Fredbird, the official mascot of the St. Louis Cardinals, is learning about agriculture this summer. Part of his learning experience took place at the Mulford farm northwest of Aurora.
A coalition of 11 agriculture organizations in Missouri teamed up with the St. Louis Cardinals and the 110 Schnucks Markets in the state to launce a program entitled “Missouri Farmers Stepping Up to the Plate.”
To goal of the program is to make a connection between consumers and the farmers who feed them.
Because today’s consumers have less familiarity with farming and agriculture and more questions about how their food is produced than ever before, the program is designed to educate consumers about modern agriculture and the care Missouri farmers put into raising food, fuel and fiber.
In addition to the Mulfords, five other Missouri families have been featured in the campaign, including a corn grower, a dairy farmer, a beef farmer, a hog farmer and a soybean farmer.
“The Cardinals are excited to promote local Missouri farmers,” said Dan Farrell, senior vice-president of sales and marketing for the St. Louis Cardinals. “Farmers and their families are a large part of Cardinals Nation, and we look forward to sharing their stories with our fans.”
A production crew came to the Mulford farm to speak with the farmer and his family about the operation and to film a video for use in the stadium. Featured in the film with Rusty Mulford is Fredbird, who learned about the process for the young birds. Fredbird had a chance to experience some of the operation inside a chicken house firsthand.
Mulford, his wife Vicki and their family have raised chickens on their 80-acre farm for 16 years. They have six houses for the birds, with 22,900 per house. The flocks rotate every six weeks for a total of seven flocks a year.
Raising this many chickens involves using one million pounds of feed every six weeks, reported the farmer.
“A million chickens grow on this farm in a year’s time,” Mulford told the production crew.
While standing in front of the camera in the hot August sun, Mulford said he sees a payoff with his job, even with the 15-to-16 hour days it involves. He listed one of those perks as being able to work with his parents and his children in the process.
Earlier, while Mulford was before the camera, his daughter, Tera Mulford Dover, reported her father was, but “excited but nervous” about the task. However, she noted he was glad to see agriculture portrayed so positively. It seemed that his hard work was being recognized.
Like many other farmers, keeping the family’s land environmentally friendly is also a priority for Mulford.
“We have buffer strips around the property. We have turkeys, quail, deer and other wildlife,” he said. “We like to keep the farm natural, clean and environmentally friendly.”
The ad campaign has involved radio commercials on the Cardinals Radio Network, in-stadium videos highlighting Fredbird’s’ trips to the farms and promotions in the Schnucks stores. It continues through September.
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Fredbird, the official mascot of the St. Louis Cardinals, is learning about agriculture this summer. Part of his learning experience took place at the Mulford farm northwest of Aurora.
A coalition of 11 agriculture organizations in Missouri teamed up with the St. Louis Cardinals and the 110 Schnucks Markets in the state to launce a program entitled “Missouri Farmers Stepping Up to the Plate.”
To goal of the program is to make a connection between consumers and the farmers who feed them.
Because today’s consumers have less familiarity with farming and agriculture and more questions about how their food is produced than ever before, the program is designed to educate consumers about modern agriculture and the care Missouri farmers put into raising food, fuel and fiber.
In addition to the Mulfords, five other Missouri families have been featured in the campaign, including a corn grower, a dairy farmer, a beef farmer, a hog farmer and a soybean farmer.
“The Cardinals are excited to promote local Missouri farmers,” said Dan Farrell, senior vice-president of sales and marketing for the St. Louis Cardinals. “Farmers and their families are a large part of Cardinals Nation, and we look forward to sharing their stories with our fans.”
A production crew came to the Mulford farm to speak with the farmer and his family about the operation and to film a video for use in the stadium. Featured in the film with Rusty Mulford is Fredbird, who learned about the process for the young birds. Fredbird had a chance to experience some of the operation inside a chicken house firsthand.
Mulford, his wife Vicki and their family have raised chickens on their 80-acre farm for 16 years. They have six houses for the birds, with 22,900 per house. The flocks rotate every six weeks for a total of seven flocks a year.
Raising this many chickens involves using one million pounds of feed every six weeks, reported the farmer.
“A million chickens grow on this farm in a year’s time,” Mulford told the production crew.
While standing in front of the camera in the hot August sun, Mulford said he sees a payoff with his job, even with the 15-to-16 hour days it involves. He listed one of those perks as being able to work with his parents and his children in the process.
Earlier, while Mulford was before the camera, his daughter, Tera Mulford Dover, reported her father was, but “excited but nervous” about the task. However, she noted he was glad to see agriculture portrayed so positively. It seemed that his hard work was being recognized.
Like many other farmers, keeping the family’s land environmentally friendly is also a priority for Mulford.
“We have buffer strips around the property. We have turkeys, quail, deer and other wildlife,” he said. “We like to keep the farm natural, clean and environmentally friendly.”
The ad campaign has involved radio commercials on the Cardinals Radio Network, in-stadium videos highlighting Fredbird’s’ trips to the farms and promotions in the Schnucks stores. It continues through September.
