2015 Farmfest Marks Minnesota’s First Rural Broadband Day

_{EAGAN, Minnesota, June 15, 2015}

IDEAg Minnesota Farmfest will launch and celebrate Minnesota’s first ever Rural Broadband Day on Aug. 4. The farm show’s opening day in Redwood Falls, Minnesota, will highlight the importance of broadband access across rural America.

High-speed broadband access is essential for farmers and ranchers to run successful businesses in rural America. With the rise of precision technology in agriculture, farmers and ranchers can increase their efficiency, communicate with their customers and reach new markets around the world.

“Minnesota Farmfest is the perfect platform for discussion about rural broadband,” said Ray Bianchi, senior director of expositions and events for the American Farm Bureau Federation and IDEAg Group. “Farmfest has been produced for the past 30 years and our event has grown because of the commitment of farmers to the latest innovations in seeds, equipment and technology. Broadband is an essential part of this complex of new ideas.”

The Governor’s Task Force on Broadband will kick off the day. The task force is committed to crafting policies that expand broadband access throughout the state to ensure that all communities, businesses and citizens have access to vital resources.

“Broadband Internet, like the interstate highway system of the 1950s or the railroads of the 1880s, is the backbone of today’s economy, helping expand opportunity and improve our quality of life. Expanding access to broadband is crucial for expanding opportunity for all,” said Margaret Anderson Kelliher, president and CEO of the Minnesota High Tech Association and current chair of the Governor’s Taskforce on Broadband. “As Minnesota looks to maintain a growing, competitive economy, and a high quality of life, we must continue to make progress to ensure that the state has access to broadband, from border to border. Rural Broadband Day is a great venue to highlight the progress that we’re making and look forward to the future of broadband.”

“Strengthening rural communities is at the heart of our work at the American Farm Bureau,” Dan Durheim, executive director of industry affairs for AFBF, said. “Limiting access to the Internet just doesn’t make sense in today’s global economy. Rural Broadband Day is a great step toward connecting farmers and ranchers to new business opportunities and services, in their communities and beyond.”

AFBF and IDEAg are proud to partner with the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development, Linder Farm Network, Minnesota Corn Growers, and AT&T, the official Rural Broadband sponsors of Minnesota Farmfest.

Lynn Ketelsen, the voice of Minnesota Agriculture, will host Linder’s live broadcast from the farm show. The Linder Farm Network will also host two panel discussions on what broadband means for the future of agriculture and rural development. Special guests include: Mike Macrie, senior vice president and CIO of Land O’Lakes; Jerry Johnson, founder and CEO, Superior Edge; and Jason O’Flanagan, North American marketing and sales manager for FUSE Technologies.

“Broadband is not just a technology – it’s the fuel for society. It brings us libraries and universities, jobs and TV. It brings the world to rural families and rural families to the world,” Macrie said. “Broadband delivers innovation onto the doorstep of America’s farmers. Our global economy depends on interconnectivity – we must work together to ensure rural America and America’s farmers and producers aren’t left behind. That’s why I’m proud to support Rural Broadband Day.”

Minnesota Farmfest is the third-largest outdoor agriculture event in the U.S. and will take place at the Gilfillian Estate between Morgan and Redwood Falls, Minnesota, Aug.4-6. The farm show attracts more than 30,000 attendees and hosts more than 500 exhibitors. Farmers from across the upper Midwest come to check out new products, participate in public forums and attend educational demonstrations at Minnesota’s only outdoor event for farmers and ranchers.

IDEAg Group, LLC, which owns, manages and produces Minnesota Farmfest, is wholly owned by the American Farm Bureau Federation.

Contacts:   Samantha Castro, IDEAg Group, LLC
(847) 969-2982
Samantha.castro@ideaggroup.com  

Cyndie Shearing, AFBF
(202) 406-3649
cyndies@fb.org