Chili’s Burger Showdown

Laura McNamara

Chili’s Bar & Grill Burger ShowdownBack your favorite NFL player by picking your favorite Chili’s Smokehouse Bacon Burger. The restaurant chain is in the midst of its Burger Showdown. Who’s it going to be? Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson, New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees or Philadelphia Eagles running back Brian Westbrook? You know, this burger showdown thing could catch on. How about a similar system for the elections? Eat a burger to cast your vote!

Chili’s Grill & Bar has drafted three of the NFL’s hottest players to help promote its new Smokehouse Bacon Burgers while raising funds for charity.

Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson, New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees, and Philadelphia Eagles running back Brian Westbrook will each represent one of three new Chili’s Smokehouse Bacon Burgers in the name of their favorite charity. Available now, guests are encouraged to visit their neighborhood Chili’s to taste these new burgers, because the player with the best-selling burger at the end of the 60-day promotional period will receive $10,000 from Chili’s to donate to their charity of choice.

Guests can visit the Chili’s Web Site to track the competition and register for prizes, including an all-expense-paid trip for two to any 2008 regular season pro or college football game and team helmets autographed by Peterson, Brees, and Westbrook.Read More

Advertising, Beef, Food

Marketing Farm Machinery

Chuck Zimmerman

ZimmCast-159 - Marketing Farm MachineryIf you’ve never attended the National Farm Machinery Show then you really owe it to yourself to wander around the largest indoor show of its kind in the world. I mean it’s big. I didn’t stay for the whole show this year but I think I covered some ground anyway.

While there I spoke with Dan Smaldone, Media Manager for the Kentucky Fair Board which is the organization that manages the facility. In our discussion he talks about how they market the show which includes the fact that 850 different companies and organizations are on display and they are all doing there best to get people there. He calls it a “must exhibit” show for companies in the farm machinery business. With over 300,000 people going through there during the show I understand what he means.

Farm MachineryAs I’ve mentioned before, this year Dan was able to set up a great media room with some of the fastest internet access I’ve found anywhere. Boy does that make our jobs easier. My coverage of the show was sponsored by John Deere and Precision Pays where you’ll find additional interviews than the ones posted on AgWired, some of them still to be posted later this week.

This week’s program ends with music from the Podsafe Music Network. It’s called “Little Bit of Sunshine” by the Dr. Mic and the Brain Ninjas. I picked this song since I’ll be in Florida later this week. I hope you enjoy it and thank you for listening.

You can download and listen to the ZimmCast here: Listen To ZimmCastZimmCast 159 (18 min MP3)

Or listen to this week’s ZimmCast right now:zimmcast159-2-18-08.mp3

The ZimmCast is the official weekly podcast of AgWired which you can subscribe to using the link in our sidebar. You can also subscribe in iTunes

National Farm Machinery Show Photo Album

Audio, Equipment, John Deere, National Farm Machinery Show, Precision Agriculture, ZimmCast

Colorado State Wins Cattlemen’s Foundation Quiz Bowl

Chuck Zimmerman

Quiz BowlHere’s the Quiz Bowl Champions from this year’s Cattlemen’s Foundation collegiate competition. They’re from Colorado State University and pictured are: L-R: Scott Howard, Dominic DiSanti, Josh Docheff, Shannon Case and Travis Hoffman, Advisor. The competition was held in Reno at the Cattle Industry Convention.

In addition to Colorado State, regional championship teams from Ohio State University, Penn State University, and the University of Tennessee competed. Teams earned the privilege of competing in the finals by winning their American Society of Animal Science section’s competition of the Academic Quadrathlon.

During the competition, students answer a series of questions about all aspects of beef cattle and the beef industry. The range of questions can include physiology, nutrition, reproduction, meat science, basic production information and current events affecting the beef industry. The competition is head-to-head and double elimination. The Collegiate Quiz Bowl continues to develop future leaders by engaging them in competition and presenting the contestants with the opportunity to be a part of the Cattle Industry Annual Convention. The National Collegiate Quiz Bowl is a joint program of the National Cattlemen’s Foundation and the American Society of Animal Science.

Ag Groups, University

Rhea + Kaiser Using Uncommon Sense

Chuck Zimmerman

Rhea KaiserThere’s nothing like freshening up the old brand in the new year. That’s what Rhea + Kaiser has done using just a little bit of “Uncommon Sense.”

On the eve of its 30th anniversary, Rhea + Kaiser is introducing a new brand identity, built around the theme of “Uncommon Sense.”

The agency’s identity rebranding initiative had a two-fold objective: to acknowledge the evolution of Rhea + Kaiser and to better reflect the agency’s value offering to current and prospective clients, said Steve Rhea, president, CEO and co-founder of the independent, integrated agency.

“Over the past 18 months, we took stock of Rhea + Kaiser’s history, evolution and current standing,” Rhea said. “We conducted internal focus groups, debated the sacred, proposed the outrageous and spent time crafting, testing and pressure-testing the identity that will carry us confidently into the future.” Read More

Agencies

A Morning Sunrise To Get You Going

Chuck Zimmerman

MO River SunriseI don’t know about you but I never get tired of sunrises and sunsets. Here’s one to hopefully brighten your Monday morning. This is a view as I was crossing the Missouri River bridge coming out of Jefferson City this morning using my Blackberry Curve. Pretty cool scene.

I don’t know how many of you are on holiday today. I’ve already called the bank forgetting that they’d be closed. Some of us keep right on trucking.

Actually I’ll be flying south on Wednesday to do a little private counseling before attending the National Ethanol Conference in Orlando. MO SunriseThat’s a cross posting event onto our Domestic Fuel site and RFA’s Ethanol Report blog. Agriculture will be well represented there I’m sure.
Then it’s off to Commodity Classic next week where I’ll meet up with Cindy who arrives before me.

I had to snap another shot of the sunrise after getting across the bridge.

So, I hope your week gets off to a great start.

Uncategorized

Zimfo Bytes

Melissa Sandfort

    Zimfo Bytes

  • Merial announces the addition of four new IGENITY® Sales Representatives: Gary Felger, Zac Hall, Courtney Kealey and Sam Lewis. These sales representatives will work with beef producers in their respective territories to put the power of DNA to work with the comprehensive IGENITY profile. Visit the Web site for more information on the comprehensive IGENITY profile.
  • General Mills and DuPont announced they sold their 8th Continent soy milk joint venture to Stremicks Heritage Foods, a branded specialty foods company. Conditions of the sale included a long-term supply agreement from Solae, a DuPont majority-owned joint venture, which has been supplying soy protein to 8th Continent.
  • Agriculture Secretary Ed Schafer announced the appointment of H. Scott Hurd as Deputy Under Secretary for Food Safety at the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Dr. Hurd comes to FSIS from Iowa State University where he has served as an epidemiologist in the College of Veterinary Medicine for the past three years.
  • A new option for broad-spectrum control of broadleaf weeds with grass control assistance in soybeans is now available from FMC Corporation. New Authority Assist herbicide is the answer for effective residual control of tough broadleaves and grass control assistance. Soybean growers can rely on Authority Assist for complete broadleaf control, including control of small-seeded weeds, and grass assist, resulting in a cleaner start for increased yields.
Zimfo Bytes

Kansas Promotes Healthy Cattle

Laura McNamara

beefcattle.pngKansas State University wants ranchers and livestock owners to keep the cattle clean and healthy. The university is hosting the Beef Cattle Welfare at its Beef Cattle Institute May 28-30.

Animal welfare is one of the fastest growing concerns among consumers throughout the country, according to Dr. Dan Thomson, a Kansas State University veterinarian and expert on the impact of beef cattle production practices on cattle well-being and health.

The Beef Cattle Institute at K-State will conduct an International Symposium on Beef Cattle Welfare, May 28-30, on the K-State campus.

“The symposium is designed to provide a venue in which all stakeholders in beef cattle production can meet and discuss the many welfare-related topics concerning the raising, feeding and harvesting of beef cattle,” Thomson said.

Speakers at the symposium will include producers, ethologists, nutritionists and veterinarians who will address current welfare-related issues facing the beef industry. The speaker list also includes people in policy-making positions within the federal government, professional societies and industry commodity groups.

More information on the symposium, including how to register, is available at the Beef Cattle Institute Website.

Ag Groups, Agribusiness, Animal Health, Beef, Education, Environment, Farming, Livestock

The Land of Wine and Food…

Laura McNamara

California Travel and Tourism Commission…is, apparently, in California. The California Travel & Tourism Commission and the Wine Institute are teaming up to promote the ‘Land of Wine and Food’ nationwide.

Building on California’s allure as America’s “Capital of Culinary Travel,” the California Wine Institute and the California Travel and Tourism Commission (CTTC) have entered into an historic partnership to promote the state’s wine and cuisine offerings to the fast-growing travel segment of culinary connoisseurs — and those who aspire to be.

The heart of the campaign focuses on a new LandofWineandFood.com Web site which will debut at wine and food and travel media events in New York. Also to be unveiled at the New York events will be an exciting new national TV campaign featuring Governor Schwarzenegger, First Lady Maria Shriver and wine and culinary celebrities promoting California’s rich bounty of wine and food. The spot is scheduled to begin running on February 4 in major markets across the U.S. Print ads featuring top chefs and winemakers, such as Heidi Barrett, will also run in various wine, food and lifestyle magazines throughout the winter and spring.

The Wine InstituteConsumers will find a rich and unique Web site that will virtually pull them into California, “The Land of Wine and Food.” Exciting features include: an Interactive Wine Region Explorer, showcasing the best California wine regions for their favorite varietals as well as wine and food itineraries; Travel Tips Video Shorts from California wine and food pioneers, sharing tips such as the best way to find locals’ favorite eateries; blogs featuring wine and food luminaries like Pat Kuleto, Duskie Estes and Andrew Firestone of Curtis Winery; Local Californian’s Point of View Tips, where locals tell visitors their favorite things to do and places to visit; and a chance to win exclusive culinary adventures in California.

California boasts nine of the top 10 U.S. agricultural counties, which grow a diverse assortment of fresh produce that many fine chefs demand in California’s 80,000 restaurants and eateries, says CTTC Executive Director Caroline Beteta. “California is the most visited state in the U.S. for food and wine-related activities, but our research shows there’s still a lot of potential for growth in wine and food travel to our state,” said Beteta.

Ag Groups, Agencies, Agribusiness, Food

Product & Labor Tracking Solutions Introduced

Melissa Sandfort

image1.jpgTo assist producers of hand-harvested fruit and vegetable crops in working more productively, efficiently and profitably, John Deere Agri Services has introduced two information management tools: Product Tracking and Labor Tracking solutions. These innovative systems work collaboratively to record, store and manage information to better run operations.

The Labor Tracking solution utilizes a handheld device to collect in-field information to track and monitor harvest and production data such as who harvested what crops, where and when. All in-field collected data is automatically stamped with GPS coordinates, date and time for accurate reporting and record keeping.

The Product Tracking solution gives managers the ability to more accurately and easily record and track all in-field production history for field and shed-packed fresh produce and to link data from the field to the finished lot. The system converts data into real-time information that managers can use to increase product value, expedite regulatory and commercial compliance and improve risk management.

For more information on the Labor Tracking and Product Tracking solutions, produce managers can call 1-800-393-8971 or e-mail the John Deere Agri Services customer contact at AgriServices@JohnDeere.com. Additional information on the Labor Tracking and Product Tracking solutions also can be found on the Web site.

Uncategorized

Hallowell Promoted at Bader Rutter

Chuck Zimmerman

Lori HallowellLori Hallowell is now a group leader at Bader Rutter. She’ll be in the agency’s account management group.

Hallowell joined the agency in 1994. Her hard work and passion for the business have been instrumental in the growth of Merial, the agency’s animal health client. Originally from Palmyra, Neb., Hallowell earned a bachelor of science degree in agricultural journalism from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. She serves on the board of directors of the National Agri-Marketing Association’s Midlands Chapter.

Agencies