Prancing, Dancing Lily Moves Into App Market

Jamie Johansen

PDL titleAward-winning book, Prancing, Dancing Lily, can now be found world-wide as a multi-platform app. The heartwarming story about an Ayrshire cow determined to hoof and groove around the globe, was written by Marsha Diane Arnold and illustrated by John Manders. App developers and author have teamed up with interactive media publisher, Fat Red Couch.

“The Fat Red Couch team provided years of experience in storytelling and are a delight to work with,” says Ms. Arnold. “We persevered in our search for the perfect app just as Lily persevered in her search for the perfect dance, and just like Lily, we had a great time on the journey. Lily’s story will delight anyone who’s ever felt different from the herd. Children can interact with Lily as they read or listen to the story and enjoy playing puzzles.”

Download Prancing, Dancing Lily on iTunes, Android, and Amazon for $1.99. For a preview of the app, visit Vimeo. To learn more about Lily and author Marsha Diane Arnold, please visit www.prancingdancinglily.com. To learn more about Fat Red Couch, a member of the collaborative group of family-friendly app developers Moms With Apps, visit www.fatredcouch.com.

Dairy, Education, Video

Iowa Accepting Grant Applications for Specialty Crops

Joanna Schroeder

Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Bill Northey has announced that the IA Dept. of Ag is accepting grant applications for the Specialty Crop Block program. The estimated $271,000 grants are available to support projects that enhance the competitiveness of specialty crops grown in Iowa and are contingent on federal funds being made available to the Department. Grant awards will be considered up to a maximum of $24,000 and projects can have a duration of up to 30 months.

speciality crops grown in Iowa“Specialty Crops” that are eligible under this program are fruits and vegetables, tree nuts, dried fruits and horticulture and nursery crops, including floriculture. Both fresh and processed specialty crops are eligible.

“The Specialty Crop Block Grant provides funds to support food safety, research and marketing efforts that will encourage Iowans to choose the products that are produced right here in our state,” Northey said. “Specialty crops are a very important part of Iowa agriculture as they allow farmers to diversify and give customers access to locally grown products.”

Iowa agencies, universities, institutions, and producer, industry, and community based organizations are all eligible to apply for funding to enhance the competitiveness of specialty crops. In addition, single organizations, institutions, and individuals are encouraged to participate as project partners.

Proposals must be received by IDALS on or before 4:00 p.m. on Friday, May 3, 2013. Click here for more information.

Farming, specialty crops, Vegetables

Ag Editors Invite Farm Broadcasters to Join

Cindy Zimmerman

It’s a crazy mixed-up world these days where broadcasters are taking pictures and writing commentaries while print journalists are doing podcasts and shooting video.

The American Agricultural Editors’ Association (AAEA) is inviting farm broadcasters at the upcoming Commodity Classic to find out more about becoming a member by attending a joint cocktail reception with NAMA on Friday, March 1 after the trade show closes.

aaeaAAEA was founded in 1921 by a small group of farm magazine editors and while the majority of active members are still primarily “print” journalists, a number of broadcasters have joined the organization in recent years including past NAFB presidents Mike Hergert, Pam Fretwell and Tom Brand. AAEA individual membership includes active, affiliate, student and freelance categories and dues are very reasonable. Members of AAEA automatically become members of the International Federation of Agricultural Journalists (IFAJ).

IFAJ Congress 2013“With the lines between print, television and radio journalism blurred by the internet, and journalists writing and producing content for a variety of media today, many farm broadcasters now qualify for membership in AAEA, and by extension in IFAJ,” say AAEA Membership co-chairs Betsy Freese with Successful Farming and Kelly Schwalbe of BCS Communications. “This includes access to a wide variety of continuing education programs and professional development program such as the annual IFAJ Congresses held in different locations around the world.”

Chuck and I have been members of AAEA and IFAJ for almost as long as we have had the company and really appreciate both the Ag Media Summit and the IFAJ Congress each year. AMS features a variety of photography, writing and social media workshops that are always useful in gaining and improving communications skills. And IFAJ has given us the opportunity to meet other ag journalists from all over the world. Really looking forward to this year’s trip to Argentina in early September.

Find out more about AAEA on-line and join us for a Commodity Classic reception with NAMA, March 1 from 4:30 to 6:00 pm at the Gaylord Palms.

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ACN, IFAJ, Media

Zimfo Bytes

Talia Goes

    Zimfo Bytes

  • Wheat Growers announced the 2013 Board of Directors and Delegate election results at their annual meeting.
  • Illinois Farm Bureau President Philip Nelson was presented the Outstanding Service to Agriculture Award by the Illinois Society of Professional Farm Managers and Rural Appraisers.
  • In March the Unity College campus will begin an initiative to raise free range chickens as part of an ongoing hunger relief effort.
  • The American Soybean Association expressed its strong opposition to a plan it understands will be proposed as part of the White House’s 2014 budget that will eliminate the Food for Peace and Food for Progress programs.
Zimfo Bytes

A Quick SMS Software Overview

Melissa Sandfort

Insights WeeklyWe recently caught up with Adam Walters, Ag Leader software support specialist, at the National Farm Machinery Show and he gave us a quick “tour” of SMS Software, its capabilities and how it helps growers make better management decisions.

SMSWalters also gave us a top-level overview of Intellislope, a new functionality available through the Ag Leader Integra display which provides tile plow control for installing field drainage tile.

Listen to Walters explain

And if you’re heading out to Commodity Classic in Kissimmee, Fla., Feb. 28 – March 2, be sure to look up Ag Leader experts who will be on hand to talk about the latest in precision technology equipment, enhancements, future products, and much more.

Become a fan of Ag Leader on Facebook today, and get the latest precision ag videos on the YouTube channel. For more information about Ag Leader products and services, or to visit the blog site, go to www.agleader.com.

Ag Leader, Agribusiness

John Deere Shows Off Commercial Side at NFMS

John Davis

nfms-13-john-deereWhile it might be the National Farm Machinery Show, there’s no reason why there can’t also be things for the worksite… and even better when that worksite is also an agricultural operation. Larry Foster, a district sales manager for John Deere’s commercial worksite products, told Chuck during an interview at NFMS that they even have traded in their John Deere green for yellow when it comes to their latest skid steer, the Model 332E. But even though it has a construction site feel to it, it’s still good for farmsteads.

“[For dairy and beef operations] sometimes it’s for feed, [sometimes] for cleaning up manure,” Larry said. He added that grain farmers find it handy as a mobile forklift, and those with hay pastures can use a variety of baling attachments as well. “It’s a very useful tool for virtually every farm use operation.”

Larry went on to say this latest E series model features a 100 hp motor, ride control, four setup controls to customize the operator station for the individual user, and an industry-first, three-way switchable controls. “So you can push a button and switch [between the various controls].”

Plus, the new 332E skid steer gives operators some creature comforts, including light controls, just to make the experience the best fit for the owner.

You can listen to Chuck’s interview with Larry here: Interview with Larry Foster

2013 National Farm Machinery Show Photo Album

Agribusiness, Audio, John Deere, National Farm Machinery Show

GROWMARK is a Job Creator

Cindy Zimmerman

gmk-systemThe GROWMARK system continues to do its part to help the economy by creating jobs and they want to make sure they reach all the possible potential candidates for those jobs.

GROWMARK University Relations Recruiter Allison Biggs says they recently made some improvements on the Careers portion of the GROWMARK website to make it easier to find available jobs and internships with a link to Job Search on every page. “The buttons we have added to the main careers page talks about all the different divisions of GROWMARK,” said Allison. Those areas include Accounting & Finance, Agronomy, Communications & Marketing, Energy, Grain, Logistics, Information Technology, and more.

Allison says GROWMARK currently has 234 jobs currently posted. “We have about 7,000 employees system-wide,” she said. “They would be in a variety of areas, either in our corporate office in any of our divisions or in one of our regional companies.” Many of the jobs are seasonal right now, but there are lots of permanent positions listed as well.

Listen to my interview with Allison here: Allison Biggs, GROWMARK

Audio, GROWMARK

National Ag Day Will Celebrate 40th Anniversary

Chuck Zimmerman

National Ag DayHow about a look ahead to spring weather and the celebration of agriculture? A lot of the country is dealing with winter weather right now and we hope everyone is safe during the current storm. But National Ag Day is right around the corner. I’ll be attending once again this year.

Let’s learn what will be going on in Washington, DC this year from Barry Nelson, John Deere, who is Chair of the Agriculture Council of America which oversees the National Ag Day program and has done so since 1973. It’s time to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the program.

You can listen to my interview with Barry here: Interview with Barry Nelson
National Ag Day is a day to recognize and celebrate the abundance provided by agriculture. Every year, producers, agricultural associations, corporations, universities, government agencies and countless others across America join together to recognize the contributions of agriculture.

You can find the full schedule of activities here. To become a sponsor of National Ag Day please contact Jenny Pickett.

Ag Day, Ag Groups, Audio, John Deere

JCB Intros Telescopic Wheel Loader at NFMS

John Davis

nfms-13-jcbThey’ve been running previous versions in Europe since 1995, but the good folks at JCB decided to show off their latest telescopic wheel loader, the TM320, at the National Farm Machinery Show.

“It’s been a machine that we’ve been thinking about for a little while but have realized now that there’s a significant opportunity to bring it over here,” said Ray Bingley, a general manager for JCB’s agriculture division, explaining the time it’s taken for it to show up on this side of the pond.

But it should be worth the wait. Ray said it has some features very attractive to folks who use tractor-loaders, such as the seating position, but all the benefits of the telescopic with the elevated lift height and load capacity. JCB has also engineered this machine especially for the agricultural environment, as opposed to the demands of a construction site. He added that folks who have used a telescopic are sold on its value to a farm operation.

“The guys who have telescopics will tell you they don’t know how they could run the farm without it!”

You can listen to Chuck’s interview with Ray here: Interview with Ray Bingley

2013 National Farm Machinery Show Photo Album

Agribusiness, Audio, National Farm Machinery Show

It’s Coming!

Melissa Sandfort

IMG_6502This was a picture of the weather radar this morning … can you see the pin? That’s us. And by the time I sat down to write this post, it had started snowing and it’s really coming down. From what I’ve been hearing, it’s a slow-moving storm that dumps anywhere from 8-20 inches, but we’re ready.

The horse has a new bale and water, the skid loader with scoop is at home to plow the driveway, kids are home safe so no one has to drive to pick them up, we bought the last two gallons of milk at the store the other night and the pantry is stocked.

I declare “stay in jammies all day, watch movies and eat junk food day”!

Alas though, I’m working. In my jammies.

Happy snow day! (We need the moisture so as much as I dislike snow, I’m not going to complain. Maybe my son can use his sled he’s had for two years now and only used once.)

Until we walk again …

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