I was very honored when the Furniture Row Racing team asked me to announce the date of the 2011 debut of the Farm American car! But first, here's a rundown of the past weeks activities. And if you haven't heard of the Farm American project you can learn more about it here.
This past week has been a whirlwind of exciting news about Farm American. Earlier in the week it was announced that Agro-Culture Liquid Fertilizer has become the first official financial sponsor for the program. This third-generation family business based in Michigan is rooted in the same values and has the same commitment to family farmers and ranchers as the Furniture Row team does. It's going to be a great partnership!
Having the Agro team come on board this week also reminded many of us about why this program is so important. It's been designed to directly connect farmers and ranchers with consumers. It doesn't include some quasi-celebrity delivering a canned message that nobody believes. We are our own best spokespeople and that exactly who consumers want to meet.
Even the team owner Barney Visser was re-inspired by everything that's been happening lately. Because of that he has decided to personally donate another race to the Farm American schedule.
So....the 2011 debut for Farm American will be at Texas Motor Speedway on April 9!!
I want to personally thank Barney and the entire team at Furniture Row for their unwavering dedication to America's farmers and ranchers. I've never witnessed an organization with no ties to agriculture dedicate themselves so fully to helping tell our story.
Showing posts with label Farm American. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Farm American. Show all posts
Sunday, March 6, 2011
Monday, February 14, 2011
A Spokesman for Agriculture
So many people have said we need to have some sort of official spokesman for agriculture. On the surface this sounds like a good idea. That's what most anti-agriculture groups do to distort the truth of food production. They cart out some celebrity who has never given agriculture a second thought and try to convince the public that they are somehow an expert.
We are fortunate enough to get to share our story with other producers quite often and we always emphasize to them that we are the true experts. That's why it's so important that we are out telling the real story as often as we can. And that's also why I don't want some celebrity trying to be a spokesman for me!
We've seen how difficult it can be to get the real story of ag out to consumers. The last thing I want is a paid celebrity trying to tell my story for me. Some people will say that celebrities can reach a broader audience than we can. That's not true. If every farmer and rancher told their story to one new person every day just think how many people we would reach with the truth. Even Mike Rowe said that farmers and ranchers are their own best spokesmen.
It may seem difficult for us to reach a new person every day but through things like social media and programs like Farm American we can do it. Social media lets us talk to people all over the world without ever leaving home. Many conversations about agriculture are taking place on social media so it's important that we are there to be part of them.
The Farm American program is an incredible opportunity for us to use the resources of Furniture Row to spread the message. Between their NASCAR team and their retail locations, we can reach 160 million people a week. The main goal of the Farm American program is to highlight the farmers and ranchers themselves so they can share their story. The folks at Furniture Row don't pretend to be experts in agriculture, they just want to provide platforms for the real experts to talk to consumers.
Family farmers and ranchers don't need a spokesman, we are the spokesman. Nobody will tell our story with the same accuracy and passion as we will. That's one of the main reasons why we continue to give our fellow producers the tools to tell their story. Its also why we are avid supporters of the Farm American program.
We are fortunate enough to get to share our story with other producers quite often and we always emphasize to them that we are the true experts. That's why it's so important that we are out telling the real story as often as we can. And that's also why I don't want some celebrity trying to be a spokesman for me!
We've seen how difficult it can be to get the real story of ag out to consumers. The last thing I want is a paid celebrity trying to tell my story for me. Some people will say that celebrities can reach a broader audience than we can. That's not true. If every farmer and rancher told their story to one new person every day just think how many people we would reach with the truth. Even Mike Rowe said that farmers and ranchers are their own best spokesmen.
It may seem difficult for us to reach a new person every day but through things like social media and programs like Farm American we can do it. Social media lets us talk to people all over the world without ever leaving home. Many conversations about agriculture are taking place on social media so it's important that we are there to be part of them.
The Farm American program is an incredible opportunity for us to use the resources of Furniture Row to spread the message. Between their NASCAR team and their retail locations, we can reach 160 million people a week. The main goal of the Farm American program is to highlight the farmers and ranchers themselves so they can share their story. The folks at Furniture Row don't pretend to be experts in agriculture, they just want to provide platforms for the real experts to talk to consumers.
Family farmers and ranchers don't need a spokesman, we are the spokesman. Nobody will tell our story with the same accuracy and passion as we will. That's one of the main reasons why we continue to give our fellow producers the tools to tell their story. Its also why we are avid supporters of the Farm American program.
Tuesday, January 18, 2011
Talking Agriculture with Mike Rowe
Last weekend Stacy and I had the privilege of meeting with Mike Rowe. If you haven't heard of Mike you've probably been living under a rock for the past six or seven years. He's practically become the face of the Discovery Channel with his hit show Dirty Jobs and along the way he's also become the face of the American worker.
Through his experiences doing Dirty Jobs across the country he's come to realize and appreciate that everything we have is either grown or mined from the earth. Along with that his appreciation for the people that do that work has grown.
Out of that the mikeroweWORKS.com website was born. It's a site dedicated to educating people about the importance of skilled trade workers, including farmers and ranchers. Through that Mike happened to find my youtube video where I dumped a bottle of Yellow Tail wine on the frozen ground to tell people that they had made a donation to the world's wealthiest animal rights group, the Humane Society of the United States.
Our work with the Farm American project also caught Mike's eye and they featured a blog post of mine about the program on their site. When it turned out that we were all going to be in Atlanta at the American Farm Bureau Federation meeting we were able to finally meet in person.
Mike and his team were very interested to hear about our efforts to advocate for agriculture, including our work with the Farm American program. Mike gets a lot of requests to be spokesman. In fact he was the most sought after spokesman in the world in 2010. His name has been thrown around many times in the world of agriculture as someone that would be a great spokesman for our industry. But Mike can wisely see that we don't need a single spokesman, we need lots and lots of advocates for agriculture. Mike isn't an expert in food production, not the way that farmers and ranchers are. So while he is certainly willing to help share the story, ultimately we are the ones that need to be doing it.
Mike also highlighted the efforts of the Farm American program as a great way for farming and ranching families to spread their message. He was impressed by the unselfish efforts of Furniture Row to start the program because it was the right thing to do, not as a way to pay for a race team. When you explain to someone all of the things we could do with Farm American to tell the story of agriculture it starts sounding too good to be true. One look at the race car proves the intentions of Furniture Row though. There's not a single mention of Furniture Row on the car. That really caught the attention of Mike as it has with so many others.
We are really looking forward to a continued partnership with Mike and his team at mikeroweWORKS.com to tell the story of agriculture. Mike is a genuine guy who was a pleasure to meet and visit with. He's certainly a friend of every hard working American and as he put it, a big fan of "chewing and swallowing". It was a real pleasure to spend a few hours "chewing and swallowing" with him last week.
You've heard me telling you to be an advocate for agriculture, now hear it from Mike Rowe.
Through his experiences doing Dirty Jobs across the country he's come to realize and appreciate that everything we have is either grown or mined from the earth. Along with that his appreciation for the people that do that work has grown.
Out of that the mikeroweWORKS.com website was born. It's a site dedicated to educating people about the importance of skilled trade workers, including farmers and ranchers. Through that Mike happened to find my youtube video where I dumped a bottle of Yellow Tail wine on the frozen ground to tell people that they had made a donation to the world's wealthiest animal rights group, the Humane Society of the United States.
Our work with the Farm American project also caught Mike's eye and they featured a blog post of mine about the program on their site. When it turned out that we were all going to be in Atlanta at the American Farm Bureau Federation meeting we were able to finally meet in person.
Mike and his team were very interested to hear about our efforts to advocate for agriculture, including our work with the Farm American program. Mike gets a lot of requests to be spokesman. In fact he was the most sought after spokesman in the world in 2010. His name has been thrown around many times in the world of agriculture as someone that would be a great spokesman for our industry. But Mike can wisely see that we don't need a single spokesman, we need lots and lots of advocates for agriculture. Mike isn't an expert in food production, not the way that farmers and ranchers are. So while he is certainly willing to help share the story, ultimately we are the ones that need to be doing it.
Mike also highlighted the efforts of the Farm American program as a great way for farming and ranching families to spread their message. He was impressed by the unselfish efforts of Furniture Row to start the program because it was the right thing to do, not as a way to pay for a race team. When you explain to someone all of the things we could do with Farm American to tell the story of agriculture it starts sounding too good to be true. One look at the race car proves the intentions of Furniture Row though. There's not a single mention of Furniture Row on the car. That really caught the attention of Mike as it has with so many others.
We are really looking forward to a continued partnership with Mike and his team at mikeroweWORKS.com to tell the story of agriculture. Mike is a genuine guy who was a pleasure to meet and visit with. He's certainly a friend of every hard working American and as he put it, a big fan of "chewing and swallowing". It was a real pleasure to spend a few hours "chewing and swallowing" with him last week.
You've heard me telling you to be an advocate for agriculture, now hear it from Mike Rowe.
Monday, January 3, 2011
Wednesday, December 1, 2010
More Farm American Coverage
I have really appreciated all of the media coverage of the Farm American project. A big thank you to Vicki Myers from Progressive Farmer/DTN for this article.
Ag Warrior
Cowboys, Farmers, Furniture and NASCAR
Victoria G. Myers Progressive Farmer Senior Editor
Mon Nov 29, 2010 08:31 AM CST
Troy Hadrick is looking for $22 million. That's what it will cost to build a campaign to promote America's farmers and ranchers on NASCAR's pit row. And when you hear Hadrick talk about the program, $22 million begins to sound like a deal.
The no-nonsense rancher from Faulkton, S.D., has a face you might remember. He countered a contribution Yellow Tail wine made to The Humane Society with a YouTube video that went viral. It was a simple, straightforward image of the young rancher pouring a bottle of the wine out on the ground, with cattle in the background. The reaction had Yellow Tail backpedaling on its donation soon after the video was posted.
Since then, Hadrick and his wife, Stacy, have become well-known advocates of the American farmer and rancher. They travel and speak across the country with one goal: letting average consumers get to know a real rancher. It's a rewarding pursuit.
"It's amazing to watch it happen, when consumers meet a farmer or rancher. It's like the lightbulb goes on and they see we are human and that we do care," says Hadrick.
The rancher says for too long media and organizations he considers anti-agriculture have worked to fear monger and dehumanize people who produce America's food. He points to terms like "factory farm" or "big ag," which he says have a goal of "making us faceless and cold." Read More
Ag Warrior
Cowboys, Farmers, Furniture and NASCAR
Victoria G. Myers Progressive Farmer Senior Editor
Mon Nov 29, 2010 08:31 AM CST
Troy Hadrick is looking for $22 million. That's what it will cost to build a campaign to promote America's farmers and ranchers on NASCAR's pit row. And when you hear Hadrick talk about the program, $22 million begins to sound like a deal.
The no-nonsense rancher from Faulkton, S.D., has a face you might remember. He countered a contribution Yellow Tail wine made to The Humane Society with a YouTube video that went viral. It was a simple, straightforward image of the young rancher pouring a bottle of the wine out on the ground, with cattle in the background. The reaction had Yellow Tail backpedaling on its donation soon after the video was posted.
Since then, Hadrick and his wife, Stacy, have become well-known advocates of the American farmer and rancher. They travel and speak across the country with one goal: letting average consumers get to know a real rancher. It's a rewarding pursuit.
"It's amazing to watch it happen, when consumers meet a farmer or rancher. It's like the lightbulb goes on and they see we are human and that we do care," says Hadrick.
The rancher says for too long media and organizations he considers anti-agriculture have worked to fear monger and dehumanize people who produce America's food. He points to terms like "factory farm" or "big ag," which he says have a goal of "making us faceless and cold." Read More
Thursday, November 4, 2010
It's Time To Do Something Different
I’ve been talking a lot lately about the Farm American Project. One of the reasons that I’m so excited about it is because the goal is to promote the Farmers and Ranchers that grow the food we eat. For years we’ve had commodity specific programs with a very narrow focus of emphasis. These programs certainly have their place and I am a big supporter of them. However, I truly believe that we need to embrace this program because it will promote the individuals in our industry.
We’ve seen the need to humanize farmers and ranchers for quite some time now yet it seems that very few have implemented strategies to accomplish it. Farm American is in a unique position to get it done. This project would allow 160 million consumers to meet the farmers and ranchers that grow all of their food.
No matter what we raise or how we raise it, consumers want to meet us and learn more about us. We all win when consumers get that chance.
Some people and ag companies have looked at this project and thought it’s not worth the effort. Here’s what I know for sure, the past strategy of thinking that there are groups of people that don’t need to hear our story has put us in this troublesome position. That means we have to think in new ways and move in new directions to have our voices heard. We can’t be scared, we have to be confident. The ag companies that step up and help make this a reality will prove themselves to be the true leaders in ag business because they will recognize this as an opportunity. It will be clear that they intend to be partners with Farmers and Ranchers for generations to come.
I want my children to have the same opportunities that I had to be involved in agriculture. In order for that to happen we need to let consumers know who we are and why it’s important that we are here. The opportunity is being given to all of us to get that done. It only remains to be seen who will take advantage of it.
It’s time to work together.
We’ve seen the need to humanize farmers and ranchers for quite some time now yet it seems that very few have implemented strategies to accomplish it. Farm American is in a unique position to get it done. This project would allow 160 million consumers to meet the farmers and ranchers that grow all of their food.
No matter what we raise or how we raise it, consumers want to meet us and learn more about us. We all win when consumers get that chance.
Some people and ag companies have looked at this project and thought it’s not worth the effort. Here’s what I know for sure, the past strategy of thinking that there are groups of people that don’t need to hear our story has put us in this troublesome position. That means we have to think in new ways and move in new directions to have our voices heard. We can’t be scared, we have to be confident. The ag companies that step up and help make this a reality will prove themselves to be the true leaders in ag business because they will recognize this as an opportunity. It will be clear that they intend to be partners with Farmers and Ranchers for generations to come.
I want my children to have the same opportunities that I had to be involved in agriculture. In order for that to happen we need to let consumers know who we are and why it’s important that we are here. The opportunity is being given to all of us to get that done. It only remains to be seen who will take advantage of it.
It’s time to work together.
Tuesday, November 2, 2010
AgriTalk and Farm American
I want to thank the crew at AgriTalk for having Pat Driscoll and myself on the air this morning. The Farm American Project is an unprecedented opportunity for farmers and ranchers to share their story with the American public.
In order for it to become a reality next year we need everyone's help. We need the help of individual producers to spread the message of the project AND we also need them to encourage agri-businesses to support us with their funding.
You can read the entire story of the project by clicking here.
In order for it to become a reality next year we need everyone's help. We need the help of individual producers to spread the message of the project AND we also need them to encourage agri-businesses to support us with their funding.
You can read the entire story of the project by clicking here.
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
mikeroweWORKS.com Helping Share Our Story
I just wanted to say a quick thank you to the team over at http://www.mikeroweworks.com/ for volunteering to help us share the story of the American Farmer and Rancher. Mike Rowe and the entire team are certainly big supporters of the hard working men and women that make this country what it is.
I really appreciate them posting my blog article on the Farm American project. If you haven't seen it yet you need to check it out. http://www.mikeroweworks.com/2010/10/farm-american/
I really appreciate them posting my blog article on the Farm American project. If you haven't seen it yet you need to check it out. http://www.mikeroweworks.com/2010/10/farm-american/
Monday, October 25, 2010
Farm American
We’ve been saying it for a long time in agriculture, we need to be proactive in our efforts to educate the consumer about domestic food production and the farmers and ranchers that grow it rather than being reactive to the latest inaccurate accusations from an anti-ag group. There’s not a better way to do this than to tell our story one person at a time and let consumers get to know us, let them meet a real farmer or rancher. But we’ve also talked about how great it would be to tell our story on a bigger stage to a bigger audience. With limited resources and opportunities it hasn’t happened yet, however, that is about to change.
I truly believe that the opportunity we have been looking for has just landed in our lap. Even more amazing than that is it’s coming from someone with no ties to agriculture at all yet he realizes the important job that farmers and ranchers have and wants to help tell the story of the 21st century agriculturalist. His name is Barney Visser and he owns the Furniture Row chain of furniture stores. Like most farmers and ranchers, Visser is a self-made man and a great example of what you can achieve with hard work. He started with a single store in Denver selling an invention of his called the bean bag chair. That single store turned into the fastest growing furniture chain today which includes brands like Denver Mattress and Oak Express.
Visser recently formed the Furniture Row Racing NASCAR team but unlike most teams he wanted to use his to promote worthwhile causes when possible. When he was presented with the idea of promoting the American farmer and rancher he knew it was the right thing to do. At one time he had 800 employees in Colorado making furniture for him. Unfortunately he had to eventually close it down though because he couldn’t compete with less expensive imports. Reflecting back on that experience Visser stated that it was bad enough he now has to get his furniture from overseas, the last thing he wanted is his food coming from there. So over the past year he has spent millions of his own money developing the Farm American project.
The Farm American project has several facets to it. Visser has generously offered to turn the Furniture Row Racing team into the Farm American team. The Farm American car ran at three Sprint Cup races this year and we were fortunate enough to be at the final running a few weeks ago in Fontana, CA where we got to meet Visser and his family and the entire race crew. The paint scheme is beautiful on the car and really stands out among the rest of the field because it’s not cluttered with advertisements. Along with this, we want to develop a traveling interactive display that would be set up in the Fan Zone at every race. It would include having local farmers and ranchers there to share with consumers what they do, a real farmers market, farm machinery simulators and other great teaching tools. Research has shown that this segment of the project can reach 33% of the American public every week.
The next phase of the plan also highlights the commitment and generosity of Barney Visser. He is going to allow us to use all of his retail locations across the country to promote farmers and ranchers as well. This will include in-store displays featuring local farmers and ranchers as well as promotional material included in their advertisements. Visser has even offered to re-paint all of his delivery trucks to match the paint scheme on the Farm American car. This would reach another 30% of the American public.
Finally, the Farm American car and traveling educational exhibit could be available for various other functions, including fairs and shows.
When you add it all up, this project could reach nearly 200 million people. That’s an astonishing number! Unfortunately, it will take some money to bring this project to it’s full potential. As I mentioned earlier, Mr. Visser has already put a couple million dollars of his own money into it to get it off the ground. Now it’s time for agri-business to step up and help the farmers and ranchers they depend on to tell their story.
The Farm American project will need to raise $22 million in order to implement all of the components and operate for a full year. Now I know that seems like a big mountain to climb but in reality it’s not. When you think about the economic impact that agriculture has on this country and the importance of this issue, that’s a small price to pay to educate our consumers. It would be tough for individual farmers and ranchers to raise that kind of money so that’s why we need ag businesses to step up.
We need agri-business to realize that they need to become partners in our efforts to tell the real story of modern agriculture. It’s been great to see some companies realize this and trying to do what they can to help. For those, it’s their opportunity to become part of something even bigger than themselves. If there are companies out there that feel it’s not their responsibility to help tell this story, then they have a shockingly short-sighted view of what needs to be done. I plan on asking all of these companies, both privately and publicly, to help with this project. Their survival depends on our survival.
So what do we need from you? We need your voices. We need your passion. We need you to help share the story of the Farm American project so we can share the story of the American Farmer and Rancher with 200 million consumers. These ag businesses will need to hear from each and every one of you about why this is important. I am going to commit to giving my business to the companies that support this project and will encourage all of you to do the same. It's also important for me to stress that neither Visser or Furniture Row Racing will be profiting from this project. They are doing it because it's the right thing to do.
Above all else, we want this effort to stay very positive! The anti-ag groups like to stoop to that level on a regular basis. We don’t have to, our message speaks for itself. So thank you in advance for keeping all of your comments very positive and helping us make this incredible project a reality.
Let me know if you have any ideas, comments or questions and stay tuned for more updates!
I truly believe that the opportunity we have been looking for has just landed in our lap. Even more amazing than that is it’s coming from someone with no ties to agriculture at all yet he realizes the important job that farmers and ranchers have and wants to help tell the story of the 21st century agriculturalist. His name is Barney Visser and he owns the Furniture Row chain of furniture stores. Like most farmers and ranchers, Visser is a self-made man and a great example of what you can achieve with hard work. He started with a single store in Denver selling an invention of his called the bean bag chair. That single store turned into the fastest growing furniture chain today which includes brands like Denver Mattress and Oak Express.
Visser recently formed the Furniture Row Racing NASCAR team but unlike most teams he wanted to use his to promote worthwhile causes when possible. When he was presented with the idea of promoting the American farmer and rancher he knew it was the right thing to do. At one time he had 800 employees in Colorado making furniture for him. Unfortunately he had to eventually close it down though because he couldn’t compete with less expensive imports. Reflecting back on that experience Visser stated that it was bad enough he now has to get his furniture from overseas, the last thing he wanted is his food coming from there. So over the past year he has spent millions of his own money developing the Farm American project.
The Farm American project has several facets to it. Visser has generously offered to turn the Furniture Row Racing team into the Farm American team. The Farm American car ran at three Sprint Cup races this year and we were fortunate enough to be at the final running a few weeks ago in Fontana, CA where we got to meet Visser and his family and the entire race crew. The paint scheme is beautiful on the car and really stands out among the rest of the field because it’s not cluttered with advertisements. Along with this, we want to develop a traveling interactive display that would be set up in the Fan Zone at every race. It would include having local farmers and ranchers there to share with consumers what they do, a real farmers market, farm machinery simulators and other great teaching tools. Research has shown that this segment of the project can reach 33% of the American public every week.
The next phase of the plan also highlights the commitment and generosity of Barney Visser. He is going to allow us to use all of his retail locations across the country to promote farmers and ranchers as well. This will include in-store displays featuring local farmers and ranchers as well as promotional material included in their advertisements. Visser has even offered to re-paint all of his delivery trucks to match the paint scheme on the Farm American car. This would reach another 30% of the American public.
Finally, the Farm American car and traveling educational exhibit could be available for various other functions, including fairs and shows.
When you add it all up, this project could reach nearly 200 million people. That’s an astonishing number! Unfortunately, it will take some money to bring this project to it’s full potential. As I mentioned earlier, Mr. Visser has already put a couple million dollars of his own money into it to get it off the ground. Now it’s time for agri-business to step up and help the farmers and ranchers they depend on to tell their story.
The Farm American project will need to raise $22 million in order to implement all of the components and operate for a full year. Now I know that seems like a big mountain to climb but in reality it’s not. When you think about the economic impact that agriculture has on this country and the importance of this issue, that’s a small price to pay to educate our consumers. It would be tough for individual farmers and ranchers to raise that kind of money so that’s why we need ag businesses to step up.
We need agri-business to realize that they need to become partners in our efforts to tell the real story of modern agriculture. It’s been great to see some companies realize this and trying to do what they can to help. For those, it’s their opportunity to become part of something even bigger than themselves. If there are companies out there that feel it’s not their responsibility to help tell this story, then they have a shockingly short-sighted view of what needs to be done. I plan on asking all of these companies, both privately and publicly, to help with this project. Their survival depends on our survival.
So what do we need from you? We need your voices. We need your passion. We need you to help share the story of the Farm American project so we can share the story of the American Farmer and Rancher with 200 million consumers. These ag businesses will need to hear from each and every one of you about why this is important. I am going to commit to giving my business to the companies that support this project and will encourage all of you to do the same. It's also important for me to stress that neither Visser or Furniture Row Racing will be profiting from this project. They are doing it because it's the right thing to do.
Above all else, we want this effort to stay very positive! The anti-ag groups like to stoop to that level on a regular basis. We don’t have to, our message speaks for itself. So thank you in advance for keeping all of your comments very positive and helping us make this incredible project a reality.
Let me know if you have any ideas, comments or questions and stay tuned for more updates!
Friday, October 8, 2010
NASCAR Team Promotes Ag
This weekend, Stacy and I have the incredible opportunity to attend the NASCAR race in Fontana, CA as guests of the #78 Furniture Row Racing Team. This past year the team created a car that pays tribute to agriculture and the American farmer and rancher. This weekend will be the last time this year that the car will be run.
We are really excited to see the Farm American car run and learn more about the incredible opportunities we have to teach consumers about agriculture through this amazing program. Over the weekend we will be updating our followers through our blog, our Advocates for Ag facebook page and twitter account.
Please take a look at some of the great things this race team is already doing to promote agriculture and stay tuned!!
We are really excited to see the Farm American car run and learn more about the incredible opportunities we have to teach consumers about agriculture through this amazing program. Over the weekend we will be updating our followers through our blog, our Advocates for Ag facebook page and twitter account.
Please take a look at some of the great things this race team is already doing to promote agriculture and stay tuned!!
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