ZimmCast

Hello and welcome to the ZimmCast. I'm Chuck Zimmerman. The ZimmComm Team are enjoying some time in paradise right near the Gulf of America. The weather has been great and we've had enough rain so that everything is green and growing. In this episode Cindy and I discuss the changes we're making to ZimmComm. We recently announced that we are going to retire from business travel starting Jan. 1, 2026. That has been a very big part of the work we pioneered along with the use of social media in agricultural marketing. But we've got plenty to do as we continue to distribute news releases with our AgNewsWire service. In fact, we started out with the idea of including audio files in news releases for our clients. We called them Talking News Releases and because of our background in farm radio we knew the frustration of not being able to get an interview or sound bite. When you want to have an audio interview included in your news release we will produce it and publish it with no extra cost. We'll work with you on the interview and can also add your own audio file if you would like, including logos, photos or other images. Here is an example of our latest news release for AgTech PR for their client, PowerPollen, that includes an interview. To have us distribute your release to our contact list all you have to do is use your credit card on the AgNewsWire form here and then just email your release and any multi-media content to include. In addition to news releases we will continue produce podcast like this one, The ZimmCast, as well as The Ethanol Report and the Daugherty Water For Food Podcast. If you would like to start a podcast just give us a call. We've still got several trips planned this year including these in July. Tech Hub Live in Des Moines, IA, Southern Peanut Growers Conference in Panama City, FL and Ag Media Summit in Rogers, AK.  So, keep ZimmComm's in your plans. And that's the ZimmCast for now. I hope you enjoy it and thank for listening.

Hello and welcome to the ZimmCast. I'm Chuck Zimmerman. In this episode I'm going to share a couple of interviews from the NAMA Agri-Marketing Conference. One is with Gardner Hatch, Executive Director, NAFB and Debbie Boyle, Vice President, Kynetic. They talk about a new NAFB listener survey. Then I have an interview with Melanie Rice, Brownfield Ag News, about becoming the new President of NAMA. Before I do this I'm going to talk about a ZimmComm announcement Cindy and I published last week. Basically, we are retiring from business travel starting at the end of 2025. Besides our 21 years with ZimmComm we traveled a lot for many years before we started ZimmComm.  We founded the company in 2004 as the first social media-based agricultural communications company and pioneered “event blogging” for farm and biofuels conferences, capturing the sights and sounds in photos and interviews. Nearly 225,000 photos and countless interviews and miles later, we have decided to hang up our traveling bags and spend more time at home. A lot of people look to retire to travel the world. We've been blessed to see all the places we ever wanted and more! We plan to continue our AgNewsWire news release service as well as AgWired.com, Energy.AgWired.com and our podcasting and other audio production services. We're just giving up the travel portion of our work. So that's the ZimmCast for this week. I hope you enjoy it and thank you for listening.

Hello and welcome to the ZimmCast. I'm Chuck Zimmerman. The first day of spring started the day after the annual Agri-Pulse Ag & Food Summit and National Ag Day Activities. We have published virtual newsrooms on our AgNewsWire website and story posts on AgWired. So, in this episode I'd like to share a few of the interviews and audio from the events. I'll start out with Agri-Pulse. You can listen to the opening remarks from Ireland's Ambassador to the United States Geraldine Byrne Nason. Next will be Jim Sutter, CEO, USSEC and then Jane Franch, Sr. Director, Climate Impact, Pivot Bio. I'll move to the National Ag Day Activities with a student panel discussion. The students are Taylor Rogers, National Grange Youth Ambassador; Lance Williams, AFA advisor; Caroline Groth, FFA Eastern Region Vice President; and Matias Habib, National 4H. Moderated by Miles Chiotti, Manager, Public & Industry Relations - Agriculture & Turf Division at John Deere. It is Cindy's time to be in Washington, DC this week for the ACE Fly-in. After that the next event coming up soon is the 2025 Agri-Marketing Conference. If you haven't registered, you can still do so. I'll see you there. If you have any ideas for a future ZimmCast podcast just let me know. That's the ZimmCast for now. I hope you enjoy it and thank for listening.

In this episode I'm going to share some Commodity Classic which was almost at the highest attendance ever. We were in the Mile High city of Denver, CO. The weather was mostly perfect but we did have some wind, rain and snow at the end. Next year the event will take place in San Antonio. Once again Syngenta made my trip to Classic possible. So, in the program I have with me the following: Eric Boeck, Regional Director of North America Seeds, Syngenta Jeff Cecil, Crop Protection Marketing Head, Syngenta North America Steve Sterchi, Product and Commercial Strategy Lead, Syngenta North America Kramer Farney, GHX Marketing, Golden Harvest Justin Welch, Head of Decision Agronomy, Golden Harvest Coming up next for me on the agriblogging highway is the Agri-Pulse Ag and Food Policy Summit in Washington, DC followed with the National Ag Day Activites. Then it's Cindy turn to go to DC for the ACE Fly-in. Things start to settle down but I'll be in KC, MO for the Agri-Marketing Conference in April.

Hello and welcome to the ZimmCast. I'm Chuck Zimmerman. In this episode I'm going to share some interviews with last week's CattleCon 2025 and CIRB Annual Mtg. I was in San Antonio while Cindy was in Bonita Springs, FL. This is definitely the busy time! So, let's get started with CattleCon. I talked with Colin Woodall, CEO, NCBA who says they were going to break 8,500 attending. Additionally, he talks about the top issues the organization is working on. Next I have Kevin Good, VP Industry Relations, CattleFax. Kevin gave a full presentation on the stage during the CattleFax session. Afterward I interviewed him to hear his outlook for cattle and beef and what is factors are impacting them. Now, I turned to CIRB. Cindy interviewed Tara Smith, Deputy Executive Vice President, CIRB. Tara talks about the need for educating new people working in the new administration and Congress about the importance of crop insurance. Finally, I have Cindy's interview with Lindsey Rinkenberger, CIRB Chairwoman, COUNTRY Financial. Lindsey started CIRB participating the Emerging Leaders program. She talks about how CIRB works with the crop insurance coalition in Washington, DC. And that's the ZimmCast for this week. I hope you enjoy it and thank you for listening.

Hello and welcome to the ZimmCast. I'm Chuck Zimmerman. While Cindy was home during the major snow storm in Florida I was attending the Clean Fuels Conference in San Diego, CA. The weather was delightful for the conference. However, in the Pensacola, FL area there was eight to ten inches of snow, something that hasn't happened in over 150 years! But it has all melted and we're mostly back to normal. So, let's talk about clean fuels. We created a virtual ag newsroom once again for the conference that used to be named the National Biodiesel Conference. It was the first one we created many years ago. You can find that newsroom with photos, interviews and session audio right here. In this episode I'm going to share some of the interviews I did. So, let's get started. First up I interviewed Kent Engelbrecht, ADM, serving as Chairman of the Clean Fuels Alliance America. Following him is Kurt Kovarik, VP of Government Affairs, Clean Fuels; then Tom Verry, Director of Outreach and Development; and to close things up I interviewed Donnell Rehagen, CEO, Clean Fuels. In addition to the virtual ag newsroom on AgNewsWire we also posted content onto the Clean Fuels Conference Blog which you can find here. Now that I've been catching up I'm getting ready for the CattleCon 2025 working with the National Cattlemen's Beef Association. At the same time Cindy will be at the Crop Insurance and Reinsurance Bureau annual meeting. It's just that busy time of the year. So, that's the ZimmCast for now. I hope you enjoy it and thank you for listening.

Hello and welcome to the ZimmCast. I'm Chuck Zimmerman. ZimmComm is now entering its 21st year. Who would have thought? We officially announced our company at the 2004 National Agri-Marketing Conference. We had our first booth at the conference in 2005 which means we've exhibited for twenty of them! I thought you might like to hear the first audio podcast I recorded in January of 2005. We were just starting to figure out what we could do with our AgWired blog. It's a short episode. I'm going to share some other audio after this. So, that was the start and it has sure changed over the years. So, let's look at this year. I was working at the Beltwide Cotton Conferences in New Orleans and thought I'd focus on the outlook for cotton. I would not be surprised if there are some changes after the presidential inauguration. But I'm going to start with Gary Adams, CEO of the National Cotton Council. He talks about the cotton industry outlook and then moves onto the farm bill.  Following Gary is Daren Abney, Executive Director, U.S. Cotton Trust Protocol. He talks about the last year of the program and an outlook of what's next. You can find a lot of photos as well as interviews and session audio on the AgNewsWire virtual ag newsroom here. I'm heading out next to San Diego for the Clean Fuels Conference and hoping the weather doesn't cause too many travel problems. It's looking like I'll miss the mess though. So, that's the ZimmCast for this episode. I hope you enjoy it and thank you for listening.

Hello and welcome to the ZimmCast. I'm Chuck Zimmerman along with Cindy Zimmerman. Welcome to another year of agriblogging and farm podcasting. It's hard to believe that we're coming close to 21 years since we started ZimmComm in 2004. Cindy and I have worked together in the ag marcom field for about 21 years before that. Now we're doing some thinking and planning for 2025. I sense that this year will be a big one for us We've already got plans made for the same conferences during the upcoming months. We traveled to work at 20 different events last year. So, we'll see how things go as time moves on. We started taking photos at events 20 years ago when Flickr started. Since then we've uploaded 222,000 photos and they have collectively received 38 million views. In 2024 we uploaded 6,611 photos from the events and they have been viewed 1.1 million views. On the audio side of things we started using Libsyn as our audio/podcast server platform in 2017. In that time, and just looking at our ZimmComm Golden Mic Audio podcast, we've received 2.8 million downloads of those files, with 137,000 in 2024. Our AgNewsWire service had a banner year in 2024 with the distribution of over 80 news releases for our clients. And speaking of news releases we're offering a 2025 discount for existing or new customers. If you sign up for an advance purchase of 4 news releases you will receive a 10 Percent discount. Regular price is $525 but your discounted price will be $472.50/each! Feel free to contact me about how AgNewsWire works and we'll help you reach our comprehensive list of ag media. AgWired and Energy. AgWired have also really kept us busy. Besides Cindy and me we've had 40 editors work for us and that includes interns, many of who are in high level jobs in ag media and agencies, and freelancers who have started their own companies. We can't say how thankful and proud for all of them So, that's what's on our minds as we contemplate the how/when/what and why of another year on the agriblogging highway. So, that's the ZimmCast. We hope you enjoyed it and thank you for listening.

Hello and welcome to the ZimmCast. I'm Chuck Zimmerman. In this episode I'm going to share some interviews from the NAFB Trade Talk about reactions from the recent presidential election.  I'm going to include Mary Kay Thatcher, Syngenta Sr. Manager, Federal Government and Industry Relations; Brian Jennings, ACE CEO; Geoff Cooper, RFA CEO and Ethan Lane, NCBA, VP of Government Affairs. Adding to these interviews, Cindy recently interviewed Kip Tom, Indiana farmer and served as the Ambassador to the United Nations Agencies for Food and Agriculture during President Trump's previous term. You can listen to his reactions here. That's the ZimmCast for now. I hope you enjoyed it and thank you for listening.

Hello and welcome to the ZimmCast.  In this episode we'll get a preview of the AgGateway Annual Conference that will be starting November 11th in Austin. I talked with Brent Kemp, President and CEO, about what AgGateway works to accomplish and what the schedule looks like. I'll be there to take photos and collect some good interviews and session audio. I'll be going straight from there to Kansas City for a day of the NAFB Convention before heading back to ZimmComm World Headquarters. Looking over the last years that I've attended AgGateway meetings it seems to just continue to growing and refining the work they do. So, that's the ZimmCast for now. I hope you enjoy it and thank you for listening. 

Hello and welcome to the ZimmCast. In this episode I am going to share some audio from the recent Syngenta Media Summit 2024 that was held in the new crop protection facility in Greensboro, NC. I am grateful for the opportunity to be with a group of agricultural journalists and have personal time with Syngenta leadership. You'll hear more about the new facility. I have created a virtual newsroom on AgNewsWire that contains photos as well as interviews and other audio for ag media to use. I've picked out the welcome we had from Jeff Cecil, Head of North America Crop Protection Marketing, in the form of a one on one interview about advancing innovation for the US grower. After that you'll hear closing comments from Vern Hawkins, Regional Director, North America President. He focused on advancing American agriculture.  That's the ZimmCast for now. Please let me know if you have ideas for a future podcast. Just email me at chuck@zimmcomm.biz.

Hello and welcome to the ZimmCast. I'm Chuck Zimmerman. It's time for the 2024 NAMA Fall Conference which will be held in Minneapolis, MN, October 14-16. The theme is “Fall Back” and you'll hear why in my interview with Laura Rustmann, Director of Marketing and Sales, J.L. Farmakis, Inc. and Chair of the committee that is organizing the conference. Cindy and I have enjoyed a few weeks without travel since the Farm Progress Show but things will get started again the beginning of October. I will not be able to attend the NAMA Fall Conference this year due to a conflict but we're going to get a preview from Laura. That's the ZimmCast for now. Please let me know if you have ideas for a future podcast. Just email me at chuck@zimmcomm.biz. 

Hello and welcome to the ZimmCast. I'm Chuck Zimmerman. I've lost count of how many Farm Progress Shows I have attended but it's a lot. This year in Boone, IA we had great weather and that's not always the case. But it was also an opportunity to see friends as well as clients. I was only on site for Tuesday and half of Wednesday but I recorded 26 interviews that you can find on AgNewsWire in our virtual newsroom for the event. So, speaking of clients and the fact that we're always interested in what's new in the world of agribusiness I'm going to share interviews with several companies. They include: Scott Nelson, Make Hay; Thad England, Groundwork Bioag; Craig Dick, Phospholutions; Scott Trbovich, Taranis and Steve Nicholson, Rabo AgriFinance. They'll go in that order. We post the ZimmCast on AgWired as the official podcast. We also post stories using other interviews as we have time so keep your eye out for them too. That's the ZimmCast for now. I hope you enjoy it and thank you for listening.

Hello and welcome to the ZimmCast. I'm Chuck Zimmerman. Although Cindy and I got a little break from the agriblogging highway things got busy again. In this episode I'm going to share a few interviews that have a focus on a new Farm Bill. What do you think? Is it still possible this year or will it be sometime in 2025? You will hear different thoughts from Ted McKinney, NASDA, Sonny Perdue, University of Georgia Chancellor, Representative Austin Scott, (R-GA) and Representative Frank Lucas, (R-OK). After these interviews I'll provide you with a preview of this year's Ag Media Summit which will start August 3 through the 6th. This is the 25th AMS and it will be held in Kansas City, Missouri. I'll be taking lots of photos so keep your eye out for them throughout the event and feel free to download and share. That's the ZimmCast for now. I hope you enjoy it and thank you for listening.

Hello and welcome to the ZimmCast. I'm Chuck Zimmerman. I'm getting a break from the agriblogging highway after last week's AgGateway Mid-Year Meeting in Altoona, IA. Cindy and I have worked on our calendar through the end of the year and there are quite a few more places to be around the USA. In this episode I have a conversation with Gardner Hatch, the new Executive Director of the National Association of Farm Broadcasting. We have known Gardner for a long time and he is a card carrying member of the ZimmComm Golden Mic Club. And was the recipient of one of the first Golden Mic Awards at the Agri-Marketing Conference. So, let's get started. Gardner talks about why he chose to make this career move and the NAFB 10 year strategic plans and priorities. That's the ZimmCast for now. I hope you enjoy it and thanks for listening.

Hello and welcome to the ZimmCast. I'm Chuck Zimmerman. Cindy and I celebrated our 20th anniversary of ZimmComm at the Agri-Marketing Conference in KC, MO. We got to see and talk to many of our friends and clients and talk about the “old” days and what we think is on the horizon. We've needed to make changes, go in different directions and learn new skills as so much has changed, most especially just before and through the pandemic years. We're looking ahead to the future discussing some new ideas and making some changes once again.  In the meantime, I'll be on my annual retreat the end of the week and right on to Washington, DC for The Future of Food & Farming: The Modern Celebration of Ag on the National Mall, working with AEM. After that I'll be on the road to the AgGateway Mid-Year Meeting in Des Moines, IA. So, let's dive in to this episode with Karl Harker, AWIS and Scot Benson, Nitrogen Pulse. These companies are cooperating on tools for farmers to better manage their nitrogen use, tied into weather data. You can learn more about it in our discussion. That's the ZimmCast for this week. I hope you enjoyed it and thank for listening.  

Hello and welcome to the ZimmCast. I'm Chuck Zimmerman. It's almost time for the 2024 Agri-Marketing Conference that is put on by the National Agri-Marketing Association. ZimmComm will be there to celebrate our 20th anniversary in our Connection Point booth. We've got more to come on this when we get to the conference later this month. In this episode I'm talking with Lori Kruger, Signal Theory, and Chair for the Agri-Marketing Conference committee. We'll do a preview of what you'll find. In case you haven't registered it's easy to go to the NAMA website and get it done. So, that's the ZimmCast for this week. I hope you enjoyed it and thank you for listening.

Hello and welcome to the ZimmCast. I'm Chuck Zimmerman. I started in a career of agricultural communications back in 1983 and in all these years it is amazing how much has changed. Technology has played a major role and that includes the ability today to easily communicate about agriculture everywhere in the world. Having said this I'm going to have a conversation with Dr. Owen Roberts. He is a good friend and we first met being involved at events of the International Federation of Agricultural Journalists.  Owen Roberts, Ed.D. Lecturer and Director, Dr. Jim Evans Agricultural Communications Initiative; Agricultural Leadership, Education and Communications program; College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences; University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign  He is also involved with a new initiative at the University of Illinois's College of Agriculture. And that's the subject of this podcast episode. Plans have been made for a global center for food and agricultural communications and it is named after another good friend, Dr. James Evans.  The James F. Evans Global Center for Food and Agricultural Communications That's the ZimmCast for this week. I hope you enjoy it and thank you for listening.

Hello and welcome to the ZimmCast. I'm Chuck Zimmerman. Once again I learned all about what's new in the world of agribusiness for Syngenta during the Commodity Classic which was just held in Houston, TX. So this episode will feature interviews I did in the Syngenta booth.  Between Cindy and myself this was our 7th conference of the year. You can find virtual newsrooms from them all on AgNewsWire.com. In there are photos and lots of interviews. So, these are some interview I picked out to provide a good selection of topics from Syngenta: Eric Boeck, Regional Director North America Seeds at Syngenta; Liz Hunt, Sustainable & Responsible Business Head, Syngenta; Jim Shertzer, Head of Branded Marketing, Syngenta North America Seeds; Matt Dolch and Jared Benson, NK corn and soybean product managers; Kramer Farney, Golden Harvest head of marketing Next on the AgriBlogging Highway Cindy will be at the ACE DC Fly-in. I will be at the Agri-Pulse Ag & Food Policy Summit and National Ag Day activities. Then we will both be at the Agri-Marketing Conference in Kansas City, MO with a booth in the Connection Point. We launched ZimmComm publicly at the 2004 Agri-Marketing Conference. We are already celebrating 20 years since we created ZimmComm and “What a long, strange trip it's been.” BTW. I did see Grateful Dead live and in concert many, many years ago. That's the ZimmCast for now. I hope you enjoy it and thank you for listening.

A look at the Clean Fuels Conference and the National Ethanol Conference

Hello and welcome to the ZimmCast. I'm Chuck Zimmerman. The last two weeks have been hectic for the ZimmComm Team. I was in Orlando for CattleCon and I'm going to share some interviews from there in this episode. Then I was off to Ft. Worth for the Clean Fuels Conference while Cindy went to Scottsdale for the Crop Insurance and Reinsurance Bureau Annual Meeting. You can find virtual newsrooms for all of them on AgNewsWire.com. They contain links to the photo albums, interviews and selected session audio. We've got a break this week but a lot more on the schedule in the next couple months. So, let's get on with CattleCon. I'm going to share interviews with Todd Wilkinson, Past NCBA President;  Mark Eisele, NCBA President; Buck Wehrbein, NCBA President-Elect and Colin Woodall, CEO, NCBA. Besides these CattleCon interviews there are many more that are separated as officers, staff, trade show and other interviews. Besides looking them up online you can also easily get them by subscribing to the ZimmComm Golden Mic Audio Podcast with your favorite platform. That is the ZimmCast for now. I hope you enjoyed it and thank you for listening.

Welcome to the ZimmCast, I'm Chuck Zimmerman. This week we're going to get a preview of the new CattleCon. I love that name. It is new and perfect for the Cattle Industry Convention and NCBA Trade Show. In fact, CattleCon is the official new name.  To learn all about what's new and different with CattleCon I talked with Kristin Torres, Executive Director of Meetings and Events, NCBA. CattleCon is where the beef industry meets! We're Onward to Orlando from January 31 to February 2, 2024. At CattleCon, you'll discover a unique and comprehensive experience that brings together education, networking, business opportunities, advocacy, and fun for the whole family, all under one roof. Join us at CattleCon, the ultimate destination where the beef industry meets to learn, connect, grow, and enjoy. Registration for CattleCon24 is now open. Click here to register for the largest event in the cattle industry. Thanks Kristin for walking us through the newly named event and some of the changes that attendees will find. So, that's the ZimmCast for this week. I hope you enjoy it and thank you listening.

Hello and welcome to the ZimmCast. I'm Chuck Zimmerman. As we come to the end of 2023, we already have dates on the calendar going into the new year for about the same events we did this year, most of which we have been doing for about 15 years. From Beltwide Cotton Conferences right after new years to the American Seed Trade association Field Crops seed convention, we stayed busy all year. Here is a compilation of interviews from 2023. And that will wrap it up for 2023 – see you somewhere on the agriblogging highway in 2024. And that's the ZimmCast. I hope you enjoyed it and thank you for listening.

Hello and welcome to the ZimmCast. I'm Chuck Zimmerman. During this year's NAFB Trade Talk I interviewed a lot of company representatives and am taking this opportunity to share some of them. These folks had a lot more than just the Golden ZimmComm Microphone in their face! But they are now members of the Golden Mic Club. Here's who you can listen to in this order: Mike DiPaola,Taranis and Ethan Noll, Ag Partners Co-op; Mark Foster, AMVAC; Aaron Robinson, Benson Hill; Aaron Eddy, Azotic and Brian Neineke, Phospholutions. I know that was a lot of information on different products and companies but I hope you enjoyed it. Cindy and I will be on the agriblogging and podcasting trail for the American Seed Trade Association's newly named Field Crop Seed Conference. It is being held in Orlando, FL for the first time. The Golden ZimmComm Microphone will get a workout once again before we start the new year in Ft. Worth at the Beltwide Cotton Conference. That's the ZimmCast for this episode. I hope you enjoy it and thank you for listening.

Hello and welcome to the ZimmCast. I'm Chuck Zimmerman. In this episode I'm going to share a timely interview. You'll hear my conversation with Karl Harker with the Agricultural Weather Information Service. AWIS is advertising on AgNewsWire to reach new prospects for their services. That's what we'll be talking about as we approach winter which is a very important one for all types of farmers and those who provide them with weather information. The ZimmComm Team has been very busy this fall so far but we've still got a lot on the calendar still before the end of the year. If you enjoy the ZimmCast let me know if you would like to sponsor the program or have ideas of topics or interviews you'd like to hear. That's the ZimmCast for this week. I hope you enjoy it and thank you for listening.

Hello and welcome to the ZimmCast.  In this episode we're going to learn about special sale of agriculture focused website domains being sold by Dave Larson of Larson Ent. LLC. There are a number of categories and I'll let him tell you about what is available. After that I'm going to share my wrap-up interview of the 2023 NAMA Fall Conference with John Rozum, AEM and current President of NAMA. It was a well attended and successful conference. I'll be in the woods starting this weekend for a few days for my annual deer hunt and I'm looking forward to getting some more venison in the freezer. Can't wait. That's the ZimmCast for this week. I hope you enjoyed it and thank you for listening.

Hello and welcome to the ZimmCast. It is time to get a preview of what to expect at this year's NAMA Fall Conference. I spoke with Trista Thompson, Wyffels, Chair for the conference and Laura Rustmann, J.L. Farmakis, Vice Chair. In our discussion we'll talk about the ag tour the day before the official start of the conference; keynote speakers; breakout sessions, professional development awards and lots of opportunity for networking. You can still register and we hope to see you there. That's the ZimmCast for this week. I hope you enjoyed it and thank you for listening.

Hello and welcome to the ZimmCast. I'm Chuck Zimmerman. Last week the Ag Innovation Campus held its grand opening in Crookston, MN. You can see lots of photos and interviews in the virtual newsroom I published on AgNewsWire.com. I'm going to share some of those interviews in the episode. Before getting to the AIC facility I met a group of farmers and other ag leaders in Fargo, ND to tour the Northern Crops Institute. This is a collaborative effort among Minnesota, Montana, North Dakota, and South Dakota to support the promotion and market development of crops grown in this four-state region and it is situated on the campus of North Dakota State University, in Fargo. I'll share my interview with Mark Jirik, Director, who will describe the unique work they do there. After that we got on a bus and traveled to the Riverview Waukon Dairy where I met David Yost who will provide an overview of the large and very impressive facility they have built. Then we moved on to Crookston, MN to the Ag Innovation Campus. We had presentations from a variety of people who have played a part in the success of reaching phase one of the facility and a ribbon cutting. I talked with several leaders about the work that the AIC will do to deliver crops and processing technologies from bench top to commercialization. Think of the term, crush facility, and you'll hear more about this staring with Tom Slunecka, Acting AIC CEO. Next we'll hear from Mike Skaug, AIC Board Member. Finally in this episode you can hear from the AIC Plant Manger, Kent Meyers. That's the ZimmCast for this week. I hope you enjoyed it and thank you for listening.

Interviews with Kramer Farney, Golden Harvest head of marketing; NASCAR Driver Sammy Smith; Mary Kay Thatcher, senior lead for federal government relations at Syngenta; Eric Boeck, Regional Director North America for Syngenta Seeds; Sustainable Oils President Mike Karst; Matt Dolch, NK Corn Product Manager, and Jared Benson, NK Soybean Product Manager

Hello and welcome to the ZimmCast. I'm Chuck Zimmerman. I'm going to start with an excerpt of the brand new podcast, The Heart of Rural America, hosted by Amanda Radke. She's a South Dakota cattle rancher, wife, mama, author, and motivational speaker. Amanda also wrote for AgWired back in 2010! I highly recommend you subscribe to and listen to her new podcast. We are very proud of Amanda and have enjoyed watching her family and career grow over the years. Next in the program are interviews with the new presidents of the Agricultural Communicators Network and the Livestock Publications Council. The gavel was passed for both organizations during the Ag Media Summit. First up is Martha Mintz, Corral Creek Communications. Next, you can listen to my interview with Katrina Huffstutler, Grant Company LLC. That's the ZimmCast for this week. Thank you for listening and I hope you enjoyed it.

Hello and welcome to the ZimmCast. I'm Chuck Zimmerman After getting a break from the agriblogging highway the ZimmComm Team has used the time for some needed work on headquarters. Fortunately it has been indoors as the temperatures are high and a lot of rain has fallen until the last couple days. So now it's time to look ahead to some events we will be attending. The first one is the 2023 Tech Hub Live with a preview from Scott Cogdill, Proagrica. This is the third annual event and will have over 88 speakers, 19 tech talks, 19 fireside chats, 17 roundtable discussion groups and 10 breakout sessions. You can see who is exhibiting here. Following Tech Hub Live I will be at the Southern Peanut Growers Conference in Destin, FL. I'll be creating content for the conference blog and there will be lots of photos and interviews. Then it's on to the 2023 Ag Media Summit in Palm Springs, CA, and the Renaissance Palm Springs Hotel. I haven't been able to attend them all but most of them. The AMS started in 1999. To get a preview of this year's event I spoke with Shelia Grobosky, Public Relations Coordinator at BioZyme Inc. who is the AMS Steering Committee Chair and a member of the Livestock Publications Council. She says there are a number of things that have been changed in the schedule but the basics all all there. It's not too late to register. You can do that here. Hope you are staying cool if you are in an area with significant heat but, hey, it is summer. So that's the ZimmCast for this week. I hope you enjoy it and thank you for listening.

Hello to the ZimmCast. I'm Chuck Zimmerman. In this episode I will be sharing a couple of interviews from the AgGateway Mid-Year Meeting. One of those is with Andres Ferrerya, Data Asset Manager for Syngenta Digital. The kind of work that he does and the work of AgGateway can get pretty technical but he describes it in a clear way to understand, in my opinion. Then you can hear Jeremy Wilson, AgGateway's Executive VP/COO, as he talks about the various working groups in AgGateway and what they are doing. The work that AgGateway is doing is really vital for farmers, retailers and other companies that are seeking standards of various kinds to make the process of digital information quicker, simpler and more useful. That's the ZimmCast for this week. I hope you enjoy it and thank you for listening.

Hello and welcome to the ZimmCast. I'm Chuck Zimmerman. It is going to be a very active June into July for ZimmComm, with a variety of on-location events. One of those is the annual IFAJ World Congress which is being held this year in Alberta, Canada. I will be there and I believe this will be my 10th IFAJ Congress. These events are very well planned and packed with business, professional development and farm tours. To get a preview of the activities I spoke with Jessika Guse, co-chair of the planning committee. I'll be taking a lot of photos throughout the Congress and hope to have time and internet to get them up asap. I'll be doing the same immediately after the Congress when I stay in Calgary for the Alltech ONE World Tour stop. That's the ZimmCast for now. I hope you enjoy it and thank you for listening.

Hello and welcome to the ZimmCast. I'm Cindy Zimmerman This episode comes to you from the 2023 Water for Food Global Conference, which was held May 8-11 at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. This was the 10th Water for Food Conference but the first time it's been held since 2019, thanks to COVID. The Daugherty Water for Food Global Institute (DWFI) at the University of Nebraska works to address the global challenge of achieving food security with less stress on water resources through water management in agricultural and food systems and the conference brings together experts and thought leaders from around the world to help find solutions to water and food security challenges. In this episode, you will hear from DWFI executive director Peter McCornick, DWFI board member Felicia Marcus, Colorado farmer and LRE Water consultant Dick Wolfe, Nebraska farmer Debbie Borg, and Louise Mabulo, founder of The Cacao Project. We hope you enjoy it and thank you for listening.

The 2023 Agri-Marketing Conference is approaching fast. You can still register right here. And in this episode you can hear a comprehensive preview of the conference from Vice Chair, Lori Kruger, Signal Theory. In 2004 Cindy and I announced the start of ZimmComm at the conference which means we're starting our 20th year!! It was one of the best decisions we have made and we will be exhibiting once again in the Connection Point. I'll be easy to find and hope you will stop by. I'll have the Golden ZimmComm Microphone ready to conduct interviews. I'd like you to tell me a little about your what you do, your company and your products/services. Simple. No wrong answers.  You can also enter our booth drawing which is a Supernote A6 X bundle that includes pen and folio. It is a dedicated digital note taking device! I want to thank Lori and all the committee members and staff for putting together a fantastic looking conference agenda. I hope to see you there. That's the ZimmCast for this week. I hope you enjoy it and thank you for listening.

In this episode we're going to continue learning about newer options for insurance programs for farmers. And in the program we're going to learn about a relatively new way for farmers, ag processors and cooperatives to have more control over their own risk protection. In particular, the subject will be Captive Insurance Programs.  I had a conversation with John Capasso, founder and current President & Chief Executive Officer of Captive Planning Associates, LLC. John has over 20 years of insurance experience. He walks us through the definition of captive programs and answers questions farmers have about creating them and making the best use of this risk tool. So, listen in as John provides us with the “Captivating Possibilities” of Captive Insurance Programs. That's the ZimmCast for this week. I hope you enjoyed it and thanks for listening.

Hello and welcome to the ZimmCast. ZimmComm is celebrating 19 years in business this month! In this episode you'll hear about some new products, because that's what Classic is all about. I want to say a special thank you to Syngenta and Phospholutions for making my attendance possible. First you'll hear my conversation with Hunter Swisher, CEO/Founder, Phospholutions. This was the companies public announcement of their product RhizoSorb, an entirely new phosphate fertilizer technology. Hunter will explain. Moving over to Syngenta, a key announcement was a new way to buy seed. They call it Seed Simplified and it is starting with their GHX by Golden Harvest brand to farmers in Iowa and Illinois. Golden Harvest's Morgan Dugan explains it. That's all for the ZimmCast this week. I hope you enjoy it and thank you for listening.

Hello and welcome to the ZimmCast.  I'm going to focus on a couple of different conferences in this episode. First I'm going to share an interview Cindy did with Erik Huschitt, Badger State Ethanol, who is the Chair for the Renewable Fuels Association. This was during the National Ethanol Conference last week. We've been working on the annual conference since 2007. Besides Erik's interview we have lots of content on our AgNewsWire.com virtual ag newsroom. It might be the most we've ever produced at this conference. In Cindy's interview you'll hear Erik talk about what a great conference it was this year. Next I'm going to let you hear what Sara Wyant, Agri-Pulse, says about the upcoming Agri-Pulse Ag and Food Policy Summit, which is will place in The National Press Club in Washington, DC. With spring almost here it is time for National Ag Day with activities in Washington, DC the day following the Agri-Pulse event. National Agriculture Day is celebrating 50 years. Amy Bradford, GROWMARK, is chair of the event this year with is hosted by the Agriculture Council of America. Amy talks us through the planned activities. So, that's the ZimmCast for this week. I hope you enjoy it and thank you for listening.

Hello and welcome to the ZimmCast. I'm Chuck Zimmerman. This week's program will start with cattle and end with CIRB. By that I mean a couple of my interviews from the Cattle Industry Convention & NCBA Trade Show and then from the Crop Insurance and Reinsurance Bureau Annual Meeting. First up is Colin Woodall, CEO, NCBA, who provides an overview of the organization and how the 2023 convention and trade show has performed. Following Colin is Kent Bacus, Executive Director, Government Affairs, for NCBA who talks about export markets. Moving on to the CIRB Annual Meeting you will hear from Jim Wiesemeyer, Farm Journal policy analyst, who provided his annual political update. And then Michael Torrey, Executive Director, CIRB, provides a wrap-up on this year's event. That's the ZimmCast for this week. I hope you enjoy it and thank you for listening.

Hello and welcome to the ZimmCast. I'm Chuck Zimmerman. In the middle of the winter meetings I'm going to take a break share a conversation with JJ Rivet, Can-Am. Can-Am provided the members of the Crystal Pig Hunt Club to try out an HD-10 Unlimited model during the early part of the deer hunting season in Georgia, which was very successful. I just talk with JJ a few weeks ago and asked him to talk about the product we worked with. It was a closed cab with heat and air and we filled up feeders, dropped people off at their stands and brought our harvest back to the camp. In our conversation you'll hear about the specifications of this model and a little bit about its history. The cab is a game changer and you'll hear about various add-ons and options to fit your woods, farm and work needs We hope to work with Can-Am again in the future because it sure helped us be more productinve in the field. That's the ZimmCast for now. I hope you enjoy it and thank you for listening.

Hello and welcome to the ZimmCast. I'm Chuck Zimmerman. I'm a little behind on this latest episode. The holidays and early conferences have kept Cindy and I very busy. This includes traveling to see family and that includes a beautiful wedding for one of our nieces. We are very blessed to be able to see so many of our family members. We're scattered all over the place so it's not easy. But worth it. So, I'm going to include a few of the interviews I conducted in the last two weeks.  Let's start with the Beltwide Cotton Conferences in New Orleans. These interviews are from the Cotton Sustainability Conference. First up will be Dr. Gary Adams, President and CEO, National Cotton Council, talking about the U. S. Cotton Trust Protocol. Following Gary will be Dr. Jesse Daystar, Chief Sustainability Officer, Cotton Incorporated, talking about Climate Smart Cotton. There are a quite a few more interviews and other audio in the Beltwide Cotton Conferences virtual ag newsroom on AgNewsWire.com. That includes regulatory updates, cotton policy updates and a world cotton outlook. Now let's move to this week's VISION Conference conducted by Meister Media and held in Glendale, AZ. It is the 6th year for this conference. First up is Joe Monahan, President and COO of Meister Media. He talks about the conference theme of Harnessing the Power of Agriculture 4.0. Then you'll hear Rob Dongoski, Global Food & Agribusiness Leader, Ernst & Young. He has some great information about how technology will enable the future food system from producers to consumers. Coming up next on the ZimmComm schedule is the Clean Fuels Conference followed by the annual meeting of the Crop Insurance and Reinsurance Bureau. I'm looking forward to them! I'd also like to remind you that you can subscribe, not only to the ZimmCast, but the ZimmComm Golden Mic Audio Podcast. That podcast contains all interviews or other audio files that we publish. You can find it in all the major podcast directories. Just search for ZimmComm Golden Mic Audio Podcast. So, that's the ZimmCast for this week. I hope you enjoyed it and thanks for listening.

Hello and welcome to the ZimmCast. I'm Chuck Zimmerman. As you know, our theme here on AgWired has always been, “What's new in the world of agribusiness.” And in this program we're going to learn about a relatively new way for farmers, ag processors and cooperatives to have more control over their own risk protection. There is more to the story in my interview with Dennis Daggett, a partner with AgriCap Group, LLC out of Minnesota. We had a great conversation during the recent AgGateway Annual Meeting. Our team has cultivated relationships with top insurance companies to develop unique and cost-effective insurance solutions. By bringing together top re-insurers, captive insurance managers, and service providers we help farmers, ag processors and cooperatives retain the investment and tax advantages being lost to commercial insurance companies. We are experienced professionals with a ‘hands-on' approach to Ag Risk Management and Protection. Our reinsurers have earned an ‘Excellent' rating from A.M. Best for over 50 years. This rating proves that they have the financial strength to pay your claims and give you peace of mind when you need it most. So, listen in as Dennis tells us all about AgriCap and how farmers and their ag partners can find out more. That's the ZimmCast for this week. I hope you enjoyed it and thank you for listening.