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    Retail, Farmers, and Marketing

    During our family movie night yesterday I saw a commercial for Dominos Pizza called Behind the Pizza. Here is an article from Associated Press with an overview of the approach Dominos is taking with this new marketing program.Domino's Pizza EnterprisesImage via Wikipedia


    From the AP article:
    A marketing campaign premiering Wednesday night will highlight the ingredients by showing customers in a focus group in what they think is an office. Its walls come down and they realize they're on a dairy farm, complete with cow and a farmer in Blanchardville, Wis.
    As you can see, Dominos is continuing it's marketing messaging that, yes their pizza needed improvement and this is what we are doing to improve it.

    What interests me the most is the fact that Dominos is involving the farmers supplying the ingredients. In my mind this is a key differentiator from other programs that just talk about where (read this as geography) their particular ingredients come from. I support educational marketing programs that adds some bit of transparency in the process, but nothing is better than consumers interfacing and learning from the actual producer; nothing!

    Since this is relatively new and the actual site and program elements are in their infancy, it is still to early to determine how Dominos intends to create this bridge between consumers and farmers, but I will be watching this play out. And it is only a first step, albeit an excellent one if farmers are fully involved.

    So go for it Dominos. Involve your suppliers (farmers) as you continue to implement this program. We, as consumers need, scratch that, have an unmitigated right to know who is producing our food.

    I look forward to hearing more from farmers as they share their farming story.

    So dear readers, what do you think of this approach? Do you think Dominos will continue to put the farmer(s) front and center in this campaign? Do you have any suggestions and ideas?

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    Farmers are Talking. Are You Listening?

    Where do you go to find information when you want to learn more about a particular subject? Do you "Google" it? Read publications and blogs? Ask your network? Maybe all of the above, and more?    

    I certainly look at multiple sources, but I have found the best way to educate yourself is by going to the source. So if I wanted to find out about agriculture, I look to farmers. After all, farmers are the folks that apply the technology and science in the real world every day. They must make the decision on what crop to plant, equipment to use, technology to adopt, agronomic practice to utilize, and process to adapt. And then evaluate the efficacy of the choices they made from a tactical and strategic perspective to ensure the long term viability of the business.

    Given that most people do not have immediate access to farmers (I am extremely fortunate that I do!), a company, BASF, has created a place for the public to hear directly from farmers. It is called Top Plots, a Vlog series where farmers are sharing what has been beneficial to their business. Here is the latest release featuring Kip Cullers from Purdy, MO, the winner of the global soybean yield contest coming in at a whopping 160.6 bushels per acre! So listen in as Kip and other farmers share their journey with you.


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    How Do You Tell Time?

    Since harvest is underway I have been reflecting back on this, the 2010, growing season and one important question kept coming up.

    How do you determine when your fields are trafficable?

    A question so complex in its simplicity indeed! But the ramifications of being wrong......


    Trafficability is nothing new to us folks involved in agriculture. And it is certainly a critical piece of the crop production business. Whether you are a producer, Ag Service Provider, cooperative, or custom applicator, trafficability is on your front burner.

    Crop management is all about timing. Everything we do in crop production usually is prefaced by "When can I [fill in the blank]" It may be the perfect time to apply fertilizer, insecticide, herbicide, or fungicide but if the field  isn't trafficable nothing else matters. And lets not even think about tillage with soils that are too wet!

    So I open this thread with the two questions: How do you determine when you can enter your fields to perform field operations? And, What factors/variables play a part in your decision making?

    Thanks to all the farmers out there harvesting or about to start harvesting the crops for our food, feed, fuel, and fiber.

    Photo Credit: AgWeb

    Agriculture Represented at the 140 Character Conference

    What exciting news! Two of my friends are speaking at the 140 conference in August this year.

    What a marvelous opportunity to showcase how farmers and ranchers are utilizing the real-time web to #agvocate and spread the positive message of agriculture.

    My heartfelt congratulations to both Ray Prock (@RayLinDairy) and Jeff Fowle (@JeffFowle). I am certain they will ROCK the house!

    Agchat Foundation Website Release

    What comes to mind when someone mentions agriculture to you? Do you think about the food on your plate or the clothes on your back? Do you stretch out and think about medicine?

    Well, I do, and more!

    Agriculture is the backbone of thriving societies around the world. In many respects agriculture is the main driver of the GDP of many nations.

    But let's really be honest. Is agriculture on your front burner? To some yes, but to most, not really. I submit that this needs to be changed. We, as consumers, really need to think about where our food and fiber start, and it isn't the supermarket folks. And we, as agriculture representatives, need to share our story with the general public.

    Luckily for everyone, a foundation was formed by farmers to enable both scenarios above:

    • Educate consumers
    • Enable farmers to tell their story


    This foundation, The Agchat Foundation just released their new website that everyone should have a look at. I have written about the foundation in a previous post that you can read here. I am privileged to be a part of this group of dedicated individuals and urge the readers here to get involved.

    So, take a look at the website and let the foundation know what you think of the work that has been done so far. We would appreciate any feedback.

    If you want to engage the foundation you can do so as follows:
    Twitter - http://twitter.com/agchatfound
    Facebook - http://www.facebook.com/#!/AgChatFoundation?ref=ts
    You tube - http://il.youtube.com/watch?v=wsPCsKxyAoI

    My continued thanks and gratitude to everyone who participates in this blog. You can find me on twitter @natejtaylor

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