How I pick my #FollowFriday

Before I get into my #FF recommendations, I want to tell you why I chose the particular photo above. These are just two of my 6 animals; 4 cats and 2 dogs. This should be indicative of the fact that, although we come from different backgrounds, we should be able to find common ground! For reference, the dog's name is Lavendar, an Italian Greyhound. The cat's name is Kona. These two live in complete and utter harmony. Below is a better picture of Lavendar:

Every week on Twitter, we all start posting our #FF recommendations. This idea was, and still is, excellent. It allows for all of us to expand our networks, not by just randomly adding people to your network, but actually adding quality people to your network. It also allows us to pass on our thoughts about what people have been posting through the week. I am always grateful and thankful that someone takes the time to read my posts, read them indeed! To have the likes of such great #agvocates include me in a #FF is an honor.

On this follow friday I want to give the following people a shout out. I do this because they post compelling content, participate in healthy debates, know what they are talking about and are just plain great people! While you ponder the merits of whether or not you decide to follow these people, remember that they are on my list because of the value they add to my Twitter experience. Sometimes the tweets are thought provoking, sometimes irritating, (yes it is good to get irritated sometimes - it is how we become better people) many times funny, and always, always relevant! So, do yourself a favor and follow these people. If you are not interested in #agriculture, #food, and #farming, you soon will be! These are not in any particular order:

@FarmerHaley
@JeffFowle
@daringrimm
@RayLinDairy
@KYFarmersMatter
@WriteNowBiz
@nel1jack
@Mica_MON
@SteinerTractors
@agchick
@mpaynknoper
@cornguy
@JPLovesCOTTON
@AFBFMace
@Ken4Corn
@celestelaurant
@iamafarmer2
@craig_leach
@jambutter
@ZacharyCohen
@meredithmo
@CariRincker
@jilib
@farmanddairy
@renee_martin
@kubileya
@Mica_MON


I am certain there are people I have not included that should be on this list. I will continually work towards generating a longer list. As time goes by, more and more will be added as I am now searching through other industries. I cannot express enough my gratitude for how much the interaction with these individuals have impacted my life, both personally and prefessionally. I say again; do yourself a solid and just click the follow button.....you will be happy you did.

“The longer I live, the more I realize the impact of attitude on life. Attitude, to me, is more important than facts. It is more important than the past, the education, the money, than circumstances, than failure, than successes, than what other people think or say or do. It is more important than appearance, giftedness or skill. It will make or break a company... a church... a home. The remarkable thing is we have a choice everyday regarding the attitude we will embrace for that day. We cannot change our past... we cannot change the fact that people will act in a certain way. We cannot change the inevitable. The only thing we can do is play on the one string we have, and that is our attitude. I am convinced that life is 10% what happens to me and 90% of how I react to it. And so it is with you... we are in charge of our Attitudes.”


Charles Swindoll - Clergyman

ProFood people you should follow on Twitter

I would also like to add a few people who work hard at developing local food economies that supply healthy fruits and vegetables to their community. I have been in vigorous debates with each and every one of these individuals. They are passionate about their ideals (almost as much as I am about mine :)) and are always up for a good discussion. We may not agree on everything, but we certainly all want the same thing: safe, healthy food for our community, family, and especially our children.

@Jambutter - Rob is the founder of Every Kitchen Table. On this blog you will find the 5 stones of the #ProFood movement. Rob is extremely active and very strong in his opinions, which certainly makes for a lively debate. Rob also blogs on The Huffington Post. I look forward to more fruitful (pun intended) discussion on how we can bridge the gap from farmer to consumer as well as from #ProFood to other #ag folks we engage in on Twitter. As an aside, Rob has asked if I would write on his blog a response to the 5 Stones. I have said yes, and have not delivered. I hope to get that done next week. Sorry for the delay Rob.

@ZacharyCohen - Zach is a food television writer and producer. He also has a blog where he covers the food debates with fairness and sincerity. I have spoken to Zach and he is sincere in his desire to engage with modern farmers to learn as well as discuss the merits of the ProFood movement. Thanks for the good discussions Zach.

@Kubileya - Joya is an organic market gardener. Joya is a strong supporter of the tenants of #ProFood, whether that be organic production or CSA's. She is involved in it all.

@meridithmo - Meridith also is a big supporter of CSA's. If memory serves, she is in the process of starting one in her community. Go Meridith!

As you can imagine, there are many more that can be added to the list. As time goes on, I am sure I will be able to add a #FF shout out to other individuals and companies involved in the #ProFood movement.

Agriculture folks you should follow on Twitter

I thought I would add a little more pertinent information as to why you should follow the following people/organizations you should follow on Twitter for this #FollowFriday. The following list is certainly not exhaustive, but will give you a good start if you are interested in food, feed, fiber, and fuel.

Agriculture is the backbone of our society and these people are working hard at spreading the message to the public on what farmers are doing to ensure an adequate food supply, while at the same time adopting new technologies and management practices to ensure a sustainable world. So, without further ado, here is my list in no particular order:

@FarmerHaley - Mike Haley is a 5th generation farmer producing grain and purebred Simmental cattler. Mike works hard every day to support his industry through various social media outlets.

@JeffFowle - Jeff is a rancher raising cattle, horses, and hay. Jeff is very knowledgeable about the beef industry and shares his knowledge freely with all who are interested.

@RayLinDairy - Ray is a dairy farmer who is very active in social media. He engages in healthy debates on the growing of our food, always above board, and share some pretty funny stuff to boot!

@mpaynknoper - Michele is a well known speaker and agriculture advocate. You can find more about her on Facebook through her Cause Matters page. She also is the founder of #agchat, an open forum every Tuesday night that allows people from all walks of life to participate in discussions with farmers from around the country. It is a great 2-3 hours of lively debate and knowledge share.

@WriteNowBiz - Jan is a freelance writer who also raises rabbits and horses, as well as farms. She is also an advocate for agriculture and always participates in the food debates currently taking place.

@TroyHadrick - Troy is a 5th generation cattle rancher. He has a blog titled Advocates for Agriculture, where he focuses on spreading the positives of modern ranching and farming. Check out his blog for some really good farming information

@USGC - This is the Unites States Grain Counsel. They focus on increasing farmer profitability by supporting the export markets for grain. They recently came back from an overseas trip in Morocco. Thanks for your work

@agleader - He is a 6th generation farmer in CA. I enjoy his tweets and particpiation in the food discussions. He also has a focus on water management and the issues we in agriculture must deal with.

@JPLovesCOTTON - Janice is a PR rep for Monsanto. She is also a wine enthusiast and great photographer. I enjoy here photos and tweets...what a great sense of humor.

@agchick - Tricia works in media and recently started working with the IL corn board (I believe that is the organization). She is very active is social media and is working on how we, in ag, can spread the message about our industry. See you at Farm Progress next week Tricia

@OliverRanch - Carrie is president and founder of Oliver Ranch, an artisan beef producer. Carrie is full of great knowledge on the beef supply chain and works on building transparency in here operation for the benefit of the consumer.

@KYFarmersMatter - They produce beef and have produced a variety of crops prior to opening their full time business "http://www.johnscustommeats". They focus on quality and supporting their local community by providing safe, healthy, and quality beef.

There are certainly others in the ag community that you should follow, not just on friday, but each and every day. Knowledge share is how we are going to continue to produce food, feed, fiber, and fuel sustainably, thereby making this world a better place for our children. My thanks and gratitude to all the ag folks who engage with me on Twitter and other social media outlets. I hope to meet in person at one of the many events in 2010.