BASF Again Sponsors #NAFB15 Media Room

Chuck Zimmerman November 11, 2015

Hey Farm Broadcasters. Let’s all thank Pat Morrow of BASF for once again making our fantastic media room possible.

This room has 45 booths in it (ten more than last year) including the AgWired team booth which is where I’m writing this right now. We have wired internet and wifi and it is working great. These are not sound proof booths but we don’t need them. So you hear loud outburst of commodity market reports or interviews. My favorite is watching and listening to farm broadcasters live interviewing each other. LOL.

BASF also has lots of giveaway goodies in the newsroom (like jelly beans!) and a chance to win one of three Shure gift packs that include sound isolating earphones and a stereo microphone for your iPhone. Just go to the BASF on-line newsroom to take a simple quiz and enter to win!

So thank you Pat and BASF for also sponsoring our coverage of this year’s NAFB convention.

NAFB Convention Photo Album

Coverage of NAFB Convention is sponsored by

NAFB

Zimfo Bytes

Talia Goes November 11, 2015

Fifty years after opening his small welding shop, Jon Kinzenbaw, Kinze® Manufacturing, Inc.’s founder, president and CEO, has been inducted into the Association of Equipment Manufacturers (AEM) Hall of Fame.
Krone announces a new strategic business partnership with Clutch+ Business Advisors, a consulting and training firm focused on the agribusiness and food industries.
FLM+, a hybrid strategic consulting, marketing and communications company, welcomes Jim Zumwalt, senior vice president, to the team.
The Association of Equipment Manufacturers (AEM) announces its 2016 officers as well as directors elected to the AEM Board of Directors and AG and CE Sector Boards.
A.T. Ferrell presents two international companies with a 2015 Dealer Innovation Award – Ferrell-Ross Roll Manufacturing out of Hereford, Texas and Alvan Blanch Group out of the United Kingdom.

Zimfo Bytes

Vilsack to Lead Food & Ag Delegation to Cuba

John Davis November 11, 2015

For the first time in more than 50 years, a U.S. Secretary of Agriculture will visit Cuba. Secretary Tom Vilsack, accompanied by U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley of Oregon and U.S. Representatives Terri Sewell of Alabama, Suzan DelBene of Washington and Kurt Schrader of Oregon, travels to Havana November 11-14, marking the first official U.S. Department of Agriculture visit to Cuba since 1961.

“This trip will be an opportunity to support the Administration’s commitment to normalizing relations and empowering the Cuban people through bilateral agricultural engagement,” Vilsack said. “Food and agricultural goods are the dominant U.S. exports to Cuba and agriculture can serve as a bridge to foster cooperation, understanding and the exchange of ideas. Expanding markets for American agriculture has been a priority for this Administration, and relationships like the one we aim to build with Cuba are crucial to continuing the momentum we have seen over the past six years.”

The proposed schedule includes meetings with Cuban government officials in agriculture, foreign affairs, and food purchasing. The delegation also plans to visit port facilities, markets and cooperatives.

Trade, USDA

Agri-Pulse Open Mic with Sen. Pat Roberts

John Davis November 11, 2015

Agri-Pulse Open Mic this week features Sen. Pat Roberts.

In this week’s interview, the Chairman of the Senate Agriculture Committee discusses further action on the EPA’s Waters of the U.S. definition and says his committee is close to a compromise on a child nutrition bill. Roberts expects further attacks on the crop insurance industry and says he and other congressional farm state leaders are ready to defend farmers’ top policy priorities. Roberts says with the text of the Trans-Pacific Partnership now public, he and other leaders can begin to evaluate and debate what the proposed deal would mean to agriculture and the nation.

Click here to listen to Agri-Pulse Open Mic with Sen. Pat Roberts.

Agri-Pulse

Beck’s Teaches Students to Honor American Farmers

Kelly Marshall November 10, 2015

At the recent National FFA Convention Jamie Johansen caught up with Toby Ripberger of Beck’s Hybrids to talk about the message they are sharing with the students who come through their booth. Ripberger, the Event Logistics Lead for the company, says students come in with lots of interest in careers and the future of agribusiness, but the most important information he tries to share is respect for America’s farmers.

“The big thing that we’re really focusing on here at the FFA Convention is our ‘Why I Farm’ movement. That’s where we’re honoring the American farmers. We have a Facebook page and a website for that. We also have a group, The Henningsens, that wrote a song Why I Farm with us. We had a concert here and we’ve had a lot of interaction with the students around that. ”

You can hear the full interview and hear more about the future for Beck’s Hybrids. Toby Ripberger, Beck's Hyribds

Find photos from the event here: 2015 National FFA Convention Photo Album

Coverage of the National FFA Convention is sponsored by

Agribusiness, Audio, Farming, FFA

Let’s Harvest Some Success with NAFB

Chuck Zimmerman November 10, 2015

The annual homecoming of farm broadcasting is about to kick off in KC, MO. ZimmComm team members are on the way armed with cameras and recorders. You can expect plenty of news from the event, especially after Thursday’s Trade Talk frenzy.

Cindy, Jamie and Taylor will be doing the duties this week in the media room, sponsored again by our sponsor, BASF. Thank you BASF for the awesome place to work from.

For you people who support farm broadcasting and the NAFB Foundation. ZimmComm is making a live auction donation that could be a great family vacation or maybe you want to put together a group to bid! BTW. This is something separate from the “Lake Weekends.”

See my FB page for all the details. The live auction is Thursday night.

Coverage of NAFB Convention is sponsored by

Media, NAFB

AgChat Foundation – 5 Years of Agvocacy

Chuck Zimmerman November 10, 2015

While many of you are heading to KC, MO for the NAFB Convention there are some hard working agvocates gathered in Nashville for the annual AgChat Cultivate & Connect Conference. Many of the early attendees have now become the teachers of tomorrow’s active agvocates.

The AgChat Foundation strives to bring farmers, ranchers, agribusiness professionals and educators the best of the best in agvocacy training and presenters. This year’s conference will continue to offer expertise and relevant information pertaining to making meaningful connections in social media, in person and on the legislative level. In addition, the event will be celebratory, marking five years of pioneering grassroots advocacy.

Follow along at #ACFC15.

Ag Groups

Beef Leader Rodney Larson Passes Away

Joanna Schroeder November 10, 2015

The father of our former sales representative Dave Larson, Rodney “Rod” Larson, 86 of Webster City, IA has passed away. I did not know him but he certainly had a marvelous farming career. Here is what Dave wrote to share with the AgWired community.

In 1956, Rod began his own crop farming operation, Larson Farms. It grew to be a cutting edge feeder cattle and swine operation of the time in Iowa. Rod was always an innovator and embraced the new technologies of his time in farming while still just wanting to be a good neighbor and friend. This leadership was recognized when he received “The Outstanding Young Farmer Award”. Rod built the first deep pit beef confinement building in Iowa and as a result was asked to give many educational tours of their operation by government and educational institutions. All were welcomed.

Rod later became a real estate broker for Agra Partners and Farmers National Company where he won many prestigious awards, and was named an outstanding Realtor by Realtor’s Land Institute. He was blessed to have his wife and partner Trudy working by his side for it all. To him, whether it was in a personal or professional setting, a stranger was a friend who had not yet been introduced and it so many times started with a smile, an offered hand, and “Hello, I’m Rod”.

He is survived by his wife, his three children, Rosine, Thomas and Dave, 12 grandchildren and four great grandchildren.

Animal Agriculture, Beef

IFAJ Introduces Webpage and Contest

Kelly Marshall November 10, 2015

The International Federation of Agriculture Journalists has been busy with two new projects.

IFAJ has partnered with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) to offer a new competition. Submissions are now being accepted for the IFAJ-FAO Award for Excellence in Global Food Security Reporting. All member countries are invited to submit one entry story that reflects the theme “soil”– from the 2015 United Nations International Year of Soil. All stories must have been published in print or online between the dates of January 1, 2015 and December 31, 2015.

Winners will be awarded an all-expenses paid trips to the annual IFAJ congress, being held next year in Germany. The winner will also travel to an FAO project related to the UN’s International Years.

You can find full contest rules and submission information here. The deadline for entry is March 1, 2016.

Their second project recently put into motion is a new page on the IFAJ website dedicated to improving contact between agricultural journalists. The site, titled “In the Field” is for members to publish their relevant stories and peruse work written by their colleagues. Visit the page and see what ag journalists have been up to.

Agribusiness, IFAJ

Merck’s Commitment to Future of Ag

Jamie Johansen November 10, 2015

For Merck Animal Health, the 88th National FFA Convention wasn’t about teaching students about their products, they focused on where students get their information about science, food and agriculture. I spoke with Merck’s Jim Miles, marketing manager for the fed cattle business, in their booth to learn more about their commitment to the future of agriculture.

“It’s making them realize what’s available out there to talk about and how talk about it. It’s about connecting to people.”

The Merck Animal Health team has a busy winter ahead of them with back to back conventions where they are excited to truly connect with their customers. Jim said in 2016 they will be launching an array of new products and these upcoming tradeshows gives them great face-time with the agriculture community.

Listen to my complete interview with Jim here: Interview with Jim Miles, Merck Animal Health

Find photos from the event here: 2015 National FFA Convention Photo Album

Coverage of the National FFA Convention is sponsored by

Agribusiness, Animal Health, Audio, FFA

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