Social Networking In Minneapolis

Chuck Zimmerman

National Agri-Marketing AssociationYou know I can never get enough NAMA so I’m looking forward to the North Central Chapter meeting tomorrow at Colle+McVoy offices. Here’s the details:

Social Networking:
The next North Central NAMA chapter meeting will be held November 20, 4-6 p.m. at Colle+McVoy. It will include a presentation on social networking by Chuck Zimmerman of ZimmComm New Media LLC, as well as a group networking exercise.

Job/Intern Networking:
In addition, the North Central NAMA chapter will be hosting its first Intern Networking social along with the workshop. Area businesses looking to hire an intern are welcome to participate as potential intern candidates from over 10 local Universities have been invited to attend, including students majoring in Ag Business, Ag Marketing, Ag Economics, Finance, etc. HR Managers and Marketing individuals are encouraged to attend. Please bring business cards for this informal social networking opportunity.

WHEN:
November 20, 2008
4:00 pm – Registration
4:30 pm – Chuck Zimmerman of ZimmComm New Media – Social Networking
5:15 pm – Job and Internship Networking *Drinks and hors d’oeuvre served*

Maybe I’ll see you there.

NAMA

Vermeer Cob Harvester

Chuck Zimmerman

Vermeer Corn Cob HarvesterI saw one of these bad boys at the POET Project LIBERTY field day recently although I didn’t get to speak with anyone at Vermeer about it. It is the Vermeer CCX770 Cob Harvester, a wagon-style corn cob collection system which enables farmers to harvest corn and cobs simultaneously.

The Vermeer CCX770 Cob Harvester is designed to tow immediately behind select corn harvesting combines to collect and unload the cobs.

“This new patented Vermeer cob harvesting machine is a solution for supplying corn cobs for cellulosic ethanol production,” says Vermeer Product Manager Jay Van Roekel. “It’s easy to attach to the combine, is self-contained and cost-effective. This innovative product can help farms by diversifying their harvest Vermeer Corn Cob Harvesterin collecting bio-mass materials for resale or reuse as well as supporting our country’s efforts to produce home grown energy.”

The cob harvester concept was originally developed by an innovative Midwest farmer who saw a need and acted on it, “much like the founder of Vermeer Corporation, Mr. Gary Vermeer, did 60 years ago in 1948.” According to Van Roekel, test harvesting will be conducted throughout 2008 to evaluate performance and efficiency. Vermeer will then communicate product launch plan and availability for the 2009 harvest season.

Corn, Equipment

Secretary Schafer at Cellulosic Summit

Cindy Zimmerman

Cellulosic Summit Ed SchaferThis may have been the last time I will have the chance to interview the current Secretary of Agriculture – I think this is about the 10th secretary I have been able to report on during my career in ag communications!

Anyway – Secretary Schafer was here at the Cellulosic Ethanol Summit in south Florida Wednesday and had a small press “gaggle” after he spoke to the group. I had a chance to ask him a few questions pertaining to the biofuels industry on several different topics.

Listen to that interview here: cell-summit-08-schafer-press.mp3

Audio, Biodiesel, Ethanol, USDA

Dueling Press Conferences on the Road

Cindy Zimmerman

mini remoteChuck is out hunting with no internet access, I am on location covering the Cellulosic Ethanol Summit and two groups decide to have dueling telephone press conferences. What’s a blogger to do?

What I did was put my cell phone on speaker and record it on to my mini Marantz. Worked out pretty well too – not all broadcast quality, but if I had to, I would use it.

Listen here – a couple of sound bites from each conference: dueling-conferences.mp3

The first press conference, held by a group called “Food Before Fuel” which includes food companies and livestock organizations, called for a repeal of “subsidies for ethanol in light of its harmful effects on the environment, consumers and numerous industries.”

The second group – newly-formed Growth Energy – struck back two hours later. . “The federal government has an important role in supporting programs that promote the common good,” said Dave Vander Griend, President & CEO of ICM, Inc. and board member of Growth Energy. “Whether by funding anti-poverty programs like food stamps or championing renewable energy that will jumpstart our green economy and create jobs, we believe that it is good public policy to make smart investments for our nation’s future.”

Back at the summit today. Agriculture Secretary Ed Schafer will be here this morning.

Equipment, Ethanol, Food

View At Sunset

Chuck Zimmerman

Deer Woods SunsetI know posting has been light but sometimes the agriblogger has to take a few days off. I’ll be back on the grid by Wednesday evening and ZimmComm will have some exciting news by the end of the week.

Cindy is attending the Cellulosic Ethanol Summit in south Florida this week and may have some news for you from there.

The picture is from my phone on the way out of the woods a couple nights ago. There’s very limited internet access where I’m staying!

Uncategorized

Preliminary Research Suggests Bright Future for Solid Manure Injection

Harry Siemens

Harry Siemens / Farmscape – Research conducted by the University Saskatchewan suggests a promising future for solid and semi-solid livestock manure fertilizer injection technology. Researchers with the university’s Department of Crop Science have released preliminary results of a three year study examining the agronomic and environmental implications of solid manure injection.

Technoloy Advances in Manure Application

The study, which began in the spring of 2007, looks at crops grown on land fertilized with solid cattle manure applied using a prototype sub-surface applicator designed by the Prairie Agricultural Machinery Institute (PAMI) at Humboldt, Saskatchewan.Read More

Uncategorized

Zimfo Bytes

chelsea

    Zimfo Bytes

  • A Farm Foundation conference on Dec. 4, part of the Food and Agriculture Policy Summit in D.C., will examine the challenges agriculture and the food system face in providing food, fiber and fuel to a growing world over the next 30 years. Highlighting the conference will be release of a new Farm Foundation report, Agriculture’s Strategic Role: Feeding and Fueling a Growing World.
  • The Hondo Group, a Fort Worth-based marketing communications company, recently announced the introduction of green marketing services. The company has developed one of the first quantitative assessment tools for evaluating environmentally sound business practices.
  • Makhteshim Agan of North America, Inc. (MANA), announces the hiring of Duane A. Martin, Ph.D., as the company’s new business and product development manager. Martin joins the MANA senior management team to lead all of the company’s new product and inter-business development projects.
  • The members of the National Association of Farm Broadcasting have elected Lindsay Hill of the Agri Broadcast Network (ABN) of Ohio to serve as Vice President of the organization at their annual convention in Kansas City this week. Hill, owner and Chief Operating Officer of AdVance Broadcast & Communication is a 10- year veteran of agricultural media and rural news radio.
Zimfo Bytes

NAMA Professional Development Award Winners

Chuck Zimmerman

At the NAMA Trends in Agriculture conference several professional agrimarketers were honored and once again this year, Paulsen AgriBranding captured comments from the honorees.

NAMA honored three members for professional development during its Wednesday luncheon. Honored in marketing communications was Paul Redhage, FMC Communications Manager; in Public Relations, Beth Anderson, Charleston Orwig; and in sales, Vernon Benes of Beck Ag. Below are video highlights of acceptance comments of those present.

NAMA, Video

NAFB Auction Supports Foundation

Cindy Zimmerman

NAFB auctionThe NAFB Foundation auction to support scholarships has been an annual event since back in the days when I was on the Foundation board – long time ago!

NAFB auctionLast night’s auction included the usual top shelf items, such as a NASCAR Kansas City race package donated by Pioneer, the New Holland Boomer Pink Pedal tractor, NAFB collectible tractors, and several framed prints, including a limited edition Terry Redlin donated by Ron Claussen that was the evening’s top selling item.

Looks like there will be another Michael Peterson party at Lake Ozark at the Wyant-Johnson retreat next summer. Sara Wyant and Alan Johnson once again bought the Peterson performance package donated by New Holland. You need me there to take photos again next summer, right guys?

NAMA/NAFB Photo Album

AgWired coverage of the NAMA Trends in Agriculture/NAFB Convention is being sponsored by:

DTN/The Progressive Farmer.

Uncategorized

Lindsay Hill Elected NAFB VP

Cindy Zimmerman

Lindsay and AndyWe are very pleased to report that our good friend Lindsay Hill of AdVance, ABN and Buckeye Ag Radio Network has been elected as vice president of the National Association of Farm Broadcasting. She is pictured here with her very proud husband and partner Andy Vance shortly after the election took place.

Lindsay is a 10-year veteran of agricultural media and rural news radio and you can read more about her on the BARN/ABN website. We feel a special connection to this farm broadcast couple team who have been so successful in building their own business and we are really impressed with Lindsay. She has great leadership skills and is talented in so many ways. We look forward to her eventually taking the reins of president of NAFB in a few years. She has real vision for the industry.

There were three very impressive candidates for NAFB vice president this year – all relatively young in the industry (compared to us old-timers!) We do expect to see Tricia Braid Terry of RFD Illinois Radio Network (another very dear friend) and Tom Cassidy of Ag Radio Network back in the running next year.

Listen to my interview with Lindsay here: nafb-08-lindsay.mp3

NAMA/NAFB Photo Album

AgWired coverage of the NAMA Trends in Agriculture/NAFB Convention is being sponsored by:

DTN/The Progressive Farmer.

Audio, NAFB