Bayer CropScience Looking for the Best Young Sustainable Farmers

December 2, 2014

RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, N.C. (Dec. 3, 2014) – Bayer CropScience is seeking young agricultural producers that are demonstrating leadership and excellence in the areas of business and environmental sustainability through the 2015 Young Farmer Sustainability Award program.

“Young men and women across the United States are solving great agricultural challenges by implementing innovative, sustainable solutions on their farms,” said Jim Blome, president and CEO of Bayer CropScience North America. “From making small-scale system tweaks to wholesale operational and marketing shifts, we hear stories every day from farmers who are working 24/7 to make their farms more sustainable by the day.

“The Young Farmer Sustainability Award recognizes and celebrates the next generation of exceptional growers who will lead this industry into the future—a generation that is critical to meeting the demands of a growing population and protecting our planet.”

Any farmer or rancher age 40 and under who receives at least half of his or her income from farming and farm-related ventures is eligible to apply for the Young Farmer Sustainability Award. To apply, he or she must submit a completed entry form (http://bayercropscience.us/YFSA2015) as well as references from external business colleagues with whom they work.

A panel of industry experts will select a winner in late January, 2015 and the winner will be announced at Bayer's tenth annual Ag Issues Forum Feb. 24-25, just prior to the 2015 Commodity Classic in Phoenix, AZ.

Award applicants will be judged on several criteria: their entrepreneurial initiative and adoption of new approaches to farming (50%), their environmental and other on-farm sustainability efforts (30%), and their economic stability and sustainability (20%). The winning entrant will receive a state-of-the-art drone with camera, an all-expense paid trip to the 2015 Ag Issues Forum and Commodity Classic, and a scholarship to a Farm Journal learning event in 2015.

This is the fifth year Bayer CropScience has sponsored the Young Farmer Sustainability Award, and the sustainability success stories the Award has spotlighted have been impressive. Previous winners include Bryan Boll of Crookston, Minn., in 2014; Jeremy Jack of Belzoni, Miss., in 2013; John Shepherd of Blackstone, Va., in 2012; and Ryan Kirby of Belcher, La., in 2011. Learn more about these remarkable farmers and their sustainability efforts.



Additional Resources:
Sustainability Award Page
Young Sustainable Farmer Award Winner Videos
Photo of 2014 Award winner, Brial Boll

###


Visit the Bayer Connect - Social Hub for all Bayer CropScience social media, recent news, blog posts, videos and more.

About Bayer CropScience
Bayer is a global enterprise with core competencies in the fields of health care, agriculture and high-tech materials. Bayer CropScience, the subgroup of Bayer AG responsible for the agricultural business, has annual sales of EUR 8,819 million (2013) and is one of the world’s leading innovative crop science companies in the areas of seeds, crop protection and non-agricultural pest control. The company offers an outstanding range of products including high value seeds, innovative crop protection solutions based on chemical and biological modes of action as well as an extensive service backup for modern, sustainable agriculture. In the area of non-agricultural applications, Bayer CropScience has a broad portfolio of products and services to control pests from home and garden to forestry applications. The company has a global workforce of 22,400 and is represented in more than 120 countries. This and further news is available at: www.press.bayercropscience.com.

Contact:
Bayer CropScience Media Hotline, 1-862-404-5118, or

Jeff Donald
Bayer CropScience
Tel: (919) 518-4234
Email: jeffrey.donald@bayer.com

Find more information at www.bayercropscience.us.

Forward-Looking Statements

This release may contain forward-looking statements based on current assumptions and forecasts made by Bayer Group or subgroup management. Various known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors could lead to material differences between the actual future results, financial situation, development or performance of the company and the estimates given here. These factors include those discussed in Bayer’s public reports which are available on the Bayer website at www.bayer.com. The company assumes no liability whatsoever to update these forward-looking statements or to conform them to future events or developments.