The real issue — or mission — for livestock producers today must be to reclaim their rightful position as a noble profession.
To reclaim this position, farmers and ranchers must continue to take care of their animals and preserve their freedom to operate and maintain successful animal agriculture here in Kansas and across this country.
To do so livestock producers must understand how consumers think and feel. Get inside their heads, if you will.
Today, consumers consider farmers responsible for the humane treatment of farm animals. In recent consumer surveys, people rated animal well being higher than the care and well being of workers in the food system. It did not rank as high as food safety however.
It is not science, technical capacity or ability that drives trust. Instead, it is whether consumers believe agriculture shares their ethics and values.
Livestock agriculture needs to talk about our commitment to doing the right thing — our commitment to values and ethics not just science. Our industry is strong in science. We have plenty of evidence to demonstrate we’re doing the right thing, but we rely too much on that language. We need to reengage the public on a value’s basis.
The most important job is to communicate in a way that helps people have trust in what we say and do. Too often livestock producers take for granted that rural neighbors know and understand who they are and what they do.
Agriculture can no longer take this for granted. Agriculture continues to change and evolve and still most of the people in the United States today are not involved in farming and ranching.
Americans know very little about where their food comes from today. What they want is permission to believe that what we are doing is consistent with their values and ethics. Telling our story to consumers may move to the point where we have to show people what is taking place on our farms. Unfortunately the perception is that when we don’t show them – we’re hiding something.
That said there clearly remain legitimate reasons, from disease prevention to biosecurity, not to allow unfettered access to farms and ranches.
Livestock production or animal agriculture in the most affluent country in the world is faced with special challenges and opportunities. Among those challenges is that Americans spend such a small percentage of their income on food that they can demand food where they want it, when they want it, in the proportion they want it.
Many food stores and food retailers have announced implementation of third-party verification measures to ensure the animals from which food products are derived were treated humanely. In the near future, customers will demand third-party verification and if it doesn’t exist, the store providing the food is not going to be credible with the public.
Agriculture can win this battle for the hearts and minds of consumers. Farmers and ranchers must remember whom they are trying to influence. Customers and consumers need to hear from livestock producers.
It is not productive for the agriculture community to attack activist groups. Instead, agriculture must retake its rightful position as the people in charge of ensuring the humane treatment of animals.
Agriculture must inform people we share their concerns and we work hard every day to make sure our animals are treated fairly and humanely. Follow that by sharing with them how we meet our obligations to the humane treatment of the animals on our farms.
John Schlageck is a leading commentator on agriculture and rural Kansas. Born and raised on a diversified farm in northwestern Kansas, his writing reflects a lifetime of experience, knowledge and passion.
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The real issue — or mission — for livestock producers today must be to reclaim their rightful position as a noble profession.
To reclaim this position, farmers and ranchers must continue to take care of their animals and preserve their freedom to operate and maintain successful animal agriculture here in Kansas and across this country.
To do so livestock producers must understand how consumers think and feel. Get inside their heads, if you will.
Today, consumers consider farmers responsible for the humane treatment of farm animals. In recent consumer surveys, people rated animal well being higher than the care and well being of workers in the food system. It did not rank as high as food safety however.
It is not science, technical capacity or ability that drives trust. Instead, it is whether consumers believe agriculture shares their ethics and values.
Livestock agriculture needs to talk about our commitment to doing the right thing — our commitment to values and ethics not just science. Our industry is strong in science. We have plenty of evidence to demonstrate we’re doing the right thing, but we rely too much on that language. We need to reengage the public on a value’s basis.
The most important job is to communicate in a way that helps people have trust in what we say and do. Too often livestock producers take for granted that rural neighbors know and understand who they are and what they do.
Agriculture can no longer take this for granted. Agriculture continues to change and evolve and still most of the people in the United States today are not involved in farming and ranching.
Americans know very little about where their food comes from today. What they want is permission to believe that what we are doing is consistent with their values and ethics. Telling our story to consumers may move to the point where we have to show people what is taking place on our farms. Unfortunately the perception is that when we don’t show them – we’re hiding something.
That said there clearly remain legitimate reasons, from disease prevention to biosecurity, not to allow unfettered access to farms and ranches.
Livestock production or animal agriculture in the most affluent country in the world is faced with special challenges and opportunities. Among those challenges is that Americans spend such a small percentage of their income on food that they can demand food where they want it, when they want it, in the proportion they want it.
Many food stores and food retailers have announced implementation of third-party verification measures to ensure the animals from which food products are derived were treated humanely. In the near future, customers will demand third-party verification and if it doesn’t exist, the store providing the food is not going to be credible with the public.
Agriculture can win this battle for the hearts and minds of consumers. Farmers and ranchers must remember whom they are trying to influence. Customers and consumers need to hear from livestock producers.
It is not productive for the agriculture community to attack activist groups. Instead, agriculture must retake its rightful position as the people in charge of ensuring the humane treatment of animals.
Agriculture must inform people we share their concerns and we work hard every day to make sure our animals are treated fairly and humanely. Follow that by sharing with them how we meet our obligations to the humane treatment of the animals on our farms.
John Schlageck is a leading commentator on agriculture and rural Kansas. Born and raised on a diversified farm in northwestern Kansas, his writing reflects a lifetime of experience, knowledge and passion.
