I N T H I S I S S U E
2^ Sustainable Ag. Achievement Award
2-5^ Winter Meeting Workshops, Agenda, Pre-Registration Form
6^ World Resources Inst. Study with PFI
_ Gary Huber
7^ WRI Meeting in Washington, D.C.
_ Rick Exner
7^ Sociological Study of PFI Farmers
_ Mike Bell
8^ Shared Visions Section
8^ Seven Groups Accepted
10^ Rural-Urban Conference Report
_ Bob Joly
11^ Group Networking
12^ Current Group Updates
14^ A Summing Up of Farms Forever's Evening Entrees
_ Kathy Dice
15^ Farm Profit Forum Ideas
_ Don Davidson
17^ Summer 1995 IFS Networking
_ Gary Huber
19^ Notes and Notices
_ Maria Rosmann Appointed
_ New Grazing Newsletter
_ Meetings Scheduled
20^ Swine Production Workshop
_ Jerry DeWitt
21^ Farming Systems Mtg. Report
_ Rick Exner
21^ Strayer Seeds in Receivership
_ Rick Exner
22^ PFI Sustainable Projects 1996
25^ An Iowa Farmer and Her Daughter in China
_ Denise and Briana O'Brien
27^ PFI Profiles: Jeff & Gayle Olson
_ Rick Exner
30^ USDA Group Meets in D.C.
_ Ron Rosmann
31^ Footprints of a Grass Farmer
_ Tom Frantzen
33^ From the Kitchen
_ Marj Stonecypher
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issue.
PROFITABILITY THE FOCUS OF JANUARY PFI MEETING
What have we learned after this roller coaster year of
cliffhanger weather and gut-wrenching fluctuations in the hog
market? As farmers prepare to close the books on 1995 and look
ahead to 1996, profitability is a real concern. What is the key
- getting better at what you are already doing or doing things
differently?
Low farm profits in recent years have prompted creative responses
from farming families around the state. Groups are forming
around the need for better records, better planning, better
management of particular kinds of systems. Farmers are creating
new ways to reach consumers, adding more value on the farm or
reducing price uncertainty through contracting. People are
finding creative ways to stay on the farm. And more often than
not, profitability means the low-cost practice, the practice
that works with nature in a farming system, the practice that
returns control and responsibility to the manager.
Profitability is the over-riding theme of the PFI annual meeting
set for January 5-7 at the Ames Starlite Village Best Western
Motel. A full day of workshops, talks, producer posters, and
socializing on Saturday, the 6th, will be preceded on Friday by a
field trip to a hoophouse hog production facility and evening
entertainment by a farmer and storyteller.
Duffy to Keynote, Workshops Set
ISU Extension agricultural economist Michael Duffy will set the
direction for the Saturday program with a keynote address:
Profitability: What are we trying to achieve? Duffy, Associate
Director of the Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture, has
researched and spoken widely about profitability issues facing
producers. Without minimizing the seriousness of those issues,
he is thoroughly versed in the opportunities - even advantages -
for diversified and moderate sized farms.
Duffy will also participate in two workshop sessions on Saturday.
Other workshop participants include Neil Hamilton, director of
the Agricultural Law Center at Drake University; Joan Blundall,
associate director of the Seasons Center for Community Mental
Health, in Spencer; Mike Mamminga of the Meat and Poultry
Inspection Division of the Iowa Department of Agriculture; and
Michael Cotter, a farmer and storyteller from Austin, MN. But
the heart of the program is PFI members themselves. In
workshops, district caucuses, producer posters, and socializing,
the meeting is by and for the members.
Meeting Arrangements
There will be no pre-registration for the meeting, but
pre-notification is requested for those taking part in youth
activities, the Friday field tour, and posters (see below).
Attendance is free to current members and the $10 cost of a
year's membership to all others. The $7 (adults) $4 (children)
noon meal is an additional option. A block of rooms is being
held for Jan 4-6 by the Starlite Village Best Western. Make
motel reservations by Dec. 25: Starlite Village, (515) 232-9260
or (800) 903-0009. (Request the PFI group rate.)
Pre-Register for Youth Activities
Youth activities are being coordinated by Donna Bauer. Parents
planning to bring children must pre-register their children by
contacting Donna ahead of time at 712-563-4084 or returning the
form on page 5. There will be a $5-per-child charge payable to
Donna at the meeting to cover activity expenses.
Hoophouse Hog Facility Tour
On Friday afternoon, Mark Honeyman, Director of Outlying ISU
Research Farms, will host a group at the hoophouse hog facility
on the Rhodes Research Farm, which is about a half hour drive
east of Ames. The pigs in the unit will be approaching market
weight at that time. Tour participants will see how this
deep-bedded, unheated production facility has performed going
into an Iowa winter. Discussion will continue in the workshops
the following day, where Canadian animal scientist Laurie Connor
will report on performance of hoophouses in Manitoba.
Transportation will be provided to the first 20 participants.
Pre-register by contacting the PFI coordinators at 515-294-1923
or returning the form on page 5.
Bring a Poster!
Producer posters were one of the most popular parts of the annual
meeting last year. Again the call goes out to any and all, young
and old. Bring a poster and join the PFI cooperators and
Sustainable Projects participants on the walls! Pre-register
your poster by calling the PFI coordinators at 515-294-1923 or
returning the form on page 5. You will receive a simple guide
sheet for designing and constructing your poster.
Friday Evening: Stories from the Farm
At 7:30 on Friday evening, Minnesota's best-known storyteller,
Michael Cotter, will be on hand with stories that are personal,
yet with themes that are common to us all. Michael has farmed
his whole life in the Austin area of Minnesota. He combines
farming and storytelling in ways that remind us of what is truly
important.
Saturday Evening: Prairies and Farming
The Saturday evening presentation, Iowa's Prairie Heritage -
Integration with the Farm, will be given by Laura Jackson of the
University of Northern Iowa. She will show slides of plants
native to Iowa, describe the "rules" of prairie ecosystems, and
compare the prairie to farming ecosystems of the past, present,
and future.
With several PFI farmers, Laura Jackson is researching the
potential of prairie species in grazing systems. This work may
develop ways farming can coexist with elements of the native
landscape. Also, pictures by Iowa photographer Helen Gunderson
that show changes in Iowa's land over time will be on display at
the meeting.
Mike Duffy to Receive Sustainable Ag Achievement Award
PFI gives an annual award to someone who has advanced the cause
of profitable, environmentally-sound farming in Iowa. This
year's award will be given to Mike Duffy, an ISU Extension
economist.
Mike has researched and written about farm management issues,
including how farm size and enterprise diversity relates to
profits and resource utilization. He has been a strong supporter
of efforts to improve farm profits while protecting the resource
base that farming depends on. As Dick Thompson said when
discussing this award, "He's interested in the whole picture.
This is an award that is long overdue."
Mike received a B.S. in natural resources in '75 and an M.S. in
agricultural economics in '77, both from the University of
Nebraska. He got his Ph.D. from Penn State in '81 and then
worked as an economic researcher for USDA in Washington, D.C.
until his came to ISU in '84.
At ISU Mike was an area farm management specialist until he moved
to his present position on campus. His current responsibilities
include the annual land value survey, cost of crop production
estimates, and the Iowa farm cost and returns publication. He is
also the Associate Director of the Leopold Center for Sustainable
Agriculture and professor-in-charge of the ISU Beginning Farmer
Center.
WINTER MEETING WORKSHOPS
Direct Marketing Meat: Mike Mamminga, Robert Recker, Cindy
Madsen, Roger Lennox (Mark Tjelmeland moderator)
There are consumers who want the quality of sustainably-raised
meat and there are producers who can supply those products. What
are the ways they are getting together? What does the law
require in terms of handling the product and the money? Several
producers will speak from experience, and Mike Mamminga will
represent the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land
Stewardship's Meat and Poultry Inspection Service.
What About an Off-Farm Job?: Mike Reicherts, Kathy Koether, Mark
Bruns (Joan Blundall moderator)
An off-farm job can be a short-term or a long-term strategy, and
economic necessity or choice. What kinds of things should you be
aware of as you consider taking a job off the farm? Three PFI
members will speak about their experiences with off-farm work.
Joan Blundall will offer observations on how people can handle
the challenges presented by work off the farm.
Hoop House Hog Production: Mark Honeyman, Archie Kuntz, Laurie
Connor (Vic Madsen moderator)
A growing number of Iowa hog producers have "hoop dreams." Does
this system really offer productivity without the capital
investment of other confinement operations? This workshop will
follow on the Friday field trip and will feature the experience
of two Iowa farmers who are using hoop systems. The Leopold
Center has granted funding to bring Laurie Connor, a researcher
from Manitoba, Canada, to this workshop to describe comparative
performance of fabric-covered systems in that northern climate.
Making a Place for Children on the Farm: Rueben and Frances
Zacharakis-Jutz, Jessica Frantzen, Eve Abbas, Bryan Hoben
(moderator Margaret Smith)
Many parents want their children to share their love of farming,
but where on a modern farm can kids find opportunities to get
involved? PFI members - both adults and youngsters - will talk
about the finding the fun in farming.
Keeping Track: Records and Decision Making: Tom Frantzen, Dave
Lubben, Mary Drier (Mike Duffy moderator)
You don't know where you're headed without some kind of map to
guide you. Your map is your record of where you have been, and
it informs your decisions for reaching your future destination.
PFI members will compare different approaches to farm records and
decision making. (Session 1 Tom Frantzen and Mary Drier, session
2 Tom Frantzen and Dave Lubben.)
Biological Controls for Iowa - Taking It to the Field: Joe
Fitzgerald, John Obrycki, Kris Giles (Mark Roose moderator)
PFI cooperators are working with ISU entomologists on biological
controls for alfalfa weevil, potato leaf hopper, corn borer, and
other pests. While some techniques are well established, several
new methods are in the experimental stage. There are
opportunities for producers and scientists to develop new methods
together through PFI on-farm research.
Farming in Stories: Michael Cotter
Michael Cotter, Minnesota's best known storyteller and a lifelong
farmer from the Austin area, will lead workshop participants in a
session that explores how storytelling can help develop our gifts
of creativity while connecting people with the land and each
other.
Production Contracts: When and How: Don Davidson, Paul Mugge, Ken
Rosmann (Neil Hamilton moderator)
Farmers are creating new ways to add more value on the farm or
reduce price uncertainty through contracting. What should
farmers look for in a contract? What do processors want? Neil
Hamilton, who recently published A Farmer's Legal Guide to
Production Contracts, will engage a panel of PFI members and
workshop participants in a discussion of these kinds of
questions.
WINTER MEETING AGENDA
Place: Ames, Starlite Village Best Western, 13th & Dayton Rd.
Friday (January 5)
Evening: (Check-in)
7:30 - Stories from the Farm, Michael Cotter
Saturday (January 6)
7:30 - Registration Opens
8:30 - 9:00: Welcome by PFI President Vic Madsen
9:00 -10:00: Profitability: What Are We Trying to Achieve,
Michael Duffy
10:00 -10:20: Sustainable Ag Achievement Award
10:20 -10:30: Break
10:30 -11:30: Workshops I (select one)
11:30 - 1:00: Lunch
1:00 - 1:20: PFI business meeting
1:20 - 1:45: District Meetings
1:45 - 3:00: Workshops II (select one)
3:00 - 4:15: Posters & Displays (refreshments)
4:15 - 5:15: Workshops III (select one)
5:15 - 6:00: Posters
6:00 - 7:00: Supper
7:30 - 9:00: Iowa's Prairie Heritage - Integration
with the Farm, Laura Jackson
6^ World Resources Institute Study of PFI
Gary Huber
Earlier this year PFI was asked to be part of a study sponsored
by the World Resources Institute (WRI). WRI is using eight case
studies - two from each continent - of efforts to reduce
pesticide use and farm sustainably. They want to learn why these
efforts started, why they work or don't work, and what the
implications are for public policy. Of particular interest are
efforts that involve collaborations of farmer organizations and
public institutions.
This request came at a time the PFI board had begun to examine
the direction PFI should take to continue to be relevant. Board
members spent time during their July meeting discussing future
directions. (See sidebar for a listing of possible future
focuses drawn from this discussion.) The board saw the WRI study
as an opportunity to gather information that would help their
deliberations.
The PFI study began in September and included four focus group
interviews conducted by Selzer-Boddy, Inc., a Des Moines research
firm. Two groups were convened in Mount Vernon on Sept. 1 and
two in Carroll on Sept. 18. At both locations one group was
active PFI members and the other past members or non-members who
knew of PFI.
The study also included personal interviews conducted by Dr.
Aaron Harp, a rural sociologist at the University of Idaho.
These interviews were of ISU researchers and administrators, PFI
leaders, and others who have observed PFI's evolution.
Some observations drawn primarily from the focus groups are given
next, followed by ideas for future directions for PFI.
The formal relationship between PFI and ISU enabled development
of an effective network of informal relationships between PFI
farmers and ISU researchers. These informal relationships are
the foundation of the PFI-ISU collaboration.
Individuals and organizations both gain from the partnership.
PFI farmers gain from the help of ISU scientists in conducting
on-farm research. The scientists gain from field-level problems
that ground their research in practical concerns. The results
are effective problem solving for individuals and enhanced
credibility for PFI and ISU.
The collaboration provides research results that would not
otherwise be available, and PFI farmers have benefited
economically with lower chemical costs and equivalent or greater
net profits.
Although PFI farmers have made changes, many Iowa farmers have
not. Broadening the reach of the organization is needed.
PFI farmers want on-farm research that includes measurements of
environmental impacts of the practices being studied.
PFI research results are not always presented in a way that
makes them easy to use, and participants suggest including more
information about farm operations involved in the trials as a way
to improve the usefulness of the results.
PFI farmers want to be able to take PFI research results to
bankers or government staff as evidence to support the practices
they use or want to use. However, they are uncomfortable doing
this, in part because they feel the results are not compiled in a
way that non-farmers can appreciate them.
Looking to the future, focus group participants had many ideas
for roles PFI could play. Two that came through very strongly
were:
Collaboration for Marketing - Participants want help finding the
right markets for their products, which they feel are of unique
quality. They feel PFI could help by building marketing
coalitions.
Collaboration for Community Building - Participants see
community declines all around, and they would welcome PFI taking
a direct, pro-active role in community building.
The following article, which describes a recent meeting sponsored
by WRI of all eight projects, notes that a book of the cases
studies will be published next spring. While having PFI be part
of this book is noteworthy, the more tangible benefit is the
insights that can help PFI be relevant in the future. Planning
to help this happen will continue. ]
Possible Future Focuses for PFI from July 1995 PFI Board Meeting:
Help change negative perceptions of alternative farming practices
and goals.
Look into the whole area of niche crops and specialty products.
Develop alternative marketing models.
Teach better decision-making skills.
Put more emphasis on promoting PFI.
Work toward long-term financial stability for PFI.
7^ World Resources Institute Meeting in Washington, D.C.
Rick Exner
PFI board member Jeff Olson and I attended the Global Workshop on
Partnerships for a Safe and Sustainable Agriculture, a conference
of the eight projects taking part in the study coordinated by the
World Resources Institute (WRI). Each of us presented our "case
study" of collaboration between a grassroots organization and an
institution. In our case that was the PFI-ISU relationship. The
meeting took place in Washington, D.C. just before Thanksgiving.
(Unfortunately, our sightseeing was curtailed by the government
shutdown.)
WRI is really interested in examples where public-private
cooperation is helping people farm in ways that are profitable,
environmentally sound, and supportive of rural institutions. And
there were some inspiring examples. For instance, Father
Francisco Lucas works with a coalition of Asian NGOs
(non-governmental organizations) based in the Philippines. He
described the crucial importance of community in achieving
lasting changes in farming practices. Amadou Diop, of Rodale
International, explained how farmers in Senegal, West Africa,
train other farmers in soil-building and natural plant protection
methods. Miguel Altieri, from the University of California,
described the low-tech, neighborhood-based facilities that grow
beneficial insects and other biological control agents in Cuba.
PFI was one of only two U.S. projects at the meeting. I was
surprised by the similarity of issues facing groups worldwide.
"Self-replicating" communication models (like farmer-to-farmer)
and community or group-based approaches are working well -
especially in light of declining international funding for
integrated pest management and sustainable agriculture.
Despite this funding trend, we were joined at the conference by
representatives of prestigious entities like the U.S. Agency for
International Development (USAID), the World Bank, the Food and
Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations, the World
Wildlife Fund, the Pesticide Action Network, the Pew Charitable
Trusts, and the Rockefeller Brothers Fund. Their presence
reflected the importance of the topic - as well as the stature of
the World Resources Institute and the reputation of workshop
chair Lori Ann Thrupp. WRI will publish the eight case studies
in a book next spring. ]
7^ Sociological Study of PFI Farmers
Mike Bell
Last fall I approached the PFI board about doing sociological
research on how farmers start down the path of sustainable
agriculture, and the role of a group like PFI in that transition.
The board endorsed the project, and the SARE program of USDA
provided funding. Preliminary research began with a focus group
session at last February's PFI cooperators' meeting, and I
attended every field day I could this summer.
We are now ready to begin the main part of the research -
in-depth interviews with farmers and spouses. I say "we" because
there will be four researchers collaborating on the project.
Mike Bell: That's me. I'm an assistant professor of rural
sociology at ISU, and the author of two books on rural life and
the environment.
Sue Jarnagin: Sue is a doctoral candidate in sociology at ISU and
a long-time member of PFI.
Donna Bauer: Donna and her husband Ted are PFI cooperators near
Audubon, and Donna is a recent graduate in sociology from ISU.
Greg Peter: Greg is a master's student in sociology at ISU.
But these are not the only collaborators. We want all PFI
members who participate to consider themselves collaborators too.
This winter and on into the spring and summer we will be asking
PFI folks to participate in two different ways. We're hoping
about 40 PFI households will consent to in-depth interviews at
their homes, and we'll also be asking about a dozen families to
welcome one of us into their home for an overnight stay.
We're excited about the overnight stays because we think they
will allow for a much more personal understanding of farming than
the usual techniques of social research. (Households that
participate in the overnight stays will be reimbursed.) We will
also be interviewing a sample of Iowa farm households who are not
PFI members.
Our goal is to get back to you on our findings by the 1996-97
winter meetings of PFI. We want to hear your reactions and
suggestions. Ultimately, we would like to put together a book
about the transition to sustainable agriculture in Iowa, and the
role of PFI in that transition. We, along with the PFI board,
hope that what we find out will be a help to other people in
farming and other farming organizations interested in the
question of sustainability. If you have any questions or
comments, please call me at 515-294-2179. We welcome you input.
]
8^ SHARED VISIONS SECTION
8^ SEVEN GROUPS ACCEPTED INTO SHARED VISIONS COMMUNITY GROUPS
NETWORK
In September these seven groups were selected for the Shared
Visions community groups network.
Cattle Feeders' Community Alliance - Pocahontas County
Ken Schultes, a local veterinarian, was one of the main people
behind the formation of this group. Ken, along with Bill
Winkleblack, a banker from Rolfe, talked to some local farmers,
agency personnel and business people about bringing cattle back
to the area. They met twice before deciding to apply to become
involved in Shared Visions.
Some ideas for group goals drawn from their application are to:
Increase local awareness that cattle feeding is a sustainable
value-added industry with profit potential for rural north
central Iowa;
Help family farmers diversify by adding value to forages and
grain through cattle while decreasing expenses for grain
enterprises through the use of animal wastes on cropland;
Locate sources of cattle with superior health and genetics and
align area feeders with groups in other parts of the state that
are exporting these cattle;
Develop arrangements between local lenders, investors,
agri-businesses, consultants, cow/calf producers, and cattle
feeders to share the benefits of the superior quality of their
product;
Encourage area cattle feeders to improve management skills and
locate profit and loss centers within their operations;
The group has not met since being accepted into Shared Visions.
Coalition for Holistic Agricultural Resource Management (CHARM)
Founding members of this group are five farm couples from
northeast Iowa and one farm couple from across the border in
Minnesota. They came together last March sharing a desire to
improve their decision-making skills through the use of Holistic
Resource Management (HRM). During late summer they added an NRCS
District Conservationist, a loan officer at a credit agency, and
a farm management instructor at a technical college to the group.
Members see the group as a way to provide each other with
support, guidance and encouragement as they seek sustainable
systems of farming. They identified openness and
confidentiality as necessary to their work, and they want to
build community both within their group and with others.
They have met twice since being accepted into Shared Visions.
They rotate their monthly meetings among their farms. At each
farm, they discuss the goals of the hosting couple and help
analyze decisions they are facing. An outside facilitator will
lead a day-long meeting on November 29 to bring everyone in the
group to a common level of understanding of HRM.
Hampton Area Rural Development Action Committee
This group formed last February out of a desire by the
Agriculture and Industry Committee of the Hampton Area Chamber of
Commerce to increase youth involvement and explore adding value
to local commodities. Group members represent a cross section of
the community, including bankers, business people, educators, and
farmers.
The group met monthly through May and then formed subcommittees
to investigate some issues in more detail. Four priority areas
identified were:
Value-added crop production;
Value-added livestock production (ie. drug-free livestock);
Trees for added income;
Expanding the November "Farm-City Banquet" and the March "Spring
Tillage Fair" to address economic opportunities for area
producers;
In August the group decided to apply to participate in Shared
Visions. Their first meeting since being accepted will be
December 4.
Jefferson County Group
This group came together to apply to be involved in Shared
Visions. Members represent a cross section of the Jefferson
County area, including farmers, business people, and other local
leaders, such as a county supervisor and the mayor of Fairfield.
Issues listed on the Group Application form include:
Strategies for reducing or eliminating pesticides;
Alternative and perennial crops such as perennial grains, nuts,
berries and other fruit;
Passive solar greenhouse for growing produce;
Crop rotations;
Demonstrations and tours of group projects and videotaping of
projects so that they are readily available to all.
The group's first meeting was November 21.
Northeast Iowa Congregational Supported Agriculture Group
This group's members were involved in an effort earlier this year
to help farmers market livestock, vegetables, and other items to
members of church congregations in the Dubuque area. The person
organizing the effort was not able to continue the project.
Subsequently, two other participants encouraged farmers who had
been involved to complete Individual Application forms as part of
the group's application to Shared Visions.
The group, mostly farmers, met for the first time on November 15.
Many members did not know each other, so time was spent
discussing their interests and the purposes the group could
serve. Most are new to the concept of Congregational Supported
Agriculture, but all feel that alternatives to traditional ways
of marketing are necessary. Some group members plan to attend a
Community Supported Agriculture conference in Madison, Wisconsin
on December 2. The group will meet again on December 11.
Prairie Talk
This group, dedicated to educating themselves and others about
sustainable and organic farming practices, did not exist prior to
applying to Shared Visions. The group's organizers were Judy
Jedlicka, Jane Woodhouse, and Susan Zacharakis-Jutz, all from the
Solon area in Johnson County. They each identified and asked
others to become involved, bringing the group's size to twelve
people. Eight are women and four are men; half are farmers and
half are non-farmers.
They have met twice since being accepted into Shared Visions and
are developing a shared vision and goal for the group. They are
also identifying and locating materials on organic farming
practices, as well as people with expertise and interest in the
topic. They have also begun to educate themselves by attending
conferences and meetings related to their interests. (See the
article beginning on this page written by group member Bob Joly
about a conference he attended recently in Wisconsin.)
Total Resources Management Services (TRMS)
TRMS is a non-profit organization established several years ago
by the Carroll County Soil and Water Conservation District. TRMS
sponsored the group that applied to become involved in Shared
Visions. Group members are all interested in establishing a
manure brokering service in the County.
They met in August to discuss ideas related to this topic,
including some broader than the brokering idea, such as
composting and methane production. They want to investigate
various options and develop and implement a plan to achieve those
that are workable in their county. The group will meet for the
first time since being accepted into Shared Visions on December
5.
10^ RURAL-URBAN CONFERENCE REPORT
by Bob Joly, Prairie Talk
The 5th Annual Urban-Rural Conference, presented by Michael
Fields Agricultural Institute, took place Oct. 27-29 in East
Troy, WI. The conference was well attended with approximately
100 presenters and participants sharing information in over 25
wide-ranging workshops, forums and panels. Major funding was
provided by Willimson Street Grocery Cooperative in Madison and
the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer
Protection-Sustainable Agriculture Program. Nearly 30 other
organizations were contributors and/or co-sponsors.
Wonderful lunch and dinner food was provided through the
coordinated efforts of local farmers and chefs from Chicago,
Madison, and Mukwonago. Day care was provided by Waldorf teacher
Cindy Aldinger. This year's theme was, Whole Farms, Whole Foods,
Whole Lives. My wife, son and I attended to gather information
for our Solon, IA, based Shared Visions group, Prairie Talk.
Keynote speaker Fred Kirschenmann, biodynamic farmer from North
Dakota, set the tone for the weekend with his address, "Putting
Culture Back Into Agriculture: How Farmers and Consumers are
Making the Choice." He succinctly laid out the differences, as
he sees it (and I agree), between agriculture and agribusiness.
Agribusiness, responding to often distant capital control,
emphasizes the price/supply model which relies on cheap labor,
cheap materials, and the least environmental control. The farmer
is an expendable employee.
Agriculture, on the other hand, is the farmer you see driving
that pickup truck and that tractor in the field. Agriculture is
what makes you plant your own garden so that you can eat a warm,
juicy tomato in the summer. Mr. Kirschenmann said that many
consider it 'patriotic' not to question the industry-driven food
system. "Why should we care how food is produced as long as
there is enough?" Well, we do care how it is produced, and we
care about who is producing it. We are the patriotic culture in
agriculture.
Caring alone will not save the family farmer. Farming is a
business and market forces have to be understood. Kirschenmann's
point is that different markets have to be established. In the
past farmers have failed to develop an environmental ethic, while
environmentalists have failed to develop a production ethic. The
two groups must be brought together, and a good way to do so is
by developing local (regional) networks: a farmer/customer model
where each knows and supports the other.
At the conference I attended workshops entitled, Holistic
Resource Management, Community Supported Agriculture, Face to
Face at the Farm Gate, and Whole Farm Systems. My wife attended,
Women in Agriculture: Our Growing Role, At the Heart of a Healing
Agriculture, Building Community Around Food, and a tour of
Altfrid Kusenbum's biodynamic dairy farm.
Between workshops we were able to check informational booths for
news from local and regional organizations, and on upcoming
events. Faye Jones, Education Outreach Coordinator of the
Wisconsin Chapter of the Organic Crop Improvement Association,
maintained a table with dozens of publications from the group's
library.
The 5th Annual Rural Urban Conference was a great gathering of
those of us who want and are willing to work for Whole Farms,
Whole Foods, Whole Lives. Michael Fields Agricultural Institute
can be reached at: 3287 Main St., East Troy, WI, 53120.
414-642-4028.
11^ GROUP NETWORKING
Networking between community groups for mutual learning is a
feature of Shared Visions. Last summer members of the Central
Iowa CSA group traveled to Benton County to visit members of the
Farm Fresh CSA group. Earlier this fall there were two additional
networking events for groups involved in Shared Visions.
On September 1 members of the Audubon Graziers traveled to the
Neely-Kinyon Field Day near Greenfield. After the event they
spent an hour and a half talking with members of the Neely-Kinyon
group. They discussed how to involve non-farmers, which both
groups viewed as a challenge. One idea was weekend farm stays.
Another was using the direct marketing of food to build
relationships, which they felt made sense, but faced problems of
cost and convenience. They also identified a need for research
on how to develop an infrastructure for farm-scale processing.
On September 12 two groups were linked using Iowa's fiber optics
network: Ag Connect from southwest Iowa and The Promised Land
group from the Grundy-Hardin county area. Members of Ag Connect
used facilities on the campus of Southwestern Community College
in Creston; members of The Promised Land group used facilities at
the Grundy Center High School. Mike Duffy of ISU Extension, Rich
Pirog of the Leopold Center, and Gary Huber participated from the
originating site on the Iowa State campus.
The meeting helped the groups gain an understanding of each
other's approaches. For example, Ag Connect's focus is on
providing beginning and retiring farmers one-on-one assistance
and connections to others with expertise, which they can do
because the group has a full-time director.
The Promised Land group, on the other hand, lacks resources to
provide this kind of service. Over time its emphasis has moved
toward examining practices and strategies that will help
beginners be successful.
The landscapes and types of farms in each area also distinguish
the groups from each other. The Grundy-Hardin county area has
some of the highest cash rents in the state, which makes it hard
for beginners to compete for land. As well, farmland in the area
is perceived as being best used for row crops, which limits
options for beginners.
On the other hand, in the area of Ag Connect cash rents are lower
and more land is suited for livestock. However, farms owned by
retiring farmers often have some cropland, quite a bit of CRP,
varying amounts of timber, and buildings and fences that need to
be repaired or replaced. The challenge is to develop a mix of
enterprises on these farms that will lead to successful
beginners.
Networking opportunities for groups will continue. At the end of
November members of the Farms Forever group from Louisa County
will visit Benton County to talk to members of the Farm Fresh CSA
group and representatives of the Iowa Producers Cooperative.
Representatives of all the groups involved in Shared Visions will
come to Ames on January 5th for a networking conference.
12^ CURRENT GROUP UPDATES
Eight groups have been involved in the Shared Visions community
groups network. Here are short updates on each.
Ag Connect
This regional program is helping beginning farmers get
established in southwest Iowa. Shared Visions is supporting the
development of a database of retiring farmers in the area. Ag
Connect has surveyed over 10,000 owners of land in the
eight-county area to identify potentially interested landowners
and obtain information on their concerns and needs.
Ag Connect has made its first match. Ag Connect will work to
bring David and Polly Sproles of Bristol, Virginia, into the
operation of Cheryl and Don Narigon near Nodaway in Adams County.
The match was announced at a press conference on the Narigon farm
in early September. Other matches are also in the works.
Audubon Graziers
Six successful pasture walks were hosted by group members this
past summer. Each included supper, a guest speaker, and the
walk. The group shared a booth at the county fair with the local
ISU Extension office and a recycling group. The booth included a
group display and a grass identification contest. Twelve members
also traveled to the Adams County CRP Research Farm field day,
and five attended the Neely-Kinyon Farm Field Day near
Greenfield.
The group's next meeting will be on December 7 when Bob Blomme, a
local veterinarian and group member, will talk about winter
grazing of stockpiled forages and cornstalks. The group has also
been invited to give a presentation at a Management Intensive
Grazing conference in Des Moines on February 7th and 8th.
Central IA Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) Project
This group recently completed the first year of its CSA project.
CSAs connect producers of food with consumers who purchase shares
at the beginning of the season. This CSA had 27 members who
received fresh produce each week throughout the growing season.
The group also had some success in its attempts to link consumers
with livestock, honey, and fiber producers.
They held monthly potluck picnics during the summer, two field
days, and a fall harvest celebration to help develop
relationships between the producers and members. The Central
Iowa CSA is currently evaluating their experience from the
perspectives of the members, producers, and organizers. They are
also organizing the First Annual Iowa CSA Workshop on December 9.
(See the announcement in the Notes and Notices section of this
newsletter.)
Farm Fresh CSA
This Benton County group also recently completed the first year
of their CSA project with 22 members receiving vegetables each
week. Ten members also signed up for shares of apples that they
received this fall. Members have been spread across a fairly
large geographic area, with some as far away as Cedar Rapids and
Iowa City. The group hosted an "Open Gardens" day at the end of
June and recently surveyed members for feedback on the
experience. They are currently recruiting members for next year.
Farms Forever
This Louisa County group sponsored three events on area farms
this summer called "Evening Entrees." (See the article by Kathy
Dice that starts on the next page for a summary of these events).
The group, which meets monthly, is now developing plans for
another project. Their ideas have focused on working to develop
an organization that will serve as a broker to link local,
sustainable producers with markets for their products. The group
is currently researching this topic.
Neely-Kinyon Farm Committee
This group, which was formed to plan for the use of the
Neely-Kinyon Research Farm just south of Greenfield, held a
successful field day on the farm on September 1. Over 150 people
heard about research on specialty soybean production and
marketing practices, non-traditional inputs for corn, impacts of
storage methods on hay quality, and intensive grazing management
of dairy replacement heifers. The results of this research are
currently being summarized in a report.
The group's project being supported by Shared Visions will engage
community members in an exploration of value-added concepts
related to the Neely-Kinyon farm. The process will probably
begin this coming January. The desired outcome is a
community-based effort to establish value-added opportunities
that encourage diversified, self-sufficient, family farms.
Poweshiek Area AG2020
This group's goal was to help area CRP owners use their land in
ways that were environmentally sound and financially profitable.
They helped conduct a 1994 CRP field day that demonstrated
options for bringing CRP land into production. They also
surveyed over 500 owners of CRP land in their County to identify
interests and determine the extent to which facilities existed to
support livestock. They then held a half-day workshop for nearly
40 of these owners. All these activities were quite successful.
Based on an analysis of a survey of members last August, the
group chose to end its efforts with these successes.
The Promised Land Beginning Farmer Program
This group formed to establish a community-based beginning farmer
program in the Grundy-Hardin County area. Their original plans
were to develop details of how the program would work, create a
guidebook for people wanting to start farming, establish a system
of community supports, and test the program with a pilot
operation. The group has since decided to focus on developing
the guidebook. The group held a Farm Profits Forum near Eldora
in early September to generate information and ideas for this
guidebook. (See the article by Don Davidson that starts on the
next page.)
14^ A SUMMING UP OF FARMS FOREVER'S EVENING ENTREES
Kathy Dice, Farms Forever
The Louisa County Shared Visions Group (now known by the snappy
name of Farms Forever) developed the idea of holding evening farm
tours as a way to provide information on alternative agriculture
and publicize the group's existence. Despite the name, Evening
Entrees (EE) were meant to give only "a taste" of alternative
agriculture.
Our goal of increasing membership was accomplished when Lois and
John Wanfalt joined the group as a consequence of being asked to
host the first EE on their place, Turkey Run Berry Farm, on May
21. Despite, or because of, this EE being held on the evening of
the first dry day in three weeks, attendance was light, 14
people. However, interaction between the audience and speakers
was very good, with the audience answering questions as well as
the speakers. The two hours was not enough for all the desired
discussions on the raising and marketing of raspberries,
strawberries, blueberries, asparagus and crawdads. All who
attended were well pleased with the information gained.
The second Evening Entree was held at Chestnut Acres on July 6.
Topics that evening included a demonstration of grafting
multiflora rose to spread disease and discussions of timber
management and the commercial possibilities of chestnuts. The
audience of 25 was most intrigued by the grafting demonstration
and IDNR district forester Stan Tate's ideas for timber
management. Once again the 7 to 9 pm time slot was too short.
Some participants continued discussions with Stan until well past
10 pm.
The third and final Evening Entree was our most popular.
Approximately 85 people attended the pasture walk that was
combined with the celebration of the 50th anniversary of the
Louisa County Soil and Water Conservation District. Group
members, soil commissioners, staff, retired staff and the general
public participated in either the pasture tour or dried flower
workshop. All enjoyed the delicious, free meal that followed.
The free meal, snow-balling publicity, and combination of events
all contributed to the huge turn out. A great deal of networking
occurred during the tour and meal as many participants swapped
advice and phone numbers.
Overall our group was well pleased with the Evening Entrees. The
offering of child care and refreshments was appreciated each
evening, and our publicity improved with each event. We should
have stressed the group's name more; some people never knew that
we hosted the event.
15^ FARM PROFIT FORUM IDEAS
Don Davidson, Promised Land Beginning Farmer Program
For several years we've been hearing a common lament: "We NEED
more FARMERS in the COMMUNITY!" True, the face of Iowa's
agricultural landscape is graying. The farming torch is passing
from the generation of Roosevelt and Eisenhower to the generation
of Reagan and Clinton. But there are few of the latter to accept
it. Why?
Farm profitability is a likely culprit. In the '50s gross farm
receipts were almost double that of gross farm expenses - a
margin of 50%. But in the '90s, this margin has shrunk to 15 to
20%! Therefore, bigger farms and more animals are needed to make
a living comparable to our urban cousins.
What is profit? How does it relate to farming? In the 1980s we
heard, "Farming is a business, NOT a way of life!" Yes, farming
is a business, but it is also a way of life, just as are the mom
and pop stores on Main Street and any other business. The
commonality is that a farming lifestyle, like any other, needs to
be financially sustainable to be able to continue. This is an
especially critical need for beginning farmers.
Beginning farmers must make good choices at the start of their
careers to keep themselves on the road of success. The Promised
Land Beginning Farmer Project was formed by some Grundy and
Hardin County farmers and community people to help beginning
farmers make the right choices. We are working toward this goal
by developing a beginning farmer guidebook that will outline a
process new farmers can use to build a base for successful
farming operations.
To help our group begin generating ideas for the guidebook, we
hosted a forum on September 9th to define farm profitability and
discuss how beginning farmers might achieve it. About 25 group
members, local farmers, community people, and PFI members
attended. Here are some ideas that came from our discussions.
The forum group decided that farm profits should be rephrased as
"adequate profits." This distinction was made as a result of a
"how much is enough" discussion. The group's discussion of a
definition of adequate profits included these ideas:
Profits = Gross sales - cash costs - depreciation
Profits should be enough to cover family living costs
Profits should only be re-invested in the operation to the
extent that they will improve long-term stability
Profit isn't always a "money" issue - other things, such as time
for family, are important
We felt that farming systems, in order to be profitable for
beginning farmers, needed to be low in investment, high margin in
cash return, and assessed for risk. (Robbing banks is highly
profitable, but extremely risky.) Profits are determined by
production (costs) and marketing (returns) and should be high
enough to cover family living costs - the profit circle! This
circle, shown here, helps think about the components of profits
more broadly than is typically the case.
Some ideas developed by the group on farm profitability as it
relates to beginning farmers were:
A. Put start-up money into something that is appreciating in
value and can regenerate itself (livestock) instead of something
that is depreciating in value or requires maintenance
(machinery).
B. Evaluate your return to labor, on a per hour basis, and find
the best use for your labor in the farm operation. For example,
one could take a grain farm, hire all the work done on a custom
basis, and make a small return of, say, $10 per acre. But the
return per hour of labor expended is relatively large ($100 to
$150 per hour) because the only labor expended is for
decision-making. Thus, labor for tractor-driving is freed for
use in high-profit enterprises. The key is to work smarter, not
harder.
C. Lay out a spending plan (cash flow or budget) and refer to it
often. We've been taught to keep records, but usually records
are only looked at once a year - TAX TIME! Keep your records,
but periodically compare actual expenses and income to the
planned expenses and income to see if you are staying on course.
Evaluate and re-plan as necessary. A plan should make cost
control easier to do, but you must take time every month to do
the record-keeping and planning.
D. Farmers of the future are going to need to spend as much time
marketing their products as they do producing them. Marketing
may have to be more active, like direct marketing to consumers.
E. New farmers should have sufficient money in hand to start
their farming enterprises. Borrowing too much will more than
likely always keep you in the hole. Some enterprises, such as
grass dairying and market gardening, provide a
"pay-as-you-produce" type of cash flow. Off-farm income during
the start-up phase is a welcome addition as long as it doesn't
compete for time with high income parts of the operation.
F. The best way for new farmers to get access to land is to buy a
small parcel and build from there. Most current landowners
prefer the security of cash rent, and competition for rental land
so extreme that it makes it difficult for beginners to compete
for this land. Look for land that other people don't want, and
figure out a way to use it to your advantage.
The group also contributed personal experiences about farming
enterprises that could meet the goals of new farmers:
Seasonal grass dairying in Iowa has shown that it can provide
net profits of $300 to $500 per acre.
Market gardening is very labor-intensive, but well worth the
returns once markets are established.
A lamb-to-finish pasture-based sheep operation provides for the
second-highest return after dairying.
Grass-pastured chickens provide a quick turnaround for the money
- six weeks from chick to meat.
Replacement dairy calves can be purchased as bottle calves and
raised to a grow-out stage (700 lbs.) for a net of $150 per head.
Pasture farrowing is a time-honored way of producing pigs.
Pasture finishing isn't as time honored, but it sure is cheaper
than confinement, and healthier for all, too.
We will be developing this guidebook through the winter and hope
to have it ready by March 1st. If anybody reading this article
has some comments we could add to the guidebook, please feel free
to call me at 319-824-6347.
17^ SUMMER 1995 ARKANSAS IFS NETWORKING CONFERENCE REPORT
by Gary Huber
Every six months people from each of the 18 Kellogg-funded
Integrated Farming Systems (IFS) projects attend a networking
conference. These conferences are designed to further the goals
of the IFS network, which include developing leadership capacity,
influencing public policy, empowering local communities, and
fostering institutional change. Another goal is to create a
network of people and organizations that shares information,
experiences, and expertise to encourage farming systems that are
sustainable.
Each conference is hosted by one of the projects. The first was
in Montana, the second in Washington, D.C., the third in Iowa,
and the fourth in California. The fifth was hosted in August by
the Arkansas Land and Farm Development Corporation (ALFDC), the
grantee for the Arkansas IFS project. Five people representing
the Shared Visions program attended the Arkansas conference.
At this gathering, we worked on setting a goal for the network
using the Holistic Resource Management decision-making model. We
broke into smaller groups to explore the topics of public policy,
marketing strategies, sustainable farming systems, and social
justice. These sub-groups discussed ways the network could
advance these concerns, both at the level of the eighteen
projects and at the national level. We also participated in
exercises providing insights into personal leadership styles.
A highlight of the conference for me was the time spent visiting
farmers and others that AFLDC has worked with over the years.
Crops in the Mississippi delta where the conference was held are
mainly rice, cotton, and wheat. We visited farms where these
were the main crops, as well as farms growing vegetables for
fresh markets. We were also invited into peoples' homes, shared
food with their families and friends, and came to know firsthand
what southern hospitality is all about. ]
19^ NOTES AND NOTICES
Maria Rosmann Appointed
Maria Rosmann received a two-year appointment to the National
Sustainable Agriculture Advisory Council of the USDA. The group
is comprised of members from the public sector and private
citizens. Maria attended her initial meeting Sept. 25-26, in
Washington, D.C. Maria Rosmann serves as PFI Public Relations
Coordinator.
New Grazing Newsletter from Wisconsin
Pasture Talk is a newsletter "serving the Upper Midwest and the
Great Lakes grazing communities." Publisher Jeff Bump contacted
PFI looking for an Iowa producer to contribute to the magazine.
In return, he sent us volume 1, number 2.
The 16-page publication we received promotes planned grazing with
farmer profiles and news of innovations and farm tours. At the
same, there were technical articles by a livestock nutritional
consultant, a veterinarian, and a Wisconsin county agricultural
educator. Also appearing was a column called "Grazing the Net"
that followed current discussion topics on the Internet. The
pros and cons of grazing corn were featured.
Pasture Talk is published monthly. A year's subscription costs
$24. Contact Jeff Bump, The GreenBull Press, P.O. Box 620732,
Middleton, WI, 53562-0732 (608-831-3787).
Meetings Scheduled
Value Added Conference Set for Dec. 9
ISU Extension and North Iowa Area Community College (NIACC) are
co-sponsoring a Dec. 9 conference titled Value Added Strategies
for Farmers - With Opportunities for Rural Communities. The
conference will be from 9 am to 4 pm at the Muse-Norris
Conference Center on the NIACC campus in Mason City.
Introductory remarks will be made by Senator Charles Grassley.
Former Congressman Cooper Evans will follow with a talk titled,
Prospects for a Profitable Agriculture.
The remainder of the day will involve breakout sessions covering
nearly 30 topics, such as Livestock Production and Marketing
Groups, Requirements and Opportunities for Organic Production,
and Accessing Available Resources for Value Added Industries.
Admission will be $30, which includes handout materials and
lunch. Questions should be directed to your County Extension
office or the NIACC conference coordinator (1-800-392-5685 - Ext.
358).
First Annual Iowa CSA Workshop Set for Dec. 9
Taking Root and Growing is the theme of this Community Supported
Agriculture (CSA) workshop, which will be held at the Iowa 4-H
Education and Natural Resources Center near Madrid. (CSAs
connect producers of fresh, healthy food with consumers who
purchase shares at the beginning of the season. Thus, consumers
share the risks with producers, but they know where their food
comes from and how it is grown.)
Speakers will include Verna Kragnes, co-founder of a CSA from
near Osceola, Wisconsin, that just completed its 6th season, and
Dan Nagengast, farmer-member of the Rolling Prairie Farmer's
Alliance from Lawrence, Kansas, a cooperative of eight farmers.
Workshop sessions will include people from three Iowa CSAs and
will cover challenges and solutions for emerging CSAs.
Registration is $15. For more information, call Jeff Hall at
515-231-4421.
Iowa Farm Business Association Market Outlook Meetings Dec. 12
and 13
The IFBA will sponsor two three-hour seminars by Leroy Louwagie
on the theme "Market Outlook-Where to from Here?" The agenda
lists four items: A) Will price ration corn usage? B) An early
peak in prices? C) Hedge all '96 production? and D) There are
profit potentials! The Dec. 12 sessions are set for 1:00 pm at
the Red Fox Inn in Waverly and 7:00 pm at the Amana Holiday Inn
in Amana. The Dec. 13 sessions will take place at 1 pm in the
Villager Restaurant, in Walnut, and 7 pm at The Hotel, in
Spencer. Non-IFBA members will pay $35 per person. Members pay
$30, or $35 for husband and wife.
CARD Policy Conference Dec. 13
The Center for Agriculture and Rural Development (CARD) will hold
its 1995 Fall Agricultural Policy Conference Wednesday, Dec. 13,
at Kirkwood College in Cedar Rapids. Speakers and topics
include: Neil Hamilton, Drake University Law Center, Agricultural
Production and Environmental Policy; Ray Bjornson, Hormel Foods,
Developing New Uses for Agricultural Products; David Johnson,
Meredith Corp., Consumer Trends: Implications for the
Agricultural Processing Industry; Varel Bailey, farmer and
legislative aide, The Role of Government in Agriculture; Loren
Kruse, Successful Farming Magazine, Positioning Agriculture for
the Future; Mike Duffy, ISU agricultural economist, Beginning
Farmers: Who will Farm the Land?; Cornelia Flora, ISU rural
sociologist, The Quality of Life in Rural Communities; and
Stanley Johnson, CARD, Large-Scale Landscape Management: New
Approaches to Rural Development. For more information call
Judith at 515-294-6257.
Feb. 7 and 8 Grazing Meeting
ISU Extension will hold its second conference on
management-intensive grazing Feb. 7 and 8 at the Westmart Ramada
Inn in West Des Moines, which is at the intersection of I-80 and
74th Street, or Exit 121 on I-80 just west of the I-80 and I-35
interchange at the west edge of Des Moines.
Featured speakers will be Jim Gerrish, grazing consultant from
the Forage Systems Research Center in Linneus, Missouri, and Ben
Bartlett, district dairy/livestock specialist for Michigan State
University. There will be general and breakout sessions, plus
self-help sessions on paddock numbers and layout. Registration
is $45 in advance (by January 30) and $60 at the door. This
includes the Wednesday evening dinner and the Thursday morning
breakfast buffet. Rooms for overnight stays cost $52 plus tax.
For more information call 515-294-2240.
Feb. 10 Organic Farming Conference in Decorah
The Natural Food Associates of Iowa Annual Conference will be
held on Feb. 10 in Room 117 of Valders Hall on the campus of
Luther College in Decorah. Registration is at 8:30 am and the
program will end at 4 pm. Speakers will focus on growing and
marketing organic foods, on creating effective partnerships
between organic farmers and consumers, and on relationships
between health concerns and food quality. Cost is $10. An
organic noon meal is extra. Call David Burns for more
information (319-238-3795).
Nebraska Dairy Grazing Conferences Set for Feb. 15 and 16
It's About Grass, Milk, and Money are the titles for two Nebraska
dairy grazing conferences. The first will be Feb. 15 in
Hartington, which is in northeast Nebraska. Call Mike Lechner at
402-254-6821 for more information about this event. The second
will be in Fairbury, which is in southeast Nebraska. Call Bob
Stritzke at 402-729-3078 about this conference. ]
20^ SWINE PRODUCTION SYSTEMS WORKSHOP FEBRUARY 21
Jerry DeWitt, Sustainable Ag Extension Coordinator,
ISU Extension
Contrary to some commonly-held perceptions in today's
agriculture, there are viable production and management options
for swine producers regardless of size. In order to discuss
opportunities and learn about alternative strategies including
economics, outdoor production, hooped structures, deep-bedded
systems, remodeling, and open-front systems, a special one-day
workshop is planned for February 21, 1996 at the Scheman Building
in Ames. This workshop will include Iowa producers discussing
their operations and experiences with these systems. Sponsors
include ISU Extension, The Leopold Center, The Iowa Pork Industry
Center, The Beginning Farmer Center, and the Iowa Pork Producers
Association.
This will be a good opportunity to learn some new ideas and talk
to other producers across Iowa who are working in these areas.
For more information on registration, contact your Extension
Office (after January 10) or call the PFI Coordinators or me at
515-294-1923. We will also have more information for you at the
PFI annual meeting in Ames on January 6. ]
21^ FARMING SYSTEMS SYMPOSIUM ATTRACTS DIVERSE GROUP
Rick Exner
While conference goers got a "taste of Iowa," there was also the
flavor of California peaches, Mexican hot sauce, and pure
Canadian water. And that was just the farmer contingent!
Producers attended from around the U.S., Canada and Mexico. The
Farming Systems Symposium, Nov. 5-8, in Ames, also hosted staff
from Midwestern Extension and NRCS offices, representatives of
nonprofit organizations, and agricultural scientists from all
over North America.
The meeting isn't easy to categorize because of the diversity of
people attending and because of the range of topics. There was
no "steel" on display, yet the subject matter wasn't entirely "up
in the clouds" abstractions. In workshops and posters, producers
and others described how they use a "systems perspective" to make
decisions about technologies, practices, and farm design.
The symposium title, Linkages Between Farming Systems and Rural
Communities, helped raise awareness of systems that are even
larger than the individual farm. The tone was set with a
pre-conference bus trip to two farms (Dick and Sharon Thompson,
Clark and Linda BreDahl) and the western Iowa town of Fontanelle,
where 50 participants enjoyed Sunday dinner and discussed issues
with community representatives.
Evening storytelling sessions, discussions over meals, and an
old-fashioned community dance also provided opportunities to make
new acquaintances and share ideas. By the end of the meeting, we
felt like a community! Thanks to everyone who presented a
poster, helped out with a session, or just came and took part.
]
21^ STRAYER SEEDS IN RECEIVERSHIP
Rick Exner
In October, financial troubles at Strayer Seeds culminated in a
state takeover of the company. Several PFI members who were owed
money by the firm for pesticide-free soybeans had reported
difficulty getting payment for the 1994 crop. An October 12
press release from the Iowa Department of Justice read in part:
The Iowa Attorney General's Office filed a consumer protection
lawsuit Wednesday alleging that Strayer Seed Farms, Inc., of
Hudson, Iowa, has failed to pay for over $1 million of edible
soybeans that farmers have delivered to Strayer.
Black Hawk County District Court Judge George Stigler issued a
temporary restraining order Wednesday ordering Strayer Seed Farms
to halt solicitations or promotions of their merchandizing
program in Iowa.
Stigler also named the State as temporary receiver in order to
protect and fairly distribute assets that could go to farmers. A
receivership would allow the State to propose an equitable
distribution of assets, to be approved by the court. The suit
noted that the defendants have received approximately $368,000 in
payment for edible beans. Those funds have been held in an
escrow account established by the Iowa Department of Agriculture
and Land Stewardship.
The lawsuit alleges that the defendants promoted an "edible bean"
merchandizing program using print advertising and sales
presentations that promised farmers a lucrative marketing
opportunity and high returns for alternative crop of edible
soybeans. . .
The suit indicated that about 100 farmers in three states have
delivered their edible beans but still are owed over $1 million
by the defendants. The suit, which was filed by the Attorney
General's Farm Division, asks the court to order a permanent
injunction on the alleged illegal activities, order restitution
to farmers who delivered beans but have not been paid, and assess
penalties for violation of the Iowa Consumer Fraud Act.
Articles in the Des Moines Register noted that Strayer Seeds has
been in business since 1904 and has exported soybeans since the
1970s. Bob Brammer, of the attorney general's office, is quoted
as conceding the problem is "not the typical flat-out scam." The
Register reported that the market for "specialty" soybeans,
largely dependent on Japan, has recently softened. At the same
time the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship
chose to apply the bonding requirement for grain dealers to
specialty grain dealers like Strayer.
The Attorney General's suit offers some compensation to
producers, but it also effectively removes Strayer as a specialty
grain dealer. There has long been speculation over the long-term
prospects of the specialty soybean market, but few people would
call it a scam. The problem small businesses face is maintaining
growth in the face of a fluctuating market. On October 24,
Strayer Seeds filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. The move leaves
open for the company the possibility of a future reorganization.
]
22^ PFI SUSTAINABLE PROJECTS 1996 WANTS YOUR IDEAS!
While you're dreaming by the fire this winter, remember PFI.
Sustainable Projects is a program established by Practical
Farmers of Iowa to help Iowans turn dreams into action. The
program makes small grants to Iowans with ideas - ideas for
projects, educational efforts, on-farm trials, and so on. About
the only thing off limits in the program is major input and
equipment purchases (see guidelines on the application form,
opposite page).
Sustainable Projects will accept proposals until Feb. 1, 1996.
(You won't get a reminder before then, so put this application
form somewhere handy!) A committee of PFI members and ISU
collaborators will review these proposals and determine by March
1 which ones will be accepted. Since 1990, Sustainable Projects
has approved 39 project proposals from Iowans. In 1995, these
five projects were accepted, for a total of $2,460:
Tom Frantzen, New Hampton - On-Farm Research on Perennial
Bushes
John and Beverly Gilbert, Iowa Falls - Pork Mix Pasture System:
"Just Add Salt and H2O"
New Melleray Abbey, Peosta - Rye for Chemical-Free Weed Control
Bob Welander and Gayle Olson, Mt. Pleasant - Youth Preserving
Agricultural Expertise
John Wurpts, Ogden - Biological vs. Conventional Fertilizer,
5th and Final Year ]
SUSTAINABLE PROJECTS 1996 PROPOSAL FORM
PRACTICAL FARMERS OF IOWA
Sustainable Projects is designed to help citizens of Iowa carry
out activities that focus on agriculture and the environment.
Sustainable agriculture has been described as preserving the soil
and water resources as well as the people involved in
agriculture. What could a Sustainable Project be? Maybe you
want to undertake an on-farm trial like those used by the farmer
cooperators in Practical Farmers of Iowa. Maybe you would like
to create a specific program for the local school or FFA that
teaches about the relationship of farming to the environment.
Perhaps you are part of a group that needs some support to have
an educational booth at the county fair. Maybe you could use
some funding to bring your community leaders together on a
related issue. Be creative!
Proposals for up to several hundred dollars will be accepted.
(PFI cooperators, for example, receive up to $400 for an on-farm
trial.) It is legitimate to include in the proposal payment for
your own time. Itemize labor and other costs in the budget you
submit. Large equipment purchases will not be funded; however,
equipment leasing may be used in proposals to defray equipment
costs.
In return for funding your Sustainable Project, we ask that you
agree to share both the results and the process that you went
through carrying out the project. That will help us to build on
past experience and share the successes of the program. A
credible "feedback," or reporting plan is one of the criteria on
which proposals will be evaluated! Plan on sharing your project
with a poster or display at the PFI annual meeting.
Projects will be chosen by a committee consisting of PFI members
and board representatives, the PFI coordinators, and
representatives of ISU and the Leopold Center for Sustainable
Agriculture. Proposals for 1996 are due by Feb. 1. Committee
decisions will be announced by March 1. Project reimbursement
will be made upon receipt of a final report.
Please return this proposal form to: Practical Farmers of Iowa,
2104 Agronomy Hall, Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa 50011.
Name of Project
_________________________________________________________________
Name Submitting
_________________________________________________________________
Address
_________________________________________________________________
Zip Code _________________________
Telephone_______________________________
Please print or type. Use additional paper if needed.
Please include an itemized budget.
Please describe the problem that this project will address and
why there is a need for the project.
Please describe what you will do in the planned project. Be
specific.
How will you communicate to the public about the project? What
kind of reporting to Sustainable Projects will you carry out?
What is the amount of money you need to carry out the proposed
project? Please itemize.
25^ AN IOWA FARMER AND HER DAUGHTER IN CHINA
Denise O'Brien
For the past two years I have been preparing to participate in
the 4th World Conference on Women without ever really knowing if
I would actually go. In March, 1995, I was participating in a
Preparatory Committee Conference at the United Nations in New
York when I was asked by the Ms. Foundation for Women if I would
go to the conference as a grantee. This, they explained, meant
that my travel and expenses would be covered by the Foundation.
In return I must agree to participate in the post-Beijing
activities that the Foundation sponsored. I would also work
within my own community to educate people about the issues that
were discussed and debated at the NGO Forum (Non-Governmental
Organizations). The Foundation agreed to take along my 17
year-old daughter, Briana. It was a mother's dream to be able to
experience such an event with her teenage daughter!
I must explain that there were two events going on in China. One
was the 4th World Conference on Women. This event was where the
official government delegation met to vote on the official
document, The Platform for Action. The other event was the NGO
Forum on Women. This was where many grassroots organizations
sponsored and participated in workshops to share information and
to network. There were approximately 500 workshops per day
starting at 9:00 a.m. and ending around 9:00 p.m.
The work I had been doing in preparation for the Forum was done
under the name of Women, Food and Agriculture (WFA). Kathy
Lawrence (a woman from Brooklyn who's heart is with farmers) and
I put together this task force in order to encourage the United
Nations community to give sustainable agriculture and women
farmers a voice. Kathy and I did most of our work over the
Internet and met many people interested in WFA.
Kathy, under the WFA name, set up a workshop that overlapped and
intertwined with the NGO Forum. The workshop, "The Global
Agriculture and Food Changes: Women's Contribution and Concerns
in Achieving Sustainable Agriculture and Food Security" ran from
August 30th through September 10th. The workshop was done in
cooperation with the China-European Union Centre for Agriculture
Technology and the Center for Integrated Agriculture
Development-Women in Rural Development Program of Beijing
Agriculture University.
Throughout the twelve days of the workshop, approximately ten
women from Kenya, Canada, Australia, China, Sri Lanka and the
United States met daily to exchange information on various
workshops attended. The women also discussed The Platform for
Action document and what changes needed to be made in order to
incorporate what was being discussed the workshops.
One aspect of the ten-day workshop was a visit to the village of
Dou Dian. Literature describes Dou Dian as the "new modernized
socialist village" with a population around 4,000 people. We
spent the day visiting the village's diverse economic
enterprises.
With the mandate that agriculture is the foundation, this village
set up other enterprises for the employment of the non-farmers.
We toured a sewing factory where the workers were sewing winter
coats for the European markets. Other enterprises include
manufacturing pharmaceuticals, a cement factory, a carpet
factory, and a meat packing plant.
What impressed us the most was that the farmers were paid the
highest wage, and agriculture was recognized as the foundation of
the economy. We went on to visit a beef feedlot, a feedlot for
the production of horse meat (my daughter was not too
enthusiastic about horses being raised for meat), and a dairy
operation.
The highlight of this site visit was looking at a bio-digester of
hog manure. This digester provided 40 households with gas for
heating and cooking. There were 1200 hogs that produced the
manure to feed the bio digester. I was surprised that there was
no smell associated with the digester and that the slurry from
the digester was used as fertilizer for the fields. We observed
many households that, besides using gases from the digester, had
solar hot water equipment on top of their houses.
It was obvious that China has a huge population. For example,
when we were at the horse/beef feedlots there were many people
mixing feed, cleaning feed floors and hauling manure manually.
Agriculture in the United States has replaced this type of labor
with machinery.
The village is a showpiece for China and our group realized that
we were seeing the best. But all of us agreed that this is what
all countries do when visited by a delegation of foreigners. The
literature and our guide made the village seem like a utopia
where all the people in the village gather to make decisions. We
knew in reality that China is a communist country just emerging
into the market economy of the rest of the world. Our visit with
the people of the village revealed that they have similar values
and expectations of their life's work as we do.
Following the visit to the village, our focus returned to the NGO
Forum and The Platform for Action. We attended and participated
in more workshops and discussions concerning sustainable
agriculture and rural life. As WFA, we sponsored a workshop
under the title of "Open Forum: Rural Women Speak Out." As
workshop planners we were not sure how this would turn out and
were pleasantly surprised to find a roomful of women from around
the world eager to participate.
The format of the workshop was that everyone would get the
microphone for four minutes and talk about anything they wanted.
Women shared success stories of rural enterprise development and
livestock production. They also shared concerns about the lack
of access to credit, the lack of opportunities to pursue
education, and the lack of technical assistance. Women
identified serious problems with water contamination and the
overuse and dependence on pesticides and herbicides.
This workshop lasted for two hours, and the conclusion by all is
that it was a success. Communication was helped by simultaneous
translation in several languages, although English was the
predominate language.
The post conference work now is to evaluate and determine whether
or not we had an impact on The Platform for Action. The
experience of working with other farmers from around the globe
was one of the highlights of the NGO Forum. In working through
problems that are impacting all our rural communities, we gained
an understanding and an appreciation of women's participation in
agriculture all over the world. We made friendships that will
continue to be nourished by our common denominator, the
commitment to providing food and the commitment to assuring that
our rural communities survive.
My Experience in China
Briana O'Brien
My experience in China is one that will stay with me forever. I
was there as a youth representative and thus attended a lot of
workshops concerning the issues of youth. I met so many neat
people, and they have all inspired me to continue the work that
they are doing now.
One thing about the trip that really stands out in my mind is a
visit we took to a local farming community. It was so nice
because after being gone for about a week it was great to see a
place that reminded me of home and fresh air that I could breath.
We went to a dairy farm and horse and cattle farm where the
animals were being raised for meat. I guess horse meat is pretty
popular over there. We also had a chance to talk to a few of the
farmers and hear their history of farming. One thing about this
community was that the farmers were the highest paid people,
which we don't find here in the U.S. ]
27^ PFI PROFILES: JEFF AND GAYLE OLSON
Rick Exner
It's one of those mid-October days with just not enough hours
when we arrive at the farm of Jeff and Gayle Olson north of Mt.
Pleasant. Gayle is preparing for a meeting in Winfield in
connection with her work as the Extension Community Development
Field Specialist for Southeast Iowa. After giving up on the
radio, she gets Jeff on the telephone for us. Yes, he can be at
the house in three hours for a picture. As if there weren't
enough to do, they have agreed to be the subjects of a PFI Member
Profile . . .
The Olson farm is near Swedesburg, about 10 miles north of Mount
Pleasant, in Henry County. In addition to corn and soybeans,
alfalfa, rye and oats find a place in support of a cow-calf herd
and a feeder pig finishing operation. (They are temporarily out
of the hog business.) The row crops are ridge-tilled, which
helps in wet conditions like those of last spring. With all the
rainy days, Jeff says he had time to tune up the planter so that
it "almost planted on water." Ridge tillage has also played a
part in several of their on-farm trials over the years - from
weed management, to fertilizer placement, to strip intercropping.
Jeff was elected to the PFI board of directors from southeast
Iowa in 1992 and serves as board vice president. He helped to
bring well-known grazier Joel Salatin to speak in Iowa City in
1994, and Jeff has represented PFI at events from Fairfield to
Florida. He says he enjoys working with the other board members,
"a group of people who like to fix their own equipment." PFI
Board meetings require a long drive to Ames for Jeff, but he has
been known to combine pleasure and work. When he can, he brings
along his bass guitar and sits in at a community dance or
tune-swapping session.
Jeff and Gayle came to PFI in 1989, when their county Extension
agriculturalist suggested they would be interested in on-farm
research. They had participated in the Resourceful Farming
demonstrations of the Iowa Natural Heritage Foundation and were
exploring alternatives in farming.
Jeff and Gayle met at the Iowa State Fair while they were in
college. He was on the staff at the 4-H Youth Inn and she was on
the State 4-H Council. In 1977, Jeff graduated from Iowa State
University with a degree in agricultural engineering. In 1978
Gayle graduated from ISU with a sociology degree. That was the
year they were married and made a home in the area where Jeff was
raised.
Although Jeff rented some land from his father, Harold, he found
lots of work in addition to farming. Putting his experience and
engineering degree to use, he built hog houses and grain
elevators, sold feed, was a partner in a construction business
and a consultant for Hawkeye Steel.
Off-farm work came naturally to Gayle as well. She worked as
Extension Youth and 4-H leader in Henry and Louisa Counties.
When their second child came along, Gayle looked for work that
would give her more flexible hours. This led to teaching health
education classes and forming "Tie One On," a business in which
she made and sold scarves. In 1988 she completed a Master's
Degree in Home Economics Education with an emphasis in health
education.
In 1991, Gayle began work at the Institute of Agricultural
Medicine and Occupational Health, in Iowa City. Through the job
she helped to bring PFI into a study of pesticide exposure, and
the Institute's van made stops at a number of PFI events to
promote farm safety.
Then in December, 1993, Gayle began work with the ISU Extension
Service as Community Development Field Specialist. Her office is
now in Mount Pleasant, which is much closer than Iowa City. On
the other hand, she serves all of southeast Iowa, so travel and
meetings now take up a lot of her time.
But Gayle likes the work. "What I'm doing at those meetings is
facilitating, helping people, communities, or organizations plan.
I'm helping them ask the questions in ways that will let them
make better plans. The keys to problem solving are framing the
problem in the right way and then being creative about potential
solutions."
Jeff says over the years off-farm work has been both an economic
necessity and an opportunity to use and develop skills. It comes
naturally to Gayle, he says. "She is just always doing
something, going somewhere."
Jeff's off-farm commitments include volunteering with the RC&D
and serving as a district soil commissioner and as PFI cooperator
and district director. He also earned a Master of Professional
Agriculture degree from ISU in 1993. "What sometimes suffers,"
says Jeff, "is an organized home." They find themselves trying
to cut back on outside activities in order to give the children
more focused attention.
The household now includes Kinsey (14), Torey (11), and Ian (5).
The girls are involved in volleyball, basketball, and softball,
and they are associate members of Explorer Post 1846, a Scout
unit that interprets the crafts and tools of the mid-1850s.
Kinsey especially shares her parents' interest in music, playing
piano and in the school band.
Torey is the naturalist. (She also plays piano and flute). Jeff
says she can spot and identify every hawk, and she keeps track of
all the owls in the neighborhood. For the last two summers,
Torey has taken part in PFI camps at the 4-H Education Center
near Boone.
There was a time when the Olsons' farming practices were
controversial in the community. Their use of reduced tillage,
reduced rates of some production inputs, and integration of
livestock and crops have all raised a few eyebrows. But Jeff
cites the late spring nitrate test as an example of technology
that benefits both the producer and the environment. And he
asserts PFI on-farm trials like those of deep-banded fertilizer
are investigating questions that really don't yet have answers.
Jeff says the landlords see that he is reducing expenses. And
Jeff, who has experienced some ambitious flops in past on-farm
trials, affirms that he is working at being a "better farmer,"
making sure ridge-till cultivation is completed and weeds are
controlled. He says they "don't win the high-input yield
contests anymore" but the landlords are happy.
The Olsons have "family goals," and an important one is what they
call "making a difference." At one time a family goal was to
farm a certain number of acres, Jeff says, but now "there's
enough for everybody." He "used to think of everyone as a
competitor." Today Jeff believes "we need more cooperation,
fewer loners." A few days after we met he went to work
harvesting the crop of a neighbor who had health problems in the
family.
"For awhile independence was held up as a goal," reflects Gayle.
"Now we're seeing that interdependence is more valuable to
everybody. That applies to business and to communities as well
as the environment - interdependence is what makes it
sustainable. In Extension to Communities we call that 'social
capital.' Social capital is the wealth of resources represented
in those relationships."
. . . Three hours later the appointed meeting time rolls around.
Unfortunately, rain is also rolling in. But Jeff's pickup is in
the drive, and Gayle is home between meetings. We walk out to
the front yard for a photo, Jeff joking that being together is
not their "natural state." During harvest, he's even been
sleeping in a trailer out by the grain dryer.
After the pictures, Jeff follows us back toward the field where
we have hand-picked some research plot corn. Before he returns
to work, Jeff finds a tarp to throw over the back of our pickup
to keep the corn dry. He scoops up a handful of soybeans from
the ground. They are "tofu" beans, and Jeff is pleased that they
are of good size. And despite the late planting, soybeans are
yielding reasonably well. With that brief exchange we part, each
hurrying to beat the oncoming precipitation. I will complete the
interview by telephone, fax, and electronic mail, accommodating
this active couple in the middle of a busy harvest season. ]
30^ USDA WORKING GROUP MEETS IN WASHINGTON, D.C.
Ron Rosmann, Harlan
On September 8, 1995, I had the opportunity to address 50
national program leaders and administrators in Washington, D.C.,
at the opening session of the newly formed USDA Working Group on
Sustainable Agriculture. The goal of this working group, as
commissioned by Deputy Secretary of Agriculture Richard Rominger,
is to increase USDA's awareness and knowledge of sustainable
agriculture and to address the barriers to wider adoption and
success of sustainable agriculture.
The group recognizes that sustainable agriculture involves more
than the science and education function of the Sustainable
Agriculture Research and Education Program (SARE). It involves
commodity programs, farm credit programs, marketing, regulations,
conservation programs, and has positive implications for rural
and community development.
Specifically, the overall task of the group is to develop a plan
of action resulting from the workshops to address identified
barriers through existing USDA programs, resources and
administrative authority. From this, an action team will be
selected to provide leadership in implementation of the action
plan and measure and report progress to the sub-cabinet group and
the Deputy Secretary.
My presentation to the group consisted of two parts. First I
outlined what I thought were some of the basic questions the
group ought to discuss and deal with throughout the duration of
their six training sessions. Secondly, I tried to provide the
group with a reality check by specifically describing our farm.
On our own 480-acre farm in Iowa, we are trying to take a
managed-natural systems approach. This is in stark contrast to
the rapidly increasing industrial model with its dependence on
purchased inputs. By managed I am referring to timeliness,
on-farm research trials, information sharing, and
management-intensive grazing. Linkages among researchers,
producers and Extension educators are vital in this managed
system. By natural systems, I mean working with nature and all
her attributes. This conjures words like crop rotations,
integration, recycling and composting of nutrients, tillage
systems such as ridge tillage, wildlife and predator-prey
relationships, microbiological life in the soil, soil tilth, and
a sense of natural rhythm and balance. This list is endless in
its possibilities.
My expectations are not as high as they used to be. Thirteen
years ago, I thought there really was a chance of changing
mainstream agriculture. Now I am beginning to realize how
complex and powerful the drive is toward corporate
industrialization of agriculture. My two worst fears for the
future are these: 1. Most of us involved in agriculture will work
for the cooperatives and the corporations; 2. The skills and the
creativity that go into the kind of farming we espouse will
disappear as our numbers diminish.
Other speakers for the opening session included Dr. Katherine
Reichelderfer-Smith of the Wallace Institute for Alternative
Agriculture, and Dr. Richard Harwood, Professor in Crop and Soil
Sciences, Michigan State University. Dr. Jerry DeWitt, ISU, was
also scheduled to be one of program speakers but due to the death
of his father-in-law, was unable to attend.
I had the opportunity to bring along one of my sons, Daniel, 12.
This is the perfect age to see our nation's capital, the many
museums of the Smithsonian Institution, and the many other
government buildings and attractions on the Mall of the Capital.
Because we were there the weekend after Labor Day, the crowds
were small.
Our hotel was only about five blocks from the capital itself.
Dan and I walked up to the capital in the evenings when literally
no one was around. It's an impressive sight in the full
moonlight. Perhaps the highlight of our sightseeing time was the
new Jewish Holocaust Museum located just to the southwest of the
Agriculture Bldg. It is both an enlightening and disturbing
testimony to the atrocities committed against not only Jews but
also against Catholics, the mentally and physically handicapped,
women and children, and others deemed inferior in the eyes of
Adolph Hitler and the Nazis. ]
31^ FOOTPRINTS OF A GRASS FARMER
PROGRESS REPORT ON THE TRAIL TO GRASS
Tom Frantzen, Alta Vista
A farm could be compared to a ship at sea. The passengers would
like to be getting somewhere, but how can they tell? They can
compare their position to other ships that they know of in the
same ocean, but what if they are all going around in circles?
While it is good to communicate with other ships (neighbors),
each vessel needs its own navigation system as well as a journal
of the voyage.
We made important changes on our farm during the past year. A
healthy exercise for any operation is to view the changes that
were made, revisit the notes on the decision to make those
changes, and observe what effect the changes are having today.
We initiated keeping written notes on important decisions in
1992. Today these notes are in a three-ring farm management
binder. Along with an improved process of decision making, this
written history is of great value today. It is very easy to
forget the reasons used to make management decisions. A journal
retains those reasons and offers great assistance in current
problem solving.
We owned a 4x4 diesel pickup truck and an 18-foot gooseneck
livestock trailer. While most livestock farms consider a truck
and trailer as necessary equipment, we analyzed this ownership
during a farm management meeting in 1993. Notes were taken. The
notes became part of our farm management history. So what
happened?
Our family agreed that owning and operating this equipment was
not compatible with our long term goals. Not only did the
operating expenses outweigh the savings, but my time spent
hauling livestock was time not spent caring for livestock at
home. The truck and trailer were sold. Maintenance and
depreciation stopped, quality of life went up, and livestock was
still raised - and more profitably!
As the truck and trailer were sold, a decision was made to
purchase a hydraulic trailer to move livestock around on the
farm. This equipment reduced labor but more importantly opened
up new pasture farrowing and gilt development opportunities.
Small and large groups of sows, gilts, or pigs can be moved
easily to harvest both pasture and row crops. We view both of
these decisions as positive to our long term goals.
The disastrous weather of '93 resulted in a special problem in
one of our cornfields. Even late in the season, the corn was too
wet to put in a crib. The kernels were so well attached to the
soft cobs that the job of separating them defied all attempts,
even one with a neighbor's rotary combine. We discussed the
problem and decided to feed the corn on the ear to our sow herd.
The results were splendid. Processing costs were eliminated, as
was feeding waste. The sow herd became more uniform because
eating ear corn is slower and "greedy" sows cannot hog down more
than their share. We continue to feed ear corn wherever
possible.
Our farm management notebook contains notes on two more decisions
both involving sow feed and ear corn. One was to plant a special
high lysine corn variety just for winter sow feed. Feeding this
corn we have been able to reduce purchased soybean meal in the
ration from 360 pounds per ton to just 100 pounds.
The other decision was to spend $600 moving a six-foot wooden
crib from a neighbor's farm to alongside the sow pens. Today
this facility allows us to supplement the gestating sows' diet
with ear corn year long with no drying, processing, or handling
expense.
Hauling water to our pasture-farrowing sows was a routine
activity on this farm. As a youth, I remember using a tank with
steel wheels and dipping out the water with a five-gallon pail.
In 1992, we decided to install an underground pasture water
system. We hired a contractor to install the plastic pipe "on
grade" to allow for fall "pre-freeze-up" draining. My only
regret was using 1-inch and not 1,-inch diameter pipe. Aside
from that error, the water system eliminated countless hauling
trips, broadened the flexibility of our pasture farrowing and
paddock grazing operations, and ended the inherent problems of a
gravity pressure water system.
Every decision did not turn out as well as the ones I just
described. We have our share of blunders, and they are
documented as well. The notes from our errors are usually more
valuable than notes from good moves. While a sound
decision-making process is vital, notes taken during the actual
decision making have become a valuable resource for our farm's
management.
The majority of the '95 farm management discussions are centered
on moving more of the farm to grass. What type of stock, how to
facilitate their care, and what fields to seed down are all
important considerations. As the New Zealand graziers say, "The
more we look at grass, the better grass looks." ]
FROM THE KITCHEN
Marj Stonecypher
Fall is definitely here, or is it winter? Got crops all out
October 26. Worked 'till midnight, but it's done. We usually
quit about 9:00 or 9:30, but with rain moving in we wanted to get
done. Then it takes a couple of mornings of late sleeping to get
caught up. Right!!!! You farmers know all about it? Now to get
the yards cleaned, stalks chopped and some chisel plowing before
it freezes. Not to say anything about my yard and garden work
that I need to finish. I try to do it while the grain is
unloading.
Here are a couple of recipes I use for this time of the year.
SQUASH CASSEROLE
1 + - 2 + lb. cooked squash
8 oz. sour cream
1 can cream chicken soup
1 large onion
4 small carrots
1 stick butter melted
1 small pkg. Pepperidge Farm Herbal bread crumbs or Stove Top
In blender grind carrots and onion. Mix all together and bake
for 35 minutes at 350 degrees. Top with some grated cheese and
bake for 15 more minutes.
Hint: Add 2 Tbsp. mashed potatoes to squash - will make it like
whipped squash.
QUICK BROWN BREAD
1 cup white unbleached flour
2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
1 cup brown sugar
3 Tbsp. melted butter
1/4 cup molasses
1 1/4 cups buttermilk
1 egg, beaten
2 cups whole wheat flour (I used Hodgson Mill)
Mix white flour, baking soda and salt. Blend in brown sugar and
wheat flour. Add melted butter, molasses, buttermilk and egg.
Beat until batter is smooth. Pour into 9 x 5 x 3-inch loafpan.
Allow to stand 20 minutes. Bake 45 minutes at 350 degree
preheated oven. Turn out on wire rack to cool. (For muffins,
fill 2/3 full. Bake 20 to 25 minutes.)