Once upon a time, there were as many as 750 producers who attended Beltwide Cotton Conferences, but now it’s down to about 200 – so it’s time for a change. Producer/ginner Kenneth Hood of Mississippi has attended 32 Beltwides over the years and he was on the steering committee that made the decision on how to update the meeting for …
Nobody is Happy with Farm Bill Extension
*UPDATED with audio* Congress spent the New Year’s holiday working and actually managed to pass a “fiscal cliff” bill that even addressed agriculture – but no one seems to be very grateful for all of our lawmakers’ hard work and sacrifice except the lawmakers themselves. The nine month extension of the current farm bill, which actually expired months ago, is …
E-Versions of 2012 ZimmComm Photo Books
While Congress was busy wasting taxpayer dollars over the holiday, I was busy making the annual photo books that we do for some of our clients. I love doing these books and we have always used Blurb to make them and this year they have added the option of making E-books! This is really cool because you can also add …
Boycott Congress and the White House
I really resent Congress and President Obama for the absolute stupidity they have been exhibiting during this holiday season. Some of us would like to be relaxing with friends and family, enjoying holiday football and taking a last holiday break before having to get back to more regular work schedules again. We wish you all in Washington DC had decided …
EPA Adminstrator Latest Cabinet Member Resignation
In addition to Secretary of State, President Obama now has another cabinet member to replace. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) administrator Lisa Jackson announced today that she will be leaving her post with the president’s new term. “I will leave the EPA confident the ship is sailing in the right direction, and ready in my own life for new challenges, time …
Remembering Doyle Conner
The name and the face are probably more familiar to those in the Florida agriculture industry than elsewhere, but Doyle Conner should be remembered as a great “agvocate,” before there ever was such a term. The former Florida Commissioner of Agriculture passed away yesterday, just one day shy of his 84th birthday. Doyle, a lifelong Democrat who grew up raising …
MS Technologies Collaborates to Innovate
One company that was generating some buzz at the American Seed Trade Association (ASTA) CSS 2012 and Seed Expo was MS Technologies, which made a name for itself a few years ago by collaborating Bayer CropScience on LibertyLink soybeans. At ASTA, MS Technologies was talking about two new projects – Enlist E3™ with Dow AgroSciences and another Bayer collaboration currently …
Ag Ranks Low in Top Innovators List
For the second year, the media organization Thompson Reuters has named its “Top 100 Global Innovators” and I received an email about the list headlined “Agriculture Industry is Innovating.” “The Agriculture industry has a 1% representation with Monsanto making the list,” the press release says. “Last year Agriculture had 0% representation.” So that means agricultural companies making the list went …
Vilsack to Host #AskUSDA Twitter Chat
Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack will host a live Virtual Office Hours session next week on Twitter to answer questions on the important role of rural America to the national and global economy, increasing agricultural opportunities in U.S. communities, and the importance of passing a five-year Farm Bill. According to USDA, Secretary Vilsack will answer Twitter queries such as: • What …
BASF Builds on Becker Underwood History
In 1982, two friends named Roger Underwood and Jeff Becker started a little company that bore their names with a single product. Several acquisitions and 30 years later, Becker Underwood is a global leader in the development and commercialization of seed-applied biological products and is now part of the BASF Crop Protection family. “It’s been quite a ride particularly over …