We wanted our 500th ZimmCast to be something special so we felt it appropriate to spotlight the new president of the American Farm Bureau Federation who has a name that is sure to be unforgettable - Zippy Duvall of Georgia. Yes, Zippy is a nickname, one that Duvall has had from infancy, although he is proud that he has two namesakes that share his given name Vincent, which they do use. He and his wife, Bonnie, have four children - Vince, Corrie, Zeb and Zellie. Gotta love the whole Z thing they have going there! MORE

ZimmCast  

At the first Soil Health Summit last year, I talked with Purdue University agricultural economist Dr. Wally Tyner about the need to quantify the economic benefits for farmers of using cover crops. This year, Chuck talked with him again about where they are at with that initiative. MORE

Podcast

USDA Deputy Secretary Krysta Harden today announced plans to depart the agency at the end of next month. MORE 

Ethanol has been in the spotlight as a presidential campaign issue with the Iowa caucuses just around the corner, but the Renewable Fuels Association is concerned about some of the misconceptions that have been tossed around in the discussion so they have issued a one-page fact sheet to correct some of that with both candidates and the media. MORE

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has been working on creating better crude liquid from renewable resources to replace fossil-based fuel. Coined "bio-oil," the renewable fuel is derived from agricultural waste such as non-food-grade plant matter procured from agricultural or household waste residue such as wood, switchgrass, and animal manures. The advanced biofuel is now a few steps closer to being able to be distilled at existing petroleum refineries. MORE

This week marks the 61st anniversary of the first house in America with solar heating and radiation cooling. Located in Tuscon, Arizona, the house featured a large, slanting slab of steel and glass that coverts sunlight into heat that was ducted into the house. Today, many homes use solar panels to capture the natural heat of the sun and solar is currently the power source for around 83,000 U.S. homes according to the U.S. Census Census Bureau. MORE