Steve Jobs death this week is a sad loss to the world.
In rural workplaces we are all witness to some amazing
changes in communications between farmers & people in general. It’s happening
faster than some of us like & it’s relentless. Steve Jobs has played a big
hand in that change & I suspect his influence hasn’t yet been fully
realized.
In the last decade dairy farmer numbers in the UK have more
than halved. Fewer sons or daughters are taking over the family farms. The
number of people working in rural UK has dropped dramatically too. So
many of our countryside institutions & annual events are struggling to
survive e.g. like the livestock markets, the county shows & ploughing
matches. These events rely heavily on a core group of dedicated older people to
organize & they struggle to get both participants & a fee paying crowd.
For centuries this is where farmers met & talked to each other, sharing
information. Should we lament this change or accept that it has changed
forever?
Sons used to learn their farming trade & skills from
fathers or grandfathers.
That rarely happens now as young people are encouraged
to go off to University or College. Their return often creates tension &
communication is difficult between the generations. Young married couples on
farms have new challenges in communications which can be very difficult
especially for young women who don’t have a farming background. http://www.abc.net.au/rural/telegraph/inlaws/episode1.htm
When we speak to one another the actual words account for
less than thirty % of the communication message…..our tone, our emphasis, our
body language convey far more than the words alone. Women are usually far
better at communication than men. In fact men in general are pretty awful
communicators. Ask any woman if you don’t believe me! One of reasons is that
women in general are better at talking out issues whereas men retreat to their
caves. Women often use much more flamboyant hand movements to assist in getting
the message over successfully.
Now it’s an age of “Steve Jobs driven” technology. In Ireland in 2009
there were 10 billion SMS text messages sent, an increase of 180% over 2004. In
2004 65% of Irish farmers had internet access by 2010 it was 96%.
The big trends for the next five years are forecasted to be
a move to mobiles (from PCs), more social media & an increase in the use of
the “cloud” (sharing & storing information & data in cyber space).
Increasingly social media is here to stay. Social media is likely to replace
most emails & phone calls. Facebook has currently got 800 million users. Scary
stuff…..not really! However we will be faced with ever changing change.This will be
challenging especially to new comers.
400 pasture based dairy farmers &
their advisers in the UK (& 6 other countries)
are regular users of Facebook. There are a number of online Facebook Discussion
Groups for pasture based dairy farmers. The Facebook technology is very good
for private online discussions. Will it replace face to face in the paddock
Discussion Groups….probably not but the two work very effectively together.
What the internet has allowed is for farmers from different counties &
different countries who share a common interest to effectively “talk to each
other regularly”. I suspect as Facebook updates we will soon have regular video
discussions.
Women are greater users of social media than men. Women are
the early adopters of social media & social networking.
Yet to be used by many farmers but could have a major role
as twitter posts are helping to bridge the urban – rural divide. Each message
is restricted to 140 characters or less.
I think every farmer has a responsibility to become an
advocate for his/her farm, the farm staff, his/her farming industry &
his/her food that is produced by the farm. Dairy farmers in the USA seem much
better at this than we are but there’s a lot we can learn from them. http://www.causematters.com/
Phones & social media are connecting eaters to the
sources/producers of food. As women make over 90% of the household purchasing
decisions (especially groceries) the way to connect with consumers will
increasingly be via social media. This is a fantastic opportunity that every
farmer can contribute to in a positive way. We don’t want to hand this
responsibility to someone else (like DairyUK for example)…..that’s a huge risk!
Farm business needs to be on the same channels as trading partners &
customers/consumers.
One of Steve Jobs legacy will be the move from office based
computers to mobile phones. Mobile phones have become powerful computers that
are carried in handbags, pockets, cars & tractors. Increasingly farmers are
using their phones to access the internet & social media. Twelve months ago
virtually 100% of people accessing this blog online were doing so from desk
computers. Today the readers come from over 60 countries & approx 20% are
accessing the blog from mobile phones. This is a massive change & one that
is likely to accelerate. I want pasture based dairy farmers to be at the
forefront & to be early adopters of new technology.
Are pasture based dairy farmers using “cloud
technology”…..yes they are! Discussion groups are using Agrinet for pasture
wedge graphs & sharing this information within their Discussion Groups. www.agrinet.ie
The Irish based company is also utilizing
YouTube to help train users of the pasture wedge graphs & pasture budgets. http://www.youtube.com/user/gavmurr
The need for technology will increase around the use of
grazed grass. Web based tools that allow dairy farmers to communicate with one another;
the milk processor, the marts, cattle breeding companies etc. will facilitate
increased efficiency at farm level.
Dairy farm users of www.dropbox.com
for file & data sharing are
effectively using “cloud type technology”
Pasture Promise TV
This week we saw the launch of PasturePromise internet TV. High quality videos on pasture management & grassfed milk. It stars NOT Tom Cruise NOR Tom Jones but our very own Tom Malleson & Mark Read from Dorset. Well done guys!
Steve Jobs sad passing won’t slow the blistering pace of
change in communications. Pasture based dairy farmers need grab the new
technologies with both hands. Yes we will have to learn to adapt to constant
change but the opportunities are too great to turn our backs & say it’s all
too difficult. Keep up or step aside!
Current UK Pasture Measurements
Cold change no good for pasture growth. Rainfall very hit & miss
TheAverage
Pasture Cover (kgsDM/ha) & Pasture Growth (kgsDM/ha/day)
South Ayreshire, Scotland, AFC 2337, growth 15, demand 18kgs DM
Cumbria, AFC 2575, growth27, demand 22
Cheshire organic, 1750, gr 15, demand 27 grazing rotation 50 days
Shropshire, 2318, gr26, cows drinking alot but no limitation
Herefordshire, 2322, gr 24, de 25, following autumn planner 60% in 30 days
Oxfordshire, 2100, gr 20, de 20
Gloucestershire, 2640, gr 84, de 50, Peak growth rate of year.
Somerset, 2750, gr 65 quality not so good with high covers, growth will fall cos of low temps
Dorset, 2678, gr 50,
Dorset, 2700, gr 35, de 38, See you in RWC Semi finals
East Sussex, 2000, gr 20, RWC easier to watch now as only 49 cows to calve
North Devon, 2900, gr 50, rotation 50 days
Cornwall, AFC 2650, gr 53, de 39, cut 10% of milking platform last week, 3200 covers, 1800 residuals
