“Musings of a Pig Farmer” by Larry Sailer

Weather and politics are always tops of mind for farmers and for very good reason – both greatly impact our livelihoods.  At this time, both are weighing heavily on my mind.  That’s why today I’m going to begin with a brief recap of the weather, followed by a summary of a few political issues.

We’ve been fortunate enough to receive some rainfall over the past two weeks.  I’m looking for the silver lining here, and this is the best that I have:  “Subsoil moisture improved and is now rated 60 percent very short and 34 percent short.”  According to yesterday’s report by the Iowa Department of Agriculture & Land Stewardship (IDALS), only 6% of our soils have adequate moisture.

“Record low precipitation totals” have been making the headlines for nearly a year now.  The 2011 harvest proceeded rapidly because there were few days when farmers had to shut down the combines due to rainfall; the same holds true for this fall.  Even the spring and summer months were dry.  A summary of the summer months shows Iowa received 6.61 inches less than normal, and now we’re behind 16 inches of rainfall!

Creeks and ponds have been drying up, but thankfully a few streams are flowing again after recent rains.  There is a trickle of water running from tile lines in my fields (see photos above), but more precipitation is needed for a good crop in 2013.  There is an 80% chance that North Central Iowa will be hit with thunderstorms tomorrow night, and I’m hoping it amounts to more than a few booms of thunder and a few flashes of lightning.  A good inch or two of steady rainfall would be greatly appreciated!

While folks here are praying for a good rainstorm, there is another storm brewing on the political front.  Farmers must get engaged especially this election year as there are so many issues of great consequence being discussed.  The Farm Bill is one of the biggest political hurdles we face, especially as we address how to feed a growing and hungry world.

Food security was at the forefront of discussions last week when world players gathered in Des Moines for the annual World Food Prize award and symposium.  Of course, these great leaders talked about sustainability and all the different angles that word brings with it.  Food is the most basic of the basic needs.  Wars have been fought and governments have collapsed due to food shortages.  We can all talk about conservation and sustainability, but if people do not have enough food to eat, none of the rest matters!

It’s time to make policy with compromise… that makes sense!  Feeding the billions of people with a finite amount of resources is going to take all of the imagination, skill and technology we can imagine.

This is an important election, so I’m encouraging all of my family members and friends to do a little homework and see where each candidate stands on important issues.  Do you know where the candidates stand on agriculture?

It seems that I’ve had to do my share of compromising over the past two weeks.  I should have been focused on getting my crops harvested, but major media outlets wanted me to take time to meet with them and discuss everything from how corn is grown to how my business is affected by the Farm Bill – or lack thereof.  Just as soon as I got my combine rolling smoothly, it broke down and I lost another day of prime harvest time.  Once again, I found myself having to compromise what I wanted to get done with what the repairman could get done.

Regardless of your profession, I’m sure you can emphasize with my situation.  There is progress to be made but you find yourself stymied by the current events.  My own corner of the world seems to be paralleling what’s happening on the national level.  Each day – as the election draws nearer – there are several news reports and advertisements reminding us of how two opposing sides are unwilling to settle and reach an agreement.

Politics are mired in a standoff between our two main political parties.  The Left thinks we need to spend to expand the economy through more spending.  The Right thinks we need to cut spending and reduce restrictive regulations. My concern is that if the United States doesn’t get its deficit under control, it won’t matter who’s on the Left and who’s on the Right because we simply won’t be able to help the people who need it most.  Food, shelter and education for a future job should be the basic goals.  I also believe education is key to helping others help themselves.  Other folks believe cell phones should be added to the list of “basic necessities.”  It’s obvious that some compromise must be reached – and soon.

Such issues return my thoughts to the 2012 Farm Bill and to the Food Security Act.  An article in The Des Moines Sunday Register on Oct. 14 quotes the 2001 World Food Prize Recipient as saying that “the problem is not that the world is running out of food but that many people lack access or knowledge about how to grow it.”

Food stamp rolls have soared 18.5 million since 2008 to a record 46.7 million people, according to that same Register article.  About one in seven Americans now receives government help to buy food.  The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) reported last month that Americans are having a harder time getting food than ever before as the economic downturn continues to weigh on households throughout the country.

While it’s a challenge for Congress to pass a Farm Bill that includes food stamps and ag subsidies, one could make the case that there is a natural tie between farming and food security.  Farming, after all, produces mainly food.  Farming also produces other useful products like cotton for clothing, pig heart valves and ethanol to name just a few.  Agriculture is a huge renewable economic machine.  (“Renewable” is a key word here.)

America needs agriculture!  That’s why it’s imperative to bring the U.S. budget under control.  Everyone loses if we hit the fiscal cliff that is getting closer and closer.  Let’s compromise and move this country forward.  It’s time to find solutions to some very big problems.  It’s time for some compromise!

“Musings of a Pig Farmer”
by Larry Sailer

This past week has been a whirlwind of activity. Not only am I trying to get my crops harvested, but I’ve been swamped with calls from the media for interviews. In just two days’ time, I received calls from Reuter’s, Fox News Network and a network from Japan! This is on top of the Franklin County’s Harvest Tour 2012 for bloggers.

These media inquiries really took me by surprise and served as a real eye opener to me about the power of the Internet. A hog farmer — in the middle of farm country in North Central Iowa — is not someone or someplace that comes readily to mind as the center of media attention. Through Google and interviews and blogs, however, it’s not possible to hide on the farm any more.

When I set out to share the story of farming and to listen to what people removed from the farm were concerned about, I didn’t really think about how exposed I would become. I have to tell you this farmer would just as soon hide in the hog barn as be in the spotlight. Yet, here I am being featured by national media outlets. Crazy!

The first interview with Reuter’s was pretty painless. We talked on the phone for about 10 minutes, discussing the “Farm Bill”. Pretty easy stuff. I always try to talk about what I know and what affects me here in Iowa. The Farm Bill is such a complicated piece of legislation that I’m not surprised it’s so difficult to reach consensus. Not only is farming and ranching very diverse across this country, but the SNAP program and so many other issues are wrapped up in the same bill. On top of that, Congress is trying to reduce the budget. No wonder the Farm Bill has yet to pass!

Fox News wanted to talk about the upcoming election and what I think are the most important issues. Now I know they’re going to trim what I say into about 15 or maybe 30 seconds. Believe me, that does not cover my thoughts. I can’t wait to view it this Thursday to see what Fox chose as my sound bite. They did video our soybean harvest to give viewers a farming flavor.

The next video crew was from Japan, and they were on my farm for two full days. This will have to be a whole new blog, which I plan to post in a couple weeks.

I do want to talk about our Franklin County Harvest Bloggers Tour, which is held (1) to showcase our county’s tourism attractions and (2) to help non-farmers understand how their food is raised. This is the second year that I’ve been involved with this event. I’m including pictures shared by Deb Brown. Pictures show the people involved much better than I can describe this tour.

The first bloggers tour in October 2011 is the reason I blog. That and the help and patience of Shannon Latham, who lets me share a guest blog every Tuesday on TheFieldPosition.com.

I survived last week and even harvested some crop with the help of my family. Special thanks to my wife, Janice, who kindly made food and ran after me for three days. My son Corey and grandson Devin drove combine plus daughter Charlotte helped make food and brought along more Grandkids, Darin and Carlie, to make my place a little more video friendly.

I can understand why many farmers resist doing this type of sharing because it does take time and effort. Plus, it exposes a very personal part of our lives to the world. But if we want to have a conversation with the people who consume what we produce — and help them understand why we do what we do — then we need to be transparent. We must let them see inside our operations.