BIVI Vision is Value Through Innovation

Chuck Zimmerman

Boehringer Ingelheim Media DayThe President of Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica, George Heidgerken (pictured on left), attended today’s media event and spoke with reporters about changes in the company after the acquisition of Ft. Dodge Animal Health. He says the purchase is a big deal for BIVI here in the United States and globally since it essentially doubles their business including their ability to innovate in the future. While merging the two company cultures he says they will maintain the BI vision and mission and how they achieve them.

George says they can take the best of both companies, put them together and get excited about what they can achieve. They’re calling it the “new BIVI.” He says that full integration may take a couple years although they hope to achieve that sooner. The products they’ve acquired fit in perfectly with their existing portfolio and expand their cattle, dairy and pet business. The vision for the future of the company he says, is “value through innovation.”

You can listen to my interview with George below.

Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica Media Day Photo Album

Agribusiness, Animal Health, Audio, Boehringer Ingelheim

Ag Secretary at NAFB

Cindy Zimmerman

nafbSomehow I neglected to do a post on Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack being at NAFB last week. He did a press conference and attended the NAFB Foundation luncheon where he spoke and helped to honor this year’s scholarship winners.

Not a whole lot of newsy information out of the Secretary’s visit, but it was nice to have him there. He had nice things to say about farm broadcasters and their service to agriculture and talked a lot about Veteran’s Day. Here is his opening statement from the news conference, introduced by president Pam Jahnke.

Audio, NAFB, USDA

Record Breaking NAFB Foundation Auction

Cindy Zimmerman

nafbThe traditional Thursday night auction to benefit the NAFB Foundation was a record breaker at the convention last week at $15,100. Orion Samuelson once again served as Master of Ceremonies while the legendary Cliff Mitchell did a cameo guest appearance as auctioneer. The almost-legendary Dave Schumacher of KTRS Radio was the main auctioneer for the event.

Among the 56 treasures and trips that were donated for the auction was a weekend at Sara Wyant and Al Johnson’s place at Lake Ozark, which was won by a group of NAFB ladies who are finally going to have that “Girls’ Weekend” we have been talking about for decades! That will include myself, Cyndi Young, Cindy Cunningham, Sally Behringer, Janet Adkinson, Robin Loftin, and Anita Vanderwert.

nafbThree students actively seeking a career in agricultural journalism and communication were awarded NAFB scholarships funded by the Foundation. Receiving the Glenn Kummerow Memorial Scholarship of $5,000 was DeAnna Schertz of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. The two winners of $4,000 NAFB Foundation scholarships were Mattie Nutley, a junior at Oklahoma State University and Iowa State University junior Chet Hollingshead. I’m sure they all hope to follow in the footsteps of outgoing NAFB president Pam Jahnke, who was one of the early recipients of the NAFB Foundation scholarship program.

If you have not donated yet this year to the NAFB Foundation, they will be happy to accept your tax-deductible contribution. Find out how to become a Foundation Booster here.

See more NAFB and NAMA Trends photos here.

NAFB

Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica Media Day

Chuck Zimmerman

Betsy Freese Modeling at Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica media dayI’ve now got a photo album started for today’s Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica ag media day. Here’s Betsy Freese, Living The Country Life, posing in her lab coat before our R&D tour.

I will have interviews to post later since I neglected to bring along the right cable for my audio recorder. I just interviewed George Heidgerken, President of BIVI. He says that the Ft. Dodge Animal Health acquisition is the largest purchase the company has ever made. The two companies becoming one is a process that will take a couple of years. He says the products acquired by BIVI perfectly complements their existing portfolio and really helps them with a complete offering in cattle, dairy and companion animals.

Here’s the photos so far: Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica Media Day Photo Album

Animal Health, Boehringer Ingelheim

What’s New With Boehringer Ingelheim

Chuck Zimmerman

Boehringer Ingelheim Media DayBoehringer Ingelheim is holding an ag media day to provide an overview of changes in the company and its product line due to the recent acquisition of a portion of the Ft. Dodge Animal Health products.

As an example, in the opening presentation on cattle products, Colin Meyers told us that the new products “complete their cattle vaccine and pharmaceutical portfolio.”

I’ll be conducting interviews and taking photos so you can count on more to come as we learn about the changes at BIVI.

Agribusiness, Animal Health, Boehringer Ingelheim

Novus Launches Podcast

Cindy Zimmerman

Novus International has launched a new bi-weekly podcast series – “What’s New with Novus,” hosted by Novus public relations manager Jeremy Lutgen.

novusThe inaugural podcast, featuring Novus executive VP for marketing and sales Dr. Giovanni Gasperoni, went on line today and is available on iTunes, Zune and www.novusint.com/podcasts to subscribe, download or stream.

Gasperoni discusses ALIMET® and Novus’s 30 year commitment to the product and 25 years of production in Texas. Upcoming topics of “What’s New with Novus” will focus on issues facing the global agriculture community today, such as the global food crisis and sustainability, and how Novus is meeting those challenges.

Read more about it here.

Novus International

Broadhead + Co Opens Washington D.C. Office

Cindy Zimmerman

Broadhead + Co is opening an office in the nation’s capitol to serve its growing association and government practice.

Broadhead+CoTom DiBacco, Broadhead’s Director of Consumer and Government Relations, and a former network journalist based in Washington, DC, will return to familiar territory to lead the effort.

“I’m very excited and honored to be given this opportunity to come home and build upon a lifetime of contacts in a city where I have deep roots,” said DiBacco. “It is the best of both worlds. I’ll be continuing to work for a great agency in a challenging arena at an exciting time in the nation’s capitol.”

Prior to joining Broadhead + Co in 2006, DiBacco helped establish a firm that provided broadcast and interactive solutions to federal government clients. From 1984 to 2000, he was a journalist at ABC News and CNN in Washington, DC. A member of the White House Press Corps, DiBacco traveled extensively with Presidents George Herbert Walker Bush and Bill Clinton aboard Air Force One.

The Minneapolis-based agency was approved as a federal contractor on the General Services Administration (GSA) schedule in August 2008.

Read more here.

Agencies

Zimfo Bytes

Melissa Sandfort

    Zimfo Bytes

  • New Proceed seed treatment has been approved by the U.S. EPA – providing growers with new generation technology for the protection of cereal seed and seedlings for a strong, green, more successful crop.
  • PhytoGen announces it is introducing a limited number of new varieties in 2010, including its first entry into the mid- to full-season market with PhytoGen brand PHY 565 WRF.
  • GROWMARK received the Ag eBusiness Excellence award at the 2009 AgGateway annual conference.
  • Doug Bentson, Certified Crop Adviser (CCA) at GRAINCO FS, Inc., received the 2009 International Certified Crop Adviser of the Year award from the American Society of Agronomy.
    Zimfo Bytes

    BASF Amps Up Headline

    Cindy Zimmerman

    nafb basfDuring NAFB Trade Talk last week, BASF announced that Headline AMP™ fungicide has received full registration from the Environmental Protection Agency. I talked with Reed Barrett and Nick Fassler about Headline AMP and Headline Advantage.

    Nick says Headline AMP is the first combination fungicide specifically developed for corn growers. “There’s a segment of corn growers that desire a combination fungicide and we went out and developed the best combination available on the market for them,” Nick told me.

    Headline AMP™ has federal registration and expect to have all major state registrations completed to be available in time for the 2010 season. Reed says Headline is already the number one product used in corn and soybeans and usage just keeps growing. BASF is offering an even better ROI for growers using Headline in the coming season, with Headline Advantage. “Through this program, growers can be eligible for up to $100 per gallon back directly from BASF for their 2010 purchases,” Reed says.

    Listen or download back-to-back interviews with Nick and Reid from NAFB Trade Talk.

    Audio, BASF, NAFB

    Farm Credit Takes Ownership of Superior Livestock Auction

    Joanna Schroeder

    Superior Livestock Auction, Inc., the largest livestock auction company in the U.S. and the number one in the livestock marketing industry, is now owned by SLAI, LLC, a wholly owned entity of Farm Credit West, ACA.

    superiorlivesAccording to company materials, Superior Livestock is the nations’ leader in marketing load-lots of cattle via satellite and the Internet, and pioneered video cattle marketing in 1987. On an annual basis, the company offers more than 1.5 million cattle and to date, has sold more than 1.6 million head of cattle in 2009.

    In its first move as the new owner, Farm Credit West has asked Jim Odle to return to the company as general manager. Odle was one of the company co-founders and played a significant role of the development and growth the the company.

    Agribusiness, Livestock