NCFC Honors GROWMARK Employees

Cindy Zimmerman

ncfcAgwired congratulations go out to GROWMARK System employees who were recognized at the recent 2011 National Council of Farmer Cooperatives’ (NCFC) Information Fair, a communications contest that recognizes excellence in the publications, member relations, and marketing products of farmer cooperatives.

Earning first place honors were: Amy Bradford, corporate communications manager, and Ann Kafer, director, Corporate Communications & Marketing Services, in the Multimedia Presentation category; Dorothy Ahlenius, Corporate Communications & Marketing Services administrative coordinator, and Bradford in the Annual Meeting Promotional Materials category; and Jenny Haycraft, marketing communications manager, Karen Higgins, graphic designer, and Marty Dunton, GROWMARK FS seed business manager, in the Advertising Catalog/Product Guide category.

Second place honors were given to: Bradford in the Internal Identity/Awareness Campaign; and Haycraft, Dr. Jeff Bunting, crop protection marketing manager, and Kevin Black, insect and plant disease technical manager, in the Advertising Catalog/Product Guide category.

Third place honors were earned by: Haycraft, Bunting, and Black in the Advertising Catalog/Product Guide category.

Honorable mention went to: Haycraft, Dunton, Higgins, and Lance Ruppert, FS Seed sales and marketing manager, in the Advertising Catalog/Product Guide category; and Haycraft, Dr. Howard Brown, manager, agronomy services, and Mike Scheer, manager, agronomy marketing and communications, in the Direct Mail category.

NCFC is a national association representing America’s farmer cooperatives. There are nearly 3,000 farmer cooperatives across the U.S. whose members include a majority of our nation’s more than 2 million farmers, ranchers and growers.

GROWMARK

I’ve Given Up…

Melissa Sandfort

On rolling out and cutting and frosting Christmas cookies. When I start making cookies the first of December and don’t finish until about a week before Christmas, and when my freezer is overflowing with about 30 dozen cookies, 6 different kinds, I just really don’t feel like going to all that hassle. Is that a Christmas cookie crime?

I’m a professed “love to cook and bake” kind of girl. But I think that love only goes as far as what kitchen ettiquette has imposed on me in 2011. This cookie cutter and donut cutter (L to R respectively) belonged to my grandmother’s grandmother. That would be … my great, great grandmother. I think. Either way, she was born in 1860 and married at the age of 31. I’m guessing she was using these cutters about that time; my great-grandmother and my grandmother both used them, too.

That was back when everything was homemade and homegrown. And on days when I just don’t feel like “taking care of my man” (and by that I mean the old-fashioned version of welcoming him home to a kitchen full of homemade biscuits, gravy, corn, green beans, turkey and stuffing), I have been known to open a bag of rice and make it on the stove. Yes, I said a bag of rice. The kind that’s pre-packaged and processed and only costs $1.39.

No one ever said I was Betty Crocker.

But I do own some cookie cutters of my own. Maybe someday I’ll once again decide that frosted shapely sugar cookies are worth the time. I doubt, however, they’ll get as much use as these.

Until we walk again …

Uncategorized

NFocus Forums for Agribusiness in August

Cindy Zimmerman

NFocusMajor corn and soybean producers and agribusiness suppliers will convene this August for the NFocus Forums for Agribusiness.

“We are providing the opportunity for 30 to 40 large-acreage corn and soybean producers to meet in one-on-one private sessions with key suppliers,” says Kim Nicholson, managing partner of NFocus Partners, LLC. “With the number of producers farming 5,000 acres or more of corn or soybeans having grown four-fold in just the past 5 years, the purchasing dynamics and supplier needs for this producer group has changed dramatically. What makes the NFocus Forums for Agribusiness efficient is that it brings together key decision makers from both major producers and suppliers in an organized strategic setting.”

NFocus Partners is partnering with BeckAg to pre-screen forum participants. Suppliers will have the option of 10 to 15 meetings with producers who are matched to suppliers and their products and services. “Suppliers will have agendas and pre-call planning information well in advance of the meetings to allow for customized presentations for each producer,” says Stephanie Liska, president of BeckAg.

The NFocus Forums for Agribusiness will be held August 22-25, 2011, at Legacy Lodge, located at Lake Lanier Islands, Georgia. For more information, visit www.nfocusforums.com/home.

Corn, Events, Farming, Soybean

Texas Corn Growers Stress Water Grows Jobs

Cindy Zimmerman

No doubt that water use issues are among the biggest challenges facing agricultural producers nationwide, but particularly in states where water is at a premium. That’s why corn growers are getting more pro-active in states like Texas.

texas cornThe Texas Corn Producers rolled out a new public information campaign just this week, with the message that water conservation goals can be achieved without severe restrictions on irrigation that would damage the economy of Texas High Plains.

“Agriculture brings billions of dollars into the economy of the Panhandle and South Plains every year and is the main driver of economic growth in the region,” said David Gibson, Executive Director of the Texas Corn Producers Board. “Through research and development of new technology, we are finding ways to grow more crops with less water. This means we can conserve water for future generations without sacrificing economic growth today.”

The campaign includes televised public service announcements, a 10 minute video and a new website, www.WaterGrowsJobs.org, with the slogan “Water grows our economy; let’s make it last.”

Watch the video here:

Corn, Video

New Holland Construction Intros New Super Boom Skid Steers

Chuck Zimmerman

New Holland Construction Super Boom Skid SteerThe New Holland Construction new Super Boom skid steer loaders drew a lot of attention at the National Farm Machinery Show today. These 200 Series machines have been years in the making. I spoke with Dave December, Marketing Manager, New Holland Construction and Jorge De Hoyos, Global Product Marketing Manager to learn all about these new products. They sell skid steer loaders throughout their dealer network that includes ag equipment dealers.

With the new 200 Series, New Holland maintains the best-in-class forward dump height and reach with the Super Boom® loader vertical lift design – and introduces breakthrough productivity improvements. The new skid steers culminate five years of customer research, design and engineering improvements.

“New Holland skid steers are built around our customers’ needs. Our engineers used input from hundreds of customers to design the new 200 Series line-up,” said Dave December, marketing manager at New Holland Construction. “The New Holland skid steer loaders have been engineered from the ground up. No matter what your line of work, agriculture, landscaping or construction, you’ll work faster, smarter and more profitably with our new skid steers.”

You can listen to my interview with David and Jorge here: Skid Steer Introduction Interview

There are a number of other photos of the new skid steers in my photo album: 2011 National Farm Machinery Show Photo Album

Super Boom Road ShowIn our interview you can hear all about the New Holland Construction Super Boom Road Show which is an open house customer event held at New Holland dealerships across North America. The event includes a skid steer challenge featuring New Holland’s new 200 Series skid steer loaders.

The Super Boom Road Show will take place at 35 New Holland dealerships across the United States and Canada. Highlighting each event is a skid steer challenge where equipment operators compete for the best time on a special course. Prizes and cash are awarded to the top finishers. In addition, the operator who wins each local competition will be flown to Louisville, Ky., to compete in a final competition during GIE+EXPO 2011 (Oct. 27-29) to determine the North American champion. The grand prize winner will receive a new, fully-loaded New Holland 200 Series skid steer loader – valued at $35,000 – for their sponsoring company, plus $5,000 and New Holland gear for the operator.

AgWired coverage at the National Farm Machinery Show is sponsored by:
New Holland

Agribusiness, Audio, Equipment, National Farm Machinery Show, New Holland, Video

Another Record Breaking Harvest for All

Cindy Zimmerman

Farm Bureau families helped to feed even more hungry Americans in 2010.

American Farm Bureau reports that farm and ranch families of the organization raised more than $273,000 last year and donated more than 18 million pounds of food to hungry Americans as part of Farm Bureau’s “Harvest for All” program through Feeding America. That is the combined equivalent of more than 16 million meals!

The money raised, food donated and meal equivalents in 2010 all shattered program records. The Harvest for All Program was established in 2003.

In fact, the 18 million pounds of food donated by Farm Bureau families in 2010 was nearly three times as great as the 6.7 million pounds donated in 2008, the previous record. The $273,000 in funds donated in 2010 surpassed the 2009 level of $213,000, which was also a record. And the number of meal equivalents served at 16 million exceeded the previous high of 6.4 million, also set in 2008, by nearly 10 million meal equivalents.

Read more here.

AFBF

National Farm Machinery Show Underway

Chuck Zimmerman

We’ve got a good crowd out early at the National Farm Machinery Show. I did a walk around to take random photos while we were getting internet access fixed in the media room so there are a lot of new ones in there.

2011 National Farm Machinery Show Photo Album

My next step is to begin conducting interviews with sponsors and others. Time to hit the floor!

AgWired coverage at the National Farm Machinery Show is sponsored by:
New Holland

National Farm Machinery Show

iPhone and Android Lead Smartphone Pack

Chuck Zimmerman

When it comes to smartphone platforms our audience is using a mix with iPhone/Android/Blackberry on top. According to our poll 32% say they use iPhone, 32% are using Android, 28 % are using Blackberry and way back we have 5% saying Other and only 3% saying Windows. Interesting and I think we’ll have to ask this question again later this year since there are going to be a lot of changes in mobile phone carrier systems and phones. So, does this surprise you? About what you expected?

Our next ZimmPoll is now live and asks the question, “What biofuel feedstock do you think has best future?” Let us know what you think and thank you for participating.

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

ZimmPoll

AHA Heart-Check Logo on Beef

Melissa Sandfort

Thanks in part to a partnership with the Beef Checkoff Program, the American Heart Association has listed three beef cuts as part of its Food Certification Program. This program places the association’s heart-check mark on food packages to helps healthy consumers over age 2 identify foods that meet criteria for saturated fat and cholesterol.

The three beef cuts that met the American Heart Association’s criteria for extra lean and now are certified to display the heart-check mark include:

— Boneless Top Sirloin Petite Roast (select grade)
— Top Sirloin Filet (select grade)
— Top Sirloin Kabob (select grade)

The American Heart Association’s heart-check mark is the one of the most trusted icons on food packaging today – and it continues to resonate with health-conscious shoppers, even in a challenging economy. In fact, more than 83 percent of consumers have an aided awareness of the heart-check mark, and nearly 75 percent of primary grocery shoppers say the heart-check mark improves the likelihood that they’ll buy a product.

This certification allows retailers to display the heart-check mark on fresh case beef packages, promoting the health benefits of a serving of these particular beef cuts to their customers.

To learn more about receiving the American Heart Association’s certification, please visit www.BeefRetail.org.

Beef

Zimfo Bytes

Melissa Sandfort

    Zimfo Bytes

  • Syngenta announced it has received full deregulation for its corn amylase trait from the USDA. Syngenta will sell corn seed with the amylase trait as Enogen corn seed.
  • John Deere is hosting Driver Green events at dealerships across the country, from February through July, for consumers to see and test drive the latest utility tractors and other equipment available from John Deere.
  • The next president of the National Chicken Council will be Mike Brown, currently senior vice president for legislative affairs of the American Meat Institute.
  • Keith Baioni, business manager of crop protection products for Jimmy Sanders, Cleveland, Miss., and Steve Muhlenbruch, agronomist for Farmer’s Cooperative Company, Dows, Iowa, were selected as Resistance Fighters of the Year for their leadership and advocacy efforts to manage glyphosate-resistant weeds in 2010.
    Zimfo Bytes