Guest speaker and moderator

The 2012 Animal Agriculture Alliance Stakeholders Summit is underway this week in Arlington, Virginia.  This year’s theme, Real Farmers Real Food: Celebrating Tradition and Technology, is meant to stimulate a discussion of both the legacy of the role that agriculture plays and the importance of new technologies.  Brownfield’s Tom Steever is both a featured speaker and a moderator at the event. 

Hello Jim

Meghan Grebner and Tom Steever were back in Washington, D.C. over the week-end.  This time, for the annual National Association of Farm Broadcasting Washington Watch program.  As President (Tom) and Regional Vice President (Meghan) they flew out early to participate in a Board meeting.  Tom is staying for the entire event while Meghan flew back to Indiana to cover some agricultural events happening in the state today, but not before listening to a presentation by Jim Bohannon.  She was pretty excited about meeting him and sent this picture as proof it happened!

Hats off to John Becherer!

Congratulations to John Becherer, CEO of the United Soybean Board and 2012 National Agrimarketing Association (NAMA) Agribusiness Leader of the Year.  John was recognized last Thursday in Kansas City during the annual NAMA Convention. 

http://agwired.com/2012/04/22/nama-2012-agribusiness-leader-of-the-year/

Pass the sugar—-

This just in from Ohio Brownfield’s Dave Russell:

So, I’m talking to a farmer friend over the weekend –

My farmer-friend says, “I’d like to know who though it was a good idea to put the cup holder on the right side of the (tractor) cab. One of these day’s I’m going to spill my Cappuccino on 50 electronic switches.”

Whatever happened to carrying a water jug and sitting it between your legs or having a thermos with Maxwell House instant coffee tucked away in the toolbox?

SDSU journalism grads lead farm broadcasting organizations

The following news release went out recently.  Congrats to Tom Steever and Ken Anderson, Brownfield’s very own! 

Two graduates of the South Dakota State University broadcast journalism program currently hold top leadership positions in farm broadcasting organizations.

Tom Steever is president of the National Association of Farm Broadcasting (NAFB), while Ken Anderson serves as president of the NAFB Foundation.

Both are employed by Brownfield Ag News as agricultural reporters and news anchors.

Steever, a native of Lennox, South Dakota, earned his degree in broadcast journalism from SDSU in 1975 and began his farm broadcast career at KSOO Radio in Sioux Falls. After 19 years with KSOO, Steever became executive director of the Sioux Falls Stockyards. In 1997, he moved to Chicago to anchor Channel Earth on DirecTV. From there, Steever joined the American Farm Bureau Federation public relations department in Park Ridge, Illinois, and in 2003 he became part of the Brownfield broadcast team in Jefferson City, Missouri.

Anderson is a native of Clark, South Dakota and a 1977 graduate of the SDSU broadcast journalism program. His broadcasting career started at KRVN Radio in Lexington, Nebraska, where he spent 12 years. He worked in communications and marketing for regional seed company NC+ Hybrids for 15 years, followed by public relations/account management stints with two Nebraska-based marketing communications firms. Anderson returned to farm broadcasting with Brownfield in 2008. He is based in Lincoln, Nebraska.

NAFB is a professional organization for farm broadcasters, and also includes farm broadcasting management, sales, and allied industry supporters. Its mission is to lead, promote, and support growth in agricultural and rural broadcasting for the benefit of its members, audience, and industry.

The NAFB Foundation is the nonprofit charitable and educational arm of NAFB.

Brownfield, founded in 1972, includes Brownfield Ag News radio networks and Brownfieldagnews.com. Brownfield has contractual partnerships with 350 affiliate radio stations in Illinois, Iowa, Indiana, Missouri, Ohio, Wisconsin, Nebraska and South Dakota that carry Brownfield radio programming.

Brownfield offers “Agriculture Today,” a free daily e-mail newsletter providing readers with a snapshot of what is happening in agriculture. Brownfield Mobile provides the top news headlines and ag market information, a weather radar map customized to your area, and the ability to listen to grain and livestock reports all from your smart phone. Brownfield Mobile Text Alerts keep subscribers updated with customized commodity information. Listeners and readers may also stay informed on Brownfield’s Twitter account. Brownfield’s Blog offers a peek behind the scenes.

A team of ten agricultural journalists, all Broadcast Council members of the National Association of Farm Broadcasting, along with an ag meteorologist, Washington D.C. policy analyst and two market analysts are solely responsible for the creation of the Brownfield Ag News products.

New reporter?

Brownfield’s Indiana Farm Director Meghan Grebner shares this photo and an explanation:

Indiana State Director of Agriculture Joe Kelsay tries his hand at reporting with owner of Grandpa Jay’s Pork, Jay Hawley of Kirklin, Ind.

Kind of… I wanted to take a picture of Jay with his Grandpa Jay’s pork cooler at the Indiana Artisan Marketplace this afternoon and Joe kindly obliged to hold my microphone and recorder so I could snap a few pictures… The Director always does such a great job in an interview – I couldn’t resist the opportunity to grab the photo with him on the other side of the mic!

Cherry Blossoms

Representatives from many of the state Farm Bureaus were in Washington, D.C. in recent days and weeks.  Brownfield’s Dave Russell, Meghan Grebner and Tom Steever traveled with the groups from Ohio, Indiana and Missouri, respectively.  Reporting from our nation’s capitol is a wonderful and often overwhelming and humbling opportunity for a journalist.  It is also a treat for the eyes and nose this time of year as the cherry blossoms are blooming!

 Tom Steever shot this picture in D.C. yesterday.