Hot Peppers in Agriculture

I will warn some of you to go ahead and get your pen ready because you are not going to like what I suggest today. This idea hit me as I was heading to San Antonio, TX for the National Block and Bridle meeting. I was so fortunate to once again be asked to serve as the opening speaker for their three-day convention. I have repeatedly shared that the energy, intelligence and desire that I find within the young people in agriculture is all the inspiration we need to find a better way to tell the story of food production. This idea hit me as 750 young people from 37 colleges and universities filled the room. We need a contest. Let’s call it the “hot peppers in agriculture.”

With all of the challenges that we now face in regard to the future of American Agriculture, I am still convinced that the number one challenge is encouraging young people to return to production agriculture. For the past five years I have been amazed at how “our kids” are treated in public settings. I am frequently told about kids who attempt to hide the fact that their parents are farmers or ranchers. The stereotype still exists that we are bib-overall-wearing simpletons. So how do we turn around the public sentiment and set the story straight about the good-looking, smart farm kids that all other kids should look up to and admire?

Perhaps we should look at what has worked well for other industries. Sports Illustrated, which is all about baseball, basketball, football, golf and tennis, generates more interest from the swimsuit edition than any other. Apparently more profit as well. The Alley Insider reports that the Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue makes up 11% of SI's annual revenue. Alley Insider calculated that this meant that the swimsuit issue was five times more profitable than the sports issues the magazine produces the other eleven months of the year.

What do swimsuits have to do with sports? Where would Christy Brinkley be without the swimsuit edition? Southwest Airlines has just announced that they have one plane painted with a full-length photo of this year’s Sports Illustrated cover girl Bar Refaeli in a white bikini. This week it was announced that you could now watch 5-minute videos of the swimsuit edition online.

For this year’s Super Bowl, the PETA ad that didn’t even make television, generated more than it fair share of free publicity. I am sure you have heard by now that PETA’s ad was rejected by NBC and did not run during the Super Bowl. The ad was a video of steamed broccoli. The sexy girls were not actually eating the broccoli and the steam was not generated by boiling a pot of water on the stove, if you know what I mean. An ad this tasteless could have only come from one place and you know as well as I do that PETA never for one second planned for the ad to air on television because that would have cost them $3 million. Instead, thanks to the big scuttle about the ad not airing, over one million people viewed it on YouTube and it cost PETA absolutely nothing.

I hear you shouting at me that we are not going to resort to the tasteless tactics of PETA. We will stay with the decent family values that have always been our priority. I agree, but I do believe we could be a little more creative when it comes to getting the attention of the non-farm audience. Let me give you an example:

I met Kassandra Simpkins 5 years ago at the Nevada State Fair in the Pork Producers booth. This 16-year-old pig showing enthusiast also happened to be very pretty and smart. She had just landed a modeling contract and I posted a few of her photos on my website. Some of the photos were of her modeling, one of her in a swimsuit her mother made for her and some were of her showing pigs. By the way, her mother forwarded all of the photos to me. Of the thousands of people that go to my website every day, a full one third of those viewers follow the link and look at the photo gallery we posted of Kassandra.

So I am launching the “Hot Peppers in Agriculture” contest and requesting your tasteful photos of people in agriculture that might get someone to stop and look and say, “Hey, I would like to find out what this person is all about.” By the way, I am not talking about a gender biased scenario here, I am requesting male and female photos be emailed to me. I am not restricting it to young people. There are some hot moms and dads in American Agriculture and we need to get them in the limelight as well. My goal is simple here: I want to capture the attention of the non-farm audience and let the world now that it is “COOL” to be agriculture and I predict we can turn around the negative stereotype that has clouded the image of our great industry ever since Grant Wood painted the American Gothic in 1930!

Once we get their attention, we will run follow-up stories on the people behind the photos and their role in feeding the world. What better way to grab the eyes and ears of the public and give them a chance to see a real view of the Americans that provide food, fuel, fiber and national security for our country? This time we will paint the portrait using our own canvas.

Oct 22, 2008 Yes the date is correct and that is what it looked like as I pulled out of the my driveway this morning headed for Twin Falls, ID. We did receive 8 inches of snow before dawn Thursday morning. The sweet clover and bunnies never lie.

Oct 20, 2008 I finish the day by respectfully harvesting a steer that we fed all summer. Here I am seen splitting the carcass into halves.





Oct 20, 2008 Feeding cows that still have calves on them salt and mineral this morning. Recognize the cows are ready to have calves weaned.

Saturday Oct 18, 2008 I spent the weekend with 200 women in agriculture. The 2008 Sigma Alpha Sorority met in San Mataeo CA. Here I am pictured with the National Board Members. Link to their website http://www.sigmaalpha.org/

Sunday Oct 20, 2008 I woke up in San Francisco and arrived home about 6:00 pm to find this final farewell. Just before I left on Thursday we weaned 40 Angus calves here on day three we see the last farewall before the two depart ways.

Tuesday Oct 14, 2008 As much as I hate to I better drop the reins and go watch Oprah. Full details found at www.FacesOfAg.com

Saturday Oct 11, 2008 The selection of the 2009 Beef Ambassador team in complete. I must tell you that I am proud to call each one of them a fellow beef producer. From left to right, Sharon Byrne, PA, Jessica Sampson, CA, Allison Grainger, TX, Sierra Simpson, OK, and Bradley Copenhaver, VA. Congratulations and I look forward to working with you in the upcoming year.

More bang for your buck
by Kelli Loos

As producers we may lay awake at night worrying about the markets or the weather or maybe even whether or not the neighbors peaked-rumped bull will jump the fence and get in with our heifers. But perhaps what we should be worrying about is what we will do if consumers decide to listen to the well-funded vocal minority and cut meat out of their diets. Now that is something worth considering and even more importantly something worth taking action on.

For the past nineteen years, representatives of the National Beef Ambassador Program (NBAP) have worked in urban areas and convinced literally millions of soccer moms and college coeds that beef is a vital and important part of a healthy diet. The teams have gone to places we would just as soon steer clear of, where traffic jams don’t mean a herd of cattle plodding down a gravel road, just to get out the good word about beef and to help us sell our product. For whether you believe that you raise beef or you raise cattle, without a market for beef we would all be in trouble.

In the past, the NBAP has been funded by check-off dollars and run by the American National Cattlewomen (ANCW). In 2007 alone, working on a bare-bones budget of just over $100,000, this program made over 115,000 direct consumer contacts, 24,000 student interactions and over 20 million media impressions using print, television and web-based communications. Despite the success and longevity of the program, ANCW was denied the use of check-off funds for the 2009 fiscal year.

In light of this new development, ANCW is reaching out to the beef producers of the United States that benefit most from the work of this energetic and enthusiastic bunch of beef lovers. If every beef producer in this country were to donate just $1, the program would be adequately funded for the next five years. You already send your dollars, one per head, to the Cattlemen’s Beef Board every time you sell an animal. We are requesting just one dollar be sent to the ANCW Foundation, PO Box 3881 Englewood, CO 80155 or donate on the web at www.ancw.org. Of course, larger donations will not be turned away!

After seeing these passionate young leaders in action, I personally guarantee that this donation will be a wise investment for the future of our industry and you will certainly get the most bang for your buck that you have ever gotten in regard to the promotion of beef!

Monday Oct 14, 2008 Head out on Lady Blue (my main saddle horse) to check fall yearling heifer calves just before dusk. Dawn and dusk the two absolute best times of the days to ride your pasture.

Friday Oct 10, 2008 17 female and 3 male young beef ambassadors gather in Oklahoma City for the 2009 American National Cattlewomen's Beef Ambassador Contest. Tomorrow 5 will be selected as next years team but I will tell you that in the past five years I have never witnessed a stronger field top to bottom. Once again reminding us that the best thing produced on American farm/ranches is without a doubt our young people.

More information can be found at National Beef Ambassadors website by clicking here

Tuesday Oct 7, 2008 I am feeding salt and mineral to fall calving cows at dusk. I saw the moon creep in the background of cow 5202 and thought I just have to capture that.