Alltech Young Scientists May Still Register Till Dec. 31

Kelly Marshall November 20, 2015

Registration is still open for the world’s largest university-level competition in agriscience. Until December 31st students have the opportunity to be part of the 2016 Alltech Young Scientist program, with 2016 promising to become the first edition to offer fully funded Ph.D. and post-doctorate positions to the winners.

Students must be nominated by a professor in order to participate and may submit scientific papers on topics such as animal health and nutrition, crop science, agriculture analytical methods, food chain safety and traceability, human health and nutrition and other agriscience related sectors. Paper submission must be completed online by Dec. 31, 2015.

Each student’s paper will first compete within their home region of North America, Latin America, Asia Pacific, Europe or Africa. Finalists from all four regions will be invited to attend an all-expense-paid Alltech Young Scientist Discovery Week in Lexington, Kentucky, USA, where they will compete in the global competition. Each finalist will present his or her paper to a panel of international judges and a live audience during ONE: The Alltech Ideas Conference, May 22-25, 2016.

“The Alltech Young Scientist program has uncovered some of the best and brightest emerging research talent in agriscience and Alltech wants these leaders to join our team,” said Dr. Pearse Lyons, president and founder of Alltech.

In 2015 the Alltech Young Scientist program received more than 8,800 registrations. Pictured above are the finalists from this year. At the left is Dr. Aoife Lyons, the director of educational initiatives at Alltech, and at the far right is Dr. Inge Russell, scientific advisor to the Alltech Young Scientist program.

Alltech, Education

NAMA Releases Slate of Events for 2016

Kelly Marshall November 20, 2015

Save the date! National Agri-Marketinig Association is announcing their schedule of events so you won’t have to miss anything. The NAMA calendar will also be updated regularly, so check back for new information.

Region I
(Western Pacific Chapter)
January 27, 2016
San Diego, CA

Region II
(Cornhusker, Gateway, Great Plains, Missouri-Kansas, Rocky Mountain and Southwest Chapters)
January 14, 2016
6:00 – 8:30 p.m.
Boulevard Brewing Company, Kansas City, MO

Region III
(Cornbelt, Iowa, North Central and Northern Prairie Chapters)
January 28, 2016
6:00 – 8:30 p.m.
Mill City Museum, Minneapolis, MN

Region IV
(Badger, Chicago, Heartland and Mid-America Chapters)
January 21, 2016
6:00 – 8:30 p.m.
Austin’s Fuel Room, Libertyville, IL

Carolinas/Virginia Chapter
January 21, 2016
6:00 – 8:00 p.m.
Raleigh-Durham

Southeastern Chapter
January 21, 2016
Atlanta

Midsouth Chapter
Information will be available soon.

For questions call (913) 491-6500.

Agribusiness, Events, NAMA

Update from @Better_Seed at #NAFB15

Cindy Zimmerman November 20, 2015

It’s always a pleasure for me to catch up with the sweet and lovely president of the American Seed Trade Association (ASTA), Risa DeMasi. We’ve been friends for three years now since she started her journey in the leadership of ASTA and it’s been really exciting to watch her grow into such a great spokesperson for such an important industry.

Risa’s first introduction to the National Association of Farm Broadcasting was at last year’s annual convention and she was very impressed at how welcoming the broadcasters were to her. This year, her company Grassland Oregon came on as a new convention sponsor and Trade Talk participant to spread the news about their research and development, particularly in the area of cover crops. “We’re commercializing some products that are coming on the market that really provide some solutions for challenges growers are facing,” she said.

Risa is excited that next month’s ASTA CSS 2015 and Seed Expo in Chicago is featuring a big new session on Taking Cover Crops Mainstream. “We’re continuing to connect the dots so that everybody is on the same page and working together to accomplish sustainability,” she said.

In this interview, Risa updates us on some of the important issues that the seed trade industry is addressing when it comes to technology, trade, and feeding a growing population. Interview with ASTA president Risa DeMasi

NAFB Convention Photo Album

Coverage of NAFB Convention is sponsored by

ASTA, Audio, NAFB, Seed

CFI Study on Consumer Trust in Food

Cindy Zimmerman November 20, 2015

New research from the Center for Food Integrity (CFI) shows that improved transparency increases consumer trust in food.

CFI CEO Charlie Arnot says they surveyed 2,000 people to discover which attributes are most important to consumers when it comes to trust-building transparency – policies, practices, performance or verification. “What consumers really want to know more about is practices,” said Arnot. “Because the practices are a reflection of our values in action.”

Arnot says the research shows consumers hold food companies most responsible for transparency, with two exceptions. “When it comes to protection of the environment and care of animals, it’s a combination of food companies and farmers,” he said.

The Center for Food Integrity intends to take the research they have done and use it to help the food and agriculture take action.

Learn more in this interview with Arnot: Interview with Charlie Arnot, Center for Food Integrity

Audio, Food, Research

High Yield Hunters Contest is Back

Kelly Marshall November 20, 2015

Deltapine is excited to be bringing back the High Yield Hunter’s contest. Post a picture of your cotton harvest– fields, picker, bales of cotton, etc., now through December 6th and you’ll be entered to win a YETI Tundra cooler each week. A grand prize winner will also receive an all-expenses-paid quail hunting trip to Southern Woods Plantation.

To be eligible for the contest you must post your photo to the Deltapine Facebook page using the hashtag #HYHcontest, as well as your product variety and the state in which you farm. Submit as many photos as you like; more pics increase your chances of winning.

Follow Deltapine on Facebook to get all the relevant information and don’t forget to check back each Monday to see if you are a weekly winner. The grand prize winner will be randomly selected in December.

Agribusiness, Cotton

PERC Unveils Website on Propane Safety on the Farm

John Davis November 20, 2015

A new website is giving kids more information about how to be safe around propane on the farm. The Propane Education & Research Council (PERC) unveiled the interactive site – propanekids.com/agsafety – that includes fun and educational videos, science experiments, and activities aimed at children ages 12 and under.

“Our Amazing Farm,” the latest addition to the PropaneKids.com site, features a series of entertaining 5-minute science experiment videos to support PERC’s national agricultural safety initiative. The video series, titled “Science Rocks,” is designed to engage young minds while providing a resource grounded in science to be used by both parents and educators.

The videos explain fundamental principles relating to propane, a ubiquitous energy source in rural America. Other features of “Our Amazing Farm” include hands-on, age-appropriate, interactive activities that teach kids about grain bin safety, fire extinguishers, static electricity management, and other important topics. The videos use common household items – and the site offers printable instructions – to enable teachers and parents to share the lessons at school or home.

Developed by PERC with funding from CHS Inc., the national agricultural safety program promotes the videos and e-learning elements with the aim to improve safety on America’s farms. All components are available free of charge and are directly accessible by educators, the public, and any organization wishing to offer the tools through their own websites.

“We expect these videos to become valuable tools for kids, families, businesses, and schools to help prevent accidents and improve safety around the farm,” said Stuart Flatow, PERC’s vice president of safety and training.

PERC, Propane

Farmers Union Shows Farmers’ Share of Thanksgiving Dollar

John Davis November 20, 2015

The share of your Thanksgiving meal dollar that goes toward farmers is less than 20 cents. This news release from the National Farmers Union (NFU) says that’s just a little more than the usual farmers share of nearly 16 cents of of every dollar spent on retail food items throughout the rest of the year.

“Farmers and ranchers today are receiving only 15.8 cents for every dollar spent on retail food items,” said NFU President Roger Johnson. “Thanksgiving is the perfect time to raise awareness of this fact and give thanks to farmers for what they do every day to put food on your dinner table.”

Johnson noted that the 15 food items of the Thanksgiving Farmers Share averaged just 19.4 cents out of every food dollar for the American farmer. “It’s easy to forget the true value of our farmers and ranchers, who in some cases are only making pennies to the dollar on the goods we buy at our local supermarket,” he said.

Among some of the more startling statistics in the Thanksgiving Farmers Share:

Wheat farmers receive just 7 cents from the $3.39 consumers spend on a 15-ounce box of stuffing.
Turkey farmers net just over half (93 cents) of the retail value for a pound of turkey ($1.78).
Pumpkin farmers receive 25 cents, a mere 6.4 percent, of the $3.89 spent for canned pumpkin pie mix.

The numbers are based on U.S. Department of Agriculture statistics.

Ag Groups

Thanksgiving Dinner Just $5 Per Person

Cindy Zimmerman November 19, 2015

Where in the world can a person get a sumptuous meal of turkey, bread stuffing, sweet potatoes, rolls with butter, peas, cranberries, a relish tray of carrots and celery, pumpkin pie with whipped cream, and beverages of coffee and milk all for about five dollars? Only in the good ol’ US of A, thanks to the great productivity of our farmers and ranchers.

According to the American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF) 30th annual informal price survey of classic items found on the Thanksgiving Day dinner table, the average cost of this year’s feast for 10 topped $50 for the first time, but at $50.11 it is still a bargain.

The big ticket item – a 16-pound turkey – came in at a total of $23.04 this year. That’s roughly $1.44 per pound, an increase of less than 9 cents per pound, or a total of $1.39 per whole turkey, compared to 2014.

“Retail prices seem to have stabilized quite a bit for turkey, which is the centerpiece of the meal in our marketbasket,” AFBF Deputy Chief Economist John Anderson said. “There were some production disruptions earlier this year due to the highly pathogenic Avian influenza outbreak in the Midwest. Turkey production is down this year but not dramatically. Our survey shows a modest increase in turkey prices compared to last year. But we’re now starting to see retailers feature turkeys aggressively for the holiday. According to USDA retail price reports, featured prices fell sharply just last week and were actually lower than last year,” he added.

Learn more about this year’s Thanksgiving price survey from AFBF.

AFBF, Food

New NAFB Officers

Chuck Zimmerman November 19, 2015

Congratulations to the new slate of National Association of Farm Broadcasting officers and board members elected during the convention last week.

President: Brian Winnekins, WRDN Radio, Wisconsin
President Elect: Tony St. James, KDDD and KFLP Radio, Texas
Vice President: Tom Cassidy, Ag Radio Network, New York
South Region VP: Lorrie Boyer, KSIR Radio, Colorado
West Region VP: Sabrina Hill, AgNet West, California
East Region VP: Bryan McGarvey, WASK/WKOA, Indiana
Allied Industry Rep: Laura Henke, Charleston|Orwig
Allied Industry Rep: Mark Lambert, National Corn Growers Association
Management Sales Council: Neal Gladner, Louisiana Farm Bureau
Management Sales Council: Breck Von Bank, Brownfield Ag News
M & P Chair: Lance Knudson, American Ag Network

I sat down with Tom Cassidy after the election to talk about what he thinks of the state of the farm broadcasting industry, new technology and issues to work on in the future. Tom is a former dairy farmer who got into farm broadcasting by meeting the legendary Ed Slusarczyk, who passed away in 2006. Tom married Ed’s daughter Holly and took over the network, which he now owns.

Learn more about Tom in this week’s ZimmCast: Tom Cassidy, NAFB Vice President

Subscribe to the ZimmCast podcast here.

NAFB Convention Photo Album

Coverage of NAFB Convention is sponsored by

Audio, Media, NAFB, ZimmCast

Old Things Connect the New Things

Melissa Sandfort November 19, 2015

Over and over I have said life is a funny set of odd circumstances. People are brought together by unforeseen forces, odd coincidences tie us together, and those connections are oftentimes closer than we may realize.

For years now, I’ve written AgWalk stories about “old” antique items. A couple of years ago, my Aunt Jeanette joined forces and started sharing her stories and experiences with us. She and I were brought together by obvious reasons – she’s my aunt, she enjoys storytelling, and she’s a great writer. But we are also connected because of our love of antiques.

I’m not sure I’ve ever mentioned where she lives, but it’s Edgar, Neb. So what’s the other connection, you ask? In a box of old things out in our shop, “my Jeff” (she also has a son named Jeff!) came across this old bank bag from Edgar, Neb.

Maybe it’s just happenstance, but I can’t help but wonder if there’s a greater force at work in our lives. Maybe I just had a vivid imagination. Maybe I just read too much into things. All of these are possible.

But I thought it was entertaining and unique how so many old things in my life have a connection with new things.

Until we walk again …

Uncategorized

Page 703 of 2,376
←
1
...
702
703
704
...
2376
→