As a journalist access to the Internet has become essential in doing my job.
I doubt there is a day goes by, that is doing background on, or checking something in my notes, that I do not turn the computer screen to the web browser and undertake a search.
It is likely the same for farm producers.
That was certainly the contention of Peter Gredig with AgNition Inc when he spoke to a group of farmers in Canora, SK., in late January. It was his position that farmers needed to use sites such as Twitter, as a way to connect with other producers in their area, or in their specific crops, as a way to glean information which might be helpful.
While there are many sources of good information on issues which can arise on the farm, one of the best sources will be another producer who has dealt with the situation before. Farmers are after all a resourceful lot, and they have an ability to find innovative solutions to problems which pop up.
What I am surprised by though is how social media is becoming not just an avenue to solve farm problems, but as a meeting place for like-minded producers, and even as part of farm marketing strategies.
It was interesting to talk with Mike and Joanne Neilson of Neilson Cattle Company at Willowbrook and Carey and LeeAnn Weinbender with Sliding Hills Charolias at Canora recently. Both are purebred Charolais operations working to market bulls into a rather crowded marketplace of breed sales and productions sales each spring.
For the Neilsons and Weinbenders social media sites online are a relatively new tool they are using to help market their bulls. That marketing effort goes beyond a farm website, and includes Facebook pages, and video posting of the bulls to be marketed on YouTube.
It was in doing a feature on the Charolais producer’s efforts that I became aware of just what Facebook offers producers, and can also be of use to a journalist such as myself.
Most of the breed specific cattle associations have a Facebook presence. Some such as the Canadian Angus Association are avid posters of photographs and information.
Like most things on Facebook you need to glean through the posts a bit to find the most useful information, but you can help that process by creating an ‘Interest’ file and add only your ‘farm’ contacts to it.
In my case the list is growing steadily, as I include various cattle breeds because of my broader generalist interest in agriculture.
My list includes Draft Horse Fans and Friends, Belted Galloway, and Chantecler chickens, which would be a more diverse list than a producer might have, but it goes to show the diversity of groups being supported with pages on Facebook.
There is even a page called the CMC Poultry and Hatching Egg Auction in Canada. It has more than 1,000 members, dedicated to poultry enthusiasts. It is a case of Facebook allowing a Canada-wide connection among diverse people which was not possible even a few years ago.
One can only imagine what could transpire from such connectivity in the years ahead.
