photo.

“The picture told it all,” Richmond says. “I was looking at my deer.”

Welcome to a tale of deceit trumped by the enduring faith of a 14-year-old.

Dave Richmond recovers stolen deer antlers

(Photo by Whitetail Obsession Outdoors)

READ: Monster Buck Antlers Stolen from Teen Deer Hunter Recovered After 14 Years