U.S. Farmers & Ranchers Alliance

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Food Dialogues

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  • USFRA Blogger

    USFRA is a newly formed alliance consisting of a wide range of prominent farmer- and rancher-led organizations and agricultural partners. This marks the first time agricultural groups at the national, regional and state levels have collaborated to lead the dialogue and answer Americans' questions about how we raise our food - while being stewards of the environment, responsibly caring for our animals and maintaining strong businesses and communities.

The PEW Charitable Trust Supermoms Are Headed to D.C. to Talk About Antibiotics

Antibiotic use in farm animals can be a complicated topic. We know there can be a lot of confusion around whether antibiotics are present – or not present - in the meat and milk we consume. Many people are concerned about the risk of creating antibiotic resistance strains of bacteria. They want to know when and why farmers use them when caring for their animals.

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New York Times Contest Submissions

The New York Times announced in March a contest on whether it’s ethical to eat meat – calling all carnivores. In conjunction with this contest, we asked those who were planning to submit an essay to share theirs with us. We received more than 20 and here’s your chance to read them.

The Times announced their winner on May 3, and while it wasn’t one of the essays we received, here’s your opportunity to read why it is ethical to eat meat.

http://nyti.ms/KhaaY5

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Food Dialogues Panel Discusses Organic, Naturally Grown and Conventional Farming Practices

We recently hosted an interesting discussion between three farmers – two of whom are brothers – about different farming methods. The brothers, Brandon and Neil Moseley, have different farming styles. One is a conventional farmer and the other a certified naturally-grown farmer. While they each have different opinions about farming and techniques for success, as a group they agree all farming methods must coexist and there’s a place for each management style.

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Take a Tour of Our Pig Barn

Farmer Meggie Foster and her husband Dallas hosted a group of visitors from China for an official farm tour. The delegates were part of a group of upper management professionals from a pig farm in China and wanted to learn more about how American farmers raised pigs with more modern resources. 

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Overview on USDA Announcement of BSE

The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced a positive test result on April 24, 2012, as part of its targeted surveillance program to test cattle for Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE). USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) has confirmed the nation's fourth case of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) in a dairy cow from central California. According to USDA, the carcass of the animal is being held under State authority at a rendering facility in California and will be destroyed. It was never presented for slaughter for human consumption, so at no time presented a risk to the food supply or human health.

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Earth Day

Earth Day is always a good time to reflect on how we treat the environment, and the actions and improvements we’re making for the betterment of our planet. Farmers use the land to produce fruits, vegetables, and grains and graze livestock. Because our farmers and ranchers are so closely tied to the earth and its valuable resources,  they are continuously looking for new management practices to improve their land, which means so much to them.

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Mom’s (Twitter) Party It Up about Food and Ag

Tweet moms hear how their food is grown and raised – from a farmer and rancher

Moms are clearly mindful about what they feed their families, and following March’s Tweet chat, it’s clear they want to hear from farmers and ranchers about how their food is grown and raised. Tweets flooded #FoodD last week as USFRA hosted an online Twitter event – aka a “Tweet Chat” or “Twitter Party” – for moms, farmers and ranchers. Jeff Fowler, a farmer and rancher, was on hand to answer questions and provided insights into how he grows and raises food on his farm in California.

Take a look at some of the key questions and responses moms have regarding how their food is grown and raised.

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USFRA Hosts Discussion in Chicago with Food Bloggers

USFRA Hosts Discussion in Chicago with Food Bloggers Last week, USFRA organized a breakfast discussion in Chicago at a local restaurant with 16 farmers and ranchers from around the country and six local food bloggers. There was no structured presentation, allowing bloggers to eat breakfast with actual farmers and ranchers in a casual setting. While at the table, discussions centered around farmers and ranchers family backgrounds and how their farms or ranches operate. Bloggers also had the opportunity to ask the farmers and rancher their questions.

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Overview: Antibiotics Use in Animals Raised for Food

USFRA believes that farmers and ranchers and our partners must do what is in their power to keep their animals safe and healthy. And when animals are sick or at risk of becoming sick, they should be treated in adherence with evidence based standards of veterinary medicine in ways that don’t stress the animals or the environment and are in the best interest of long-term human health. 

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I’m All for Milk, But Where’s the Beef?

Emily Webel gives us a glimpse into life on her grain and cow/calf operation on her blog Confessions of a Farm Wife, while sharing the joys of teaching her girls about farming. One of her recent blog posts talked about taking her kids to see an agricultural exhibit at a children’s museum. Check out what she has to say about the importance of encouraging farm visits by families and making sure young people get the whole story about farming.

To read more, visit her blog at www.webelfamilyfarm.blogspot.com

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Chipotle, Your Grammy Commercial Still Doesn’t Change My Mind

After Chipotle ran their video during the Grammy Awards a few weeks ago, we saw a lot of chatter online from both consumers and growers about what they liked and disliked about the ad. We posted a blog about the commercial, and believe it doesn’t tell the entire story. Take a look at what one farmer, Crystal Cattle, shared on her blog. 

What do you think? Read more of her blog at www.crystalcattle.blogspot.com

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Is the Chipotle Ad Accurate? Farmers and Ranchers: Tell Us Your Story

What does music’s biggest night – the Grammys – have to do with today’s agriculture? For many Americans, it was a two-minute, animated Chipotle ad that caught their attention. It caused them to wonder about where their food really comes from. It most likely gave them a poor impression - and a lot of doubts - about the people who grow and raise their food.

USFRA thinks that Americans want and need to hear the whole story. Is it really correct to characterize larger farms as “factory farms” that mistreat animals if they are housed in barns protected from inclement weather?  Is it fair to use an animated video with a heartwarming song to try to cast a bad light on conventional farming?  Is it right to imply that conventional pig farmers knowingly pollute the environment?  

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In Response to the Washington Post Article

The recent editorial “Feeding the Future” in the Washington Post clearly articulated a major challenge facing us and the future of food while tackling the complicated issue of using certain agricultural techniques as a viable solution. When it comes to their food, consumers are rightfully passionate and they want to know more information about where it comes from and how it was grown or raised. With so much emotion attached to the food we consume, many Americans may adopt a particular stance for or against an issue that may not reflect all of the information or realities of farming and ranching. Many of these food challenges – and the potential solutions - are not black and white; they are incredibly complex and depend upon various companies across the food spectrum working together.

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Food Discoveries: Connecting Our Farmers and Ranchers to Consumers

Consumers continue to have important questions and concerns about their food. They want to know “Is the food we’re eating healthy long-term?” and “Is the planet able to sustain the amount of food we’re producing?”. They also want to be sure our farmers and ranchers are feeding their own families the same food they’re growing and raising for Americans.

U.S. Farmers & Ranchers Alliance (USFRA) kicked off The Food Dialogues with the Town Hall in September, and just as consumers are committed to continue asking complex questions about their food, our farmers and ranchers are equally committed to continue listening and addressing their concerns from their own personal perspective and experience. While the dialogue began with our Town Hall, we know open and honest conversations should be ongoing.

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Come to the Table on World Food Day and Food Day - Our Values and Our Perspective

Many people have asked farmers and ranchers what we think about World Food Day, organized by the Food & Agriculture Organization of the U.N. (October 16) and Food Day, sponsored by the Center for Science in the Public Interests (October 24).  In a month focused on food and Food Days, it is essential that farmers and ranchers continue our commitment to listening to Americans and to show our support for producing healthy choices for people everywhere.  We can find common ground with many different voices on this purpose – even if we disagree on more granular issues. 

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Farmers and Ranchers and what we value

For farmers and ranchers, it is clear that a disconnect exists between the American public and the food they serve on their dinner tables. For too long, farmers and ranchers of all types and sizes – conventional, organic, large and small – were, for various reasons, not part of the discussions taking place in Americans’ homes about where their food comes from. We want to do better. We want to continue listening to consumers and engage in open, honest conversations about food.

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We’ve received a lot of questions about our stance on biotech seeds and labeling.

Since we are not a policy organization, we do not and cannot have an official opinion.  Each of our more than 50 affiliates and partners may have their own stance on this issue.  Our goal is to help facilitate discussion, highlight key issues and encourage farmers and ranchers to engage in conversation with consumers.  Many of the farmers who are members of our affiliates use biotech seeds and traits for good reasons like reducing the amount of water or pesticides they need to use on their crops.   Some farmers choose not to use biotech seeds for other reasons. 

We encourage more farmers and ranchers who have experience with using biotech seeds and traits to join in the conversation – it seems pretty one-sided right now.  Take a look at this story that ran on Bloomberg in June that tries to address questions objectively.  Also, BestFoodFacts.org included a month-long series of blog posts and asked several third-party experts and professors for their thoughts on biotech seeds. Read more on what they think.

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Town Halls the Start – More Dialogue Needed

For farmers and ranchers, The Food Dialogues town halls (September 22, 2011) were an important first step in listening and answering questions about food production. But they were only the beginning. Much more work needs to be done.

For U.S. Farmers & Ranchers Alliance (USFRA) it was the beginning of a long-term commitment to helping consumers understand how their food is grown and raised. It was an acknowledgement of the need to find common ground among diverse voices.

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Panelists at The Food Dialogues Town Hall

On September 22, we’re kicking off a conversation with Americans about how we grow and raise our food. Streamed live from Washington D.C.; New York; Fair Oaks, Indiana; and Davis, California, we’ve invited voices and viewpoints from across the food spectrum to share their opinions. Farmers, ranchers, consumers, students, retailers, media and leaders in business, food and food service will all be welcome to the table.

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U.S. Farmers & Ranchers Alliance Announces Support From Monsanto

DECATUR, Ill.-The U.S. Farmers & Ranchers Alliance(USFRA) today announced at the Farm Progress Show that Monsanto is joining its movement to answer Americans’ questions about how their food is raised. USFRA is a coalition of more than 50 national, regional and state agricultural groups and their partners, committed to continuously improving how they grow and raise food that provides healthy choices for people everywhere

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American Agriculture's Responsibility

Guess who’s coming to dinner?

About 310 million people, looking for three squares a day, 365 days a year.  Nearly a billion meals per day. And that´s just in the United States.

How do you feed so many people, year in, year out, providing them the quality and nutrition they need and the consistent availability they’ve come to expect, no matter where they live?

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Sustainability

Here today, gone tomorrow.  It´s a common sentiment in a fast-changing world.  But while most of us won´t be around a century from now, hundreds of millions of people will live in the United States and will need to be fed.  If growth trends continue, it´ll be many more millions than the 310 million who live here now.  And there will be less farmland and ranchland available to do it with.  That´s why sustainability is so crucial to America´s food industry – and America´s future.

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Affordability and Access

It´s been said that the average American today has a richer, healthier, more varied diet than the wealthiest people enjoyed a century ago.  A visit to any supermarket confirms that impression. 

The way people shop for food has changed almost as much as the food they shop for.  And it continues to evolve. For some people, it´s a case of “back to the future”-- relying on locally sourced products and farmers' markets, or making a daily trip to the grocery, the produce market and the butcher.

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Agri-Pulse Update 7-7-11: Open Mic w/USFRA Chairman Bob Stallman, Week Ahead & more

The 40-plus ag organizations that make up the U.S. Farmers and Ranchers Alliance (USFRA) begin a collective conversation with the public this week to strengthen the image of agriculture and build trust in today’s agricultural best production practices.  USFRA Chairman Bob Stallman, president of the American Farm Bureau Federation, explains why the effort is needed, how much it will cost and, most importantly, how the Alliance will measure success on this week’s Open Mic.  

Click here to listen

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DuPont Supports Efforts to Enhance Public Trust in Modern Ag

DuPont Joins More than 40 Producer Organizations to Collaborate in Support of Today’s Farmers and Ranchers

WILMINGTON, Del., June 13, 2011 — DuPont today joined an effort to bolster the image of agriculture and enhance public trust in the U.S. food production system. The initiative is led by the U.S. Farmers & Ranchers Alliance (USFRA), a new initiative represented by more than 40 of the leading farmer- and rancher-led agricultural organizations.

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USFRA Selects Communications Agency Ketchum

CHESTERFIELD, Mo. – The new U.S. Farmers & Ranchers Alliance (USFRA) moved a giant step forward Thursday in its drive to deliver its pro-production-agriculture message to the American public. Naming PR firm Ketchum as its primary communications agency, USFRA calls the choice “the next strategic step driving the USFRA mission to strengthen the image of agriculture and enhance public trust in today’s best production practices.”

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USFRA Selects Communications Agency Ketchum

CHESTERFIELD, Mo. – The new U.S. Farmers & Ranchers Alliance (USFRA) moved a giant step forward Thursday in its drive to deliver its pro-production-agriculture message to the American public. Naming PR firm Ketchum as its primary communications agency, USFRA calls the choice “the next strategic step driving the USFRA mission to strengthen the image of agriculture and enhance public trust in today’s best production practices.”

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USFRA Reveals Vision, Initial Focus; Announces Founding Board and Executive Committee

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Today’s agriculture continues to be attacked by a number of different groups. Unfortunately, as the majority of the U.S. public has become further and further removed from the farm, they tend to believe the groups attacking agriculture, according to the U.S. Farmers & Ranchers Alliance (USFRA). This new alliance is comprised of most of the leading national farmer- and rancher-led agricultural organizations.

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