Facebook Still Big Dog Vs. Google+

Chuck Zimmerman

It looks like Facebook is still the big dog with this community. In our latest ZimmPoll we asked the question, “Do you use Facebook or Google+?” 50% of you said Facebook while only 7% said Google+. However, 20% said Both while 23% said Neither. Interesting. Looks like Google+ has a ways to go.

Our new ZimmPoll is now live. We’re asking the question, “With net farm income up this year, how is your income?” USDA’s Economic Research Service released it’s Net Farm Income Forecast update yesterday showing a 28% increase over 2010. The report also states, “Net cash income, at $109.8 billion, is forecast up $17.5 billion (18.9 percent) from 2010, and $34.2 billion above its 10-year average (2001-2010) of $75.6 billion.” Wow. How about you? How’s your income doing this year compared to last?

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

ZimmPoll

MGEX Celebrating 130 Years

Chuck Zimmerman

The Minneapolis Grain Exchange is celebrating some history in December.

Learn more about it on their website.

In conjunction with the 130th anniversary of the Minneapolis Grain Exchange, Inc. (MGEX), the company will hold a celebration and auction on Friday, December 2, 2011. Numerous unique and valuable MGEX items, some dating back more than a century, will be available for bid in both live and silent auctions.

The 130th Anniversary Celebration and Auction will be held on the historic Trading Floor which dates back to 1902 when the first of three current Grain Exchange buildings was erected at the corner of South Fourth Street and South Fourth Avenue in downtown Minneapolis. The Main Building housed the Trading Floor, the central location where producers, processors and millers would gather to trade wheat, oats, corn and other commodities. The cash market trading occurred on unique cash tables where sellers would show potential buyers the various grains being offered. Some of these tables, the
first of which was placed on the floor in 1902, are among the historical items up for auction. For a complete list of live and silent auction items, visit www.mgex.com/history.html.

Agribusiness

The BASF Advantage Keeps Getting Better

Cindy Zimmerman

It seems like there is always something new from BASF Crop Protection to make life a little better for farmers.

basf at nafbAt the National Association of Farm Broadcasting Trade Talk, I talked with Technical Market Manager Nick Fassler about what is new in the fungicide arena. You might remember that we just chatted with Nick earlier this year at Commodity Classic about the launch of Xemium™ and already there are new fungicides in the pipeline with that active ingredient. “We’ve been real busy developing new fungicides and new uses for these products,” Nick says. “The last two years we’ve been talking about Headline AMP and now we’ve got another new product on the horizon that combines the active ingredient Xemium with Headline to develop Priaxor™.”

Nick says the Headline plus Xemium compound will be registered on multiple row crops and specialty crops – including corn, soybeans, cereals, potatoes and tomatoes. Registration by the U.S. EPA is expected in early 2012.

Listen to my interview from NAFB with Nick here: Nick Fassler with BASF

basf at nafbBASF is also offering several new incentives for growers to get a great start on the 2012 season, according to Corn Market Manager Mike Hofer. “One of them is called ‘Investment Advantage’ which is really a first of its kind in the industry,” Mike said. “It rewards a grower who purchases a high yield package from BASF, which may contain products like Headline AMP for corn, or Headline for soybeans, or Kixor herbicide technology.”

To help growers who purchase this type of package before March 15 better manage their risk, BASF will offer a partial rebate if commodity prices fall below a certain point. “What we’re trying to do is make sure that growers maintain a healthy return on investment,” Mike says.

BASF is also expanding the Headline Advantage offer from BASF has expanded to include more BASF fungicides for the 2012 season with up to 20% savings. In addition, BASF is again partnering with John Deere Financial to bring growers Finance Advantage.

Mike explains it all in this interview: Mike Hofer with BASF

2011 NAFB Convention Photo Album

Coverage of the NAMA Trends in Agriculture & NAFB Convention is sponsored by BASF
Audio, BASF, Corn, NAFB, Soybean

The True Cost Of Christmas

Chuck Zimmerman

Have you ever thought about buying all the gifts mentioned in the song, “The Twelve Days of Christmas?” This year the cost will top $100K according to PNC Wealth Management that calculates the cost each year. They also produce an annual Christmas Price Index. Here’s the findings (pdf) this year:

A sluggish economy coupled with weak demand has kept the 2011 PNC Christmas Price Index® (PNC CPI) to a moderate gain of 3.5 percent in the whimsical economic analysis by PNC Wealth Management based on the gifts in the holiday classic, “The Twelve Days of Christmas.”

According to the 28th annual survey, the price tag for the PNC CPI is $24,263.18 in 2011, $823.80 more than last year and less than half the increase seen in 2010. Still, that comes on the heels of a more modest 1.8 percent increase two years ago at the end of the recession.

The results were revealed this morning on an enhanced web site (www.pncchristmaspriceindex.com) that includes an interactive train journey through a “winter wonderland” setting. The web site also reflects PNC’s commitment to education by teaching economic trends through the PNC CPI.

As part of its annual tradition, PNC Wealth Management also tabulates the “True Cost of Christmas,” which is the total cost of items gifted by a True Love who repeats all of the song’s verses. This holiday season is the most expensive year ever: very generous True Loves have to fork over $101,119.84 for all 364 gifts, a 4.4 percent increase compared to last year.

You can find a handy table with costs listed and compared to 2010 here (pdf). Only the three French Hens, Eight Maids-a-Milking, Nine Ladies Dancing, and 10 Lords-a-Leaping were the same price as last year. Need the lyrics? Try here.

Uncategorized

Bill Pool Joins Wheat Growers

Chuck Zimmerman

Wheat Growers has announced Bill Pool as Director of Communications and Corporate Marketing.

“Bill Pool has a depth of understanding and knowledge of our industry that will help significantly move our communication and marketing efforts forward,” Steve Briggs, Wheat Growers Senior Vice President, Corporate Marketing and Agronomy, said. “His experience with and connections to major agricultural enterprises will serve Wheat Growers well.”

Bill Pool is a Minnesota native who most recently was Vice President and Regional Sales Director for Farm Market iD. Prior to that he held sales and marketing positions for Technekes LLC, American Cyanamid and Cargill.

Wheat Growers is a grain and agronomy cooperative. Interestingly, members now grow more corn and soybeans than wheat!

Ag Groups, Wheat

Final Days of New Holland Boomer 555 Contest

Chuck Zimmerman

The final day for entries in the New Holland Boomer 555 Contest is this Wednesday. You can find the entry form here.

This social media driven promotion has exceeded all expectations for results which have mainly been measured by number of entries as well as other social media interaction.

Entries can be in the form of a written essay, photo or video explaining what you’d do with a new Boomer tractor with front end loader if you won one. Here’s an example of a recent video entry.

Agribusiness, New Holland

AgGateway Helps Agribusinesses Work Together

Cindy Zimmerman

You may not have ever heard of AgGateway, but this relatively youthful organization already has a membership that reads like a who’s who of agribusinesses and their important goal is to help efficiently share information between trading partners in the agricultural and food supply chains.

GROWMARK was one of the founding companies of AgGateway just six short years ago, growing out of an organization known as RAPID. “RAPID was really formed by the crop protection segment of the ag industry and it did what AgGateway does today,” said GROWMARK Chief Information Officer Tim Piper. AgGateway allowed the concept started by RAPID to expand into other segments of agribusiness. “Many companies like GROWMARK are involved in several other segments of the ag industry and we didn’t really have a system of developing projects and standards around interchange between trading partners in these other segments.”

So, AgGateway developed with councils for different segments of the industry. “There’s still a crop protection council, but now we also have a crop nutrition council, seed, feed, etc.,” Tim explains. And as the organization grows the councils are expanding as well, with a retail and a precision ag council added recently and more councils in the works for grains, animal health, equipment and specialty crops.

Listen to more of my conversation with Tim about AgGateway here: Tim Piper Interview

Watch a GROWMARK video about the benefits of AgGateway.

Agribusiness, GROWMARK

Zimfo Bytes

Melissa Sandfort

    Zimfo Bytes

  • CHS Inc. announced it has signed an agreement with Solbar Industries Ltd., to acquire 100 percent of the shares of Solbar.
  • A special webinar focusing on dealing with the complex issues that can arise in family farm relationships will be held on Wednesday, January 11 beginning at 2 p.m. CST.
  • The National Association of Farm Broadcasting has named Greg Akaki, farm director at the Kansas Ag Network and WIBW radio, Topeka, Kan., the 2011 Farm Broadcaster of the Year.
  • Join Planalytics on Tuesday, Dec. 6th at 10:00 AM central as we look back at the effects of weather on U.S. Agriculture during the 2011 season.
Zimfo Bytes

Whatcha Gonna Do With That Thing?

Melissa Sandfort

I could crack some walnuts with this thing.
I could break open the ice that forms in the horse’s water tank.
I could threaten … well … better not.
I could pound in some nails with this thing.
Or I could use it for its intended purpose – to pull nails.

Today, I’d just flip over the hammer and yank them out by their head, but back in 1904 when this was patented, they used it to pull nails.

It kind of looks like a toenail trimmer, too. I pity the poor soul that has toenails that big!

Until we walk again …

Uncategorized

Update On Vault HP

Chuck Zimmerman

At the NAFB Trade Talk I visited with Russ Berndt, Becker Underwood. We had visited earlier this year at the Ag Media Summit where we talked about their bio-based, growth-promoter for soybeans, Vault HP. Russ says that’s still the big news with Becker Underwood.

Russ says they’ve had a big increase in sales this year which is the second year the product has been out. He thinks the return on investment that growers are seeing is driving this increase. Looking ahead to 2012 he encourages growers who saw flooding or water-logged fields to consider using a seed treatment that contains an inoculant product.

Listen to my interview with Russ here: Interview with Russ Berndt

2011 NAFB Convention Photo Album

Agribusiness, Audio, NAFB