Why Agvocate

While attending an AgChat conference I had the opportunity to listen to a gentleman by the name of Matt Rush. Matt is a fourth generation farmer and cattle rancher from New Mexico. He is also the Executive Vice President of the New Mexico Farm & Livestock Bureau. Matt is very passionate about his values and the future of agriculture. I really enjoyed his keynote speech and thought his message would fit perfectly with our topic of ag-vocating.

Today, probably more than ever, it is extremely important for all of us to advocate for the agricultural industry. In a world where information is at our fingertips, it is our responsibility to be sure that people are receiving the correct information about the industry. Matt Rush broke down our responsibility using the three V’s. He explained that we all need to be viable, valuable and visible when we agvocate.

Viable

Get over yourself! We need to always be improving what we do and how we do it in the agriculture industry. It is important for us to teach those that don’t understand how viable we are.

Valuable

Of course we understand how valuable the agriculture industry is but others don’t! Agvocate for the industry to teach those that do not understand the value of what we do and how we do it.

Visible

This may be the most important of three. Without being visible, we are not able to show how we are viable and valuable. There are more opponents than advocates for the agriculture industry and it is our responsibility to teach and help people better understand the importance.

Two Easy Ways to Agvocate

There are so many opportunities that can assist us all in conquering the three V’s.

• Get involved with various organizations at a local, regional and even national level.
• Share your story! We all need to share our stories and it can be done in a variety of ways that can make a huge impact. Whether it be through social media, blog posts, newspaper articles, schools, communities, and even friends and families.

By advocating and sharing our stories we are all better able to make positive changes in the industry, whether it be policies, political processes, attitudes and even behaviors towards the industry. It is our job to agvocate!

Learn more about advocating for careers in agriculture by attending the Ag & Food HR Roundtable August 2-4 in Johnston, Iowa. Register by this Friday, June 24 and receive $75 off your admission.