Category Archives: International

An Alltech View of China

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His presentation was titled, “The Great Call of China.” Dr. Mark Lyons talked about what he has learned about the culture and opportunity represented by the China market. In fact, he’s learning the language right now and Alltech predicts that the country may represent 25% of their business in the future.

At the 2010 Symposium we got a glimpse at this market from Joaquin Pelaez is the Senior Vice President for Product Excellence at Yum! Brands, Inc. In this morning’s closing session Mark expanded greatly on some of those ideas from what he has found out from his time in China. For example, he says he conducted a survey in which the word Respect came up over and over. In his presentation you’ll learn from his observations and perhaps these will serve you well if you ever work in the China market. Mark concluded his remarks saying that it’s the perfect place for the aspiring CEO!

Listen to Dr. Mark Lyons talk about the China market here: Dr. Mark Lyons on China

2012 Alltech International Symposium Photo Album

Regulatory and Activist Lessons From Europe

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Lessons Learned From Europe was the topic addressed by Mike Sheldon, Greenway Farms Limited, during the opening session of the 2012 Animal Agriculture Alliance Stakeholders Summit. Mike talked about regulatory burdens and activist influence. You’ll hear him say in my interview with him that what’s happening there is coming here to the USA.

I asked Mike what he wanted to communicate to our group here. He says that he first wanted us to know how big the impact is going to be on hog production when closed confinement stalls for sows are banned next year. He says this change is happening in Europe and will happen here as well. This change is going to be huge. He says that minor changes can be dealt with but a change of this magnitude which will require massive investment to implement without showing a greater return is going to be hard to deal with.

You can hear my interview with Mike here: Interview with Mike Sheldon

2012 Animal Agriculture Alliance Stakeholders Summit Photo Album

Thanks to the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association and United Soybean Board for their sponsorship of our coverage of this year’s Summit.

GROWMARK CEO Pleased with Pursuit of Maximum Yields

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GROWMARK CEO Jeff Solberg is very pleased with response to the FS Green Plan Solutions program to help growers discover new methods that will help them attain maximum yields.

I had a chance to chat with Jeff as he attended the Pursuit of Maximum Yields (POMY) grower event last week in Collinsville, Illinois. He told me that the program is designed to help growers meet the challenges of feeding a growing world population. “We believe that the production that we have to have to feed the world is so important,” Jeff said. “The way that you go about it is through good, sustainable, environmentally-sound practices which allow us to farm with freedom, to do it in the right way, and to make sure that we get the yields to feed all the people we’ve got coming at us in the next 30 years.”

2012 is a big year for GROWMARK and for cooperatives throughout the entire world. “We have a double celebration this year,” Jeff says. “It’s the International Year of Cooperatives, but it’s also GROWMARK’s 85th anniversary. It’s a unique way of doing business and it’s also a really great way of doing business.”

Listen to my interview with Jeff Solberg here: GROWMARK CEO Jeff Solberg

Check out photos from the two Pursuit of Maximum Yields events held in Iowa and Illinois this month.

Photos from Illinois Pursuit of Maximum Yields Event

Photos from Iowa Pursuit of Maximum Yields Event

Assistance Available To Attend 2012 IFAJ Congress

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It’s not too early to look ahead to the 2012 International Federation of Agricultural Journalists Congress which will take place in Sweden. It’s on my calendar. If you need some assistance going, one option is for AAEA members to apply for a professional development stipend. Another is for young agricultural communicators to apply for an IFAJ-Alltech Young Leader Award.

AAEA PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT STIPENDS
The AAEA Professional Improvement Foundation (PIF) is funding three, $2,000 stipends to help AAEA members at large (a fourth stipend is awarded to the current International Committee chair) travel to Sweden for the International Federation of Agricultural Journalists (IFAJ) Congress this summer.

Send your completed application to Steve Werblow, chair of the AAEA International Committee, by FEBRUARY 3. Stipend winners will be announced February 10 – the day IFAJ Congress registration opens.

Application Form (.doc)

IFAJ-ALLTECH YOUNG LEADERS AWARD
Applications are now available for the IFAJ-Alltech Young Leaders in Agricultural Journalism Award, an exciting program for agricultural communicators 35 years of age and younger. Here are some highlights:

- A 1,000-Euro ($1,272) prize
- Travel scholarship to the 2012 IFAJ Congress in Sweden
- Participation in a professional development Boot Camp with the other award winners from around the world
- Connection with a mentor from the IFAJ community

Each IFAJ member guild (AAEA is a guild, and you are all members) can nominate one candidate to the global competition. The AAEA International Committee will select one candidate from among the AAEA member applicants; judging of the 10-person Class of 2012 will be conducted by an IFAJ panel.

Entry requirements are available online. They include:

- Candidates must have been no more than 35 years of age on December 31, 2011
- Applicant must be an active or affiliate member in good standing of AAEA
- Application includes a brief essay
- Candidate must submit three samples of his or her work for judging.

Application Form (.doc)

Lycka till! (That’s Swedish for “Good luck!”)

European Network Of Agricultural Journalists Formed

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It looks like you have to be a member to log in to the new website but the EU has a new ag journalist organization.

The European network of Agricultural Journalists (ENAJ), a new organisation representing agricultural journalists from the EU was officially launched today in Brussels. The Commissioner for Agriculture Dacian Ciolos was presented with the working charter for the ENAJ at a function attended by 140 journalists from the EU 27. The new journalist run organisation will be initially led by Belgian journalist Jef Verhaeran who explained at the launch how the idea came about following consultation between journalists and the EU Commission earlier this year. Leaders of agricultural journalist associations from member states came together to explore the possibility of establishing a new organisation and the idea received the backing of these member guilds and associations. A “project team” of eight journalists will now go about establishing and growing the network over the next twelve months.

The main objectives of the network is to help agricultural journalists throughout the EU communicate easily with each other while also providing members with better access to issues of importance including the CAP debate from DG Agri.

Irish Guild of Agricultural Journalists Commemorates 50 Years

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The Irish Guild of Agricultural Journalists has just released a 50th Anniversary document (pdf) that includes historical information and photos. Here are a couple of samples:

In 1961 we had a visit from John Hayhurst, President of the Guild of Agricultural Journalists, London. He was editor of a weekly called The Smallholder. He was exploring Ireland’s potential for membership. He was met by Henry Kennedy, director of IAOS (now ICOS) and General John Costello, chief executive of the Irish Sugar Company.

New scope had arisen with the imminent launch of RTE television and the growing significance of public relations for the larger agricultural bodies like the Department of Agriculture, the Irish Sugar Company and the newly formed Bord Bainne.

and

The Guild’s Journalism awards honour professionals who have achieved excellence in journalism and communications. The awards were initiated in 1976 in honour of the late Vincent Colgan, public relations manager with Bord Bainne (now the Irish Dairy Board).

The Journalist of the Year was selected by nomination and ballot of Guild members and was presented with the bronze bull. There was just one annual award which was presented at the Bord Bainne sponsored function for the Guild, held on the eve of the RDS Spring Show.

Farming First For A Sustainable World

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Putting Farming First is the theme of a “coalition of organisations that articulates, endorses and promotes practical and actionable programmes and activities to further sustainable agricultural development worldwide.” This effort has produced a video to promote this concept called ‘The Story of Agriculture and the Green Economy.” It “highlights the importance of sustainable agriculture in creating sustainable livelihoods, feeding a growing population and safeguarding the environment. It illustrates the many links between agriculture and the green economy, including increased food production, more efficient water use, further access to women farmers and improved livelihoods.”

You can learn more about Farming First on their website. What do you think about efforts like this?

Farming First is a coalition of multi-stakeholder organisations, not an organisation. The coalition exists to articulate, endorse and promote practical, actionable programmes and activities to further sustainable agricultural development worldwide. There is no secretariat and it is not intended that one will be created.

Agribusiness Soldiers in Afghanistan

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The U.S. Army pointed me to this great story about our soldiers in Afghanistan doing agribusiness duty. The photo comes from Staff Sgt. James McDonnough. In it Sgt. 1st Class Randy Wright, a pest management specialist with the Illinois Army National Guard’s 1-14th Agribusiness Development Team, takes the reigns on a team of draft horses during a visit to an Amish farm Sept. 13, 2011. The 1-14th ADT visited multiple farms in the Amish community to assess agricultural practices and technologies, which could be implemented during their upcoming deployment to Kunar Province, Afghanistan.

Approximately 60 Soldiers from across Illinois, as well as two Soldiers from Michigan and South Dakota respectivley, have been deployed to Kunar province since June with the Illinois Army National Guard’s 1-14th Agribusiness Development Team.

The 1-14th Agribusiness Development Team, or ADT, which consists of a headquarters element, a security force platoon and a platoon of 12 agriculture experts, have been assisting the Government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, or GIRoA, in revitalizing and establishing a strong, growing and sustainable agriculture industry.

The Illinois team’s mission is part of a broad effort that involves multiple National Guard ADTs from several states, each operating within its own province. The teams typically come from mid-western states, such as Missouri, Nebraska, Indiana and Iowa, which are known for agriculture production.

Col. Fred Allen, commander of the 1-14th ADT, said it makes sense for Illinois to field such a specialized team.

“Illinois was a great choice for a few reasons,” said Allen. “We are one of the largest agriculture states in the U.S., both by population and production. This is also represented within our National Guard formations and the many citizen Soldiers who work full time in the agriculture industry. Illinois also has some of the top agriculture colleges in the nation, at both community college and university levels. It was amazing how many Soldiers we found in our ranks that had, or were working toward, agriculture degrees.”

The Illinois Soldiers have educations and backgrounds in agronomy, plant and soil science, forestry, engineering, pest management, zoology and hydrology.

Canadian Agriculture 101

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While attending the 2011 IFAJ Congress one of our panel discussions was titled, “Canadian Agriculture 101.” First up was Jack Wilkinson, farm community leader and member of the Canadian Agriculture Hall of Fame, pictured at the podium along with Richard Doyle, Executive Director, Dairy Farmers of Canada and President, International Dairy Federation and Jay Bradshaw, Syngenta Canada. I thought I’d share the remarks made by Richard since I find the dairy industry system in Canada very interesting. It also represents the types of presentations we enjoy at an IFAJ Congress.

A big part of Richard’s presentation deals with the supply management system in Canada that is “based on planned domestic production, administered pricing and dairy product import controls.” There are licensed quotas and various other components to the system which you can read about in this pdf. A good source of information is the Canadian Dairy Information Centre. They national system was introduced in 1970. Listen to his presentation here: Richard Doyle Presentation

2011 IFAJ Congress Photo Album

Coverage of the IFAJ Congress is sponsored by PIONEER Hi-Bred

IFAJ Japan Relief Effort Very Successful

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During the delegate meeting of the IFAJ Congress we heard how things are going in Japan following the earthquake and tsunami disaster. As you may know, IFAJ helped organize a call for support and the results were €12,072 Euros being contributed to relief efforts! The donation will be managed by the Japan Agricultural Journalists Association.

With us is a delegation from Japan including Masaru Yamada (at the podium). He gave us some information about the disaster situation and how things have gone since then.

You can listen to remarks from Masaru here: Remarks from Masaru Yamada

2011 IFAJ Congress Photo Album

Coverage of the IFAJ Congress is sponsored by PIONEER Hi-Bred

Farmers Fighting Poverty

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One of the organizers for the IFAJ Master Class and Boot Camp program is Cees van Rij (pictured left), Agriterra. Cees is from the Netherlands.

Cees says his organization is guided by Dutch farmer groups and cooperatives and believes that farmers can do a lot to work with people in poverty stricken areas to help them. That led to the start of an effort called Famers Fighting Poverty. He says this effort needs more communication outreach and hopes IFAJ Congress participants will assist them. He would especially like to see support from companies and organizations in the United States.

You can listen to my interview with Cees here: Cees van Rij Interview

2011 IFAJ Congress Photo Album

Coverage of the IFAJ Congress is sponsored by PIONEER Hi-Bred

Canada Outdoor Farm Show

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Welcome to the Canada Outdoor Farm Show. This is where I’ll be today with other IFAJ members before the 2011 IFAJ Congress officially kicks off tomorrow evening. I’m assuming I’ll be away from internet access all day but I’ll be taking photos and have stories to share after I get back.

With helicopters landing and equipment arriving and animals getting bedded, the weekend was a busy one at Canada’s Outdoor Park in Woodstock, Ontario – all in preparation for Canada’s Outdoor Farm Show this Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday – September 13, 14 & 15, 2011. As the nation’s largest agricultural trade show, Canada’s Outdoor Farm Show showcases the latest in agricultural technologies and innovations through demonstrations and interactive displays.

2011 IFAJ Congress Photo Album

Coverage of the IFAJ Congress is sponsored by PIONEER Hi-Bred

IFAJ Master Class & Boot Camp Sessions

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This morning the IFAJ 2011 Master Class is in session while Boot Camp meets separately. Yesterday both groups were together. Here’s a little information about the Master Class:

Pioneer Hi-Bred, a DuPont business, is supporting a pilot project called the IFAJ-Pioneer HiBred Master Class. This program will bring a group of journalists from developing countries to a two-day journalism and leadership workshop prior to the congress.

The workshop will focus on journalistic training, global agriculture and communications trends. Journalists will have a chance to share ideas with colleagues, and network with professionals from around the world. Master Class participants will be selected from Asia, Africa, Latin America and Eastern Europe.

The project will be based on a workshop with developing-country journalists initiated at the 2010 Belgium Congress, which was managed by AgriTerra, a Dutch-based agri-development agency. AgriTerra will help coordinate the master class program in Canada, owing to its experience in networking with journalists from underdeveloped countries

Here’s our Boot Camp group getting their first lesson of the day.

Alltech will expand its sponsorship of the successful IFAJ-Alltech Young Leaders in
Agricultural Journalism award to include a Boot Camp workshop. This activity will provide
select young journalists with expert training and feedback through on-site writing or
broadcasting assignments and further develop their leadership skills through formal in-class
training.

2011 IFAJ Congress Photo Album

Coverage of the IFAJ Congress is sponsored by PIONEER Hi-Bred

New Ideas for Promoting Soybean Exports

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usb soybean exportsThe final session of the US Soybean Export Council Animal Utilization Stakeholders meeting in Seattle this past weekend focused on a discussion of new ideas to promote soybean exports in the future.

As chairman of the United Soybean Board International Marketing Committee, Jim Call of Minnesota split his time between the animal utilization and the human utilization meetings. “I think we covered a lot of areas. I think it gives our staff a little more direction on the projects they need to bring forward to the farmers in the future that we as farmers think will add value,” he said.

The last panel at the animal utilization meeting discussed ways that animo acid profiles could be used as a marketing characteristic. “Currently the market focuses on protein and oil,” Jim explained. “What we’re trying to do is get the market to focus instead of just on protein, on amino acid or digestibility.”

Listen to my interview with Jim here. USB Director Jim Call

More interviews and stories from the meeting can be found here.

USSEC First Animal Utilization Stakeholders Meeting Photos

Novus International Shares Vision with US Soybean Growers

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usb soybean exportsThe vision of Novus International is “To help feed the world affordable, wholesome food and achieve a higher quality of life.”

That is a vision this global animal nutrition company shares with the U.S. soybean industry, with exports around the world accounting for more than half of annual production. “A lot of commonality in that and a lot of opportunity to work together and have complimentary efforts to do the right thing, not only for agriculture and livestock production, but for mankind,” said Novus International Director of Product Management Wendell Knehans, who participated in the US Soybean Export Council Animal Utilization Stakeholders meeting in Seattle this past weekend.

Wendell gave a presentation at the meeting to provide an overview of Novus and possibilities of partnership, explain some of the technical services that Novus provides in the livestock industry, and discuss some of the mutual opportunities.

Listen to my interview with Wendell here. Wendell Knehans with Novus International

USSEC First Animal Utilization Stakeholders Meeting Photos

What Soybean Stakeholders are Learning at USSEC Meeting

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usb soybean exportsThe weather is fabulous in Seattle this weekend, but directors of the United Soybean Board (USB) are inside and hard at work learning more about opportunities for exports at the US Soybean Export Council Animal Utilization Stakeholders meeting.

As far as stakeholders are concerned, USB is one of the major ones represented here, since soybean checkoff dollars are used to fund the USSEC’s export promotion efforts. “I’m here to learn more about the world demand for protein for animal feeds,” says David Hartke, USB Director from Illinois. “Sitting on the Production Committee with USB, I’ve been asked to be the lead on the composition of the soybean and felt that I needed to be here.”

Listen to my interview with David here. David Hartke, USB Director

usb soybean exportsWhile all the USB directors I have featured so far are from Illinois, there are directors outside of the Midwest! One of them is Jacob Parker from North Carolina who says the export market for US soybeans is critically important for the industry, accounting for over half the production nationwide.

“We need to maintain that business,” Jacob told me. “We need to also make sure that our domestic crush continues and try to figure out ways to export meal as well as whole beans.”

Listen to my interview with Jacob here. Jacob Parker, USB Director

USSEC First Animal Utilization Stakeholders Meeting Photos

Around the World at Soybean Export Stakeholders Meeting

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usb soybean exportsParticipants in the US Soybean Export Council Animal Utilization Stakeholders meeting got a quick trip around the world in about four hours Saturday morning with presentations on global opportunities for soybean exports for animal use.

“We had 11 speakers representing eight different countries or regions,” said Miguel Escobar, USSEC Global Director of Animal Utilization. “We heard from all of them what kind of things they are doing in the marketplace for the future.”

Miguel says they wanted to let the stakeholders who fund the efforts of the USSEC know how their money is being spent. “The main two are the the Foreign Agriculture Service (FAS) of the USDA, the United Soybean Board (USB) and all the companies that are members of USSEC who have interest in animal utilization part of the business,” he said.

Miguel is very excited about the stakeholders meeting. “We are breaking the ground for what is going to happen in the future for animal utilization,” he said, noting that it represents an $18 billion segment of the U.S. soybean export market.

Listen to my interview with Miguel here. Miguel Escobar with USSEC

USSEC First Animal Utilization Stakeholders Meeting Photos

Canada’s Outdoor Farm Show

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Canada’s Outdoor Farm Show is just one of the stops coming up on the agriblogging highway. I’ll be attending for a day just prior to the International Federation of Agricultural Journalists Congress.

Canada’s Outdoor Park is home annually to Canada’s Outdoor Farm Show each September ­ but people, equipment and animals are roving in and out of the site all summer long.

The 85 acre site in Woodstock, Ontario is used by many companies and groups leading up to Canada’s Outdoor Farm Show, being held this year from September 13th to 15th. Beginning as early as April, the action makes a chilly start with research programs, dealer training sessions and educational events. This summer, groups like Ontario Holsteins, Grober Nutrition and New Holland have taken advantage of the site with its long expanse of grass, buildings and crop plots.

Canada’s Outdoor Farm Show will be held on September 13, 14, and 15, 2011 at Canada’s Outdoor Park in Woodstock, ON. For more information visit www.OutdoorFarmShow.com or call 1-800-563-5441.

G-20 Agricultural Ministers Make Action Plan

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Agriculture Ministers from the G20 nations reached agreement this week on a plan to reduce world food price volatility.

“The consensus reached today by the G-20 Agricultural Ministers marks an historic union of resolve in combating the pressing challenges of hunger and food price volatility confronting our world with greater regularity,” said Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack in a statement from Paris where the meeting took place this week.

The G-20 Action Plan includes creation of an agricultural market information system charged with collecting accurate and timely data on world crop supply, demand and food stocks; and the removal of barriers to food exports for humanitarian purposes. The ministers also agreed to starting a pilot program for “small, targeted regional emergency food reserves for a limited group of countries” and helping smaller, women and young farmers in developing countries to improve productivity.

The ministers stopped short of making any recommendations that would impact the production of biofuels, but did call for further analysis of the impact of biofuels on food availability, price volatility and sustainability. “We also recognize the importance of research and development on biofuels, including those produced through new processes or new feedstocks, non-food feedstocks and other vegetable materials,” they said in their declaration.

Dealing With Disruptive Change In Dairy Industry

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Mandi McLeodDisruptive change sounds disturbing. However, perhaps it’s more of a challenge. Mandi McLeod, System Insights, Ltd., New Zealand, talked about it and its impact on the dairy industry during the Alltech International Symposium. She’s seen here being interviewed by Ireland’s RTE voice Damien O’Reilly. I spoke with Mandi after Damien to learn what is going on with dairy farming in her country and how she coaches family business strategy.

Mandi says the New Zealand dairy model is still working but needs to evolve further in light of disruptive changes in the industry. She says that their level of productivity hasn’t kept up with the price of their product which makes them vulnerable at the moment. The current pricing of dairy products is just not financially sustainable and it looks like that isn’t going to improve soon. Mandi is a family business strategist and advises dairy farmers to take a look at their business and make sure they’re using resources wisely. Sounds like common sense advice for any business. She wants people to enjoy what they are doing by finding a balance in their life and business. Having a good plan would help a family business tremendously. Perhaps you should give Mandi a call if you need help. Mandi McLeod Interview

2011 Alltech Symposium Photo Album