A big thank you to the folks at Farm Journal magazine for featuring my Stamps, States, and AgFacts project in this month’s Tailgate Talk.
Tailgate Talk: Put a Stamp on Agriculture Education
Collecting postcards has always been one of Ryan Goodman’s hobbies. Every time his family or friends traveled, the Arkansas rancher would ask them to send him a postcard, and he would return the favor on his trips.
One day while he was feeding hay, Goodman came up with the idea to use his postcard collection to learn more about production agriculture and promote agriculture education.
“I decided it would be neat to combine this with my love of agriculture,” Goodman says.
To do so, he is inviting people from across the country to send him a postcard with a fact about their state’s agriculture industry. On his blog, http://agricultureproud.com, Goodman posts each of the postcards he receives on the “States, Stamps and AgFacts” page. So far this year, he has received 83 cards from 25 U.S. states, including Maine, Hawaii, Florida and Vermont. (Visit Goodman’s AgWeb blog for a direct link.)
“There seems to be a bit of a competition between Kansas and North Dakota to send the most cards,” Goodman says. “So far, Kansas is winning, with 24 postcards; they sure know a lot about their state’s agriculture!
“My goal is not only to collect these cards, but also to provide a resource for consumers to learn more about production agriculture across the country.”
Stat Rack
Ag facts from around the country:
- 2,745 acres is the average size of a Wyoming farm.
- 584 lb. of dairy products are consumed by the average person each year.
- 90 1-lb. loaves of whole wheat bread can be made from 1 bu. of wheat.
- 100% of U.S. almonds are grown in California.
- 79% of all soybeans grown for consumption are used to make soybean oil.
- 70% more corn is raised per pound of fertilizer today than in 1970.
- 50% of U.S. peanuts are grown within 100 miles of Dothan, Ala.
- 40.5% of U.S. rice is grown in Arkansas.
Have you sent your postcard yet? Make sure your state is listed on my project page. Even if your state is listed, maybe you have a few more AgFacts to share?
Be sure to share the Stamps, States, and AgFacts page with friends to help them learn more about Agriculture in their area. One of the best ways to advocate for agriculture is to find a connection between consumers and producers. What unique ways have you found to Agvocate?
