• 
• CLASS
• JOBS
• AUTO
• HOMES

Farmers connecting with Twitter, Facebook

MILWAUKEE-(MCT) --Many large corn and soybean growers are tech-savvy communicators who text message, use the Internet and connect with consumers on social networking sites such as Twitter and Facebook.

Sixty-two percent of growers with 1,500 or more acres have sent or received text messages during the past year, according to an Agriculture New Media Usage study by Nicholson Kovac Inc.

Nearly 50% of growers who use text messaging do so five or more times each day, according to the study. Many of them also use their mobile phones to take photos, send e-mail, download ring tones and access GPS information, the study says.

As for the Internet, 47% spend five hours or more online each week, it said. Findings were based on 250 personal phone interviews conducted in May.

Wisconsin is among the biggest soybean producing states in the country. About 80% of Wisconsin residents have access to some type of broadband through cable television providers or telephone companies, according to industry figures.

But coverage gaps in rural areas are a problem as businesses and individuals increasingly turn to the Internet for everything from online sales to entertainment.

Earlier this week, Hilbert Communications, Green Bay, said it is pursuing stimulus money to provide wider broadband access in 26 Wisconsin counties -- a move the company says could create as many as 500 permanent jobs.