U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack yesterday urged reporters to “get it right” and call it H1N1.
“The job of the media is to get it right and not necessarily to get it convenient,” said Vilsack. “Some media outlets have been responsive and sensitive to this, but there’s really not been a concerted effort by the media to do a good job, a correct job of making sure this is characterized properly.”
Vilsack made his case on behalf of struggling pork producers who have been adversely affected by the connection to the virus. “I want folks who are in this business of conveying messages“to understand that behind that message there is a family today … wondering how they’re going to be able to pay the bills when they continually sell pork for less than what it costs to produce, and they continue to get hammered for something that they have absolutely nothing to do with.”
Illinois Farm Bureau is taking the case to Facebook by urging us to participate in online H1N1 online activism today. Join the protest here.
Stop the hogwash! Call it H1N1, not “swine flu.” You cannot get H1N1 from eating pork, and the misnomer is hurting pork producers financially.
Join me in the fight against bad farm facts. Copy this entire message into your profile status and leave it there all day. Then click “like” on the Illinois Farm Bureau Fan Page status to show that you participated. Thank you for supporting U.S. agriculture.
More than one-hundred Illinois farm families will be reminded to stay “Alert, Aware & Alive” as they enjoy a complimentary lunch meal delivered to where they are working during the September 20-26 National Farm Safety & Health Week. Farm Credit Services of Illinois is sponsoring the annual “Meals in the Field” program to help promote farm safety. Growing up with meals on wheels out in the field, I imagine that receiving meals while doing field work was a great hit amongst the participating farmers and ranchers!
The theme of the 2009 National Farm Safety & Health Week is “Rural Roadway Safety: Alert, Aware, & Alive.” From Monday through Friday, each of Farm Credit’s 20 branch offices selects at least one farm family to provide a lunch meal. The Farm Credit staff serves the lunch wherever the farmers are working that day – whether that is in the field, in the machine shed, or around the kitchen table.
Agriculture continues to rank as one the most dangerous occupations and industries in North America and across the globe. Illinois farm-related deaths increased for the second consecutive year last year. Farm fatalities in the state numbered 33 from July 1, 2008 to June 30, 2009 – up from the 29 deaths in 2007-2008. Roadway collisions were the second leading cause of death; tractor rollover is number one. Especially during the long harvest work days, farmers are reminded to take breaks and drink plenty of water to help them stay alert while operating machinery – both in the field and on the public roads.
4-H had a big role in shaping my life. I still remember my first purple ribbon, my first speech, my first batch of 4-H cookies, my first show steer and my first trophy. I can remember how much those “firsts” meant to me because I had spent years as a Clover Bud, waiting my turn to FINALLY be in 4-H. Without a doubt, 4-H helps fine tune kids’ talents and passions. It helps young people explore new possibilities, and it strengthens a child’s ties to agriculture. So, when I heard that 4-H was going to space in a monumental trip, I was excited to see this youth agriculture program still going strong. As reported by AgWeb Blogs, 4-H was destined for outer space.
The Space Shuttle Endeavour headed into space last week as part of the STS-127 mission. On board was the National 4-H flag. The Endeavour is delivering the final components of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency’s Kibo laboratory to the International Space Station. The 16-day mission included five spacewalks and the installation of two new space station components and equipment.
Azeem Ahmed, 17, who is an avid space enthusiast and 4-H member from Alabama and President of the Alabama 4-H Council, made the original request to NASA to have the flag flown with a future space shuttle mission.
“4-H is more than green and white – it is a collage,” Ahmed said in a news release. “It is agriculture and it’s also healthy living, leadership and citizenship and science, engineering and technology. Science, engineering and technology is one of the missions of 4-H, and by flying a 4-H flag into space, I hope we shine a new light on 4-H.”
A few months ago, I signed up for a half-marathon with my sister, Courtney. To boost our motivation, we joined Team ZIP (Zinc/Iron/ Protein), a group of runners who believe in the power of protein in the land of lean beef. We demonstrate that beef gives us the strength we need to cross the finish line by participating in running, cycling and triathlon events across the country. On May 16, just a week after my graduation from SDSU, Courtney and I ran our hearts out on behalf of America’s farmers and ranchers.
This was my first half marathon, and I was proud to hear my name called as I crossed the finish line, announcing that I was running in support of beef. My jersey proudly said, “Beef, it’s what’s for dinner,” and it earned me quite a few comments and cheers throughout the race. Although my muscles were sore from the intensity of the race, my heart was proud of myself for finishing the race within my goal time.
If you are a runner or are interested in promoting agriculture in unique ways such as this, I encourage you to check out Team ZIP. There is a great bunch of folks that are a part of that group, and they are not only dedicated to living healthy, but also in protecting the integrity of the agriculture industry. I’m so proud to be a part of this group!
One of our advertisers is Commodity Update and I can’t tell you how excited I am to watch this company grow. There are a lot of ways Joel’s product can be used and here’s one he shared with me today. One of his clients is Midwest Seed Genetics. Their lucky customers will be receiving a Christmas card from the company with the cover pictured here.
Inside the copy will read, “Our passion is helping you succeed. To that end this holiday season we are pleased to offer you a way to stay informed while you’re on the go. It’s our gift to you. The enclosed gift card provides a complimentary gift subscription to a service that will provide commodity market information directly to your cell phone. Wishing you a Merry Christmas and great success in the year to come.”
Here’s what the gift card looks like.
So their customers will receive a very useful tool to help them stay on top of the markets as long as they’ve got cell phone service. Do you know any farmers (your customers) who don’t have a cell phone? Can you think of a better gift for a farmer this Christmas?
Great idea guys. In fact it’s so good that Joel says Silveus Insurance is doing it too!
It's time to thank our farmers and ranchers for all their hard work to feed us.
