IDAHO FALLS, IDAHO (RFD-TV) — From working on her family’s alfalfa and wheat farm in southeastern Idaho to teaching agricultural students in Italy, Saydee Longhurst has made sharing agriculture’s story a priority.
An FFA alumna and former Idaho FFA state president, Longhurst uses social media to help people understand what farmers do and the opportunities available across the agriculture industry. She joins this week’s episode of Dirt Diaries with Kirbe Schnoor, which is set to release tomorrow.
From Idaho Fields to Agricultural Education
Longhurst studied agricultural education at Utah State University, where a special program gave her the opportunity to student-teach at an agricultural high school near Milan, Italy.
“Utah State University, where I went to school, had a special program where we worked with agricultural high schools in Italy,” Longhurst said. “I was placed at an agricultural high school in Milan, just outside of Milan, and was able to specifically teach about alfalfa production, comparing Idaho and Italian alfalfa production.”
Agriculture also remains part of her everyday life at home. Her family’s operation in southeastern Idaho primarily grows alfalfa, with wheat used as a rotational crop between alfalfa plantings.
Longhurst said the family finished harvesting hay a couple of weeks before the interview, with favorable weather and adequate water helping the season wrap up well.
“We’re excited to be able to park the balers and be done with that,” she said.
With harvest behind them, the family was working the ground and planting winter wheat ahead of winter weather.
“We are in the middle of tillage, getting all of our winter wheat planted before the snow flies,” Longhurst said.
Managing Farm Pressures and Focusing on What Can Be Controlled
Like other farm families, Longhurst’s operation faces the uncertainty of input costs, energy prices and commodity markets.
She said the stress is part of farming, with every year bringing different challenges.
“I think farming is always something that’s stressful, and each year is different,” Longhurst said. “We don’t think we would be farmers if we couldn’t handle the stress.”
Despite those pressures, she said the family remains grateful for the opportunity to farm.
“At the end of the day, we’re just really grateful to be able to do what we do for a living,” she said. “Looking for the positives and taking care of what we can control is really the priority.”
Using Social Media to Bring People Along
Longhurst believes agriculture can do more to answer consumers’ questions and help them understand where their food comes from.
One way she does that is through social media, where photos and videos offer a look at everyday farm life.
“I think one of my favorite ways is using social media to take people along with me in the buddy seat, especially for folks that don’t have the time to come out to the farm,” she said.
She said even a quick photo or video can give someone a better understanding of the work behind the food they eat.
“If I can take a moment to snap a photo or video that allows folks to see what a day in the life of a farmer really looks like and have them appreciate the bread that they’re using to make for their sandwich for lunch, then I count that as a win,” Longhurst said.
Her experience as Idaho FFA state president also showed her how social media could reach people beyond agriculture.
While documenting her travels and work promoting youth in agriculture, she connected with family, friends and people she had grown up with who were not necessarily involved in farming.
She has also maintained online connections with students in Italy, comparing their experiences and what they are harvesting.
Longhurst said being able to share agriculture with people in her everyday life, as well as those outside Idaho and the United States, has been especially rewarding.
Encouraging the Next Generation
As the National FFA Convention approaches, Longhurst reflected on attending the event in Indianapolis for the first time.
She remembers the experience of seeing students from different places gathered together around agriculture.
“It just blew my mind. Here are all of these kids all wearing the same blue jacket, all in the name of agriculture, and it was very uniting for me,” she said.
Longhurst hopes young people recognize the range of career opportunities available throughout the agriculture industry, not just on the farm.
She pointed to the role farmers play in feeding the country while emphasizing the many other jobs needed to support agricultural production.
“There’s also a plethora of jobs in the agriculture industry that we need filled for us to be able to do what we do as farmers,” she said.
She encourages students to get involved in FFA during high school and consider agriculture-related careers after graduation.
“If you can find a career in agriculture, we’ll happily take you, and it’ll be a very rewarding experience and career path,” Longhurst said.
Longhurst Joins Dirt Diaries
Longhurst will share more of her agricultural journey on this week’s episode of Dirt Diaries with Kirbe Schnoor.
She said it was great to reconnect with Schnoor, who visited the family farm in June to record an episode for the upcoming season of FarmHER + RanchHER.
“To be able to have a conversation with her for the Dirt Diaries podcast was really great,” Longhurst said. “I really respect and admire all that she does to highlight the importance of agriculture.”
