Agriculture advocates address convention
Two ranchers from South Dakota reinforced the theme of the “Innovation Generation” Tuesday during the closing session of the Arkansas Farm Bureau’s 69th annual Officers and Leaders Conference at the Hot Springs Convention Center.
South Dakota ranchers Troy and Stacy Hadrick encouraged farmers and ranchers to open the lines of communication between producers and consumers.
“Advocating for agriculture is an important, important part of the Farm Bureau mission, here in Arkansas and across the country,” said Farm Bureau President Randy Veach.
The Hadricks consider themselves pioneers in the agricultural advocacy movement, traveling the world educating farmers about their role in building a positive image of modern agriculture. The pair decided the best way to bring that about would be to share their story, while encouraging others to do the same.
“People are hungry to know where their food comes from, and it’s best that information comes from the source,” said Troy Hadrick.
Hadrick is a fifth-generation cattle farmer based in north central South Dakota, where he works his family’s farm and ranch, raising cattle, soybeans, corn and wheat with his wife and three children.
In 2002, The New York Times published an article by Michael Pollan documenting the journey of meat from cattle to table. Pollan’s calf came directly from
Hadrick’s father-in-law’s farm in South Dakota, and he followed the entire process, from artificial insemination to slaughter.
The article paints a grim picture of the cattle industry, calling the feed lot his cattle ended up in “plague-ridden” and a “recipe for disaster.” However, Hadrick insists the portrait the article paints is false.
Hadrick and his wife decided after the article was published that they would never let another person attempt to tell their story, and took it upon themselves to educate fellow farmers and ranchers, and anyone else curious about where their food comes from.
“What better way of being a part of that ‘innovation generation’ than to use all of the tools that we have to share (our) story. What better way than just sharing just a little picture from home and starting up a conversation with someone about where their food comes from and who grows it?” Troy Hadrick said, sharing a picture of his farm in South Dakota.
The Hadricks started developing the mission behind their organization, Advocates for Agriculture, in 2006. The program sends them across the globe to speak with all different types of farmers and ranchers. Each time they speak, they work to educate farmers and ranchers on the importance of creating an open dialogue with consumers.
Stacy Hadrick suggested having a 30-second elevator speech ready at all times, to enable a farmer or rancher to tell a stranger their personal story and create an opportunity for further discussion about agriculture.
“Once people hear that you’re involved in agriculture, they’re going to start asking questions,” she said.
“I often say meeting a real farmer or a real rancher is like having an encounter with bigfoot. We all know bigfoot is out there, but we just never see him. That’s how we are in farming and ranching — we’re that elusive to people,” she said.
They said their overall goal is to break down the barrier between producer and consumer, and reconnect people with the food they eat, and they strive to give farmers and ranchers the tools to show the human element to the beef industry.
Workshops at the conference covered topics such as state legislative issues, on-farm technology, effective disposal of crop protection products, livestock and crop overviews and the role of the new Arkansas Farm Bureau Foundation, a news release said.
Farm Bureau also announced winners of its Young Farmer & Rancher competitions, as well as recognized the recipients of the Romeo E. Short, Farm Bureau Foundation and Marvin Vines Memorial scholarships, at the conference.