blog

2012 Scholarship Winners!

Tue, 01 May 2012 14:22:07 -0700

Five local high school seniors each received a $1,000 Standing Tall for American Agriculture Scholarship, to go toward their college tuition. Darryl Kerby of Lenore Idaho, Heidi Jamison of Garfield Washington, Kristine McMurray of Pullman Washington, Madison Moore of Prosser Washington, and Jeffrey Kaufman of Lewiston Idaho, all showed great interest in the ag industry as evident in their applications and essays. The following is a short report on their future endeavors.

These students have been selected as recipients of a “Standing Tall for American Agriculture” scholarship offered by The McGregor Company. Darryl Kerby, Heidi Jamison, and Madison Moore plan on attending colleges in the Pacific Northwest. Kerby will study Biology and Animal Science, Jamison will focus on Soil and Land Resources, and Moore will be studying Business. Kristine McMurray will be attending Eastern Oregon University, majoring in General Ag. Jeffrey Kaufman will be heading to the University of Idaho to study Ag Systems Management.

Each student will receive $1,000 towards his or her studies. “There are fine futures ahead for young people considering careers in our most important industry in the Pacific Northwest—agriculture,” reports company president Alex McGregor.

WSU Cougar Outdoor Stove

Mon, 13 Feb 2012 13:08:06 -0800

Are you a WSU Cougar fan? Keep your patio parties heated with a WSU Cougar Outdoor Stove that was manufactured by our talented team in the Equipment Division. Contact us for more information on how you can get one of your own! Go Cougs!

If nothing but the rich ambiance of a real wood fireplace will do, cozy up to our Wood Burning Outdoor Fireplace. Use this chiminea style fireplace to extend the usefulness of your outdoor living and dining room spaces.

This durable heavy gauge steel fireplace has a large swing door that opens fully for easy access and a fire screen to arrest the big sparks from jumping out of the fireplace. The sturdy four leg design will ensure a solid placement wherever you choose to position it. While this fireplace does not direct much heat downward, we recommend using patio block or a hearth pad to protect the surface of your deck or patio.

Specifications:

Firebox: 1/4” thick steel
Smoke Stack: 3/16” thick steel
Overall Width: 23 inches
Overall Height: 84 inches
Weight: 198 lbs

2012 Scholarship Application Available!

Tue, 24 Jan 2012 12:29:05 -0800

$1,000 Scholarships for Young People Pursuing a Career in Agriculture

This program has been developed specifically for high school seniors, graduating in 2012 within our market area in Washington, Idaho, and Oregon who will be entering college in an agricultural field of study. Complete the application and have it delivered or postmarked by March 20, 2012!

The McGregor Company will offer up to three individual $1,000 scholarships upon the verification of enrollment in either an academic or vocational college. You can download a copy of the flyer that has been posted at all of our branch locations.

Direct all inquiries to 509.397.4355 or tmcscholarship@mcgregor.com

See You At Spokane Ag Expo!

Wed, 21 Dec 2011 12:41:12 -0800

Meet us at Spokane Ag Expo February 7 - 9, 2012! We will have much to share with you -- not just equipment and parts, but ideas, technology, and services that directly relate to the success of your operation, be it farming, ranching, turf, or fire control.

We look forward to the opportunity to visit about things we both believe in: "industry, work, character, honesty, and fair dealings" -- the principles one of the pioneering McGregor brothers described, way back in 1885, as keys to success in agriculture for the road ahead. Principles we do our best to honor working with the remarkable farm families who are Inland Northwest agriculture.

You can also see us in the January issue of Wheat Life - click here to see our ad!

McGregor Deep Furrow Drill Debut!

Sat, 15 Oct 2011 11:00:57 -0700

On August 15th the McGregor Deep Furrow Drill headed out the shop door to a much anticipated field test in Lind. It’s McGregor Orange™ coating could be seen for miles...for the first 50 feet in the ground, that is. The goal was to engineer a drill that could seed into higher surface residue which would reduce wind erosion and improve overwintering moisture infiltration, do a better job of maintaining furrows and improve stand establishment in marginal conditions.

Seeing great success at that first trial run, the drill has continued to be pulled by customers and we’ve seeded over 1,000 acres. Paul Buchholtz, McGregor Design Engineer, and his team have seeded at nine locations with different soil types and varying degrees of residue.

In these field tests they have seeded conventional summer fallow as well as chem-fallow.

The drill participated in a WSU Research Trial at the Lind Field Station seeding into high residue summer fallow. As anticipated, the drill performed very well.

So far, there has been good moisture for seeding. The seeding depth has ranged from 3 to 5 inches and the drill’s success has piqued the interest of growers for seeding into chem-fallow.

While we’ve had some challenges in different conditions, overall the drill is working very well and we are seeing significant interest from growers to purchase a drill in the future. For more information about the McGregor Deep Furrow Drill, contact the Research & Technology Division.

Bright Minds Studying Agriculture

Mon, 01 Aug 2011 13:06:39 -0700

The McGregor Company continues to encourage young, bright minds to further their education in the field of agriculture. We have formed strong partnerships with many area community colleges and have been able to provide scholarship monies at some of them to assist students with the ever-increasing cost of tuition. Please join us in encouraging these fine young men and women as they move through their college careers.

Earning college scholarships for the 2011/2012 academic year:

Columbia Basin College, AgriBusiness

Daniel Flatau, Pasco WA $3,300

Carley Parthree, Kennewick WA $3,300

Bryce Henderson, Ellensburg WA $3,300

Spokane Community College, Agricultural Business

Michael Gerlitz, Endicott WA $1,500

Austin Bull, Troy ID $750

Scholarship Winners Announced For High School Seniors

Wed, 18 May 2011 10:00:44 -0700

The McGregor Company's Standing Tall for American Agriculture has announced five recipients of the $1,000 scholarship.

This spring, The McGregor Company continued a program directed toward supporting agriculture at a most important level – students. Five local high school seniors each received a $1,000 Standing Tall for Northwest Agriculture Scholarship, to go towards their college tuition. Christy Poirier of Waitsburg, WA, Traven Smith of Ritzville, WA, Brett Harrison of Lexington, OR, Jenna Kincaid of Pullman, WA and Flash Hodges of Oakesdale, WA all showed great interest in the ag industry as evident in their applications and essays.

Congratulations to each of them! We are excited to see them heading off to college and are looking forward to seeing their successes in the ag industry.

McGregor Announces Scholarship Contest

Mon, 31 Jan 2011 14:07:48 -0800

$1,000 Scholarships Available For Young People Pursuing a Career in Agriculture

Need some "green" for college? McGregor Companies wants to plant seeds for your education.

Our scholarship program has been developed specifically for high school seniors, graduating in 2011 within our market area in Washington, Idaho, and Oregon who will be entering college in an agricultural field of study.

The McGregor Company will offer up to three individual $1,000 scholarships upon the verification of enrollment in either an academic or vocational college.

How do you apply?

Get your application from your school counselor, FFA advisor or download the PDF from here.
Complete the application
Get two letters of recommendation
Write a totally awesome 500 word essay on the topic designated in the application
Enclose your transcript

Deadline is March 15, 2011

For more information, contact Leslie Hammer at The McGregor Company.
Phone: 509/337-6232
Fax: 509/337-6233
E-mail: leslie.hammer@mcgregor.com

The McGregor Company/Scholarship
P.O. Box 37
115 Garden Street
Waitsburg, WA 99262

QFC Receives Environmental Respect Award

Mon, 01 Nov 2010 15:35:32 -0700

Quincy Farm Chemicals (QFC) originated in the mid-1950s when agriculture literally took root in the Columbia Basin of Washington state. It wasn’t until the completion of the Grand Coullee Dam system that there was enough water available to support production agriculture in the region.

Video: Quincy Farm Chemicals Up Close

“This area was all sage brush and dry land until water came,” says Peter Romano, unit manager. “Water brought farming and back then my father began to create liquid application equipment to fertilize this newly developed irrigated land. He founded QFC and we grew right along with agriculture these last 50 plus years.”

Romano, a past president of the Ag Retailers Association, and his late father became leaders in developing modern agriculture in the region. “We were the first retailer in North America to introduce global-position-guided auto steering in our custom applicators,” he says. “This technology is giving us 2-inch accuracy in field applications and eliminating overlap.”

“By investing in our facility with state-of-the-art mixing and blending facilities, retaining walls, contained rinse pads for both fertilizers and pesticides, closed pesticide injection applicators, dry disconnect valves, and contained pesticide and fertilizer storage, we fit into the company’s Every Drop Counts program,” explains Craig Webley, QFC unit sales manager.

Ryan Erickson, a QFC crop advisor, describes these efforts this way, “The investment in our future is to focus on a mentality in which we are stewards of the land, working toward sustainable practices and not focusing on short-term gains to grow our industry.”

“The McGregor Co. has led the way through utilizing best management practices and through continued innovations. We are dedicated to help lead the way to ensure the continued success of our customers, our fellow employees, and our company,” says Service Technician Mark Dabeny. “And we are serious about this.”

Operations Supervisor Doug Dunkin adds to this perspective by taking it into the field. “Most of the time our employees are the last to come out of the field and how they leave that field has a direct impact on our relationship to our customer and the environment. More than anything, getting our employees to take ownership in what they do on a day-to-day basis has a significant impact on our success.”

Travelers through the area on I-90 are treated to an important community project supported by QFC. “We assist both the Quincy and Ephrata FFA Chapters in their Crop Sign Project,” explains Dunkin. “Manpower, storage, and inventory of crop signs are all a part of this project, which involves placing signs in fence rows identifying local crops growing in the fields adjoining the Interstate.”

Romano says that QFC employees look at environmental respect as a shared responsibility. “We each make a difference as individuals, but our team approach is worth so much more,” he says. “We are proud to be a part of something bigger.”

The McGregor Company Wins Spirit of Respect Award

Sat, 24 Jul 2010 15:43:16 -0700

The McGregor Company was honored as the first Spirit of Respect Award winner at the DuPont Country Club Friday, July 24 as part of a week-long Environmental Respect Awards celebration and stewardship forum. Winners were selected May 6 in Willoughby, Ohio.

The Spirit of Respect Award, a new addition to the Environmental Respect Awards, is open to all past U.S. regional and national winners that have won awards three or more years ago and is focused on one of the program's main objectives: to encourage continuous improvement of environmental stewardship initiatives among U.S. ag supply retailers.

“U.S. retailers are on the front lines of stewardship and are an important part of the industry’s daily efforts to protect the environment and ensure that agricultural products are used safely,” says Dr. Raymond Forney, global stewardship manager for DuPont Crop Protection. “It is our intent with The Environmental Respect Awards and the new Spirit of Respect Award to partner with our retailers customers in demonstration of a firm commitment to safe and sustainable agriculture.”

Representatives from the company received a personalized, Environmental Respect Award crystal sculpture at the ceremony and participated in a stewardship forum, hearing speakers from the World Wildlife Fund, the Center for Global Food Issues, CropLife International, The Fertilizer Institute, the Ag Retailers Association and Croplife America.

“DuPont is pleased to congratulate the winners of the 2010 Environmental Respect Awards and applauds their accomplishment in environmental stewardship,” said Jim Collins, president, DuPont Crop Protection. “These leaders are helping to advance environmental safety and the safe use of agricultural products, and we hope they will inspire others who share our passion and desire to elevate environmental stewardship around the world.”

“For 20 years we have had the privilege of honoring hundreds of ag retail supply businesses for their clear commitment to environmental stewardship,” says K. Elliott Nowels, Environmental Respect Awards program director. “With this new award, it is our intent to encourage those retailers that have already won to not only keep at it, but to take it even further. We want to create a new set of great stories and fine examples in an industry that is increasingly focused on the environment and food safety.”

More information on the Environmental Respect Awards can be found at www.environmentalrespect.com.