Multimedia Library - Video

Farmers: Use Social Media to Connect with Consumers

Wed, 24 Apr 2013 12:18:00 +0000

Michele Payn-Knoper, founder, Cause Matters Corp., talks about how farmers can use social media to tell their stories and connect with consumers and those concerned about food.

No More Food Fights: Understanding Farmer and Foodie Perspective

Tue, 23 Apr 2013 16:38:00 +0000

In an effort to break stereotypes, the book describes farmers who don’t wear overalls but who do use technology in producing food and preserving the environment, dairy farmers who work on “cow comfort,” and how hard farmers work on sustainability. On the other side, the book reminds farmers that only a tiny percentage of the population lives on a farm and urges farmers to tell their stories through social media and every day conversation to correct mistaken beliefs about food production perpetuated by traditional media.

Modern American Agriculture Statistics: Farmers Producing More Grain, More Efficiently on Less Land

Wed, 13 Mar 2013 16:13:00 +0000

As the world population grows, American farmers will have to produce more food in the next 50 years than in the past 10,000 years combined. All of the growth in production will have to be done with less land, energy and water consumption while conserving and sustaining natural resources.

World Classic Rockers at Commodity Classic 2013

Fri, 08 Mar 2013 20:52:00 +0000

Saturday night entertainment at Commodity Classic 2013 in Kissimmee, Fla., came from World Classic Rockers. Made up of members from classic rock bands including Steppenwolf, Journey, Boston and Lynyrd Skynyrd, the grouped rocked the ending to a great Commodity Classic.

USDA Reports Say Climate Change Will Affect Agriculture

Thu, 14 Feb 2013 21:34:00 +0000

Two USDA reports say U.S. agriculture and forest management will have to adapt to climate change and that some of those efforts are already underway. "It’s well documented that the climate is changing, that we are seeing changes in temperature and in changes in precipitation patterns, and that those changes are having implications for forests and for agriculture," says William Hohenstein, director of climate change program, USDA. "What these reports actually look at in more detail are the changes that we expect in changes in terms of extreme events. Changes in the probability of droughts, and floods and how that also will have implications for our resources."

2012 Drought Affecting 2013 Food Prices

Wed, 30 Jan 2013 21:58:00 +0000

A USDA economist says the persistent drought in the Midwest will lead to higher-than-normal food price inflation for the rest of the year. Ricky Volpe, USDA Economic Research Service, says, "It had substantial and devastating impacts on the major field crops of the American Midwest. The most important field crop there is field corn. Now, people don’t eat field corn directly, but it’s processed into animal feed and that’s a major input to the U.S. food supply chain so we’re seeing input costs rise for all the meat products and then all of these animal based products that consumers buy regularly. We’re looking at inflation on the order of about three to four percent for beef and veal, pork, poultry, eggs and even a little bit higher for dairy.

2013 Conservation Legacy Awards: Northeast Region: Roger Wenning

Fri, 25 Jan 2013 19:43:00 +0000

Soil health is the main focus at Wenning Farms, in the rolling hills and tight clay soils of southeastern Indiana. The family operates more than 600 acres in a corn/soybean rotation.

2013 Conservation Legacy Awards: South Region: Jeremy Jack

Fri, 25 Jan 2013 19:32:00 +0000

Combine flat fields, lots of rainfall and a need for irrigation to fight summer heat and it becomes obvious that moisture management is critical for Jeremy Jack, South Region winner of the 2013 Conservation Legacy Awards. “In the Mississippi Delta, one of our biggest conservation efforts goes into water management,” Jack says. “Soil and nutrient management is set by the way we manage water.”

2013 Conservation Legacy Awards: Midwest Region: Gail Fuller

Fri, 25 Jan 2013 19:25:00 +0000

Gail Fuller is a farmer by occupation; he also is equal parts philosopher and futurist. This Emporia, Kan., farmer quotes an ancient philosopher: “To be a successful farmer, one must first know the nature of the soil,” he says, quoting Xenophon of Athens, a Greek author who wrote those words nearly 2,500 years ago. From Fuller’s point of view, “knowing the soil” has slipped pretty far down the priority list in today’s agriculture. But it is job one at Fuller Farms.

Flexible Cash Lease Overview

Fri, 30 Nov 2012 21:13:00 +0000

As the use of flexible cash leases grows, Kent Thiesse, vice president, MinnStar Bank, Lake Crystal, Minn., and former Extension educator, offers an overview of flexible leases, pointing out that a true flexible lease rate can go up or down. He encourages farmers to figure out what makes sense for their farm, and to put the plan in writing and have good communication with their landlords.