The Easter Egg of 2008

Laura McNamara

PAASThe egg is an icon of Easter, but where did the Easter egg tradition come from? PAAS says egg coloring is a 5,000 year old practice. The egg decorating company also takes a look at egg trends for Easter 2008.

Persians first began using colored eggs to celebrate spring in 3,000 B.C. Today, egg decorating is a favorite family activity. A majority agree that the Easter holiday just wouldn’t be the same without decorating and hunting for Easter eggs (65%) — and the enthusiasm is even higher among parents (77%)! A new survey by PAAS — the egg decorating authority for the past 128 years — reveals the many ways people plan to express themselves this year.

PAASAccording to survey, the average egg decorator planning to decorate or dye eggs this year will be trimming more than a dozen — a whopping 17 in fact!

Teal is poised to take on last year’s favorite, purple, as 2008’s most fashionable Easter egg color, say the experts at PAAS. Teal’s vibrant hue reminiscent of sky and water is already making waves in fashion and home design, as revealed in the Color Marketing Group’s “Hot Color Trends for 2008” report.

Extras are another hot trend according to the survey; nearly nine in ten consumers (87%) want to embellish their eggs beyond traditional dye this year. They’ll be taking their eggs to the edge with paint (54%), stickers (48%) and glitter (45%).Read More

Advertising, Food

Happy National Ag Day – Kiss a Farmer

Chuck Zimmerman

National Agriculture DayHello and Happy National Ag Day. This is the day we honor our nation’s farmers for providing safe, abundant and affordable products, a strong economy, a source of renewable energy, and a world of job opportunities. Leave a comment here about what you’re doing today.

I just did a check on Google News and only saw one story so far. Let’s see if more show up in this key word search by the end of the day.

I can’t agree more with the statements you’ll find on the Ag Day website like these:

Today’s farmers understand the importance of improving the quality and quantity of food available to the world. According to the US Census Bureau, it is estimated that there will be 7.5 billion people in the world by the year 2020 (we’re currently at 6.2 billion). It’s agriculture’s job to find a way to feed those people. Advancements in crop technology, equipment technology and information management will make that possible. American farmers and others involved in the agriculture industry have met and will continue to meet this challenge again and again.

Ag Groups

Creative Cow Judging

Chuck Zimmerman

Advertising agency blogs are a fantastic opportunity to showcase your talent. I mean, if you’re going to say you’re creative then show it. Here’s one way Charleston Orwig has done so on Field Assignment.


Every year we give our creative team entry forms for the Hoard’s Dairyman Cow Judging Contest and very limited advice on making picks.

Agencies

Give a Tweet About Twitter

Chuck Zimmerman

TwitterI thought I had written about Twitter before but I am seriously behind in making sure you know about what I can only describe as a sort of micro-blogging application. I’ve had a Twitter account for almost exactly a year now but just started using it. At first I just didn’t see the point but that’s changed . You’re going to see an application of it in the new AgWired which should be showing up any day.

You can read a little bit about Twitter in an article on Fox Business.com.

Is Twitter the next big thing or a twempest in a tweepot? Twitter is a free “micro-blogging” service that allows users to send updates, or “tweets” — messages of up to 140 characters that answer the question “what are you doing now?” The updates are kept on the user’s profile page and distributed to friends via text messages, instant messaging, RSS feeds, and other applications.

I see applications for this that probably aren’t exactly what Twitter co-founder Evan Williams had in mind. So you might just see me tweeting during some meetings coming up for example. You’ll be able to follow me on Twitter here on AgWired shortly but you can also subscribe to my Twitter feed using this RSS Feed. Take a look at it and see what you think. When I say micro-blogging I mean it. I can just post here but for a quick 140 character max message that can include a hyperlink I can update even more easily and quickly from my Blackberry, computer and Google Talk IM application. You can IM me on GTalk at chuckz33. My Twitter name is czimmerman.

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Celebrating Ag Day in Pennsylvania

Chuck Zimmerman

PA Sec of Ag Dennis WolffHere’s how the Pennsylvania Secretary of Agriculture, Dennis Wolff, will be celebrating National Ag Day.

Agriculture Secretary Dennis Wolff will join Lancaster County agricultural leaders at 10:30 a.m. on March 20 to recognize National Agriculture Day during an event at Graywood Farms in Peach Bottom, Lancaster County.

If you’re interested in going you can find the farm here.

If the Pennsylvania Dept. of Ag can let us know how they’re celebrating Ag Day then you can too!

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The Ultimate Country Music Fan Experience

Chuck Zimmerman

2008 CMA Music FestivalHey country music fans. I’m already looking forward to this year’s CMA Music Festival, better known as Fan Fair. With New Holland’s support I’ll be there once again.

I just submitted my media credentials request since CMA was already wondering if I’d be there again. I think I was probably the first blogger to get credentialed by them. That’s been common with most of the places I get credentialed. They also like the fact that I’m reaching a new audience for them too.

I guess I’m also looking forward to some hot humid weather that requires a nice cool Frogg Togg around your neck. I’m ready for a change of seasons.

New Holland

Zimfo Bytes

Melissa Sandfort

    Zimfo Bytes

  • This time next year, Bayer CropScience plans to introduce corn growers to a new, proprietary safener and two new corn preemergence weed-control products: Balance® FLEXX and Corvus™ herbicides. The new corn herbicides account for two of at least six new product innovations the company expects to bring to market for corn growers in the next three years.
  • Missouri’s elected officials are making a historic push to significantly increase the amount of biodiesel sold at fueling stations across Missouri. The Missouri Senate passed SB 759, the statewide biodiesel standard, on Monday, March 10. The bill would require all diesel fuel sold in Missouri to be blended with at least 5 percent biodiesel (B5) by June 1, 2010.
  • John Deere Power Systems (JDPS) has announced the technology solutions it will use to meet the stringent Interim Tier 4/Stage III B mobile off-highway emissions regulations for engines 130 kW (174 hp) and above. To achieve compliance with these emissions regulations, John Deere will start with its proven Tier 3 PowerTech™ Plus engine platform, add a diesel oxidation catalyst (DOC)/diesel particulate filter (DPF) unit for reducing particulates, and increase the percentage of cooled exhaust gas recirculation (EGR) for NOx control.
Zimfo Bytes

Novus International Makes News

Chuck Zimmerman

Novus In The NewsNovus International is making news again. To start with they’ve got a new Executive Director – Dr. Scott Fleetwood. Then they’ve also just announced a new website. You’ll be hearing a lot more from Novus this summer as they sponsor AgWired coverage of World Pork Expo!

Novus International, Inc., a leader in animal health and nutrition, is proud to announce the appointment of Dr. Scott C. Fleetwood as Executive Director, Markets and Products. Fleetwood will have overall responsibility for the marketing of the swine, poultry, ruminant, industrial and feed quality business units of Novus.

Fleetwood joins Novus from EMD Crop BioScience where he served as the Vice President of Sales and Marketing. At EMD, Fleetwood was responsible for sales, marketing, accounting, regulatory, customer service and production activities associated with inoculants for North America. He led the development of strategic alliances, negotiating agreements and trade-channel relationships.

“Scott brings an extensive background to Novus in agriculture related marketing and the bioscience behind our industry. He is a welcome addition to our team,” stated Giovanni Gasperoni, Executive Vice President, Marketing and Sales. Read More

Agribusiness

Great American BBQ Tour

Chuck Zimmerman

The Great American Barbeque TourIt’s getting to that time of year when we can grill outside comfortably and I can’t wait. The Kansas City Barbeque Society is using springtime to kick off their Great American BBQ Tour and Ernie and Linda Poland will be the tour team. Now there’s a sweet (and smoky) gig!

KCBS announced today that Ernie and Linda Poland, proud KCBS members and active volunteers for the society, have been selected as the demonstration team for The Great American BBQ Tour. The tour, which kicks off March 28 at the Pork ‘n Brew BBQ Cookoff in Rio Rancho, NM, will feature demonstrations of bbq tips and techniques for backyard bbq’ers, as well as introduce KCBS’s national partners and conduct live interviews of KCBS teams at events across the country.

Ernie and Linda PolandThe Polands, who have been members since 2003, are no strangers to barbeque. In fact, they are certified judges (Ernie is a Master Judge!) and table captains who were also approved as Contest Reps after their training program in 2007. They were scheduled to work as Reps at three events this year before accepting the tour’s opportunity as KCBS ambassadors.

“We are thrilled about this opportunity to represent KCBS in a new and exciting way,” commented Ernie, who has a lot of food training and experience from his previous career as an Army Officer and more recently as the Director of Residence Halls and the associated food services at Purdue University. Linda and Ernie are both Purdue graduates. “As an ambassador for KCBS, we will take this job very seriously, and we hope to not only teach, but to learn a lot along the way from the great cooks and teams who represent our society.” Read More

Food

New Media Presentation in KC, MO

Chuck Zimmerman

I’m doing a presentation in Kansas City and during the meeting saw that my good friend Barry Nelson, John Deere, is on YouTube giving a speech in a corn field. It was done by Nathan Schock, POET. See what you think. Does Barry need some media training?

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