It was a howl of indignation and outrage that could be heard across the Midwest when Michigan’s Gov. Jenifer Granholm signed a Meatout Day proclamation for the same day as Ag Day - March 20. Those in the ag community, both in Michigan and other states, were insulted and felt betrayed by the Governor of a state with a thriving and diverse ag industry.

As many of them pointed out, the farming sector is doing a lot better these days than the auto or manufacturing sectors of Michigan’s economy. But what happened, or to be more precise, what did not happen in Indiana on Ag Day is far more noteworthy.
Ag Day is traditionally celebrated on the first day of spring.
“The focus for 2010 and beyond is to capture the attention of consumers who think they have no relationship to agriculture,” said Linda Tank, Ag Day committee chairman. “Our new campaign reinforces that American agriculture is a part of all of us.”

Ag Day activities take many forms from educational programs in schools or Ag Day breakfasts that stress how little of each food dollar actually goes back to the farm. In Clinton County, Ind. this year, a local pork producer hosted a day-long radio program featuring some top farm leaders talking about agriculture. In Indiana and many other states, an Ag Day tradition is a proclamation by the governor.

These proclamations are typically full of big words and high sounding ideas and carry absolutely no force of law. For the most part, these proclamations are routine and are cranked out by the dozens by some unidentified staff person in the governor’s office. Yet, for the cause, person or industry for which the proclamation is made, it is a source of pride and publicity.

So when Ag Day 2010 came and went in Indiana with no acknowledgement by state government, many in the Hoosier ag community asked “why?” When I inquired why Gov. Mitch Daniels had not issued an Ag Day Proclamation, I received no answer.
When I asked the Lt. Governor’s office if she, who is also designated as the State Secretary of Agriculture, would make an Ag Day statement, I was told she was too busy traveling the state talking about the recent legislative session of the General Assembly.

When I requested an Ag Day interview with the director of the Indiana State Department of Agriculture, I was told he too was too busy traveling. ISDA did issue an “Ag Day” statement, but only because I asked for one. It was only sent to me and not to the general media.

While local county activities took place across the state, Indiana farm organizations also were mum on Ag Day. There was no mention of Ag Day on the Indiana Farm Bureau, ISDA or GINA websites, and the event calendars on the soybean and dairy association’s websites did not list Ag Day on March 20.

Now, to be fair, there was considerable publicity and effort given by farm, commodity groups and ISDA for the Farmers Feed Us program. This is a website where consumers can view videos of local farmers and then register to win free groceries for a year. However, this is not an Ag Day-related event, and no mention is made of Ag Day on the website.

So, why should we care? I mean what difference does this make anyway. In my opinion, it makes a big difference. For top state officials to totally ignore Ag Day sends the wrong message. The Daniels administration has been a strong advocate for agriculture, so why they blew this year off remains a bit of a mystery.
Agriculture needs all the positive press it can get, and we in ag must take every opportunity to connect with consumers and connect them to farming.

Ag Day is an excellent opportunity to do this. It also does not require a lot of work. Send out a press release, write a speech, set up a few interviews with local media - this is not rocket science. It does, however, send the message to both producers and consumers that agriculture is important.

If we are not going to do something with Ag Day, then we cannot grouse when the animal rights movement dupes some poor unsuspecting politician into proclaiming a Meatout on Ag Day. Ag Day may not be as “sexy” as new websites with videos or facebook pages, but it is something that works and does not cost a lot of time or money. Let’s not throw away Ag Day.

The views and opinions expressed in this column are those of the author and not necessarily those of Farm World. Readers with questions or comments for Gary Truitt may write to him in care of this publication.