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Farm moms seek ‘common ground’ with urban counterparts

Seeking to find “common ground” with their urban counterparts, a group of Iowa farm moms are part of a new campaign to showcase the common values betweens farmers and consumers.

The program is called Common Ground.  The National Corn Growers Association and the United Soybean Board are piloting the program in five states—Iowa, South Dakota, Nebraska, Indiana and Kentucky. 

One of the participants, Jill Vander Veen of Hartley, Iowa, explains how Common Ground is different from other efforts to connect with consumers.

“This is different because we’re trying to put a face with agriculture—and we’re trying to talk to these mothers directly that are making the food decision,” says Vander Veen, “and when they go to the grocery store, we don’t want them to have any question about what they’re buying and where it comes from.”

The farm moms will reach out to their urban counterparts through a variety of venues—including grocery store appearances, speaking opportunities, blogs, Facebook and Twitter.  Vander Veen says one of their goals is to help dispel myths about crop protection products and livestock antibiotics. 

“We just want to clear up that we use those products as needed—it’s not an overuse and they’re not getting passed down to the consumer,” she says. “We’re following all the guidelines that we need to follow when we use those products.  And we’re putting the same food on the table—our table—that they’re putting on theirs.”

The Iowa Soybean Association and Iowa Corn are helping sponsor and coordinate the Common Ground program in Iowa.

AUDIO: Jill Vander Veen (6 min MP3)

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