 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Ag News
|
Farmers - Ranchers - Tweeters! | | | Program 2162 (download mp3)
Posted on Thu, Sep 2, 2010 |
More and more farmers and ranchers are using social media to help the public understand what they do on their operations and why…
(American Farm Bureau Federation’s) Johnna Miler reports:
Social media hasn’t just hit the mainstream, it’s also hit the back roads and the back forty. Jeff Fowl is a fourth generation farmer and rancher from northern CA and social media has become an important part of his daily routine.
“On twitter currently I am almost at 23,000 followers…and on an average day I reach between 900,000 and 1.3 million individuals. Of those, I expect approximately 30-40% actually see at least one of my tweets per day. More people are getting involved: creating a FaceBook page, getting on Twitter, utilizing YouTube to explain why - what and how they put food on the plate. The growth has been amazing.”
Fowl is President of the Ag Chat Foundation, a group that focuses on helping farmers and ranchers use social media technology to share their stories and make connections with people not involved with Agriculture.
“We have relied too long on having others share our story. The face of the American farmer has been forgotten and it is time to put that face back on the plate. I think social media is one opportunity for us to make tremendous progress in overcoming that adversity. More farmers and ranchers are getting their stories out to the public and there is beginning to be more understanding. It is no longer an “us” vs. “them” but it is a building of a bridge in the community between the farmers and the public that is getting stronger and stronger everyday. “
Fowl tweets all sorts of things: what chores he’s doing, photos of life on the farm, little known facts about agriculture. But he’s says social media is not just a one-way conversation; it also involves listening and building mutual respect and trust.
“I communicate with environmentalists, vegans, artists, with singers, with any branch of society that you can think of. I look to learn from them and I would hope that we can begin a dialogue and we can learn from each other… It is a showing that we farmers and rancher truly care about the stewardship of the land and the welfare of our animals. I’m just looking for people who are open and want to discuss, want to learn. "
|
|
|
|
|
|