The 2012 International Federation of Agricultural Journalists Congress is officially underway. Here’s our happy group during the opening reception. The program kicks off with a variety of speakers addressing the theme of “Solutions for a Green Future.” Then we’ll have the annual IFAJ business meeting followed by a visit to Hamra Farm, headquarters for De Laval. 2012 IFAJ Congress Photo …
Corn Growers Call for Careful Analysis Over RFS
At least two governors, Bev Perdue of North Carolina and Mike Beebe of Arkansas, have petitioned the EPA to waive the Renewable Fuels Standard (RFS) for ethanol in light of the drought gripping much of the corn-producing region of the country. The National Corn Growers Association… which has alliances with the livestock producers who want to see lower feed prices …
Romney Announces Farmers and Ranchers Coalition
Presumptive Republican nominee for President Mitt Romney today announced a coalition of agricultural leaders for his campaign. The Farmers and Ranchers for Romney coalition is chaired nationally by Florida Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam, Ambassador Tom Nassif, Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Bill Northey, Kentucky Agriculture Commissioner James Comer, Sen. Mike Johanns (R-NE), and former USDA Acting/Deputy Secretary Charles Conner. “I’m honored …
IFAJ Congress Arrival Day
It is arrival day for attendees of the 2012 International Federation of Agricultural Journalists Congress in Sweden. Kelly Schwalbe, BCS Communications and myself took the morning to try a little golf. It is a beautiful day and no matter what our score was, it was an awesome round of golf at the Troxhammar Golf Cub. We played with flashes of …
Seeking Nominations for Charles Eastin Award
The National Farm-City Council is now seeking nominations for its second annual Charles Eastin Outstanding Service Award. The award pays tribute to an outstanding individual within the United States who has contributed to Farm-City activities as an advocate for accurate communications between rural and urban audiences. The national award is in honor of Dr. Charles “Charlie” Eastin, DVM, who played …
Most Believe Ag Journalists Are Ethical
Our latest ZimmPoll asked the question, “Do ag journalists (broadcast/print/web) adhere to good ethical practices in reporting?” This is just in time for the ag journalists gathering in Sweden for the International Federation of Agricultural Journalists Congress. I’ll be sharing the results with them. Our poll results: Sixteen percent said they all do; sixty-eight percent said most do; and sixteen …
Zimfo Bytes
South Dakota Wheat Growers of Chamberlain, SD was named the National Environmental Respect Award winner for 2012. The global agrochemicals market is now at your fingertips with the launch of FarmChemicalsInternational.com. Longtime weekly newsmagazine Newsweek will go digital only, and plans for the beginning of that shift will be announced as early as September. Kubota has launched a Family Safety …
Preview of 2012 IFAJ Congress
The 2012 International Federation of Agricultural Journalists is about to kick off in Sweden. We’re somewhere to the west of Stockholm at the moment with farm tours coming up later this week. To get my coverage started I spoke with soon to be past IFAJ President Mike Wilson, Farm Futures, during the IFAJ leadership dinner this evening. Mike has been …
Managing Enteric Disease
Dealing with a tough subject at the Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica Swine Health Seminar was Dr. Michael Appley, Kansas State University. He talked about antimicrobials and the control of enteric disease and the future of using them including the issue of resistance. He says producers need to know how and why they use them. But he also says that a lot …
TopCon’s New System 350
What’s new at TopCon Precision Agriculture is their System 350 which features their X30 console. TopCon was one of the exhibitors at the Ag Media Summit. The console features: Mini-view windows with drag-and-drop positioning Interaction keypads with “expandable menus” Dashboard readouts provide constant, convenient basic data Integrated LED lightbar for manual guidance Full-screen views available for more detailed information Advanced …