AgVenture Gold Club winner Jon Blunier attributes family values to success.
Family-owned businesses are important to Jon Blunier, his father Myron and brother Craig who not only farm around seven hundred acres of corn and soybeans but also build custom pole barns and provide snow removal during the winter around Eureka, Illinois. “Small companies, family-owned companies, that’s who we like to work with – because we know the family dynamic is important to them” shares Jon.
Having a local connection for their seed is something that goes back many years when they started working with Gary Baugh a District Sales Manager with Wehmeyer Seed. “A lot of people plant different varieties around our area, but we plant all AgVenture seed because we like that they have a good product backed by good people.”
Within the past year they have also had the chance to work with Connor Henne, a newer District Sales Manager with Wehmeyer Seed, an AgVenture independent seed company, who encouraged them to enter the AgVenture Gold Club yield contest. “We didn’t really know if we were going to win – for us it’s more about trying to go for the good yield and farm the right way,” Jon explained. However, they were excited when their 110 day, AgVenture® brand AV6010AVM™ yielded an average of 284 bu/A, a record yield for that field. “It was one of the most evenly emerged fields that we had, the stand was great and even though we had a dry August – it did really well.”
In addition to their winning field, Jon had a plot on this farm this year where they had a chance to evaluate a lot of different seed brands. “AgVenture® brand AV2116PCE™ won the plot – it was kind of a surprise because we didn’t think it was going to win – but there are a lot of good hybrids out there,” Jon explained. These newer hybrids with the PowerCore® Enlist® corn trait and Enlist® traits are exciting for him as they provide more flexibility for his weed control applications.
Going into the next growing season Jon is pleased with the success they have had with AgVenture through the years. “There are a lot of good AgVenture hybrids and varieties, but the biggest thing is the ROI. You look at what is the price for a bag and the people you’re buying from,” he stressed. It’s these local relationships that are at the heart of winning both on and off the farm for the Blunier family.
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