4-H could help turn around falling farm numbers
By LaVon Griffieon
Guest Opinion - Iowa Farmer Today
July 13, 2002
Over the past hundred years 4-H has influenced the lives of hundreds of thousands of
Iowa youth. Jessie Field Shambaugh planted the seeds for 4-H when she formed Boys
Corn and Girls Home Clubs, which met on alternate days after school at Goldenrod
country school in Page County, Iowa. She promoted hands-on practical learning so that
rural children could improve personal skills, agricultural practices and their quality of
life. A by-product of that program was that parents learned new and better ways of doing
things along with their children.
4-H has changed over the years. It's not just for rural children any longer. However, it
continues promoting practical learning that leads to a better quality of life. As I parent I
can attest that the learning continues for all involved.
As the number of farms continues to fall in Iowa, (we lost 1500 last year alone) I often
wonder what the county fair livestock contests are actually preparing my kids for. My
husband and each of his siblings showed beef in 4-H and they raise beef on their farms
today. But I have a suspicion that not all of my kids will be raising beef in ten years. Yet
I feel that 4-H could have a hand in turning those falling farm numbers around.
Three years ago my son, Nick, took his hormone-free, antibiotic-free, pastured poultry to
the fair. He was told the best way to place high in the class was to feed the chickens he
was going to show at the fair a different feed with antibiotics and hormones. These
additives were growth stimulants. Nick stated that he couldn't make as much money if he
fed the feed additives to his poultry. The judge agreed but repeated that if he wanted to
win at the fair, he needed to consider the growth hormones.
4-H could serve Iowa well by educating rural and urban youth about community-based
food systems. Iowans would benefit in learning about the interdependence between our
rural and urban citizens. Having food grown in our state that is healthy for our bodies,
families, farms, soils, water, environment and economy needs to emerge as a societal
issue.
County fair boards have the option of adding specialty classes to their county fair.
Special classes for animals raised without feed additives or hormones and garden produce
that is grown naturally or organically would be a nice addition to county fair
competitions. If the trend becomes common at the local level, more than likely it would
be considered at a state level for a classification at the State Fair.
As consumers become more aware of the value of a community-based food system which
sustains family farms, is environmentally sound, promotes health and is locally owned
and controlled, they are going to be willing to pay the price necessary for the produce that
comes from that system. Multi-national
corporations and Wal-Mart, the largest grocer on the planet, will not be spending their
money on fancy ad campaigns to tell the American consumer about the value of locally
grown foods. It is going to be a grassroots effort, much like Jessie Shambaugh’s, that
helps educate consumers about the value of a community-based food system.
Producers need to be the first to accept the facts. After years of increasing their acres to
make a living, often at the expense of their smaller neighbors, many conventional farmers
are convinced that you have to be big to be in farming. Yet a 1999 Farm Bureau report,
Farming in the Heartland's business in crisis, tells us that while personal income in the
US increased 65% from 1989 to 1999, farm income decreased. Practical Farmers of
Iowa and the Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture have years of research proving
that farms don't have to be big to make money.
While the media and others tell us repeatedly the family farm is passe, a link to a bygone
era with a romantic past that never existed, it's time Iowans speak up and tell the media
and policymakers the facts. Iowans spend $8 billion a year on food. Eighty percent of
that food is brought in from out of state and travels between 1200-1800 miles to get here.
Do the math and don' forget to include all the benefits. If we had small farms producing
fresh food locally the greater share of our money would stay here in Iowa. Consumers
would know where their food is coming from and who produces it. Fresh produce is
healthier for us. Iowans would have local fod security. Small farms using sustainable
practices are environmentally friendly. Small farms producing local foods do not require
the financial overhead for expensive equipment that big farms require. This would
enable more young people to get started in farming.
Sustainable agriculture can co-exist with conventional agriculture. This Doesn't have to
be a we vs. them situation. Iowa's rural communities are losing population and main
street businesses are dwindling. The average age of farmers is 53.4 years. In the next 15
years we are going to see a mass exodus of independent farmers. If the face of Iowa's
rural communities is going to endure Iowa needs to have a plan to place more people on
the land. Our window of opportunity to do this diminishes each day. Fifteen years from
now, today's beginning 4-H members will be completing college and looking for
a career.
Let's educate our young 4-Hers about the importance of community-based food
systems. Let's develop new fair classes for them to compete at county fairs across Iowa.
As they improve their skills, agricultural practices and quality of life we will see Iowa
take a step back to a method of agriculture that provides a sustainable future.
Editor's Note: LaVon Griffieon of Ankeny, Iowa, is a farmwife and co-founder
and president of 1000 Friends of Iowa. LaVon is also a Food and Society Policy Fellow,
a national fellowship program designed to educate consumers, opinion leaders and
policymakers on the challenges associated with sustaining family farms and food systems
that are environmentally sound, health promoting and locally owned and controlled. The
fellowship is funded through the W. K. Kellogg Foundation.