Are we advocating for agriculture to the best of our ability? As an industry are we conveying our stories to the consumer so they can make positive buying decisions?
I started asking myself these questions after attending the Women in Agriculture Conference where Dr. Temple Grandin and Trent Loos spoke, who are both excellent speakers and a true inspiration for me to continue my work in promoting agriculture. If you ever get the opportunity to hear these two speak take it. I guarantee you will learn something.
Mr. Loos made some excellent points regarding our consumers. He said, “It’s not that the consumers don’t know enough about their food, it’s that what they do know isn’t so.” Which I think hits the nail right on the head. Consumers are getting the wrong information but how are they supposed to know it is false information unless we educate them with the truth?
Mr. Loos commented that the problem is we (ag industry/farmers) aren’t communicating. He said, ”We don’t even know where to start when communicating with people who don’t know the truth and know what it is we do.”
So where do we start? How do we educate the consumer?
Mr. Loos is doing a great job to promote agriculture. He uses many outlets to tell the story.
But my biggest concern is he is preaching to the choir, so to speak. I have heard Mr. Loos speak two times, and both were through agricultural organizations. We all need to be aware that our story isn’t reaching the consumer but how do we get this message past those involved in agriculture?
With so many people removed from the farm I think educating the consumer about how their food is produced and about the people producing it should be a big concern for our future. This isn’t going to be easy but we have to join together and work as a team.
I visited with a cattle producer recently and he told me about a dinner meeting in town where 50 businessmen and women came together for a beef dinner, trying a variety of beef dishes. A local livestock auction owner spoke to the crowd and asked the group where the food comes from. Only three people could actually explain where beef comes from. These are well-educated men and women with purchasing power who do not know where their food comes from. I find it shocking.
If you ask me, I believe one way to tell our story is to teach agricultural education in elementary schools across the U.S., not just to high schoolers through FFA programs. Why wait until students are in high school to give them the choice to be involved in agriculture?
I will continue to do my part to share the story of agriculture. I hope you will too. We can’t count on consumers to seek the truth themselves. We must provide them with the information.
Best wishes,
