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Farm Science Review Online 2020
By Dusty Sonnenberg, CCA, Ohio Field Leader: a project of the Ohio Soybean Council and soybean checkoff.
The 2020 Farm Science Review will be held Tuesday, September 22nd through Thursday, September 24th Online. Due to COVID-19, there will not be any spectator events at the Molly Caren Agriculture Center outside of London, Ohio this year.
“This will be a different experience for us all,” said Nick Zachrich, Farm Science Review Manager. “Everyone is learning to adapt; from our staff and Extension personnel, to our exhibitors, to the company representatives, COVID-19 is forcing us to change so we can bring education and content to our visitors in a safe way.”
Anyone interested in participating in the Farm Science Review virtually this year can visit the website: http://fsr.osu.edu. “Everything starts at our homepage,” said Zachrich. “When you go to the website there is a graphic to help you navigate around the virtual review.” The site has various options to visit different categories such as educational sessions, field demonstrations, exhibitors, and new products. “The site has a key word search feature that allows for a quick navigation to a very specific item, as well as an exhibitor list that allows visitors to go directly to an exhibitor site,” said Zachrich. Some exhibitors have videos, some will have live content posted during the review, some will have links or brochures and other information provided. Live content will be posted during the review from Tuesday through Thursday.”
The virtual review has a personalized feature called “My Show Planner” which allows users to create a log-in and then review the schedule of sessions, as well as exhibitor information and products. These can be marked and added to the personalized planner to provide reminders for specific session times, and also allow exhibitors to contact visitors in response to questions they may ask specifically during the virtual review. “All it takes is a name and an e-mail address,” said Zachrich. “The viewer can click “do not contact” as they set-up their show planner, and this will allow them to navigate all the review features anonymously and not be contacted by sales exhibitors.”
Field demonstrations are always a popular attraction at the review. “Some field demonstrations will be conducted live at the site, but no visitors or exhibitors can attend in person,” said Zachrich. “The exhibitors will have things to share which will all be virtual. The demonstrations will be video recorded and presented from multiple camera angles. It will actually give viewers a better look than they would even be able to get if they were out in the field while the equipment is running. The college and Extension is doing a great job with film editing to provide a superior view while the equipment is running that viewers normally would not be able to see.”
The review has always been known as an opportunity for sharing ideas and research information. “The Farm Science Review does quite a bit of on farm research for the university specialist and with the e-Fields program,” said Zachrich. “The projects we conduct are very interesting, and often times not normal for a producer. It is also nice when farmers share back what they are trying on their own farms and we can share it with the researchers to get the best ideas together.”
Social media has become an increasing part of everyday life. “Through the recording of the field demonstrations and research, it is nice that we can document and share things we are doing with the public,” said Zachrich. “We share these on social media, and while we are not trying to be a social media influencer, we do have a very interesting story to tell.” The Farm Science Review is producing videos from the research being conducted, and sharing it on various social media platforms, such as Facebook, YouTube, and Instagram.