I am the fourth generation in a rodeo/ranching/agricultural family and when I think about my great-grandpa, grandpa and even my father having a spare minute to set up a ‘town hall meeting’ with consumers about the truths of animal agriculture, it makes me giggle. Partly because nobody in the Buzzard family is overly talkative but even more so because they were just too damn busy feeding and checking cattle, fixing fence, riding horses and roping calves. My dad also has a job in town managing a seed company — not a lot of time for advocacy on the side. However, even Grandpa Buzzard (affectionately known as Papaw) and my father converse with their neighbors and customers about the most recent news on a regular basis.
My family story is the same as thousands and thousands of other agricultural families. Hardworking men and women who feed our nation but still somehow have time to reach a few people at a time.
My point here is not that producers don’t have time to promote agriculture and therefore shouldn’t. My point is that if untalkative men can share the positive story of agriculture with 2-3 people a week, why can’t college students take advantage of our large social networks and advocate on a much larger scale? Food For Thought, a group of Kansas State students, is doing just that by working to bridge the gap between consumers and producers. FFT just started up a blog comprised of various bloggers, including myself, from different agricultural backgrounds all with the same goal — educating consumers about where their food comes from and how it is produced. I encourage you to visit the blog and stay informed on current issues happening in agriculture. You can also follow us on Facebook by becoming a fan of the FFT page. Look for my posts on FFT’s blog and also here on Buzzard’s Beat as I plan to post different topics on both.
Until next time,
~Buzzard~
