The ZimmComm team wants to wish you and yours a wonderful Easter holiday. We're going to be pretty much closed down starting Good Friday but of course we'll be peeking at the web. Of course!
We've been having a nice break from the agriblogging highway but things will start picking up again with the 2012 Agri-Marketing Conference. Have you registered? Please stop by the ZimmComm booth, #412. We'll have something unique for you!
Our latest ZimmPoll asked the question, "Should ABC News be Liable for Job Losses due to Lean Beef Trimmings Story?" Sixty percent of you said Yes and forty percent said No.
As Cindy has said about this issue, "Yellow journalism makes pink slime." Have you read various online stories about this? Maybe worse than the terrible and slanted reporting are the comments we've been seeing. There are really some seriously stupid people out there judging by their comments. We know that some people object to the use of the word stupid but "Stupid is as stupid does." Thank you Sally Fields. Of course the reporting is giving them an outlet to showcase their ignorance. But the real tragedy is the impact this has had on people's lives. This includes the ones who have lost their jobs and the consumers who will be paying more for beef.
Our new ZimmPoll is now live and asks the question, "Will we have a farm bill by end of 2012?" Hmm. Election year, budget issues, should be interesting.
Since I've been seeing more and more interest in Pinterest in the AgWired community lately, the release about the Kodak Gallery mobile app being able to share photos to the popular social media site caught my eye. I visited with Trent Gruenwald, Sr. Product Manager, Social & Mobile Products for Kodak Gallery to learn more about it. MORE
Are you familiar with Protect the Harvest? Just received a press release from them about the video below. I sure understand their message but wish there was more information on who they are. MORE
It may feel like summer already, but spring only arrived on March 20th. And believe it or not, some areas actually had snow this winter. Okay, so what's my point? Biodiesel once again had success with cold temperatures around the country. Let me give you a few examples. MORE
Tomorrow (April 5) at 1:30pm EDT, Ag Secretary Tom Vilsack will hold the first "USDA Virtual Office Hours on Twitter." Most of you probably know how this works, especially if you've been a participant in AgChat. I'd recommend using TweetChat, Twubs or an app like TweetDeck or HootSuite to follow along. It looks like these planned monthly sessions will focus on different topics. Tomorrow it's renewable energy. You're asked to submit your questions via Twitter to either @USDA or #askUSDA. MORE
The Illinois "Keep it for the Crop" (KIC) by 2025 campaign is on GROWMARK's list of legislative priorities on the state level for 2012, according to government affairs director Chuck Spencer. MORE
According to Isaac Bowers, Ag Leader Software Support and Training Supervisor, common questions during the winter months are, "Where can I go to find soil survey data?" and, "What do I need to do to bring that data into SMS?" In the past, growers had to know which websites had that data, wait to download a county's worth of information to their local hard drive, and then had to assign each column of data they wanted to import that data.MORE
Select Sires Inc. announces the debut of StrataGEN™, a unique, sequential breeding system that offers optimal use of genomic insights to help dairy producers achieve individual breeding goals while also minimizing inbreeding. MORE
Dairy Farmers of America (DFA) will open a whole milk powder plant in Fallon, Nev. Construction on the facility is to begin in May. The plant's completion is scheduled for summer 2013. MORE
venture | dairy is a newly launched organization that will work with partners around the globe to build sustainable, thriving dairy enterprises that support healthy, prosperous communities. Founded by Trevor Tomkins, Ph.D., the recently retired chief executive officer of Milk Specialties Global and a 38-year veteran of the dairy industry. venture | dairy knows that thriving, sustainable, locally-owned dairy enterprises will have a profound impact on a developing community by generating income, improving nutrition-especially among children, involving women and improving the environment-truly creating healthy, sustainable communities. MORE