Educating Children About Animal Agriculture

Chuck Zimmerman

Rebecca Long ChaneyInspirational speaker and writer, Rebecca Long Chaney, is working on a series of agricultural education books for pre-schoolers and elementary school children. Here she’s seen with her exhibit at the Cattle Industry Summer Conference.

The book she’s promoting will be available through her website soon. This first book, which she had for sale, is written from the perspective of her twin daughters, raising their first orphan beef calf they found in a field. The book follows along from the field to when they get the calf halter trained.

Rebecca says the next book will focus on dairy, with her daughters spending a day on a neighbor’s dairy and working in a local creamery. She’s very passionate about teaching the truth about animal agriculture to children and says that this project is one she’ll be working on for years.

Rebecca was born and raised on a dairy farm and now raises registered Hereford beef cattle.

Listen to my interview with Rebecca here: cisc-08-chaney.mp3

Cattle Industry Summer Conference Photo Album

Audio, Cattle Industry Conference

Beef Budget Blues

Chuck Zimmerman

Tom RameyTom Ramey, CBB’s CEO sure has his hands full dealing with some challenging times for the Checkoff. This morning he made a presentation at the second general session of the Summer Conference. You can listen to his presentation below.

I also interviewed Tom and found out that there are two main issues of special importance to the Checkoff here at this conference. The first one, according to Tom, is the budget. The recommended budget was presented at the CBB Update Session and committees will be looking at the parts that affect them during their meetings. Tom says that Checkoff dollars are down and that it’s a tough time right now. He says some difficult decisions will need to be made.

The other big issue is the process to create recommendations for ways to improve the Checkoff. Tom says the staff has sent out over 300 letters soliciting comments and that they’ll be organizing meetings with a number of the organizations targeted. Once those comments come in the staff will organize them and scrub them so that the Admin Subcommittee, which is charged with overseeing this process, can look at them on the merit of the comment without being affected by seeing who wrote them. Then the staff will be helping organize meetings with the committee to review the comments and formulate recommendations prior to the end of the year.

Tom says producers here seem excited about what the Checkoff is doing but are concerned about the budget. He says these are difficult times for the beef industry.

Listen to my interview with Tom here: cisc-08-ramey-1.mp3

Listen to Tom’s general session presentation here: cisc-08-ramey-general-session-2.mp3

Cattle Industry Summer Conference Photo Album

Ag Groups, Audio, Beef, Cattle Industry Conference

Web Savvy Beef Ambassadors

Chuck Zimmerman

Beef AmbassadorsThe red-shirted Beef Ambassadors have been wandering the halls here at the Summer Conference. I spoke with two of them this morning, Leticia Varelas, NM (L) and Jennifer Rassler, PA. They wanted to make sure I pointed people to their blog: Raising The Steaks. I hope you’ll take some time to see what these ambassadors of the industry are doing.

In my interview they each talk about projects they’ve been involved with like:

Summer Photo Contest: So, our mission for you is to capture those little moments of you washing your animal, leading him around, or how well you take care of them. Let your photo show how your involvement with the beef cattle production project really encourages you to be aware of animal welfare. So what we want from you is your best photo. Send it in to us at our email, which is raisingthesteaks@gmail.com. Feel free to include a caption about your picture. The contest deadline is October 1st, so you’re sure to have the perfect moment for a picture. Be sure to include an email adress where we can contact you. Photos will be judged, and a winner notified. Check back for more details as we get this contest rolling.

Penn State Blood Drive: Jennifer says they held a blood drive that had the slogan, “Beef, It’s What’s For Donors.” They fed donors hamburgers and gave them t-shirts too. She says it was the biggest blood drive they’ve ever held.

YouTube Videos: Both of these ambassadors produced YouTube videos for Earth Day to showcase the positive things farmers do for the environment. You can find Leticia’s video here and Jennifer’s video here.

Listen to my interview with Leticia and Jennifer here: cisc-08-beef-ambassadors.mp3

Cattle Industry Summer Conference Photo Album

Ag Groups, ARC, Beef, Cattle Industry Conference

Zimfo Bytes

Melissa Sandfort

    Zimfo Bytes

  • A new Farm Foundation report, What’s Driving Food Prices?, will be released Wednesday, July 23, at the Farm Foundation Forum. This event begins at 9 a.m. at the National Press Club. Farm Foundation commissioned the report to provide an objective context for interpreting the rapidly growing literature on the forces driving food prices.
  • Bayer HealthCare, Animal Health has chosen Woodruff Sweitzer as the agency of record for all brands across companion and food animal markets in Canada.
  • REA Hybrids has launched a new company Web site. Features include product searches that will allow growers to tailor requests for the information they are interested in with the option of downloading and printing full technical specifications for individual products; downloads of marketing materials; and an entire section dedicated to agronomy information.
  • The Cattlemen’s Beef Board has launched a new Web site designed to be the one place to go to find out how national beef checkoff dollars are invested and the results of those investments. Some highlights of the site include: monthly e-newsletter sign-up; producer profiles from across the country and expanded state beef council information and access.
    Zimfo Bytes

    Three New Associates on Board at Bader

    Laura McNamara

    Milwaukee-based Bader Rutter is welcoming three new associates to its public relations group. Anna Kirk, Josh Sova and Sara Pellowski are the newest additions to the marketing services agency.

    Anna Kirk (pictured top right) joins Bader Rutter as a team leader. Kirk brings 11 years of professional communications experience to her position. Most recently, she owned and managed Launchpad MCPR, Inc. Kirk holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Wisconsin – Milwaukee. She will be working on the Schneider Electric account.

    Josh Sova (pictured middle left) joins the agency as an assistant account executive. Most recently, Sova worked for The Promotions Network (TPN), Milwaukee. He holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Wisconsin – La Crosse. Sova will be working on the Merial account, an animal health company.

    Sara Pellowski (pictured bottom right) also joins the agency as an assistant account executive. Pellowski previously worked for Ron Sonntag Public Relations, served as a reporter for the West Bend Daily News and was a contributing writer for Soho Magazine. Pellowski is a graduate of the University of Wisconsin – Whitewater. She will be working on the Dow AgroSciences account.

    Advertising, Ag Groups, Agencies

    Dealer Excited About Roundup Ready 2 Yield

    Laura McNamara

    It’s not surprising that a crop that promises to boost yields through unprecedented technology has dealers excited. Jeremy Kelly, a sales manager at Stewart Seeds says he’s excited to offer Roundup Ready 2 Yield soybeans to growers and farmers for the 2009 growing season. And, just like the farmers, it’s the yield potential of 2nd gereration soybean line that’s caught Jeremy’s attention. He adds that Monsanto‘s Mobile Greenhouse is a great tool to showcase the potential of Roundup Ready 2 Yield soybeans.

    I spoke with Jeremy at the 2008 Michigan Ag Expo. You can listen to my interview with Jeremy here:
    mi-ag-ex-08-kelly.mp3


    Monsanto Summer of Soy Photos

    Soybean

    See It to Believe It at Mobile Greenhouse

    Laura McNamara

    Mobile Greenhouse visitors learn about Roundup Ready 2 Yield soybeansFarmers and growers who visited to Monsanto’s Mobile Greenhouse at the 2008 Michigan Ag Expo say they’re impressed to see the proof is in the soybeans, so to speak. Now, most say, they only thing left to do is see how the Roundup Ready 2 Yield soybeans perform during their first year in live farming field production.

    I caught up with a couple growers at the Mobile Greenhouse to see what they think about Monsanto’s “next generation” soybeans.

    You can listen to my interview with Matt Breithaupt here. Matt owns a 400 acre farm in Buckley, MI. He says 75 of those acres are used for his soybean crop.
    mi-ag-expo-breithaupt.mp3

    You can listen to my interview with John Schultz here. John works at Crop Production Services in Cass City, MI and owns a farm in Unionville Michigan where he plants 1,000 acres of soybeans.
    mi-ag-ex-08-schulz.mp3


    Monsanto Summer of Soy Photos

    Soybean

    Soybeans are for Kids

    Laura McNamara

    That is… soybean profits. Monsanto‘s Roundup Ready 2 Yield soybeans weren’t only a hit with the adults. The ag company’s mobile greenhouse unit seemed to intrigue the kids at the 2008 Michigan Ag Expo just as much, if not more. I mean, what spells out curiosity more than ear-to-ear grins and hands splayed on the glass and noses just centimeters from being smashed up against it?

    You can’t help but wonder if these little kids are getting some big ideas on the “potential profits” Monsanto says its Roundup Ready 2 Yield soybeans will offer farmers and growers. While parents are thinking soybeans might offer some cushion in the pocketbook, I have a hunch the kiddies are thinking “not so fast!”


    Monsanto Summer of Soy Photos

    Soybean

    Roundup Ready 2 Yield Benefits

    Laura McNamara

    Monsanto AM Area Manager Steve FlandersMonsanto‘s “Summer of Soy” tour is all about one thing: Roundup Ready 2 Yield soybeans. Representatives say the “next generation” crop boasts unsurpassed weed control, produces more “power in the pod” with more beans per pod and offers farmers and growers more than $45 per acre profit potential. Monsanto says its “advanced science” technology uses extensive gene mapping to identify specific DNA regions in soybeans that are found to have a positive impact on yield.

    Steve Flanders is the AM Area Manager for Monsanto. He says the Roundup Ready 2 Yield soybeans are producing 7 to 11 percent more yields than the first generation of Roundup Ready soybeans. This, he says, translates into 3 to 6 more bushels per acre – something Steve considers to be revolutionary.

    I spoke with Steve about Monsanto’s Mobile Greenhouse and “Summer of Soy” tour. You can listen to my interview with Steve here:
    mi-ag-ex-08-flanders.mp3


    Monsanto Summer of Soy Photos

    Soybean

    Vance Buys CattleNetwork.com and CattleStore.com

    Chuck Zimmerman

    CattleNetwork.comSome web publications have been bought by Vance Publishing.

    Vance Publishing Corporation has acquired two Internet-based businesses that market to and serve the farm and ranch communities, CattleNetwork.com and CattleStore.com. Both were purchased from Integrated Management Information, Inc., of Colorado.

    “This is another significant acquisition for Vance Publishing,” reported company Chairman William C. Vance. “It reinforces our position as the premier business-to-business multi-media communications resource in the markets we serve. We will continue to pursue acquisition opportunities that will increase services to our customers and strengthen our existing product lines.”

    This is Vance’s first solely digital acquisition; other recent purchases have included a mix of print, e-media, and events. The two new sites will become part of Vance’s growing Food360 group, which includes Drovers, Dairy Herd Management, Bovine Veterinarian and Pork print publications, web sites, e-newsletters, and the Doane forecasting and analysis product line marketed to the agricultural community, along with a host of other magazines, digital products and events.

    Publication