Colton Whitney serves as an advocate for the beef industry and agriculture
PRESTON, MO. – Growing up on his family’s Hickory County, Mo., cow/calf operation, Colton Whitney does the typical farm kid things.
“I help my dad every day with the cattle and their needs, like working and vaccinating the herd,” he said. “In the winter, I put out hay and make sure the water is good, and in the summer, I help put up hay.”
However, a few things set Colton apart from his peers.
“My dream is to be a news anchor,” Colton said with a smile, recalling when he and his cousin created their own newscasts. “We had our own news station and would video ourselves interviewing my brother and sister, and we would be ‘on the scene’ somewhere. When I got older, I thought it would be a fun job because I love hearing other people’s stories and telling other people’s stories, so I thought, why not be on TV and share about agriculture? There are so many opportunities now in the industry, and it is so neat to have a whole company focused on agricultural broadcasting.”
The 18-year-old incoming University of Missouri-Columbia freshman is undertaking a double major in agriculture education (communications and leadership) and journalism.
As he awaits his big break into farm broadcasting, Colton, the son of Adam and Jessica Whitney, is putting his communication skills to work.
He is currently an intern/outreach coordinator for Mo Beef Kids, a non-profit Foundation of Food and Farm Connections program supported by funds from the Beef Checkoff.
“I go to schools and tell kids about the beef story, from farm to plate, and how beef fits on their tray,” Colton said. “I also talk about getting more beef in school lunches. There are a lot of school lunches that just aren’t that nutritious, and they don’t have the value beef does, so we want to get beef on that tray and show kids who may have never been on a farm where their food comes from.
“I was on the Mo Beef Kids Academy my junior year, and then I said I didn’t want to leave the program, so I was offered the internship.”
Through his experience with Mo Beef Kids, Colton learned first-hand how many children do not realize the importance of beef in their diets and daily lives through products that utilize beef byproducts, such as crayons, gum, candies and marshmallows.
“If you live on a beef cattle farm, you automatically think everyone knows where beef comes from,” he said. “You go to these rural schools, and kids are in awe. They think it is neat that we get all these different things from cows.”
Colton enjoys stumping for beef and sees where he is making connections.
“I always get messages from teachers saying they want me back,” Colton added. “It shows me that what I’m doing is impacting kids, and I enjoy it so much. I went to Pleasant Hope for three weeks, and on that third week, a little girl told me she wanted to be a veterinarian when she grew up and be involved in the ag industry because of me. That showed me that I’m opening these kids up to new career opportunities and getting them thinking about agriculture. It makes me see that the kids get something from the presentations.”
His experience with the organization also helped him decide on his agriculture education degree program.
“I was on the fence,” he said. “Things like RFD-TV or the Cowboy Channel are what I really want to do; that has always been in the back of my mind and just a cool dream. I decided I liked the ag education and communications parts, so I can continue to share information about agriculture.”
Colton realized he wanted to become an advocate for agriculture in an unlikely way.
“I went on a trip to South Dakota and out west,” Colton recalled. “Being on the farm, we don’t take a lot of trips, but it opened my eyes a lot and made me see there is a lot more to the world than in Preston, Mo., and Hickory County. It made me see there is a whole world out there of people who don’t know what we are doing. I’ve been to places like Washington, D.C., and Fort Worth, Texas, and you see people have no idea about agriculture and think their burgers come from the back of the grocery store. Travel has really opened my eyes, and that’s why I want to pursue a career where I can share the story of agriculture.”
Colton said being raised on a family farm has given him a solid foundation.
“It shows me where we get our values from,” he said, adding that he also credits his faith-based upbringing. “We use everything we have, and it’s shown me to be thankful. Living on a farm and working for other individuals has also shown me that I can have someone there to help me with whatever I need, and there will always be someone there to teach me something new. It also makes me view the world differently and gives me a greater appreciation of things.”
To become an advocate for agriculture, young people do not have to be involved with Mo Beef Kids, Colton said.
“It can be simply just planting a garden,” he explained. “You don’t have to come from an agriculture background to be an advocate; anyone can be involved. If there is an opportunity, jump on it. There were so many things I never thought I would do or get into, like a public speaking contest, then I was a two-time district qualifier over sheep, and I have never had sheep. I feel like anyone can do something.”
He went on to say that FFA helped him see there is a place for everyone in agriculture.
“I always heard about FFA, and I thought you joined because you lived on a farm,” Colton said.
Colton continued with FFA, participating on Career Development Event teams and public speaking. He was a member of the state-winning nursery team, earning a trip to the national contest his junior year. In his senior year, he was the president of the Skyline FFA Chapter and Area 10 Second Vice President.
Colton also became a content creator for a website called My FFA Experience, which was developed and maintained by a fellow FFA member as a part of their Supervised Agricultural Experience.
“He wanted to show what FFA was about to others,” Colton explained. “He had kids signing up to be content creators, so I shared what we did to show others at any event I went to. That really opened me up to content and graphic design creation, which I do for Mo Beef Kids. It started out with kids just from Missouri but grew to kids in California and Idaho. Everything is completely different; in Idaho, they have a potato judging contest.”
Colton has two younger siblings, Cooper (15) and Dally (12), who are also involved in the family operation. Colton is hopeful they will follow the family’s agricultural roots and maybe follow in his footsteps.
“My sister, Dally, wants to be an FFA officer one day and be involved in these things,” Colton said. “Cooper sees me doing things and he wants to be able to help Dad like I do. I’m a first-generation college student, and I think it is neat that I might start a legacy in my family.”
Many young people have mentors they look up to, and Colton is no different.
“My cousin, Sareena Yates, lived on a farm all of her life and wanted to stay in the agriculture industry but do something different,” Colton explained. “She does artwork for hundreds of people in the agriculture industry: bull riders, team ropers and lots of others. She always wanted to be in agriculture and found her talent. She and I were close, and when I saw her take a dream and run with it, I thought that was really cool.”
His cousin is not his only mentor.
“My parents have shown me the agriculture industry and what I think is the American dream,” he said. “When I see them, I know I always want to be involved in agriculture; I don’t want to let that go. My interpretation of the American dream is living your life to the fullest. If your life is fulfilled with something that impacts others, makes a difference, and promotes agriculture, that’s the American dream.”
As he ventures to college, Colton hopes to continue to spread the word about agriculture.
“I don’t think they have many ag kids come to the journalism department. I think it’s going to be cool to maybe open agriculture up to kids that don’t know anything about it,” he said.
He added that while preparing for the next chapter, he is still and always will be a Hickory County, Mo., farm kid.
“Being in FFA and joining Mo Beef Kids gave me so many opportunities, and I want to give back to agriculture. I always tell everyone I will come back to the farm, no matter what,” Colton said. “I don’t know what that plan is or how it will be, but I will be back.
“You can’t take the farm kid out of the person; it’s always there.”
