BLOOMINGTON, ILL – November 28, 2022 – The Illinois Soybean Association (ISA) has announced its ILSoyAdvisor award winners. The two awards are one way that ISA recognizes and shows its appreciation of Certified Crop Advisers across the state.

“ISA is proud to recognize CCA’s that strive to help farmers be their very best,” says Stephanie Porter, ISA Outreach Agronomist. “We also realize that many of these individuals usually don’t get the recognition that they deserve, so this is our way of saying thank you for all that you do for them and Illinois agriculture.”

John Pike was awarded the 2023 Soybean Master Adviser award, created as a way to recognize one special CCA each year for their passion for soybean management.

Pike lives in Marion, IL and operates Pike Ag, LLC, providing agronomic consulting and contract research services for the ag industry. He is the Southern Illinois Coordinator for the Nutrient Research Education Council (NREC) nitrogen management research conducted by the IL Fertilizer and Chemical Association, and is also involved in various cover crop research projects and educational efforts. 

Pike was formerly the Crop Sciences Superintendent and Research Agronomist for the University of Illinois at the Dixon Springs Ag Center until crop sciences research was terminated at 4 locations across the state in April of 2016. Pike has continued to collaborate with staff at U of I, Southern IL University, and University of Kentucky to maintain research capacity in Southern Illinois related to nutrient management and water quality, along with other industry research and product testing related to corn, soybean and wheat production.  

Pike served as a U of I Extension Educator from 2001 to 2012 concentrating on aspects of value-added agriculture and specialty crop marketing and has also worked as a program specialist at Southern IL University, served as agronomy instructor at Lake Land College in Mattoon, IL and worked as Certified Crop Specialist/CCA for FS/Growmark member companies in Piatt and Christian Counties.

Janette Porter was awarded the Dave Rahe Excellence in Soils Consulting award, an accolade named in honor of Dave Rahe, a former ILSoyAdvisor CCA Soy Envoy who passed away suddenly in April 2020. During his year as an Envoy, he authored blogs for ILSoyAdvisor covering topics such as soil compaction, micronutrient management, cover crops, and more. In addition to writing for ILSoyAdvisor, he wrote his own blog, Observations in Agriculture. ISA is grateful to honor his legacy in this way.

Janette Porter grew up on a family farm in Pike County, IL. She graduated from Southern Illinois University Carbondale with a bachelor’s degree in Plant and Soil Sciences in 2010. Janette began working as an agricultural consultant in 2011. 

David Rahe and Janette formed RPM Soils in February of 2016 where they shared management of the company until Dave’s sudden passing in April of 2020. She has also been employed part-time with Bradshaw Custom Pumping since 2010. There she is involved with GPS coordinating and sending out as-applied maps and nutrient analysis to clients from their manure applications. She is a Certified Crop Adviser and a member of the Illinois Soil Classifiers Association where she assists in classifying soils for possible septic sites. 

Porter remembers Dave as a great mentor and friend and recalls the many hours spent together riding in his truck or sitting alongside a picnic table discussing soils, crops, and mostly life. She enjoys continuing on in his honor to help farmers manage their soil and make informed decisions. Janette lives in White Heath, IL with her husband Matt and four year old daughter Brynnlee.

Both winners will be recognized at ISA’s Impact Awards banquet on November 29, 2022 and at the 2023 Soybean Summit on February 2 at the iHotel in Champaign. 

The Illinois Soybean Association (ISA) checkoff and membership programs represent more than 43,000 soybean farmers in Illinois. The checkoff funds market development and utilization efforts while the membership program supports the government relations interests of Illinois soybean farmers at the local, state, and national level, through the Illinois Soybean Growers (ISG). ISA upholds the interests of Illinois soybean producers through promotion, advocacy, and education with the vision of becoming a market leader in sustainable soybean production and profitability. For more information, visit the website www.ilsoy.org and ilsoygrowers.com.

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