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BASF and NAAA award two agricultural aviation scholarships
LAS VEGAS, NV, December 6, 2011 – BASF and the National Agricultural Aviation Association (NAAA) congratulated two scholarship winners during the 45th Annual NAAA Convention and Exposition kickoff breakfast in Las Vegas. The scholarship program is helping to build the future of agricultural aviation, and is an integral part of the BASF partnership with NAAA.
“BASF supports sustaining and growing the aerial application industry,” said Gary Fellows, Ph.D., BASF Plant Health Technical Services Manager and member of the NAAREF (National Agricultural Aviation Research & Education Foundation) PAASS (Professional Aerial Applicators’ Support System) Program Development Committee. “The industry is always in need of a steady supply of qualified applicators. This scholarship not only helps NAAA operators get new pilots into the field, but it helps those pilots get the education they need to become successful aerial applicators.”
The two 2011 Agricultural Aviation Scholarship winners are seeking careers in agricultural aviation. This year’s winners are Jordan Loewen of Park River, North Dakota, and Brad Taylor of Walnut, Mississippi. Loewen has been involved in aviation since he was a junior in high school, while Taylor is pursuing agricultural aviation after working in his family’s heating and air conditioning business.
To be eligible for the scholarship, each applicant had to be sponsored by an NAAA member operator. Glen Wharam, of Park River, North Dakota-based Valley Sprayers Inc., sponsored Loewen. Taylor was sponsored by Dennie Stokes of Stokes Flying Service, which is based in Parkin, Arkansas.
Stewardship
BASF continued its tradition as a platinum-level supporter of the NAAA Annual Convention and Exposition, which included sponsorship of the kickoff breakfast. In addition to NAAA convention sponsorships, BASF works with NAAA and NAAREF to keep safety and efficiency top-of-mind for pilots. BASF sponsors a number of NAAREF’s Operation S.A.F.E. (Self-Regulating Application and Flight Efficiency) fly-in workshops, a program that helps pilots make safe and accurate applications.
“Like the scholarship program, Operation S.A.F.E. helps provide aviators the education they need to be safe and accurate in their work,” Fellows said. “A big factor behind these efforts is ensuring stewardship of the land, a value on which BASF places a high priority.”
In the past three years, more than 1,250 aircraft have been inspected at nearly 150 Operation S.A.F.E. fly-ins. BASF hopes this number will continue to increase as clinics are held at more locations throughout the country.
In 2012, BASF will also continue as the exclusive AgSync marketing partner. Through this partnership, AgSync provides a complete aerial work order management system designed to help applicators help with planning and transparency.
In addition to these programs and partnerships, BASF supports the aerial application industry with fungicide product offerings that are effective, reliable and economical for aerial application. Headline AMP™ fungicide is a combination fungicide specifically developed for corn growers who want maximum protection from foliar disease, and improved Plant Health. Other BASF products that applicators can aerially apply to help ensure a quality crop for their customers include Headline® fungicide for soybeans and wheat, as well as TwinLine® fungicide and Caramba® fungicide for cereals.
“An investment in great products only goes so far – you also need smart, well-trained professionals to apply them,” Fellows said. “Partnerships with industry leaders like NAAA help us do our part to grow the industry.”
For more information on BASF Crop Protection products, visit http://agproducts.basf.us, like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter.
About the Crop Protection division
With sales of €4.0 billion in 2010, BASF’s Crop Protection division is a leader in crop protection and a strong partner to the farming industry providing well-established and innovative fungicides, insecticides and herbicides. Farmers use these products and services to improve crop yields and crop quality. Other uses include public health, structural/urban pest control, turf and ornamental plants, vegetation management, and forestry. BASF aims to turn knowledge rapidly into market success. The vision of BASF’s Crop Protection division is to be the world’s leading innovator, optimizing agricultural production, improving nutrition, and thus enhancing the quality of life for a growing world population. Further information can be found on the web at www.agro.basf.com or follow us on twitter: www.twitter.com/basfagro
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BASF Corporation, headquartered in Florham Park, New Jersey, is the North American affiliate of BASF SE, Ludwigshafen, Germany. BASF has approximately 16,400 employees in North America, and had sales of $17.7 billion in 2010. For more information about BASF’s North American operations, visit www.basf.us.
BASF is the world’s leading chemical company: The Chemical Company. Its portfolio ranges from chemicals, plastics, performance products, and agricultural products to oil and gas. As a reliable partner, BASF creates chemistry to help its customers in virtually all industries to be more successful. With its high-value products and intelligent solutions, BASF plays an important role in finding answers to global challenges, such as climate protection, energy efficiency, nutrition and mobility. BASF posted sales of more than €63.9 billion in 2010 and had approximately 109,000 employees as of the end of the year. Further information on BASF is available on the Internet at www.basf.com or in the Social Media Newsroom at newsroom.basf.com.
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