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Farming's futureneeds more help By Larry Dreiling A recent meeting I attended gave me lots of hope and lots of concern. Hope, because of the people I met. Concern, because I fear many of the people I met may someday have few places to bring their talents to the forefront. The meeting was the 88th annual convention of the National Block and Bridle Clubs at Kansas City, Mo. At the invitation of the host clubs--my alma mater, Fort Hays State University as well as Kansas State University--I had the honor of being the moderator at a panel discussion on farm issues during the convention. To the uninitiated, Block and Bridle members are college students interested in animal science. One of the main objectives of B&B is the enhancement of professional skills of students who will one day be industry leaders. As a matter of fact, the young attendees are not called students, but are called leaders by their peers and the faculty advisors. The term isn't used lightly. The panel was a cadre of sharp guys: Top ag media and governmental relations guru Charlie Arnot; John Sitka, president of Certified Angus Beef; Bruce Brinkmeyer, vice president of member services for Dairy Farmers of America; Dr. Mike Tokach, Extension state leader for animal science and industry at K-State; and Dr. Rick Tanner, northeast district trustee for the Kansas Veterinary Medical Association. While I asked a few questions as we ran through a list of topics, from animal welfare to vertical integration and from business ethics to consumer perception issues, the leaders were asked even better questions when I opened the microphones to them. I stood there at the podium thinking to myself, "Wow, these kids are great! Lessee, here's a guy that could likely be a member of Congress in a few years. Here's a gal who might run the National Cattlemen's Beef Association some day. This man someday might be on the CAB board and will be Sitka's replacement when he decides to retire." In an hour and half, I was truly revitalized in my belief that the future of American agriculture is going to be just fine because of leaders like the B&B members I met. The drive home, however, put a couple of sobering thoughts in my head. First, will these students have a place to work and grow into the leaders we'll need down the road? Second, can we structure production agriculture to give these leaders room to develop? While I think agribusiness will certainly find room for these young leaders, it's on the farm and ranch where I have a great concern. So many times I've heard from older producers that no younger family members are interested in taking over their operations when they retire. Instead, the farm or ranch is sold to the highest bidder, agriculture continues to consolidate, and small town America furthers its disappearance. Driving back from meeting these mostly 18- to 25-year-old people, the notion dawned on me that we, who are established in production ag, need to make some room for these folks. Often their parents' operation isn't big enough for another family member. Or they may not have the capital to buy a farm or ranch on their own, but have knowledge and skills. Those skills may be useful on an older person's place today with the idea of transferring ownership to that young person in the future. Somewhere, somehow, there has to be a way for older folks and young people to meet up, partner up and offer that young person an opportunity to earn his or her way into ownership shares of a farm or ranch operation. We can bring these mostly rural young persons back to farms and ranches, helping us slow the erosion of small town Main Streets and schools. The debate over the 2007 farm bill is finally nearing conference discussions. This is where farm bills are really formed. We know that more than a few members of Congress and their staffs read this publication. Why not add a little funding for a small, pilot program through Extension to a few states where big farms and ranches prevail to offer a meet and greet service, sort of an eHarmony.com for older and potential younger producers to hook up for business. Use the skills of farm management specialists to develop succession planning and to work with these pairs in finding financing so the land can stay intact and not be sold for development or further consolidation. Surely America's ag lenders would love to have more customers and would be helpful with the program. There are a lot of really great young people who, if given an opportunity, are itching to get their fingers dirty in farming and ranching. We need some out of box thinking to get them out of suits and back to the soil. Larry Dreiling can be reached by phone at 785-628-1117 or by e-mail at ldreiling@aol.com. 11/12/07 Date: 11/7/07
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