Sustainable Challenges For Cotton Incorporated

Chuck Zimmerman

Berrye WorshamOne of the participants in our media round table on sustainability was Berrye Worsham, President & CEO of Cotton Incorporated. Thanks to my good friend Brad Robb I was able to interview Barrye today.

He says that one of the key challenges for marketing cotton today is that word, sustainability, especially from an environmental standpoint. For one thing he says that cotton has had a negative image in this area due to some very outdated and mis-information. So one of the things they’re doing is working to overcome that hurdle.

Another participant in the session was Peter McGrath with J.C. Penney Company. He told us that this is not a fad that will go away soon. So Barrye says that it’s important to know what retailers want since they’re being proactive in making sure that the products they sell adhere to good environmental practices. He says that it’s not that consumers are demanding it but that they assume that companies are acting responsibly.

Some of the ways Cotton, Inc. is communicating it’s message includes surveying farmers for data that can be used to support claims of environmental responsibility and the conducting of one on one meetings with manufacturers and retailers, re-designing their website and doing some industry advertising.

Download my interview with Barrye Worsham here: Barry Worsham Interview (6 min mp3)

You can also listen to the interview with Barrye immediately here: beltwide-08-worsham.mp3

AgWired coverage of the Beltwide Cotton Conferences
is made possible by: BASF


Beltwide Cotton Conference Photo Album

Audio, BASF, Beltwide Cotton, Cotton

Technical Posters on Display

Chuck Zimmerman

Poster RoomThe Beltwide poster board session is open for viewing.

I’ve got to say that I’ve never really understood the value of posters. However, they’re still very much in use and by many organizations. I guess it just seems to me that there are other ways to accomplish the purpose in terms of information transfer.

However, if I was to do a poster I’d use the KISS principle (Keep It Simple Stupid). Sometimes they get so crammed with information that they’re like some billboards you see. They’re there but you don’t have time to read them.

AgWired coverage of the Beltwide Cotton Conferences
is made possible by: BASF


Beltwide Cotton Conference Photo Album

BASF, Beltwide Cotton, Cotton

Human Foliage

Chuck Zimmerman

Walking VineI’m really not sure what to make of this.

I guess you’d call it a walking vine maybe. There’s actually a person under those leaves and she(?) is on stilts. Every once in a while she moves around in sort of a vine clinging way. I know, I should have shot some video of it and maybe I still will.

Once thing’s for sure. It creates a crowd real quick when it starts moving.

I’ll bet it’s one of the most photographed things in the hotel today.

Walking VineI saw it at lunch today and I like the comment I heard which was something like, “I would hate to see the bushes moving on my way back to the room after attending a late night reception!”

Yes that would be something you’d probably have a problem with. I think that some of the growers here who were partying pretty late may have still seen some of the foliage moving even without a person inside.

AgWired coverage of the Beltwide Cotton Conferences
is made possible by: BASF


Beltwide Cotton Conference Photo Album

BASF, Beltwide Cotton

Focus on Cotton Physiology

Chuck Zimmerman

Bill RobertsonThe Manager of Cotton Agronomy, Soils and Physiology for the National Cotton Council is Bill Robertson. He’s been with the Council for about a year. Coordinating the Beltwide is one of his duties.

He says that he’s also working on reviving the Cotton Physiology Education Program and that one of the key components of that is the Cotton Physiology Today newsletter. I asked him if he’d thought about blogging on the subject. Just an idea. Gotta keep planting the seeds.

Anyway, we did an interview a little while ago so you can learn more about what the Council is doing in terms of education opportunities for growers.

Download my interview with Bill Robertson here: Bill Robertson Interview (12 min mp3)

You can also listen to the interview with Bill immediately here: beltwide-08-robertson.mp3

AgWired coverage of the Beltwide Cotton Conferences
is made possible by: BASF


Beltwide Cotton Conference Photo Album

Audio, BASF, Beltwide Cotton, Cotton

Cotton Picking Precision From John Deere

Chuck Zimmerman

One of the exhibitors here at the Beltwide Cotton Conferences is John Deere for whom we manage their Precision Pays website. So it was a great opportunity to find out about what they’ve got new for cotton producers. I spoke with Jamie Flood, Product Marketing Manager, just as the trade show was kicking off.

Of course John Deere has their new self-propelled cotton picker which was announced at their product launch last fall. Jamie explains how that machine fits into a precision management plan. He also says that the equipment is meant to simplify a producer’s operation and that he’s heard very positive and good interest from growers who are looking at it.

Download my interview with Jamie Flood here: Jamie Flood Interview (3 min mp3)

You can also listen to the interview with Jamie immediately here: beltwide-08-flood.mp3

You can also watch the interview if you’d like as well:

AgWired coverage of the Beltwide Cotton Conferences
is made possible by: BASF


Beltwide Cotton Conference Photo Album

Agribusiness, Audio, BASF, Beltwide Cotton, Cotton, Equipment, John Deere, Video

Dairy Diet

Laura McNamara

Loyola Marymount UniversityThose who’ve vowed to drop the pounds for their New Year’s resolutions should drink milk. At least, that’s what Loyola Marymount University suggests. The university says milk is great for helping pinch in that waistline.

If your New Year’s resolution is to lose weight, calcium and dairy can help, according to new research by Loyola Marymount University Professor of Natural Science Hawley Almstedt and her student Alexandra Hybki. The everyday nutrients found in milk may be the key to helping you size down this year.

People on fad diets or extreme weight loss plans often avoid dairy products because they believe those foods are high in fat. Some dieters go so far as to completely stop consuming dairy products. Research indicates that not only will those dieters not lose weight, but even more importantly, the lack of calcium and dairy will have a harmful impact on bone material density, according to Hybki and Almstedt.

The study also found most Americans do not consume their daily recommended amounts of calcium, especially when dieting. In all age groups, men typically consume more calcium than women. Men ages 20-39 average more than the daily intake, while only 80 percent of women in the same age range meet the recommended amount. Women between 40-59 years of age reach only 62 percent of the recommended calcium intake, whereas men in this age group reach 81 percent. It is critical people consume the appropriate amount of calcium, which plays a major role in helping build and maintain bone density, thereby reducing the risk of osteoporosis.

Dairy, Food, Research

SwineCast® Coverage of Iowa Pork Congress

Melissa Sandfort

header.jpgSwineCast®is announcing a new partnership with the Iowa Pork Producers Association to provide coverage of the seminars at the 2008 Iowa Pork Congress in Des Moines, IA.

SwineCast, sponsored by Elanco, will record the audio from each of the more than a dozen speaker presentations and make the recordings available online following Pork Congress. Each of the speaker’s PowerPoint presentations also will be made available for download.

Attendees and others will be able to access presentations on Iowa’s environmental regulations and manure agreements, managing input costs, occupational health and safety for pork producers and several other seminars here.

ippa_logo-sm.jpgInformation on how to access the online materials will be available at each Iowa Pork Congress seminar.

The 36th annual Iowa Pork Congress will be held Jan. 23 and 24 at the Iowa Events Center in Des Moines.

Pork, Swine

Cotton Board Media Roundtable

Chuck Zimmerman

Cotton Board Media RoundtableI sat in on the Cotton Board’s media roundtable this afternoon but couldn’t stay to interview the participants. However, it was fascinating.

The topic was “How Sustainability is Impacting Every Stop in Cotton’s Pipeline.” Doesn’t sound particularly exciting but one of the speakers was Peter McGrath, EVP of J.C. Penney Company. It was an eye opener to hear him talk about how the company is proactively taking becoming green very seriously. They’re such a huge retailer that they are dictating how their suppliers do their business. For example, he says they tell manufacturers of cotton shirts what kind of dyes they’re allowed to use. He even said that they’re working to enforce water quality laws. That’s what I thought government did.

It was very interesting. I’m still hoping to get an interview sometime if possible. I think it’s something growers need to hear and know. By the way, Peter sits on the Cotton Board.

AgWired coverage of the Beltwide Cotton Conferences
is made possible by: BASF


Beltwide Cotton Conference Photo Album

BASF, Beltwide Cotton, Cotton

Cottonseed Oil Comeback Tour

Chuck Zimmerman

Ben MorganBen Morgan is the Executive Vice President of the National Cottonseed Products Association. He’s here taking a break from the Cottonseed Oil Comeback Tour.

The Tour is really a virtual tour they’re doing with a website that includes a blog! In my interview Ben talks about what the organization does and this project.

Download my interview with Ben Morgan here: Ben Morgan Interview (6 min mp3)

You can also listen to the interview with Ben immediately here: beltwide-08-morgan.mp3

AgWired coverage of the Beltwide Cotton Conferences
is made possible by: BASF


Beltwide Cotton Conference Photo Album

Audio, BASF, Beltwide Cotton, Cotton

BASF Beltwide Booth

Chuck Zimmerman

BASF BoothIt seems like Headline has made headlines for BASF and that’s brought in a lot of growers to their booth here at the Beltwide trade show.

This isn’t all of the crew here but most of them right before the show got started today. I did a couple interviews in their booth including the following one with Tom McKemie, BASF eastern area representative. In it he talks about some of the field trials that have been done over the last couple of years.

Download my interview with Tom McKemie here: Tom Mckemie Interview (3 min mp3)

You can also listen to the interview with Tom immediately here: beltwide-08-mckemie.mp3

You can also watch the interview if you’d like as well:

AgWired coverage of the Beltwide Cotton Conferences
is made possible by: BASF


Beltwide Cotton Conference Photo Album

Audio, BASF, Beltwide Cotton, Cotton, Video