Passing of Gene Hemphill

Chuck Zimmerman

Cindy and I are very sad about the passing of Gene Hemphill. He was a great man who smiled a lot and always wanted to help anyone. He was also a very good friend. I don’t know how many hours or days we worked together, especially some unique projects like a trip to Jay Leno’s garage where we ate pizza …

Ag Groups, Agencies, Agribusiness, Media, New Holland, ZimmComm Announcement

Ag and Biofuels Groups Seek Exemption to Shipping Rules

Cindy Zimmerman

The United States Trade Representative‘s office is holding public hearings this week on proposed actions in the Section 301 investigation of China’s targeting of the maritime, logistics, and shipbuilding sectors for dominance that would result in new fees being imposed on Chinese vessels. The first hearing was held on Monday, March 24 and the second will be on Wednesday, March …

Ag Groups, Agribusiness, transportation

ZimmCast 744 – Agri-Pulse Summit & Ag Day

Chuck Zimmerman

Hello and welcome to the ZimmCast. The first day of spring started the day after the annual Agri-Pulse Ag & Food Summit and National Ag Day Activities. We have published virtual newsrooms on our AgNewsWire website and story posts on AgWired. So, in this episode I’d like to share a few of the interviews and audio from the events. I’ll …

Ag Day, Ag Groups, Agri-Pulse, Agribusiness, Audio, ZimmCast

USDA Farm Production and Conservation Leaders Announced

Cindy Zimmerman

Key presidential appointments to the USDA’s Farm Production and Conservation (FPAC) mission area were announced today. Brooke Shupe Appleton is already serving as the Deputy Under Secretary for Farm Production and Conservation. Previously, she served as Vice President of Public Policy for the National Corn Growers Association. She spoke in place of Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins Tuesday during National …

Ag Day, Ag Groups, Agri-Pulse, Audio, USDA

Feeding the Economy Report

Cindy Zimmerman

In conjunction with the National Ag Day celebrations this week, 36 food and agriculture groups released the ninth annual Feeding the Economy report, a farm-to-fork study of the entire agricultural supply chain that analyzes the economic contributions of one of America’s most essential industries to U.S. jobs, wages, economic output, and taxes. The 2025 report confirms the agriculture industry is …

Ag Day, Ag Groups, Audio

Food and Ag Groups Express MAHA Concerns

Cindy Zimmerman

Over 300 agricultural and food organizations have signed on to a letter calling for sound science and data to be used by the Make America Healthy Again Commission in upcoming evaluations for products essential to food and agriculture. The letter, sent to the heads of Health and Human Services, USDA, and EPA, specifically focuses on the importance of pesticides, biotechnology, …

Ag Groups, Crop Protection, EPA

ZimmCast 743 – Syngenta at Commodity Classic

Chuck Zimmerman

Hello and welcome to the ZimmCast. In this episode I’m going to share some Commodity Classic which was almost at the highest attendance ever. We were in the Mile High city of Denver, CO. The weather was mostly perfect but we did have some wind, rain and snow at the end. Next year the event will take place in San …

Ag Groups, Agribusiness, Audio, Commodity Classic, Syngenta, ZimmCast

2025 Ag Day Essay Contest Winners

Chuck Zimmerman

The Agriculture Council of America (ACA) has announced the 2025 National Ag Day video winners. The winners were chosen based on the theme: Agriculture: Why Food Security Equals National Security. The first-place winner, Tuongvy Nguyen of Saint Petersburg, Florida, receives a $1,500 prize. The second-place winner, Kristen Dallas from Las Vegas, Nevada will receive $1,000. Isabella Newell from Waltonville, Illinois …

Ag Day, Ag Groups

A Mile High 2025 Commodity Classic

Chuck Zimmerman

The 2025 Commodity Classic attendance was surprisingly close to a record. The last number I heard on my way home was 11,368 but it could have grown higher on the last day. Last year was a record at 11,530. Some of us were a little concerned about weather but it was mostly very nice. A storm system moved in on …

Ag Groups, Agribusiness, Audio, Commodity Classic, Syngenta

Beef Quality Assurance Update and Awards at CattleCon

Chuck Zimmerman

Translation of Beef Quality Assurance (BQA) materials into Spanish is underway. Veterinarians, producers, and anyone involved with worker training recognize the value of material provided in a language that the employee understands and multiple ways of providing that information, such as written, oral communication, or video. This is a major goal of the BQA program as educational resources expand. I …

Ag Groups, Audio, Beef, Beef Checkoff, NCBA