Christmas Traditions

Every family have special traditions during the holidays. I know one of my favorite traditions is the cheese soup my grandma makes every Christmas; she only makes it at Christmas time and won't tell anyone of her secret recipe. That soup represents many happy memories with loved ones as we all look foward to her delicious creation every year. At this holiday season what are your family traditions? Is there something you look foward to every year? Whether it is cutting down a Christmas tree, or gathering together with family/friends, or Christmas shopping, I am wishing you all a safe and very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

12 Days of Christmas

Do the holiday's have you stressed out? Do you feel like you are constantly looking for gifts for other people? Well take a deep breath, sit down at your computer with a cup of coffee, and follow the Department of Agriculture on Facebook or Twitter to win Illinois products for yourself, or someone on your list.

Beginning today, December 14 through December 25, the Illinois Department of Agriculture has created a '12 Days of Christmas Contest' to promote Illinois food products to create awareness of local food.  A winner will be selected randomly each day from the Department of Agriculture's Facebook and Twitter fans. Each winner will receive an Illinois product and a variety of cooking supplies donated by the American Egg Board. If you are not already following the department 'like' them on Facebook  http://www.facebook.com/IllinoisDepartmentofAgriculture or follow them on Twitter https://twitter.com/#!/ILAgMarkets so that you could be the next winner.

Prizes include items from Illinois Beef Association, Illinois Pork Producers, Zillion's Chili, E. Formella & Sons Inc., Ropp Jersey Cheese, Jones Boys Market, Oakland Noodle Company, Lavendar Crest Winery, Pheasant Hollow Winery, C & C Fudge, Pasta Alley Company, and Riley's Seasoning. I hope you will find this beneficial as the holidays are quickly approaching.

Child Labor Laws

Farming is more than a job; it's a lifestyle. At least that's how many people involved with agriculture see it. Unfortunately, the Obama Administration does not view farming like that as they propose new revisions to the child labor law which will affect the future of agriculture. Under these new revisions, the Department of Labor would end most child labor on farms unless the farm is owned by their family and a parent directly oversees everything that is done. Affecting any child under the age of 16, these revisions will negatively impact the industry.

The chores I had to do on the farm growing up made me who I am today. I learned a great deal of strong work ethic and responsibility through 4-H and FFA. These two organizations promote leadership and hard work in today's youth. To achieve great things, one must work at it from a very young age. I don't feel I was overworked during my childhood, but rather learned a great deal in order to succeed in whatever I do. What are your thoughts on these new ideas?

God Made a Farmer

A farmer's work is never done. Every day there is something to do. I ran across this video on youtube entitled 'God Made a Farmer' and thought I'd share it with all of you as it captures the lives of those who keep the agriculture industry alive. Despite, the hard work farming involves, it can be very rewarding as well.

Christmas Tree Controversy

               According to foxnews.com the Obama administration has decided not to place a 15-cent tax on Christmas trees so critics can not accuse them of ‘taxing Christmas’ or being the Grinch.

                Instead, this 15-cent tax was going to be used to fund a new marketing campaign similar to the ‘Got Milk?’ or ‘Beef, It’s What’s for Dinner’ campaigns. With that said, Christmas tree farmers have been working on a potential check-off program for the last four years in order to create a promotional board so this debate has nothing to do with the Obama administration according to realtreetalk.blogspot.com.

                Consumers will not be paying an extra 15-cents for their trees this Christmas as the National Christmas Tree Association has created a new Christmas Tree Check-off Program according to christmastree.org. Growers have created this program to benefit the industry much like any other commodity group. Funded by the growers at a rate of 15-cents per tree sold, this will not affect the final cost consumers will pay according to christmastree.org. The promotional board will consist of twelve Christmas tree farm owners as they will be in charge of developing and approving promotional and research efforts to benefit the industry.

                Even though the Christmas tree industry is drastically smaller than some of the larger commodity groups, their messages will soon be recognizable. Currently, there are 18 other similar marketing campaigns already in effect for various agricultural commodities according to christmastree.org.

                According to realtreetalk.blogspot.com, the Christmas tree industry will pay for all costs and administration so tax dollars are not funding this program.

                Brian Frank, owner of Talbott’s Christmas Tree Farm, explained what this new promotional board means to area Christmas tree growers. He owns 50 acres of Christmas trees which include Scotch, White, and Red Pines as well as Spruces and Canaan, Concolor, and Douglas Firs in Green Valley, Illinois. He also sells fresh cut Fraser Firs.

                “This marketing campaign will improve the Christmas tree industry similar to that of the beef and pork industries due to different marketing tactics. It will promote the whole industry itself,” Frank said.

                As far as marketing strategies he uses for his own business, Frank said he primarily uses radio advertisements, but has used billboard advertisements in the past. He also said that, from his personal experiences, voluntary campaigns have not been as successful as marketing campaigns so this is a good idea for growers to embrace.

                As any other commodity group, Christmas tree growers can be found in several varying places in North America. The National Christmas Tree Association represents nearly 5,000 growers who sell their trees to nearly thirty million consumers each year according to christmastree.org.

                Don Schmidt, professor of horticulture, explained where the most popular varieties of Christmas trees is grown.

                “The Fraser Fir is a very common Christmas tree sold around here. It is grown down in North Carolina there in the mountains. Another species that is common is the Balsam fir which is grown further up in New England and into Canada,” Schmidt said.

                He added that this new marketing campaign will encourage more people to purchase real Christmas trees versus artificial trees as well as encouraging more people to grow them.

Note: This is an article I wrote for the Daily Vidette, but thought it was interesting to share with you:)