Sacramento, California
April 21, 2005
A new weekly public television show that
celebrates the miracle of American agriculture and the farm and
ranch families that help make it possible will hit the airwaves
this fall, it was announced today. America's Heartland will
profile the people, places and products of U.S. agriculture. The
magazine-style, half-hour program will focus on our national
love for the land, our fascination with food and the bedrock
American values of family, hard work and independence that make
our agricultural system the finest in the world.
In announcing the ground-breaking series today, the series' two
flagship supporters - Monsanto
Company and the American Farm
Bureau Federation (AFBF) - along with the show's producer,
KVIE, the public television
affiliate in Sacramento, Calif., said they are proud to
collaborate with other U.S. agriculture groups to raise
awareness of the significant contribution that agriculture makes
to the quality of American living. America's Heartland
supporting contributors include American Soybean Association,
National Corn Growers Association, National Cotton Council,
United Soybean Board and U.S. Grains Council.
America's Heartland will help viewers better understand the
nation's farm and ranch families and the challenges and
opportunities they face as they produce food and fiber for
Americans and people in other countries.
"American farmers play an important role in the stewardship of
the land and foods we eat -- it is important that they are
recognized by non-farming communities for their hard work and
devotion," said Kerry Preete, vice president of U.S. crop
production at Monsanto Company. "America's Heartland will
provide metropolitan audiences an important opportunity to learn
more about the story beyond the grocery store shelves and usher
in a greater respect for farmers' and ranchers' contributions."
Series supporters also believe America's Heartland will help
raise public awareness of the agricultural industry,
particularly among the nation's opinion leaders, and highlight
the important role farmers and ranchers play in feeding,
clothing and fueling the world. "We believe America's Heartland
will provide an opportunity for consumers to get reacquainted
with American farmers and ranchers, the people who produce their
food," said Bob Stallman, president of AFBF. "Americans, for a
number of reasons, are removed from their agricultural roots.
America's Heartland will help bridge that disconnect. America's
Heartland will show the diversity of American agriculture -- the
variety of operations and people in the profession. America's
farms are still predominantly operated by farm families and not
large corporations, as many people think. America's Heartland
will put a face on those families and give them a voice."
Stallman said Farm Bureau is proud to team up with Monsanto, a
leading agricultural technology company that has helped farmers
become more profitable, productive, and efficient in meeting the
needs of American consumers, and KVIE, which has already proved
its ability to tell agriculture's story to the public through
its eight years of producing the California Heartland series,
which was one of the most-watched series in the 50-year history
of California public television.
America's Heartland is as much about the way of life of the
people working and caring for the land as it is America's food
and agriculture system. Each half-hour program will be shot
entirely on location in digital widescreen format, according to
Jim O'Donnell, Director of Program Marketing for KVIE.
The first season of the program will consist of 20 original
programs, one or more of which will break from the established
format to cover a single topic or theme. The series will
premiere the first week of September 2005. The series will be
distributed to each of more than 300 public television stations
in America by America's Public Television, the single largest
provider of programming to public television stations.
"We project that the first season of the program will be
available in markets totaling more than 60 percent of the
nation's viewers - approximately 100 stations reaching more than
71 million households," O'Donnell said.
People interested in seeing a sneak peek of the series may view
an introductory trailer at the website:
www.americasheartland.org
America's Heartland is a weekly television program that
celebrates the miracle of American agriculture and the farm and
ranch families that help make it possible. The presentation of
this program is made possible through major underwriting by
Monsanto Company in collaboration with the American Farm Bureau
Federation. Additional production and promotion assistance is
provided by the American Soybean Association, National Corn
Growers Association, National Cotton Council, United Soybean
Board and U.S. Grains Council.
The American Farm Bureau Federation is the nation's largest
farm organization with affiliates in 49 states and Puerto Rico.
Monsanto Company is a leading industry provider of
technology-based solutions and agricultural products that
improve farm efficiency and food quality.
KVIE, Sacramento is the creator and producer of America's
Heartland, a weekly series celebrating the generous earth of our
nation and the people who work it. KVIE is a PBS member station
and one of the most prolific producers of content for public
television in America. |