MISSOURI FARMER AND RANCHER CHRIS CHINN NAMED A WINNER OF FACES OF FARMING & RANCHING PROGRAM
MISSOURI FARMER AND RANCHER CHRIS CHINN NAMED A WINNER OF
FACES OF FARMING & RANCHING PROGRAM
CHESTERFIELD, MO. (January 22, 2013) – Today, the U.S. Farmers & Ranchers Alliance (USFRA®) announced that Chris Chinn (Clarence, Mo.), has been selected as one of the winners of its Faces of Farming & Ranching program. This nationwide search was launched by USFRA in June 2012 as a way to identify farmers and ranchers who are proud of what they do and are eager to share their stories.
Chinn and three other program winners were selected from a pool of more than 100 farmer and rancher applicants from across the country. As one of the Faces of Farming & Ranching, Chinn will share her stories and experiences on a national stage to help answer consumers’ questions about how food is grown and raised.
“My goal is to help more people engage in meaningful conversations about how food is produced and understand why changes are implemented on the farm or ranch,” said Chris Chinn. “I realize many people are skeptical about technology on the farm and I want them to see the values that farm and ranch families have, and understand that our intentions are always to improve the quality of care we give to our animals and land.”
Chinn and her husband, Kevin, are fifth generation farmers – farming with his parents and brother. They raise 1,500 pigs on their farm, and 60 head of cattle in addition to growing corn, soybeans, hay and rye.
As a Faces of Farming & Ranching winner, Chinn will receive a $10,000 stipend to help offset the time she will spend away from the farm in the coming year serving as a USFRA spokesperson. She will also have the opportunity to direct a $5,000 donation to an agriculture-related charity.
“So much of today’s conversation on food in media and popular culture is missing the perspective of the people who actually grow and raise our food,” said Bob Stallman, chairman of USFRA and president of the American Farm Bureau Federation. “This lack of representation has led to a lot of misconceptions and questions about how food gets from the farm or ranch to our tables. Farmers like Chris were named winners of this program because they are eager to share their stories about the innovative ways they continue to improve food production each day. They have the first-hand experience to address complicated issues surrounding food production, by giving honest answers about what happens on today’s farms and ranches.”
From Nov. 15 – Dec. 15, 2012, thousands visited www.fooddialogues.com to learn more about the candidates and to vote for whom they believed best represented American agriculture. In addition to the public vote, a panel of judges from throughout the food and agriculture community interviewed and evaluated the finalists to help determine the winners of Faces of Farming & Ranching.
Winners were announced January 22, 2013 at 10:00 a.m. CT during a live-streamed broadcast, followed by a media teleconference. The other three winners include Will Gilmer (Sulligent, Ala.), Katie Pratt (Dixon, Ill.) and Bo Stone (Rowland, N.C.). For more information on the Faces of Farming & Ranching program, visit www.fooddialogues.com.
About U.S. Farmers & Ranchers Alliance (USFRA)
U.S. Farmers & Ranchers Alliance (USFRA) consists of more than 80 farmer- and rancher-led organizations and agricultural partners representing virtually all aspects of agriculture working to engage in dialogues with consumers who have questions about how today’s food is grown and raised. USFRA is committed to continuous improvement and supporting U.S. farmers and ranchers efforts to increase confidence and trust in today’s agriculture.
