Cotton Industry Tour Coming Up

Chuck Zimmerman

Cotton Council InternationalFor the 34th time there will be a Cotton USA Orientation Tour. This year there will be 24 participants representing 13 countries in Asia and Latin America. It’s put on by Cotton Council International.

Textile executives from 13 countries throughout Asia and Latin America will travel across the U.S. Cotton Belt, Oct. 17-28 to familiarize themselves with U.S. cotton and how that fiber is produced, processed and marketed.

The participants, which represent 24 companies in Bangladesh, Colombia, Ecuador India, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Mexico, Pakistan, Peru, Philippines, Taiwan and Thailand. Those companies are expected to consume about 1.3 million bales in 2005, and consume an average of 467,000 U.S. cotton bales annually.

More than 750 textile executives from 60-plus countries have toured the U.S. Cotton Belt via CCI’s Orientation Tour, which was initiated in 1968. The Tour’s specific objectives are to increase these U.S. cotton customers’ awareness of the types and qualities of U.S. cotton, help them gain a better understanding of U.S. marketing practices and enhance their relationships with U.S. cotton exporters.

Ag Groups

Florida Honey Marketing Might Be Buzzing

Chuck Zimmerman

Florida Farm Bureau FederationSince I saw that Florida Farm Bureau is supporting the creation of a Florida honey marketing cooperative it gave me an excuse to write about one of my former employers. Yes, I worked for FFBF way back when (early 1980’s) as the Broadcast Manager. That was an interesting time . . .

So the buzz is all about marketing honey because not all honey is created equal and it’s a huge business in Florida. There’s a story about this in the Palm Beach Post, “Marketing could add buzz to Florida’s honey trade.” It says that this is a $202 million/year industry! According to Florida Farm Bureau, “Florida honey producers and packers who want information about the formation of the marketing cooperative can contact Jerry Latner, president of the industry steering committee, at (877) 832-3268.”

Ag Groups

Monsanto Sticky Traps Catch Variants

Chuck Zimmerman

MonsantoThe latest Talking News Release we distributed this week was from Monsanto. The topic was research from their sticky traps program to see if western corn rootworm beetles are present in soybean fields. I think this is a very interesting story. These western corn rootworm “variants” have adapted their reproductive practices by laying their eggs in soybean fields in order to survive field rotations between corn and soybeans. The variant eggs hatch during the spring, after the field has been rotated back to corn, resulting in larval feeding in first-year corn, which is not a good thing. These are some smart pests!

A sticky trap monitoring program conducted recently by Monsanto suggests that the western corn rootworm variant may continue to be expanding, posing a potential threat to first-year corn next season.

Monsanto distributed 28,000 Pherocon® AM sticky traps to 3600 growers in parts of five Central Corn Belt states – Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio and Missouri – where the rootworm variant has been expanding. Growers participating in the monitoring program, which covered more than 10 million acres, were asked to place the sticky traps in their soybean fields to determine whether the rootworm beetles are present and at what level.

“What our results showed was that in 90 percent of the counties that we sent sticky traps into farmers did capture the western corn rootworm beetle on these sticky traps,” said Dave Rhylander, Director of Traits for Monsanto. “And so that tells us this bug continues to move east, and to the west and to the south, and that it’s now expanded further than anybody had anticipated.” Full Release

Agribusiness, Audio

The ABS Global Walton Distribution Center

Chuck Zimmerman

ABS GlobalThe picture is what nailed it. Send me pictures with your releases!! Love ’em.

ABS Global Inc. proudly dedicated its new Distribution Center to Dr. Robert Walton on October 5, 2005. Dr. Walton joined friends, family and ABS Employees and Representatives from around the world to reflect on his contributions to ABS and the industry.

“Dr Walton’s legacy is his dedication and energy to identify and adapt new technology that benefited beef and dairy producer’s world-wide,” said Richard Smith, ABS Dairy Sire Acquisition Manager. Dr. Walton has played a huge role in the history of ABS Global. Starting in 1962, Walton strove to provide a unique style of leadership and direction for the company. Walton combined the technological abilities of ABS and coupled them with strong marketing concepts and international influence to help create what ABS is today. After 29 years with ABS, Walton retired, however, continues to serve as a consultant to ABS.

Agribusiness

United Nations of Horticulture

Chuck Zimmerman

I thought you might be interested in this story in the Fort Wayne Journal Gazette, about east coast farmers planting “ethnic” veggies like, n’goyo, njilu, ichiban, habanero peppers, callalou, gboma, fufu and egusi. They apparently can’t grow them fast enough to satisfy the demand for immigrants from other countries!

I especially liked the description of this one guy’s farm as the “United Nations of horticulture.”

Farming

ZimmCast On CoolCast Radio

Chuck Zimmerman

Tune in to CoolCast RadioPodcasting continues to become “mainstream.” Announcing CoolCast Radio. Agwired’s ZimmCast is a charter program offering of the new internet-delivered audio programming network. I’d love to know what you think about it. The company has not made its big media splash about this yet although the service is up and running.

Tune in to CoolCast RadioIn addition to the podcasts they offer for you to listen to they also have a store with some “cool” things you can buy and of course they have AgWired logo items like this little teddy bear. Do your Christmas shopping in the CoolCast Radio Store and support AgWired!

Podcasts, ZimmCast

Mycogen Seeds Forage Superbowl Winner

Chuck Zimmerman

Mycogen SeedsMycogen Seeds has the bragging rights when it comes to silage and alfalfa. The World’s Forage Analysis Superbowl was held at World Dairy Expo.

Mycogen Seeds corn silage hybrids dominated competition at the World’s Forage Analysis Superbowl, earning 18 of 20 possible placings in two corn silage categories. In the BMR Corn Silage category, Mycogen Seeds hybrids swept the entire category. In addition, a Mycogen Seeds grower was named the Grand Champion First-Time Entrant. In the Standard Corn Silage category, Mycogen hybrids earned eight of 10 possible placings.

In addition to that they also:

Mycogen Seeds alfalfa varieties had a strong showing in three separate divisions: dairy hay, dairy haylage and commercial hay at the World’s Forage Analysis Superbowl. A Mycogen Seeds grower was named Grand Champion of the Dairy Hay category.

The Grand Champion Dairy Hay division was won by Mike Beun, Waterloo, Wis., who planted Mycogen 4A421.

Agribusiness

RuralAds Offering Free State Ads

Chuck Zimmerman

Rural AdsIt’s just one more sign that rural America is “wired!” Are you familiar with RuralAds? They’ve got a lot of stuff listed already.

RuralAds.com, serving those who live on farms and ranches and in towns across Rural America, is now offering those residents an opportunity to place a free ad on any of its state pages. Each ad runs for 90 days and is updateable at any time. Users can renew a free ad without cost when it expires at 90 days, or place a new free ad. For users needing more marketing exposure, RuralAds.com offers additional state and national ads for a minor charge. National ads appear in one category in 48 states.
A few examples of the fifty ad categories offered are livestock, real estate, seed, eqiupment and employment. The site attracts both buyers and sellers through its unique services to rural residents and pass-along readership from those users.

A related website, BullShop.com, is built to meet the buying and selling needs of the US Cow/Calf Industry.

Agribusiness

Wisconsin Chicken Farmers Battle The Corporate Chicken

Chuck Zimmerman

Gold'n Plump ChickenThis is worth checking out just to watch and listen to the corporate chicken protest song! It’s a Gold’n Plump-sponsored site which you can find here.

Wisconsin chicken farmers are fighting back. A statewide public education campaign kicks-off this month to rally public support for the local chicken cause. The movement includes a modest-budget radio ad featuring a folk singer who performs a tongue-in-cheek protest song telling corporate chicken to get stuffed.

Wisconsin chicken farmers are getting a raw deal at the grocery store. More than one hundred local farm families who make their livings raising all natural Wisconsin chicken for Gold’n Plump are seeing their products squeezed off store shelves by out-of-state corporations. Unless Wisconsin residents take action, the situation could hurt consumers and the state economy. Today, Wisconsin farm families are banding together to fight back.

You can watch the protest video here.

Agribusiness

Henderson Communications Acquires Agri Marketing

Chuck Zimmerman

Agri Marketing MagazineJust a few days ago we asked, “What happens to Agri Marketing magazine?” Like many, we had heard about this but it wasn’t officially announced until today.

Henderson Communications L.L.C., a newly formed agricultural communications company, announces that it has purchased AgriMarketing magazine and its related communications activities from Vance Publishing Corp. Vance Publishing had acquired AgriMarketing as part of their purchase of Doane Agricultural Services of St. Louis, MO, on October 7 and immediately sold it to Henderson Communications.

“I am very pleased to announce this acquisition,” said Henderson Communications LLC President Lynn Henderson. “It has been my honor to have been associated with AgriMarketing since 1977, first serving as its Publisher while I was employed by its founder, Century Communications Inc. (CCI), and later while serving as President of Doane when it acquired it from CCI in 1993.”

Henderson reports there will be few changes in AgriMarketing. “It’s frequency, circulation, and editorial content will remain the same” he said. “Judy Knoll, long-time Ad Sales/Customer Service Manager of AgriMarketing will continue in that role. Also, Audrey Evans who has been affiliated with the magazine for several years will be its Managing Editor.”

I remember receiving my first issue of the publication when I became a NAMA member many years ago. We wish Lynn much success in the future.

BTW. You can read another great article about blogging as a business tool in this month’s issue. Man, that guy can write!

Publication