Educating Youth on Value-added Agriculture the Goal of New Curriculum

Audio provided as a service to farm broadcasters by the Agricultural Marketing Resource Center.

Audio with Ray Hansen, AgMRC Director.

Suggested Lead: The Agricultural Marketing Resource Center is ready to launch a free, new curriculum to educate youth on the opportunities for rural development through value-added agriculture. AgMRC Director Ray Hansen says the curriculum is drawn directly from the AgMRC website - www dot agmrc dot org (www.agmrc.org). He says it provides instructors with full lesson plans on areas ranging from agritourism to aquculture and livestock to renewable energy..tape

Cut #1       :14          O.C…”those types of things.”

AgMRC is an electronic, national resource for producers interested in value-added agriculture. Hansen says the goal is to continue to promote and advance opportunities within value-added agriculture. He says educating the future of agriculture on value-added opportunities is crucial to the continued economic development happening in rural America. With this resource - Hansen says vocational agriculture instructors can utilize lesson plans to engage and educate students in a variety of ways…tape

Cut #2      :17           O.C…”already created curriculum.”

Hansen says the curriculum is a direct response to instructor requests…tape

Cut #3      :24           O.C…”to develop the curriculum.”

With the National FFA Convention starting this week (week of October 22) - Hansen says it seemed like the perfect place for the official launch of AgMRC’s new curriculum…tape

Cut #4     :07            O.C…”in their classroom.”

Hansen says additional curriculum materials will be added throughout the fall of 2012. The full curriculum is available at www dot agmrc dot org slash curriculum (www.agmrc.org/curriculum).