Greetings from our nation's Capitol where I've had the fascinating experience of joining a host of leaders representing agriculture and agribusiness in celebrating numerous Ag Day festivities.

First, our friends at Agri-Pulse sponsored a very insightful panel discussion featuring three accomplished economists sharing their predictions for the ag outlook in 2013. Two key take-aways: the global demand to feed a growing world population will continue to drive demand for our ag production. Secondly, here at home the interest in food and its sources, preparation and quality continues to grow in importance and popularity. I was surprised to learn that nearly half of all meals are consumed out of home and that there are nearly one million restaurants now existing in the U.S. today.

Overall, these economists agree, the ag outlook continues to be bright, of course, assuming that weather and world economics/politics remain stable. Over 300 people attended the Agri-Pulse event and it was great to see some familiar faces as well as make some new connections.

I also had the good fortune to attend “The New Language of Food and Modern Agriculture,” a very impressive presentation by the U.S. Farmers and Ranchers Alliance. New consumer research was presented that indicates consumers are more concerned and more vocal about their food choices than ever before. This research also indicates that our ag industry has a lot of work to do in better communicating with consumers to directly and transparently address their concerns regarding food safety and quality, animal welfare and environmental issues.

Fortunately, the Farmers and Ranchers Alliance, made up of over 80 different ag producers organizations, is listening and responding to these consumer concerns about their food sources. It's good to see so many diverse producer groups band together with a common purpose, to proactively and carefully listen to consumer concerns and engage in an on-going dialogue. It's healthy for both consumers of food and producers of food to reach a higher level of understanding and engagement.

Finally, I attended the 40th annual Ag Day banquet, sponsored in part by the National Agri-Marketing Association (NAMA), held at the U.S. Department of Agriculture headquarters. USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack was the keynote speaker. He provided some interesting statistics indicating what a low overall percentage of the total USDA budget deals directly with agricultural production and research.

I have to say that I'm a little embarrassed that after a 35-year career in agri-marketing, this is the first National Ag Day celebration that I've attended. It's been a tremendous learning experience and so enjoyable to re-connect with many ag professionals in our industry.

I highly recommend that everyone in our industry should invest the time and effort to participate in National Ag Day activities.

My only wish is that I had made this trip sooner!

Ag Day on Capitol Hill

U.S. Farmers and Ranchers Alliance Capitol Hill Briefing on the New Language of Food and Modern Agriculture

Orion Samuelson introduces Congressman Frank Lucas, Oklahoma, Chairman of the Agriculture Committee

Guest blogging today is Sara Steever, VP, Digital Services.

Where can you find a gathering of farmers, ranchers, government officials, ag publications, FFA, 4-H, AFA and agribusiness owners? At National Ag Day in Washington, DC.

Enthusiastic supporters gathered to celebrate the contributions of agriculture and spend time with the government officials who directly impact the legislation that affects farming in the United States. Veteran ag broadcaster Orion Samuelson was master of ceremonies for three events on March 8, 2012.

The morning session began with Krysta Harden, Chief of Staff for Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack, who shared that as a young...

Ag Day has become a rite of spring at Paulsen Marketing. Each year, we recognize the ag community in some meaningful way.

Last week we joined forces with one of our clients, Ag United for South Dakota, with a presentation to the fourth grade classes of Hayward Elementary School here in Sioux Falls. A local pork producer and dairy producer gave informative presentations as to how pork products and dairy products are produced.

As you might imagine, there were some interesting and humorous questions asked by these inquisitive urban residents. Many had never been to a farm before and the topics of raising pigs and milking cows seemed foreign to some of...

Since we’re an agency that specializes in agri-marketing, it’s only appropriate that that we play an active role in promoting National Agriculture Week. We’ve done just that with our involvement in two special Ag Week promotions.   First, our agency partnered with the Washington Pavilion here in Sioux Falls to create the advertising and promotional materials for their Ag Day Celebration, a day-long event at the Pavilion with exhibitors, free lunch and lots of educational kid’s activities promoting the importance of agriculture. Take a look at www.pavilionagday.org.   Next, we worked with the South Dakota Corn Utilization Council and...