The President of the IFAJ Congress 2008 is Franz Fischler, former Commissioner of Agriculture for the EU. Last year in Japan at the IFAJ Congress he promised us some fine Austrian wines. Tonight he made good on that with a toast at our dinner. Prior to the dinner I spoke to him and he said that attendance exceeded their expectations. …
Touring Downtown Graz, Austria
During the first day of the IFAJ Congress in Austria we went on group walking tours of Graz. Here’s Cindy and me in front of the clock tower on Schloßberg, a hill overlooking the city. Thanks to Harlan Persinger for taking our picture. There were about 20 of us in our group. I’ve got a video clip to share a …
Annual IFAJ Delegates Meeting
The IFAJ delegates business meeting is taking place now. It’s the organization’s annual opportunity for each country to hear from the executive committee and have a say in the business of the organization. It looks like we’ve got a good showing. You get a true flavor of the international makeup of IFAJ when you see all the country flags hanging …
IFAJ Congress Welcome
It’s the first day of IFAJ Congress 2008 activities and the good news is, our luggage arrived! This morning the Executive Committee is meeting and after lunch we’ll have an IFAJ delegates business meeting. I’m going to try to cover that. In the meantime, the welcome committee is greeting attendees in the lobby of our hotel. I spoke with one …
Austrian Corn Greetings
As we arrived in Graz yesterday for the IFAJ Congress and headed from the airport to the hotel, the first landscape that greeted us was corn. Even though they are farther north latitude-wise than even Minnesota, their corn is pretty close to harvest at this point. Once we checked in, we found a Kornland yogurt bar awaiting us on the …
Checked In For IFAJ In Austria
All right. We’re here in Austria. Let the IFAJ games begin! After I get this post done I’m going to be taking a nap for a while. Cindy’s already there. Our flight out of St. Louis was 2 hours delayed yesterday and that meant we missed our flight out of Chicago. So we were re-routed via Frankfurt and when we …
IFAJ Congress Kicks Off Wednesday
Cindy and I are on our way to Austria/Slovenia. This year’s IFAJ Congress is looking like it’s going to be a lot of fun. I just hope we get good internet access and have a little time to relax. Those were two issues we had trouble with last year. Here’s some of the activities on the agenda: Reception with typical …
Farmers get FIT with Mapping
Pioneer is offering a new, free service that it says can give farmers more: more information and more uses for that information. Pioneer Hi-Bred’s FIT mapping combines GPS data with a free mapping service offering farmers detailed information about their crops, where they’re growing their crops and whether they’re growing them in way that maximizes their resources. Did I mention …
Pro Farmer Midwest Crop Tour Concludes
The Pro Farmer Midwest Crop Tour is concluding today. One of the sponsors is Pioneer Hi-Bred. Pioneer agronomist, Will Smart, has been on the Eastern leg of the tour and filed this report on Tuesday near Bloomington, IL. Corn observations include: * Early to late planted corn which started in mid-April and finished in mid-June. * Kernel abortion is evident …
Pioneering Rural Internet
I interviewed two of my favorite people at the Ag Media Summit and have saved those interviews for this week’s program. First up, you’ll find Jerry Harrington, Pioneer Hi-Bred. He talks about how he helps agricultural journalists connect with agronomists so they can get the word out and help producers, “grow more corn and soybeans.” Then I talk with U. …