Guest Blog from CommonGround Kansas Have you ever wondered how much weed killer farmers apply to their fields? CommonGround Kansas volunteers answered that question with a helpful visual — a cup of lemonade and a football field — before the Kansas State vs. Missouri State football game in Manhattan, Kan., Sept. 24. Football fans braved thunder and pouring rain during pre-game festivities, …
Changing the World Through Farming and Food
By Lauren Stohlmann We’re really quite lucky Matt Stasiewicz didn’t decide to become an automotive engineer. The work he’s done for agriculture is extensive and valuable for human health. Not that understanding engines isn’t important work, but creating a single-kernel sorter to reduce mycotoxin levels in market corn from Eastern Kenya, might be a bit more life-changing. Stasiewicz originally enrolled …
Don’t Be Afraid of the Easter Basket: The Sugar Is the Same
Today, Corn Commentary features a guest post from Michigan CommonGround blogger Barbara Siemen. A passionate agvocate who blogs at farmbarbie.com, Barbara shares the insight a once city girl turned farmer has on why moms across the country can feel excited filling Easter baskets. Don’t Be Afraid of the Easter Basket: The Sugar Is the Same By Barbara Siemen Barbara is a …
What Facts Are Really Facts?
(This guest blog is provided by Matt Reese who writes for Ohio’s Country Journal). It can be really hard to know which way to feel about some issues because these days it seems everyone has their own set of “facts” that conclusively proves their point. The problem, of course, is that as soon as you conclusively prove a point, you …
Dear Consumer, They Tell Me Not to Get Angry But, Sometimes, I Do
Today, Corn Commentary features a guest post from Missouri CommonGround blogger Kate Lambert. A passionate agvocate who blogs at UptownSheep.com, Lambert describes the frustration many of her fellow farmers feel when trying to convey their passion and love of farming. Why struggle in this way? Because, as you will see, Lambert and many like her deeply understand the importance of …
America’s Farmers Thrown Under the Train Instead of Posted on It
American corn farmers do not often see how their lives might be impacted by high profile, First Amendment debates in the media. While we each value our Constitutional rights and deeply cherish liberty, our messages about growing food and stewarding the land generally do not stir up mainstream debate to a degree that lands us on the national stage. Today, …
Fellow Farmers: Tell Your Story and Meet Growing Consumer Demand for Information
Today, Corn Commentary features a guest post written by CommonGround Minnesota volunteer Kristie Swenson. It originally appeared on the Minnesota Cornerstone blog and can be viewed there by clicking here. Fellow Farmers: Tell Your Story and Meet Growing Consumer Demand for Information Recently, I had one of the most intimidating experiences of my entire life: I did multiple live media interviews …
Taking on the Food Fear Mongerers
Hearing food and health “celebrities” spread misinformation about agriculture really annoys plant molecular and cellular biology professor Dr. Kevin Folta, who spoke at the CSS 2014 and Seed Expo this week in Chicago. Folta, who has a blog where he calls himself “a scientist in a scientifically illiterate nation at a time when we need science the most,” took the …
CommonGround: Where Meaningful Food Conversations Take Place
Today, Corn Commentary features a post from guest blogger and CommonGround Minnesota volunteer Wanda Patsche that originally ran on her blog Minnesota Farm Living as part of a month-long series. Day 29 of my 30 Days of Ag “All Things Minnesota Agriculture” is a fairly new organization (nationally – 2010) – CommonGround. CommonGround is a group of volunteers, mostly women …
Conversations with Consumers Work!
Conversations about food between the women who grow food and the women who buy it are having a real impact as indicated by a recent post authored by Denver blogger Mama Bird. Originally an attendee of CommonGround Colorado’s launch event, Bird has developed a real relationship with the farmer volunteers in her state. What has grown from that initial encounter …