A Precision Planting product wins top honors for the 3rd straight year

No-Till Product of the Year 2011

BROOKFIELD, Wis. — A Precision Planting product has won the No-Till Product of the Year award for the third straight year.

No-Till Farmer readers selected the 20/20 SeedSense/AirForce system as the best product of 2011, following on the heels of No-Till Product of the Year wins by Precision Planting's Keeton Seed Firmer in 2009 and 2010.

Product Of The YearThe 2011 No-Till Product Of The Year award winners were honored in St. Louis, Mo. during 20th annual National No-Tillage Conference.

The 20/20 SeedSense/AirForce system was also voted the top no-till product in the Precision Tools category, and was among 11 finalists entered in the overall Product of the Year voting.

Manufacturers whose products were voted the best in 11 individual categories were recognized today before about 750 no-tillers at a special luncheon awards ceremony during the 20th annual National No-Tillage Conference (www.notillconference.com) in St. Louis, Mo. They were also recognized in the Winter 2012 issue of No-Till Farmer's Conservation Tillage Guide.

Following is a listing of 2011 award winners by category, along with honorable mentions:

No-Till Product of the Year: 20/20 SeedSense/AirForce system, Precision Planting.

• Fertility: Agrotain, Agrotain International. Honorable Mention: Avail, SFP; Bio-Max Defender G4, FHR Farms.Fungicides: Headline/Headline AMP, BASF. Honorable Mention: Quilt/Quilt Xcel, Syngenta Crop Protection; Stratego, Bayer CropScience.

• Insect Protection: Herculex Insect Protection, Dow AgroSciences and Pioneer Hi-Bred. Honorable Mention: Warrior insecticide, Syngenta Crop Protection.

• No-Till Equipment: 1770NT Planter, John Deere & Co. Honorable Mention: Early Riser planter, Case IH; U-Trough system, FHR Farms.

Planter/Drill Attachments: Keeton Seed Firmer, Precision Planting. Honorable Mention: Martin-Till 1360 Floating Row Cleaner, Martin Industries.

Precision Tools: 20/20 SeedSense/AirForce system, Precision Planting. Honorable Mention: AgGPS Auto-Pilot, Trimble Navigation.

Residue Management: Bt Crusher/Chopper Stalk Rolls, Calmer Corn Heads. Honorable Mention: 600C Series Corn Heads, Deere & Co.; Stalk Stomper, May Wes.

Seed Treatment: Poncho 1250, Bayer CropScience. Honorable Mention: CruiserMaxx, Syngenta.

Application Equipment: Apache 20 Series Sprayer, Equipment Technologies. Honorable Mention: 4830 Sprayer, Deere & Co.; Patriot Sprayers, Case IH.

Strip-Till: Blu-Jet StripTill systems, Thurston Mfg. Co. Honorable Mention: Pluribus Strip-Till Unit, Dawn Equipment Co.

Weed Control: Ignite herbicide, Bayer CropScience. Honorable Mention: Roundup PowerMax, Monsanto; Sharpen herbicide, BASF.

"The readers of No-Till Farmer are some of the most discerning, knowledgeable farmers in the industry, so these manufacturers should be proud that their products have been recognized for their strong performance," says Darrell Bruggink, executive editor and publisher of No-Till Farmer.

A call for nominations for the 2012 program, as well as voting, will be announced later this year. The 2012 Product of the Year award winners will be announced during the 21st annual National No-Tillage Conference from Jan. 9-12, 2013, in Indianapolis, Ind., and in the Winter 2013 issue of No-Till Farmer's Conservation Tillage Guide.

To learn more about the No-Till Product of the Year program, or the National No-Tillage Conference, call Bruggink at (262) 782-4480, ext. 420, or e-mail him at dbruggink@lesspub.com. You can also learn more at www.No-TillFarmer.com.