Ag Day/U.S. Farm Report Covers Area Agri-Tourism Attraction

ag_day DOWN ON THE FARM – Chuck Denney, University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture Marketing and Communications department, interviews Bob Keast, owner of the Tennessee River Freshwater Pearl Museum, Farm and Tour. Denney produces stories on farming, family, agri-business, agri-tourism, consumer issues, 4H, research and veterinary medicine, that air first on WTVF-Nashville (NewsChannel 5), then are distributed for broadcasting to other ABC affiliation stations, PBS stations and public access cable stations. The Tennessee River Freshwater Pearl Farm aired on Saturday and Sunday, July 30 and 31 on the U.S. Farm Report on stations nationwide – covering all 50 states – in 185 cities reaching over 50 million views.

CAMDEN, TN – Chuck Denney and Doug Edlund – marketing and communications department team from the University of Tennessee's Institute of Agriculture (UTIA), were filming on location at the Tennessee Freshwater Pearl Farm, Museum and Tour Tuesday, June 21, 2005. The UTIA-produced stories are on television and radio news on topics such as farming, family, agri-business, agri-tourism, consumer issues, 4H, research and veterinary medicine.

Segments air first on WTVF in Nashville at approximately 7:25 a.m. each Sunday morning. Once airing has taken place on WTVF-Nashville, tapes are then released for broadcasting on other Tennessee ABC- affiliate stations such as WBBJ-Jackson, WHBQ-Memphis, WJHL-Johnson City, WVLT-Knoxville, and WTVC-Chattanooga. PBS and public access cable stations broadcast the segments statewide in approximately 50 towns and counties across Tennessee, as well as their appearance on national-television shows "Ag Day" and "US Farm Report."

The regular news segments address – among other topics - agriculture and the new industry buzz word - agri-tourism. Agriculture has helped form every aspect of life in Tennessee—its culture, its music, its communities, its history, scenery and recreation. The term "agri-tourism" describes a category for the increasingly popular activities, events and places tied closely to agriculture and Tennessee's rural communities. Thousands enjoy Tennessee's agri-tourism and fun farm events each year, participating in festivals, farm tours and orchard tours, special school tours, corn mazes and straw mazes, hay rides and wagon rides and "pick-your-own-produce" farms.

The Tennessee River Freshwater Pearl Farm is the only freshwater pearl-culturing operation in the North American continent. Founded by John Latendresse (1925-2000), the facility began in the late 1970's. A heartwarming story and amazing history follow the years as the pearl-culturing operation evolved. Today, the farm is owned by Bob Keast, also owner of Birdsong Resort, Marina and Campground in Camden, Tennessee. Keast has taken an aggressive marketing stance with his agri-tourism entity, not only with sales – but with a "farm tour" experience offered to the attending public.

Nestled along the lazy banks of Birdsong Creek just off of the scenic Tennessee River in the heart of beautiful Kentucky Lake, pearls grow quietly in the State of Tennessee official, historic site of pearl culturing (enacted 2004). Ranked in the upper-twenty position in the Tennessee Department of Tourist Development's Top 50 Most-Visited Attractions report, the attraction sees more than 300,000 visitors annually to visit the farm, museum and jewelry showroom or participate in "A Pearl of a Tour" on the resort and marina venue.

The "full" tour introduces participants to the history of pearls, the history of the Tennessee River Freshwater Pearl Farm, and an overview of the culturing process that they will see throughout the day; Enthusiasts enjoy an interactive, educational experience as they visit with a local diver, see his "catch of the day," and get a brief biology lesson on how the pearl-growing mollusks fit into the local aquaculture environment; Visitors meet the farm manager, watch as he retrieves a basket of the implanted mussels, "shucks" one revealing the official gem for the State of Tennessee (enacted 1979), explains the simple anatomy of the animal and an in-depth explanation of how pearls are cultured. The group settles into the lake-view pavilion for a leisurely, catered luncheon of pulled pork barbecue, barbecue ribs, smoked chicken, potato salad, baked beans, slaw, corn fritters, dessert and drink before departing to Nathan Bedford Forrest State Park's Tennessee River Folk Life Museum. The Museum houses an antique brail boat (used for musseling prior to the invention of the electric motor), artifacts from the pearl buttoning factories that were once along the Tennessee River banks, items depicting the area diving industry, and many Civil War items of interest are exhibited. A variety of tour packages are offered, but all guided tours require advance reservations. Walk-in visitors may visit the museum and farm, and enjoy a short video presentation year around, seven days a week.

Tennessee alone exports "in excess of 2.8 million lbs. of mussel shells to foreign countries," according to Don Hubbs, TWRA biologist. The foreign pearl-culturing countries require the mussel shell that is found in the Tennessee River/Mississippi Basin area to create implants – or seeds – to begin the pearl-culturing process. The "Wash Board" and "Pig Toe" variety of mussels native to local waters possess a unique quality amongst mollusks... a thick shell that allows for three dimensional shaping of the nuclei (seed).

A unique process that is a one-of-a-kind to the agriculture industry, a pearl is the only product recorded that is "grown" inside an animal. Freshwater pearls grown in Tennessee account for only a minute percentage of the vast quantities grown all over the world - yet nonetheless a quality gem stone. A shocking upper 90's percentage of all cultured-pearls are, however, started from Tennessee River/Mississippi Basin mussel nuclei. Even pearls produced from the Tuamotu Lagoons in Thati – the world-famous black pearls – are seeded with a implant created from a Tennessee River mussel shell.

Divers in river-town areas have made a livelihood gathering and selling mussels to shell camps for many, many years. Today, the state of Tennessee has over 250 registered divers who claim this occupation as their source of income.

After filming had been "wrapped," Denny casually commented, "I can tell you flat-out... right now... this is one of the most interesting stories we've done in all of our six years of producing TV for UT. The pearl farm is an amazing operation and a great example of what a true agri-business and agri-tainment operation should look like. It was really neat to see. I'm glad Bob invited us."

The segment of UTIA's Farm Report featuring The Tennessee River Freshwater Pearl Farm The Tennessee River Freshwater Pearl Farm segment aired on the U.S. Farm Report on Saturday, July 30 and Sunday, July 31 in all 50 states covering 185 broadcasting cities – reaching over 50 million viewers. For more information on freshwater pearls or "A Pearl of a Tour" visit www.TennesseeRiverPearls.com or call 800-225-7469. For more information on Birdsong Resort, Marina and Campground, visit www.BirdsongResort.com or call 800-225-7469. For more information on UTIA, visit agriculture.tennessee.edu.

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