If you would like to support the National Association of Farm Broadcasting Foundation then here’s one way you can do it. Place your order now for the 2009 NAFB Foundation Toy Tractor!
This year’s model, a Farmall Super M…once again designed and signed by Joe Ertl, is available on a limited basis.
Click here or visit www.nafb.com to order today!
This is why I love YouTube. Thank you NCGA on Twitter for pointing it out. This is hilarious. It’s H1N1!! Good job Putnam Pig.
The Christmas SPIRIT Foundation (CSF) is a nonprofit organization dedicated to advancing the Spirit of Christmas for kids, families and the environment. Since 2005, CSF has delivered 50,000 Real Christmas Trees to military families in the U.S. and overseas through the Trees for Troops program.
CSF is inviting people to become local hosts of fundraising events called “Tweetup4Troops,” designed to help raise money for CSF’s Trees for Troops program. Tweetup4Troops events will be held the week of Veteran’s Day (Nov. 7 – Nov. 14) to help honor veterans, support Trees for Troops and have fun!
Click here for more information about how, why and where you can host a local event in your community!
Click here to register to become a local host of Tweetup4Troops.
The man who got us started here at the Pioneer Hi-Bred Forage Media Day is Robin Newell. Cindy spoke to him about the “long look.” He says the Pioneer long look has four components that include: “We strive to create the best products;” “We deal honestly and fairly with our constituents;” “We represent our products vigorously;” “We help our customers get the most from our products.” He says the focus today on the development of corn silage and alfalfa and inoculants like their new 11GFT.
He also mentioned their focus on animal welfare since they keep many animals here at the Livestock Nurition Center. He says they have an animal welfare committee that even includes “local clergy.” He says that person helps provide a good moral and ethical backbone to the committee. Now that’s interesting!
Pioneer Forage Media Day Photo Album
You can listen to Cindy’s interview with Robin below:
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Since I have returned to my family’s cattle operation, I’ve quickly been put in charge of all marketing efforts. For the fair, I developed a brochure about our business, as well as designed stall cards to display information about our cattle. My next task is improving our website (it’s in need of dire help), and starting up a newsletter for our customers.
Of course, these projects take time, and I have to balance these ideas with my writing and speaking duties, as well. Yet, my hope is to help my parents really develop the NOLZ Limousin brand as one that people in the industry will recognize. Today, my questions for AgWired readers include the following: What are you looking for in a good newsletter and website? How long is the newsletter? What topics should it address? What’s the best programs for developing professional online and print materials? How often does a newsletter need to be sent out? Can it easily be sent via email, too?
Any and all advice is greatly appreciated! I’m learning as I go. I’m definitely not a graphic designer! HELP!
Amanda Nolz
Blogger
Speaker
Daughter
Cowgirl
Student
The news here at the Pioneer Hi-Bred Forage Media Day is a new product. The 11GFT inoculant is the second in a series of products in the Pioneer fiber technology platform. This one will offer dairy producers another avenue to enhance forage digestibility which will reduce feed costs. The product was developed exclusively for grass and cereal silage and is the first of its kind. The company says other fiber technology products are currently under development.
Cindy interviewed Kyle Whitaker (pictured), Pioneer Hi-Bred Marketing Manager, Forage Additives, about the new product. Kyle says they see three key benefits that includes good basic fermentation, aerobic stability and fiber digestibility. He says they see the product used in silage markets across the U.S. with key targests in the northeast and far west.
We also have a photo album started for the event which will be added to later today but we’ve got some photos in there for you now: Pioneer Forage Media Day Photo Album
You can listen to Cindy’s interview with Kyle below:
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
The Pioneer Forage Media Day has started with class in session at their Livestock Nutrition Center near Des Moines, IA. We have a very good attendance from the ag media. Cindy (FarmPodcaster) stopped to pose at the entrance of the Center.
Right now we’re listening to the first presentation by Bill Curran on corn silage reearch. He’s giving us a complete overview of their process for testing and evaluating genetics of various hybrids.
During our breaks Cindy and I will be conducting interviews with the presenters which we’ll post primarily on World Dairy Diary but also here when appropriate as well. We’ll also be building up some new Forage Forum podcasts as well. So it’s going to be a busy day here.
We’ll also be doing some special tweets on the World Dairy Diary Twitter feed so keep an eye on it too. Please feel free to follow if you aren’t yet.
Pioneer Hi-Bred has invited ag media to attend a day filled with information on their forage products.
The Pioneer Livestock Nutrition Center (PLNC), Pioneer experts will provide the latest updates on technologies designed for producers and forage growers to get the most return on their investment.
Pioneer provides the entire range of seed genetics, crop-specific forage additives, revolutionary Corn Fiber Technology, silage know-how and local services – all dedicated to the goal of producing more nutritious feed for livestock.
Cindy and I are on location and will be covering the event throughout the day here and on World Dairy Diary.
In just a few days Syngenta Seeds will be holding the grand opening celebration of their new headquarters in Minnetonka, MN and Cindy will be on site to document the celebration in pictures and with interviews.
While I was attending the Farm Progress Show I visited with Syngenta’s Bruce Battles and Tracy Mader in their exhibit about one of their upcoming new traits called Agrisure Viptera. They believe that this product, which is due out in 2010, will take a corn grower’s yields to the next level.
Bruce says that when they were doing research on the product they discovered a whole new class of vegetative insecticidal proteins.
Agrisure Viptera™ Broad-Spectrum Lepidopteran Trait
The Agrisure Viptera trait is the first of many new traits being developed from an entirely new class of Vegetative Insecticidal Proteins (VIP) within the Agrisure system of high-performance corn traits.
During the development of Agrisure Viptera they’ve looked at the collection of pests which they call the Multi-Pest Complex and found that it has cost American corn growers up to $1.1 Billion/year in lost yield and grain quality. They believe Agrisure Viptera can help mitigate that risk for the grower.
You can listen to my interview with Bruce and Tracy here:
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
National FFA members will be getting an education in the growing field of renewable fuels, thanks to a new partnership.
The Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) and the Renewable Fuels Foundation (RFF) are partnering with teachers and the National FFA Organization to provide tens of thousands of high school students information about the opportunities available to them in the field of renewable fuels.
The curriculum was designed to provide FFA members with details about the nature of the renewable fuels industry today and focuses on the ethanol production process, the benefits of ethanol production, the interplay between renewable fuels and agriculture, and wide range of other issues. The lessons are available through the Team Ag Ed Learning Center, a website designed to provide agriculture teachers with new and exciting instructional materials, tools and resources.
The RFF is also offering 10 scholarships to cover the cost of the registration fee for the National Ethanol Conference. More information is available here.
In this weeks program I chat with new a US Grains Council CEO/President, Tom Dorr. The announcement was just made that the former U.S. Undersecretary for Rural Development will be replacing the retiring Ken Hobbie in November. Ken has held the position for the past 18 years and has been with USGC for 33 years.
Heres a photo of Tom I took from a Farm Foundation Forum I attended. In fact, as I looked back through posts here on AgWired, hes been kind of a regular! Were really looking forward to working with Tom in his new position.
Tom farmed in Iowa before moving to Washington, DC and is taking the helm of the organization as it is about to celebrate 50 years in 2010. He says his first priority will be to work with the Council’s membership, Board of Directors, and staff to clearly define, not just the challenges, but the opportunities for international grain trade.
So, listen to my conversation with Tom as we discuss his new position and the challenges he sees in the future.
The ZimmCast is the official weekly podcast of AgWired. Subscribe so you can listen when and where you want. Just go to our a Subscribe page.
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Everyone has a different idea of who or what a cowboy is. While most definitions vary widely, there is one thing that they all have in common: pride in American agriculture and dedication to get the job done right. Recently, I ran across an article titled, “Who Cares About Cowboys Anymore?” and it discussed how the average American consumer doesn’t care or understand where their food comes from. (Photo Credit: Peter Yang, True Grit)
Today, I’m asking each and every single AgWired reader out there to share their definition of the American cowboy. Leave it in the comments section here, as well as on the article. It’s time we connect with our urban customers once again. It’s time they understand the people behind the products in the grocery stores. It’s time we stand up and speak out before our story gets told by someone else. Remember to share the facts and your personal story to deliver the most effective message. Here is my comment that I left on the website… I hope you’ll take the time to share your story, too.
It’s been said that most Americans are so far removed from American agriculture, they have never even met a farmer/rancher in their lifetimes. However true that may be, I thought I would take this opportunity to introduce myself to the American public as a fifth generation cattle rancher from South Dakota. My name is Amanda Nolz, and my family has been in the cattle business in what seems like forever.
Ranching is a tough profession, especially today, with the increasing price of food, fuel and fiber, and it’s not always easy to earn a living in this career. It’s tough, but necessary work. According to the most recent agriculture census, for every consumer dollar spent on food in the United States, the farmer or rancher only receives 18 cents of that dollar. However, despite the challenges, the people involved in raising food are a passionate group. Over 90% of farms and ranches are family owned and operated, which means that families just like yours are dedicated to raising a safe, affordable wholesome food source that is abundantly available for families across the globe.
For me and my family, we are proud to raise nutritious, delicious beef. It graces our dinner table on most nights. Despite the common misconceptions in the media today about our nation’s food supply, we firmly believe that American farmers and ranchers produce the safest food in the world. Maybe you have never met a cowboy before, but I hope that you will remember people like me that are working hard everyday to fill the center of your dinner plate. We are “cowboys,” and it’s a lifestyle we are dedicated to, no matter how difficult it gets at times.
Amanda Nolz
5th generation cattle rancher
Mitchell, SD
The highly-anticipated approval of a new kind of chemistry for weed control has finally happened.
BASF announced today the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) registration of a new active ingredient, Kixor® herbicide, for use on a wide range of crops and effective on more than 70 broadleaf weeds. Starting this fall, four formulations Powered by Kixor herbicide — Sharpen™ herbicide, OpTill™ herbicide, Integrity™ herbicide and Treevix™ herbicide — will be available to help growers tackle today’s weed control challenges in their fields.
“Kixor is a new herbicide technology specifically designed to address pressing weed concerns of today and tomorrow,” said Nevin McDougall, Group Vice President of BASF North America Crop Protection. “At a time when few new herbicides are being brought to market, BASF has remained steadfast in our commitment to bringing new solutions to growers to help them manage their fields and realize a higher return on the acre. The result is a breakthrough herbicide technology that gives growers a powerful tool in the fight against glyphosate resistance.”
We’ve been talking about the Kixor chemistry from BASF for well over a year now – you can find a number of posts here on Agwired about it if you do a search for Kixor – so it is great to see it finally approved by EPA. You can read more about it here from BASF.
The 23rd Annual Georgia Peanut Tour is being held this week to provide producers with the latest information on peanuts while giving a first-hand view of industry infrastructure from production and handling to processing and utilization.
But, for those who can’t be there – they can follow along on the Georgia Peanut Tour blog.
For the second year in a row, master blogger Joy Carter with the Georgia Peanut Commission will be blogging all the events starting with the Hot Topics Seminar on Tuesday with food safety experts discussing production practices, quality management, and outbreak investigations. The tour includes a cross section of field conditions in South Central Georgia, peanut harvest clinics, production research at the University of Georgia Tifton Campus, peanut handling and grading facilities as well as a focus on biofuels, equipment and implements, trailers and dryer, dome storage and handling, shelling and blanching.
Tomorrow, I’m headed to the home of longtime friends Mike and Sue Sibson, cattle ranchers from western Miner County. They have asked me to come view their operation and help tell their story. The Sibsons were one of several South Dakota families to sign on to a lawsuit last year trying to prevent TransCanada from using eminent domain to seize easements from landowners along the proposed Keystone pipeline route.
A South Dakota political blog, Madville Times, did a feature on the Sibson’s struggles. Here is an excerpt…
The Sibsons refer to their land, now sliced in half by the Keystone Pipeline, as their “homestead” of 30-some years. “Homestead” is a powerful word. It recalls where our people came from: traveling across wild land, picking one spot out of a million possibilities, staking survival—financial and physical—on their best guess that this patch of land might produce a good crop. Our ancestors came in response to a simple promise from the government: build a house, grow crops, tough it out, and the land is yours.
The Sibsons thought the land they worked for was theirs. They chose a spot twelve miles out of town, built a home, paid the bills with corn, wheat, and cattle. By sweat and wits, they earned their farm. They figured it was theirs, plain and simple…until last year, when a foreign corporation said, “No, actually, we can claim your land anytime we want,” and the government to which the Sibsons pay their taxes replied, “Yup, sure can.”
“I’m one of the only guys who can say he had a 2000-mile pipeline shoved up his ***,” says Mike Sibson.
This got me to thinking about the big subject of eminent domain and how it has an impact on land owners. From your experiences, what’s your take? What are your thoughts? Do you know someone who has been touched by eminent domain? I will report back with the full story later on. Thanks for your thoughts…
As many of you may know, Atrazine is celebrating its 50th birthday. To learn more about it and what it means I spoke to Chuck Foresman, Syngenta Manager, Weed Resistance Strategies and Sherry Duvall Ford, Syngenta, Head, External Communications. We were at the Farm Progress Show in the media tent.
Chuck says that the product helped farmers back in the late 50′s and sustains its usefulness today. It’s used on many acres and particularly those devoted to conservation tillage. He says over the years farmers have learned a lot about how to use it and continue to see great value in it. One thing he mentions that is interesting is that even when Syngenta came to the market with a new class of herbicide called Callisto they found that using them together they work better than separately. He says Atrazine is found in over 40 different mixes today to control weeds in corn.
I asked about concerns that people have about the safety of Atrazine and Sherry says it’s probably the most studied products on the market. She wants the public to know that drinking water is completely safe where Atrazine is concerned. They work very closely with EPA on this.
Chuck points out that a looming threat in the field is glyphosate resistance and Atrazine plays a role to control many of the weeds that glyphosate controls so the they work to sustain each other. You can find a lot more information on the Syngenta Atrazine website.
For 50 years, farmers around the world have relied on atrazine — one of the triazine family of herbicides — to fight weeds in corn, grain sorghum, sugar cane and other crops. And for good reason: it’s still one of the most effective, affordable and trusted products in agriculture today.
Syngenta believes in atrazine, its effectiveness, its safety, its importance to agriculture – in the U.S. and worldwide.
You can listen to my interview with Chuck and Sherry here:
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
It’s looking like things are going to continue to stay busy for me in my first year as an agriculture writer and speaker. In addition to my work on the ranch, I have been traveling across the country speaking to various agriculture groups on hot topics such as the next generation of food producers, online social networking, agriculture advocacy and more. Here is a list of my upcoming events; I would love to catch up with you on the road, if our schedules allow. Let me know if you’re in the area! And, if you’re in need of a speaker for your next meeting or event, just give me a holler! Hope to meet some of you soon!
Sept. 16, 2009 – SDSU Beef Leadership Experience Opening Keynote, Brookings, SD; Address to SDSU animal science freshmen on the importance of getting involved. I will also be speaking to the Block and Bridle group that evening to expand upon the same topic.
Oct. 9-11, 2009 – 2010 National Beef Ambassador Contest, Fort Smith, AR; I will present the inspirational keynote to the ambassador contestants, as well as present a workshop to the CattleWomen on online social networking.
Nov. 21, 2009 – Agriculture Banquet, SD Department of Ag, Pierre, SD; keynote address, “What Happened to the Next Generation of Agriculturalists?”
Jan. 30-31, 2010 – North Dakota Farm Bureau Young Farmers and Ranchers Conference, Minot, ND.
Feb. 12-13 – Great Lakes Regional Dairy Conference, Frankenmuth, MI.
At this year’s Farm Progress Show Eric Hatling, Development and Communications Coordinator for the MOSES, the Midwest Organic & Sustainable Education Service, visited with me about the organization. It sounds like their has continued to grow.
Eric says that since last year the organization continues to grow. He says they had almost 2,700 people attend their Annual Organic Farming Conference and Organic University. He says they exist to help farmers who want to grow organic become successful. The next annual conference is scheduled for Feb. 25-27 in Lacrosse, WI with over 60 workshops on all aspects of organic and sustainable farming.
You can listen to my interview with Eric here:
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
There is absolutely no way I can improve on what Penn & Teller say about Dr. Norman E. Borlaug. This video has been out for a while but I just saw it for the first time and I’m still laughing. Penn Jillette narrates this video and let’s just say he expresses my thoughts on Greenpeace wackos perfectly with the word, BS. It’s worth watching to the end and as far as I’m concerned it’s an awesome tribute to Dr. Borlaug. (Warning: there are a few choice words in the video that may not sit well on sensitive ears.)
I may not agree with them on other issues but this one is dead on the money.
In this week's program Chuck talks with David Armano, Global Innovation and Integration.
David conducted a presentation on delivering expert opinion via social media to an audience at the start of International Poultry Expo week. He's got some great information about who consumers trust and how you can use today's consumer behavior to help communicate your message.
