Win $25,000 for Culinary Expertise with the Cranberry

Laura McNamara

Ocean SprayGot a passion for cranberry? How about just a great cranberry recipe? Submit your cranberry concoction in Ocean Spray’s Ultimate Cranberry Recipe Contest and you could win $25,000.

Ocean Spray has announced its first ever Ultimate Cranberry Recipe Contest seeking original cranberry creations from those passionate about the little, red wonderberry. Consumers willing to indulge their passion for cooking with cranberries are eligible to earn $25,000 for the winning recipe! Consumers can enter from July 12, 2007 through August 23, 2007 online.

Recipes must be original, use a minimum of 1/2 cup of any Ocean Spray product (beverages 1 1/2 ounces), and fall into one of the following categories: Beverages, Snacks and Appetizers, Salads, Main Dishes, Side Dishes, Desserts and Baked Goods. Recipes will be judged on creativity, use of product, taste, overall appearance and ease of preparation. Entries must be postmarked by August 23, 2007 and received by August 31, 2007.

Four semi-finalists will be chosen and flown to New York City early November for a final judging. The winner of the $25,000 grand prize will be announced at Ocean Spray’s “Bogs Across America” event at 30 Rockefeller Plaza in New York City. Each finalist will receive a trip for two to New York City and a one-year supply of Ocean Spray product. Each finalist recipe will also be featured on Oceanspray.com.

Food

The Synergies of Beef and Dairy

Chuck Zimmerman

Beef-Dairy Issues ForumA little bit of history is being made here in Denver today at the Cattle Industry Summer Conference. The Cattlemen’s Beef Board is collaborating with the National Dairy Council to put on a joint beef/dairy issues forum.

It’s called “Beef & Dairy: Harnessing the Synergies on Nutrition.” Some of the topics include:

The New Nutrition Environment: Common Challenges and Opportunities Looking Ahead to 2010

The Nutrient Rich Foods Coalition (NRFC) – A Case Study of the Combined Power of Dairy and Beef

The Power of Protein and the Challenges of Fatty Acids

The session will go all afternoon and I’ll have some audio from it later this evening or tomorrow.

2007 Cattle Industry Summer Conference Photo Album

Ag Groups, Beef, Cattle Industry Conference, Dairy

Zimfo Bites

Laura McNamara

  • Markstone Capital Partners, a leading private equity fund Chaired by Elliott Broidy, confirmed reports that Syngenta AG (NYSE:SYT) has agreed to acquire Markstone portfolio company Zeraim Gedera Ltd., a high quality Israeli vegetable seed company. Zeraim focuses primarily on high-value crops, including tomato, pepper and melon. Syngenta will acquire all outstanding shares in the company from Markstone for consideration of approximately $95 million. Mike Mack, Chief Operating Officer of Syngenta Seeds said: “This acquisition further expands Syngenta’s position in high-value growth segments. Zeraim Gedera’s portfolio and its strong presence in Mediterranean markets ideally complement our vegetable seeds business.”
  • For customers looking for economical horsepower in a durable, compact package, John Deere introduces a new line of 5003 Series Tractors, ranging in horsepower from 45- to 74-engine hp. “These new tractors feature 2.9L John Deere PowerTech£ engines, designed with turbocharged performance to help operators get more done, day in and day out,” says Mike Alvin, product manager, John Deere Commercial Products. “The engines provide excellent torque, fuel efficiency, and offer durable horsepower for many applications.”
  • Syngenta announced today it has begun processing redemption forms from growers who participated in the 2007 AgriEdge® Corn program and will continue receiving claims until November 15, 2007. Growers who planted corn hybrids with Agrisure™ traits are automatically eligible to participate in AgriEdge Corn programs that provide industry-leading assurances and Technology Reinvestments. Any grower who plants a qualifying NK®, Garst®, Golden Harvest® or other brand corn hybrid with Agrisure™ traits is eligible to participate in AgriEdge Corn, which protects the seed investment with a weed or insect management system.
Zimfo Bytes

StollerUSA iPod Drawing at AMS

Chuck Zimmerman

Stoller ContestIf you’re a media person and going to the Agricultural Media Summit then StollerUSA is giving you some incentive to stop by their booth at the Info Expo.

For starters, if you stop by and talk about Bio-Forge you get a $20 iTunes card.

Then you can get entered into a contest for an iPod Nano. They’ll be giving one away each session.

Oh, and they’re in booth #313. I’m going to be stopping by.

Ag Media Summit, Agribusiness

National Beef Ambassadors

Chuck Zimmerman

Beef AmbassadorsTo be an ambassador you’ve got to be passionate about your subject. These ladies are definitely that.

Pictured are (left-right) Carol Abrahamzon, ANCW, project manager from Minnesota, Joann Strom, South Dakota, Londa Johnson, Minnesota, Amanda Rankin, California and Christie Molinaro, Pennsylvania.

I asked them what it means to be a beef ambassador and what they do.

One of their most memorable experiences included getting to meet President Bush in Washington, DC. Another one was distributing beef samples at the Dover International Speedway during a Nascar Race.

Listen to my interview with the Beef Ambassadors here (6 min.): cisc-07-ambassador.mp3

2007 Cattle Industry Summer Conference Photo Album

Ag Groups, Audio, Beef, Cattle Industry Conference

CBB Executive Committee Meeting

Chuck Zimmerman

CBB Executive CommitteeThe executive committee is hard at work here at the Cattle Industry Summer Conference.

They took a short break and before they got started again Diane Henderson, CBB staff, and I got them together for a photo.

I’ll be able to do some interviews later. They’re going to be going out to the new Cattlemen’s Beef Board offices for lunch to see what it’s like. Hopefully I’ll have some pictures of that for you too.

2007 Cattle Industry Summer Conference Photo Album

Ag Groups, Beef, Cattle Industry Conference

Get Your Igenity On

Chuck Zimmerman

Kevin DeHaanThe media room here at the Cattle Industry Summer Conference is being sponsored once again by Merial.

Pictured here are Kevin DeHaan, director of technical services, Igenity, a division of Merial, and Wendy Mayo, Bader Rutter.

I talked with Kevin about Igenity and what it can do for cattle producers, both beef and dairy. He says that right now is a good time to think about getting some DNA profiling done to enhance the weaning process. More information is always better. I’ll let Kevin explain how and why.

Listen to my interview with Kevin here (6 min.): cisc-07-dehaan.mp3

2007 Cattle Industry Summer Conference Photo Album

Agribusiness, Audio, Cattle Industry Conference

National Dairy Council Meeting in Denver Too

Chuck Zimmerman

Dairy Checkoff Mtg.The Cattle Industry Summer Conference isn’t the only thing going on here in Denver. The National Dairy Council is also meeting at the same time/place for the first time. The NDC started off with a general meeting this afternoon. Here’s what they’ll be doing tomorrow.

A unique highlight of this year’s Summer Conference will take place Tuesday, July 17, when the National Dairy Council and the Beef Checkoff team up for a nutrition symposium. The session will examine the common nutrition environment currently faced by the beef and dairy industries. Topics will include areas that the two industries work on together – the Nutrient Rich Foods Coalition, the importance of high-quality protein in the diet, and putting fatty acids into perspective.

I think this makes a lot of sense. Dairy producers are in the beef business and are paying the Beef Checkoff too.

2007 Cattle Industry Summer Conference Photo Album

Ag Groups, Cattle Industry Conference, Dairy

Get Your NCBA Promotional Items

Chuck Zimmerman

NCBA promotional itemsI am pretty sure I was the first customer at the promotional items booth.

I’m the proud owner of a Beef Board denim shirt and cap.

You can get yours too. If you’re not here there’s a place to make purchases online.

2007 Cattle Industry Summer Conference Photo Album

Ag Groups, Cattle Industry Conference

Beef Board Members Will Be BUSY

Chuck Zimmerman

Executive Committee LunchThe executive committee of the Beef Board is already at work here in Denver. They get together to make sure everything is in order before everyone else arrives at the Cattle Industry Summer Conference. At their lunch meeting I spoke with CBB chairman, Ken Stielow. He provides us with an overview of the conference from the Checkoff perspective.

Ken says that they’re going to be BUSY. For one thing he says they’ll get to see a new set of creative advertising that’s being proposed. That’s going to take some time and thought. Although it’s fun to see the new ideas he says they take it very seriously since there is a big responsibility to spend Checkoff dollars wisely.

Ken says that while the Beef Board is meeting the dairy checkoff organization will also be meeting. He says this will provide an opportunity for better support and understanding on the part of dairy producers. He’s also hoping that by meeting together they’ll find some synergy in some of the promotional efforts each organization is working on.

Listen to my interview with Ken here (4 min.): cisc-07-stielow.mp3

2007 Cattle Industry Summer Conference Photo Album

Ag Groups, Audio, Beef, Cattle Industry Conference