New perspectives on rural economic growth will be discussed at the Farm Foundation Forum on Tuesday, Sept. 15.
The National Corn Growers Association has added two new managers, Susan Powers and Cathryn Wojcicki Dixson, to fill vacant positions on its award-winning communications team as it works to promote the image of corn farmers and the importance of U.S. corn and corn products.
The Westchester Group is pleased to announce that Roderick (Rory) Robertson has joined the company as executive vice president. Rory will be establishing a new office in Fresno, Calif.
Nobel Peace Laureate, Dr. Norman Borlaug has passed away. You can find more information from The Borlaug Institute. He’s pictured with his Nobel Peace Prize.
Norman E. Borlaug, the 1970 Nobel Peace Prize winner for developing high-yielding, disease-resistant wheat used to prevent famine in developing countries throughout the world died today in Dallas, Texas.
Borlaug, whose career was dedicated to employing science to combat international hunger, was Distinguished Professor of International Agriculture in Texas A&M University’s Department of Soil and Crop Sciences. He was 95.
In 2007, he accepted the Congressional Gold Medal, the highest civilian honor of the United States. This capped a string of major awards and honors throughout his scientific and humanitarian career.
“We all eat at least three times a day in privileged nations, and yet we take food for granted,” Borlaug said in recent interview. “There has been great progress, and food is more equitably distributed. But hunger is a commonplace, and famine appears all too often.” Even at age 95, Borlaug still traveled internationally working tirelessly for improvements in agricultural science and food policy. He regularly could be found in his office on campus in College Station advising students and providing counsel to fellow faculty members on research and scholarship.
Memories and thoughts celebrating the life of Dr. Borlaug can be submitted by clicking here. *This website is external to Texas A&M but is moderated by the Borlaug Institute.
The family has requested that in lieu of flowers, memorials be made to:
Borlaug International Scholars Fund
401 George Bush Drive
College Station, TX 77840
This fund is for land-grant university degree training of future leaders in agriculture and food security from developing countries. This fund will be administered by the Texas A&M Foundation, a non-profit organization.
More information is always better and with a lot of information circulating about how marketers are moving their budgets online, this should be good information for ag media planners to have. I do hope questions are asked about social networking mechanisms like Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, etc. We know from other studies that farmers are reading blogs and listening to podcasts while even producing their own. The social networking phenomenon is taking place in ag and I have no doubts we’ll see that verified by this new study.
NAFB is initiating its third major national research study in four years, with the Internet Ag Information Usage Study commissioned with Ag Media Research, Sioux Falls, S.D.
Building on the National Producer Media-Use Wave Study of 2008, the new project is asking large farmers and ranchers about their Internet access practices and preferences for agribusiness information, including use of the mobile Web. The survey, to query 1,200 national producers, also asks about the relative value of different types of agribusiness information as delivered via the Web.
Media veteran Ted Haller has consulted on the project, including seeking input toward the questionnaire from leading industry marketers and agencies. With most industry research closely held or proprietary, NAFB again will make public the outcomes of this new survey.
Results are to be introduced during the November Annual Convention, Nov. 11-13 in Kansas City.
The iPod Nano just became a farm podcaster tool. Now you can not only record audio with a built in microphone but video as well. It also has a built in speaker so you can listen to your recording right away.
If you still listen to terrestrial radio the new Nano now does FM.
Say you need to take a quick break from listening to your favorite radio station. iPod nano lets you pause it with a click. Another click and you’re listening to your station again. You can even rewind as far back as 15 minutes, then fast-forward to catch up to the live broadcast.
DuPont has received full Canadian regulatory approval of its proprietary herbicide tolerance trait, Optimum GAT, in corn and soybeans for cultivation, feed, and food.
Monsanto Company announced a non-exclusive research and commercial license agreement with France-based Cellectis S.A. for broad use of its meganuclease technology in plants.
Larry A. Quinn, assistant director of the USDA Office of Communications, will retire Sept. 30 after more than 35 years at USDA and 42 years in federal service including time at Texas A&M extension.
Agricultural retailers and distributors can sharpen their management, leadership and decision-making skills at the 2010 Agricultural Retailers Association Management Academy, set for Feb. 2-4 at Purdue University in West Lafayette, Ind.
Edging closer to the number one record crop, USDA boosted the corn production forecast by two percent in the report out this morning – to an even 13 billion bushels. Still expected to be just the second largest on record, it is a mere 100 million bushels short of the 2007 record crop.
USDA is now saying yields are expected to average 161.9 bushels per acre, up 2.4 bushels from August and 8.0 bushels above last year. Yield forecasts increased from last month across the western Corn Belt and the northern half of the Great Plains as mild temperatures and adequate soil moisture supplies provided favorable growing conditions. Yield prospects were unchanged in the eastern Corn Belt where dry conditions during August depleted soil moisture supplies.
USDA also increased the soybean forecast in the new report, a record high 3.25 billion bushels, up 1 percent from the August forecast and up 10 percent from last year. Yields are expected to average 42.3 bushels per acre, with record high yields forecast for Alabama, Georgia, and Mississippi.
Even though both crops remain far behind normal in development, the forecast is calling for generally warm, mostly dry weather stretching into next week or so, which is great news for producers.
U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack yesterday urged reporters to “get it right” and call it H1N1.
“The job of the media is to get it right and not necessarily to get it convenient,” said Vilsack. “Some media outlets have been responsive and sensitive to this, but there’s really not been a concerted effort by the media to do a good job, a correct job of making sure this is characterized properly.”
Vilsack made his case on behalf of struggling pork producers who have been adversely affected by the connection to the virus. “I want folks who are in this business of conveying messages“to understand that behind that message there is a family today … wondering how they’re going to be able to pay the bills when they continually sell pork for less than what it costs to produce, and they continue to get hammered for something that they have absolutely nothing to do with.”
Illinois Farm Bureau is taking the case to Facebook by urging us to participate in online H1N1 online activism today. Join the protest here.
Stop the hogwash! Call it H1N1, not “swine flu.” You cannot get H1N1 from eating pork, and the misnomer is hurting pork producers financially.
Join me in the fight against bad farm facts. Copy this entire message into your profile status and leave it there all day. Then click “like” on the Illinois Farm Bureau Fan Page status to show that you participated. Thank you for supporting U.S. agriculture.
Today, I’m hitting the road to attend an event with the South Dakota CattleWomen’s Association. I will be their keynote speaker at the Ramkota Inn in Pierre, S.D. during their noon luncheon. I will be speaking on my life since being the 2006 National Beef Ambassador and explaining the importance of getting involved in our agriculture industry. I’m excited to hit the road again with speaking gigs, and I will let you know my speaking schedule as it comes up. Hopefully, we can meet down the road somewhere.
For now, here is a little teaser of my speech: I will be diving into the ins and outs of my involvement in the beef cattle industry. I’ll explain the successes and failures, the good ideas and the bad, the internships, the study abroad trips and my final year of college in making the decision to go back to the family cattle ranch and work as a self-employed speaker and writer. Finally, I will challenge the cattlewomen to stand up and get involved in their own agriculture advocacy. I’ll report back next week with how it turns out. Stay tune for updates on my upcoming adventures! Next on the list is a day at SDSU, speaking for the new Beef Leadership Experience Program!
It was standing room only at the Town Hall Meeting featuring U.S. Senator John Thune at the 2009 South Dakota State Fair in Huron, S.D. last week. The senator was welcomed to a standing ovation after he was introduced, and from there, he presented a powerpoint detailing spending and deficit projections. However, it was the question-and-answer segment of the town hall meeting that drew the most interest.
Energy was the major topic of discussion at the forum, with many asking Senator Thune about the Renewable Electricity Standard (RES). Thune said he was open to supporting the RES, but he would not vote in favor of a bill that included either cap-and-trade pollution regulations or a climate-change proposal, as he believes they would raise energy costs for South Dakotans. So, what’s your take on the Renewable Electricity Standard? Has it been discussed at your town hall meetings? What’s your take?
The Georgia peanut industry helped to fill the coffers of the state’s food banks – and the stomachs of hungry children – with a hefty donation this week.
In honor of Hunger Action Month, representatives from the Georgia Peanut Commission, National Peanut Buying Points Association, American Peanut Shellers Association and Georgia Farm Bureau along with fourteen other individuals, organizations and businesses donated 28,224 jars of peanut butter to the Food Bank of Southwest Georgia. That’s enough peanut butter to make 350,000 sandwiches!
“Peanut butter is an excellent source of protein and an ideal item to have in our pantries because adults and kids alike can make a quick meal or snack out of it,” said Brett Kirkland, president of the Food Bank of Southwest Georgia. “Thanks to the peanut industry and the donors of this project, this large donation of peanut butter will help us and our 300 partner agencies continue to distribute high-quality, easy-to- prepare food to those in need of food assistance.”
The Food Bank of Southwest Georgia serves 20 counties throughout Southwest Georgia and partners with over 300 agencies to serve approximately 30,000 people each year, including 10,000 children. In the 20 county service area, there are 100,000 people living in poverty and 200,000 people at risk of being food insecure at some point during the year.
The corn was still green but that didn’t stop a rainbow of combines from demonstrating their skills at the 2009 Farm Progress Show in Decatur, Illinois last week.
Green Acres was the place to be yesterday. That’s the name of the Novus International research farm near Montgomery City, MO. Our media group piled into a van piloted by Captain Jeremy Lutgen and off we went to see how the project is coming along.
Novus purchased the 15 acre farm and has been constructing new buildings while renovating existing one. Pictured on the left is Skip Hampton, Novus Manager, Product Research. He told us all about their plans and says they hope to have the initial construction finished by the end of this month. He says they’ll have a multi-functional facility that will allow for research on swine, poultry, ruminants and equine. Their headquarters building is Leed certified and the home on the site for the on-site manager will also be Leed certified. The whole farm will have sustainability in mind and in my interview you’ll hear Skip describe how they’ll utilize water resources and energy. He says they may be looking at a combination of a wind turbine with solar panels.
Someone mentioned to me the other day that because there are more farm shows being developed in other countries and due to the shape of our economy we probably will see fewer international visitors to shows here in the U.S. However, at this year’s Farm Progress Show I saw lots of them. While I was in the Ag Leader Technology exhibit (sponsor of our Precision Pays site) I spoke to a couple of our international visitors from Argentina, Matias Abadie and Axel Von Martini. They are standing in the photo. Axel does research and brought a group of 72 farmers to the U.S. and their tour ends here at the show. Matias works as an Ag Leader dealer in Argentina.
Both of them echo what we’re seeing here at home and that is growing adoption of precision technology and for many of the same reasons as their American counterparts (reduce input costs for example). In fact, they make a point that we’re living in a global market so farmers around the world are sharing similar challenges.
They also make it clear that information is much more accessible than it used to be and the internet has really helped with that. I’ll bet they visit Precision Pays!
The American Phytopathological Society (APS) is pleased to announce its new officers for 2009–2010. Barbara J. Christ, senior associate dean of the College of Agricultural Sciences and professor in the Plant Pathology Department at Penn State University, has been named president for the 2009–2010 term. Click here for a complete listing.
“Farm Animal Care: Myths vs. Facts” will be the 2009 topic of the annual Farm-City Week Symposium during National Farm-City Week, celebrated Nov. 20 to 26, 2009.
Monsanto Company announced that it has completed the divestiture of its global sunflower assets to Syngenta.
The first presenter this morning at the Novus International Media Day was good friend, Stephanie Gable, Marketing Manager, Ruminants. Stephanie gave us the lowdown on how Novus is helping dairy producers achieve “oxidative balance” in their herd. They’ve found that just like with human beings, when dairy cows come under stress from oxidation they become less productive. So to prevent it and maintain a healthy balance they recommend the use of antioxidants like AGRADO Plus feed ingredient.
They feel so strongly about the importance of dairy nutrition that they’ve created a new website on the subject where you can learn a lot more about this oxidative balance issue.
It became official today that Sen. Tom Harkin of Iowa will become chairman of the Senate health committee, replacing the late Sen. Edward Kennedy. The move means that Harkin will no longer be chairman of the agriculture committee, but says he will remain as a member of the committee which he has been on since 1985. “My dedication to the Agriculture Committee dates back to my first year in Congress when I served on the House Agriculture Committee in 1975,” Harkin said.
The new chairman of the ag committee is Sen. Blanche Lincoln of Arkansas, who has served on the committee since 1998. “As a seventh-generation Arkansan and farmer’s daughter, I know my father is smiling down on me today,” Lincoln said. “I thank Senator Harkin for his tremendous leadership. As Chairman, I will work with my colleagues to build upon the Committee’s strong record and devote my full energy to producing forward-looking, balanced priorities on behalf of all families and communities. I will continue to fight for the hardworking farm families and rural communities who provide the safest, most abundant and affordable supply of food and fiber in the world.” Lincoln is the first woman ever to chair the committee.
American Farm Bureau Federation president Bob Stallman commented on the committee chair changes in a statement. “Sen. Lincoln has been a long-time friend of Farm Bureau. She received the Golden Plow Award in 2008, the highest honor the American Farm Bureau Federation presents to members of Congress, for her steadfast support of America’s farmers and ranchers,” said Stallman. “Farm Bureau is also pleased that Sen. Harkin has agreed to continue to serve on the Senate Agriculture Committee. Sen. Harkin has always been deeply committed to the nation’s farmers and ranchers, and we are confident he will continue to represent and hear the concerns of agriculture as he helps set the tone for important issues such as healthcare, education and labor in his new chairmanship.”
Although I didn’t get to attend the Novus Media Day dinner last night, Jeremy Lutgen helped me out so you can actually hear the guest speaker. He’s Dr. David Weatherspoon, Assoc. Professor, Ag., Food & Resource Econ., Michigan State University.
David spoke about sustainability in agriculture and from what you’ll hear him say he believes we’ve got some big challenges which may even be overwhelming.
The National Agri-Marketing Association is calling for entries for its annual “Best of” competition.
You’ve done a lot of hard work and now it’s time for it to pay off. Submit your best work in the Best of NAMA competition. The Best of NAMA Call for Entries is available on-line now!
The deadline for submitting your entries is Friday, October 9.
The Best of NAMA awards program honors the best work in agricultural communications. Actually, the best of the best, since companies/agencies must first qualify through regional competition in order to advance to the national level.
Remember, your local chapter receives $25 per regional entry. So, enter your work in Best of NAMA and support your local chapter at the same time.
Let’s welcome these newcomers to the National Corn Growers Association. They are (l-r) Cathryn Wojcicki Dixson and Susan Powers.
The National Corn Growers Association has added two new managers, each with agriculture marketing experience, to fill vacant positions on its award-winning communications team as it works to promote the image of corn farmers and the importance of U.S. corn and corn products.
Susan Powers joins the organization as a communications manager for events and other marketing communications initiatives, bringing with her two decades of experience in a broad range of corporate, association and agriculture communications. Cathryn Wojcicki Dixson starts with NCGA as a communications manager for editorial, managing NCGA’s editorial calendar and major publications, as well as other assignments.
It’s been a few weeks since I have had the chance to sit down and blog on AgWired. I can’t believe how crazy busy the summer got, and how quickly it is fading into fall. In the past two weeks, I was at the Minnesota and South Dakota State Fairs with cattle in tow, and it’s amazing how much time and effort goes into taking a few head of cattle to display at livestock expositions! Anyway, I thought I would share some of the highlights of the last couple of weeks, and now, it’s time to get back in the saddle and get down to the business of blogging!
While at the fairs, I took in cattle shows, Century Farm Awards, Beef Cookoffs, speech contests, town hall meetings, carnival food, concerts and more. In the upcoming weeks, I will share all of it with you. So, get ready for a fun recap of my state fair adventures. And, while we’re at it, why don’t you tell me some of your state fair stories? What have you been up to lately? What fairs did you attend, and what did you do while you were there? Can’t wait to hear all about it!
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.
Nobel Peace Laureate, Dr. Norman Borlaug has passed away. You can find more information from 
You know how much farmers like to be studied don’t you? Yeah. You’ve got that right. Well now the 
The 
USDA is now saying yields are expected to average 161.9 bushels per acre, up 2.4 bushels from August and 8.0 bushels above last year. Yield forecasts increased from last month across the western Corn Belt and the northern half of the Great Plains as mild temperatures and adequate soil moisture supplies provided favorable growing conditions. Yield prospects were unchanged in the eastern Corn Belt where dry conditions during August depleted soil moisture supplies.
Vilsack made his case on behalf of struggling pork producers who have been adversely affected by the connection to the virus. “I want folks who are in this business of conveying messages“to understand that behind that message there is a family today … wondering how they’re going to be able to pay the bills when they continually sell pork for less than what it costs to produce, and they continue to get hammered for something that they have absolutely nothing to do with.”
In honor of Hunger Action Month, representatives from the 
Green Acres was the place to be yesterday. That’s the name of the 
Someone mentioned to me the other day that because there are more farm shows being developed in other countries and due to the shape of our economy we probably will see fewer international visitors to shows here in the U.S. However, at this year’s Farm Progress Show I saw lots of them. While I was in the 
The first presenter this morning at the 
It became official today that Sen. Tom Harkin of Iowa will become chairman of the Senate health committee, replacing the late Sen. Edward Kennedy. The move means that Harkin will no longer be chairman of the agriculture committee, but says he will remain as a member of the committee which he has been on since 1985. “My dedication to the Agriculture Committee dates back to my first year in Congress when I served on the House Agriculture Committee in 1975,” Harkin said. 
The new chairman of the ag committee is Sen. Blanche Lincoln of Arkansas, who has served on the committee since 1998. “As a seventh-generation Arkansan and farmer’s daughter, I know my father is smiling down on me today,” Lincoln said. “I thank Senator Harkin for his tremendous leadership. As Chairman, I will work with my colleagues to build upon the Committee’s strong record and devote my full energy to producing forward-looking, balanced priorities on behalf of all families and communities. I will continue to fight for the hardworking farm families and rural communities who provide the safest, most abundant and affordable supply of food and fiber in the world.” Lincoln is the first woman ever to chair the committee.
Although I didn’t get to attend the Novus Media Day dinner last night, Jeremy Lutgen helped me out so you can actually hear the guest speaker. He’s 
The National Agri-Marketing Association is calling for entries for its annual “Best of” competition.
Let’s welcome these newcomers to the 
It’s been a few weeks since I have had the chance to sit down and blog on AgWired. I can’t believe how crazy busy the summer got, and how quickly it is fading into fall. In the past two weeks, I was at the Minnesota and South Dakota State Fairs with cattle in tow, and it’s amazing how much time and effort goes into taking a few head of cattle to display at livestock expositions! Anyway, I thought I would share some of the highlights of the last couple of weeks, and now, it’s time to get back in the saddle and get down to the business of blogging!
While at the fairs, I took in cattle shows, Century Farm Awards, Beef Cookoffs, speech contests, town hall meetings, carnival food, concerts and more. In the upcoming weeks, I will share all of it with you. So, get ready for a fun recap of my state fair adventures. And, while we’re at it, why don’t you tell me some of your state fair stories? What have you been up to lately? What fairs did you attend, and what did you do while you were there? Can’t wait to hear all about it!
In this week's program Chuck talks with David Armano, Global Innovation and Integration.
