I had a chat with Jay Whetter, editor of Grainews. We worked at Country Guide together for years. We share a passion for good food and better wine.

Comments to his blog are starting to roll in but not through the typical comments field below the post. That’s probably partly because of the blog software they use and the number of hoops it makes you jump through to post a comment.

Instead, readers are emailing him directly. He’s been compiling their emails and posting a follow-up summarizing the responses. He got a whack of feedback after asking if anyone knew of a Western-based prepared mustard producer. And a number of readers emailed him after a recent post about hay bales blowing across the country.

I was at Guide for eight years. Fellow ag journalists and I would sit at the back during meetings and moan about how it felt like we were churning out copy and throwing it out into a void, especially in the dark winter months. I was always tickled pink the odd time someone would corner me at a farmer meeting and tell me about something I’d written.

Jay’s doing a great job at connecting with his audience. It’s good to see that they’re talking back.