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

Moore Reasons To Attend Brownfield Party

Chuck Zimmerman

Jeff MooreHere’s Jeff Moore, Account Executive, Brownfield Ag News, with some “moore” reasons you should attend a Thursday night Brownfield Party at the NAMA convention. Jeff has been to eight of these events. He says it’s all about taking some time to enjoy fellowship with clients and friends.

I did not see him ride the bull at PBR Big Sky but he says he tried last year and got a time of about 5 seconds. I wonder who got the best time during the party.

Jeff says it’s important to develop personal relationships in business and the party allows that to happen: Interview with Jeff Moore

Follow Jeff on Twitter.

2011 Agri-Marketing Conference Photo Album

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

Do Vegetarians Have Smaller Brains?

Melissa Sandfort

Scientists at the Department of Physiology, Anatomy and Genetics, University of Oxford, have discovered that going veggie could be bad for your brain – with those on a meat-free diet six times more likely to suffer brain shrinkage.

The study involved tests and brain scans on community-dwelling volunteers aged 61 to 87 years without cognitive impairment at enrolment, over a period of five years. When the volunteers were retested five years later the medics found those with the lowest levels of vitamin B12 were also the most likely to have brain shrinkage. It confirms earlier research showing a link between brain atrophy and low levels of B12.

Vegans are the most likely to be deficient because the best sources of the vitamin are meat, particularly liver, milk and fish.

This study confirms other findings which shows that overall human brain sizes have reduced by an average 11 percent since we adopted an agricultural diet based on cereal grains rather than the meat-based diet of our Palaeolithic ancestors.

Source: The Healthy Skeptic

Beef, Poultry

CAMA Ontario Webinar On New Media and Farmers

Chuck Zimmerman

The Ontario chapter of the Canadian Agri-Marketing Association wants to help you come to grips with the new and social media of today and how that connects to farmers.

CAMA Ontario will be hosting a one-hour webinar on Wednesday, April 27, 2011 at 2:30 p.m. eastern time.

“Engaging Farmers in the New Media Platform” – Join speaker Shaun Haney, owner of Real Agriculture, farm operator, and cereal and canola seed distributor from Picture Butte, Alberta for CAMA Ontario’s webinar. Shaun will discuss why agriculture has a fit in social media, and its future in how farmers communicate. He will also touch upon the discrepancies between U.S. and Canadian social media, and explain why producers identify with certain platforms, including his site, RealAgriculture.com.

The cost is $30. To register, click on the following link: http://cama.org/Default.aspx?tabid=262&ModuleID=788&ItemID=63&mctl=EventDetails.

Shaun is a founding board member of the AgChat Foundation.

Social Networking

How Do uShip Ag Equipment or Livestock

Chuck Zimmerman

If you’re shipping heavy ag equipment or livestock then uShip has some ideas they asked us to pass along. A big one is what to do with an empty truck or trailer after it makes a drop off. How about putting something in it for the return trip? It can not only save you money but helps the environment at the same time. You can learn more about Green Shipping on their website. Watch the video to learn how it works.



Since 2004, uShip has made transport and trucking more affordable and efficient. We’ve matched hundreds of thousands of customers’ shipments with the extra space in transporters’ trucks, reducing the number of empty miles on the road and saving people millions of dollars in lowered delivery costs.

But that’s only half of the equation. uShip also has a long-standing partnership with TerraPass, the award-winning carbon offset provider, to purchase credits to further neutralize the negative impact of carbon dioxide emissions created from transport jobs booked on uShip. Whether you’re a customer or a transporter, you can easily participate by purchasing TerraPass credits to make a difference.

Once you’ve created an account you can search to find people and businesses that have heavy haul ag equipment or livestock that they need shipped.

Agribusiness, Environment, Equipment, Video

Leading Ag Investment Meeting Offers Comp Passes To Investors

Chuck Zimmerman

A little incentive has been given to investors with an “eye on agriculture.” According to FC Business Intelligence demand is high for the latest market insight on global ag opportunities.

This unique forum, taking place in Singapore (June 29-30), will bring together institutional and private investors with top Ag fund managers, to debate strategies for participating in agriculture and surrounding investments.

If you’re an institutional or private investor looking to allocate funds in agriculture and would like to be considered for a complimentary pass, please get in touch directly with George Kiley, Investment Director, FC Business Intelligence on gkiley@aginvestconference.com or + 44 (0)207 3757 545.

As well as timely discussions on private equity investment in the full agriculture supply chain, the challenges and benefits of investing internationally and capitalizing on farmland investment, time has been set aside specifically for one-on-one networking. Read More

International

Zimfo Bytes

Melissa Sandfort

    Zimfo Bytes

  • Osborn & Barr welcomes the return of Mark Green to the agency’s management team as vice president, director of strategic innovation.
  • Farmers and ranchers may be spending more time online now than they did five years ago, but they may not be satisfied with their results, according to a recent study.
  • A new resource developed by Iowa State University’s Corn and Soybean Initiative is an interactive collection of maps and related resources designed to help growers and agribusinesses more easily track and manage crop pests of regional importance.
  • New Alion herbicide from Bayer CropScience LP is now registered by the Environmental Protection Agency for use in tree nuts and vines, citrus, stone and pome fruits.
    Zimfo Bytes

    Combo of Factors Causing Higher Food Prices

    Chuck Zimmerman

    Our latest ZimmPoll asked the question, “What causes higher food prices?” Most people responding seem to believe it’s a combination of factors – 47%. That’s followed by higher gas/energy costs at 23%, speculators at 18%, ethanol at 9% and weather at 3%. I wonder how the response would compare to an audience for a general news website like Fox or CNN. What do you think?

    Our new ZimmPoll is now live and asks the question, “How do farmers compare in social media use?” Let us know what you think and thanks for your your participation.

    And if you have any questions you want to suggest for future ZimmPolls please let us know.

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

    Energy, Food, ZimmPoll

    FFA Leaders Join Novus Science Day

    Cindy Zimmerman

    Two National FFA officers and a regional director for the National FFA Foundation were among those who participated in the third annual “Science in Action: A Foundation for Dynamic Careers” Day sponsored by Novus International.

    NovusChristopher Bell with the FFA Foundation said it was a good opportunity for the officers to visit an agricultural company that is making a difference in the world. “Novus has put a lot of emphasis on sustainability in agriculture and that’s becoming one of our big initiatives in the FFA is making sure that our 523,000 students are practicing sustainable agriculture,” he said.

    “I’m very passionate about agriculture and it’s great to come here today and visit with people from Novus and see the passion that they have for making a difference in the agriculture industry,” said National FFA Secretary Landan Schaffert of Colorado, pictured on the right next to Christopher listening to Novus’ Jim Richards on the laboratory portion of the tour.

    NovusShannon Norris of New Mexico, who serves as Western Region Vice President for FFA, is pursuing a career in agricultural communications and possibly a doctorate in ruminant nutrition so she was very interested in getting to know the people at Novus. “It’s interesting to see how the mission of the company is intertwined with the values of each individual employee,” she said.

    You can listen to my interview with Christopher, Landan and Shannon here: Interview with FFA representatives on Novus Science Day

    Novus Science in Action Day 2011 Photos

    Audio, Education, FFA, Novus International, Sustainability