May 5, 2008

Tour to stress importance of e-marketing to farm sustainability

"Participants will have the opportunity to see a few Web sites that other producers have developed and learn how they did it to effectively market their products," said Jerry Nelson, Purdue University Cooperative Extension New Ventures Educator. "They will also learn what questions to ask when working with a Web designer."

Registration is $15, which includes lunch, refreshments and materials. To register, visit http://www.conf.purdue.edu/farmtours  or call (800) 359-2968.

Event registration begins at 9:30 a.m. at the Royer Farm and will be followed by a welcome and farm tour. Scott and Nikki Royer will tell the history and give an overview of their 132-year-old farm where they raise and sell fresh lamb, beef and pork, which can be ordered online.

Lunch will be provided at the Wilson Community Education Center, located at 3636 E. U.S. Hwy 36 in Hillsdale, and will be catered by Sycamore Farm Bed and Breakfast Inn.

After lunch Chris Kraut, chef for Sycamore Farm Bed and Breakfast Inn, will talk about the importance of buying local and e-marketing. The Royers will share information about their e-marketing experience, as well as Autumn Horrall of Melon Acres and getfreshasparagus.com. Peggy Magill of TLC Services will discuss how to build an effective Web presence for a business.

At the end, time will be allotted for questions. The tour is expected to conclude around 2:30 p.m.

The Royer Farm is located at 12901 S. State Road 63 in Clinton, Ind.

For questions and more information, contact Nelson at (812) 886-9582, jnelson@purdue.edu, or Roy Ballard at (317) 462-1113, rballard@purdue.edu.

The Indiana Farm Sustainability Tour is sponsored by the Indiana Department of Agriculture, Indiana Cooperative Development Center, Indiana Farm Bureau, and Purdue's Small Farms Team and New Ventures Team with financial support from the North Central Region's Sustainable Agriculture, Research and Education.

Writer: Julie Douglas, (765) 496-1050, douglajk@purdue.edu

Source: Jerry Nelson, (812) 886-9582, jnelson@purdue.edu

Ag Communications: (765) 494-2722;
Beth Forbes, forbes@purdue.edu
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