Courtesy Photo­Image Zach Hunnicutt

Members of the American Farm Bureau Young Farmers and Ranchers Committee elected Zach Hunnicutt from Aurora, Neb. as the committee’s chairman for 2013.

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Hunnicutt will take over as chairman in February and serve for one year. He will also serve a one-year term on the American Farm Bureau Federation board of directors.

Zach and wife Anna farm outside of Giltner, raising irrigated corn, popcorn and soybeans. Hunnicutt attended the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and earned a degree in agricultural economics. The couple have two children, Everett and Adeline.

Both Hunnicutts are active in social media, telling agriculture’s story and helping bridge the gap between consumers and farmers and ranchers. Hunnicutt currently serves as treasurer for the Ag Chat Foundation.

With a strong presence on Facebook, Instagram (zjhunn) and Twitter (@zjhunn), he is well-versed in the opportunities social media offers for starting a conversation with consumers nationwide.

As YF&R chair, Hunnicutt said he intends to continue to build on young farmers’ efforts to connect with people outside of agriculture.

“With social media, I can reach out to people from the seat of my tractor,” he said. “It’s very effective.”

Hunnicutt would also like to help younger growers ramp up their involvement in the policy development process in their counties and states.

“Whether they’re just getting started or have long been a part of the policy development process, I’d encourage everyone to get more active, from the early stages of shaping policy to implementation,” said Hunnicutt.

Getting state YF&R committees to collaborate more is another goal.

“The committees should be a great resource for one another. We should be tapping into each other’s strengths and learning from each other’s successes,” he said.

The YF&R program includes men and women between the ages of 18-35. The program’s goals are to help younger Farm Bureau members learn more about agriculture, network with others and become future leaders in agriculture and Farm Bureau, according to the organization.