September 2019

After reading Rob Maharry’s recent editorial regarding Iowa’s water quality and the recent bill signed by Governor Reynolds, I was troubled by many things, including the title “It has to be somebody’s fault.”  That “somebody” he alludes to is Iowa’s farmers, despite farmers leading the way in Iowa’s conservation efforts.   Before this new law and funding mechanism, farmers began adopting practices outlined in Iowa’s Nutrient (fertilizer) Reduction Strategy.
 

One of my favorite television programs and repeated Netflix binges, “Parks and Recreation,” illustrates the myriad ways in which small-time politics (the show is set in fictional Pawnee, Indiana) can devolve into little more than constant mudslinging, settling personal scores and carnival barking. I’d generally like to think Iowans, specifically in this area, are better than that, but an interaction I witnessed last week leads me to wonder.
           

GRUNDY CENTER – The farming industry has changed and evolved considerably over the past 100 years, but through it all, the values and mission of the Grundy County Farm Bureau has remained the same: to support the local farmers and to strengthen the community through education and advocacy on agriculture.
Now, as the Grundy County Farm Bureau celebrates 100 years, current and former leaders at the Farm Bureau took time to reflect on the past, present and future of the organization.