Public trust in institutions—whether politics, business, nonprofits, mainstream media, or even social media—has significantly eroded over the past decade, largely due to the rampant spread of disinformation and bizarre falsehoods amplified by social platforms.
This has made it increasingly difficult for most people to distinguish truth from fiction or decide whom to believe, resulting in widespread skepticism toward nearly all societal sectors. Frankly, the public has valid reasons for this distrust, as these institutions have repeatedly undermined their own credibility through consistent missteps.Trust fundamentally revolves around a sense of safety, where confusion breeds fear—but the antidote to fear is hope. In food and agriculture specifically, distrust is especially pronounced toward impersonal, faceless entities. People deeply crave humanity; attaching a real human face to a farm or company dramatically boosts connection, whereas dehumanization—treating the industry as an abstract "thing"—destroys trust across all areas of life.
Despite this bleak picture, there's optimism: the public may not trust easily, but they are eager to learn the truth about food production and its rationale, provided it's explained honestly by someone credible. They are tired of disinformation, misinformation, and manipulative messaging from every side. However, public opinions often stem from deeply held beliefs, which research shows consistently override facts and science. Challenging those beliefs triggers defensiveness, as they provide people with structure and values—removing them feels like a personal collapse. This explains why the food and agriculture sector's preferred fact-and-science-heavy approach repeatedly fails: communicators themselves believe in it, creating a ironic loop where their own beliefs blind them to evidence of its ineffectiveness.
Rebuilding trust isn't impossible, even though the public prefers seeking information independently in today's information-rich world. Effective communication resembles dating: start gently to build acquaintance and interest, not by overwhelming with details. The goal is connection, not immediate persuasion. Key principles include avoiding pushiness by focusing on answering genuine questions (which reveal what people truly care about), being genuinely likable (since connection quality matters more than information volume, and likable communicators win over audiences—unlike industries that lack relatable spokespeople, while activists often leverage celebrities), staying relaxed by selectively responding to controversies (silence often disarms attention-seekers, and concise, consistent messages penetrate better), projecting confident yet humble expertise (letting the audience recognize your authority naturally), and always showing respect for others' views—even incorrect ones—to lay the foundation for mutual trust through patient, small agreements.
Conversely, common pitfalls undermine efforts: lengthy, fact-laden monologues or complex charts appeal only to insiders and bore or alienate the general public; boring, lecture-style delivery feels condescending and unentertaining (especially for younger audiences craving fun, playful interaction—like learning through games rather than school-like sermons); immediate denials escalate tension instead of acknowledging concerns to defuse them and introduce nuance (essential in gray-area debates where polarization thrives on black-and-white extremes); self-focused messaging about one's own industry ignores the audience's priorities (communication should be market-oriented, like sales, starting from the public's perspective to build empathy); and the predictable "PR sound"—spinning facts or half-truths—that everyone recognizes and despises as insincere.Ultimately, success lies in short, visually engaging, entertaining, nuanced, empathetic, and authentically human communication that prioritizes the recipient's curiosity and feelings, fostering genuine connections and restoring trust far more effectively than traditional methods.
Farming and agriculture, both in South Africa and globally, desperately need openness and trust to thrive—and you're absolutely right that farmers are the grounded, resilient backbone of the entire system. They endure relentless "hammering": unpredictable weather, rising input costs (fertilizer, fuel, seeds), disease outbreaks, trade barriers, and policy uncertainties, all while producing the food that feeds nations. Yet far too often, the real profits flow to middlemen—processors, retailers, exporters, and large corporates—leaving primary producers with razor-thin margins or even losses.In South Africa, this reality hits hard.
Commercial farmers face high debt, land reform pressures, infrastructure decay (ports, rail, electricity), and security issues, while smallholder and emerging farmers struggle with access to finance, markets, and extension services. Globally, the pattern repeats: from American corn growers squeezed by commodity giants to European dairy farmers protesting supermarket pricing power, and African smallholders losing out to importers or informal traders. The value chain is long and opaque, and farmers—those actually working the soil—rarely capture a fair share.Building trust starts with transparency and humanity. Consumers want to know where their food comes from, how it's produced, and that the people growing it are treated fairly. When farmers or farmer organizations communicate directly—sharing real stories from the land, challenges and successes alike—people listen and connect.
Farmers don't just produce food; they steward land, water, and biodiversity for all of us. Recognizing that openly, and giving them a stronger voice (and fairer profit share), is essential for sustainable agriculture everywhere—from the Free State plains to Midwest prairies. Farmers deserve respect, trust, and a system that rewards their grounding in reality rather than punishing it.
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