Monsanto continues to grow its seed business. This time with De Ruiter Seeds. Monsanto Company announced today that it has completed its proposed acquisition of De Ruiter Seeds Group B.V., a Dutch-holding company that owns and operates De Ruiter Seeds, for EUR546 million in cash, or approximately $850 million at current exchange rates, less net debt. Monsanto will start to …
Turkey Talk on Facebook
The National Turkey Federation is becoming more savvy in online social networking. June is ‘Turkey Lovers’ Month’ and to celebrate, the federation is debuting its new identity on Facebook.com The federation chose to focus the concept on Facebook, to reach a younger audience that is talking with their peers through this social networking community. Campaign participants will add a “turkey …
Farm Foundation Elects New Chair
Richard Hahn succeeds Sara Wyant as chair of the Board of Trustees of Farm Foundation. Barry Flinchbaugh of Kansas State University was named Vice Chair. The election took place at the Board’s annual meeting June 7, 2008, in Canandaigua, NY. Established in 1933, Farm Foundation is directed by a Board of Trustees comprised of leaders in agriculture and the food …
Zimfo Bytes
Deere & Company has completed the acquisition of Plastro Irrigation Systems, Ltd., headquartered in Israel, to add significant momentum to the growth of John Deere Water Technologies. The Poultry Science Education Fund of the U.S. Poultry & Egg Harold E. Ford Foundation supports student recruitment at colleges and universities with poultry science courses that do not have a full department …
Twittering and Tweeting on AgWired
For those of you who have wondered about the little blue birdy thing at the top of AgWired, that’s the latest post in my Twitter feed. A growing number of you are following me directly on Twitter and I thank you. As you’ll find out if you do, I post quite frequently on Twitter, especially when I’m traveling. It’s very …
CUTC Media Mania
While I was attending the Corn Utilization and Technology Conference recently, I turned the tables on one of the media representatives covering the conference. Pictured on the left is Andy Vance, Buckeye Ag Radio Network along with NCGA’s Christina Koboldt. Christina was a big help by the way, helping those of us who haven’t attended a CUTC in a while. …
The Tomato Industry Attack
Cindy pointed me to a story on the Financial Post Blog about the big tomato scare. It’s too good not to bring to your attention. Here’s how Financial Post editor, Terence Corcoran, describes how the whole mess got started. It begins with a food poisoning, gets picked up by brain-dead media, story flies out of control for 48 hours, regulators …
Big and Juicy Franks
Oscar Mayer says hot dog enthusiasts have more reason to love the summer grilling season. That’s because Broadway Actor Mario Lopez is introducing the new Oscar Mayer Premium Beef Franks. Lopez will be firing up the grill on June 10 in Times Square to give New Yorkers a sample of the new beefier, juicier hot dogs. Both the WIENERMOBILE and …
Citrus Robots from Energid
Citrus growers will soon have a new employment option: robots. Energid Technologies is developing a robotic citrus harvester for bulk fruit removal. Energid Technologies Corporation has been funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture under the Small Business Innovation Research Program to develop a new robotic citrus harvesting system. This system will combine the intelligence of robotics with the efficiency …
Organic’s Got Nutrients
Organic milk from pasture-fed cows is believed to be full of nutrients. A study recently published from Newcastle University in the UK suggest that cows that graz on fresh pasture produce milk with higher levels of antioxidants and beneficial fatty acids, such as omega-3’s. “Grazing dairy cows on grass or grass and clover swards produces milk with a healthier fatty …