We’re leaving beef month behind to enter into dairy month. Midwest Dairy Association invites you to celebrate and learn how dairy can make sense for you.
June Dairy Month started out as a promotion to help distribute extra milk when cows started on pasture in the warm summer months. Today, its rich history continues, with communities, companies and people from all over the country observing June Dairy Month in a variety of ways. In the Midwest, dairy farms and families often open their gates to visitors at breakfasts and tours, while stores and other business feature dairy products. We’re excited to share facts and information about June Dairy Month, ones we hope you can use for your own recognition of the observance.
Hidden Valley Brings You The Farmhouse
With a name like Farmhouse it was a natural for a post on AgWired.
The makers of Hidden Valley® Salad Dressings are pleased to announce the introduction of Hidden Valley® Farmhouse Originals Dressings. These four new flavors step beyond ranch to add fresh from the farm tasting flavors and robust taste to even the simplest of dishes and make vegetables delectable for the entire family.
“Hidden Valley has always aimed to bring farm-fresh tasting flavors to the table,” said Priscilla Tuan, Hidden Valley Marketing Manager. “We’re thrilled to extend the brand to include flavors that go beyond ranch and help families enjoy more vegetables and wholesome meals together.”
Farmhouse Originals Roasted Onion Parmesan – Try this dressing on your green salads as well as in these other delicious dishes: pasta salad, potato salad and panini sandwiches.
Farmhouse Originals Hickory Bacon and Onion – Enjoy the tongue-tingling taste of hickory smoked bacon with a hint of roasted onion. From slaws to your favorite greens, it brings home the flavors you love.
Farmhouse Originals Garden Tomato & Bacon – Sweet, smoky and pleasingly tangy, this delectable dressing has a rustic twist. Try it on wedges of iceberg lettuce, as a dip for your favorite veggies, or in a delicious three bean salad.
Farmhouse Originals Creamy Parmesan – Mouth-watering Parmesan blends perfectly with tangy buttermilk for a simply delicious homestyle topping for salads and veggies.
Zimfo Bytes
- Carbon Credited Farming has named Brian Sullivan as the new CEO of the Green Oil and Agroforestry Division, and Barry McWilliams as the new CEO of Commercial and Operational Activities.
- Former United Soybean Board farmer-leader Sander “Sandy” Ludeman will be receiving the Siehl Prize for Excellence in Agriculture in the category of production agriculture from the University of Minnesota.
- BASF announced that Stamina fungicide seed treatment use has been expanded to include a number of crops, including cotton, dried peas and beans, shelled peas and beans, sorghum, edible legumes, oats, sugar beets and sunflower contained in supplemental labeling.
- Producer leaders of Dairy Management Inc. (DMI), the National Dairy Promotion and Research Board (NDB) and the United Dairy Industry Association (UDIA) announced their officers. Click here for the complete list.

Hanging Out At The Corn Crib
Some corn powered baseball is going to happen in Normal, IL on Tuesday evening and Cindy and I will be on location courtesy of the Illinois Corn Growers. We’ll be at the Crib, the Corn Crib to be precise, for the home opener of the Normal CornBelters. They’ll take on the Windy City Thunderbolts at 7pm. The Corn Crib is presented by Illinois Corn Growers. You can hear Lindsay Mitchell explain more about the sponsorship in her latest podcast below. Look for some awesome live agriblogging to happen here starting late tomorrow evening. Illinois Corn Marketing Board Chairman, Jim Rapp, will throw the first pitch!
The Normal CornBelters are starting their 2010 inaugural season as a member of the West Division of the independent Frontier League. The Frontier League is comprised of twelve teams in the Midwest and is not affiliated with a Major League Baseball team. Today, the West Division consists of Evansville Otters of Evansville, Indiana. The Florence Freedom in Florence, Kentucky. The Gateway Grizzlies in Sauget, Illinois. The River City Rascals in O’Fallon, Missouri. The Southern Illinois Miners in Marion, Illinois.
Zachary Larson Begins Borlaug Summer Internship
Here is the first in a series of posts from Zachary Larson, Borlaug Summer Intern at Nanjing Agricultural University in China:
It has almost been a week since I came here to China, and it has been quite an incredible week. I have experienced enough in this city in just five days to easily make this the most memorable trip I have been on, but I still have almost three months more of activity here in China. I was expecting to be welcomed with a streak of hot weather much more comparable to Texas or Louisiana, but my first initial day here was also the day of a large cold rainy spell.
Beyond the weather, I was pleasantly surprised when I was finally able to see Nanjing Agricultural University. This university, while still perhaps lacking in some areas compared to our own agricultural universities, is still quite good. The campus scenery in and around Nanjing is quite incredible. While the buildings around here range from incredibly old to just constructed, the hodge-podge scenery of this place gives it a certain character that every university seems to develop.
I quickly got used to walking around and saw many unique places in and around the university. Just like any university, this place has a gigantic library, several incredibly scenic student buildings, cafeterias, surrounding restaurants, and plenty of sketchy (but yet very tasty eateries). But, compared to American universities, the landscape is obviously different, and this shapes the students lives in and around the university. Read More
John Deere To Build Tractor Museum
How about another John Deere story? The company is going to build a museum in Waterloo, IA to focus on the history of the tractor and engine design manufacturing.
Construction on the John Deere Waterloo Tractor and Engine History Museum will begin in late 2010 with opening of the facility scheduled for late 2011. The museum will be an addition to John Deere attractions in Iowa, Illinois and Germany as well as visitor centers at John Deere factories around the world.
“The public is interested in learning more about the company’s past, present and future,” said Bill Becker, director, global brand management. “This new museum will complement other John Deere-branded properties by amplifying the tractor and engine history of the company and enabling visitors to explore the development and capabilities of these products more in-depth.”
The tractor and engine museum will include artifacts and interactive exhibits to celebrate the rich history and dynamic growth of the tractor business at John Deere, which today is the world’s leading provider of agricultural equipment.
Deere currently operates a historic site in Grand Detour, Illinois, where John Deere started his business in 1837. In addition, Deere offers the John Deere Pavilion and John Deere Store in Moline; the John Deere Harvester Works visitors’ center in East Moline, Illinois; the John Deere Forum in Mannheim, Germany; and visitor centers in other John Deere’s facilities.
Deere Renews Marketing Center Building Plans
John Deere is renewing its plan to build a marketing and sales center in northwest Olathe, KS.
This 126,150 square-foot facility will house up to 500 marketing professionals who will provide support and service to John Deere sales branches and agriculture and turf dealerships in the U.S., Canada, Australia, and New Zealand.
“The decision to resume construction reaffirms our commitment to the ag and turf equipment business and to the local area,” said John Lagemann, vice president of agriculture and turf equipment, sales and marketing. “The building will feature new construction technology to support efforts to build according to greener, cleaner environmental standards.”
As originally intended, this state-of-the art facility will meet the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Green Building Certification, Gold Level.
The new single-building facility will have expanded meeting and training rooms, new technology for digital communications and information systems, and an open-office atmosphere to facilitate teamwork in strategic and tactical marketing initiatives. There will be unimpeded visibility to the outside and excellent utilization of natural light.
Construction for the new building will begin this June and is expected to be completed in August 2011.
Meet AgChat Foundation Board Member Ray Prock, Jr.
What better timing could there be to meet a dairy farmer from California? You know what I’m talking about. Let’s meet Ray Prock, Ray-Lin Dairy. Ray serves with me on the board of the AgChat Foundation. We got together on the phone today to talk about the Foundation and farmer use of social media. He’s one of the ones who’s walking the talk.
Ray is a second generation dairy farmer in Central CA working to secure a future for the third and future generations to one day help feed the world as farmers. Ray sees social media as a great way to connect with others and to have conversations about what, why and how farmers feed, clothe and fuel today’s ever growing population. He says, “The Agchat Foundation is a way to focus social media efforts across all segments of Agriculture in one coordinated effort whether farmers or ranchers, veterinarians or Extension agents, salespeople or bankers.” You can follow Ray on his blog, on Twitter or on Facebook.
If you’d like to support the AgChat Foundation you can now make a donation on the website or at this link. We’re also seeking sponsoring companies and organizations. Feel free to contact me, Ray or any board member for more information.
You can listen to my interview with Ray below and also watch a video from the AgChat Foundation YouTube Channel of him talking about our plan for technology scholarships.
Happy National Hamburger Day
Happy National Hamburger Day. At least I think it is National Hamburger Day. I have found some conflicting information about this online. However, I’ve seen enough pointing to today to make it official enough for me. So, when you’re planning your grill schedule today or anytime this holiday weekend don’t forget the burgers!
Here’s an excerpt from National Beef Ambassador Malorie’s post on the Beef Ambassador blog about today.
My dad makes a GREAT stuffed burger, which he invented himself, and I’m not sure if he’d want me to disclose the recipe to you all quite yet. But I found a few interesting recipes that you might be willing to attempt! This one sounds really easy to make and enjoy. Click here to discover the instructions for a stuffed bacon burger! Or try these cheese stuffed burger logs. And even more interesting these burger stuffed peppers! It all sounds so yummy! If you end up trying these new recipes, let me know what you think!
You can also find some good info here and here and here.
Müller Dairy Says Thank You Cows
OK. While I’m in a YouTube mood and tired of the whole Ohio dairy animal abuse story, let’s watch something a little more lighthearted. Müller Dairy says, Thank You Cows. Here’s their mission.
“To bring sustainable dairy goodness from the heart of Shropshire for the good of everyone.” And over the last 18 years we’ve been doing just that. We believe that this effort has led to stronger relationships with our local farmers, better quality Müller products and happier customers.
So while we thank dairy farmers everywhere for all their hard work, dedication and care for their cows, let’s remember to Thank The Cows!