Support for Repeal of Catfish Inspection Program

Cindy Zimmerman

catfishThere’s a whole boatload of folks who think something is fishy about the USDA catfish inspection program that was included in the 2008 Farm Bill and they’d like to see it thrown back.

An effort to repeal the program apparently has widespread support in Congress and with a variety of agricultural companies and organizations. National Fisheries Institute spokesperson Gavin Gibbons says the program has already proven to be a waste of taxpayer dollars. “If you look at the Government Accountability Report for the catfish inspection program, it notes that over the last 4-5 years, USDA has spent $20 million on the program and has not inspected a single catfish,” he said.

nfiSenators John McCain (R-AZ) and Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) have introduced a bill in the Senate to repeal the program, with a similar bill in the House sponsored by Reps. Vicky Hartzler (R-MO) and Lucille Roybal-Allard (D-CA). “It’s interesting to note that Vicky Hartzler is originally a soybean farmer from Missouri who has taken up this cause for two reasons. One, the obvious waste and duplication that she was sent to Washington to get rid of, but also the potential negative impact on the ag community at large.”

The American Soybean Association is one of a number of agricultural organizations that support repealing the program, which also includes the National Milk Producers Federation, National Pork Producers Council, National Turkey Federation and the U.S. Grains Council. Support for the program, which was originally sponsored by Sen Thad Cochran, comes from the US catfish industry which seeks more stringent inspections of foreign imports, but Gibbons says there are concerns that it could ultimately erect a trade barrier against imported seafood.

Find out more at RepealCatfish.com and listen to my interview with Gavin here: Gavin Gibbons, National Fisheries Institute

Aquaculture, Audio, USDA

Ah, to be Young Again

Melissa Sandfort

Creek2I dug back through some of my old pictures this weekend and found one of the creek just ¼ mile up the road from our house. It reminded me of all the scavenger hunts my brother and I went on when we were young(er) and stayed with my grandparents. Maybe that was just Grandma’s ploy to get us out of the house and out of her hair – either way, it was fun!

My son is 4 ½ now and really getting to the adventurous stage. If there’s a mud puddle, it’s been splashed; if there’s a dirt hill, it’s been climbed; if there’s a charged up battery, it’s been driven. Bad thing is, his favorite dirt pile is right at the edge of this creek where, if he’d slip and fall, he just might end up tumbling down a 20-foot embankment through sticks and thorns and into the creek. I keep telling myself I can’t protect him from everything, but I try.

When there’s a garter snake in the creek, it’s just irresistible to throw rocks. And in order to do that, don’t you have to be as close as possible?

Again, there’s that 20-foot (did I say steep?) bank!

Maybe I ought to teach him the safest way to get down to the creek. That would satisfy both of our wants. And while I’m at it, I’ll teach him that his muddy boots are supposed to keep the water OUT.

Until we walk again …

Uncategorized

Beef Checkoff Responds to OIG Report

Talia Goes

BeefCheckLogo_w_TagStatement by Weldon Wynn Cattlemen’s Beef Board Chairman & Cattle Producer from Star City, Ark.: April 2, 2013

“We are gratified that the Office of Inspector General (OIG) audit of the Beef Checkoff Program for the years 2008-2010 identified no audit issues and reported full compliance by the Beef Board and its contractors.

“In quoting directly from the report: ‘The relationships between the Cattlemen’s Beef Promotion and Research Board and other industry-related organizations including … the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, complied with the (Act and Order)…. Funds were collected, distributed and expended in accordance with the legislation.’

“We are proud to receive this validation of the effectiveness of our systems and processes to safeguard producer and importer investments into the Beef Checkoff Program.

“Even with OIG’s confirmation that the Beef Board’s systems of oversight of funds are robust and effective and that its relationships with checkoff contractors are in compliance, the Beef Board maintains a mission toward continual improvement in our responsibility to producers. Since 2010, for example, CBB has operated under an intensified review and verification process, along with expanded and specific guidelines for contractors. In addition, CBB now requires contractors to provide additional information about implementation costs as they prepare funding requests, thus providing decision-makers with a more detailed understanding of project costs before approving them.

“The bottom line: Producers and importers can be assured by the OIG report and the Beef Board’s mission of continual improvement that our checkoff dollars are being invested appropriately and effectively.”

For a copy of the full report, go to OIG Audit Results

Listen To Weldon’s Statement

Agribusiness

Social Media Overload?

Talia Goes

Our latest ZimmPoll asked the question, “Has winter weather affected drought conditions in your area?”

Our poll results: Fifty percent said Yes, thirty-two percent said No, and eighteen percent said it’s Too Early To Tell. Seems the drought of 2012 may not be over. I heard once that weather cycles last 6 years. Sure hope that isn’t the case with this drought.

Untitled

Our new ZimmPoll is now live and asks the question, “How do you combat social media overload?” With the weekly AgChat Twitter conversation turning 4 years old it is obvious that something is working when it comes to farmers and industry using social media to advocate for their industry. But even if you are not actively agvocating you’re probably using some form of social media like Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Pinterest and there are many more. So our question comes out of this week’s AgChat. For many it is easy to get so engrossed by the online conversation, especially with mobile devices like smart phones and tablets, that they start feeling overwhelmed by it all. Let us know … Are you on social media overload?

ZimmPoll is sponsored by New Holland Agriculture.

New Holland, ZimmPoll

Happy 4th Birthday AgChat

Chuck Zimmerman

Happy Birthday AgChatHappy 4th Birthday AgChat. That’s right. Four years of a weekly Twitter conversation about agriculture and food (FoodChat).

Last night was a lively AgChat on the topic of “What’s needed in #socialmedia for #ag.” Our moderator was the very popular @cowartandmore who did a marvelous job.

You can find the very first tweet here:

Testing out #agchat…currently scheduled for Tuesdays at 8-10 p.m.

Thanks to Michele Payn-Knoper for getting this started. Thanks to Kathy Swift for the image she tweeted last night!

Ag Groups

Zimfo Bytes

Talia Goes

    Zimfo Bytes

  • An econometric study, conducted by Dr. Timothy Richards from Arizona State University, and Dr. Harry Kaiser from Cornell University, reveals a high return on potato grower assessment dollars invested in United States Potato Board marketing activities.
  • Nufarm Americas, a major manufacturer of crop protection products, has named two new members of its leadership team.
  • The American Shorthorn Association Board of Directors announces Montie Soules as the new Executive Secretary/CEO of the American Shorthorn Association in Omaha, Neb., effective April 15, 2013.
  • Calf-Tel is excited to announce its first Facebook photo contest.
Zimfo Bytes

Penton to Announce New Ag Division

Chuck Zimmerman

penton-ag-groupAccording to the the Association of Business Information and Media Companies, Penton will be unveiling its new ag division during the Agri-Marketing Conference.

The Agri Council Intelligence Report say that Penton “plans to relaunch its Farm Industry News with a focus on agriculture production technology. “Farm Industry News previously existed as a horizontal brand and with our new strategy we will make it a much more vertical brand,” says Bagan.

A mix of Penton and Farm Progress execs will oversee sales for the new group (Greg Frey from Penton and Don Tourte from Farm Progress) as well as editorial (Forrest Laws from Penton and Willie Voight from Farm Progress).”

The quote is from Dan Bagan, Penton senior vice president for Agriculture, Food and Restaurants.

Media

2014 International Year of Family Farming?

Chuck Zimmerman

International Year of Family FarmingDuring our weekly AgChat session last night several folks interjected messages about a United Nations sanctioned initiative called the 2014 International Year of Family Farming, Feeding the World, Caring for the Earth. So I had to look at it and can’t say I like what I see. If you click around their website you’ll see some pretty mixed messages. There is a lot of feel good rhetoric about family farming and losing people to the cities. Then you’ll find a video with a page title “Do we really need industrial agriculture?” It’s on YouTube and I couldn’t get past more than a minute or two to realize these folks have an agenda that is not compatible with reality and common sense. It’s just the tired old messaging that farming today is all “industrial” and the evil corporations are taking over the world. You’d think we’re all going to die unless we do what they want. This video is produced by Food MythBusters and the Real Food Media Project. I hate to think of what they hope to teach kids.

I can empathize with the challenges presented by a changing world and changing technology. It does make it tough to make a living from a small patch of ground even here in America. But you’ll also find messages in here about how bad subsidies are. I’m just curious how these folks think they’re going to fund all their feel good programs. Where do they think the money will come from? My bet is that it will be subsidies they want which will then be “good subsidies.” I can’t support this kind of effort and as far as I’m concerned anything with the United Nations involved is suspect.

What do you think? I work in the ag media realm and have my whole career. I saw broadcasting, especially on the radio side, change as consolidation happened and we no longer had truly local ownership. I didn’t cry over it and ask the government to help me. New technology offered us some great new opportunities. Throw in some hard work too! Voila. I’m making a living. I think this can apply to farming today. It is changing and will continue to change. Instead of looking at the work agribusinesses are doing to become more efficient, produce more and safer food, and do so in a sustainable way, as evil, how about looking at it with thanks and gladness that hard working people are making a positive difference that will reap benefits in countries all over the world. Corporations are not faceless entities. They are a business model populated by real people who are also trying to make a living and working very hard at it. I think they need to be rewarded for their work!

It looks like this effort has been going on for a while. Some pretty outdated stuff on the website, especially the blog.

Ag Groups, Farming, International

We’ll Be Winging it in Buffalo

Chuck Zimmerman

2013 Ag Media SummitFull registration for the 2013 Ag Media Summit doesn’t open until May 1 but you can get your hotel reservation made now. Just got mine taken care of.

If you’re looking for the best place to promote your company or organization’s products and services, then you’ll want to be at the 15th Annual Ag Media Summit in Buffalo, New York, August 3-7, 2013. This annual get-together, the largest meeting in the United States of the ag industry’s top writers, editors, photographers, publishers and ag communicator specialists, begins with pre-meeting events on Saturday, August 3, followed by the AMS program August 4-7. We invite you to participate as a sponsor or an exhibitor at our InfoExpo or both, and be a part of this important agricultural media event.

Ag Media Summit, Media

Thornton Promoted at AFBF

Chuck Zimmerman

Mace ThorntonCongratulations to our good buddy Mace Thornton. He’s just been named Executive Director of Communications for the American Farm Bureau Federation. Here’s Mace at last year’s Agricultural Relations Council meeting. Mace just turned that gavel over at this year’s meeting.

Mace will implement AFBF’s communications strategies, manage the Communications Department and staff, and help lead AFBF as a member of its management team.

Mace has more than 28 years of communications experience, with most of this time spent working in agriculture. He joined AFBF in 1990 and has been serving as acting director, communications, since Oct. 1. He has been a senior member of the staff and has contributed to AFBF’s strategic communications, public relations, media relations, issues management, and social media efforts.

Ag Groups