Crop Insurance Today November 2011 - (Page 18)

TODAYcrop insurance Receives Siehl Prize Dr. Wally Nelson Excellence in Agriculture Dr. Wallace “Wally” Nelson, long-time superintendent of the Southwest Experiment Station in Lamberton, MN, was awarded the 2012 Siehl Prize for Excellence in Agriculture. This award recognizes individuals who have made extraordinary contributions to the production of food and alleviation of hunger in three separate categories: production, agribusiness, and knowledge. Dr. Nelson was awarded the Siehl prize for knowledge. For more than 40 years, Dr. Nelson has influenced agriculture in southwest Minnesota and at the University of Minnesota by guiding the Southwest Research and Outreach Center while profoundly affecting the farmers, agribusinesses and people in the community and beyond. Dr. Nelson played a major role in establishing the Southwest Research and Outreach Center in Lamberton and was superintendent there from its inception in 1959 until his retirement in 1993. During that time, the National Crop Insurance Association (NCIA), predecessor to NCIS, began corn and soybean research studies at the experiment station. Dr. Dale Hicks and Dr. Nelson designed the first crop-hail projects and were involved in planning and conducting the subsequent loss adjuster schools. Dr. Nelson and his team built an ice machine that was used to inflict 18 november 2011 damage on the growing crops. During the schools, adjusters would evaluate the damage using current industry loss procedures. The plots were later harvested and actual losses determined, based on harvested results. According to Dr. Hicks, adjusters were always within a few percent of the actual loss, which gave credence to the loss procedures. Through field days and meetings he organized at the center, Dr. Nelson developed a vibrant connection with farmers and agribusiness leaders. He was committed to making sure that faculty and scientists understood farmers’ real problems and that research outputs were focused on solving them. As former Regent Verne Long said, “He seemed to have the uncanny ability to anticipate serious and important challenges that appeared on the horizon about a year before those challenges became real, serious problems.” The Siehl Prize is named in honor of philanthropist Eldon Siehl, a successful Minnesota businessman who wanted to educate the general public about where their food came from and to provide recognition for the dedicated people who make it their life’s work. For more information please visit www.cfans.umn.edu/siehlprize/index.html http://www.cfans.umn.edu/siehlprize/index.html

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Crop Insurance Today November 2011

Primum Non Nocere
Systematic Risk: Crop Insurance in Retrospect and Prospect
The State of U.S. Livestock Insurance
Crop Insurance in 2020
Dr. Wally Nelson Receives Siehl Prize
High Temperature Effects on Corn: How high is to high?
Educating Adjusters for Over Three Decades
On the Road

Crop Insurance Today November 2011