Got Meat Processing Sense

Chuck Zimmerman

Aggie Meat ClassHere’s a class I would love to attend. It’s the Aggie Processed Meat School Program. This program is not just for people who do meat processing but also those involved in quality control, business management, public relations and marketing. Here what you will learn if you attend.


By attending the Aggie Processed Meat School you will discover both the science and the art of making processed meat products. The first day will focus what you should consider when choosing the meat products and other ingredients to include in the processed meat item. That afternoon the participants will learn the art of making sausage. Then the next day experts will demonstration the production of whole-muscle processed meat items. Finally, participants will learn about ways to evaluate the finished product for quality and safety. Participants will be lead through a product evaluation much in the same way that is done in several of the product show competitions around the country.

Click here to register then type in Meat in the keyword search. The deadline to register is April 19th and enrollment will be capped at 60 people.

Education, Food, Meat, University

BASF Promotes Comprehensive Pest Management

Cindy Zimmerman

basf-science-ajBehind every successful grower is science and strategy – both of which come together in a comprehensive pest management program, as BASF Technical Crop Production Specialist AJ Woodyard helped explain during the recent BASF Science Behind event. The program also featured farmers Randy Dowdy of Georgia and Kip Cullers of Missouri.

AJ emphasized that each farmers challenges are different, leading to each needing a different solution. The most important part is identifying the areas that need help and seeking an individualized solution.

basf-aj-head“It’s always fun to do these events and work with guys like Kip Cullers and Randy Dowdy who are here at this event because they’ve got so many unique ideas and they think outside the box. I think that’s one of the things we always have to think about. Changing, thats another thing that I keep hearing coming up. We got to be willing to change. That’s something I challenge growers to think about. We can talk about what Kip and Randy do or what BASF is looking at but really what it comes down to is what are you looking at on your farm. What strategies are you implementing to get a feel for what’s working and what’s not working”

“What we like to do is take a look at a lot of different aspects of the production system. Coming off 2012 we all know the challenge and we all know what water means for crop production. There are a lot of other factors that we can manage to help mitigate against the stresses like a 2012. We look at fertility programs, genetics, nitrogen programs, cultural practices and then we focus a lot on the crop protection and overall plant health.”

BASF's AJ Woodyard at Science Behind
Audio, BASF, Commodity Classic, Farming

Zimfo Bytes

Talia Goes

Zimfo Bytes

Agvocating on Ag Day

Chuck Zimmerman

ZimmCast 389There were lots of agvocates in Washington, DC last week for National Ag Day activities. They included some great young people and we’ll hear from a few of them in this week’s program.

Troy and Bobbie UglemLet’s start with Troy and Bobbie Uglem, North Dakota. They are 2012 National Outstanding Young Farmers. During the lunch program on Ag Day Troy addressed those attending. One of his main messages was, “It’s not just a U.S. economy, it’s a world economy and the demand and the increase in population we have. We have some things to look forward to in the future to feed the population as it increases.” He says there a lot of challenges and encourages everyone to work together to promote agriculture. Bobbie has a background in education and uses what she’s learned to help educate other Moms about agriculture and food and says that kids love to visit farms and learn more about agriculture today.

Teresa ScanlanAlso with us during Ag Day activities was the 2011 Miss America, Teresa Scanlan. Agriculture is very important to her due to growing up in Nebraska and having a good awareness of how food is produced. She says it is important to educate children about agriculture but also adults who just “have no clue.”

Teresa has recently partnered with The Great American Wheat Harvest film documentary project. This is the project that we are sponsors of. At the end of her presentation during last week’s Ag Day banquet she played the trailer for the film and encouraged everyone to support it. You can hear her presentation in this week’s program.

Ag Day agvocates in this week’s ZimmCast: Ag Day Agvocates

2013 National Ag Day Activities Photo Album

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

The ZimmCast is the official weekly podcast of AgWired. Subscribe so you can listen when and where you want. Just go to our Subscribe page.

Coverage of the National AgDay Activities is sponsored by the BCS think tank and American Seed Trade Association
Ag Day, Ag Groups, Audio, ZimmCast

Fuel Quality Management for Spring

Cindy Zimmerman

gmk-dehnerOne of the biggest investments in any farm system can be the fuel. And as gas and diesel prices continue what seems to be a steady climb upwards, making sure that investment is protected just makes sense. That’s where our friends at GROWMARK come in. Marketing manager of refined and renewable fuels for GROWMARK, Mark Dehner, explains that sometimes that fuel can be stored longer than originally intended in tanks that are quite old, and unwanted particulates can form.

“The new engine technology of today, the tolerances, are very much tighter,” with a difference of just a few microns; no room for any kind of foreign material, Mark says. “It’s very, very important that the fuel is particulate-free,” whether it’s fuel oxidization, the deterioration of the fuel itself, or rust or corrosion particles.

Mark goes on to say that it’s not a necessarily sophisticated process and sometimes boils down to just checking the fuel and tank periodically for a water bottom and any debris or sludge that forms over time. GROWMARK even has a fuel tank cleaning process. “We call it polishing the fuel,” and the method for cleaning the diesel uses a two-filter system to remove particulates and make the fuel ready for customers to use.

“Not only do we want to be the supplier of the fuel gallon to our farm customers and fleets, but we want to make sure we’re good stewards of their investment. It’s just part of the offering we have throughout the FS System.”

Listen to Cindy’s interview with Mark here: Interview with Mark Dehner, GROWMARK Fuel Quality Management

Audio, GROWMARK

Students Create Products From Corn and Soybeans

Talia Goes

Teams of Purdue University students who created fiber insulation from soybeans and a fireworks casing from corn won the top prizes in the annual Student Soybean and Corn Innovation Contests. The awards were announced at a reception March 20th, 2013 in Indianapolis.

1The competitions, sponsored by the Indiana Soybean Alliance and Indiana Corn Marketing Council, teach students how to be innovative entrepreneurs with soybeans and corn. Both teams received a $20,000 prize for their work.

The winning soybean team produced Nature Loft, a soy protein fiber insulation that can be used in bedding, including sleeping bags; apparel such as hats, gloves and footwear; and other products such as headphones.

The winning corn team created Sky Maize, a biodegradable fireworks casing that is lighter and less expensive than what is now commercially available.2

Winning $10,000 the second-place soybean team developed water-soluble Double Eyelid Glue.

The second-place corn team also winning $10,000 created Fog-Away, an anti-fog glass and mirror cleansing solution.

Agribusiness, Corn, Soybean

Farmers Telling Personal Stories Important to Consumers

Chuck Zimmerman

Chris Galen USFRAThis week during Ag Day activities the U.S. Farmers & Ranchers Alliance held an educational session which was moderated by Chris Galen, Sr. VP of Communications for the National Milk Producers Federation. He also sits on the board of USFRA.

Chris says Ag Day provided a great opportunity to speak with Capitol Hill staffers and legislators about the latest research on how farmers need to communicate with consumers. He says we’re really moving away from messages like Safe, Affordable and Abundant food because today’s consumers assume that. So now it’s more about how farmers tell their story on a personal level and what they’re doing to improve their farming practices.

You can listen to interview with Chris here: Interview with Chris Galen

Katie Pratt USFRAParticipating in the USFRA program was Katie Pratt Katie who with her husband Andy (7th generation farmer) raise corn, soybeans and seed corn in Illinois. Katie is also one winners of the USFRA Faces of Farming & Ranching. Thanks to one of the many U.S. Custom Harvesters for taking our photo!

Katie says that as farmers “We have to start talking differently about what we do on our farms.” Katie says that seeing the research USFRA has conducted is a real learning experience because farmers often think they know what terms will resonate with consumers but the reality is very different. She says that as one of the Faces of Farming & Ranching program USFRA is helping put her and the others in front of audiences they wouldn’t normally be able to speak to.

You can listen to interview with Katie here: Interview with Katie Pratt

2013 National Ag Day Activities Photo Album

Coverage of the National AgDay Activities is sponsored by the BCS think tank and American Seed Trade Association
Ag Day, Ag Groups, Audio, USFRA

Zimfo Bytes

Talia Goes

Zimfo Bytes

BASF Shows How Priaxor Performs

Cindy Zimmerman

Spring is officially here, at least by the calendar, and Midwest farmers are preparing for a new year with the 2012 drought in the rearview mirror and a new BASF Crop Protection fungicide that combines two powerful active ingredients into the most advanced chemistry ever developed for a range of products, including soybeans.

basf-fellowsDuring the 2013 Commodity Classic, BASF was able to show farmers how Priaxor™ fungicide worked last year to control disease, improve Plant Health and drive yield, despite the record drought conditions.

Technical Market Manager for Plant Health Dr. Gary Fellows explained that they performed nearly 60 on-farm trials last year comparing Priaxor to BASF’s premier fungicide Headline. “Over those locations, Priaxor outyielded Headline by two bushels to the acre,” he said. “Not only that, it was much more consistent in its level of response.”

Priaxor is powered by Xemium® fungicide, a new active ingredient that continuously distributes its chemistry throughout the leaf to deliver more consistent disease protection, combined with F500®, the same active ingredient in Headline®. “The addition of Xemium to Headline does increase the disease control and the spectrum is better with Priaxor,” said Fellows. “On the growth efficiency side, we can show that Priaxor actually has a better plant health effect than Headline by itself.” Perhaps most importantly, Priaxor has shown to outperform Headline in stress situations, like drought.

Listen to my interview with Gary here: Interview with Dr. Gary Fellows

You can find out even more about Priaxor in lots of previous posts, including several from Classic – from Jennifer Holland – from Caren Schmidt – from Brianne Reeves – and from some growers.

Check out more photos from BASF at Commodity Classic here

Audio, BASF, Commodity Classic, Farming, Soybean

Ag Relations Council New President

Chuck Zimmerman

Ag Relations CouncilThe Agricultural Relations Council annual meeting is taking place in Oklahoma City. Wish I could be there but . . .

Thanks to Janice Person, Monsanto, for sharing a picture of the passing of the gavel. Pictured are now past ARC President Mace Thornton, AFBF, (left) and Mike Opperman, Charleston Orwig, now new President.

I will plan to share more information from this year’s conference when I get it.

Ag Groups, ARC