23 pages., via online journal, Cultured meat has yet to reach store shelves but is nonetheless a growing issue for consumers, producers, and government regulators, many of whom have taken to social media to discuss it. Using a conceptual framework of social cognitive theory and issues management, this qualitative content analysis investigated social-media discourse surrounding the topic of cultured meat in the United States by describing the content of the discussion in late 2018 and identifying individual influencers and communities of influencers engaged in the discussion. Data were collected from Twitter using listening platform Sysomos MAP. The thematic analysis revealed eight themes: legality and marketing, sustainability, acceptance, business, animal concerns, science and technology, health concerns, and timeline, and indicated that conflicting views and questions about cultured meat exist among conversation participants. Top influencers included philanthropists, government officials, journalists and writers, and animal-welfare advocates. These influencers were grouped into four distinct communities based on interactions with each other and other users. The topics identified in the analysis provide insight into ways in which communicators can enter these conversations, and influencer communities represent groups of users whose broad reach could more easily transmit pro-agriculture messages.
22 pages., via online journal, Agritourism is recreational travel for agricultural activities. While it provides many benefits, such as rural development and heritage preservation, many agritourism operators express challenges in marketing their operations. Social media is increasingly common in tourism marketing, but little research exists describing current marketing practices. Quantitative content analysis was used to describe 174 Oklahoma agritourism operations’ Facebook page activity in June 2018. Original posts created by the agritourism operations and community posts created by the general public had similar amounts of public interaction. Post interactions were not related to post length, and original post interactions were also not related to overall page likes. Live videos and traditional posts received the most interaction amongst types of original posts. Facebook event posts made by the agritourism operation received more public interaction than event posts made by the general public. Agritourism operators should focus on quality over quantity of information and be wary of creating posts in an “echo chamber” as only a small proportion of a large page following interact with posts. Marketing practitioners should avoid providing one-size-fits-all advice in Facebook marketing, as there was a large variety of Facebook activity observed. Future research should more specifically describe content of posts and consider perspectives of agritourism operators and visitors towards current Facebook marketing strategies.
7 pages., Article #: v58-1iw3, via online journal., Breakfast on the Farm educational farm tours were introduced in Michigan in 2009 to improve consumer knowledge about, impressions of, and trust in modern food production. Over 89,000 participants have attended events on 40 commercial dairy, beef, crop, and fruit farms. This article addresses organization and funding of the events and some of their general impacts. Volunteers staff stations on topics such as animal care, food safety, nutrition, and water quality. Surveys indicate that attendees' impressions of and trust in farmers and food production improve and that product purchases increase. Events patterned after Michigan's model have occurred in several states and may be implemented elsewhere for similar purposes.
6 pages., Article #:v58-1tt2, via online journal., Research supports Extension educators' use of social media as an engagement, outreach, and marketing tool beyond posts shared by staff and faculty. This article highlights the practical use of Snapchat geofilters at county and statewide Extension events to support the creation of user-generated content and increase Extension's visibility with the public. The development and implementation of an innovative statewide marketing project resulted in data and recommendations that can help Extension educators make meaningful marketing decisions.
18 pages., via online journal, As food products marketed as “gluten-free” become increasingly popular, many consumers start to exclude sources of gluten (e.g., wheat, barley, and rye) from their diets for both medical and non-medical purposes. The grain industry is facing a growing challenge to (re)boost consumers’ confidence in the healthiness and safety of its commodities. Using 561 participants recruited from the Amazon Mechanical Turk workers’ panel, this study implemented a 2 (pretzels vs. potato chips) * 2 (positive- vs. negative- frame) * 2 (wheat image vs. no wheat image) experiment to examine the effects of gluten-free labels on consumers’ perceived healthiness and safety of wheat, perceived benefits of labeled products, and their evaluation of the shown labels. Results showed that consumers evaluate the gluten-free labels most positively when they appear on products that could have contained gluten. For products that are naturally gluten-free, adding a gluten-free label only decreased consumers’ confidence in such labels. The presence of gluten-free labels increased consumers’ perceived benefits of the labeled products when they do not contain any misleading information (e.g., image of a wheat head). However, some gluten-free labels could have negative impacts on consumers’ perceptions of the healthiness and safety of wheat. Overall, food producers and marketers might have undervalued consumers’ literacy and overestimated their susceptibility to marketing strategies. We discussed the implications for food marketers, regulators, and communicators.
