HSUS is in Nebraska

Amanda Nolz

8ab134a1-d252-41f9-9885-bd0d74cdaf87 The director of a western-Nebraska ranch for wild horses who was charged with animal cruelty this weekend has turned over more than 200 horses and burros to animal welfare groups. The Morrill County Sheriff’s office confirms that Jason Meduna (MED-nuh) of 3-Strikes Ranch in Alliance has agreed to give up the animals. To read the full report, link to 3 Strikes Ranch situation improving.

However, the real story of the day is the HSUS. They are present at the scene, along with veterinarians and local reporters. My question is, if the HSUS cares so much about these sick and tired horses, why aren’t they being cared for at the facilities? Why are they being put under more stress by shipping them? Why weren’t they given immediate feed and attention? While I absolutely do not stand behind a person that would neglect and mistreat these animals, I also think this situation could have been avoided. I have been asked to pass this story along by my friend Craig Henkel, and he reports that the HSUS have hired “real cowboys” to help round up these unwanted horses. Here is Henkel’s report of the situation. He asks everyone to pass the word along to industry contacts and friends. And, all veterinarian, veterinarian students and any available ranch hands have been asked to come help at the ranch.

I warned you, now Humane Society of the United States is in Bridgeport Nebraska

HSUS is not your local pet shelter. This is the group of anti-animal agriculture people who don’t want you or me here, working in agriculture producing food for the hungry around the world. While were at it, I don’t know of many, if any, commodities produced that are not affected by animal agriculture in some way, directly or indirectly.

HSUS is in Bridgeport “helping” with the unwanted BLM horses, that should’ve been humanely harvested a long time ago. Now we have a case of animal cruelty charges against a “horse rescue” ranch, that couldn’t keep up with all the unwanted horses coming it’s way. No matter who is to blame in this immediate case, it’s HSUS and PETA who are the ultimate cause of this problem. They wanted an end to humane slaughter of unwanted, old, useless horses. Now we know exactly what they have caused, ANIMAL CRUELTY. They want an end to: zoos, hunting, fishing, trapping, usage of any animal product, animal research (no matter if it could cure cancer or end hunger), pets, pet breeders, and any agriculture that in anyway affects directly or indirectly animal agriculture.

I don’t know what I’m gonna do yet, but I will not stand by while HSUS gets their way with the media, ESPECIALLY IN MY OWN BACKYARD. Do you suppose we could get some of you and your businesses to sponsor a hamburger fry for those volunteers in Bpt??? Let your friends and neighbors know about this serious issue. Don’t wait until tomorrow. Do it now. If you have friends in the media, local or otherwise, or if you have contact info with government reps (Adrian Smith, Ben Nelson, Mike Johanns, Gov Heineman etc), forward this email and/or construct your own AND THEN SEND IT TO THEM. You WILL make a difference.

Craig Henkel

Animal Health

Greenpeace Is An Enemy of the Environment

Chuck Zimmerman

Here’s a link to an article in NRC Handelsblad, a Netherlands daily newspaper that really hits the nail on the head about the damage being caused by wacko groups like Greenpeace. They really are terrorists who not only endanger the lives and hard work of people who are actually helping our environment while trying to increase food production but they are also contributing to the very things they say they oppose. Here’s a couple of excerpts:

Unfortunately, none of these genetically modified crops are being cultivated in Europe. Their introduction is opposed by Greenpeace and other environmental organisations. Even experimental fields, where the impact of GM crops on the environment are tested, are destroyed on a regular basis by environmental groups. Most recently, two test fields run respectively by the agricultural university of Wageningen and the potato starch company Aveve in Groningen met with that fate.

It seems the environmental organisations are not that interested in the test results. Maybe they’re afraid of having been wrong all these years, if it turns out that the damage to the environment is not that bad. It doesn’t seem to bother them one bit that their guerrilla tactics are putting lives at risk.

How much longer are politicians going to allow themselves to be held hostage by the environmental movement? How many more food riots do we need before the environmental movement is ready to let go of its dogmas? If we want to meet the goal set by the G8 to double food production by 2050, the time to invest in biotechnology is now.

This is just another example of why I never got very excited about Earth Day. When groups like this have used it to promote their emotionally charged, scientifically lacking agendas I find it hard to support it. Having said that though I think all of us in agriculture need to be more involved in the online conversation which is where we can have more impact than ever before. Now we don’t have to depend on co-opted mainstream media channels to tell our story. Kind of like I’m doing here!

Environment, Wackos

Proud of Miss America, Past 4-H Member

Amanda Nolz

miss_america_09 I think the Miss America pageant has found a real gem with their 2009-crowned winner, Miss Katie Stam. As a past 4-H member, this Indiana farm girl gives credit to this youth program and her passions in community service. In fact, that is the topic of her platform: Passion for Service: Promoting Community Service and Involvement As a former farm girl and 4-H member, Stam believes in the power of agriculture and giving back, and after her crowning in January, she has been on the fast track to spreading the word.

Miss America had some awesome experiences in 4-H as a kid, spending every summer in the performing arts and creative dramatics program and visiting 4-H friends and family at the Jackson Co. Fair. Stam credits her 4-H experiences to her values in leadership, mentorship and community service. As an American starlet, Stam could use her crown and her platform to transform the way young people think about giving back to the communities and the power of 4-H.

Stam is currently being considered for Time Magazine’s annual 100 Most Influential People List. The annual list asks the public to rate each candidate on his or her influence on the world. Those recognized fall in one of five categories: Leaders & Revolutionaries, Builders & Titans, Artists & Entertainers, Scientists & Thinkers, and Heroes & Icons. Within each category, the 20 most influential people are selected, for a grand total of 100 each year. If you think Stam deserves your vote, visit TIME. Voting ends April 28

As a past 4-H member, I’m so proud of Katie Stam, the 2009 Miss America, for her strong background in 4-H, local communities and agriculture. Stam will undoubtedly make a huge impact during her year of service in representing America.

Uncategorized

More on Twitter #agchat: Farm Slogans

Amanda Nolz

agchat-search Earlier this week, Chuck summarized Tuesday’s #agchat session on Twitter. I joined in for the first time this week, and I wanted to discuss Question 5 on AgWired this morning. Question 5: “If you had 1 recommendation for ag to create a message , what would it be, who would it involve & how would you execute it?”

The tweets that followed this question really impressed me. There were so many outstanding marketing ideas for positioning farmers and ranchers in a positive light. My favorite was the slogan, “Farmers Care.” It was simple and to the point. However, then the discussion changed pace, and individuals started asking if consumers even knew what a farmer was? Is the world so disconnected that people don’t even have a clue as to what a farmer is? I doubt it, but I’m certain their ideas of farmers don’t always coincide with the reality of what food production is.

Even if you missed Tuesday’s #agchat, here is your chance to weigh in. If you could create a slogan for farmers and ranchers to use, what would it be?

Social Networking

Lamb Checkoff Program Passes By 85%

Chuck Zimmerman

American Lamb BoardOver 85% is the approval percentage of lamb producers, feeders, seedstock producers, and first handlers of lamb and lamb products who voted in a national referendum, Feb. 2-27, 2009, and approved the continuation of the Lamb Promotion, Research, and Information Order, commonly known as the Lamb Checkoff Program.

Of the 1,971 valid ballots cast, 1,678 or 85.1 percent favored the program. Opposing ballots totaled 293 or 14.9 percent. Additionally, of those persons who cast valid ballots in the referendum, those who favored continuing the program, accounted for 93 percent of the total production voted, and those opposed accounted for 7 percent of the total production voted.

For the program to continue, it must have been approved by at least a majority of those persons voting for approval who were engaged in the production, feeding, or slaughter of lambs during calendar year 2008 and who also represent a majority of the volume of lambs produced, fed, or slaughtered.

Ag Groups

Get Aphid Alerts On Your Phone

Chuck Zimmerman

Aphid AlertsI’ll bet some of you think texting is just for a contest. That there’s really no worthwhile application to distribute information to your customers this way. Wrong. Check out Aphid Alerts via mobile phone texts, sponsored by Bayer CropScience. My good friend Joel Jaeger, Commodity Update, is the power behind the distribution and Corn and Soybean Digest is helping get the word out. And most importantly Rhea & Kaiser is the agency trying something new!

Welcome to the Aphid Alert
Sponsored by Leverage® 2.7 insecticide

This site is intended to provide you with information on insects that affect soybeans including life cycles, background on scouting of aphids and other insects, forms of prevention of yield loss from aphids, up-to-date scouting reports for your local area and helpful links to find more information.

To sign up for localized, personalized, real-time aphid pressure via text, e-mail or voicemail, click here to register.

Commodity Update and ZimmComm are working on a new project to further develop AgWired Mobile. Hopefully we can roll that out soon.

Agribusiness

Vilsack to be Keynote Speaker at Farm Foundation Event

John Davis

farmfoundationlogo3The next Farm Foundation event is less than a week away and will feature U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack as the keynote speaker.

The one-day workshop on April 28th, entitled Agricultural Research and Productivity for the Future, will look at the impact of research on the growth in agricultural productivity, the challenges facing the food system over the next decade, public- and private-sector funding options, and strategies for moving forward:

Targeted to policy makers, agribusiness leaders, academics and government agency representatives, the workshop is a collaboration of Farm Foundation and the National Agriculture Research Extension, Education and Economics Advisory Board.

Historically U.S. agriculture’s competitiveness in global markets has been driven by a combination of public- and private-sector investments in research, education and technology transfer. Recent research indicates the growth in U.S. agricultural productivity is slowing, in part because of reduced investments in agricultural research. Funding for agricultural productivity enhancing research has slowed, and in some cases declined, in the United States. At the same time, other nations have increased their public investments in agricultural research.

At the April 28 workshop, participants will examine the relationship between public- and private-sector research and agricultural productivity growth, both in the United States and worldwide. Participants will identify specific challenges for agricultural research and develop the implications for research funding strategies in the United States.

If you’re going to make it to the workshop, you need to hurry up and register by tomorrow (April 23rd) through the Farm Foundation Web site. Check it out!

Farm Foundation

Go Green Year Round

Joanna Schroeder

logo2As sustainability initiatives move from fringe to mainstream many companies are wondering how to “go green” beyond Earth Day celebrations and recycling paper and cans. The Hondo Group, a marketing communications company based in Fort Worth, Texas, can actually help your company do just that with their new CO2 Management Initiative. Originally created to help The Hondo Group go green, they realized that helping others emulate their success in sustainability was the right thing to do.

I had the opportunity to spend some time on the phone with “Aggie” and President Lynn Balinas who spoke to me about what photo_lynngoing green actually means from a business standpoint. He noted that a sustainable business plan not only helps a business practice what they preach, per se, but is also created and executed in a way that helps companies save money. The agency’s CO2 Management Initiative helps a business focus on five key areas: water, energy, materials, waste, and transportation. Similar to how the Fieldpoint Calculator, designed by the Keystone Alliance for Sustainable Agriculture, helps a farmer adopt more sustainable farming practices, the CO2 Management Initiative helps agriculture companies adopt more sustainable business practices.

Balinas told me about four initiatives they offer to help ag companies. Event greening such as a farm show or expo, green consultation which helps businesses adopt sustainable practices, marketing orientation where the agency educates companies on how to take credit for their environmental efforts without falling victim to “greenwashing,” and the Hondo Green Tool.

The program is currently being beta tested and interested ag companies can contact Balinas directly to participate at lynn.balinas@hondogroup.com. In the words of his son, “Everyone wants to be a part of something bigger than themselves.”

Agencies, Environment

Wichita Riverfest to Celebrate the American Cowboy, Honor Troops

Amanda Nolz

festibull Slip on your cowboy boots and slap on that cowboy hat. When May rolls around, there is only one place you’re going to want to be: the inaugural Festi-Bull Wichita Riverfest Bull Riding Event! Hosted by the Heritage Development Group, Inc. May 8-9, 2009 at the Cowtown Museum, this wild rodeo show is jam packed with exciting events to celebrate the rich traditions of the American cowboy.

The Festi-Bull will kick off with a bull riding invitational. 15 of the Midwest’s best bull riders will vie for the first-ever Festi-Bull belt buckle. Champion freestyle bull rider Jesse Schellhamer will be matching up with “Kill-o-byte,” the Pixius Communications challenge bull for a $1,500 prize. Schellhamer will be joined by champion freestyle bullfighter, Jeremy Muntz, who will be fighting a hot-blooded fighting bull with his championship freestyle bull fighting skills.

Following this crowd pleasing, man verses beast event, visitors will be dancing the night away to country-western music newcomer Randy Houser. He will entertain the crowd with his country radio hits, “Boots On” and “Anything Goes.” The Hattrick Country Band will also join Houser for a night of fun music and dancing.

The Festi-Bull will also show their patriotic colors in their support of the All American Beef Battalion (AABB). While Houser warms up for his evening performance, military men and women from the Ft. Riley Wounded Warrior Transitional Unit will be served a steak dinner sponsored by the AABB.

“The All American Beef Battalion is a truly respectable organization,” said Jesse Schellhamer, a PBR bull rider with $230,000 career earnings. “Any organization the takes steak as a donation and turns around and gives it to the troops needs to be supported both with time and money. The goal of the beef battalion is to serve those who have served us. It is the least we can do to support such an organization and the troops who have given so much.”

After an evening of fellowship in agriculture, the Festi-Bull adds to the fun with the Children’s Cowboy Camp. Kids of all ages can take part in agriculture activities including: horseshoe pitching, stick horse races, country tic-tac-toe, coloring contests, clogging, square dancing, line dancing, a petting zoo and more rodeo games.

310,000 people attend the Wichita Riverfest Event annually, and with the first-ever Festi-Bull scheduled, this year’s event will undoubtedly draw a big crowd. Don’t miss out on this grand slam country-western event! Celebrate agriculture, honor the troops and be a part of this magical event that takes pride in real American cowboys.

“One word: authentic; we are what we produce,” said Schellhamer. “There is no pretending. These are real bulls, real cowboys, real danger and real country music. We respect God, our country, the animals we ride and the people we do business with.”

Rodeo

Text biotech To 77513

Chuck Zimmerman

What Biotech Is Doing For Earth DayYou can find out what biotech is doing to help the Earth today by texting biotech to 77513. It’s an Earth Day think being produced by the Biotechnology Industry Organization. You can find out a lot more on their website.

WhatCanBiotechDoForYou.com is part of a project sponsored by the Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO), designed to foster a conversation with the general public about biotechnology and further educate people about the contributions of this innovative sector. For more in-depth information on biotech and the people behind the science, please visit our sister site – www.IAmBiotech.org.

Via IAmBiotech on Twitter.

Biotech