A recent incident serves as a reminder of the threat activists pose. In late summer, protesters stormed the Jumbo Valley Hutterite turkey farm near Fort Macleod, Alta.
About 30 animal rights activists illegally entered the barn demanding more transparency and claiming that the birds were living in cramped conditions with poor air quality. The owner refuted those claims, pointing out that the birds were free-range and treated very well. He even gave the activists a tour to show he had nothing to hide.
The incident, which the barn’s owner described as “very, very humiliating”, eventually ended peacefully. Still, it prompted Alberta and other provinces to pledge stronger penalties for farm trespassers.
It’s not just in person that producers have to be wary of activists. A recently released report found that activists were also harassing livestock producers online.
Farmers were taking to social media intending to advocate for their industry only to be harassed by vegans. This cyberbullying is a significant source of stress for farmers, says the report.
To get some advice for how producers can navigate social media safe and effectively, I spoke with MediaStyle CEO Caitlin Kealey. The Ottawa-
based public affairs agency has worked with numerous poultry groups on their social media approach.
When it comes to cyberbullying by activists, Kealey says don’t get mad and definitely “don’t feed the trolls”.
“You’re not going to change their minds so let them be,” she says. “Unless they have a huge audience and there’s something factually inaccurate that you think is important to correct.”
She says most people will just go away if you ignore them. “If you don’t feed them there’s nothing for them to build on,” Kealey says, adding that if they become over the top aggressive then hit the block button.
In that respect, it’s important to understand the options on different platforms. On Facebook, for example, users can hide comments so the poster still sees them but they’re hidden from other users. On the Twitter side, users can also block certain phrases that might be popular with vegan activists who partake in cyberbullying.
Despite the activist presence, Kealey insists social media is worth the investment for farmers. For one, she says it’s a great way to educate the public about where their food comes from. This, in turn, helps build consumer trust.
For supply managed industries, Kealey says social media allows farmers to be more united in their support for the system. “And you can make the soft sell for supply management as you’re talking about the things you do day in and day out on the farm.”
For those relatively new to using social media for professional purposes, Kealey’s main piece of advice is to be yourself. “I think authenticity plays best online,” she says. Part of that is posting about more than just your day job – talk about some of your other interests as well.
For more experienced users, Kealey offers tips for taking things to the next level. For one, she suggests adopting a content calendar to preplan what you send out. “You can program it in and have it ready to go so your social feed is filled with relevant and interesting content,” she says.
Next, Kealey encourages users to adopt video. “That’s the next step in content creation,” she notes, advising users to keep videos short, snappy and interesting.
Lastly, she says use social to engage with your industry community online, actively following and engaging with people. “Instead of treating it like a one-way medium, you can start to build your community online by finding likeminded people and other farmers.”
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