Social media connects farmers with suppliers and customers

Farmers in many parts of the world are proving adept at using social media to connect with consumers and promote their agri-business, a new book states.

Rabobank’s Future of Farming found social media usage varies from one region to another. Some 76% of US farmers aged 18 to 35 use social media to share knowledge, and more than 92% of farmers in the US own a smartphone. The figures are far lower in most developing countries.

Rabobank senior vice president of food and agriculture development, Bart IJntema, said: “Having a farming background myself, I have taken a keen interest in the use of social media in the agricultural sector. It is not a question of whether social media can be of added value, but how.

“Over the years, I have seen farmers using apps to make business decisions, write blogs, and tweet to share their story with a broader audience. Farmers use online platforms to skip a number of links in the food chain and sell their products directly to end consumers. Social media can be made to work for the sector; we just need to focus on the possibilities that may work for farmers in doing business and engaging with the general public.”

Meanwhile, Chilean farmer Ricardo Rios, a former computer engineer, has found social media to be a very useful means of sharing knowledge.

“When I have started my dairy farm, my knowledge as a computer engineer was worthless,” said Mr Rios. “After a few years of farming, I came to see that we lacked knowledge to be a flourishing company.”

Seeking help online, Ricardo met a New Zealand farmer who could help. With this mentor he learned a lot in a short time.

“Since we started the coaching process from New Zealand, our company has grown,” said Mr Rios. “We are now achieving as much from the production system as the New Zealanders. This season we will milk 4,700 grass-fed cows. If you lack knowledge, you need to find knowledge.”

Having seen farmers’ use of social media grow, Rabobank developed a ‘Virtual Farm Club’ concept with and for rural customers. This concept aims to leverage the strengths of social media to facilitate interaction among farmers all over the world. The concept aims to enable peer-to-peer information sharing, benchmarking, discussion among global and local peers, Q&As, and idea exchange.

In Australia, it is predicted that, within a couple of years, 33% of the country’s farmers will utilise social media. Likely uses will include managing the image of the agricultural sector.

Sam Livingstone of virtual farming group AgChatOz in Australia said: “Social media can provide a massive benefit to both the farmer and the consumer in so many ways, from knowing that the beef you are buying as a consumer has been raised on grass, to letting consumers know which farmers’ market you are going to be at.”