Farm Podcaster Tool

Chuck Zimmerman

Here’s a great gift for your favorite farm podcaster. A USB microphone made by Samson that also looks very cool on your desktop or wherever you need to record. It’s the Meteor Mic.

Meteor Mic is the universal solution for recording music on your computer. Perfect for your home studio, Meteor Mic is also ideal for Skype, iChat or voice recognition software. With Meteor Mic, you can make incredible recordings that are out of this world.

Since there’s no need for drivers, you can start recording right out of the box on any computer. And Meteor Mic is compatible with most computer-based digital audio workstations. A USB cable and carry pouch are also included.

Read all about it on their website.

Equipment

Zimfo Bytes

Melissa Sandfort

    Zimfo Bytes

  • Bayer CropScience and DuPont announced that they have entered into a global licensing agreement for a canola herbicide tolerance trait.
  • Verde Bio-Science has added a line of patent-pending EPA-registered and USDA-certified organic products available for licensing by others.
  • GROWMARK announced it intends to purchase the assets of Select Seed, Camden, Ind.
  • A new online tool to help farmers decide which cover crops will benefit their row crop rotation is now available in Indiana.
    Zimfo Bytes

    Getting Logistical With GROWMARK

    Chuck Zimmerman

    Here’s the latest installment of our “Getting To Know GROWMARK” series. I talked logistics with Tracy Mack.

    He says they deal with storage and movement. That includes well over 100,000 truck loads of product a year, 650 barge loads, 9,000 rail cars and an occasional vessel. They do wholesale operations for members but also have a supply chain optimization tool they take out to them to analyze their retail movements, warehousing and blending. Then they can make sure it’s all integrated and optimized.

    Tracy sees lots of growth and price volatility in the future for the products they move and the freight to move the products. It’s fast moving with lots of competitive pressures. Since things have to move fast it makes “every day different and more exciting.” Flexibility is key for them.

    You can listen to my interview with Tracy here and learn even more about GROWMARK: Tracy Mack Interview

    Audio, GROWMARK

    Stealth Tweet Photo

    Chuck Zimmerman

    You never know when your photo is being taken these days thanks to smart phones. So while I was talking about new media I was also being tweeted via Twitpic, courtesy of Janice Person aka @JPLovesCOTTON.

    I was in St. Louis visiting with Monsanto and learning more about some of the things they are doing in corporate communications. Hopefully it was a two way learning/sharing experience!

    By the way, we’re nearing the deadline to submit nominations in the 2011 Farm Mom of the Year Contest.

    Uncategorized

    Teixeira Joins International Agri-Center

    Melissa Sandfort

    The International Agri-Center announced that it has named Liza Teixeira as Director of Communications. In her role, Teixeira will manage communications for the International Agri-Center, World Ag Expo, California Antique Farm Equipment Show and the Heritage Complex.

    Teixeira graduated from California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo with a Bachelor of Science degree in agricultural science with minors in both agricultural communications and agricultural business. Born and raised in California’s Central Valley, she will use her background to relate with the changing needs of the agriculture industry.

    Prior to the International Agri-Center, Teixeira worked as the Public Relations Specialist for the California Strawberry Commission. In her role, she provided support for media relations, industry communications and public outreach. Most recently, she was responsible for membership, communications and education programs as Program Coordinator for the Tulare County Farm Bureau.

    Agribusiness, Farm Shows

    Alltech Opens Iowa Office

    Cindy Zimmerman

    Alltech moved into the heartland of America this week with the opening of the animal health and nutrition company’s newest location in Ames, Iowa.

    alltechFrom left to right, Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Bill Northey, Lieutenant Governor Kim Reynolds, Alltech Director of North America Dr. Mark Lyons, Iowa Governor Terry Branstad and Alltech President and Founder Dr. Pearse Lyons did the ribbon cutting honors to open the company’s 16th office in North America on Wednesday.

    Governor Branstad said he was pleased to welcome Alltech to Iowa. “Alltech has consistently demonstrated a commitment to quality in all facets of their business and I believe they will thrive in Iowa where they will have access to a superior workforce and provide valuable resources to Iowa’s agriculture and livestock industry.”

    The new Alltech facility will support sales in Iowa, offer a local support site for its growing customer base and help the company to develop a closer partnership with Iowa State University.

    Alltech

    The Watering Hole

    Melissa Sandfort

    I took a pottery class once in college. I think I made a coffee mug or an ash tray with the help of one of my artistic friends. That piece of clay wouldn’t mold if I willed it to.

    But this piece of artwork was made to be both beautiful and functional. It’s a vintage whiskey jug or water jug. They’d hand-pump the cold water from the well into this jug, soak a burlap cloth in water and wrap it around to keep it cool, and take it out to the threshers in the field on a hot afternoon.

    It’s from the Macomb Pottery company, incorporated in 1880, which eventually became Plant Number Three of Western Stoneware Co in 1906. The most recognizable stoneware they produced was the Cardinal brand of redware along with other specialty lines of stoneware and pottery. Facilities were sold in 1956.

    I bet this jug has seen a lot of whiskey and water.

    Until we walk again … ]

    Uncategorized

    Missouri Farmers Rally to Support Changes To Prop B

    Chuck Zimmerman

    Here’s to hoping Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon will sign SB 113 into law to try to bring a little common sense to the misguided Prop B that the wackos at HSUS conned voters into supporting. This afternoon a rally was held on the Capitol steps and organized and promoted by Missouri farm groups. You can find out more at Missouri Farmers Care.

    Rally to support Missouri Farmers! Using Prop B as a Trojan Horse, radical animal rights groups launched an attack on Missouri agriculture. Now, with Governor Nixon’s help, Missouri Farmers and animal welfare advocates have joined together to create a Missouri solution, but groups like HSUS are none too happy and are planning to protest. We need to send a strong message that Missouri will always Stand Up For Farmers!

    I think they did!

    Animal Activists

    AgHaven Survey Says Farmers Spending More Time Online

    Chuck Zimmerman

    Farmers may be spending more time online but according to a survey by AgHaven, they are frustrated by the results. This frustration is one of the main reasons why AgHaven was created according to AgHaven President, Srik Soogoor. I spoke with him at the NAMA conference to learn more.

    The farmers and ranchers surveyed who spent more than 30 minutes each day on the Internet jumped from 31 percent five years ago to 75 percent today, according to a new survey conducted by AgHaven. And while 12 percent say they did not use the Internet five years ago, that number has decreased to just 3 percent today.

    AgHaven surveyed more than 100 farmers and ranchers to find out their online habits. The results uncovered that more than 80 percent of those surveyed use Google for their ag-related searches, but that nearly half of those surveyed were frustrated when search results were not relevant and there were too many options and answers.

    Listen in to my chat with Srik during the Agri-Marketing Conference Connection Point: Interview with Srik Soogoor

    2011 Agri-Marketing Conference Photo Album

    AgWired coverage of the 2011 Agri-Marketing Conference is sponsored by
    Audio, NAMA

    Paulsen Thought Paper On Rural Lifestyle Buying Decisions

    Chuck Zimmerman

    Paulsen MarketingDuring the Agri-Marketing Conference I spoke with Alicia DeGeest (right) and Sara Steever, Paulsen Marketing about their latest thought paper titled, “Rural Lifestylers are Changing the Way They Research and Buy Products.” This ought to catch some attention out there in the AgWired community since this has been discussed a lot over the last couple years. The goal of this project was to learn how online communities, brand advocates and customer reviews are influencing purchase decisions. The study included in person and emailed surveys.

    In an earlier study they found that the adoption rate of new technologies like internet penetration between rural and urban people is nearly the same. In this study they wanted to see if rural lifestylers were making decisions outside the normal research processes. Here are some key findings:

    1. The rural lifestyle consumers are adopting social media practices at the same rate as general consumers.
    2. Like general consumers, rural lifestyle consumers rely on two different types of influencers to help them form brand perceptions and make purchase decisions: micro influencers and macro influencers.
    3. The sales process has been altered to reflect a continuous feedback loop between current customers and prospective customers.

    Get the full scoop on what Paulsen learned: Interview with Paulsen Marketing

    Thanks to Denny Eilers for taking the photo.

    2011 Agri-Marketing Conference Photo Album

    AgWired coverage of the 2011 Agri-Marketing Conference is sponsored by
    Agencies, Audio, NAMA