Online media is the number one platform of choice for farming-related information.
This was the message from extensive face-to-face research undertaken – by Empathy Research commissioned by AgriLand – during last month’s National Ploughing Championships in Co. Carlow.
The key findings are as follows:
73% consume farming information online weekly or more often.
42% consume farming information online daily or more often.
Print in decline
33% said that they no longer buy a dedicated farming newspaper.
43% said that they buy a weekly farming newspaper but often don’t get around to reading it.
40% said that the information in such publications is often out of date by the time you get to read it.
Social media use
The research also probed social media habits and preferences.
Almost two in five (37%) said that Facebook is the social media platform they use most often.
WhatsApp (19%) and Snapchat (13%) came second and third. Next up were Instagram (11%) and Twitter (7%).
WhatsApp is most often used amongst those aged 55-64 (28%). Snapchat is most often used amongst those aged 18-24 (32%).