AUSTRALIAN farmers are some of the most technically advanced on the planet, with controlled traffic systems, yield-mapping, guidance systems and the use of drones becoming more popular by the day. But there is one modern phenomenon that some producers have not been so quick to adopt - social media.
A lack of understanding or familiarity with twitter and facebook often means farmers are hesitant to give social networking a go.
To familiarise them with the workings of twitter and explain the benefits of social networking, five free twitter training workshops have been scheduled across the Eyre Peninsula in March.
An initiative of the Agricultural Bureau of SA, the Twitter and Agriculture: Building Rural Connections Online workshops will be led by Alex Milner-Smyth, Barmera, and designed to suit absolute beginners through to those with a little experience.
She said navigating and using twitter could daunt some users initially but when it was broken down and explained in simple components, farmers generally found it easy to use.
"Understanding hashtags and knowing when to use them can also cause concern, but they're relatively simple to understand and apply when explained," Alex said.
"You can really see when people have those lightbulb moments and they start to understand it. I know that it can seem complex to start off with, and it did for me as well, but once you've had a bit of training and start using it, it starts to become really easy."
She said one of the most common misconceptions about twitter was that it was of little benefit or relevance to the agricultural sector.
"I think the biggest perception is that it's not a critical agricultural tool, but my fellow tweeters would totally disagree," Alex said.
"With the advent of smart phones, it makes tractor time significantly more interesting and informative."
With a diverse range of industry members - including farmers, agronomists, suppliers, consultants, farming systems groups, researchers and levy bodies - using twitter, the social media tool gives farmers the chance to build a network far beyond normal geographical constraints.
Twitter could also have a community feel, which could help overcome the isolation felt by even the most remote farmer.
"It's a hotline to all other tweeting farmers around the world," Alex said.
"Farmers actually find that there's a sense of comradery and mateship. As well as quite serious topics, there're a lot of banter that goes around, so there're a lot of photos put up of things like a tyre coming off a tractor, for example, and everyone has a little bit of a friendly dig at them.
"There's also a lot of quite robust debate about agri-political issues like the live trade of livestock and the value of GMOs".
Workshops will be held on the following dates:
* Kimba Football Club - Monday, March 23
* Sims Farm, Cleve - Tuesday, March 24
* Minnipa Sports Club - Wednesday, March 25
* Cummins Bowling Club - Thursday, March 26
* Tumby Bay Senior Citizen's Club - Friday, March 27
Jacinta Rose
Stock Journal's online editor.
Stock Journal's online editor.
