| St. Louis Business Visits Rural Randolph County |
A group of Public Relation Professionals from Osborne and Barr visited Randolph County during the harvest season. Most of the twenty agriculture professionals from Osborne and Barr had never been to a real Midwest farm before. They work for our industry everyday, but have never seen the true dynamics of a farming operation. Ryan Ford, Manager of the Farm Bureau, worked with Mike Orso from Osborne and Barr to set up the tour. First the group met Ryan at the Gateway FS Elevator in Evansville, IL. The management team at that facility gave the group an in depth tour of their operations. They were able to learn about the local area, the types of grains that come across the scales, how the grain is weighed and tested for moisture and foreign material, dumped into the pit and distributed to the various bins, and eventually loaded onto the barge. Gateway FS did an excellent job of explaining the operation and answering any questions they had. A special guest arrived to unload his grain at the eleveator during the tour; it was Illinois Farm Bureau Vice-President, Richard Guebert, Jr. He addressed the group and answered a few questions also.
Next the group traveled a few miles south to Ellis Grove, IL, where Jack and Paul McCormick gave a visual illustration of a typical grain operation. Jack explained the process of planting and harvesting, the life cycle of corn and soybeans, the various traits that he uses in his seed, the various parts of soybean and corn plants, and what each piece of equipment is used for. The Osborne and Barr personnel asked several questions and took an up close look at the equipment. Ron Deterding, Randolph County Farm Bureau Board Member, stopped by during the tour. He shared information on biofuels and his operation to the group also.
The Randolph County Farm Bureau hopes to continue spreading the positive message about agriculture through more tours like this in the future. It was a great learning experience for both organizations. The Farm Bureau leaders learned a lot about the advertising portion of agriculture, while the PR professionals learned a whole lot more about the products and industry they represent.
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