AG CONNECT Previews Lineup at Ag Media Summit

Chuck Zimmerman

It might be a few months off, but it’s certainly not too early to think about the coming AG CONNECT Expo, January 29-31, 2013 in Kansas City, MO. At the recent Ag Media Summit, I caught up with AG CONNECT show manager Sara Mooney, who says the show will include several co-located meetings and a chance to meet the Masters and Mavericks. “We’re bringing in some very high-level executives, thought leaders, industry experts, and top producers available to answer all kinds of questions,” she explained. Those agribusiness leaders won’t be around just during the numerous panel sessions and classes, Sara says expect to see them throughout the trade show as well.

More information is available at www.agconnect.com. You can also listen to my interview with Sara here: Interview with Sara Mooney

2012 Ag Media Summit Photo Album

AgWired coverage of the 2012 Ag Media Summit is sponsored by FMC
Ag Media Summit, Audio

Monsanto Announces New Leadership

Jamie Johansen

Monsanto Company recently announced Brett Begemann as their President and Chief Commercial Officer. He will lead the oversight and operational execution of the company’s near-term expansion and growth in key international markets.

Hugh Grant will continue to serve as the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, where he maintains ongoing responsibility for leading the company’s long-term corporate strategy. “Brett has served as a valuable contributor to Monsanto’s agriculture business for nearly 30 years, including leading our global organization, implementing growth strategies both domestically and abroad.” said Grant. “Brett’s leadership has played an important role in accelerating the company’s growth potential and I expect that to continue as our business looks to deliver on the next generation of youth.”

Throughout Begemann’s career with Monsanto, he has served in a variety of roles across sales, marketing, commercial development as well as senior management positions worldwide. “I’m please to assume this responsibility and focus on the development and delivery of expanded growth opportunities in our global business.” said Begemann.

Agribusiness

Come for Beach, Stay for Info at BIVI Swine Seminar

Chuck Zimmerman

Lots of good information and a chance for plenty of questions at the recent 12th annual Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica Swine Health Seminar held in North Carolina. I talked with Mike Neil with Murphy Brown in Virginia. While he (kiddingly) said he comes for the beach, it’s really the amount of information valuable to his company that brings him there. “It looks like they have a lot of interesting and important topics set out.”

In addition to getting information, Mike said he’s been able to ask some important questions of his own. “For example, the trade agreements and where the U.S. export is going… the topics of disease,” are ones he cited. He concluded saying he appreciates that a seminar like this shows that Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica is in it with the producer. “With all the things we have to deal with, we need everybody doing their part.”

Interview with Mike Neil

2012 BIVI Swine Health Seminar Photo Album

Agribusiness, Animal Health, Audio, Boehringer Ingelheim, Swine

Wine Making in Sweden

Chuck Zimmerman

Wine making in Sweden? You betcha. During the 2012 IFAJ Congress some of us toured Blaxsta Vineyard. We also sampled a merlot while we were there. The grapes for this particular wine came from Canadian vineyards of French stock.

Blaxsta Vineyard is located near Stockholm and is about as far north as you can grow grapes to make some good wine. The specialty as you might imagine is ice wine and Blaxsta has been a world competition winner with their’s for years. We got to sample that at the Saturday night closing banquet. You can learn more about the vineyard and how they grow their grapes in the video.

2012 IFAJ Congress Photo Album

AgWired coverage of the 2012 IFAJ Congress is sponsored by DuPont Pioneer
IFAJ, International, Video

It’s Agvocacy Time

Chuck Zimmerman

It’s just about time for the 2012 AgChat Foundation Agvocacy 2.0 Training Conference. Things will kick off tomorrow with a board meeting of the AgChat Foundation followed by an Agtastic Tweet-Up which the attendees of the NAMA Boot Camp are invited to. Then the program kicks off in high gear on Thursday morning. Jamie Johansen and I will be on location during the conference. I’m conducting a session titled, “Media Creation, Storytelling & Publishing” on Friday morning.

Judging by the amount of posts onto the event FB page there are some pretty excited folks getting ready to head to Kansas City, MO. Jamie and I will be sharing some stories and photos from there as we enjoy some great fellowship with farmer agvocates who are gearing up to tell their story to the world.

Ag Groups

Organic Pig Farming

Chuck Zimmerman

Here’s something you don’t see everyday. A group of agricultural journalists from many countries playing with some organic pigs. This is on the Asbergby Farm during the 2012 IFAJ Congress. We met Olle and Catharina Linder who are organic farmers raising pigs and cattle. You can see how they keep their pigs in the video.

What do you think of this type of pig farming? Would it work in the U.S.?

2012 IFAJ Congress Photo Album

AgWired coverage of the 2012 IFAJ Congress is sponsored by DuPont Pioneer
Animal Agriculture, Farming, IFAJ, Media, Video

2012 Citrus Expo

Chuck Zimmerman

I remember attending Citrus Expo early in the ZimmComm agriblogging history and getting to know my first Nikon DSLR. This was back in 2006, an eternity in the advancement of technology, especially for agricultural communications. You can still see my photos from back then.

Now, it’s seven years later and Southeast AgNet blogs it’s own show. Facebook is now an integral part of what they’re doing with lots of photos and interviews online. It looks like this year’s show was a good one.

Citrus, Media

EcoTek Highlights Young Scientists at USB Event

John Davis

A group of young scientists got to show off what they have learned in their lab during the recent USB Biobased Products Stakeholders Workshop in Dearborn, Michigan. “My focus is on innovation and how to use science as a way of improving society,” explained Keith Young, the founder of EcoTek Lab… a Detroit-based program for students from 2nd grade through high school. Young started the project back in 2005 and has 30 students in his current program with connections to 1,500 more through partner schools.

Young says they are working on projects as varied as bio-plastics to biofuels to growing stem cells in the laboratory. Ecotek starts with an understanding of international policy, focusing on the United Nation’s Millennium Goals. “There’s those eight goals the world has to solve by 2015, and one of those goals deals with sustainability,” adding that he brought the students to this USB event so they better understand the time it takes and the payoff at the end of research. “It makes it easier for me to explain the benefits and opportunities down the road.”

Young also points out that the Ecotek program has a practical side of making sure the students understand that there is a tie to value creation. “Making sure they understand innovation really ensures that they understand that value creation is necessary and is tied to the sciences. The more you know, the more you control.”

You can hear more of Cindy’s interview with Keith here: Keith Young, Founder of Ecotek Lab

And you can see a video of the students’ bio-plastic and here some of them explain how it works here: Ecotek Lab Students Explaining Bio-plastic

Check out the photo album below and the SoyBiobased.org website as well.

2012 USB Biobased Products Stakeholders Workshop Photos

Audio, Soybean, USB, Video

Swedish Beef Cattle Farm – Stenhammar Estate

Chuck Zimmerman

During the 2012 IFAJ Congress we split up into eight different tour groups. My group (Meat Wagon) visited Stenhammar Estate, a beef cattle farm run by the Swedish King Carl XVI Gustaf. He was not available but his farm manager, Anders Frederiksson was. Anders gave us a tour around the old and new barns and talked about the farm. I captured some of that on video. Our lunch was a BBQ with hamburgers, pork chops, steak and sausage! Yep, that’s a meal fit for a tour group called The Meat Wagon!

2012 IFAJ Congress Photo Album

AgWired coverage of the 2012 IFAJ Congress is sponsored by DuPont Pioneer
IFAJ, International, Media, Video

Looking Ahead With IFAJ

Chuck Zimmerman

ZimmCast 362Wow. The 2012 IFAJ Congress was fantastic as usual. I recommend that any American ag journalists take advantage of this opportunity to make good contacts internationally while expanding your horizons.

In this week’s program you’ll hear from new IFAJ President Marcus Rediger, Managing Editor, Agricultural Information Center in Switzerland. Here’s Marcus passing the IFAJ flag forward to Argentina which will be the site of the 2013 IFAJ Congress.

Marcus and I spoke prior to the closing banquet on Saturday night in Stockholm. He gives us a look ahead for IFAJ during his term.

Next in this week’s program you’ll hear from Maria Mosquera, one of the organizers of the 2013 IFAJ Congress. We’re going to start out in Buenos Aires and then move to Rosario and that’s about all I know except that it will be BIG. The dates are September 1-5 so get it on your calendar.

Listen to this week’s ZimmCast here: Looking Ahead With IFAJ

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.

2012 IFAJ Congress Photo Album

AgWired coverage of the 2012 IFAJ Congress is sponsored by DuPont Pioneer
Audio, IFAJ, ZimmCast