Take Time to Smell the Flowers

Melissa Sandfort

This photo really has nothing to do with agriculture other than it features my father-in-law (who is a farmer) and my son (who lives on the farm). But I had to share it. We spent the Easter holiday in western Kansas – an area that is the exact opposite of where we live now in Nebraska. It rarely rains, there are no trees, it’s flat and the air is dry. But it has its own beauty, including wide open space, watching a storm roll in across the high plains and the opportunity for my son to ride on tractors, feed the cows and roam outside on a farm where the closest neighbor is eight miles away.

My son is also lucky enough to have three living great-grandparents. Not many kids can say that these days. So on our visit to great-grandma’s house and while out perusing for Easter eggs in the back yard, he and grandpa stopped to smell the lilac bushes. (I passed because lilacs drive my allergies crazy.)

It just reminded me of how busy our lives can be and how small the “big” things are when put into perspective. We took a lot of time this weekend to smell the flowers and those are the things to record in the memory book.

Until we walk again …

Uncategorized

Kip Cullers First in New BASF Great Growers Series

Cindy Zimmerman

We are starting a new series today for BASF Crop Protection called “Great Growers” where we will be following the progress of four farmers throughout the growing season from pre-plant to harvest.

Our first interview is with one of the most famous farmers in the country – Kip Cullers of Purdy, Missouri. To call Kip a “great grower” is an understatement, considering he holds the title of World Champion Soybean Grower with a record 160.6 bushels per acre set in 2010. Even with last year’s “horrible” season, Kip still managed to break 100 bushels an acre. So, what about this year?

Kip says he is already planting away down in southwest Missouri and some of his corn has already started emerging. “We planted for 12 straight days and never shut the planters off,” he said. “It’s just been unbelievable.”

While Kip was very disappointed with his 2011 crop, he says it has not had much of an impact on his plans for this season. “I haven’t seen a year like that since 1980 so we’re just on track to do everything like normal,” he said. Winter in Kip’s part of the country was the same as pretty much every where else. “It’s just crazy how warm it was,” Kip said. “Mildest winter I’ve ever seen in my life.”

As pleasant as it was, the mild winter combined with a warmer than normal March has led to increased weed pressure. “The weeds are absolutely horrible,” Kip says. “We’ve got crabgrass that normally doesn’t come out until May” along with henbit and chickweed. “But we used the Kixor technology along with some Roundup and that just burns it down within seven days. Then we come back over the top later on.”

Kip says he is planning to plant more corn and soybean acres this year and he is really pleased right now with his barley crop on which he used Headline at the flag leaf stage. “It’s the best barley I’ve ever raised,” he says.

Listen to or download my interview with Kip below and watch for more Great Grower interviews coming up soon!

BASF Great Grower Kip Cullers
Audio, BASF, Corn, Crop Protection, Farming

Meet America’s Farmers

Chuck Zimmerman

You can meet a lot of America’s farmers right here on AgWired if you follow along regularly. But if you’d like to meet a whole lot of them very quickly then you might want to look at the the new YouTube Channel from the Center for Food Inegrity called “Meet America’s Farmers.”

The channel was developed to offer consumers the opportunity to observe the commitment of today’s farmers to raising safe, healthy and affordable food.

Now, individual farmers and farm organizations are invited to create their own videos for the channel, using a shared values approach to connect with consumers. The goal is to create a variety of videos featuring America’s farmers, allowing them to share their stories and “open their farms” to consumers who are interested in better understanding how their food is raised.

CFI research indicates early adopting consumers want more information about how food is grown on the farm. Consumers who participated in the research specified videos hosted by farmers would be highly useful and help build their confidence and trust in today’s farming. Creating this new channel greatly expands the number of consumers exposed to the farm through such videos. The 146 videos currently on the channel feature 79 different farmers from 12 states and 16 commodity groups and were shot and produced for use during Farmers Feed US programs over the past three years.

CFI has also written guidelines to provide farmers with criteria for developing their own videos, which can be found on CFI’s Farmer Resource Center (www.cfiengage.com). CFI will also furnish Flip cameras and support to individual farmers interested in shooting their own videos.

Those interested in more information about how they can contribute to the “Meet America’s Farmers” YouTube channel can contact Mark Crouser at Mark.Crouser@foodintegrity.org.

I picked out one of the videos on the channel that features our good friend, Andrew McCrea. Here’s what he says about farming.

The best thing about being a farmer: Being around family, bringing kids with you in the combine or tractor and giving them rides on the horse, and living in the country. It’s hard work, but a good living.

So what do you think about this effort?

Ag Groups, Farming, Food, Social Networking, Video

You Won’t be SOLO at the Brownfield Party

Chuck Zimmerman

I’ve already seen mention of it more than once on Facebook. It being the annual Brownfield party at the NAMA Agri-Marketing Conference. This year it’s back to Howl at the Moon. How many of you remember being there a couple years ago? How many of you were there but don’t remember being there :)?

I’ll be the Brownfield photographer again this year so get ready for some great party shots. I mean pictures. Of course.

Cindy and I have our Brownfield party SOLO cups ready to be filled already. Can we use them and then bring them to the party and re-use them? I think so and I’m pretty sure it has already been done!

Just a reminder: The Brownfield NAMA party is for Professional members by invite only. So student NAMA members, keep that in mind and I hope you have a wonderful time in KC, MO. We’re sure looking forward to it.

NAMA

Play Farming Simulator in Facebook

Chuck Zimmerman

I am not a gamer but that doesn’t mean I’ve never played games. I just don’t find the time for it. However, apparently a lot of people do have time. I just noticed an announcement today from a cloud gaming service that you can now play Farming Simulator 2011 on Facebook. For you Farming Simulator players, the company that makes it, Giants Software, says a 2012 Nintendo 3DS demo is now available.

Gaikai Inc., the innovative cloud gaming service, today launches the Beta of its Facebook app which will deliver high-end, console quality game experiences directly to consumers from inside the world’s leading social network.

By streaming their games through Gaikai video game publishers can now easily reach hundreds of millions of potential new players in North America and Europe. The beta will allow gamers to try out a selection of games for free.

The first games to try in the Beta v1.0 Launch are:

Saints Row – The Third (USA)
Dead Rising 2 – Off the Record (USA)
Magicka (USA & Europe)
Sniper – Ghost Warrior (USA & Europe)
The Witcher 2 – Assassins of Kings (USA & Europe)
Orcs Must Die! (USA & Europe)
Farming Simulator 2011 (USA & Europe)

Use this link to experience Gaikai’s Facebook app: https://apps.facebook.com/gaikai-games/

Apps, Farming

Connecting Farmer2Family

Chuck Zimmerman

What do you think about this concept to connect consumers directly to their local farmers in order to make direct purchases. It’s called Farmer2Family and has been started in nine European countries.

Everyone can now enjoy local and fresh produce, from their local suppliers, every day of every year.

Some 4.5 million farmers, fruit- and vegetable-growers, fishermen and the like in 9 European countries (Great Britain, Ireland, Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxemburg, France, Germany, Austria and Switzerland) will be able to offer their fresh and local products directly to their customers in their village via the “farmer2family” platform.

Every farmer, vegetable and fruit growers, fisherman, hunter, all directly involved with fresh produce and registered as such, can now log on free of charge into the platform “farmer2family”. On their local page they can then offer their products to their local customers. Every supply-advert for fruit, vegetables, fish, fresh and transformed meat products …… will remain online for 7 days, but can be renewed at will. Local customers can read and react to these, but they can also demand specific products as and when they like. “The whole platform is as an open market where supply meets demand for fresh and diverse produce. It is a very local service where farmers directly meet with their customers” as explains Luc Adriaenssen, initiator of the project.

The service as proposed on the “farmer2family” platform is and will remain completely free of charge for farmers and consumers. “No commission, no intermediaries, no interference whatsoever” as confirms Luc Adriaenssen.

A few paying publicity spaces will be incorporated on each local page (also free of charge for the first year), for local shops, restaurants, sports- and cultural activities, B&B and so on.

Ag Groups, Food

Skepticism For 2012 Farm Bill

Chuck Zimmerman

Our latest ZimmPoll asked “Will we have a farm bill by end of 2012?” Is it any surprise to you that 77 percent of our respondents said No and that only 23 percent said Yes? The farm bill is a big deal to anyone who eats or produces food but in reality it’s only about 2% of federal funding. It touches a lot of nerves though since it directly impacts everyone.

Our new ZimmPoll is now live and asks the question, “Where are best job opportunities in agribusiness?” The outlook for ag jobs seems very positive according to an AgCareers.com analysis. Job postings were up last year. What area holds the most promise right now in your opinion? If you attend next week’s Agri-Marketing Conference you’ll run into some very qualified and motivated young folks, many of whom are looking for their ag career opportunity!

ZimmPoll is sponsored by Rhea+Kaiser, a full-service advertising/public relations agency.

ZimmPoll

Zimfo Bytes

Melissa Sandfort

Zimfo Bytes

EPA Denies NRDC Petition

Cindy Zimmerman

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has denied a 2008 petition by the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) seeking to cancel 2,4-D herbicide registrations and revoke all the tolerances for use.

“The impact of this decision should not be understated,” said Jim Gray, executive director of the Industry Task Force II on 2,4-D Research Data. “EPA’s comprehensive review of one of the most extensive scientific data bases of a pesticide confirmed the Agency’s previous finding that the 2,4-D tolerances are acceptable.”

In the decision, EPA noted that based on “studies addressing endocrine effects on wildlife species and the adequacy of personal protective equipment for workers, the Agency concluded that the science behind our current ecological and worker risk assessments for 2,4-D is sound and there is no basis to change the registrations.”

“This has been one of the most widely used and successful herbicides in history and growers along with other users around the U.S. and the world can continue to use it with confidence”, added Gray. “EPA’s most recent decision is consistent with findings of other authorities such as the World Health Organization, Health Canada’s Pest Management Regulatory Agency and the European Commission.”

The US EPA conducted a thorough evaluation of all of the available information, including GLP studies, peer-reviewed studies, as well as the anecdotal information submitted by the pressure groups. This determination follows the 2005 Re-registration Eligibility Decision which encompassed 17 years of scientific evaluation.

As EPA correctly notes, “2,4-D is a phenoxy herbicide and plant growth regulator that has been used in the U.S. since the 1940s. It is currently found in approximately 600 products registered for agricultural, residential, industrial, and aquatic uses.” The original patent for 2,4-D was actually issued in 1945 and today it is one of the most widely used herbicides in the world for a variety of crops including wheat, corn, rice, soybeans, potatoes, sugar cane, pome fruits, stone fruits and nuts. In addition, 2,4-D controls invasive species in pastures, aquatic areas and federally protected areas and broadleaf weeds in turf grass.

Give EPA some brownie points for this decision!

Crop Protection, Environment

Founding Fathers Beer Helps Armed Forces Relief Trust

Chuck Zimmerman

Here’s a beer our Founding Fathers would be proud of. It’s named, “Founding Fathers Beer.” Right now distribution is limited but there are a number of states where you can find it. If you do find and purchase some Founding Fathers Brew you’ll be helping a good cause. Listen to their new jingle: Founding Fathers Beer Jingle
Founding Fathers Beer, a new American lager both owned and brewed in the United States that will donate half of its profits to the families of military troops, is now available in Tennessee. Operation Homefront Tennessee and the Armed Forces Relief Trust will receive 50 percent of the profits from Founding Fathers Beer sold in Tennessee.

Founding Fathers Products, a company dedicated to producing products that represent the ideals embraced by early America, launched Founding Fathers Lager in Minnesota and North Dakota last November, and recently debuted Founding Fathers Light Beer. Both the Lager and the Light are available in Tennessee, and will soon be available in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Pennsylvania and South Carolina.

“The largest breweries in America are now foreign-owned,” said Phil Knutsen, founder and CEO. “Founding Fathers is not only owned and brewed in America, but half of the profits will go to those serving in our armed forces and their families. We are thrilled to be introducing a new American beer choice that will both taste great and compete with the major, national foreign-owned brands.”

Founding Fathers was established in 2009 by Knutsen and a team of investors who believe retail shelves need more American-made products that serve an important cause.

Audio, Food