Charleston|Orwig A Year Later

Chuck Zimmerman

ZimmCast 323It was just a year ago that Cindy interviewed Mark Gale, Charleston|Orwig, while attending World Dairy Expo. That started a series of ZimmCasts with the leadership of advertising and public relations agencies. Now we’ve come full circle.

At this year’s World Dairy Expo I visited with Brittany Unterweger, Account Supervisor for the agency. The agency was having a very busy week since they work with about ten different clients that are involved with World Dairy Expo. Brittany says the agency focus goes beyond the dairy industry though, into overall food systems, “from farm to plate, from producer to consumer.” She says there has been an internal shift within the agency to move beyond just agriculture. Interactive has also grown tremendously and that includes app building and the further development of their blog, Field Assignment.

Brittany says that she’s excited to have a more holistic approach with the food systems concept so they can helpt their clients see the big picture. She says their client list has been growing and that it’s an exciting time at Charleston|Orwig.

Listen to my conversation with Brittany in this week’s ZimmCast: Visiting With Brittany Unterweger

Thanks to our ZimmCast sponsor, GROWMARK, locally owned, globally strong, for their support.

The program ends this week with music from Music Alley, called “Make You Happy” by The Milkmen. I hope you enjoy it and thank you for listening.

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.

2011 World Dairy Expo Photo Album

World Dairy Expo coverage sponsored by Charleston Orwig Dairy Business Association Alltech Hoard’s Dairyman Accelerated Genetics
Agencies, Audio, ZimmCast

The Moonflower and Hummingbird Moth

Melissa Sandfort

In a rare moment, my Aunt was able to catch this stunning photograph of a hummingbird moth eating nectar from her moonflower. It’s rare because: 1) it’s gorgeous, 2) hummingbird moths are often mistaken for a hummingbird because of its coloration and how it moves, and 3) moonflowers bloom in the evening and hummingbird moths can be seen on clear, sunny days.

That trip out to the garage resulted in capturing nature’s beauty at its finest! (And thank you to my Aunt for the picture!)

This awesome flower has white flowers on a twining vine and much like a hibiscus, the flowers open in the evening and last only until touched by the next day’s sun.

We refer to my Aunt as the plant doctor because she can take any half-dead plant and bring it back to a vibrant, brilliant life. She has friends who bring her the most dreadful, sad-looking plants in hopes of refreshing them, and when she does (every time), the original owner has usually lost interest and her greenhouse only grows larger.

I used to claim I had a green thumb until my Aunt started sharing stories.

Until we walk again …

Uncategorized

Zimfo Bytes

Melissa Sandfort

    Zimfo Bytes

  • Croplife America has released a new video on modern ag production practices.
  • Titan Tire Corporation donated approximately $160,000 worth of agricultural tires to the Illinois and Indiana Future Farmers of America Organizations during their auction at the Farm Progress Show.
  • The American Farm Bureau Federation board of directors elected Julie Anna Potts executive vice president of AFBF.
  • William Shurtleff, cofounder of the SoyInfo Center, invites members of the American Soybean Association to learn about the history of the soybean industry in a new book titled, “William J. Morse – History of His Work with Soybeans and Soyfoods”.
Zimfo Bytes

Blue Jeans Make Insulation Green

Cindy Zimmerman

Don’t throw out those old blue jeans – they could be used to insulate someone’s house.

“Cotton. From Blue to Green®” is a Cotton Incorporated initiative started in 2006 that gives donated denim a second life by converting it into UltraTouch™ Denim Insulation. To date, the program has received over half a million pieces of denim which has produced approximately 1.5 million square feet of UltraTouch™ Denim Insulation to assist with building efforts for communities in need.

The program has partnered with many organizations, including Habitat for Humanity affiliates, to install home insulation for victims of disasters such as Hurricane Katrina, and for those needing help to finish their homes. They also offer grants to improve community buildings and partner with college and university campuses to host denim collection drives.

Find out how you can donate and maybe even get discounts from participating retailers like American Eagle.

Cotton

Photos From World Dairy Expo

Chuck Zimmerman

It is the final day of World Dairy Expo 2011. The ZimmComm team had to return to headquarters but that doesn’t mean we won’t have more stories on World Dairy Diary.

Cindy and I have quite a few interviews to share during the next week so keep your eye on our sister site as we bring you more from this year’s show.

In the meantime, feel free to check out our photos. The colorful fall leaves made a beautiful scene outside between buildings this year and the weather stay just about perfect too.

2011 World Dairy Expo Photo Album

World Dairy Expo coverage sponsored by Charleston Orwig Dairy Business Association Alltech Hoard’s Dairyman Accelerated Genetics
World Dairy Expo

Badger NAMA Meets At World Dairy Expo

Chuck Zimmerman

Badger NAMA, the local chapter of the Nation Agri-Marketing Association, held its annual reception/meeting during the 2011 World Dairy Expo. Here’s chapter president, Travis Maier, Morgan & Myers. I spoke with him about how the chapter is doing. He says chapter membership steady at over 120 and has actually been growing. This meeting is one of their main ones during the year. I think attendance at the meeting was really good. I don’t know how many were there but it was a large meeting. Students were a big part of the meeting too with a program just for them.

You can listen to my interview with Travis here: Travis Maier Interview

2011 World Dairy Expo Photo Album

World Dairy Expo coverage sponsored by Charleston Orwig Dairy Business Association Alltech Hoard’s Dairyman Accelerated Genetics
Audio, NAMA, World Dairy Expo

Zimfo Bytes

Melissa Sandfort

    Zimfo Bytes

  • MANA Crop Protection announced the introduction of a new state of the art Parallel Plus formulation, offering a powerful, more convenient combination of metolachlor and atrazine for use on corn and grain sorghum.
  • Koch Agronomic Services announced that it has completed an asset acquisition of AGROTAIN International.
  • The Nobel Foundation announced Dan Shechtman of Iowa State University, the U.S. Department of Energy’s Ames Laboratory and Israel’s Technion has won the 2011 Nobel Prize in Chemistry.
  • Behind the theme of “Two Decades Of No-Till Know-How,” the 2012 National No-Tillage Conference in St. Louis, Mo., from Jan. 11-14, 2012, promises to deliver the four most highly valuable days of learning experiences for cutting-edge farmers seeking to improve their no-till practices.
    Zimfo Bytes

    Remembering Steve Jobs

    Chuck Zimmerman

    I have to take time to add my voice to all the folks who are talking about the passing of Steve Jobs. This is not an attempt to chronicle his life or achievements. It’s more to say how much I appreciate them. The iPod, followed by podcasting was a huge driver for our business. We affectionately call it farm podcasting. For that I am very grateful. I’m sure he never thought that his devices would be used to deliver farm news and information. At least I don’t think he did.

    I never studied Steve’s life but I’ve been fascinated by his business and the products it produces. I have an iPhone/iPad/Macbook Air/iMac. I use them every day and they just plain work. As many of us Mac addicts like to say, “You can do everything on a PC that you can do on a Mac. It’s just more fun on a Mac!” I’m sure it’s more fun because Steve took risks and put his customer first, deciding to make something they want, not what he thought they wanted. That’s a lesson for all of us. So, that’s it I guess. We’ll miss you Steve but I’ve got a feeling that Apple will live on and continue your legacy.

    Uncategorized

    Corn and Cattle at Odds Over Renewable Fuels Standard

    Cindy Zimmerman

    Corn growers and cattle producers are at odds over new legislation introduced in the House that would change the Renewable Fuels Standard (RFS2).

    The bill, sponsored by Reps. Bob Goodlatte (R-VA) and Jim Costa (D-CA), would allow Congress to reduce the RFS requirement for ethanol whenever corn stocks are tight.

    Speaking on behalf of the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) during a press conference announcing the legislation, California beef cattle producer Kevin Kester said it would provide relief from tight corn supplies.

    “Cattlemen are not opposed to ethanol and we’re not looking for cheap corn. We simply want the federal government to get out of the marketplace and allow the market to work,” Kester said.

    Officials with the National Corn Growers Association (NCGA) say the measure would significantly weaken the RFS. “The U.S. ethanol industry is an integral part of job creation and economic opportunity throughout rural America,” said NCGA President Garry Niemeyer of Illinois. “This legislation would put progress made by the ethanol industry in jeopardy.”

    The RFS came into effect in 2005 and was reauthorized and expanded in 2007 to require the use of 12.6 billion gallons of corn ethanol this year and 13.2 billion gallons in 2012, topping out at 15 billion gallons in 2015.

    The Goodlatte-Costa bill would require a reduction in the RFS when the stocks-to-use ratio drops below 10 percent, up to a 50 percent reduction if the ratio falls below 5 percent. Under the current corn supply, the reduction would be 15-25 percent.

    Corn, Ethanol, NCBA, NCGA

    Tweeting Up At World Dairy Expo

    Chuck Zimmerman

    Here’s a definition of a Tweet Up: “A real world meeting between two or more people who know each other through the online Twitter service.”

    Pretty simple. The official World Dairy Expo Tweet Up took place yesterday afternoon. Here are some of our participants. We actually had more show up.

    So why a tweet up? Because it’s a good opportunity to meet someone face to face that you may only know via 140 character messages. I don’t know how many tweet ups I’ve been to at this point but I’ve always enjoyed the opportunity to meet people who I’ve gotten to “know” electronically. The tweet up is usually organized via tweets. Makes sense and shows the communication power of the channel. BTW. Adding free drink tickets and some munchies never hurts a tweet up!

    2011 World Dairy Expo Photo Album

    World Dairy Expo coverage sponsored by Charleston Orwig Dairy Business Association Alltech Hoard’s Dairyman Accelerated Genetics
    World Dairy Expo