Farmers urged to stick heads above parapet to build trust

Farmers and those working in the agriculture industry must get better at telling their story as a means of building public trust in the sector and the goods it produces.

That was the message delivered at a farming conference in Carnoustie yesterday by agricultural consultant and social media guru Simon Haley.

He said the farming industry needs to take advantage of the amount of time consumers spend on the internet and use it as a platform to tell their story and build a brand for Scottish and UK produce.

Mr Haley said: “People are not bothered about farmers – as long as the food’s there it’s fine. People will buy on price at the end of the day, but where you can add value and get a better response from the public is by demonstrating how that subsidy or price relates to social and environmental value.”

He urged farmers to stick their necks above the parapet to explain what they do on their farms, but warned against using farming terminology as this was alien to the general public.

Mr Haley added: “There’s a lot of people accessing the internet – if that’s not an opportunity for us to tell our story then I don’t know what is. Storytelling is a very powerful tool.”

Food consultant Marion MacCormick, previously a buying director for Aldi and currently part of the Scottish Government’s farming and food production policy group, agreed, saying: “We have a lot of work to do in the UK to make people understand what the sector has going for it.”

She said marketing efforts must focus on the next generation – mainly “thoughtful shoppers” with an interest in animal welfare and sustainability. She added: “The land we do have is going to be precious and how we use it even more precious. If we do it well, we can be trusted we are doing a good job of it.”