Spring Planting

Chuck Zimmerman

Spring PlantingI saw a lot of this from the highway today in between areas of rain. It looks like some work was getting done.

It’s a long way up here to Minneapolis but the scenery is beautiful if you like rolling farm country and I do. It’s so tempting to stop and take pictures. This was one I couldn’t resist.

So, I’m here to learn more about the Turf and Ornamental Communicators Association and I’ll do that by playing golf with them early tomorrow before coming back to the hotel to talk about new media (for profit). Keep an eye on my Twitter feed for updates during the day when I’m not at my computer.

Farming

Biodiesel Reigns in Food Prices, Boosts Livestock

Laura McNamara

Diesel consumers wanting to alleviate soaring fuel prices and high grocery bills should consider using biodiesel. The Missouri Soybean Association says biodiesel helps extend the nation’s limited fuel supply. Plus, it creates an abundance of livestock feed.

The state’s House Transportation Committee recently held a hearing on legislation that would require all diesel fuel sold in Missouri to be blended with 5 percent biodiesel fuel. Dave Drennan, executive director of the Missouri Dairy Association, testified in support of the biodiesel legislation.

“As more soybeans are crushed to meet the demands of biodiesel producers, more soybean meal is made available to livestock producers in greater quantities… By increasing the supply of soybean meal, biodiesel helps dairy producers keep costs down,” said Drennan.

High fuel prices have also impacted dairy prices. According to the Missouri Department of Transportation, 85 percent of all products that are produced and purchased in the state are shipped by diesel-powered trucks. Despite local dairy production, Missouri is a milk-deficit state and imports 1.7 billion pounds of milk from other states each year.

According to the Food and Agricultural Policy Research Institute at the University of Missouri, rising usage of soybean oil to produce biodiesel has strengthened soybean oil prices while weakening soybean meal prices. This means more livestock feed is available at lower prices. Soybean meal is created when soybeans are crushed to extract the oil needed for biodiesel. Soybean oil is the only part of the soybean needed to produce biodiesel. For every gallon of biodiesel that is produced, 4 gallons of livestock feed are created.

Ag Groups, Biodiesel, Dairy, Livestock

Zimfo Bytes

Melissa Sandfort

    Zimfo Bytes

  • Ag Leader Technology recently broke ground on a building expansion at their facility in Ames, Iowa. The 96,000 square foot addition will more than double the size of the current facility and create approximately 58 new jobs in the Ames area.
  • Lew Lewis was recently promoted to Senior Key Account Manager for Kemin AgriFoods North America. In this role, Lew serves as the Kemin AgriFoods representative to Kemin customers in the areas of Arkansas, Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma, Mississippi, Louisiana and Texas. Lew joined Kemin in 1998 as a commercial sales team member. Prior to joining Kemin, he served as a plant controller and then as a buyer for Ralston-Purina Co.
  • Downes-O’Neill announced the agenda for its 2008 Outlook Conference, which will be focused largely on what some analysts are describing as a looming crisis in the production, pricing, and distribution of food supplies across the globe. The 5th Annual Outlook Conference is to be held June 18-19 in Chicago.
  • Novus International Inc.,awarded the 2008 Novus Research Fellowship (NRF) last month. The recipient of the 2008 NRF award was Dr. Ma Deying from the Institute of Animal Nutrition, Northeast Agriculture University in Harbin, China. Dr. Deying’s winning proposal is related to alternatives to in-feed antibiotics in commercial poultry operations.
    Zimfo Bytes

    May ZimmNews

    Chuck Zimmerman

    March ZimmNewsThe May ZimmNews has just been published. If you are not receiving it then get yourself a free subscription. You can find the latest ZimmNews here.

    Here’s some of what you’ll find in this month’s ZimmNews:

    I hope you like it and thank you for reading!

    ZimmNews

    Blogging/Podcasting Exploding

    Chuck Zimmerman

    Social Media PlatformsJust in time for my presentation at the TOCA meeting tomorrow (Blogging and podcasting for profit. Sponsored by Ewing Irrigation and PBI Gordon) is this report from Universal McCann titled, “Power to the People, Social Media Tracker Wave 3.” (pdf-24MB) They’ve done this study globally 3 times now so it’s got some interesting comparative data in it. Basically folks, new media is where it’s at in today’s online world no matter what country you’re in or what your occupation or age demographic. So for those of you who still wonder why you should know more about this, your questions will be answered. If you still wonder then let’s just say you have gotten off the Cluetrain. Here’s some interesting points and I urge you to download the report with the link above to read the whole thing.

    • Social media is a global phenomenon happening in all markets regardless of wider economic, social and cultural development.
    • All social media platforms have grown significantly over the three Waves: Video Clips are the quickest growing platform, up from 31% penetration in Wave 1 to 83% in Wave 3.
    • 57% have joined a Social Network, making it the number one platform for creating and sharing content: 55% of users have uploaded photos, 22% of users have uploaded videos.
    • Blogs are a mainstream media world-wide and a collective rival to traditional media – 73% have read a blog, 45% have started a blog.
    • Social media has strong impacts over brand’s reputation – 34% post opinions about products and brands on their blog – 36% think more positively about companies that have blogs.

    Here’s the percentage of respondents who agreed with these statements:

    • 56% Blogging is a good way to express yourself
    • 36% I think more positively about companies that have blogs
    • 33% I have a favorite blog that I read regularly
    • 32% I trust bloggers opinions on products and services
    • 31% Blogging is an important way to socialize with friends

    There’s so much information in this report that I can’t even begin to point it all out. It’s all good. Just take some time, take a deep breath and say, “I will read it and I will try to “get it.” If you’re in agricultural marketing today then I hope you understand all the terms in the graphic at the top of this post.

    Via Podcasting News

    Podcasts

    Beef Sticks for Troops

    Laura McNamara

    U.S. beef is at the heart of the classic “American” dish and it can certainly be sorely missed when traveling abroad… especially in Southwest Asia. But, 1st Lieutenant Peter Shinn of the National Guard’s 185th Air Refueling Wing found one Iowa couple who’s trying to bring local beef to troops deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan.

    One Iowa couple is making sure U.S. troops in Iraq and Afghanistan are getting a taste of home. And they’re doing so with help from an extensive network of volunteers, and from the Iowa Air National Guard’s 185th Air Refueling Wing.

    Ted and Dee Ann Paulsrud of Danbury, both of whom are long-time members and leaders of the Iowa Cattlemen’s Association (ICA) are now leading an initiative to get Iowa beef sticks to U.S. troops in southwest Asia. The ICA took on that effort shortly after the terrorist attacks of September 11th, 2001. But the program proved costly, both in time and money, and ICA decided to drop the initiative a little over a year ago. Dee Ann Paulsrud, now widely known as “The Beef Stick Lady,” picks up the story from there.

    “It started a year ago in November [2006] when my husband was retiring off the Iowa Cattlemen’s board for District VII Director,” she told Brownfield. “They no longer were going to do it at the state level. They already had done it for four years and then, they were aborting the program. Well, we didn’t want to do that.”

    So the Paulsruds took up where ICA left off. And Dee Ann Paulsrud said they’ve developed an all-volunteer beef stick processing and distribution system, all aimed at getting Iowa beef to American fighting men and women in Southwest Asia.Read More

    Beef, Food

    Going To a TOCA Party

    Chuck Zimmerman

    TOCAThis week I’ll be attending the Turf and Ornamental Communicators Association annual meeting in Minneapolis. This will be my first experience with this group. I’m curious to find out who I’ll know there. Of course Den Gardner will be there. He also manages AAEA.

    The Turf and Ornamental Communicators Association (TOCA) serves communicators in the Green Industry by fostering an open exchange of information regarding issues that affect how we communicate to our various audiences.

    One of the things they’ve done which is very helpful to those of us who are doing presentations at the meeting is a survey of members. For example, I’ve got a pretty good idea how many of them have or contribute to a blog or podcast and subscribe to rss feeds. It’s a higher number than you might think. And the internet seems to be solidly in the lead as a news source.

    Uncategorized

    Milk Producers With Issues

    Chuck Zimmerman

    ZimmCast-169 - Milk Producers IssuesAt the National Association of Farm Broadcasting Washington Watch program there is a session called the Issues Forum in which ag groups make representatives available for interviews. During this session I interviewed Sarah Olson, Communications Coordinator, National Milk Producers Federation. Sarah is relatively new to NMPF and says that as they look to the future, communications will change. For example, she says they’re taking a close look at social communications mechanisms like blogs.

    Besides my interview with Sarah, this week’s program ends with music from the Podsafe Music Network. It’s called “Song Writers With No Issues” by The Dubois. I hope you enjoy it and thank you for listening.

    You can download and listen to the ZimmCast here: Listen To ZimmCastZimmCast 169 (13 min MP3)

    Or listen to this week’s ZimmCast right now:zimmcast169-5-5-08.mp3

    The ZimmCast is the official weekly podcast of AgWired which you can subscribe to using the link in our sidebar. You can also subscribe in iTunes

    Ag Groups, Audio, Dairy, NAFB, ZimmCast

    From the Indiana Fields…

    Melissa Sandfort

    One of the more popular features in Indiana AgriNews is From the Fields. Here farmers from around the state share their experiences with weather, crop conditions, weeds, insects, diseases, and farm management. Hoosier Ag Today (HAT) and AgriNews have partnered to bring From the Fields to the radio. Now these same growers can share their experiences in audio form on radio stations across the state. In addition, a special page on the Hoosier Ag Today Web site has been set up where unedited versions of these interviews can he heard.

    “This is farmers talking to farmers,” said Gary Truitt of Hoosier Ag Today. “This kind of thing can only be done by Indiana-based media organizations like HAT and AgriNews who are in touch with their audience and with what is happening on the farms of the state.”

    In addition, to the radio and print versions, From the Field reports will also be included in the Official Podcast of Indiana Agriculture, produced by Hoosier Ag Today, and a free daily e-mail newsletter. This podcast is available at both the Hoosier Ag Today and AgriNews Web sites. The newsletter can be obtained here.

    Farmers involved in the program are from Pulaski, Tipton, Vigo, Rush, Dubois, and Washington counties.

    Uncategorized

    Zimfo Bytes

    Melissa Sandfort

      Zimfo Bytes

    • American Dairy, Inc., one of the leading producers and distributors of infant formula, milk powder and soybean and walnut products in China, announced that its flagship brand, “Feihe,” has been named the “Most Energetic Brand” in the “Top Ten Best Infant Formula” category at the Annual Baby and Infant Industry Ceremony, hosted recently by SINA Corporation.
    • The American Meat Institute recently launched an updated Country-of-Origin Labeling Web site?. Updated information can be found here.
    • The Biopesticide Industry Alliance (BPIA) is pleased to announce the appointment of Bill Stoneman as its new Executive Director. Originally with Minnesota Cooperative Extension and currently serving the biopesticide and organic industries through regulatory and product development consultation, Stoneman joins BPIA with more than 30 years of experience in agriculture and more than 15 years experience with biological control of crop pests.
      Zimfo Bytes