Quote:
Originally Posted by coberst
During the last 40 or 50 years, however, many farmers have relied less on their own experimentation and innovation, and become more dependent on outside information provided through extension systems. This has had the effect of disempowering many farmers, as they became passive recipients of knowledge and technology.”
http://www.farmradio.org/english/pub...s/v2003sep.asp
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Farming is hard work, before dawn, till after dark... every day. Farmers don't have time for dialog, they have to do... right now.
For way more than 50 years, farmers have relied on the State University Extension Systems to answer questions about problems with livestock, and how to make their crop fields more productive, from the
collective wisdom of all the farmers, the University contacts.
In the recent past, the increasing cost of chemical fertilizers/pesticides, and the growing awareness of possible health problems, have made a large minority of the farmers, want to switch back to a more natural (organic) method of farming. You know what, the Extension Service has that information too! They don't replace, just continually add to, the
collective wisdom.