SC Ag pushing private firms on public dime
07/08/2009
Not satisfied with playing the role of carnival barker for South Carolina farmers as a whole, the SC Department of Agriculture is apparently taking it upon itself to use tax dollars to shill for individual companies, as well.
That’s what one deduces from a June 29 press release titled “Blue and Blackberries NOW at The Happy Berry Farm,” put out by the SC Department of Agriculture on ag department letterhead on the agency’s website.
The release reads as follows:
South Carolina Department of Agriculture
Hugh Weathers, Commissioner
Contact:
Becky Walton, 803-734-2182, bwalton@scda.sc.gov
Stephen Hudson, 803-734-0648, sdhudson@scda.sc.govFOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – June 29, 2009
Blue and Blackberries NOW at The Happy Berry Farm
SIX MILE, SC – The Happy Berry Farm is now picking several varieties of blueberries and blackberries. The fig harvest is forecast for August 1 along with seedless grapes. The muscadine harvest is forecast for August 18.
The rain has been marvelous and the berries continue to get an inch a week! Perfect! The bushes look so great this year which bodes an even better crop next year.
The Happy Berry folks say to dress for the weather. Long sleeve loose fitting shirt, hat, long pants [cotton works well] and carry some water. If you are not sweating or sweating excessively, it’s time to get out of the sun. Carry your cell phone with you to the field and if you feel ill, dizzy or have a problem call 350-9345 or 637-8041 and they will help.
For more information, visit www.TheHappyBerry.com or call 864-868-2946 (house) or 864-350-9345 (cell/farm). Hours (rain or shine) are Mon-Fri: 8am – Dusk, Sat: 8am – 6pm, and Sun: Noon – Dusk.
Visit www.agriculture.sc.gov, click on Recipes in Consumer Quick Links, and look for blackberry and blueberry recipes.
A few questions come to mind after reading this release:
- Is the SC Department of Agriculture so hard up for money that it’s farming its staff out to do free-lance work to bring in extra revenue?
- Does the SC Department of Agriculture have so little to do that it can have staffers gin up releases for private businesses?
- Did the ag department folks who worked on this Happy Berry release do it on state time?
This, of course, comes on the heels of the Palmettovore fiasco, that cute little agricultural protectionism campaign created by Columbia ad firm Chernoff Newman that cost South Carolina more than $50,000, and was little more than a subsidy for state farmers.
But as difficult as the concept behind Palmettovore – using tax dollars contributed by all South Carolinians to promote the business interests of a small segment of the state’s residents - is to rationalize, the blatant favoritism involved in singling out an individual company for promotion by a state agency almost boggles the mind.
07/08/2009 at 10:52 am
Appalling! What right does a representative government have to promote business and agriculture within its borders?
07/08/2009 at 12:33 pm
If the government were taking your tax dollars to promote your rival’s business, I’d imagine you’d be just a bit unhappy.
07/08/2009 at 4:19 pm
If I had a rival pick-your-own-muscadine field near Six Mile I would either (a) be really mad like you, or (b) ask the Dept. of Agriculture to send out a press release for me, too, which I bet they would do in a heartbeat.
07/08/2009 at 4:52 pm
And I’m sure the ag department would be happy to oblige; however the last time I looked, the responsibilities of a state agency didn’t include promoting individual businesses.