Meet the New USFRA Faces

Cindy Zimmerman

nafb14-usfra-facesAt the National Association of Farm Broadcasting (NAFB) convention on Wednesday, the U.S. Farmers & Ranchers Alliance (USFRA®) announced the winners of its second class of the Faces of Farming and Ranching program.

The new “Faces” are (pictured left to right) Thomas Titus of Illinois, Jay Hill of New Mexico, Erin Brenneman of Iowa, Carla Wardin of Michigan, and Darrell Glaser of Texas. The class will be active participants in the national dialogue about food production to set the record straight. These farmers and ranchers will share their personal stories and experiences through consumer-facing public appearances, events, media interviews and social media.

Listen to Forrest Roberts of the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) introduce the new faces and hear them talk about their farming operations and why they wanted to be part of this program to help educate the public about agriculture: New USFRA Faces of Farming and Ranching


2014 NAFB Convention Photos

Coverage of NAFB Convention is sponsored by
Coverage of NAFB Convention is sponsored by BASF
Audio, Farming, NAFB, USFRA

2014 NAFB Scholarship Winners

Cindy Zimmerman

nafb14-scholarshipsThe NAFB Foundation awarded scholarship numbers 98-100 today at the annual convention in Kansas City to three promising young industry leaders.

From left to right, they are Liz Koehler of Illinois, Joel Penhorwood of Ohio, and Shannon Yokely of Missouri. Liz is a senior at the University of Illinois majoring in agricultural communications, Joel is a junior at The Ohio State University also majoring in agricultural communications, and Shannon is a senior science and agricultural journalism major at the University of Missouri.

The scholarships are a little different this year, as we now have three $5000 scholarships all named after legendary NAFB members: Glen Kummerow Memorial Scholarship, George Logan Memorial Scholarship and now the Orion Samuelson Scholarship, sponsored by the CME Group, which was the 100th scholarship given by the NAFB Foundation and Liz was the recipient.”

nafb14-orion-cmeOrion, who was the first president and one of the founders of the NAFB Foundation, says it was one of the most thrilling days of his life. “Plaques and certificates I appreciate a great deal, but the thing I like about the scholarship is that’s something that will live beyond me because the recipient will change the world.”

“We think this is a fantastic opportunity to help young people,” said Tim Andriesen, CME Group agriculture commodities managing director. “Being able to sponsor something with Orion’s name on, we’re just very honored.”

Listen to my interviews with the three winners, Orion and Tim here: NAFB Foundation Scholarships interview


2014 NAFB Convention Photos

Coverage of NAFB Convention is sponsored by
Coverage of NAFB Convention is sponsored by BASF
Audio, NAFB

Zimfo Bytes

Talia Goes

Zimfo Bytes

  • Farmers have been early adopters of many communications technologies, and Successful Farming and AgriCharts are meeting that growing demand by launching a new app for farmers on the go.
  • AgGateway’s Data Privacy and Security Committee has published a white paper to help the agriculture industry consider ways to incorporate data privacy best practices and standards into their operations.
  • “This Week in AgriBusiness” tapped Martinez Creative Group for the rebranding project, with the goal of updating the look and feel of the show while creating a more consistent branded image for viewers.
  • The Executive Boards of Family Farms, LLC and AgriSolutions® Inc. announced, effective January 1, 2015 the two agribusiness companies will unify as one.
Zimfo Bytes

Animal Welfare Panel at LPC Vision Event

Chuck Zimmerman

LPC Vision 2014 PanelThe inaugural Livestock Publications Council “Vision, and industry celebration” event, held in Kansas City, MO, featured a panel discussion. The topic was “Animal welfare in today’s world of agriculture.” As you might guess, animal activist, rights and welfare continue to be a hot topic of discussion in the industry.

The panel was moderated by Mike Adams, AgriTalk, and panelists were Dr. Hans Coetzee, Professor of Veterinary Clinical Pharmacology, Iowa State University, Debbie Lyons-Blythe, Kansas rancher and Steve Meyer, President, Paragon Economics. Each panelist made opening remarks on the topic and then we had a question and answer session. I found it interesting how Steve pointed out that economic statistics don’t show that animal activists have yet had an impact on farm income in the livestock area.

You can listen to the whole panel discussion here: LPC Panel Discussion

LPC Vision 2014 Photo Album

Animal Activists, Animal Agriculture, Audio, LPC, Media

2014 NAFB Convention is Underway

Cindy Zimmerman

nafb14-susanThe 71st annual convention of the National Association of Farm Broadcasting is officially underway here in Kansas City with the theme “From Our Roots, Our Future Grows.”

Susan Littlefield of KZEN radio in Columbus, Nebraska is NAFB President-Elect and this year’s convention organizer. “We’ve got a variety of different speakers to hit everyone’s tastes,” said Susan, from new technology to farm policy to revitalizing rural communities. She’s also excited about the second NAFB 5K run on Friday morning. “This year the money goes to Children’s Hospital of Omaha to their GI clinic in honor of our youngest son Paul, who was a failure to thrive baby,” said Susan.

Susan says attendance at NAFB peaks at about 850 on Thursday for Trade Talk and “about 155-160 farm broadcasters here, doing what they do best.”

Listen to my interview with Susan here: Interview with Susan Littlefield, NAFB president-elect


2014 NAFB Convention Photos

Coverage of NAFB Convention is sponsored by
Coverage of NAFB Convention is sponsored by BASF
Audio, NAFB

Improving Plant Health Through Nutritional Balance

Jamie Johansen

aeaAdvancing Eco Agriculture (AEA) is a plant nutrition consulting company that works with fruit and vegetable growers from across the country. They have become known for helping farmers grow crops that are completely resistant to diseases and insects using nutrition and enhancing plant immunity through nutritional balance. During Crop Health Laboratories’ Power Growers Seminar I spoke with founder and CEO of AEA, John Kempf, he shared more about the new plant sap analysis technology that is sweeping the U.S. and Canada.

“Plant sap analysis is so sensitive and accurate that it can detect nutritional imbalances as much as four to six weeks earlier then typical tissue analysis. By understanding the connections between mineral nutrition and specific disease and insect challenges through sap analysis we have been able to develop nutritional models to very accurately identify and predict disease and insect susceptibility before it ever shows up.”

John said that as soon as growers start using sap analysis the value of it becomes immediately apparent. The information is actually usable because the information from the test correlates perfectly with what is seen in the field.

Listen to my interview with John here: Interview with John Kempf

Find photos from the event here: 2014 Crop Health Labs Power Growers Seminar Photo Album

Agribusiness, Audio, Crop Science, Nutrition, Vegetables

A Blood Test for Plants

Jamie Johansen

chl-14-53-editedCrop Health Laboratories presented Power Growers Seminar over the weekend in Santa Clara, CA. The event provided a comprehensive introduction to plant sap analysis technology. This new nutrient management strategy was created by Sjoerd Smits, owner of NovaCropControl and HortiNova.

Both companies are based out of the Netherlands and currently sap samples are shipped there for analysis. Crop Health Labs is changing that and is hoping to have a U.S. lab in operation in 2015.

Sjored Smits was one of the keynote speakers at the event and shared more about his research at HortiNova, the history of the company and benefits of utilizing plant sap analysis.

“We are more then seven years into the business of doing plant sap. We have found it to enhance plant health. We want healthy crops with disease suppressiveness. Plant sap looks more to the available part of the nutrients compared to the total part in a tissue analysis. We heard from our clients that in the past tissue analysis didn’t reflect what you saw in the crop and plant sap does.”

NovaCropControl works with growers from 15 countries and currently can test for 21 different parameters. Once the samples research their lab, there is a fast 24-hour turn around time so growers can take quick action. They are also currently testing 200 different organic, sustainable and conventional crops.

Listen to my interview with Sjoerd here: Interview with Sjored Smits

Find photos from the event here: 2014 Crop Health Labs Power Growers Seminar Photo Album

Agribusiness, Audio, Nutrition, Vegetables

Farmers Union President Discusses Sustainability in Ghana

John Davis

nfu-smallNational Farmers Union (NFU) officials made a stop in Africa to talk about how cooperatives can promote sustainability. This news release from the group says NFU President Roger Johnson talked about the development of cooperatives at the National Food and Agric Show (FAGRO) in Ghana.

“I am excited to be able to discuss and promote cooperatives as a means for agricultural sustainability in Ghana,” said Johnson. “Cooperatives provide education and training for members, managers and employees, who can then utilize that knowledge to effectively develop not only their cooperatives, but also their communities.”

Johnson noted that Farmers Union has a rich history of supporting and developing cooperatives, and with that comes the ability to speak to the successes of cooperatives in agriculture. Through the technical assistance and funding provided by Farmers Union, cooperatives throughout the United States have been able to benefit their local communities.

“Ghanaian officials have reached out to NFU in the past to explore the cooperative model in the United States,” said Johnson. “I believe that the successes of the Farmers Union push for cooperatives in the United States can be modeled in Ghana for the betterment of their agriculture industry.”

Johnson noted that Ghana’s economy relies heavily upon its agriculture sector, as it represents 21 percent of the nation’s GDP and more than half of the labor force.

Cooperatives, International, Sustainability

USDA Announces Veterans and Youth Projects

Cindy Zimmerman

vets-2014In observance of Veterans Day, USDA and the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS) announced partners and projects that will be funded in this fiscal year to provide job and training opportunities to veterans and youth.

“This landmark partnership with AmeriCorps to jointly support service opportunities for youth and veterans is an all-around win for our young people and our public lands,” said Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, who frequently notes that the vast majority of those who serve in the U.S. military come from rural areas.

“This is a great example of an innovative partnership that expands economic opportunity for young people, taps the leadership skills of veterans, improves our national forests, and puts a new generation on a lifelong path of service,” said Wendy Spencer, chief executive officer of the Corporation for National and Community Service. “Young people and veterans bring extraordinary skill and passion to conservation service, and we are thrilled to join with USDA to expand service opportunities that strengthen our environment and build economic opportunity for those who serve.”

The projects will create opportunities for 300 youth and veterans who will serve through AmeriCorps and as part of the 21st Century Conservation Service Corps (21CSC), working to restore and conserve natural and historic resources on National Forests and Grasslands in more than 10 states. The $3.7 million in joint funding for this effort was announced earlier this year.

Forestry, USDA

Support the Farmer Veteran Coalition

Cindy Zimmerman

Farmer Veteran CoalitionToday is Veterans Day and one of the sad facts about the men and women who serve our nation is that they often return from active duty with few job opportunities.

That’s where the Farmer Veteran Coalition is making a difference. The coalition is helping to mobilize veterans in the fight to feed America by cultivating a new generation of agriculturalists through the collaboration of the farming and military communities.

Homegrown by Heroes“We’ve got veterans returning to small communities all over this country, and based on my experience in the military and interactions with people in the military, I believe that these people possess the skills and the traits that can contribute in a very positive way,” says Coalition board member Charlie Kruse. Those skills include teamwork, dedication and pride in what you do along with willingness to adapt to different situations.

Kruse, who is a Missouri farmer and former president of the Missouri Farm Bureau who also served 26 years in the Army National Guard, is excited about the work the Coalition is doing, including helping veterans through the Homegrown By Heroes label. “I think it’s a tremendous activity that in some small way let’s all of us in this country pay back to those people in uniform who answered the call and served us proudly,” he added.

Find out more about the coalition at farmvetco.org.

Farming