August 31, 2023 • 17 mins
In this episode, we talk with American Farm Bureau Federation President Zippy Duvall during his visit to Western New York. In this episode, President Duvall shares insights from his conversations with local farmers about their issues, including natural disasters, supply chain disruptions, and inflation. As a third-generation farmer, Duvall understands firsthand the challenges farmers are up against. Tune in to hear Duvall's perspective on agriculture today and what lies ahead as he continues to be a leading voice for American farmers and ranchers.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:00):
The foundation of New York Farm Bureau is our grassroots members.
(00:08):
Their stories drive public policy engagement at the local, state and national levels.
And it's why the president of American Farm Bureau, Zippy Duvall, came to New York this
week.
Hi, I'm Steve Ammerman, New York Farm Bureau's director of communications.
And welcome to News Bites.
Zippy Duvall has served as president of the American Farm Bureau Federation since 2016
(00:28):
as a third generation farmer from Georgia.
Through his leadership at AFBF, President Duvall has helped to shape the 2018 Farm Bill
that is currently working to ensure the 2023 Farm Bill effectively supports farmers and
ranchers all across the country.
He's helped defeat misguided regulations, helped to make sure farmers are supported
during natural disasters and in the impacts of the supply chain and inflation disruptions,
(00:50):
and has been a leading voice on the importance of trade.
He cannot do this without the support and guidance from Farm Bureau members.
That's why he and his wife Jennifer toured parts of Western New York agriculture this
week to get a better understanding of the issues farmers in our region are facing so
he can go back to Washington and share those stories with policymakers.
We sat down with him in the middle of the tour to talk about what he's hearing and
(01:13):
what are some of the major priorities for American Farm Bureau.
So President Duvall, it's great having you here in New York.
I know you're out visiting a lot of farms, talking to members, which is an important
part of your job.
For those who may not be familiar with the role of president of American Farm Bureau,
talk a little bit about what you do and what your routine is like.
(01:34):
Well, there's not really a routine to it because I never know from one week to the next where
I'm going to be at.
But basically I spend weekends on my farm trying to pay the bills, catch up, give people
that work for me a little relief.
And then during the work week, I spend about half my time in the office in Washington,
(01:55):
DC, the other half on the road visiting either at the Farm Bureau meetings or just out on
the farm visiting with our grassroots members.
So you talked about your farm.
You're a farmer at heart.
It's who you are.
It's what you do.
What is your farm like in Georgia?
Yeah.
Well, the first thing is the hardest part of this job is leaving your farm because everybody
loves their farm and look forward to doing it and growing it and making it better each
(02:18):
and every day.
But, you know, when God has a will for you, you search for what that will is and you head
in that direction and answer the call of send me, you know.
And so my farm was a dairy farm.
I grew up on a dairy farm.
I had a love for beef cattle when I was a young guy in high school and had a little
beef herd.
(02:39):
But realized right quickly after college that was not a way I was going to feed a family
with beef cattle.
Ended up staying in a dairy business, brought my dad out, spent 30 years there dairy on
my farm.
We went from about 100 cows to 300.
In the 80s when it was so difficult, we diversified into poultry and now we have eight poultry
houses.
We've gotten out of the dairy business and we replaced about 400 mama cows.
(03:03):
My son and I are a great farm manager.
So now you're visiting farms here in Western New York.
What do you think of what you've seen?
I know we have more farms to visit today.
And how does this agriculture in the Northeast compare to say agriculture in the South where
you grew up?
Yeah, I think here you're more diversified.
I haven't seen a lot of animals yet but I think we're going to see some more animal
(03:25):
agriculture today.
I would say I think the labor needs here are more intense especially because of the fruits
and vegetables that's being grown in this area which is amazing.
You think about New York, you think cold and then cold doesn't grow fruits and vegetables
but man I've seen some awesome fruit and vegetables yesterday.
(03:47):
But I think very diversified and a great need for skilled labor.
Well that kind of gets into some of the issues that we're working on at Farm Bureau in particular
at American Farm Bureau and labor is one of the priorities.
I know I heard you say yesterday that it's something that you hear about a lot when you're
out meeting the farmers.
From your position at AFB, what are some of those areas that you're looking to address
(04:13):
in Washington to help with our labor needs here in New York?
Well first off it's the biggest problem that American agriculture faces.
It restricts us from being as productive as we really could be.
We have young people in our land grant colleges wanting to go to the farm and to go back home
(04:33):
to the family farm they got to expand and to expand they got to have labor.
There are people wanting to get into agriculture and the lack of land and the difficulty of
getting farm loans is getting in the way of doing that.
So the want is there, the people want to do it.
But being able to create an industry that provides a future for them is seeming to be
(04:58):
very difficult.
But you know I'm an optimist.
I think there's something really good around every corner and things are going to happen
in a positive way that we'll be able to bring those people back to the farm.
And in terms of other major priorities the farm bill obviously is something that is expiring
(05:21):
in September.
It's the biggest piece of legislation that affects farmers and our food supply in this
country.
A lot of needs in the farm bill.
What are the priorities for you in this new farm bill?
Well it is the most important piece of legislation that got passed through Congress that deals
with agriculture.
One is we want to make sure that we continue to support cornerstone and that's crop insurance.
(05:45):
Crop insurance has become those risk management tools that farmers have a skin in the game
in that have become the cornerstone of our farm bill.
So we want to see them to support that and continue to expand it.
If there's a farmer out there to produce something there ought to be a risk management
program for them to be able to participate in.
Then of course we want to make sure that we keep nutrition and the farm bill together.
(06:07):
It's really a food and farm bill not just a farm bill.
Eighty percent of the expenditures in this farm bill will be in the nutrition area and
that is in the programs that help people feed the people in our country when they're facing
hunger and a lot of school programs and those things are very much needed across our country.
(06:27):
And with them put together in the same bill we can grant them the support to be able to
get a farm bill passed.
Then of course we continue to look at conservation, our farmers have proven over the years that
they will volunteer to make investments in their land if the federal government will
partner with them.
So we continue to look for funding in conservation and climate smart farming so that our farmers
(06:53):
can continue on the route of being sustainable for the future.
And then there's many, many other things in there that a lot of people don't have a clue
that they're in there.
Research and development dollars that are spent that keeps us on a cutting edge and
on a level playing field across the world.
We have countries in the rest of the world that's out spending our research dollars
(07:14):
three to one and we know in a long period of time we know where that will put us and
it will put us behind and we can't afford to let that happen.
So that area is very important.
But this is an important piece of legislation.
We need it to be bipartisan.
We need to have a great discussion every day that goes by.
Lesson is a chance of us getting it done this year and it needs to be done before the first
(07:38):
year.
Stewart is a big dairy state as you know and dairy policy is going to be a part of this
farm bill and AFBF has really led the way this past year in trying to bring the industry
together and bringing lawmakers together to look at some of those issues for around milk
pricing and milk marketing order reforms.
(07:58):
As a former dairyman yourself, what are you looking for as well for any changes or greater
support for the dairy industry?
Yeah, well, you know, I brought to this job a love for dairy and realized how difficult
it had been in my career as a dairyman, especially the pricing situation and looked around and
(08:21):
seen co-ops just working their fingers to the bone to try to find the right answers,
producer groups trying to find the right answer.
And obviously, they all have their own point of view.
And Farm Bureau, I felt like was the place where all of them needed to come together
and find a solution with everybody's point of view at the table.
(08:41):
And we were able to put together a forum that we put last fall that really started us on
the road of finding out what the dairy industry and the producers and the manufacturers really
thought needed to happen to make our dairy industry sustainable for the future.
So now, we're looking to having that hearing on the federal milk orders at USDA, hoping
(09:05):
something good will come out of that and to continue the risk management programs in the
farm bill that's been developed over the years and making those stronger for our dairy farmers.
That was a hard thing for our farmers, our dairy farmers.
They weren't used to using risk management tools and now it's become a way of life for
them.
You mentioned how you spend your weekends on the farm.
(09:25):
You come to Washington during the week.
Politics can be contentious these days.
How have you found Washington and working with people on Capitol Hill?
A lot better than what you'd think it was on the news.
I used to be a big news watcher when I was on the farm.
It's never like, of course, that's where we try to form our opinions of what's going on.
(09:47):
But if you get up there, really Washington's full of a lot of interest groups, a lot of
congressmen and senators that really do want to do the right thing.
But it's very difficult because they all come from different backgrounds, different opinions,
and finding common ground is sometimes very difficult.
And, you know, one of the things that I've learned over the years in leadership roles
(10:12):
of the Farm Bureau is you may never get somebody to agree with what you say but you can't
find a solution if you sit down at the table and calmly talk about what solutions might
be.
And I see more of that going on than ever before and that's something you just won't
see in the news.
Now, I don't want to paint too bright of a picture because obviously our country is divided
(10:36):
and at the end of the day that division is preventing us from finding good sound policies
that are good for not just agriculture but rural America and all Americans across the
country.
That brings up a good point.
When our members go to Washington to meet with their senators and congresspeople, you
know, what have you found that best resonates when talking to them, when reaching them,
(11:00):
that engages them on those issues and hopefully helps them see the way that we think is important
for agriculture?
Well, one, we hope and most of the time our states bring those county presidents or volunteers
through our American Farm Bureau office and give our people that work for them each and
every day the opportunity to bring them up to speed on what those issues are and what's
(11:26):
happening with it in congress at the time.
And then them going on to the hill to talk to their representative, whether it be a congressman
or a senator, and telling their story from their farm.
When a congressman from an urban area finds out that the person that's growing the food
for their constituents farm survived a natural disaster because they had crop insurance,
(11:51):
because there was some program in the farm bill that saved that farm and made it sustainable
for the future, then it becomes valuable because they can put a face with a farm that connects
to their constituents and what the value of it is in that farm bill.
So it's those farmers' stories.
And I tell a lot of their stories.
That's why I travel a lot, to pick their stories up and be able to use them.
(12:15):
But I can't tell it as well as they can from their own farm.
And it is a very, very powerful tool.
And any farmer that takes time out of their busy schedule to come to Washington and prepare
themselves before they walk into that office can be a huge force and influence the way
policy is developed.
(12:35):
And it's not just about going to Washington.
We had a conversation yesterday.
We met with some folks who are engaged in urban agriculture in Buffalo, community gardens,
trying to develop a local food system there.
And one of the things that you expressed to them that it's important to be involved in
Farm Bureau because those who show up make the policy and are helping develop that roadmap
(13:00):
for the future of their local agriculture.
So it's just as important at the county level as well for people to be involved.
And I'm sure you've seen that time and time again.
I have.
And everybody looks a lot of times at American Farm Bureau to solve their problems or the
State Farm Bureau to solve their problems.
But there are so many policies.
In my years of serving my community as county commissioner, I realized that so many things
(13:23):
that I dealt with it that that level of government affected agriculture.
And if farmers and ranchers and county farm bureaus aren't present at the meeting or
aren't watching to see what's going on in their local government, then sometimes it's
too late for them to help shape policies that's good for them and not bad for them.
And the way to do that is become a Farm Bureau member.
(13:43):
Be an active county Farm Bureau member.
Be that watchdog for the farmer and use that vehicle that Farm Bureau is to be able to
generate that one united voice to shape good sound policy.
And the other thing is that, you know, a lot of times we talk about urban agriculture,
traditional agriculture, organic agriculture, big, little, small.
(14:06):
I mean, there's all, we come in all shapes and sizes from different regions of the country.
And we all might have the same problem, but it affects us differently.
It depends on where we come from.
We do not need to be fighting among ourselves.
Organic is no better than traditional.
Big is no better than small.
We're all in this together.
There's room in the market for all of us.
(14:28):
We should be supporting each other and we all should be at the table making the policy
that our Farm Bureau employees and our Farm Bureau family is working to get to shape positive
policy for the future and make not just agriculture, but our rural community sustainable for the
future.
So we'll end on the note of, you said earlier you're an optimist or believe in the opportunity
(14:53):
that exists for agriculture and knowing the hard work that's going on through AFBF, through
New York Farm Bureau at the county level.
What do you see as the opportunities that exist for agriculture and for our members?
I think the opportunity is people's love for the land and really the pride that they take
in producing good quality food for Americans down the street and across the country and
(15:19):
even across the ocean and other parts of the world.
This is one of the most respected professions in America.
We've surveyed that.
Farmers have an approval rate of about 86 percent which comes in over and above any
other profession there is out there.
We just got to make sure that the future of American agriculture is bright so that young
(15:41):
people can see the opportunities that they can have on the farm producing that food and
fiber for our country and our world.
And when we can develop that future then they'll be coming back to the farm and they'll be
committing their sales and their careers to doing the honorable work of growing the food
(16:01):
and fiber for our people.
It's honorable and deep.
Thank you President DeVos.
Thank you and I've enjoyed New York and I just encourage everybody let's just keep our
head up work hard and be a part of Farm Bureau so we can provide that one united voice because
whether they know it or not the strength of this organization lies in the County Farm
Bureau Boards of Directors and we are as good as they are active and if they're engaged
(16:24):
and active we're a powerful force to be dealt with.
The tour was a wonderful opportunity to showcase New York agriculture and its diversity and
has it be left impressed and optimistic about what the future holds for agriculture especially
inspired by the innovation and the next generation of farmers.
Well thanks for listening to News Bites.
(16:45):
Seth Mozart Katz edited today's podcast and until next time be sure to thank a farmer
for all that they do.
The foundation of New York Farm Bureau is our grassroots members.
(00:08):
Their stories drive public policy engagement at the local, state and national levels.
And it's why the president of American Farm Bureau, Zippy Duvall, came to New York this
week.
Hi, I'm Steve Ammerman, New York Farm Bureau's director of communications.
And welcome to News Bites.
Zippy Duvall has served as president of the American Farm Bureau Federation since 2016
(00:28):
as a third generation farmer from Georgia.
Through his leadership at AFBF, President Duvall has helped to shape the 2018 Farm Bill
that is currently working to ensure the 2023 Farm Bill effectively supports farmers and
ranchers all across the country.
He's helped defeat misguided regulations, helped to make sure farmers are supported
during natural disasters and in the impacts of the supply chain and inflation disruptions,
(00:50):
and has been a leading voice on the importance of trade.
He cannot do this without the support and guidance from Farm Bureau members.
That's why he and his wife Jennifer toured parts of Western New York agriculture this
week to get a better understanding of the issues farmers in our region are facing so
he can go back to Washington and share those stories with policymakers.
We sat down with him in the middle of the tour to talk about what he's hearing and
(01:13):
what are some of the major priorities for American Farm Bureau.
So President Duvall, it's great having you here in New York.
I know you're out visiting a lot of farms, talking to members, which is an important
part of your job.
For those who may not be familiar with the role of president of American Farm Bureau,
talk a little bit about what you do and what your routine is like.
(01:34):
Well, there's not really a routine to it because I never know from one week to the next where
I'm going to be at.
But basically I spend weekends on my farm trying to pay the bills, catch up, give people
that work for me a little relief.
And then during the work week, I spend about half my time in the office in Washington,
(01:55):
DC, the other half on the road visiting either at the Farm Bureau meetings or just out on
the farm visiting with our grassroots members.
So you talked about your farm.
You're a farmer at heart.
It's who you are.
It's what you do.
What is your farm like in Georgia?
Yeah.
Well, the first thing is the hardest part of this job is leaving your farm because everybody
loves their farm and look forward to doing it and growing it and making it better each
(02:18):
and every day.
But, you know, when God has a will for you, you search for what that will is and you head
in that direction and answer the call of send me, you know.
And so my farm was a dairy farm.
I grew up on a dairy farm.
I had a love for beef cattle when I was a young guy in high school and had a little
beef herd.
(02:39):
But realized right quickly after college that was not a way I was going to feed a family
with beef cattle.
Ended up staying in a dairy business, brought my dad out, spent 30 years there dairy on
my farm.
We went from about 100 cows to 300.
In the 80s when it was so difficult, we diversified into poultry and now we have eight poultry
houses.
We've gotten out of the dairy business and we replaced about 400 mama cows.
(03:03):
My son and I are a great farm manager.
So now you're visiting farms here in Western New York.
What do you think of what you've seen?
I know we have more farms to visit today.
And how does this agriculture in the Northeast compare to say agriculture in the South where
you grew up?
Yeah, I think here you're more diversified.
I haven't seen a lot of animals yet but I think we're going to see some more animal
(03:25):
agriculture today.
I would say I think the labor needs here are more intense especially because of the fruits
and vegetables that's being grown in this area which is amazing.
You think about New York, you think cold and then cold doesn't grow fruits and vegetables
but man I've seen some awesome fruit and vegetables yesterday.
(03:47):
But I think very diversified and a great need for skilled labor.
Well that kind of gets into some of the issues that we're working on at Farm Bureau in particular
at American Farm Bureau and labor is one of the priorities.
I know I heard you say yesterday that it's something that you hear about a lot when you're
out meeting the farmers.
From your position at AFB, what are some of those areas that you're looking to address
(04:13):
in Washington to help with our labor needs here in New York?
Well first off it's the biggest problem that American agriculture faces.
It restricts us from being as productive as we really could be.
We have young people in our land grant colleges wanting to go to the farm and to go back home
(04:33):
to the family farm they got to expand and to expand they got to have labor.
There are people wanting to get into agriculture and the lack of land and the difficulty of
getting farm loans is getting in the way of doing that.
So the want is there, the people want to do it.
But being able to create an industry that provides a future for them is seeming to be
(04:58):
very difficult.
But you know I'm an optimist.
I think there's something really good around every corner and things are going to happen
in a positive way that we'll be able to bring those people back to the farm.
And in terms of other major priorities the farm bill obviously is something that is expiring
(05:21):
in September.
It's the biggest piece of legislation that affects farmers and our food supply in this
country.
A lot of needs in the farm bill.
What are the priorities for you in this new farm bill?
Well it is the most important piece of legislation that got passed through Congress that deals
with agriculture.
One is we want to make sure that we continue to support cornerstone and that's crop insurance.
(05:45):
Crop insurance has become those risk management tools that farmers have a skin in the game
in that have become the cornerstone of our farm bill.
So we want to see them to support that and continue to expand it.
If there's a farmer out there to produce something there ought to be a risk management
program for them to be able to participate in.
Then of course we want to make sure that we keep nutrition and the farm bill together.
(06:07):
It's really a food and farm bill not just a farm bill.
Eighty percent of the expenditures in this farm bill will be in the nutrition area and
that is in the programs that help people feed the people in our country when they're facing
hunger and a lot of school programs and those things are very much needed across our country.
(06:27):
And with them put together in the same bill we can grant them the support to be able to
get a farm bill passed.
Then of course we continue to look at conservation, our farmers have proven over the years that
they will volunteer to make investments in their land if the federal government will
partner with them.
So we continue to look for funding in conservation and climate smart farming so that our farmers
(06:53):
can continue on the route of being sustainable for the future.
And then there's many, many other things in there that a lot of people don't have a clue
that they're in there.
Research and development dollars that are spent that keeps us on a cutting edge and
on a level playing field across the world.
We have countries in the rest of the world that's out spending our research dollars
(07:14):
three to one and we know in a long period of time we know where that will put us and
it will put us behind and we can't afford to let that happen.
So that area is very important.
But this is an important piece of legislation.
We need it to be bipartisan.
We need to have a great discussion every day that goes by.
Lesson is a chance of us getting it done this year and it needs to be done before the first
(07:38):
year.
Stewart is a big dairy state as you know and dairy policy is going to be a part of this
farm bill and AFBF has really led the way this past year in trying to bring the industry
together and bringing lawmakers together to look at some of those issues for around milk
pricing and milk marketing order reforms.
(07:58):
As a former dairyman yourself, what are you looking for as well for any changes or greater
support for the dairy industry?
Yeah, well, you know, I brought to this job a love for dairy and realized how difficult
it had been in my career as a dairyman, especially the pricing situation and looked around and
(08:21):
seen co-ops just working their fingers to the bone to try to find the right answers,
producer groups trying to find the right answer.
And obviously, they all have their own point of view.
And Farm Bureau, I felt like was the place where all of them needed to come together
and find a solution with everybody's point of view at the table.
(08:41):
And we were able to put together a forum that we put last fall that really started us on
the road of finding out what the dairy industry and the producers and the manufacturers really
thought needed to happen to make our dairy industry sustainable for the future.
So now, we're looking to having that hearing on the federal milk orders at USDA, hoping
(09:05):
something good will come out of that and to continue the risk management programs in the
farm bill that's been developed over the years and making those stronger for our dairy farmers.
That was a hard thing for our farmers, our dairy farmers.
They weren't used to using risk management tools and now it's become a way of life for
them.
You mentioned how you spend your weekends on the farm.
(09:25):
You come to Washington during the week.
Politics can be contentious these days.
How have you found Washington and working with people on Capitol Hill?
A lot better than what you'd think it was on the news.
I used to be a big news watcher when I was on the farm.
It's never like, of course, that's where we try to form our opinions of what's going on.
(09:47):
But if you get up there, really Washington's full of a lot of interest groups, a lot of
congressmen and senators that really do want to do the right thing.
But it's very difficult because they all come from different backgrounds, different opinions,
and finding common ground is sometimes very difficult.
And, you know, one of the things that I've learned over the years in leadership roles
(10:12):
of the Farm Bureau is you may never get somebody to agree with what you say but you can't
find a solution if you sit down at the table and calmly talk about what solutions might
be.
And I see more of that going on than ever before and that's something you just won't
see in the news.
Now, I don't want to paint too bright of a picture because obviously our country is divided
(10:36):
and at the end of the day that division is preventing us from finding good sound policies
that are good for not just agriculture but rural America and all Americans across the
country.
That brings up a good point.
When our members go to Washington to meet with their senators and congresspeople, you
know, what have you found that best resonates when talking to them, when reaching them,
(11:00):
that engages them on those issues and hopefully helps them see the way that we think is important
for agriculture?
Well, one, we hope and most of the time our states bring those county presidents or volunteers
through our American Farm Bureau office and give our people that work for them each and
every day the opportunity to bring them up to speed on what those issues are and what's
(11:26):
happening with it in congress at the time.
And then them going on to the hill to talk to their representative, whether it be a congressman
or a senator, and telling their story from their farm.
When a congressman from an urban area finds out that the person that's growing the food
for their constituents farm survived a natural disaster because they had crop insurance,
(11:51):
because there was some program in the farm bill that saved that farm and made it sustainable
for the future, then it becomes valuable because they can put a face with a farm that connects
to their constituents and what the value of it is in that farm bill.
So it's those farmers' stories.
And I tell a lot of their stories.
That's why I travel a lot, to pick their stories up and be able to use them.
(12:15):
But I can't tell it as well as they can from their own farm.
And it is a very, very powerful tool.
And any farmer that takes time out of their busy schedule to come to Washington and prepare
themselves before they walk into that office can be a huge force and influence the way
policy is developed.
(12:35):
And it's not just about going to Washington.
We had a conversation yesterday.
We met with some folks who are engaged in urban agriculture in Buffalo, community gardens,
trying to develop a local food system there.
And one of the things that you expressed to them that it's important to be involved in
Farm Bureau because those who show up make the policy and are helping develop that roadmap
(13:00):
for the future of their local agriculture.
So it's just as important at the county level as well for people to be involved.
And I'm sure you've seen that time and time again.
I have.
And everybody looks a lot of times at American Farm Bureau to solve their problems or the
State Farm Bureau to solve their problems.
But there are so many policies.
In my years of serving my community as county commissioner, I realized that so many things
(13:23):
that I dealt with it that that level of government affected agriculture.
And if farmers and ranchers and county farm bureaus aren't present at the meeting or
aren't watching to see what's going on in their local government, then sometimes it's
too late for them to help shape policies that's good for them and not bad for them.
And the way to do that is become a Farm Bureau member.
(13:43):
Be an active county Farm Bureau member.
Be that watchdog for the farmer and use that vehicle that Farm Bureau is to be able to
generate that one united voice to shape good sound policy.
And the other thing is that, you know, a lot of times we talk about urban agriculture,
traditional agriculture, organic agriculture, big, little, small.
(14:06):
I mean, there's all, we come in all shapes and sizes from different regions of the country.
And we all might have the same problem, but it affects us differently.
It depends on where we come from.
We do not need to be fighting among ourselves.
Organic is no better than traditional.
Big is no better than small.
We're all in this together.
There's room in the market for all of us.
(14:28):
We should be supporting each other and we all should be at the table making the policy
that our Farm Bureau employees and our Farm Bureau family is working to get to shape positive
policy for the future and make not just agriculture, but our rural community sustainable for the
future.
So we'll end on the note of, you said earlier you're an optimist or believe in the opportunity
(14:53):
that exists for agriculture and knowing the hard work that's going on through AFBF, through
New York Farm Bureau at the county level.
What do you see as the opportunities that exist for agriculture and for our members?
I think the opportunity is people's love for the land and really the pride that they take
in producing good quality food for Americans down the street and across the country and
(15:19):
even across the ocean and other parts of the world.
This is one of the most respected professions in America.
We've surveyed that.
Farmers have an approval rate of about 86 percent which comes in over and above any
other profession there is out there.
We just got to make sure that the future of American agriculture is bright so that young
(15:41):
people can see the opportunities that they can have on the farm producing that food and
fiber for our country and our world.
And when we can develop that future then they'll be coming back to the farm and they'll be
committing their sales and their careers to doing the honorable work of growing the food
(16:01):
and fiber for our people.
It's honorable and deep.
Thank you President DeVos.
Thank you and I've enjoyed New York and I just encourage everybody let's just keep our
head up work hard and be a part of Farm Bureau so we can provide that one united voice because
whether they know it or not the strength of this organization lies in the County Farm
Bureau Boards of Directors and we are as good as they are active and if they're engaged
(16:24):
and active we're a powerful force to be dealt with.
The tour was a wonderful opportunity to showcase New York agriculture and its diversity and
has it be left impressed and optimistic about what the future holds for agriculture especially
inspired by the innovation and the next generation of farmers.
Well thanks for listening to News Bites.
(16:45):
Seth Mozart Katz edited today's podcast and until next time be sure to thank a farmer
for all that they do.
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