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 Sample News Article: Written for Farm News, a
leading ag publication covering farming and farm
issues in 33 counties in northwest and
north-central Iowa.
Trade Ambassadors Tour Sac County Farm
By Darcy Maulsby
Sac City—From questions about growth implants in
beef cattle to the value of distillers grains in
livestock rations, trade ambassadors from 55
nations were eager to learn about Iowa
agriculture when they toured the Harold and Sue
Peyton farm east of Sac City on Aug. 18.
“Iowa is amazing,” said Irena Lukac, a
Washington, D.C.-based economic counselor for
the Embassy of Slovenia, who participated in
Sen. Charles Grassley’s five-day tour of Iowa
for foreign diplomats. “I was surprised by the
large scale of the operations here and the high
levels of technology that are being used.”
The 2009 Ambassadors Tour is designed to promote
export and international trade opportunities for
agriculture, manufacturing and services produced
in Iowa, and to highlight Iowa’s exceptional
educational institutions. The tour puts a big
emphasis on Iowa’s people, said Grassley, who
noted that visitors see Iowa’s renowned
workforce through factory, farm and business
visits, in addition to staying overnight in the
homes of local families.
From Aug. 17-21, the tour traveled through the
communities of Huxley (with a stop at Monsanto),
Carroll (Santa Maria Winery & Vineyard), Ralston
(West Central Co-op), Storm Lake (Buena Vista
University), Wall Lake (Cookies BBQ), Fort Dodge
(Tate & Lyle and the Fort Dodge Animal Health
Lab), Webster City (Electrolux), Iowa Falls
(Cargill and Ellsworth Community College), Ames
(Reiman Gardens and the Virtual Reality
Application Center), Nevada (Iowa Energy
Center), Marshalltown (Lennox International),
Newton (TPI International), Ankeny (John Deere)
and Des Moines (World Food Prize and Kemin
Industries). Diplomats stayed overnight with
local host families in Carroll, Fort Dodge and
Ames, and they also enjoyed a trip to the Iowa
State Fair at the conclusion of the tour.
While the 1,800-acre Peyton farm near Sac City
was the only farm on the tour, it was one of the
most popular stops. “In all the years of hosting
this tour, the farm visit is always the
highlight of the trip,” said Grassley, who
created the trade tour in 1986 in response to
the farm crisis and as part of an effort to help
diversify the state’s economy. “It’s a great way
to show how Iowa farmers want to be leaders in
the global economy and want to do business with
countries around the world.”
Fostering connections beyond Iowa
When the tour’s three motor coaches with
approximately 115 people rolled into the Peyton
farm, many local farmers and northwest Iowa ag
leaders welcomed the ambassadors to Sac County.
Fostering international relationships can offer
significant trade opportunities for Iowa
farmers, said Kevin Carstensen of Odebolt, a
past president of the Iowa Cattlemen’s
Association who visited with the diplomats.
“Due to their population density, nations like
Japan and South Korea rely on imports for about
60 percent of their food,” said Carstensen, who
helped represent the Iowa Beef Industry Council
during a seven-day trip to Asia in June. “Japan,
especially, is willing to buy more age- and
source-verified products, if we can supply what
they want.”
Harold Peyton appreciated the chance to show the
ambassadors that Iowans are friendly, hard
working, well-educated people who want to do
business with other nations. “This was a rare
opportunity for Sac County to promote good will
with many different countries,” said Peyton, who
noted that each diplomat received a gift bag
filled with items representing Iowa farm
products. “I hope the gift bag reminds the
ambassadors about how Iowa can partner with
their countries in innovative, imaginative
ways.”
Making a lasting impression
While the trade tour events are completely
funded by private sponsors, Grassley works with
the Iowa Department of Economic Development to
maximize the benefits of the trade tour for
Iowa.
Tour participant Alexander Ivashchenko, who has
served as deputy head of the Russian
congressional desk in Washington, D.C. for the
past three years, was impressed by the diversity
of Iowa’s economy. “Iowa is more than
agriculture and insurance,” said the diplomat,
who was especially interested in the Carroll
tour stop at the Goodrich Corporation, a leading
global supplier to the aerospace and defense
industry. “I believe that economic cooperation
between the United States and Russia will help
improve political cooperation between our
nations.”
Encouraging international diplomats get to know
first-hand what Iowa has to offer the world
community and marketplace can foster
collaborations and economic opportunities that
will benefit Iowans for many years to come, said
Grassley, a ranking member of the Senate Finance
Committee, which is responsible for trade
legislation and oversight of the office of the
U.S. Trade Representative.
“When visitors return to their embassy
assignments, they can spread the good word about
Iowa and Iowans, who never fail to make a
lasting, positive impression.”
Contact Darcy Dougherty Maulsby at
yettergirl@yahoo.com.
Sample news article: Written for the National
Pork Board
Purpose: announce the
winner of the Great Pork BarbeQlossalTM
New York Chef Reigns as Pork Expo's King of "Q"
By Darcy Dougherty Maulsby
Eighty-one pit masters from Bare Bones BBQ to the Pork Pullin' Plowboys fired up the competition at this year's Great Pork BarbeQlossalTM, but Adam Perry Lang from New York City's Daisy May's BBQ earned grand champion honors June 11 during his first trip to Iowa.
"Great barbecue is not about the sauce or the smoke," said Perry Lang, 36, who placed first in ribs, second in the loin category, sixth in whole hog and sixth in the shoulder category with his succulent, smoky pork. "Barbecue people are the new wave of passionate chefs."
A graduate of The Culinary Institute of America, Perry Lang cut his teeth in the early 1990s in the Manhattan kitchens of Le Cirque, Daniel and Chanterelle and Paris' Restaurant Guy Savoy. This Long Island native has since chosen to channel his passion for food by running the pit smoker and creating savory sauces at Daisy May's BBQ U.S.A. in Manhattan. He has studied the various styles of barbecue that dot the country, and the wide range of rich, balanced flavors and textures in his pork, beef, chicken and country fixing's have made Daisy May's an instant hit with New Yorkers.
"Regional influences aren't found in restaurants," emphasized Perry Lang during a break at the World Pork Expo in Des Moines. "They are found in an area's people and culture. That's why I love learning from competition cookers and backyard barbecuers."
The learning goes both ways, noted David Hintz, who runs Pork County BBQ in Newton. "I've had a great time and have learned so much about barbecue from Adam," said Hintz, who helped Perry Lang acquire barbecue equipment for the BarbeQlossal. "Even if I don't win anything, just getting to know Adam has been worth it."
What's old is new again
Perry Lang rounded up a ranch hand's view of barbecue when he left New York in 1998 to be a private chef on a ranch outside Santa Fe, N.M. "My inspiration for barbecue came from the cowboys there. We'd talk late into the night about how to cook a pork shoulder or a brisket. You can't buy that kind of knowledge."
So what's the secret to great barbecue? Cook it low and slow, and pick pork, says Perry Lang, a National Pork Board Celebrated Chef. "Pork is flavor, and I love to cook with it. Pork is in a good market position, because it's on the upswing with consumers who have a positive, new image of it."
At Daisy May's (named for a Cocker Spaniel from the New Mexico ranch), Perry Lang goes through nearly 2,000 pounds of barbecue a day, and 75 percent is pork. "We are expanding to 4,500 pounds per day," he added. Customers can stop by Daisy May's BBQ counter/take away store at the corner of 11th Ave. and 46th St. in Manhattan, or they can feed their need for pulled-pork sandwiches from one of Daisy May's nine pushcarts that serve the city.
Despite the demand, Perry Lang doesn't describe barbecue as the next big thing. "It has always been there, it's American, it's filling, and it's authentic comfort food. There will always be a market for this."
Perry Lang doesn't worry about the increased competition, either. "When I started Daisy May's in August of 2003, there were only a couple other barbecue places in the city. Now that there's more competition, I'm constantly reevaluating and exploring new flavors. It raises the bar for those of us who take barbecue seriously."
Darcy
Maulsby | Darcy Maulsby & Co. | 1735 340th St. |
Lake City, IA 51449 515-971-4415 |
darcy@darcymaulsby.com
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