MFB recognizes 25 years of progressive Promotion & Education

Contact: Deb Schmucker, (800) 292-2680, ext. 3213

LANSING, Nov. 18, 2011 - Michigan Farm Bureau's (MFB) Promotion and Education (P&E) program will celebrate its 25th anniversary during the MFB 92nd Annual Meeting, Nov. 29 to Dec. 2, at the Amway Grand Plaza Hotel and DeVos Place in Grand Rapids.

Begun in 1986 as a replacement for MFB's Women's Committee, the gender-neutral statewide P&E Committee has lived up to its name, promoting agriculture through farm tours and other projects designed to give consumers a positive image of farmers. Its educational components have done even more, organizing statewide and county-level Agriculture in the Classroom programs; Rural Education Days, also known as Project RED; and many other on-farm and in-classroom activities.

"The Women's Committee was already doing a lot of the things that we do today," explains current P&E Department Manager Deb Schmucker. But there was some underlying frustration that women weren't as equally involved in the organization's decision-making.

One past Women's Committee chairwoman recalled being asked early on to participate in a fashion show. "But it was not what I thought women should be doing in Farm Bureau," she said.

At the 1985 MFB annual meeting, a study committee was established to evaluate the structure of the time-honored Women's Committee, which had long been - and still is in many states - a part of county and state Farm Bureau structures. In a progressive move, delegates at the 1986 annual meeting voted to create the Promotion and Education Committee and to dissolve the Women's Committee.

"I think with all the things we see in the news, promotion of agriculture and education of the public is more important than ever," said Larry Walton, current chairman of the 22-member state P&E Committee and the P&E Representative on the MFB Board of Directors.

"It's hard to bridge the gap, but we need to convey that U.S. farmers produce the safest food on the planet," said Walton. "We need to counter the lies that become fact with too much repetition. We need to help people understand all the things involved in farming, like the regulatory challenges and labor shortages and the cost of production. It's not easy, but we've made some headway."

Highlighted here are some of the P&E Committee's achievements to date.

Since its beginning, the P&E Committee has reached nearly 183,200 children through Project RED, Agriculture in the Classroom, Dairy Days and other on-farm activities.
In each of the last five years, more than 12,630 volunteers have been involved with P&E activities. The 25-year average is more than 2,650 volunteers per year.
More than 3,000 teachers have been reached by volunteers who have conducted Agriculture in the Classroom activities.
Each year, more than 2 million adult consumers have been reached with P&E activities including county and state fairs and safety programs.
Approximately 72,500 volunteers have attended conferences in the past 25 years.

At the annual meeting, P&E's grand celebration will begin Nov. 30 with an educational workshop examining attitudes and opinions of farmers and consumers hosted by Bill Zucker, a public relations strategist with the U.S. Farmers and Ranchers Alliance.

The festivities will continue on Dec. 1 with the annual P&E luncheon and workshop day. The P&E Committee will sponsor a "Working Together to CARE" workshop series which will instruct county Farm Bureaus how to work together to educate consumers about farming's safe, caring and conscientious methods of raising food. The workshop series complements MFB's "Farmers Committed to Agriculture while Respecting our Earth" initiative, better known as Farmers CARE, which seeks to teach consumers the truth about modern production agriculture.

Zucker will lead a second workshop that day centered on correcting common myths about agricultural production and practices. Other sessions will cover how conventional and non-traditional agriculture can work together to communicate a common message and positive image to consumers; the necessary steps for a farm to earn verification in the Michigan Agriculture Environmental Assurance Program (MAEAP); and agritourism opportunities and success stories. Farmers from around the state will serve as guest panelists for many of the sessions, as will staff from MAEAP partnering organizations.

MFB represents more than 48,000 farm families from across the state.

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Editor's note: Visit http://www.michfb.com/annual to stay updated on all the breaking news from Michigan Farm Bureau's 92nd Annual Meeting.

Click here to return to the Pre-meeting news releases index page.


	Home Page Agenda Photographs Young Farmers Media Services Entertainment Location Free Wireless at DeVos Place MFB recognizes 25 years of progressive Promotion & Education Contact: Deb Schmucker, (800) 292-2680, ext. 3213 LANSING, Nov. 18, 2011 - Michigan Farm Bureau's (MFB) Promotion and Education (P&E) program will celebrate its 25th anniversary during the MFB 92nd Annual Meeting, Nov. 29 to Dec. 2, at the Amway Grand Plaza Hotel and DeVos Place in Grand Rapids. Begun in 1986 as a replacement for MFB's Women's Committee, the gender-neutral statewide P&E Committee has lived up to its name, promoting agriculture through farm tours and other projects designed to give consumers a positive image of farmers. Its educational components have done even more, organizing statewide and county-level Agriculture in the Classroom programs; Rural Education Days, also known as Project RED; and many other on-farm and in-classroom activities. "The Women's Committee was already doing a lot of the things that we do today," explains current P&E Department Manager Deb Schmucker. But there was some underlying frustration that women weren't as equally involved in the organization's decision-making. One past Women's Committee chairwoman recalled being asked early on to participate in a fashion show. "But it was not what I thought women should be doing in Farm Bureau," she said. At the 1985 MFB annual meeting, a study committee was established to evaluate the structure of the time-honored Women's Committee, which had long been - and still is in many states - a part of county and state Farm Bureau structures. In a progressive move, delegates at the 1986 annual meeting voted to create the Promotion and Education Committee and to dissolve the Women's Committee. "I think with all the things we see in the news, promotion of agriculture and education of the public is more important than ever," said Larry Walton, current chairman of the 22-member state P&E Committee and the P&E Representative on the MFB Board of Directors. "It's hard to bridge the gap, but we need to convey that U.S. farmers produce the safest food on the planet," said Walton. "We need to counter the lies that become fact with too much repetition. We need to help people understand all the things involved in farming, like the regulatory challenges and labor shortages and the cost of production. It's not easy, but we've made some headway." Highlighted here are some of the P&E Committee's achievements to date. Since its beginning, the P&E Committee has reached nearly 183,200 children through Project RED, Agriculture in the Classroom, Dairy Days and other on-farm activities. In each of the last five years, more than 12,630 volunteers have been involved with P&E activities. The 25-year average is more than 2,650 volunteers per year. More than 3,000 teachers have been reached by volunteers who have conducted Agriculture in the Classroom activities. Each year, more than 2 million adult consumers have been reached with P&E activities including county and state fairs and safety programs. Approximately 72,500 volunteers have attended conferences in the past 25 years. At the annual meeting, P&E's grand celebration will begin Nov. 30 with an educational workshop examining attitudes and opinions of farmers and consumers hosted by Bill Zucker, a public relations strategist with the U.S. Farmers and Ranchers Alliance. The festivities will continue on Dec. 1 with the annual P&E luncheon and workshop day. The P&E Committee will sponsor a "Working Together to CARE" workshop series which will instruct county Farm Bureaus how to work together to educate consumers about farming's safe, caring and conscientious methods of raising food. The workshop series complements MFB's "Farmers Committed to Agriculture while Respecting our Earth" initiative, better known as Farmers CARE, which seeks to teach consumers the truth about modern production agriculture. Zucker will lead a second workshop that day centered on correcting common myths about agricultural production and practices. Other sessions will cover how conventional and non-traditional agriculture can work together to communicate a common message and positive image to consumers; the necessary steps for a farm to earn verification in the Michigan Agriculture Environmental Assurance Program (MAEAP); and agritourism opportunities and success stories. Farmers from around the state will serve as guest panelists for many of the sessions, as will staff from MAEAP partnering organizations. MFB represents more than 48,000 farm families from across the state. -30- Editor's note: Visit http://www.michfb.com/annual to stay updated on all the breaking news from Michigan Farm Bureau's 92nd Annual Meeting. Click here to return to the Pre-meeting news releases index page. [ American Farm Bureau Federation ] Copyrights, Disclosures & Disclaimers