LEXINGTON, Ky. – For the past three years, the University of Kentucky’s award-winning KY Ag Matters podcast has been educating producers and consumers concerning all things agriculture, currently reaching weekly listeners in 27 states and four countries.

UK extension agents for agriculture and natural resources host the podcast, which include Vicki Shadrick, Webster County; David Fourqurean, McLean County; and Jay Stone, Hopkins County.

Recently, the National Association of County Agricultural Agents named KY Ag Matters the 2023 winner in their audio recordings category.

“Being recognized at this level has also helped market our podcast, and reach a larger audience,” they said. “Everyone is touched by agriculture in one way or another. Those of us that work in agriculture through farming, education, agricultural communications or agricultural retail are more directly touched by agriculture because it is our livelihood.

“Over the past three years, we have all learned to connect with people,” Shadrick said. “Even during a global pandemic, businesses found ways to continue to meet the needs of their clientele, and families found ways to stay connected without gathering in person. Stepping out of our comfort zones to learn new skills quickly became the new normal.”

Stone said the team is still prioritizing and learning the best ways to communicate with clientele.

“Being able to provide information in a format where it can be accessed anywhere at any time has allowed us to reach a broader audience than just our traditional extension clientele,” he said.

With more than 75 episodes, KY Ag Matters’ recent topics include cover crops and tillage practices, efficient beef production, fall soil fertility, forages and equipment management.

Fourqurean said podcast guests range from UK Cooperative extension specialists, to commodity group leaders, extension agents, and law enforcement officers.

Shadrick, Fourqurean and Stone attended the annual agriculture and natural resources extension update in October 2021, where the idea for the podcast was first presented.

“Each of us went to a breakout session about podcasting,” Shadrick, Fourqurean and Stone said in a Sept. 21 joint statement to Farm World. “After that breakout session, we talked about the three of us starting an agricultural podcast to expand our already existing Tri-County programs. We began researching podcast equipment, platforms and editing software.

“We met with Alan Watts, news and farm director for WKDZ, to learn more about audio recording, talking with guests and equipment recommendations,” they added. “Our discussions quickly turned into doing, and we began moving forward with starting a podcast. We discussed the episode format that we wanted and what the name would be.”

“We want to share timely and relevant, research-based information on a variety of agricultural topics with a variety guests. It is very important for us to keep our podcast conversational so that is easy to listen to,” they said.

“For that reason, we made the decision to record all our episodes in person rather than on a virtual platform,” they added. “Our podcasting equipment transports easily, which allows us to record nearly anywhere. Each episode is a round table discussion that is recorded and edited.”

Shadrick, Fourqurean and Stone said, “We most recently attended the National Association of County Agricultural Agents conference in Des Moines, Iowa, and we set up our equipment and recorded three episodes in a small lobby area in the convention center. This format works well for us and our guests. We want our podcast to be an educational tool for our clientele.”

“However, the food we eat, the fiber in our clothing and the by-products in thousands of products we all use daily from agricultural commodities touch every living person,” they added. “We have episodes on our podcast about agricultural safety, including road safety that is useful to the non-agricultural community, as well as the agricultural community.”

When asked what kind of feedback they have received concerning the podcast, Shadrick, Fourqurean, and Stone said, “We have received positive feedback about our podcast from producers, students, agricultural retailers, extension specialists and extension agents.”

They said, “One of our producers sent us a message saying, ‘Listening to your podcast is like having the extension specialist right there in the tractor with me.’ Our extension director messaged us just this evening and said, ‘I’m at a career fair on campus right now. Just met a student who says he is a huge fan of your podcast. He listens to every episode.’”

Shadrick, Fourqurean, and Stone said extension specialists have used their podcast to get timely information out to agents and clientele across the state.

To listen or subscribe to KY Ag Matters, visit: https://jstonet.podbean.com/.