St. Louis, Missouri, USA
June 23, 2010

As anti-agriculture groups continue attempts to define the industry, corn growers are stepping up efforts to tell the story of the American farmer. Growers from across the state of Missouri met to explore how social media can help share this story with the broader public. During the day long summit, the participants, led by agricultural media guru Michel Payn-Knoper, learned how to use tools such as Facebook, YouTube and Twitter to effectively reach the 98.5 percent of U.S. citizens working in non-agriculturally related fields.

"While many tend to be skeptical of social media, the data shows that it provides a cost effective, and extremely popular channel that reaches mass audiences on a personal level," said Missouri Corn Merchandising Council Vice Chairman Billy Thiel. "Polling has already proven that the public trusts family farmers. It is time to build upon this relationship."
This learning session is only one in a series of eleven joint social media training efforts hosted by the National Corn Growers Association in conjunction with state corn organizations. These meetings provide growers with the skills necessary to successfully use multiple social media options to explain how farms operate and the importance of key issues such as ethanol and livestock.

During the six hour session, Payn-Knoper highlighted the growing importance of social media. Noting that the number of Facebook users now exceeds the U.S. population and over fifty million tweets sent daily, she stressed that social media provides an excellent venue to discuss timely issues and educate others about agriculture. Payn-Knoper then, along with the assistance of staff from the Missouri Corn Growers Association, helped each grower set up Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter accounts.

Participants committed to utilizing at least one form of social media for 15 minutes each day. By helping provide the public with genuine insight into where their food, feed, fuel and fiber originates, the program aims to establish a link to agriculture that has continually diminished as families continue to move away from farms.

Website: http://www.ncga.com

Published: June 23, 2010