The weather has been a little up and down for opening day of the Sunbelt Ag Expo. Actually, the morning was pretty nice but after lunch the rain kind of set in.
I had a nice time this morning working with New Holland on behalf of their Boomer 555 Contest. I’m collecting some interviews for this social media campaign like this one with Joe Capps from Opelika, Alabama. He told me what he would do with a new Boomer tractor. The contest runs through the end of November so it’s not too late to get your entry in.
The Porters farm hay and are also involved in swine, poultry and beef cattle. Tommy says he always wanted to farm. He had the opportunity to say a few words during the luncheon and first of all thanked God for the opportunity to “tend just a small portion of His land.” You could tell how much this recognition meant to him from the emotion in his voice.
Hello from Sunbelt Ag Expo in Moultrie, GA. Here’s Executive Director, Chip Blalock, addressing the media at this morning’s breakfast. I spoke with Chip and got a comprehensive overview of all that you’ll find at this year’s show. We’re hoping the forecast is a little off on timing today since rain is forecast but one way or the other the show will go on.
The Animal Agriculture Alliance, a member of the Alliance to Feed the Future, is kicking off a new initiative called, “Real Farmers Real Food.” The initiative has special support from 2011 Miss America Teresa Scanlan. See her video below and feel free to share out links via your networks!
Want to tour a farm but too busy to travel? Check out the Animal Agriculture Alliance’s collection of farm tours on the Real Farmers Real Food website and see how farms across America produce safe, nutritious and affordable food.
The average American is now at least three generations removed from the farm and most of us are dependent on grocery stores to supply almost all of our food needs. This disconnect has led to many misconceptions about today’s farms. Too often, the public hears more from agriculture critics than from the people directly connected to it. The Animal Agriculture Alliance asks you to show your support for America’s real farmers and ranchers – large and small – who work every day to make our American-grown safe, nutritious and affordable food supply a reality. As the need for food production increases, the work of farmers and ranchers should be celebrated—today and every day. Farming is a business, but it is much more than that. It is a calling that forms the bedrock of our economy and society. Stand up for consumer choice. Stand up for the American farmer and rancher. Show your support by signing the below pledge.
“I sign this pledge to show support for the dedicated, hard-working farmers and ranchers of America – large and small – who provide a safe, nutritious, and affordable food supply for me and my family. I understand and respect the importance of both protecting our food security and ensuring consumer choice for future generations.”
It’s time to hit the agriblogging highway. I’m on the way to spend a little bit of time this week at the 2011 Sunbelt Ag Expo. I’ll mainly be working with sponsor New Holland.
NAFB ladies – have you always wanted a sweet black t-shirt or a zippered tote with NAFB in rhinestones? Guys – how about a nice cap, t-shirt, wind shirt, polo or bomber jacket with the NAFB logo?
Yeah, you know you want it!
Have you found yourself far from home without an NAFB lapel pin or made frantic inquires of your peers to see if they could spare you one? Do you lay awake at night, fretting about what others think because you don’t show pride in your association?
Rest easy, friend. There is a solution. The NAFB Store. No longer will you have to scurry among friends to find a pin or be shunned for not wearing one. The NAFB Store can provide the shirt, cap, visor, bag or piece with *bling* that lets people know you’re a member of the NAFB and proud of it. You asked for it…..we’ve got it!
The NAFB on-line store is open for business now. Order your stuff today and get it in time for convention!
Remember me telling you about how Grandpa picks up black walnuts by the 5-gallon bucket full each year? They’re so potent you have to wear rubber gloves when you work with them, otherwise your hands smell like black walnuts for weeks. I’d hate to think what they do to your insides!
Between the hours spent collecting them and the hours spent shelling them, he also has to crack each one. This walnut sheller helps speed up the process. You stick the walnut between the piston, push the lever and crack the nut. I counted – there are nine different cracking settings, meaning you can fit all sizes of walnuts from the smallest to the meatiest walnut.
For the amount of time he puts into this every year, I don’t think the pay-back is worth it, but it gives him something to do and the bakers around town appreciate his effort.
Like I said, just watch what you’re eating and see if it passes the smell test if you’re not a fan of black walnuts.
It was with great sadness that I tuned in to today’s Indy Car race and saw the 13th lap multi car wreck and learned that Dan Wheldon was killed. Wow. I’ve had the opportunity to get to know a number of these Indy Car racers over the years. You can say all you want about the wisdom of driving a “car” at 220 MPH but they are still people. This brought back memories of Paul Dana in 2006. I liked Dan and certainly took a number of photos of him in the winner’s circle. He was the winner of this year’s Indy 500.
Today’s race was cancelled after this happened. Then the drivers all rode 3 abreast for five laps to honor Dan. This is just a photo of my tv while they were circling the track.
At the time I was working with our sponsor known at that time as the Ethanol Promotion & Information Council (now Growth Energy). Dan won the first race of that season in Homestead, FL. I asked him about racing on ethanol in his post race press conference.
My prayers go out to Dan and his family. It is a shock when something like this happens. I also hope all the other drivers involved in the accident are okay.
Here’s a show that is already set to record on my DVR, “American Hoggers.” The trailer was more than enough to convince me it’s worth watching. So I’m hoping it lives up to the hype. Imagine, an entertaining show about a serious problem – the effects of the feral hog population in the United States!
Lifelong Texan Jerry Campbell has been in the hog hunting game for over half a century. His kids, Robert and Krystal, are hoping to turn Dad’s lifestyle into a full-time family business helping desperate landowners clear their property of destructive wild boars that are causing millions of dollars in damage. The family takes on their first job at a nearby ranch, but when their lead hunting dog, Rooster, disappears in the middle of the hunt, the family has to find a way to finish the job without him.
“American Hoggers” is a new original real-life series that follows the Campbell family and their struggle to rescue Texas residents and ranches from the devastating chaos caused by millions of invasive wild boars. As you may know, these ferocious hogs can be deadly to humans and animals alike, and can destroy acres of precious farmland in just one night! American Hoggers premieres on Wednesday, October 19 at 10/9 Central.
Meet the Campbells: Jerry Campbell has been hunting hogs “since Moby Dick was a sardine,” but nowadays it’s a family affair. Daughter Krystal “Pistol” Campbell & son Robert learned from the best, and now they help their dad hunt wild boar all over Texas.
Happy Blog Action Day and World Food Day. It’s a great lead in to this week’s FoodChat. What’s FoodChat? It is actually, #FoodChat, which “takes place on the third Tuesday of each month, in lieu of #AgChat, and is tailored more specifically to the interests of consumers, nutrition professionals, foodies and influencers of food choices. #FoodChat gives its followers an opportunity to “meet a farmer” and also helps those in agriculture learn from consumers.”
I’ll be guest moderating this week’s #FoodChat while attending Sunbelt Ag Expo in Moultrie, GA. Our topic is going to “reducing diet related disease.” So right now we’re looking for suggested questions. If you would like to contribute one, please send a direct message to @AgChat.
If you need more information about #FoodChat and how it works, check out these FAQ’s.
The Department of Justice’s Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention has awarded two grants totaling $6.3 million to National 4-H Council.
Engle Creative Solutions, LLC announced the launch of its new website. In addition, the company introduced its new logo and tag line: Stand out in a crowded world.
Bayer announced the re-launch of its professional products website. The newly designed site will incorporate new user-friendly features.
USDA announced that the public comment period on the new animal identification rule that has been proposed has been extended until Dec. 9.
Hey iPhone fans. Today’s release and delivery of the new iPhone 4S makes it a great time to get the free AgWired app. And you Android folks don’t worry. We’ve got you covered too. Sorry Blackberry users. We have felt your pain this last week.
So here’s where you can go to join the thousands of people getting AgWired on their smartphones: AgWired App in iTunes Store
The AgWired App allows you to easily keep up to date wherever you are and provides multiple ways to to see news filtered by key word categories. Additionally, the app has a built in mechanism to provide you with the latest news produced by the ZimmComm News Network on alternative energy, the dairy industry and the latest in precision agricultural farming.
When you open up the app you use the drop down menus to find the latest news from AgWired, Domestic Fuel, Precision Pays and World Dairy Diary. Thank you.
Each October since 1964, cooperatives across the United States have been celebrating the cooperative difference, business model and the contributions of cooperatives to their communities, during National Cooperative Month.
One of the best examples of an agricultural cooperative that makes a difference is GROWMARK, based in Bloomington, Illinois, and chairman of the board Dan Kelley says cooperatives touch our lives in many ways.
“Cooperatives have a long history going back to England in the mid-1800s when producers would get together to help market their products and that has resulted in the cooperative system here in the United States,” he said. “If you think of products like Welch’s grape juice, Florida’s Natural, SunMaid Raisins – those are cooperatives that have a national brand and market in some cases world wide.”
Dan says cooperatives in general are important to not only the economy of the United States, but the entire global economy, which is why they are looking forward to being a part of the United Nations International Year of Cooperatives, which officially begins on October 31. “What we intend to do is participate with other cooperatives here in the United States through the National Council of Farmer Cooperatives,” Dan says, adding that they will be focused on telling the cooperative story to a broader audience.
Dan says cooperatives are especially important to developing countries and some GROWMARK board members and managers were able to go to Ghana earlier this year to offer some advice to producers there. “It was an eye-opening experience to see people who are getting by on a subsistence standard of living and with some minor improvements could really improve their lives,” he said.
I’ve already been getting questions about Apple new mobile operating system, iOS 5. That’s what happens when you tweet that you’ve got it!
Like many people yesterday, I was frustrated getting the update on my iPhone 4. It took about 2 hours to get it downloaded and then I couldn’t get the update installed due to Apple server overload. So I waited until this morning and then had no problem.
Here are a couple of initial thoughts for you:
1. I really like the changes in the camera functions. Now you can crop, enhance and Tweet, all built in. The photo here is one I took and did all three functions while out jogging on the Katy Trail (I stopped for a few seconds ) a while ago. Click on the photo for a larger version. When the phone is asleep you can just double click the home button, click the camera icon that now appears and you’re ready to shoot. No waking the phone up, finding and opening the camera app. The volume up control now lets you snap the shutter too which is a big help.
2. I was very confused about where my music went since there is no longer an iPod app. There is now one called Music instead. It only has your music. Videos have been moved to the Videos app. Makes sense and I breathed a sigh of relief. At first I thought it might have had something to do with the whole iCloud thing and music that you purchased through iTunes. The majority of music in on my computer came from CD’s that I own.
Other than that about all I can add right now is that there have been a lot of app updates. Getting those and updating them via iTunes took quite a while this morning. I know this isn’t a lot of information but those are just a few initial observations.
Tomorrow I am supposed to get my new iPhone 4S. After I get that set up I’ll share more.
The American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF) says the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and an independent technical company must complete comprehensive and rigorous testing on all proposed technical fixes to ensure there is no interference between broadband and GPS signals that could be created by a broadband network being developed by LightSquared.
“It is critical that costs for resolving this issue are not passed along to farmers and ranchers through higher GPS or equipment costs,” AFBF President Bob Stallman said during a House Small Business Committee hearing on Wednesday. “LightSquared should cover the expense of all technical fixes related to the interference issue to ensure the cost is not passed along to farmers and ranchers.”
Many farmers rely on GPS for precision agriculture. This includes using GPS for accurate mapping of field boundaries, roads and irrigation systems; for precision planting; and for targeting the application of fertilizer and chemicals that combat weeds and crop diseases. GPS also allows farmers to work in their fields despite low-visibility conditions such as rain, dust, fog and darkness.
“While the deployment of broadband services is important for economic development, better education and improved health services in rural America, the use of precision agriculture is vital to America’s farmers and ranchers as they continue to feed, fuel and clothe the world,” Stallman said.
AFBF submitted comments to the FCC in July urging the agency to ensure there is no interference with GPS receivers prior to granting LightSquared permission to operate its high-powered base stations.
The 25th Georgia Peanut Tour this year hosted participants from 12 states and international attendees from Belgium, Canada and Argentina.
The event, held at the end of September in the Southwest area of Georgia, allowed many first time attendees to actually walk through a peanut field and see peanuts plowed up with a digger at harvest. The tour included stops in some of the top ten peanut producing counties in Georgia including Decatur, Seminole, Miller and Early counties.
The Georgia Peanut Tour brings the latest information on peanuts while giving a first-hand view of industry quality and infrastructure from production and handling to processing and utilization. The 2011 tour included farm visits, peanut harvest clinics, production research at the University of Georgia Attapulgus Research and Education Center, peanut handling and grading facilities and on-farm demonstrations. The tour also included a visit to LMC and American Peanut Growers Group in Donalsonville, Ga., Birdsong Peanuts, JLA and Olam Edible Nuts in Blakely, Ga.
The Georgia Peanut Tour is coordinated by the Georgia Peanut Commission, the University of Georgia Tifton and Griffin Campus, Southwest Georgia Research and Education Center in Plains, Attapulgus Research and Education Center and the USDA ARS National Peanut Research Laboratory in Dawson, Ga.
Some cookies and bars are just better with walnuts. English walnuts, that is. But each year, my grandparents spend countless hours collecting, sifting, shelling and selling black walnuts. This is also the time of year that, when Grandma sends cookies home with you, you inspect them first and if they pass the non-black-walnut smell test, they’re safe to eat.
I know I’m being biased about my particular taste preferences, but I compare it to black licorice, which I also don’t like.
We have five very large black walnut trees along the creek in our yard and one of these days, I’ll put my son to work helping me pick them up for Grandpa. Not that I want to contribute to the cookie fear factor, but Grandpa is 89 and I figure I’m more able to bend over for an hour picking the darn things up. (Boy how I wish I could turn those into English walnut trees.)
Agricultural interests have been trying for nearly five years to get Washington to act on three free trade agreements and finally in just over a week they have been sent to Congress and passed by significant majorities.
The trade agreements with South Korea, Panama and Columbia were each voted on separately and passed in rapid succession Wednesday, first by the House and then by the Senate. The votes in the House were 278-151 for South Korea, 300-129 for Panama and 262-167 for Colombia. In the Senate, it was 83-15 for South Korea, 77-22 for Panama and 66-33 for Colombia. The president is expected to sign them.
Farm groups were quick to praise the long-awaited action that is expected to mean increased exports for a variety of agricultural commodities.
“The three free trade agreements with Korea, Colombia and Panama provide great opportunities for America’s farmers,” said National Corn Growers Association President Garry Niemeyer of Illinois, adding that U.S. farmers have been standing by watching other nations receive increased access to these markets as the FTAs waited in limbo.
National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) President Bill Donald of Montana was pleased to see Congress put differences aside to pass the trade deals. “For too long, the trade agreements have been collecting dust,” he said, noting that cattlemen have a lot to gain when the agreements are fully implemented by reducing and eliminating import tariffs on U.S. beef imposed by Colombia (80 percent), Panama (30 percent) and South Korea (40 percent).
Pork producers also have much to gain under the agreements, according to National Pork Producers Council president Doug Wolf of Wisconsin who called passage of the FTAs “one of the greatest victories ever for the U.S. pork industry” since it is expected to add more than $11 to the price producers receive for each hog marketed.
Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack says passage of the agreements means over $2.3 billion in additional exports for American agriculture as a whole. “Immediately upon implementation of these agreements, the majority of American products exported to Korea, Colombia and Panama will become duty-free,” said Vilsack. “With record agricultural exports supporting more than a million jobs here at home, passage of these deals will contribute to a positive U.S. trade balance, create jobs, and provide new income opportunities for our nation’s agricultural producers, small businesses, and rural communities.”
It is very dry here in mid Missouri. At times you can’t even see a combine as it moves through a soybean field. I saw these guys hard at it while I was biking along the Katy Trail yesterday. So I shot a couple of video clips with my phone.
The interesting part was when I looked at the video I found that a hawk had flown in between me and one of the combines. And the hawk had what looks like a small rabbit in its talons. You can see it in the video about half way through.
Let’s talk about food. Okay. We can do that. In fact, we love to talk about food and the farmers who produce it. Here in the USA we’re very blessed to have the the most abundant, safe and affordable food supply in the world. We also ship more of it in the form of food aid around the world than any other country. So if we’re going to talk about food let’s not forget the farmers who produce it!
Since Sunday, October 16 is World Food Day, the folks at Blog Action Day decided to make food their topic. AgWired is signed up. Maybe you should too.
For 2011, our Blog Action Day coincides with World Food Day, so our topic of discussion for this year will be food. Take the first step now and sign-up your blog to Blog Action Day and then look at our suggested topics for some food flavoured inspiration to discuss.
World Food Day, October 16th, is a worldwide event designed to increase awareness, understanding and informed, year-around action to alleviate hunger.
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.
The weather has been a little up and down for opening day of the Sunbelt Ag Expo. Actually, the morning was pretty nice but after lunch the rain kind of set in.
NAFB ladies – have you always wanted a sweet black t-shirt or a zippered tote with NAFB in rhinestones? Guys – how about a nice cap, t-shirt, wind shirt, polo or bomber jacket with the NAFB logo?
Have you found yourself far from home without an NAFB lapel pin or made frantic inquires of your peers to see if they could spare you one? Do you lay awake at night, fretting about what others think because you don’t show pride in your association?
Each October since 1964, cooperatives across the United States have been celebrating the cooperative difference, business model and the contributions of cooperatives to their communities, during 
“Cooperatives have a long history going back to England in the mid-1800s when producers would get together to help market their products and that has resulted in the cooperative system here in the United States,” he said. “If you think of products like Welch’s grape juice, Florida’s Natural, SunMaid Raisins – those are cooperatives that have a national brand and market in some cases world wide.”
Dan says cooperatives in general are important to not only the economy of the United States, but the entire global economy, which is why they are looking forward to being a part of the 
) a while ago. Click on the photo for a larger version. When the phone is asleep you can just double click the home button, click the camera icon that now appears and you’re ready to shoot. No waking the phone up, finding and opening the camera app. The volume up control now lets you snap the shutter too which is a big help.
The 
Many farmers rely on GPS for precision agriculture. This includes using GPS for accurate mapping of field boundaries, roads and irrigation systems; for precision planting; and for targeting the application of fertilizer and chemicals that combat weeds and crop diseases. GPS also allows farmers to work in their fields despite low-visibility conditions such as rain, dust, fog and darkness.
The event, held at the end of September in the Southwest area of Georgia, allowed many first time attendees to actually walk through a peanut field and see peanuts plowed up with a digger at harvest. The tour included stops in some of the top ten peanut producing counties in Georgia including Decatur, Seminole, Miller and Early counties. 
The trade agreements with South Korea, Panama and Columbia were each voted on separately and passed in rapid succession Wednesday, first by the House and then by the Senate. The votes in the House were 278-151 for South Korea, 300-129 for Panama and 262-167 for Colombia. In the Senate, it was 83-15 for South Korea, 77-22 for Panama and 66-33 for Colombia. The president is expected to sign them.
In this week's program Chuck talks with David Armano, Global Innovation and Integration.
