For 60 years, Alice in Dairyland has represented Wisconsin's agricultural industry.
What began as a pageant in conjunction with the state's centennial celebration has involved into a full-time public relations position that sends Alice on a year-long trip around the state to educate and promote the state agriculture, which provides a $51.5 billion impact on Wisconsin's economy.
Jill Makovec is the reigning Alice in Dairyland. Makovec, 29, grew up on a dairy farm that has been in her family for generations and, despite her hectic schedule, she still gets back to help on the weekends when she can.
During her year-long stint -- which ends in early June -- Makovec has traveled thousands of miles, speaking to schoolchildren, industry and civic groups as well as meeting with the media. During a recent swing through the Milwaukee area, she sat down to talk with OnMilwaukee.com about the duties and responsibilities of being Wisconsin's agricultural ambassador.
OnMilwaukee.com: First things first, is it Alice or Jill?
Alice: When I go to make appearances, it's Alice. I think, after 60 years, it's a tradition now in Wisconsin and it's important to brand Alice as the state's agricultural ambassador. That's why; even though it's not a "princess" type of position anymore, the sash is still important. It provides immediate recognition and, hopefully, people will associate Alice with agriculture.
OMC: You mention the "princess" label. You do have a crown and you do have a sash, but this is really, in essence, a public relations position. Do you have to differentiate that?
Alice: I'm a public relations and marketing specialist for the Department of Agriculture, Trade & Consumer Protection. Alice isn't a princess or a beauty queen. Sometimes people automatically associate the tiara with being a princess but really it's more of a marketing tool. When I'm in an audience, it would be hard to find Alice with just a nametag. The shape of the tiara is symbolic of what Alice represents; the gems (amethyst and citrines) are indigenous to Wisconsin, so it has a connection.
OMC: Have you done events without the tiara and sash?
Alice: I actually went without the tiara at Harvest Fair (a September event at Wisconsin State Fair Park) and hardly anybody said anything to me. I came back that night for World Beef Expo wearing them and people were stopping me left and right. So it does help me get noticed, which is a good thing. Ultimately, Alice can't do her job if people don't stop and talk to her.
OMC: Alice wears a lot of hats: teacher, spokesperson, industry representative, ceremonial representative. How do you juggle those roles?
Alice: I tell the kids that being Alice is like being an actor. It's true. It's not that being Alice is fake, but you need to be able to switch gears and perform based on the audience you're talking to. The message has to be tailored to who you're talking to. In one day, I might talk to kindergarteners, fourth-graders, high schoolers and, at night, a civic group. Each group has different concerns in their life and you have to be able to connect to them. Alice needs to know her facts and needs to know her audience. She also has to stay well-connected and know what's going on in the state. That's why, even though she wears those many hats, she's also a student of agriculture.
OMC: With all those appearances -- your bio says you'll log about 40,000 miles during your year as Alice -- how do you stay up-to-date?
Alice: I do about two training sessions a month on different agricultural commodities to continue improving my knowledge. I just learned about our paper and candy industries in Wisconsin. Wisconsin milk is used by a lot of chocolate-makers and our confection producers use a lot of other state products like honey and cherries in making their candies. Last month, I learned about pheasants. This month, I'm learning about mushrooms, too.
OMC: People in Milwaukee and many other urban areas think cows, corn and pigs when it comes to agriculture.
Alice: Only two percent of Wisconsin agriculture is directly related to farming. I want to introduce people -- even within the agricultural community -- to concepts that are maybe less familiar to them. The fact that we're home to the largest pheasant farm in the United States, the largest mink farm in North America, that our honey bees are used across the country to pollinate crops ... It's important to let people know that all of those things are a part of Wisconsin agriculture.
OMC: It goes beyond food, too.
Alice: Definitely. Wisconsin leads the nation in paper production. That's agriculture. Mink is agriculture. Ethanol and bio-diesel are agriculture. There are so many things that play a big part in people's daily lives that they don't realize are part of agriculture.
OMC: So with that in mind, how do you relate it to the urban consumer?
Alice: We emphasize food, fiber and fuel as three main products of agriculture. It's also important that we embrace and highlight new technologies used in agriculture. Those technologies are tested and safe for consumers, and without them we wouldn't be able to feed the growing population in Wisconsin, the nation and the world. We need to look to be efficient and effective in our farming practices so we can continue to grow food without needing more farmland.
OMC: How can Milwaukeeans and other "city folk" support agriculture in the state?
Alice: It's important to buy local and support area businesses. It helps the economy by keeping money in Wisconsin and supports state farmland and production as opposed to sending money out-of-state. It also helps keep agriculture strong which helps local economies as farmers and producers then spend that money on other businesses.
OMC: You've mentioned that one of your goals is to bring the rural and urban communities closer together. Why is that such an important goal for you?
Alice: People asked me in college what my major was (Dairy Science) and they were like ‘Cows?" and that's when I started to realize there is a big disconnect or gap between people who really understand where their food comes from and those who actually are producing it. So consumers need to understand the origins of their food, but at the same time the producers need to get a better understanding of the concerns their consumers have.
Alice is a position that, I think, fills that gap. Working with the media, working with fourth graders and doing events like State Fair, Alice can serve as a go-between to let people know where their food is coming from, let them know we produce a lot of it and that, most importantly, that food is safe.
OMC: What has been your favorite part of being Alice?
Alice: I like to study. So when I find something that's interesting to me, as all of these facts are, I like to share them with people. I think that's been the best part so far. I love learning about industries I didn't know much about and sharing it with other people.
