The Agricultural Relations Council and NAMA have entered into an informal partnership focused on developing enhanced public relations content for upcoming industry events. The first collaboration will focus on creating PR-track session content for NAMA’s Agri-Marketing Conference, April 13-15, 2011, in Kansas City, MO.

As part of the agreement, an ARC board member – Mike Oppermann of Charleston|Orwig – will serve on the 2011 Agri-Marketing Conference planning committee.

“We are continually looking for ways to strengthen the content of our conferences,” said Jenny Pickett, executive director of NAMA. “With this new partnership with ARC, we have a great opportunity to drive a more meaningful discussion about the role and utility of public relations in agri-marketing, and how our members can more effectively use PR to support their own business goals.”

Pickett noted that the partnership between NAMA and ARC, each an independent organization, fits in with NAMA’s goal of forming alliances with industry organizations to help strengthen professional development.

“This alliance will be beneficial to members of both organizations,” she said.

“Ultimately, ARC will contribute to developing two tracks of ‘ARC-approved’ PR sessions that will take place during the 2011 conference,” said Den Gardner, executive director of ARC.

“This new partnership with NAMA gives ARC a bigger platform from which to promote the art and science of agricultural public relations,” Gardner said. “It also fits with our mission to give ARC members who attend allied meetings a great opportunity to stay connected to ARC’s timely and relevant PR programming throughout the year. We also have a focus on strategic partnerships, such as our current relationship with the Agricultural Media Summit.”

Gardner noted that for the first time this year, ARC conducted an educational session at this summer’s AMS in St. Paul, Minn., and also staged a successful silent auction in collaboration with AMS. The AMS and future NAMA presence are in addition to ARC’s upcoming annual meeting, which takes place Feb. 23-25, 2011, in Fort Myers, Fla.

Pickett and Gardner said no specific partnership plans have been discussed beyond the 2011 Agri-Marketing Conference, but both said they hope to identify other ways in which the two groups can partner in serving their respective members’ needs.