AgriLabs will donate $1,500 to be awarded as scholarships to deserving youth by participating state cattle association affiliates. Selection of the participating organizations will be made during the National Cattleman’s Beef Association Convention.
U.S. sheep producers now have access to an approved reproductive management tool, EAZI-BREED CIDR Sheep Inserts from Pfizer Animal Health.
Wind energy for rural America was an engaging topic during the educational session, “Harvesting the Wind,” held yesterday during the AG CONNECT Expo. The session provided an outlook for the wind energy industry in the states as well as offered information on projects suited for rural areas, such as farmers leasing out their land to companies to site windmills. The session was sponsored by 25×25, a nonprofit organization that believes our country can get 25 percent of our energy through renewable sources by 2025.
Presenters included Lisa Daniels, Executive Director and founder of Windustry, a nonprofit organization that specializes in developing community wind projects. These types of projects are owned by local members of the community and private investors, not wind turbines owned by a utility company. In addition, Steve Wegman, Director of South Dakota Wind Energy Association discussed how his organization is helping South Dakota increase its wind energy through rural projects, and Susan Sloan, Manager, Strategic Partnerships for the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA), provided an industry overview that included current and proposed policy and programs to increase wind energy throughout the U.S.
A few interesting statistics that were shared during the session: the wind energy industry added an estimated 35,000 jobs last year; wind emits no CO2 and uses no water; and today the wind energy industry has the capacity to generate 31,000 megawatts of wind per year. One megawatt generates enough electricity to power 225-300 homes per year.
In 2008, the U.S. Department of Energy authored a report called “20% Wind Energy by 2030,” that is currently being used by the Obama administration for guidance on growing the wind industry. A copy of the report is available at www.20percentwind.org, and don’t forget to visit our AG CONNECT Flickr album.
Here’s the happy smiley greeting crew for AG CONNECT Expo Networking Night at Universal Studios. Attendees had the opportunity to go to the Islands of Adventure, Marvel Super Hero Island, which we had all to ourselves.
Who’s your favorite Marvel super hero? Mine has always been The Mighty Thor although Spiderman comes in a close second. I took photos of the characters on display which are in the updated photo album.
Well, we’re in the home stretch. It’s the final day of AG CONNECT Expo and the temperatures are supposed to be in the 70′s today! I’ll be back out on the show floor today along with Joanna Schroeder conducting interviews and hope to have a wrap up interview from show staff by the end of the day.
A year ago would you have thought you’d see this proudly displayed in an agribusiness booth?
I didn’t think so. But AGCO is connecting socially with their customers as we found out at Tuesday evening’s Tweetup. So how about your company? Are you getting your social network in order?
If you follow the AG CONNECT Expo Twitter hashtag which is #agconnect then you’ll see how social things are. Check it out.
Precision agriculture technology is on display all over the AG CONNECT Expo show floor. I don’t think I’ve seen quite so many exhibits outside of a show dedicated to this growing technology application. Raven Industries is one of the companies exhibiting something new here at the show.
I spoke with Marketing Manager, Ryan Molitor, this afternoon about Slingshot. He says Slingshot represents a breakthrough in connectivity, online services and hardware. It can deliver advanced RTK correction signal technology and high speed internet using wireless in the cab.
Discussing the future of agricultural communications was the job of Orion Samuelson, Jim Evans and Mike Yost today at AG CONNECT Expo. Jim has spent a lifetime in agriculture and Ag communications, as a practitioner and professor at the University of Illinois. The panel took place in Successful Farming’s Innovations Theater where they’ve been doing live webcasts of the presentations. You can see a portion of their discussion here:
Jim will be joined by Radio Hall of Fame personality Orion Samuelson, whom Jim came to know in the 1950s when they both worked in Green Bay; and by Mike Yost, who, as the former Administrator of USDA’s Foreign Agriculture Service (FAS), has extensive cross-cultural communication experience. Yost is also the owner-operator of Yost Farm in West-Central Minnesota and a former chairman of the American Soybean Association.
“I have never seen a time of such need and potential for skilled communicators who can deal with the complexities of agriculture and the food enterprise of societies,” he reports. “Through painful and costly experience, agri-marketers, producer and consumer groups, the food industry, government agencies and others are learning that the old, one-way, top-down approaches don’t work. Thousands of case examples around the world testify to the urgent need for better models and methods of communicating within agriculture, and between agriculture and the societies that depend on it. Professional Ag communicators can help lead the way in that effort.”
Not everyone who teaches communications has had such a lasting and powerful influence on students, but Evans’ devotion to his students and his commitment to the highest standards have been so influential across the decades that his former students are now raising funds for a new “James F. Evans Endowed Chair in Agricultural Communications” at the University of Illinois at Champaign.
TeeJet Technologies, based in Springfield, IL, announced their new guidance system that offers guidance and live video displayed simultaneously. The news about the Matrix Guidance System with RealView Guidance Over Video was announced during the AG CONNECT Expo in Orlando, Fla. and comes in two screen sizes: 570G Model and 840G model with options for four or eight cameras.
In an AgWired exclusive interview with Rich Gould, vice president and guidance business manager at TeeJet Technologies explained that the really unique feature of the system lies in its ability to connect to a video camera and show real-time video images and in addition to show the guidance information overlayed on the video image. In other words, you are seeing your field on the screen.
Known as precision agriculture, this type of technology helps farmers to become more efficient whether planting, fertilizing or harvesting their crops. Ultimately, this information leads to reduced costs and higher profitability.
TeeJet has applied for a patent and Gould notes that, “This technology is applicable to anyone driving back in forth across a field.”
It can be used on any machine, manufactured by any company, in any country. This is an advantage for growers in developing countries in that they have the ability to jump ahead and adopt the latest technology immediately.
You can see photos from AG CONNECT Expo in our Flickr album and listen to my interview with Rich Gould here.
My Alma Mater was out and about at AG CONNECT Expo today. Here are three ag comm students from The University of Florida. They were watching this afternoon’s panel discussion in the Innovations Theater on the future of ag communications. I’ll have more on that later.
Joanna and I have spent all day collecting interviews which we’ll be posting right here until they’re all posted. It’s probably going to take a few day because we’ve got a lot of them.
Winners of the Young Farmers & Ranchers (YF&R) Achievement Award, Discussion Meet and Excellence in Agriculture competitions were announced final general session at the American Farm Bureau Federation’s 91st annual meeting.
Scott and Mendy Sink of Virginia won the Excellence in Ag Award. They received a 2010 Dodge Ram pickup, courtesy of Dodge, and free registration to the YF&R Leadership Conference in Oklahoma February 20-22. The Excellence in Ag award recognizes young farmers and ranchers who do not derive the majority of their income from an agricultural operation, but who actively contribute and grow through their involvement in agriculture, their leadership ability, and participation in Farm Bureau and other organizations. We were especially proud that farm broadcasters Andy Vance and Lindsay Hill were in the top ten finalists for that award.
Aaron and Ashley Reding of Kentucky won the Achievement Award which recognizes young farmers and ranchers who have excelled in their farming or ranching operations and exhibited superior leadership abilities. They also won a 2010 Dodge Ram Pickup courtesy of Dodge and paid registration to the 2010 AFBF YF&R Leadership Conference.
Last, but not least, Rachel Bina of North Dakota won the Discussion Meet. She also gets a new Dodge pickup and registration to the conference. The Discussion Meet simulates a committee meeting in which active discussion and participation are expected. Participants are evaluated on their ability to exchange ideas and information on a predetermined topic.
The runners-up in all three competitions won a $6,000 Savings Bond and a STIHL Farm Boss chainsaw, both courtesy of STIHL. Read more about all the winners here.
AG CONNECT Expo released some statistics about the show this morning during a press briefing. We heard from Show Director Sara Mooney and AEM VP of Ag Services, Charlie O’Brien.
Here’s some quick stats for you. There are currently 7,000 registered. The final numbers will change since we’re not at the end of the show yet by the way. Of those 7,000 there are 2,000 producers with an average or 2,900 acres and 80 percent say they are decision makers. There are 1,800 agribusiness and 800 dealers. The balance consists of all the people working out on the show floor. There are 312 exhibitors using 167,800 square feet of space. About 20 percent of attendees are from outside the U.S. and there are 67 countries represented and 49 out of the 50 states in the U.S. (Hawaii) didn’t have anyone here.
The U.S. Department of Justice is seeking information from Monsanto about the company’s soybean traits business.
According to a press release from Monsanto, the Justice Department “has issued a civil investigative demand (CID) requesting information on its soybean traits business, primarily seeking a confirmation that, as Monsanto has previously indicated, farmers and seed companies will continue to have access to the first-generation Roundup Ready soybean trait following patent expiry in 2014.”
“Monsanto continues to cooperate with the U.S. Department of Justice inquiries, just as we have over the last several months,” said Scott Partridge, Monsanto’s Chief Deputy General Counsel. “We respect the thorough regulatory process. We believe our business practices are fair, pro-competitive and in compliance with the law.”
Monsanto has voluntarily cooperated with regulators to address their questions about its business and the broader agriculture industry. This request represents a continuation of that process. During this time, the company has provided extensive access to millions of pages of documents to ensure that regulators’ questions are addressed. Monsanto noted that it will continue to provide information that is requested of its business.
Pioneer Hi-Bred announced a multi-year sponsorship to support Farm Journal Media’s Legacy Project at AG CONNECT Expo. You can listen to their press conference remarks below:
“The median age of the U.S. farmer today is 58 years, yet only 20 percent of farmers report being confident in succession plans for their businesses,” says Andy Weber, president and CEO of Farm Journal Media. “The need for succession education and tools cannot be overstated in its importance to individual farm families of this country and to the long-term viability of the U.S. agricultural system as a whole.” The sponsorship from Pioneer Hi-Bred will enable Farm Journal to expand upon its editorial commitment to raise awareness surrounding legacy planning and will kick off the single largest industry initiative of its kind in agriculture today.
“Pioneer recognizes the future of the industry it serves is dependent upon successful transition of America’s farm businesses from one generation to the next,” Frank Ross, Pioneer vice president and regional director – North America, says of his organization’s support of the Legacy Project. “With this in mind, Pioneer provides this sponsorship and joins the Legacy Project’s long-term commitment to cultivate multigenerational success for growers and production agriculture.” (more…)
How about some sweet fruity goodness for your iPhone? The California Strawberry Commission has just officially launched its free STRAWBERRIES iPhone app.
After being reviewed by Apple, it has been highlighted as a “staff pick” in the App Store.
The app offers a collection of more than 50 strawberry recipes from food bloggers and chefs from around the web. Strawberries are among the healthiest foods in the world and the STRAWBERRIES app demonstrates a range of recipes such as strawberry shortcake to more exotic dishes like strawberry ceviche and strawberry dumplings.
Strawberry Recipe App is available now for free download in the App Store:
- More than 50 recipes, categorized by dish type.
- Access favorite recipes – and shopping lists – in the kitchen, at the store, or anywhere!
- Share recipes on Twitter, Facebook and email.
- Discover and link to the food bloggers and chefs behind the recipes.
“I’m excited to have one of my recipes included in this app because I enjoy sharing my passion for cooking that goes all the way back to when I was in the fourth grade,” said Michael Ruhlman, food writer and blogger behind Ruhlman.com. “This is a great way to further inspire people to recognize the importance and ease of preparing good and healthy food in their own kitchens.”
After 22 years with the company he co-founded, Osborn & Barr’s Joe Osborn is retiring. He’ll still continue in a consulting role however.
“This is an exciting time for the agency. In recent years, we’ve re-focused our core business, which positions O&B well for current and future growth. I strongly believe the agency’s best days are ahead, and I’m pleased to help in the transition to new leadership,” Osborn said.
Although Osborn no longer will be at the agency on a daily basis, he will continue to counsel on a part-time basis over the next few years. His knowledge and industry experience will continue to be an asset to O&B employees and clients alike.
The O&B executive management team will consist of Barr along with partners Michael Turley (CEO) and Rhonda Ries-Aguilar (CFO). “Both Rhonda and Michael have contributed significantly to our rapid growth and have proven their strategic and management skills,” stated Barr. “They are also in the process of acquiring significant percentages of O&B shares, which will complete the transition of ownership based on Joe’s retirement. I couldn’t be more pleased than to have both Rhonda and Michael assuming day-to-day management and leading the continued growth of O&B.”
The Fifth U.S.-Mongolia Business Forum took place simultaneously with the AG CONNECT Expo yesterday with several dozen delegates from Mongolia meeting with delegates from the United States to discuss how the two countries can better work together. A goal as delivered by the various speakers, is to see more U.S. companies investing in Mongolia.
The Mongolian delegation is one of 20 that arrived in Orlando this week, and the largest, with 16 of these being organized by the Department of Commerce.
During the opening remarks, in a letter from Kh. Bekhbat, the Ambassador of Mongolia to the United States, read by Zhen Gong Cross, the Head of Mongolian Affairs with the U.S. Department of Commerce, Bekhbat noted that Mongoia is a mineral rich economy that is now seeing foreign investors. The increased funds are being used to provide jobs, educational funds and health care.
Not only would the country like to see more investments in the mineral side, it has also created a new shared stock company that would share in the country’s mining industry, but they would also like to see investments and participation in the agriculture industry. “Agriculture is an important part of the economy,” wrote Bekhbat.
The Mongolian delegates plan to meet with various companies to dicusss agricultural opportunities and investments during the AG CONNECT Expo. The group has prioritized its greatest needs and prepared a detailed list of projects in which they seek global investors.
Besides all the educational sessions and seminars taking place at AG CONNECT Expo many of the exhibitors are also conducting classes. John Deere has an elevated classroom in theirs that features a wide screen tv connected via internet back to their offices in Iowa. So, there is an on-site facilitator to operate the equipment on this end while the actual instructor is heard over speakers while he controls what you see on the screen.
This is an example of their remote training capabilities and to learn more about it I spoke with Kevin Blusher, Manager, Customer and Career Partnership Training. Kevin says this distance learning lab allows them to go on the road to dealerships or even into a customer’s home. The class taking place while I was there focused on precision ag applications. He says that there is a need for ongoing training with today’s equipment and software. They call it John Deere University. Feel free to log on and learn more.
Several thousand people convened in Orlando, Florida this week for the inaugural AG CONNECT Expo. The show kicked off for the general public this morning and so far attendees and exhibitors alike have been impressed.
The AG CONNECT Expo is unique compared to other ag shows in the states in that it is one of the first attempts to bring the global agriculture industry together to discuss the future including challenges, opportunities, new technologies and research and also address how countries and companies can work together to aid developing countries with their agriculture programs and initiatives.
The Association of Equipment Manufacturers (AEM) is hosting the conference and Charlie O’Brien, AEM’s VP of Agricultural Services spent some time with Mike Adams, host of AgriTalk. AgriTalk broadcasted its entire show live this morning from the CASE IH booth.
O’Brien discussed the show in length and gave AgriTalk’s listeners a few points of interest. More than 40 countries are represented here and 20 percent of the total attendees are from outside of the United States. There are delegates from 20 countries here, with 16 organized by the U.S. Department of Commerce. There are more than 40 supporting organizations taking part in the Expo from more than a dozen countries including China, Russia, Brazil, Canada, Germany, UK, India, and Argentina. And before the week is over, more than 30 education seminars will have been given with 60 percent of the attendees participating.
The crowd of attendees here at AG CONNECT Expo is pretty diverse as you might expect at a major agricultural trade show. We’ve got lots of international visitors and exhibitors.
And it’s always great to see blue coats. These Florida FFA’ers are getting an on the floor lesson today.
I promised you another video clip from when AG CONNECT Expo was officially open and here it is. The show is in full swing now and you will begin to see stories posted here as we interview attendees and exhibitors. Joanna Schroeder has joined me here in Orlando and is out on the show floor now. Between us we’ll do our best to bring you all the sights and sounds of this agricultural trade show.
Syngenta Seeds, Inc. announced that it has licensed its transgenic cotton event, COT102, containing the novel Vip3A protein, to Dow AgroSciences, which plans to combine it with WideStrike Insect Protection to develop its next generation products.
A robust pipeline of biotech and conventional traits at Advanta promises to springboard sorghum into a prominent crop in North America and around the world.
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.
Presenters included Lisa Daniels, Executive Director and founder of 
Here’s the happy smiley greeting crew for 
Well, we’re in the home stretch. It’s the final day of AG CONNECT Expo and the temperatures are supposed to be in the 70′s today! I’ll be back out on the show floor today along with Joanna Schroeder conducting interviews and hope to have a wrap up interview from show staff by the end of the day.
A year ago would you have thought you’d see this proudly displayed in an agribusiness booth?
Precision agriculture technology is on display all over the AG CONNECT Expo show floor. I don’t think I’ve seen quite so many exhibits outside of a show dedicated to this growing technology application. Raven Industries is one of the companies exhibiting something new here at the show.
Discussing the future of agricultural communications was the job of Orion Samuelson, Jim Evans and Mike Yost today at AG CONNECT Expo. Jim has spent a lifetime in agriculture and Ag communications, as a practitioner and professor at the University of Illinois. The panel took place in Successful Farming’s Innovations Theater where they’ve been doing 
ve video displayed simultaneously. The news about the Matrix Guidance System with RealView Guidance Over Video was announced during the 
My Alma Mater was out and about at AG CONNECT Expo today. Here are three ag comm students from The University of Florida. They were watching this afternoon’s panel discussion in the Innovations Theater on the future of ag communications. I’ll have more on that later.
Scott and Mendy Sink of Virginia won the Excellence in Ag Award. They received a 2010 Dodge Ram pickup, courtesy of Dodge, and free registration to the YF&R Leadership Conference in Oklahoma February 20-22. The Excellence in Ag award recognizes young farmers and ranchers who do not derive the majority of their income from an agricultural operation, but who actively contribute and grow through their involvement in agriculture, their leadership ability, and participation in Farm Bureau and other organizations. We were especially proud that farm broadcasters Andy Vance and Lindsay Hill were in the top ten finalists for that award.
Aaron and Ashley Reding of Kentucky won the Achievement Award which recognizes young farmers and ranchers who have excelled in their farming or ranching operations and exhibited superior leadership abilities. They also won a 2010 Dodge Ram Pickup courtesy of Dodge and paid registration to the 2010 AFBF YF&R Leadership Conference.
Last, but not least, Rachel Bina of North Dakota won the Discussion Meet. She also gets a new Dodge pickup and registration to the conference. The Discussion Meet simulates a committee meeting in which active discussion and participation are expected. Participants are evaluated on their ability to exchange ideas and information on a predetermined topic.
AG CONNECT Expo released some statistics about the show this morning during a press briefing. We heard from Show Director Sara Mooney and AEM VP of Ag Services, Charlie O’Brien. 
According to a 
Pioneer Hi-Bred announced a multi-year sponsorship to support 
How about some sweet fruity goodness for your iPhone? The California Strawberry Commission has just officially launched its free 
After 22 years with the company he co-founded, 
The Fifth U.S.-Mongolia Business Forum took place simultaneously with the 
Not only would the country like to see more investments in the mineral side, it has also created a new shared stock company that would share in the country’s mining industry, but they would also like to see investments and participation in the agriculture industry. “Agriculture is an important part of the economy,” wrote Bekhbat.
Besides all the educational sessions and seminars taking place at AG CONNECT Expo many of the exhibitors are also conducting classes. John Deere has an elevated classroom in theirs that features a wide screen tv connected via internet back to their offices in Iowa. So, there is an on-site facilitator to operate the equipment on this end while the actual instructor is heard over speakers while he controls what you see on the screen.
The AG CONNECT Expo is unique compared to other ag shows in the states in that it is one of the first attempts to bring the global agriculture industry together to discuss the future including challenges, opportunities, new technologies and research and also address how countries and companies can work together to aid developing countries with their agriculture programs and initiatives.
The crowd of attendees here at AG CONNECT Expo is pretty diverse as you might expect at a major agricultural trade show. We’ve got lots of international visitors and exhibitors.
In this week's program Chuck talks with David Armano, Global Innovation and Integration.
