RFA Ethanol Podcast

Learning About Fluidigm IFC’s

Chuck Zimmerman

Fluidigm ChipHere’s a look at a Fluidigm integrated fluidic circuit (IFC). This is the core technology that the company produces. Holding the chip is Yong Yi, Product Manager, Fluidigm. He was one of the first people I interviewed here at the company headquarters in South San Francisco. I’ll be posting his interview later.

I just wanted you to see that we’re going to be talking about some pretty technical products that have a real application for agricultural biotechnology. We’re going to learn more about it in coming weeks since I’ll be posting regular stories about the work that Fluidigm does and its technology.

Uncategorized

Charleston Orwig is Legendary in the Dairy Business

Cindy Zimmerman

Charleston Orwig must have more dairy industry related clients than any other communications agency in the country, which makes sense since they are located literally in the heartland of the state synonymous with dairy production – Hartland, Wisconsin. At World Dairy Expo this year they are working with a number of clients – including Alpharma, Arm and Hammer animal nutrition, Novartis, Dairyland Seed and Hoard’s Dairyman.

World Dairy ExpoI talked to Lyle, the Orwig of Charleston Orwig, in the agency’s suite overlooking the expo arena about their commitment to agriculture and the dairy industry. “When we began with Charleston Orwig, agriculture was a focus for us, we didn’t just happen to get a couple of ag accounts and say – oh, let’s be an ag agency,” Lyle said. “Having grown up on a central Illinois dairy farm, it’s important for me personally, as well as the agency to maintain that connection to agriculture and so we have focused on that as we’ve grown the agency.” Lyle says about 85 percent of the agency staff have an agricultural background, either in agribusiness communications or growing up on a farm, or both.

One of Charleston Orwig’s specialties is reputation management, which is critical these days in the animal agriculture industry with critics such as PETA and HSUS becoming more aggressive in trying to sway public opinion against livestock producers. “Part of our mission is to help clients tell their story in a positive way and educate consumers on the need to grow crops and livestock for feeding the world as well as the U.S.,” Lyle says. Listen to my interview with Lyle below.

Charleston Orwig and two of their clients – Hoard’s and Alpharma – are sponsoring coverage of World Dairy Expo this week on our sister blog, World Dairy Diary, and be sure to check out the World Dairy Expo Flickr photo album for all the sights.

Agencies, Audio, Dairy, World Dairy Expo

Legendary Grilled Cheese at World Dairy Expo

carly

WDXThe theme of of World Dairy Expo this year is “Legendary” and the experience of having a Badger Dairy Club grilled cheese sandwich is a legendary expeirience. Today I took a moment to try one of their famous grilled cheeses and after just one bite you can tell they have grilled cheese sandwich making down to an art.

The Badger Dairy Club, a student organization on the UW-Madison campus, has become famous for their legendary grilled cheeses they bring to the World Dairy Expo. Every year members of the Badger Dairy Club come to the expo and prepare thousands of grilled cheeses to sell to hungry expo goers. This is one of the club’s biggest fundraisers. Members also put countless of hours before, during and after the expo making the sandwiches as well as setting up show ring displays, picking up milk, and cleaning up the barns.

Take a look at a video below of my experience.

World Dairy Expo Photo Album

Dairy, World Dairy Expo

Blog Action Day ’09

Chuck Zimmerman

BAD BadgeI just signed up for Blog Action Day ’09 which is October 15. Sign up here.

Blog Action Day is an annual event that unites the world’s bloggers in posting about the same issue on the same day on their own blogs with the aim of sparking discussion around an issue of global importance. Blog Action Day 2009 will be the largest-ever social change event on the web. One day. One issue. Thousands of voices.

This year the topic is climate change. It doesn’t matter where you stand on the issue, the idea is to add your voice to the mix. So I would challenge you farmer bloggers in particular to sign up and make your voice heard. That’s what it’s all about.

BTW. I believe we have climate change. It’s called the “seasons.” I also believe our climate does change. We have things called “ice ages” for example. Is man causing change? I don’t think so and I really don’t think we can do much about it. However, I believe we should all be good stewards of the resources God has blessed us with. That’s why I’m such an advocate for renewable fuels like ethanol and biodiesel. Unfortunately, I think we have politicians and extremists who are trying to alarm the world public in order to advance their own social agendas. So I’m signed up and will right about this on “the day.” I hope you will too.

You can find the BAD Blog here.

Energy, Environment

Why You Should Attend NAFB Convention

Chuck Zimmerman

Here’s why you should attend this year’s NAFB convention:

EARLY REGISTRATION ENDS SOON!

Get your registration in now to receive the favored rate! Rates will go up after October 16. Click here to register today!

The group rate ($135+ tax) at the Westin expires October 25, so be sure to get your room booked soon. Click here to go directly to our group reservation page.

NAFB, Video

Blogging In The Air

Chuck Zimmerman

ChuckI’m on a flight to San Francisco right now and using in-flight wifi for the first time. Works great. I’m getting some email work done among other things.

I’m also continuing to read “Six Pixels of Separation.” I hope you are too. One of the first points Mitch Joel hits on is the idea that providing free content can make you money. I think the question I get asked most often is, “How do you make money doing this?” Well, Cindy and I have built our whole business via new media using blogs, podcasts and social networking. As Mitch says, we’re all connected now. We can instantly connect with almost anyone. This has fundamentally changed the way business is conducted. For example, your brand is no longer what you say it is. It’s what Google says it is. Why? Because people are searching and finding lots of information about you and your brand. What are you doing to make sure those top results are links or information to you?

I’ll keep pointing out some interesting ideas as I come across them in this book but so far I think it’s the best one I’ve read that puts what we’re doing in language that business people can understand. If I was an agency, I’d buy this book for my client. Unless of course you’re a “traditional” marketer and still think these social media mechanisms are just wastes of time.

Internet, Social Networking

Introducing Fluidigm

Chuck Zimmerman

Fluidigm LogoLet me introduce you to Fluidigm. This company develops and distributes systems based on integrated fluidic circuits (IFCs). During the coming weeks we’ll learn more about them and how their products and systems can benefit the agribusiness sector.

I’ll be visiting Fluidigm headquarters this week to learn more about the company and their products and conduct interviews which will be featured here on AgWired. I know we’ll be dealing with some complex technology but yours truly will work to help make it understandable since it seems clear that what Fluidigm has to offer agriculture, especially from the biotechnology standpoint, is very important.

Agribusiness, Biotech

Zimfo Bytes

Melissa Sandfort

    Zimfo Bytes

  • Farm audits for the second herd retirement implemented by Cooperatives Working Together in 2009 have been completed, and the majority of the 74,114 cows that produced 1.5 billion pounds of milk have been sent to processing plants.
  • CHS Inc., and Agrico Group have formed a joint venture company named ACG to manage origination, logistics, export and worldwide marketing of Russian wheat, feed grains and potentially oilseeds.
  • DuPont reports that its new patented Seed Production Technology will reduce the cost of the mechanical and labor-intensive process for creating its high-yielding hybrid seed corn by more than 20 percent in the field, while increasing product quality at the same time.
  • Tickets to the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games 2010 are now on sale.
    Zimfo Bytes

    Soybean Harvesting

    Chuck Zimmerman

    MO Soybean harvestSoybeans are being harvested in the Missouri River bottom. This was the scene I passed while working out this afternoon.

    It’s that time of year.

    A little further down the road however, there was a real contrast of soybeans quite ready for harvest next to fields that are in full leafy green. Kind of shows how mixed the season has been this year in many places in the Midwest.

    Farming, Soybean

    Getting Social with Dairy

    carly

    WDX“Using Popular Media to Tell Dairy Farming’s Story” was the topic of a Tuesday morning seminar at World Dairy Expo conducted by Jolene Griffin of Dairy Management Inc. (pictured on the left) and Polly Ligon O’Grady of Weber Shandwick (right).

    Who would have imagined even just a few years ago that things with funny names like Twitter, Facebook, Flickr and YouTube would allow individual agricultural producers to communicate with people all over the world? And, as Jolene told the group on hand, it has never been more important for them to do so. “Other people are actually out there telling our story and they’re telling the wrong story,” Jolene said. “There’s so much misinformation about the dairy industry out there that we need to mobilize dairy producers and the dairy industry to counter that misinformation and to give consumers the correct information about dairy farming and the dairy products that they enjoy.”

    Jolene says they launched the MyDairy program earlier this year to help producers learn more about using the various social media platforms and providing key messages to help them communicate effectively. “Since that time we have had over 600 dairy producers sign on for the MyDairy program and they’ve really embraced social media to tell their story,” Jolene said. Producers can sign up for the program by emailing mydairy@rosedmi.com.

    World Dairy Expo Photo Album

    Audio, Novus International, World Dairy Expo