The AgWired iPhone App showed up during the board meetings at the Cattle Industry Summer Conference. I can’t tell you how excited and proud I was to see ZimmComm client John Kleiboeker, Missouri Beef Industry Council Executive Director, showing other beef producers a photo that he called up on his iPhone from the AgWired App. I just happened to be walking by at the time and didn’t even know John had downloaded the app.
Now how cool is that? I’m telling you folks. Apps are where it’s at!
If you haven’t obtained your Masters of Beef Advocacy diploma yet, what are you waiting for? This Checkoff funded program can be completed online and according to the Dean of the program, Daren Williams, NCBA, over 1,500 beef producers have done so ranging in age from 8 to 80 yrs. old! This is a photo of Daren from our media reception. Here’s what the MBA program is all about:
. . . equipping beef producers across the country to tell their story in presentations to schools and church/civic groups, through local media and in the “virtual” world of the Internet.
Sound like something you want to or should do? Then get started by filling out the online application. Daren Williams Interview
We didn’t have an official National Beef Ambassadors Update on the Cattle Industry Summer Conference schedule although that might be an interesting session. However, I did meet with three of our team in the media room to find out what they’ve been up to and where they’re going next.
Pictured (l-r) are Becky Vraspir, Malorie Bankhead and Jackson Alexander. Each of these outstanding young evangelists for the beef industry have been very active speaking out at various meetings and conferences. Here at the conference they came in early to tour the NCBA and CBB offices where they got some additional training. It’s great to see them here since I’ve just got a feeling that you’ll be seeing a lot more of them in the future.
You can follow the National Beef Ambassadors on their website, blog, facebook page and Twitter. Beef Ambassadors Interview
Prior to the end of the Cattle Industry Summer Convention I came across some of the leaders of the NCBA, CBB and Federation of State Beef Councils having a discussion. I am quite happy to see this effort and think it’s a good sign for the future. There have been some very tense and emotional moments here at the conference but hopefully some of the issues have been ironed out and this type of interaction will lead to greater understandings and cooperation in the future.
I’ll be heading back to ZimmComm World Headquarters today but have more coverage of the conference that I’ll try to get posted tomorrow before heading on the the next agventure.
At the Cattle Industry Summer Conference second general session Temple Grandin was presented with a special Lifetime Achievement Award from NCBA. We heard some stories about the making of her HBO movie and she made a few remarks.
She said that back in the ’70’s there would be people that would help out a “quirky” kid and we need more of them today. She talked about the press conferences she has attended recently where the media had lots of questions about cattle stuff. She told them about slaughter plants, not harvest plants, and said they had no problem with that. She says it shows that consumers have questions and we have to do a better job of communicating with them. Temple Grandin Award Remarks
The CBB Update Session was standing room only today. It also went over on time but there were some serious issues being discussed. This session is an official meeting of the Beef Board at which they take action as needed on issues that come before them. There were several today.
I thought I would post some of the remarks made from the podium for you. First I’ve got the financial report that was presented by Secretary/Treasurer Robert Fountain, Jr. The board is facing reduced revenues. He reported that the 2011 budget has declined by 24 percent since 2007. CBB Financial Report
Next up is the management report by CBB CEO Tom Ramey. In light of the budget restrictions he told the board that they must monitor and safe guard funds and spend them as wisely and effectively as possible to achieve their goals. CBB Management Report
Syngenta Seeds has teamed up with John Deere Credit to offer grower financing solutions through Farm PlanTM for the 2011 crop season. Qualified growers purchasing Garst®, Golden Harvest® and NK® brand seed products will be eligible to receive season-long financing, with attractive cash discounts, at competitive interest rates through Farm Plan.
Chuck Lee, head of Syngenta Seeds corn and soybean marketing, says they look forward to making financing an option for their customers. “At Syngenta, we are always looking for ways to help growers build a successful and profitable business,” he said.
“Farm Plan is a great fit with Syngenta because we serve the same customer, ” said Scott Cline, vice president of marketing at John Deere Credit. “Our strategic relationship with Syngenta is helping us achieve our goal of providing dependable solutions that help qualified producers get what they need when they need it.”
Qualified growers will have access to financing through Farm Plan this coming fall.
The Sustainable Beef Resource Center was announced during the Cattle Industry Summer Conference. It is actually a re-name of the Growth Enhancement Technology Team (GET IT).
The Chairman of the SBRC is Paul Parker, Pfizer Animal Health. He’s pictured here being interviewed by Evan Slack and his light blue bumpered new iPhone. I interviewed Paul with mine!
Paul says the name was changed to better reflect their mission while not raising alarms with consumers. The mission is to provide information to fill the gap in information about technologies to enhance the production of beef. Paul Parker Interview
Thank you once again to Merial for not only sponsoring the media room at the Cattle Industry Summer Conference but also our media reception. It’s a very nice opportunity to meet in a relaxed social atmosphere without having to “work.”
Pictured is Daren Williams, NCBA, welcoming us and thanking our sponsor. We have a great group of ag media folks here at the conference and you can find photos of them hard at work in the photo album.
The NCBA President Elect is Bill Donald from Montana. He’s pictured here speaking with CBB Vice Chairman, Tom Jones. I talked with Bill about the issues facing cattle producers.
Bill says there are several issues. They include the death tax, the GIPSA rules and the decline of the U.S. cattle herd. Some of these are more time sensitive than others and he says NCBA is hard at work on them. When it comes to the decline in the cow herd he says one ramification is losing infrastructure which would be devastating to the future of the industry. Bill Donald Interview
