Once you get involved with the International Federation of Agricultural Journalists (IFAJ) you get exposed to people in many other countries so as time permits I’ll try to draw your attention to interesting things from the international world of ag communications. I just saw a recent e-Alert from the Guild of Agricultural Journalists of Great Britain (GAJ).

The first thing that struck me was the tagline, “Writing, broadcasting and press communications in farming, horticulture and countryside” They have over 600 members. Kind of makes you wonder what ag communications would be like here if our groups all “merged” and work for a common cause.

The GAJ was formed in 1944 and has five main objectives:

To promote a high professional standard among journalists who specialise in agriculture, horticulture and allied subjects.
To represent members’ interests in their relations with representative bodies in the agricultural industry.
To provide a forum, through business meetings and social activities, for members to meet eminent people in the agricultural industry.
To maintain contact with associations of agricultural journalists overseas.
To promote schemes for the education of members of the Guild and for the provision of suitable entrants into agricultural journalism.

The Guild is:

Open to all journalists, PR practitioners and other communication specialists involved in agriculture and horticulture, this professional guild exists primarily to represent the collective interests of its members.