AgWired

What Grills Faster

I know I’m going to be grilling this weekend but not mobile phones. It may be a little weird but I think EZ Grill is quite okay with how the views are doing.

Zimfo Bytes

• StollerUSA recently launched Bio-Forge ST, a new formulation of Bio-Forge specifically developed for growers interested in seed treatment application as a cost-effective way to increase yields.
• Bethany Nolan, Gilmer, Texas, was crowned the 2010-11 National Hereford Queen during the American Royal National Hereford Show in Kansas City.
• Thirteen Iowa college students from a wide range of backgrounds have been named to the inaugural Iowa Corn Student Advisory Team.
• Novus International, Inc., has announced that president and CEO Thad Simons has been selected from among nearly 300 regional candidates nationwide as the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year in Distribution and Manufacturing.

The good with the bad in the Alberta hog industry

With the processing and packing industry re-settling after Maple sells one plant in Ontario and closes another in the Maritimes, it also makes good sense to see what is happening in Western Canada.

Maple Leaf, and as they said they would way back when they announced their restructuring is placing most of its eggs in the Brandon, Mb plant. That is good news for producers in Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and to a lesser degree in Alberta, but makes good sense from a competitive position. It is also good news for Saskatchewan hog producer that the former beef plant in Moose Jaw is reincarnating into a hog processing plant, scheduled to come online in December.

All of these changes during an economic upheaval in the hog industry making it mostly positive with what is happening in the industry, at least in western Canada.

This fall, Olymel is getting questions surrounding their new Olywest 2010 Plus pricing contract. (more…)

Novus International Recognition

Novus International President and CEO Thad Simons has been selected from among nearly 300 regional candidates nationwide as the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year in Distribution and Manufacturing.

Simons received the national award “for transforming Novus International, Inc. from a one-product spinoff from Monsanto (in 1991) into a diversified, global manufacturer of health and nutrition products for livestock, pets and people,” according to Ernst & Young.

I recently interviewed Thad at the Novus grand opening of Green Acres Farm: Thad Simons

Novus has also been recognized for the second year in a row by the St. Louis Regional Chamber and Growth Association (RCGA) and RubinBrown LLP as a recipient of the 2010 Top 50 Award. The award, presented annually since 1996, recognizes businesses, entrepreneurs and organizations in all industry sectors throughout the St. Louis region.

Founded in 1991, Novus International, Inc. is a leader in animal health and nutrition, providing products and programs to more than 2,500 nutritionists, producers, veterinarians and feed manufacturers in more than 90 countries. Although corporately based in St. Charles, Mo., Novus has facilities in more than 35 countries as well as smaller offices with field staff in an additional 60 countries.

NCBA Submits Comments on GIPSA Rule

The National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) today submitted official comments on behalf of its membership to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards Administration (GIPSA) regarding its proposed rule on livestock and poultry marketing. Colin Woodall, NCBA vice president of government affairs, says the comments submitted to USDA represent a thorough review of the potential consequences the proposed rule will have on the U.S. beef cattle industry.

“This rule we think is government at its absolute worst,” Woodall says. “The liability changes in this rule are going to open up the cattle marketplace to trial attorneys and we’re going to have a situation where we have trial attorneys, the court system and USDA dictating what a fair price is for an animal and that’s just unacceptable.”

Listen to or download some GIPSA comments from Colin here: Colin Woodall

NCBA, along with other producer organizations that will be affected by the rule, recently released a economic impact study by Informa Economics which found that rule would result in ongoing direct and indirect costs to the livestock and poultry industries – eventually borne by producers and consumers – of more than $1.64 billion, including nearly $880 million to the beef industry. (Read report here)

Listen to Rob Murphy with Informa explain the results of the study: Informa GIPSA Study

According to NCBA, provisions in the proposed rule causing the most concern for cattlemen and women include: eliminating the requirement that a plaintiff establish injury to competition in order to prove a claim under Section 202 of the PSA, purport to define “competitive injury” and the likelihood thereof, and declare that specific acts or practices are “unfair, unjustly discriminatory or deceptive under Section 202; suggesting the factors which may establish an undue or unreasonable preference under Section 202(b) of the PSA; prohibiting sales of livestock by a packer to another packer or its affiliates; and requiring the production and publication of all cattle marketing and production contracts.

The comment period for the proposed rule ends November 22. Over 24,000 comments have been submitted so far and it is very easy to do – just click here and type in your contact info and comments and it goes right to the Federal Register.

Live Broadcast From National Farm-City Week Symposium

AgriTalk is streaming live from the National Farm-City Week Symposium. Tune us in.

Post Update: Our session is over but will be archived on AgriTalk.com as soon as they can get it edited. I’ll post a link to it when I get it. Thank to AgriTalk producer, John Herath, for the Twitpic photo.

We had a great panel discussion on how and why we should “AgVocate” using social media channels. Lots of talk about the need to be proactive, truthful, honest and transparent and not be afraid to speak up in the face of our critics. When it comes to social media, farmers should consider getting started with an option like Facebook or Twitter and look to their farm groups and neighbors (family too) to help them get started.

National Farm-City Week Symposium

Here are some of our attendees at the National Farm-City Week Symposium. Includes Grasslands FFA members and Pennsylvania state officers.

Glad to see them here. Most were at the National FFA Convention.

I’m mostly live tweeting today using the #FarmCityWeek hashtag so feel free to lurk or chime in.

Don’t Miss AG CONNECT Expo 2011

It’s hard to believe that the inaugural AG CONNECT Expo happened almost a year ago in Orlando, Florida back in January. A successful first-time event, AG CONNECT Expo 2011 is shaping up to be even better. AgWired reporter Cindy Zimmerman caught up with the show’s director Sara Mooney to learn what is on tap for next year’s event being held at the Georgia World Congress Center in downtown Atlanta, Georgia on January 7-10, 2011.

Mooney attributes much of the show’s success to their industry supporters. “The show was 30 years in the making so there was a lot of interest and a lot of participation from throughout the industry. So it was a very successful event,” said Mooney.

It’s also the support of the industry that is helping them create an even more educational event for next year. Mooney said this year there are more exhibitors and 35 brand new sessions targeted for growers who want to learn more about precision farming to those who own dairy or beef operations.

This year, AG CONNECT Expo 2011 will be hosted along side the American Farm Bureau Federation’s annual meeting. The group will be exhibiting along side AG CONNECT in the pavilion and attendees of both events will have access to all the exhibits. In addition, the event is certified as an international buyer program show by the U.S. Department of Commerce and Mooney said this is advantageous because the event is promoted at their posts throughout the world. Last year, 20 percent of the attendees were from other countries and Mooney expects this number to be much higher at next year’s show.

To learn more about the event, see a list of the dozens of educational programs and to view information about the more than 100 exhibitors, visit www.agconnect.com. You can also register online and those who sign up by December 10, 2010 will receive registration discounts.

You can also learn more about AG CONNECT Expo 2011 in Sara Mooney’s interview. Don't Miss AG CONNECT Expo 2011

Communicating Between Farm and City

We’re about to kick off National Farm-City Week in Lancaster, PA. The event is an annual symposium that includes a luncheon. “The purpose of this Symposium is to explore friendly methods that can help assist the urban media when preparing news or feature stories that could significantly and negatively impact farmers, ranchers and the many agribusiness industries. “

Of course I’ll be mentioning efforts like AgChat and the AgChat Foundation. It should be interesting to hear the perspective from other panelists. We’ll be live on AgriTalk this morning at 10:06am, central time. So tune us in!

I spoke with the National Farm-City Council Chairman, Al Pell, this morning. He explains the purpose of the organization and how important it is to foster better communications between rural and urban consumers. You can listen to my interview with Al here: Interview with Al Pell

“Healthy Harry” is Pick in USDA’s Name the Healthy Bird Contest

The USDA has named the winner in its Name the Healthy Bird Contest.

“Healthy Harry” is the name that Shelley Petersen of Glendale, Arizona and Patti Sheppard of Millville, New Jersey came up with and will be the name of the plucky mascot for the Biosecurity For Birds campaign, which raises awareness about infectious diseases that can threaten backyard poultry:

Picking the perfect name was a three-month process that started with a national contest inviting poultry enthusiasts to submit their ideas. A committee of professional marketers and members of USDA/ APHIS’ professional staff selected three names from over 500 submitted. These were then posted on the agency’s website inviting the public to choose their favorite. The three names were also displayed at the USDA exhibit during the FFA (formerly Future Farmers of America) National Convention last month and attendees voted on their favorite bird name.

“The name just seemed to fit the cause,” said Petersen. “I teach about animal health and food borne illnesses. I name all of my chickens – usually after something they remind me of or someone.”

Sheppard came up with the name while looking for information about raising her own chickens and found the Biosecurity For Birds website.

Commodity Classic Registration is Open

The countdown has started – just 106 days until the 16th Annual Commodity Classic!

The annual event will be “smooth sailing” for soybean, corn, wheat and sorghum farmers, March 3-5 in Tampa, Fla. Housing and registration officially opened today at noon. Definitely need to register early to get a good hotel.

Growers who attend the 2011 Commodity Classic are sure to benefit from the value of attending a trade show with more than 800 booths representing today’s leading agricultural equipment, technology, product and service companies and organizations.

“While enjoying the warm Florida sun, one can learn of new products and methods to increase the profitability of their farm,” said Commodity Classic Co-Chair Charles Cannatella. “As a producer of all the commodities represented at Commodity Classic, I look forward to attending the policy development sessions. A grower can strengthen his industry by helping to set policy.”

Special entertainment at Classic this year is Little River Band – we’re looking forward to that!

Ethics Group Questions GIPSA Boss Conflict

A government ethics watchdog group thinks it might be a conflict of interest for a trial lawyer known for suing meat and poultry companies to be in charge of making new rules for regulating that industry.

The Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) this week sent a letter to USDA’s general counsel expressing concerns about J. Dudley Butler’s potential ethical conflict as administrator of USDA’s Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards Administration.

“Mr. Butler stands to benefit financially once he leaves the government by exploiting a loophole he helped create,” said CREW Executive Director Melanie Sloan. “Whether or not this meets the legal standard of a conflict of interest, it seems wrong. The Department of Agriculture should bar Mr. Butler from continued work on these regulations and the department should consider reissuing them for further public comment.” Sloan said in the letter Butler should be disqualified from working on the regulations based on avoiding even the “appearance of any conflict or impropriety” based on his “actions prior to becoming administrator of GIPSA.”

CREW even suggests that “given the controversy” reissuing the proposed GIPSA rule would serve to “remove any taint.”

CREW is a non-profit organization “dedicated to promoting ethics and accountability in government and public life by targeting government officials — regardless of party affiliation — who sacrifice the common good to special interests.”

From Farm To City

I only get to do this once a year and when I get lucky with a nice buck I’ve got to share. I enjoyed a great post-NAFB convention deer hunt once again. In fact, next year will be my 20th anniversary of fall Missouri deer hunting. Kind of hard to believe. My brother Paul and his sons joined me and Gary Cooper, Southeast AgNet, again this year for a fun and safe time in the woods.

It’s back on the agriblogging trail now for the kickoff of National Farm-City Week. I’ll be one of the panelists during tomorrow’s National Farm-City Week Symposium. It will take place prior to and including lunch with a live broadcast on AgriTalk. Took me a while to be a guest but my time has come.

Let’s use #FarmCityWeek as the hashtag for any of you who will be attending or following.

NAFB Shutterbug

Did we take your picture at NAFB last week?

If so, it’s probably in our NAFB convention photo album. There’s almost 800 photos in there, so if you got in the way of our cameras, check it out. Like all of our on-line photos, feel free to copy and use as you please.

We still have lots of interviews from Trade Talk to post in the coming weeks – it was another busy one. Thanks to the officers and staff of NAFB for a great convention!

RFA Loves NAFB

There were lots of ethanol issues to discuss at the National Association of Farm Broadcasting annual Trade Talk event in Kansas City last week. The topics included the lame duck session of Congress, importance of renewing biofuels tax incentives, doing more to invest in cellulosic ethanol, labeling for E15 at the pump, just to name a few.

Renewable Fuels Association president and CEO Bob Dinneen says NAFB Trade Talk is one of his favorite events of the year. “I think farm broadcasters are doing a lot of hard work trying to make sure that Americans understand the important debates that are going on in DC,” Bob said. “I love these folks and I love being here.”

RFA’s Matt Hartwig (sitting in the photo) and Bob stayed busy all six and a half hours of Trade Talk doing interviews. Bob is being interviewed in this picture by past NAFB president Tom Brand (KFEQ St. Joe, MO).

Listen to my interview with Bob from NAFB here: RFA at NAFB

See more photos from the NAFB annual meeting and trade talk here:
NAFB Convention Photo Album

Zimfo Bytes

• Syngenta highlights its celebration of the company’s 10th anniversary by embarking on an ambitious program to feed 10,000 families in the United States.
• The new DeLaval AMR will suit herds exceeding 300 cows, the first commercial rotaries will have a 90 cow/hour capacity, and up to five robots will simultaneously operate the system.
• The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company announces that the Honorable Stephen L. Johnson, the former administrator of the U.S. EPA, has been named to its Board of Directors.
• Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack has announced that the USDA Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) has provided funding allocations supporting more than 100 organizations’ efforts to help expand commercial markets for U.S. agricultural exports.

AgriSolutions Releasing AgManager Software Upgrade

A popular agricultural accounting program is getting a face lift.

AgriSolutions®, the developer of AgManager® accounting software, is announcing an exciting new release which includes many feature updates and a new, easy-to-use interface. These improvements further enhance the ability of agricultural producers to manage the demands of their modern farm businesses. The agricultural accounting experts at AgriSolutions Inc., of Brighton, Ill., will release the upgrade on the company’s website, www.agrisolutions.com, on November 17.

New AgManager® features boost user-friendliness as farm accountants input transactions, monitor financial position and create reports, Roberts said. The software has a new menu structure that improves user navigation and adds “tool tips” which make it easier for new users to understand the menu options. There also are updated icons, a new calendar for easy date selection, and a new calculator that quickly updates amount fields and includes an electronic “tape.” All of these features are designed to make data entry and navigation much easier for the user.

Read more here.

America’s Heartland Redesigns Website

America’s Heartland has a new website using all the latest social networking tools.

For the first time since its successful launch in 2005 as the only nationally-broadcast television series celebrating American agriculture, America’s Heartland has completely re-designed its website (www.americasheartland.org) to offer easier access to streaming video, quick links to social networking sites, and other exciting new features. “This new website offers viewers an easy way to watch all of America’s Heartland content online,” said Michael Sanford, Vice-President of Content Creation at KVIE Public Television, which produces the series. “It’s a great option for viewers to enjoy and interact with the program beyond their broadcast viewing experience, and ideal for those unable to receive the series on traditional broadcast channels.”

The new website offers visitors instant home page access to the half-hour episode airing each week in most public television markets and on the RFD-TV cable and satellite channel (www.rfdtv.com). They can also watch all other episodes produced so far this season. By clicking “Episodes” on the tool bar, every one of America’s Heartland’s 120-plus episodes can be seen dating back to season 1 (2005). Additionally, web users can find stories categorized by state or commodity.

The site also offers home page access to social networking sites including Facebook, YouTube, Twitter and Flickr, where users can offer feedback, share video, or post their own images and a new comment feature that allows visitors to leave feedback directly on episode pages.

America’s Heartland is produced by KVIE Public Television in Sacramento, with support from the Monsanto Company and the American Farm Bureau Federation. Additional production and promotion assistance is provided by the American Soybean Association, The National FFA Organization, National Corn Growers Association, National Cotton Council, National Association of Wheat Growers, United Soybean Board and U.S. Grains Council.

Fretwell Joins Farm Journal

Farm Journal Media has acquired the syndicated radio show, Consumer Ag Connection from Fretwell Communications, and hired show founder and former NAFB president, Pam Fretwell, to head up the new position of Director of Industry Relations at Farm Journal Media.

“Bringing Pam and her show into the Farm Journal Media family is a significant statement and addition to our advocacy efforts with the Farm Journal Agricultural Foundation and in kick-starting our new broadcast and Internet radio product line”, stated Andy Weber, CEO of Farm Journal Media. “Pam is an award-winning farm broadcaster and is both well-connected and well-known for her advocacy efforts on behalf of agriculture. Her values, experience and talent are a perfect fit, and she and her show lead us to a number of opportunities.”

The Consumer Ag Connection show is distributed daily for 76 stations, providing a unique forum for exchange and a trusted communications bridge between the world of agriculture and consumers. In her new role, Fretwell will continue to host the show and tie it closely to the educational efforts of the Farm Journal Agricultural Foundation’s new initiative Farmers Feeding the World. Farm Journal Media looks to significantly expand the program’s programming and syndicated distribution. “This fits extremely well with our multi-media culture and Farm Journal’s history of advocacy for agriculture”, said Chuck Roth, Senior Vice President of Project Development at Farm Journal Media and a member of the Farm Journal Agricultural Foundation board of directors. “While Pam will report directly to me and focus on our advocacy efforts, she will also work very closely with Charlene Finck, and with our Internet and broadcast divisions to help integrate and expand radio into our portfolio.”

Congratulations to both Pam and Farm Journal on this great partnership!

Vilsack Non-Comments on GIPSA at NAFB

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack was asked three times about some aspect of the proposed Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards Administration (GIPSA) rule during a press conference last week at the National Association of Farm Broadcasting meeting in Kansas City, and each time he said he could not comment specifically about the proposed rule during the comment period.

But, he did make some remarks related to the proposed rule. Ron Hays of Oklahoma asked if there was a plan for evaluating the large number of comments being made on the issue – over 16,000 so far. Vilsack said that has not been discussed yet. “I didn’t think it was appropriate to have that conversation until the comment period was concluded so we know what the universe is and we can do an evaluation of the nature of the comments,” he said. “There’s a difference between 16,000 unique comments and 16,000 comments of which a substantial number of them are basically form letters.”

In response to studies that have been released showing a significant negative economic impact if the rule is implemented, Vilsack again said he couldn’t comment, but expressed concern about the declining numbers of farmers and ranchers in the country. “In 1980, we had 660,000 pork producers. Today we have 71,000 – about a 90 percent reduction in pork producers. That same period we had 1.5 million cattle producers, today we have 950,00 – so we lost about a third. Ten years ago, we had 110,000 dairy producers – today we have about 60,000,” said Vilsack. “Is everybody satisfied with those trends?” With less than one percent of the population on the farm, Vilsack says if that trend continues, “Who are you all going to be broadcasting to?”

The secretary says USDA has made the studies required for proposing the rule and he doesn’t want to make specific comments about anything until after the comment period ends on November 22.

Listen to or download Vilsack’s GIPSA comments here: Vilsack GIPSA

NAFB Convention Photo Album