Visiting La Campiña in Argentina

Chuck Zimmerman

ifaj-13-3On our way from Buenos Aires to Rosario today, the 2013 IFAJ Congress stopped by a delightful little farm that specializes in citrus, peaches, grains and tourism.

La Campiña is owned by Cesar and Mónica Cahen D’Anvers, who were anchors on the top television station in Buenos Aires for 40 years. About 20 years ago they bought the farm as an investment, growing oranges on 12 hectares for export. Then they moved into processing jams and juices and ultimately agri-tourism.

“We feel that we are very privileged,” Monica says. “I think people who earn their living doing what they like are very privileged.” Because they were such popular television personalities, their farm is very popular. In addition, Monica and Cesar still do a daily, three hour radio program which is syndicated nationwide.

I had the great pleasure of getting to talk to this entertaining and wonderful lady who is loving life on the farm and on the air as she nears her 80th birthday. Enjoy my conversation and watch the video of her welcome below.Interview with Mónica Cahen D'Anvers, Argentina Farmer and Journalist


2013 IFAJ Congress Photo Album

Coverage of the 2013 IFAJ Congress is sponsored by Novus International and Dupont Pioneer
Agribusiness, Audio, Farming, IFAJ, International, Video

Dupont Pioneers Local & Global Presence

Jamie Johansen

fps-13-803-editedIf you missed the Dupont Pioneer pavilion during the 2013 Farm Progress Show then you had your blinders on. The huge exhibit brought attendees into an air-conditioned environment to view their state-of-the-art technology for growers to take advantage of globally.

Senior Marketing Manager, Luke Davies, talked with me in their exhibit to shed some light on their growing product line and give a glimpse of what those who strolled through their booth during the Farm Progress Show were able to take in. Beyond that Luke was excited to share what is coming down the line in terms of technology.

“As soon as you come into our booth you are greeted by an option that really intrigues our families and our younger generation and that is the giant corn field that serves as a backdrop were we snap a picture. As you progress from there a big highlight for the crowd has been Pioneer Field 360, which is really our new precision agronomy tool working with growers to develop better productivity through better relationships.”

Listen to my interview with Luke here: Interview with Luke Davies

Jerry Harrington works with the agriculture trade media and publishes the Growing Point magazine for Dupont Pioneer customers. Also during the Farm Progress Show I spoke with him about how the companies focus on global relations has brought them to be long-time sponsors of Chuck & Cindy’s travels to the International Federation of Agricultural Journalists conference. Currently the duo is in Argentina taking in all that the country has to offer when it comes to agriculture.

“We are an international company. It makes all the sense in the world to help enhance the communications among journalists, not only those who cover within the US but in international boarders as well. It’s been our pleasure to sponsor Chuck Zimmerman’s trips to the international ag journalist conventions and we intend to do so long into the future.”

Listen to my interview with Jerry here: Interview with Jerry Harrington

Check out photos from the event here: 2013 Farm Progress Show Photo Album

Coverage of the 2013 Farm Progress show is sponsored by Bayer CropScience, Growmark and New Holland
Audio, Farm Progress Show, International, Pioneer

An On The Farm Full Service Provider

Jamie Johansen

fps-13-673-editedGROWMARK, along with FS had a strong presence at the recent Farm Progress Show in Decatur, IL. No matter where you went it was hard to escape the view of an FS flag waving high in the sky. Not only were they again sponsors of fuel used throughout the grounds, but they also gave a hands-on view of all the companies product divisions.

On the coolest day of the Farm Progress Show I visited the FS booth and spoke with Jenny Haycraft, who works in marketing and communications for the company. She shared what attendees were able to take in during the event and how FS is a full line service provider on the farm. This includes needs in energy, lubricants, propane, agronomy, seed and in precision farming.

fps-13-677-edited

“Throughout the exhibit we have designated areas for primary product divisions. We’ve got agronomy, seed, grain systems and energy. There are interactive games for attendees to play and learn a little bit about our products and services we offer in each area. And then once they play the game we can interact with them as much as possible and see if they are current customers or potential prospects.”

Listen to my interview with Jenny here: Interview with Jenny Haycraft

Check out photos from the event here: 2013 Farm Progress Show Photo Album

Coverage of the 2013 Farm Progress show is sponsored by Bayer CropScience, Growmark and New Holland
Audio, Cooperatives, Energy, Farm Progress Show, GROWMARK, Seed

Educating Ag Journalists in Argentina

Chuck Zimmerman

ZimmCast 410The International Federation of Agricultural Journalists Congress not only provides for great networking with colleagues from all over the world but is also an opportunity to learn about agriculture in a new country.

Cristian Mira IFAJThis year we’re in Argentina and during this afternoon’s opening program we heard from several people who talked about some of the issues facing not only farmers but agricultural journalists as well. Introducing some of our speakers was Cristian Mira who edits the agricultural supplement to the La Nación newspaper.

I visited with Cristian about this first Latin American Seminar which brought in attendees from the IFAJ Congress and other area journalists. The idea is to learn from the information and ideas presented. I think you’ll find my conversation with Christian interesting.

Listen to this week’s ZimmCast here: Educating Ag Journalists


2013 IFAJ Congress Photo Album

Thanks to our ZimmCast sponsors, GROWMARK, locally owned, globally strong and Monsanto, Roundup Ready Plus, for their support.

Coverage of the 2013 IFAJ Congress is sponsored by Novus International and Dupont Pioneer
Audio, IFAJ, International, ZimmCast

Preview of Argentina IFAJ Congress

Chuck Zimmerman

Argentina Guild President Adalberto RossiThe 2013 International Federation of Agricultural Journalists Congress is underway in Buenos Aires. Our host for the first ever Congress in South America is the Círculo Argentino de Periodistas Agrarios (CAPA) and Adalberto Rossi is their President. He and I sat down to talk about this year’s Congress program.

First up is this afternoon’s first ever Latin American Conference with speakers talking about agriculture in the region and the challenges facing farmers. Then we have our opening social reception. Tomorrow we’ll take off for a farm tour and program on the way to Rosario. In Rosario we’ll depart on separate farm tours and have a day with speakers at the Chamber of Commerce before our concluding banquet. It’s going to be a packed several days learning all about agriculture in Argentina and networking with our colleagues from around the world. Cindy and I will be uploading photos and sharing interviews as we have time and internet access.

You can listen to my interview with Adalberto here: Interview with Adalberto Rossi


2013 IFAJ Congress Photo Album

Coverage of the 2013 IFAJ Congress is sponsored by Novus International and Dupont Pioneer
Ag Groups, Audio, IFAJ, International

Buenos Dias from Buenos Aires!

Cindy Zimmerman

ifaj-argentinaAgriblogger and Farmpodcaster have arrived in Argentina to blog the 2013 International Federation of Agricultural Journalists (IFAJ) Congress!

Not sure how many Americans are making the trip this year but it’s at least a couple dozen. There are 14 pictured in the photo below taken at Ag Media Summit, plus Chuck – and I know of at least 5 more not pictured.

ifaj-aaea-groupAccording to the organizers, Argentina was once referred to as the “world´s grainery” and has tripled its agricultural production in the last 30 years. Argentinian farmers and ranchers feed over 430 million people each year using advanced technologies and sustainable agricultural practices.

We will be staying in Buenos Aires for two days and then to Rosario and our tours will include grain, livestock, dairy and specialty crop operations. Thanks to our sponsors – DuPont Pioneer and Novus International – for helping us to bring this great event home to you. You can also follow the congress on Facebook and Twitter with the hashtag #IFAJ2013.

Photo album is started – link below – and we will officially surpass 100,000 in our Flickr account with nearly 450 sets since 2005! Buenos Dias!

2013 IFAJ Congress Photo Album

Coverage of the 2013 IFAJ Congress is sponsored by Novus International and Dupont Pioneer
ACN, Events, IFAJ, International, Novus International, Pioneer

Monsanto Update on FieldScripts

Cindy Zimmerman

fps13-fieldscriptsLast year at Farm Progress Show, Monsanto previewed FieldScripts, the company’s first product from the Integrated Farming Systems (IFS) platform. This year, we got to actually see how it worked in the field – sort of.

“Our original plans were to harvest the first FieldScripts here at the Farm Progress Show,” said FieldScripts launch lead for Monsanto Dave Rhylander at a media event on the eve of the show. When weather caused planting to be delayed in the spring, they moved to a shorter season hybrid. “Then we had that cool weather in July and early August and it just slowed everything down and we couldn’t get it harvested.”

fps13-monsanto-rhylanderEver able to adapt, Monsanto was still able to put on a good demo for the media with recently planted fields and had several Ground Breakers farmers on hand to talk about their experiences with FieldScripts this year. “We had about 150 farmers that tested this in the four states of Minnesota, Iowa, Illinois and Indiana,” Dave said. “We’ve had great feedback from them as far as simplicity, how it worked in the cab, and we’re very excited to hear now how the yields are going to be.” Interview with Dave Rhylander, Monsanto

Jamie and Kristyn went on the tour of the field trials and will be sharing interviews and video from company representatives and growers about both FieldScripts® and Ground Breakers® Field Trials Under Permit for Roundup Ready 2 Xtend™ soybeans.

Check out photos from the event here:
Monsanto Farm Progress Show Media Event Photo Album

Audio, Farm Progress Show, Precision Agriculture, Weather

New Holland Brings it to Farm Progress Show

Chuck Zimmerman

Abe Hughes New HollandThere was plenty of “new” to see in the New Holland exhibit at the Farm Progress Show. Abe Hughes, VP North America, tells us all about it.

From hay and forage tools to pro tools or new machines for row crop work, New Holland had a lot on the lot. Abe talks about some of those products as well as the partnerships the company has formed and developed with American Ethanol and the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association.

2013 Farm Progress Show Photo Album

Coverage of the 2013 Farm Progress show is sponsored by Bayer CropScience, Growmark and New Holland
Agribusiness, Farm Progress Show, Farm Shows, New Holland, Video

Zimfo Bytes

Talia Goes

    Zimfo Bytes

  • The Center for Rural Affairs announced that Assistant Executive Director Brian Depew has been named the new Executive Director, effective September 1, 2013.
  • Tractor Supply Company, the largest retail farm and ranch store chain in the United States, announced that its Board of Directors approved a two-for-one stock split of its common stock.
  • Five FS member cooperatives were recognized by GROWMARK, Inc. for business performance improvement during the GROWMARK annual meeting in Chicago
  • Katie Hancock, Water Valley, Ky., recently joined Brock Associates as an agricultural commodity marketing consultant and will work one-on-one with farmers to minimize market risk and capture market opportunities.
Zimfo Bytes

Staying on Target With BASF

Kristyn Stidham

fps-13-126-editedBASF held a press conference at the Farm Progress Show where technical market manager for herbicides Luke Bozeman talked about the goals of the company’s On Target Application Academy.

BASF wants to make sure that the growers that use their products are pleased with them. Within the company, they are focusing on providing information to the growers, as well as training them on the usage of these herbicides through the creation of this program.

“The On Target Application Academy does a great job of bringing to the grower applicator the most recent break technologies and how to apply products effectively,” said Bozeman.

BASF is excited about the feedback they have received from growers. They provide surveys to the students of the academy at the end of the course and 95% of those that attend have thought it to be worth their while.

Listen to my interview with Luke here: Interview with Luke Bozeman, Technical Market Manager, Herbicides, BASF

2013 Farm Progress Show Photo Album

Coverage of the 2013 Farm Progress show is sponsored by Bayer CropScience, Growmark and New Holland
Audio, BASF, Farm Progress Show