California Dreamin’ is the theme of the opening reception at Classic.
To get us in the mood we had a great band and great food.
In case you’d like a taste here’s a short video clip of the reception and band: 
California Dreamin’ Reception (1:17 wmv file)
AgWired coverage of Commodity Classic is being made posssible by our good friends at New Holland.
One of the guys in charge of this whole thing is the NCGA President, Gerald Tumbleson, seen here with his wife.
Gerald says in the program that we are “ensured a first-class experience” while in Anaheim. I’m looking forward to it.
AgWired coverage of Commodity Classic is being made posssible by our good friends at New Holland.
Here’s a couple of serious soybean promoters.
Can you identify them? They have long directed some of the most active and progressive soybean associations in the country.
AgWired coverage of Commodity Classic is being made posssible by our good friends at New Holland.
As we headed in to the opening reception this evening at the convention center we were encouraged to pick up a little flashy thing and wear it.
The reception was sponsored by Syngenta and these little flashing button things say, “Knowledge, Trust, Service and Presence” and of course, Syngenta.
By wearing them around the trade show somehow you’re eligible to win a chance at one of six $50 gift certificates at Bass Pro Shops. I’m game. There’s a new store not far from where I live.
AgWired coverage of Commodity Classic is being made posssible by our good friends at New Holland.
The first stop this afternoon was the media room to get checked in.
They have lots of ethernet cables set up this year and wireless. We should be in good shape and I know we’ll be in good hands.
Thanks to the staff at both NCGA and ASA for providing us with a nice place to base out of.
AgWired coverage of Commodity Classic is being made posssible by our good friends at New Holland.
Well it is currently 10:00p.m. here in California which means to me it is midnight back in Illinois. I am exhausted after a day full of traveling but super excited that I am finally in California! The first comment I have to make is I am extremely disappointed that they have discontinued the snack on the airplane. I was sitting in O’Hare waiting for my flight to board and pondering whether or not to buy a snack for the plane. Well of course I didn’t because they give you the granola bar and/or peanuts during the flight, right? Wrong! Despite the lack of a snack I had a great flight and landed in sunny California this afternoon. It was my very first time seeing palm trees and they didn’t let me down. I took lots of pictures. I checked into my hotel room and waited for the rest of the crew to arrive. Everybody loves Raymond is a very good show by the way.
We just returned from a wonderful meal from The Catch, a restaurant a few blocks away. It was a great meal, but I was so tired I almost fell asleep in my food. I’m going to bed in a few minutes but let me first tell you what some of the plans are for tomorrow. At 7:30 a.m. I will be attending the FFA breakfast meeting/press conference. In the afternoon we will be going to the opening ceremony of the Commodity Classic Trade Show which includes a performance by Michael Martin Murphey. The day will be concluded with the DEKALB and ASGROW NCGA yield contest winner event. It should be a great day to start off the 2006 Commodity Classic. See you tomorrow!
Canada Western Red Spring wheat can once again enter the United States, duty free. A U.S. tariff that stopped imports of Canada’s largest crop since 2003 has been fully dismantled, cementing a major NAFTA victory for western Canadian farmers. On February 24, the U.S. Customs notified all American ports of entry that imports of Canadian hard red spring wheat are no longer subject to any duties.
“After three long years, the American market is open to our wheat again,” said CWB board chair Ken Ritter, a farmer from Kindersley, Saskatchewan. “Our valued U.S. customers can once more access high-quality wheat from Canada.”
The CWB appealed the American tariff, imposed after the North Dakota Wheat Commission launched an anti-dumping, countervailing duty suit against Canadian wheat in 2002. The NAFTA panel ruled there was “no substantive evidence” to support the claims that led to the 14.2-per-cent tariff, halting Canadian exports to the U.S.
Had the tariff continued to halt Canadian wheat exports into the U.S., it could have cost tens of millions of dollars each year in lost sales opportunities for Prairie farmers, depending on market conditions and grade pattern. In the year before the tariff, the CWB sold about one million tonnes of CWRS into the U.S., worth about $250 million.
Trade harassment from American interest groups has been ongoing since free trade began between the U.S. and Canada in the early 1990s. This last case was the 14th unsuccessful attempt to stop Canadian wheat from entering the U.S. market.
I’m here. It’s a gorgeous sunny afternoon in Anaheim. Time for the fun to begin.
Actually it’s almost time for the “CALIFORNIA DREAMIN” Pre-opening Reception. Then it’s supper at the Golden Vine Winery in Disneyland courtesy of Bayer CropScience. I have a feeling it’s going to be a late one but I’ll be collecting audio and pictures never fear.
AgWired coverage of Commodity Classic is being made posssible by our good friends at New Holland.
Sitting here in my Dallas/Ft. Worth airport office (gate a-34) I look up and see a lonely, lost farm broadcaster. He’s Dave Schumacher, KTRS, St. Louis and now he’s getting a blogging lesson on our way to Anaheim.
Dave is the only survivor of a station-wide personnel change. Rumors of his demise were very premature. At the station when they talk about him they say, “And then there was one.” Dave’s been there 10 years now. Before that Dave was at the former St. Louis Stockyards. He’s a talented auctioneer and obviously a farm broadcast “Survivor.”
We’re looking forward to what’s going to happen in Anaheim. Actually we’re not talking about corn and soybeans right now but the Cardinals, their new stadium and how to survive in today’s new media world.
More to come.
Commodity Classic Student blogger Margy Fischer, sponsored by Monsanto
Hello! My name is Margy Fischer, I’m a senior at the University of Missouri – Columbia studying Agricultural Journalism, and I’ll be blogging on this site during the 2006 Commodity Classic thanks to a student fellowship with Monsanto. It was almost three weeks ago that I learned of this opportunity from Bill Allen and am very grateful for this trip.
Blogging is completely new to me. The closest I may have ever come to posting a blog would be the weekly e-mail updates I would send my friends this past summer while interning in Washington DC. If those e-mails can serve as any precedent, then my posts will be full of anecdotes and observations of my surroundings. But my lack of experience with “new media” could be interesting enough that you’ll want to stay tuned.
I am intrigued by the idea that blogs have the power to turn bystanders into sources and reporters. In my journalism classes we discuss the philosophies behind our journalistic principles and practices, and blogs have done an amazing job of throwing convention to the wind. This week in Anaheim I want to experience as much as I can and in turn present all of that to you.
It was beautiful here in Columbia today, so the weather in California will be hard pressed to beat a day like this. However, I hope that I am so busy attending events and meeting people that I won’t be able to leave the convention hall. Those are probably the reasons why I am very excited to be attending this year’s event. So a big thank you again to everyone who made this possible.
