Mar 1, 2023

Bob Reis of AGI Digital described his passion for sharing grain safety knowledge with the industry at GEAPS Exchange 2023.

Sep 23, 2022

Provides specific field emissions data to better quantify impacts of sustainable practices

Apr 15, 2022

Education center to offer classroom, hands-on learning and valuable insights

Sep 30, 2019

Online registration is live for Vision 20/20: Global Markets Outlook

Mar 8, 2017

Let AFIA know by March 15 if your company exports or wishes to export to China

Apr 10, 2014

Some of the changes proposed include new CGMPs for facility operations, equipment design and process controls, as well as mandates on Hazard Analysis and Risk-Based Preventive Controls.

Mar 6, 2014

Perhaps the most frustrating hurdle the FSMA presents is the fact that unlike USDA’s GIPSA or APHIS inspectors, many FDA inspectors have little or no grain industry background. They’re used to inspecting food plants where you can “literally eat off of the floor,” Mosher said. “Your facility is never going to look like that, but cleanliness is an indicator of grain quality. Especially be careful to clean up pest’s droppings.”

Jul 11, 2013

In flipping through old issues of Feed & Grain, I ran across a Manager's Notebook from 2007 that, although only six years old, had me nearly laughing at how archaic it sounded. It was about effective communication for feed and grain businesses, and had a section dedicated to email. The authors provided a definition for the term "spam" and suggested using filters to remove such unwanted content. They went on to advise creating folders to help organize and reduce clutter from the remaining messages. It even mentioned the "You've got mail!" reminder that AOL made famous in the 1990s. It's hard to imagine a time when this everyday knowledge was foreign to anyone.

Back then, email was one of the few applications feed and grain business managers used their computers for. Today, those same managers are likely receiving and replying to emails constantly via their smart phones and tablets and use computers for more complex tasks, such as running facility operations, accounting and customer service. A lot sure has changed since "Communicating in the Feed and Grain Business" was published.

However, tucked within this seemingly elementary email tutorial, there were a few nuggets of advice that still resonate today, including the tip to not read and answer emails all day long. Authors, John Foltz and Christine Wilson, wrote:

"For many people, email can almost become an addiction — where they feel a need to constantly check it ... but almost all emails do not need to be answered immediately. A good email management strategy is to set aside particular times each day when you will look at your email and answer it. Perhaps it is to read it three times a day (first thing in the morning, right after lunch, and right before you leave in the evening.)."

This advice is perhaps even more relevent today as we are literally tethered to devices that deliver emails instantly. Urgent messages are easy to identify, and can and should be replied to immediately, but otherwise, try to dedicate your time to managing your facility/business/firm — espeically early in the morning, the authors pointed out.

"Don't answer your email during your most productive time of day. Many people are most productive first thing in the morning, when they are wide awake and ready to face the day. Answering email is not typically a task that takes a lot of creativity, so you might consider leaving it until late in the day. This will free up time when you can be most efficient with things that need sharp mental prowess — such as management, personnel and finance decisions."

Their last tip worth noting is so simple it's easy to forget — use good ettiquette. Again, these may seem basic, but who couldn't use a brush up on their email ettiquette? Foltz and Wilson outlined eight key points:

1. "Be concise and to the point
2. Answer all questions so as to preempt further questions
3. Use proper spelling, grammar and punctuation
4. Make it personal
5. Don't attach any unneccessary files
6. Do not write in CAPITALS (it's considered shouting)
7. Read your e-mail before you send it
8. Do not overuse 'Reply to All'"

Please feel free to test your application of these e-mail tips by dropping me a message about yourself and your feed and grain operation. I am always looking for reader feedback and story ideas. Do you have any tips for better managing your time?

Mar 13, 2013

The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) is analyzing its proposed customer protections, i.e. segregated funds, after receiving a lot of criticism for its recent rulings. Customers and trade organizations have voiced concern over proposed protections they deem harmful to small to mid-sized futures commission merchants (FCM), which account for the bulk of agribusiness hedging activity.

Insurance, one form of protection for segregated funds, was excluded from the CFTC’s proposal. The Commodity Customer Coalition (CCC), a non-profit organization formed in response to the bankruptcy of MF Global, headed by co-founders John Roe, president of Roe Capital Management Inc., and James Koutoulas, CEO Typhon Capital Management LLC, is advocating creation of insurance policies for futures customers and has been working on reform initiatives such as an account insurance mechanism and testing alternative forms of collateral segregation, i.e. margining positions though bank account rather than futures broker.

The CCC’s currently pushing a captive insurance company model. To test the validity of that model, the CCC needs to determine if there is a sufficient market interest for an insurance product; what customers seeking that insurance would be willing to pay; what kind of coverage they would be looking for; and collect account-level data in order to formulate the actuarial model to make sure it’s feasible to create an insurance product.

Roe explains: “We’re talking about a small market here — very few people have a commodity trading account so we’re talking about limited exposure here. It’s not possible for an insurance company to produce such policies so we’d have to create a new company. The survey will measure demand, the actuarial ability to produce the product — and then hopefully we’ll have the data we need to roll up our sleeves and let the actuaries go to work.”

The CCC is conducting two surveys to determine the feasibility of customer account insurance. One survey is tailored to the needs of public customers of commodity firms; the other, to National Futures Association’s (NFA) member or member firms.

If the market demand is there, the CCC will develop its own captive insurance company and begin offering insurance policies to commodity customers.

To take the Commodity Insurance Survey, click here if you are the customer of a commodity firm or click here if you are an NFA member or member firm.

The deadline is March 31.

Click on the link fror more information about CCC’s Insurance/Liquidity Concept.

Jan 14, 2013

1. LevAlert Steel Bin Level Indicator by KC Supply Co. Inc.
2. Bin Whip Series 9250 by Pneumat Systems Inc.
3. Seedburo Grain Probes by Seedburo Equipment Co.
4. Continous Flow and Recycling Dryers from LMM LAW-MAROT-MILPRO
5. WL Portland Systems Inc.'s Feed Mill Design/Build Services
6. LMM LAW-MAROT-MILPRO's Rotary Grain Cleaners
7. Dunbar Kapple Vac-U-Vator by Christianson Systems Inc.
8. Agridry LLC's Bullseye Grain Temperature/Moisture Controller
9. Neogen Corp.'s Reveal for Aflatoxin SQ and Accuscan III Reader
10. Automatic Truck Probe by Intersystems

In addition to satisfying voyeuristic tendencies, hopefully this list will offer someone, somewhere, direction with a future aquisition.

Remember to visit Feed & Grain's Online Buyer's Guide, the industry's most comprehensive collection of the feed and grain industry's products and services, to search for all your equipment needs.

Note: Feed & Grain's FREE iPad app, 2013 Equipment & Services Guide, is available at the Apple Store.

Sep 25, 2012

During my two-hour drive from Birmingham and Auburn to write this issue's cover story, "Auburn's New Feed Mill Comes to Roost," I tried to mentally prepare my questions for Dr. Don Conner, the head of the university's poultry science department, and Mitchell Pate, director of the poultry research unit, but my mind began to wander. I began to think about how excited the student's must be to kick off the Fall 2012 semester in an immaculate, brand-new, state-of-the-art feed mill. The purchase of school supplies was enough to get me motivated for the new school year, but imagine the message this new facility sends to these students: "The poultry industry needs you and this faciltiy represents its investment in you."

In this month's Manager's Notebook (pg. 36), "How to Recruit Tomorrow's Managers," Drs. Jay Akridge and John Foltz cite that by 2015 there will be 54,400 jobs annually for individuals in the agricultural sciences. (USDA report)

In a time when the majority of graduates in many disciplines are simply hoping to find anything in their chosen field, the kids in Auburn's gradate and undergraduate program know they are in high demand in the Southeast with the erection of the Poultry & Animal Nutrition Center. To date, the department has raised 40% of the cost of the mill with industry and stakeholder donations; it hopes to raise the addition 60% over the next four years. Within the modular feed mill, the industry's suppliers alone donated $750,000-worth of equipment. Impressive numbers by anyone's estimation.

According to Dr. Conner, the demand for skilled employees in the Southeast is high — and rising. Behind Georgia and Arkansas, Alabama ranks third in poultry production; Auburn University is located in the heart of the "Broiler Belt." The thing is, the demand Auburn seeks to meet it's just about "growing the industry's future CEOs and VPs," as it was explained to me, "at the end of the day, it's all about education," the university hope to utilize the mill for continuing education and training programs for individuals already working in the field.

In addition, the university's world-class research laboratories can provide endless opportunities for proprietary poultry-related research to aid in the stregthening the yields of poultry producers at all levels. Dr. Conner and his department urge anyone interested in feed mill stop in for a tour, stressing this isn't Auburn's feed mill, it belongs to the collective industry as they plan for a profitable future.

Jun 23, 2012

Production and animal agriculture producers may or may not be shocked to discover that its organic brethren is also frequently subjected to the wrath of critics — and, often, based on similar accusations. Agvocates of all sorts can learn a thing or two from the crisis communications strategies of Organic Valley (OV).

Two marketing representatives from the La Farge, WI-based organic farm cooperative discussed their proactive approach to social media and engagement management at a Social Media Breakfast event held in Madison, WI. While Leslie Kruempel, OV’s social media specialist, focused on the creative business-to-consumer programs it uses Facebook and Twitter to promote, the frank discussion of the cooperative’s struggle with three social-media-fueled PR crises proved especially interesting.

Greg Brickl, OV’s marketing communications director, explained that compared to its primary competition, a publically traded company who sources some of its organic products from factory farms (a faux pas within the organic community), OV’s dedication to organic ideology and its commitment to small family farms made the decision to enter the social sphere “a no brainer.” Today, the company has more than 15,000 Twitter followers and 206,000 Facebook “likes,” a fan base primarily comprised of the mothers of young children.

Social media damage control

According to Brickl, community engagement in its social space breaks into two factions: “98% Love vs. 2% Something Else.” His presentation focused on the later, highlighting three recent incidents that incited public outcry across its social media channels and how the cooperative managed the discourse.

The “Three Meltdown – 10 Months” break down as such:

• Raw milk: In late 2011, OV’s board of directors decided to uphold a long-standing tenant of its membership agreement that stipulates that all milk produced on the OV member farms be delivered to the cooperative for production and sale, measure that not only addressed supply concerns, but safe-guarding the cooperative from any potential public safety issues. “Passionate” raw milk consumers, who purchased their raw milk from these dairies, turned to Facebook for four weeks, bombarding its page with hostile commentary.
  
  “Legit beef? Maybe. I understand that we were coming between them and their raw milk source,” Brickl said, but insisted the action was within the cooperative’s right to protect the integrity of the brand.
  
  During this time the cooperative could not effectively use social media as a marketing tool. Even though OV had "hid" its comment wall, anytime it posted an image or a status update — regardless of the content of the post — the Facebook comment streams would be taken over by the raw milk advocates. As a result, the marketing team spent a lot of energy responding to the negative feedback.
  

• Egg/hen + PETA: After treehugger.com and PETA posted a picture purported to expose a subpar OV egg laying facility, consumers leveled an attack on OV’s social sites yet again.
  
  “They weren’t our chickens, it wasn’t one of our farms, but we spent another month dealing with consumer vitriol,” said Brickl, he noted that Organic Valley strictly abides by organic poultry standards.
  

• Coexistence: In 2010, OV’s CEO met with Secretary Tom Vilsack and biotechnology to discuss the deregulation of genetically modified alfalfa, a staple of a dairy cow's diet. While OV advocated to keep GM alfalfa illegal, once the USDA took that option off the table, OV advocated for very strict restrictions. OV’s acceptance of coexistence and its willingness to work with biotech and the USDA led to the cooperative’s latest social media challenge as angry followers insinuated OV “was in bed with Monsanto,” a claim the cooperative vehemently denies.
  
  “Anybody who knows anything about us knows we’ve spent the entirety of our existence fighting for a food system that is the antithesis of what Monsanto stands for,” Brickl asserted.
  
  The marketing team deems the severity of this ongoing issue a 10 because they have come under attack from many angles, and incorrect Internet articles are difficult to rebut when the source is not a legit news outlet.

Social crisis communications tactics

“We learned very quickly that we needed to establish a plan,” Brickl said. He suggests that companies have a social media crisis communications plan in place prior to an incident. Here are the actions OV took to manage the various issues it has faced:

• Stick to the plan, but be ready to change it for effect
• Respond to every complaint quickly
• Formulate responses not just for the one, but for many (the people reading the feed)
• Do not use robotic PR speak
• Do not censor posts or ban users unless they violate etiquette guidelines
• Tell the truth!

[Source: Organic Valley's “Social Media and Food” slideshow.]

One tactful way to address individuals determined to derail productive engagement is to develop and post etiquette guidelines on the site as you “can’t ban someone unless you’ve given them the rules.” Brickl advises page administrators not block or delete the comments of its critics; however, should it need to block unruly commentators, these guidelines will support that action without reeking of censorship.

In the end, it’s the responsibility of all producers — organic or not — to educate consumers about the truths of farming and agribusiness rather than allow misinformed detractors to control perceptions. Social media offers the direct messaging opportunities and instant feedback unrivaled by traditional advertising and public relations campaigns.

Additional take-a-ways from the presentation:

• Not everyone knows the difference between pasture butter and regular butter. Consumers and producers debate the differences here.
• To evoke comments and engagement, don’t be afraid to post cutesy photos and light-hearted banter to add character to the brand as demonstrated with this image.
• If there is a Social Media Breakfast in your area, it’s free so I suggest you attend. Visit the website or “like” it on Facebook for a list of events.

To view a photo gallery from the event, visit Social Media Breakfast Madison’s Facebook album.

May 8, 2012

Last year Feed & Grain's parent company, Cygnus Business Media, adopted the tagline: “Because the world is changing very fast.” Fitting for a publishing company considering the last decade has delivered the most extraordinary changes in information consumption and delivery for print media since the advent of the printing press. OK, maybe the widespread adoption of the the PC draws a better comparison — but, regardless, everything has changed.

Game changer #1: The smart phones, for example, has not only changes the way we receive news, it’s altered the way we communicate with the world. I’m not just talking about the nonsense abbreviations (LOL, BRB, OMG), I mean texting, social media access — even the inclination to drop land lines all together. I, for one, have not had a “home phone number” in a decade. Yes, a decade.

According to Pew Research’s Internet & American Life Project, in February of 2012 nearly half (46%) of American adults are smartphone users — a statistic that falls very closely in line with the number identified in a recent Feed & Grain smart technology reader survey (56%).

Game changer #2: Tablets have seen a similar surge in the adoption rate. The iPad, for example, has earned the title of “fastest selling electronic device in history,” selling three million units in the first 80 days after its release. According to MediaBistro.com, iPads capture 50% of newspaper and magazine readers who consume the media on the tablet. (Good for advertisers too since they cite increased receptivity to advertisements.)

Of the 350 survey respondees, 1/3 said they own a tablet (either an iPad or something similar) and those who did not, well, 14% said they planned to purchase one in the next 12 months. Most of the participants with tablets use them for news consumption and magazines subscriptions — statistics that also align with MediaBistro's findings.

I must confess, though I love the tangible crispness of a new print edition, I'm a sucker for reading my magazine subscriptions on my iPad. The draw: Rich media enhancements that can't be delivered in print or displayed properly online. One example, the 360-degree image rotation. Not the best example, but imagine viewing ancient artifacts or the Titanic in 3-D — complete with zoom capabilities — it makes for a seriously interesting user experience. Thank you, National Geographic.

Anyway, as the world changes ever faster, it makes you wonder what innovations await media dissemination in the next decade. Long live print!

Jan 31, 2012

Occasionally, I find myself in a conversation with a stranger or an acquaintance, cringing as I catch myself mindlessly talking about the weather. Dicussion of the weather, for me, is thoughtless go-to filler for awkward silences or a transition into friendly chit chat. This being said, sitting at my desk in Fort Atkinson, WI, today, writing my column on January 31, I am compelled to talk about the weather. Outside, the sun is shining and it is 50 degrees. Clarifying, as not to make assumptions about the reader's understanding of an upper Midwestern winter, this is highly abnormal.

Trust me, I'm not complaining — and I must mention I don’t have strong feelings on the subject one way or another — but I can see where proponents of the global warming theory are drawing convincing empirical data. The Internet was a buzz this week surrounding the Wall Street Journal article, “No Need to Panic About Global Warming,” complimented by a subhead reading, “There's no compelling scientific argument for drastic action to 'decarbonize' the world's economy.”

The opinion piece, “signed” by 16 scientists, argues the world does not need any wide-sweeping regulations, i.e. “drastic actions,” to combat global warming. Citing what is referred to as the “Climategate” email from climate scientist Kevin Trenberth: "The fact is that we can't account for the lack of warming at the moment and it is a travesty that we can't."

The cyclical, predictable nature of climate ebbs and flows is at the core of the life’s work of Elwynn Taylor, professor of ag meteorology at Iowa State University in Ames, IA. In his presentation at NGFA’s Annual Country Elevator Conference, Taylor today’s seemingly extraordinary temperatures are nothing more than typical extremes of compared with the temperatures of other La Niña years during the 1950s and 1970s.

“It may suddenly shift again when its influence by El Nino,” Taylor says, referring to the patterns of the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO), that in conjunction with El Niño or La Niña, is responsible 50% of climate variability on the Earth (source: NASA Earth Observatory).

Thanks to this presentation, I can drop a little scientific data into my weather-centric banter.

If you’re curious about the work of Elwynn Taylor and his observations about how the weather is impacting agriculture and yields, follow him on Twitter @ElwynnTaylor.

Sep 26, 2011

By the time this issue hits the streets, the 2011 harvest will be in full swing. Elevators in some areas will take in record volumes; others, however, will experience the diminished returns resulting from Mother Nature's bipolar regional spring and summer weather. With the numbers from the USDA's questionably optimistic June Crop Report dramatically dropping from its original estimates, the commodity market has mirrored this uncertainty.

By today's estimate, the national average corn yield is forecast to be 148.1 bushels per acre, 16.3 bushels below the 2009/2010 crop year and the lowest since 2005/06.

While yields may not break any records, corn prices over $6/bushel, and soybean pushing past $12/bushel, the lucky producers who experienced the best conditions are looking forward to a big pay day. In Iowa, according to the Des Moines Register, producers are poised to pull in more than $20 billion — the largest cash harvest in the state's history.

In contrast, farmers in the Southwest are preparing for a weak second harvest after heat and drought diminished the wheat harvest this spring. For the crops that grew, the corn didn't produce head, and the soybeans without pods — many abandoned the fields altogether. In these cases, reliance on federal crop insurance will ease the burden, but will not replace expected profit.

U.S. exports in the coming year will also suffer. The World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates (WASDE) report, USDA projected wheat, corn, and soybean total exports in the coming crop year (2011/12) to be 4.09 billion bushels, 12% lower than the 2010/11 crop year. The organization's production projections for the new crop of wheat, corn, and soybeans are 17.7 billion bushels, a 2% reduction from last year.

Utlimately we will all have to wait to see the end results of what was a prosperous year for some, and a devasting year for others. Please feel free to contact me at [email protected] to report your harvest experience this year and how it has impacted your business and the business of your producer customers.