NFU Blog

It has been an exciting time to be in Washington, D.C. and seeing first hand the farm bill process continue over the past few months; I have learned so much about agricultural policy and the way that it impacts U.S. producers. At school, my major is international relations, so at NFU, I was able to see how the international trade issues that I studied in the classroom related to agriculture and my roots on the farm at home. At NFU, I had a chance to attend Congressional committee hearings, farm bill conference meetings and also help with a press conference. One of the highlights of this semester was going to the NFU convention in Las Vegas in March. I truly enjoyed my experience here and am glad that I had the opportunity to intern at NFU.

Ashley Peppler is from Mead, Colorado and attends American University in Washington, D.C.

Eden Peart is not a native Hawaiian, but she’s been living there so long it’s hard to tell. Eden grew up in Eureka, Calif., but has been on the “Big Island” for twenty-four years. She attended college in Eureka and has been involved in agriculture in various capacities in both Hawaii and California since she was eighteen.

On her fourteen acres in Honoka’a, Eden grows native and endemic trees, as well as traditional Hawaiian crops including sweet potatoes, passion fruit, bananas, mangos, avocados, coconuts, coffee, cacao, citrus and taro. Taro is also known as kalo, the traditional staple root of Polynesia, which is considered an ancestor of Hawaiian people. Eden also grows Inga trees, also known as ice cream bean trees because they often have edible seeds that resemble vanilla ice cream in flavor. Ingas are a fabulous nitrogen-fixing tree native to the Amazon that provide a fine shade canopy for coffee, cacao and other tropical crops. Eden also hopes to soon expand into some organic flower and herb production.

While Hawaii Farmers Union is still in its infant stages, Eden has been a National Farmers Union member-at-large for several years. As she became more familiar with agricultural issues and about sustainability issues affecting all family farmers in Hawaii through the development of her own farm, she felt she needed to bring the perspective and resources of the Farmers Union to her state.

Continue reading…

Lila Watkins lives in Claremore, Okla., with her husband Ralph, and the couple has been happily married for 58 years. Both Lila and Ralph are lifetime members of Oklahoma Farmers Union. Lila has been very involved, but not in a typical way. She has attended local and state meetings, as well as a few national conventions, but Lila has also been the All-States Leadership Camp nurse for twenty years.

“To watch and follow the development of our young people throughout the country has been a great joy for me,” Lila said. “I am so grateful to be part of this organization and to be able to help our youth learn about Farmers Union.”

Continue reading…

Nearly everyone has wondered at least once why in the world we change our clocks twice a year to adjust for “daylight” hours. Most people will attribute it to farmers, who presumably need the extra sunlight for planting and harvesting crops. Others still will attempt to use an ancient tale of those living in nearly constant darkness to explain this strange necessity.

My intuition tells me neither is true.

Whatever the explanation may be, ABC’s 20/20 attempts to uncover the secrets behind the bi-annual tradition and debunk the myth that modern-day farmers actually need the extra daylight hours to feed and fuel America.

Watch the show, “Your Weather: Myths, Lies and Downright Stupidity,” on Friday, April 18 at 10:00 p.m ET. ABC also ran a story, “What (or Who) Is Daylight-Saving Time Saving? Myths and Truths About Why We Change the Clocks,” yesterday about the time-change mystery.

When asked what activities and organizations she was involved with, Marge Kilkelly replied, “Oh, where to begin…”

In addition to New England Farmers Union, Marge rattled off several organizations including Knox Lincoln Soil Water Conservation District, Maine Farm Bureau, American Meat Goat Association, Empire State Meat Goat Association and Main Regulatory Fairness Board.

A Masters Degree in Community Economic Development is also under Marge’s belt. She uses her knowledge and skills off the farm for the Council of State Governments Eastern Region on agriculture and rural policy.

“Rural economic development should honor and celebrate the skills of rural people, not try to change them,” Marge said. “I have tried my best to stay true to that theory in my work.”

Marge also served in the Maine legislature, where she helped create The Northeast States Association for Ag Stewardship. After her term finished, she continued on the project as a staff person. Marge has also developed a free weekly e-newsletter, NSAAS News Gleanings, which covers news and issues from around the region. Click here to sign up!

“I am blessed to be able to work from my farm on regional ag policy and then walk out in the barn and live ag policy,” Marge said. “I think it helps keep me very pragmatic about the impact of public policy on the ability of farmers to earn a living.”

Continue reading…

This afternoon, NFU President Tom Buis attended “The Rural Development Title of the Farm Bill: Why it is Vital to Rural America,” a briefing sponsored by the National Grange Foundation. Presenters at the event addressed specific rural development issues including access to high speed internet, renewable energy development and library facilities in rural areas.

Title VI of the farm bill addresses rural development, and this briefing aimed to highlight the importance of funding programs in rural America. Access to high speed internet is vital for rural economic development; studies have shown that state-of-the-art communications, coupled with transportation, education and library services, is absolutely essential in stimulating economic development in rural America.

Buis also highlighted the importance of providing incentives and opportunities for growth in the renewable energy sector in rural America. Locally-owned projects generate 2.6 times more jobs and 3.1 times more rural economic benefit than those with outside ownership.

“Rural areas will see much more economic activity from locally-owned projects than they will from corporate-owned projects,” Buis said. “Local investors will re-invest in the community where the project is based. Big companies will filter out their profits to other areas.”

Andrew Vetter grew up on a small family farm outside Linton, N.D., and eventually inherited the land from his parents without much contest when his three other brothers decided to leave farming. Andrew has been keeping the Vetter family tradition going strong for nine years, after his parents retired from the business.

Kristen became involved in farming when, well, she married a farmer. She has completely embraced farming as if she were born and raised on a farm, and works right alongside Andrew five days a week. The other two days, Kristen works off the farm for North Dakota State University Extension Service which aims to educate North Dakotans, emphasizing strengthening agriculture and developing the potential of youth, adults and communities.

The Vetters’ farm raises cattle, has a cattle feedlot and runs a small grains operation. The couple also used to own and operate a pumpkin patch and a corn maze for six years.

Continue reading…

By Tom Buis, National Farmers Union President

The following letter was to the editor of TIME magazine in response to the magazine’s April 7 cover story, The Clean Energy Scam.

The Clean Energy Scam must be what Dwight Eisenhower was talking about when he said, “farming is mighty easy when your plow is a pencil and you’re a thousand miles from the nearest corn field.”

It’s easy for those far away from the heartland to point fingers; yet rural Americans are the ones finding the solutions we need to decrease our dependence on oil.

Land conversion in developing countries, as explained in the article, has been occurring for decades. In fact, the Science article quoted by author Michael Grunwald uses land conversion data from the 1990s, long before the expansion of the ethanol industry and when commodity prices were at record lows.

Continue reading…

Dan Moore grew up on a family farm, so when it came time for him to choose his career path, farming came quite naturally to him. Deciding to join Illinois Farmers Union at the age of 20 seemed to come almost as naturally as his decision to become a farmer. At the time, there was not a county chapter in Dan’s area, but he knew he wanted to become a part of the organization. He soon chartered the Tri-County chapter where he is currently the president.

“I joined Farmers Union because it is the only organization that helps keep farmers on the farm,” Dan explained. “I knew it was an organization I needed to be a part of.”

Over the years, Dan has stayed very active and involved in the ILFU state organization as well as his local chapter. He currently sits on the state board and served for three terms as the state secretary and treasurer. Dan has also been to several national conventions where he was awarded a Silver Star.

“National conventions are my favorite Farmers Union events because they bring together members from all over the country,” Dan said. “Everyone can meet and discuss their ways of living and farming, which I feel can be very interesting and beneficial in this industry.”

Continue reading…