Field Notes Opens the Gate: Growing Good Government

Every Friday, NCGA visits with the farmers who have opened their gates to Field Notes, a series that will follow a handful of corn farmers from across the country from winter planting preparations through harvest. While these growers come from diverse geographic areas and run unique operations, they share a common love for U.S. agriculture and the basic values that underpin life in farming communities.

Today, Off the Cob speaks with Chip Bowling, a third-generation farmer in Newburg, Md. Living only forty miles from Washington, Bowling grew up farming in the shadow of the Capitol. Now, he crosses the Potomac to represent his fellow growers.

"My parents taught me that if you don't get involved then you cannot really complain," said Bowling. "As close as I am to D.C., I feel I can really help. I can go to work on the Hill in the morning and be back getting my hands dirty the same day."

Bowling's situation is unique in many other ways. In Charles County, Maryland, agriculture is in decline. Over the past decade livestock operations and crop farmers have been displaced as farmland is bought for development into residential properties.

"Our state and county officials say that they want to keep farming in our area. They need to for open space," said Bowling. "But, it is becoming more and more difficult to run an operation and deal with the other pressures that farmers have."

Meet Bowling and learn about how farmers operate near urban populations by clicking here for the full Off the Cob interview.

Stay tuned over the coming weeks as Field Notes introduces the growers who will open their farms, families and communities up this year and meet the true faces of modern American agriculture. 

NCGA Nominating Committee Announces 2012 Corn Board Candidates

The Nominating Committee of the National Corn Growers Association today announced the slate of candidates for the 2012 NCGA Corn Board. Candidates will be introduced at the upcoming Corn Congress, March 3 in Tampa, Fla., and the election will be held at the July Corn Congress in Washington. Terms of office begin with the new fiscal year on Oct. 1.

"We have a terrific slate of candidates this year, with a great depth of knowledge and experience, and I want to thank them for volunteering for the great responsibility of helping run our national organization," said Darrin Ihnen, chairman of the Nominating Committee. "These six men have held leadership positions in their states and have served on NCGA teams in the past, so they have proved their skills and earned the respect of their peers."

For a full listing of candidates, please click here.

American Ethanol and RCR Racing Partner on No. 33 Chevrolet

American Ethanol announced it has entered into a sponsor partnership with Richard Childress Racing and its No. 33 Chevrolet driver, Clint Bowyer, for the 2011 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season.

Bowyer, driver of the No. 33 Chevrolet, will serve as an official spokesman for American Ethanol on behalf of America's green, clean alternative fuel component. American Ethanol will be the primary sponsor of the No. 33 Chevrolet car at the Kansas Speedway 400 and an associate sponsor of the car for the rest of the season.

"Richard Childress Racing and Clint Bowyer are great additions to the American Ethanol team," said Growth Energy CEO Tom Buis. "Clint's from Kansas, and he knows first-hand the opportunities that American farming and American ethanol offer our country - opportunities to create jobs here, clean our air, and strengthen national security by making our nation more energy independent."

Growth Energy led the effort to create American Ethanol, the coalition that signed a partnership agreement with NASCAR to promote the use of domestically-produced ethanol. The National Corn Growers Association also joined American Ethanol, putting America's farmers in partnership with ethanol producers and NASCAR to promote ethanol.

To learn more, click here.

CommonGround Launch Brings Farm Women, Urban Moms Together

Last weekend, the national CommonGround consumer outreach program kicked off as the first group of farm women told the story of modern agriculture to shoppers at a busy grocery store in Des Moines, Iowa. CommonGround spokeswomen Sara Ross, Jill Vander Veen and Suzanne Shirbroun answered interested consumers questions about where and how U.S. farmers produce their crop by telling the story of their own farms and families.

Through this direct, open communication, the shoppers learned the true story about agriculture without media filters while the new spokeswomen developed a better understanding of the concerns facing the 98.5 percent of the U.S. population no longer involved in agriculture.

"When many people go to the grocery store, they are in a hurry to get in and get out," said Ross. "But we were excited about how many people stopped with questions and really listened to what we were saying. The media exposure amplified our message, really letting people know that this program will allow the public to speak directly to farmers. This initial success reinforced our belief that people do want to learn about where their food comes from and that there is a real desire out there to learn more about us as family farmers."

CommonGround, a collaborative effort created by the National Corn Growers Association and the United Soybean Board, was developed to help states develop strong grassroots campaigns that provide farm women with the tools and opportunities to speak directly with the public about farming. The successful launch in Iowa will serve as a template for upcoming events in both Nebraska and South Dakota.

For more information on CommonGround, click here.

New Requirements Aim to Improve Bt Corn Refuge Compliance

In an effort to improve Bt corn refuge compliance, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) mandated new requirements as part of the Bt corn re-registration process this past fall. The Bt corn registrants are incorporating these new requirements into their Compliance Assurance Programs for the 2011 growing season:

- On-farm refuge compliance assessments will be conducted by an independent third-party and will be focused on (i) areas of highest risk of insect pest resistance development and (ii) growers who did not buy sufficient refuge seed from the Bt corn registrant. 
- Growers found to be out of compliance with the refuge requirements (i) now have a higher probability of losing access to Bt corn if compliance is not established and maintained and (ii) will be checked more frequently by the Bt corn registrants. 
- Seed bag tags will better depict refuge size requirements

Under the Compliance Assurance Program, thousands of growers are surveyed about their IRM compliance practices each year through EPA mandated on-farm assessments. Growers who do not comply with refuge requirements can lose access to the technology. Similarly, seed dealers who do not follow through on their commitments stand to lose the ability to sell the products.

To learn more, click here.

NCGA Congratulates Kansas Sen. Pat Roberts for being named Ranking Member of Senate Ag Committee

NCGA congratulates Senator Pat Roberts (R-Kan.) upon being named the top Republican of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry. Senator Roberts has also previously served as both the Chairman and Ranking Member of the House Agriculture Committee.

"We are pleased to see a senator with experience in agriculture policy to be the Ranking Republican for the Senate Committee," NCGA President Bart Schott, a grower from Kulm, N.D. said. "He has been a friend and true advocate for our industry."

Senator Roberts has stated that he hopes to focus on the production agriculture safety net, expanding trade opportunities for America's farmers and conduct oversight on burdensome regulations. He has been a member of the Senate Agriculture Committee since 1997 and received NCGA's President's Award in 2007.

Field to Market Connects in St. Louis

The Director of the Field to Market Sustainable Agriculture Initiative spoke at a luncheon in St. Louis this Tuesday. Sarah Stokes Alexander spoke to growers and industry professionals about the program's ongoing work to increase long-term agricultural production without having negative impacts on the environment.

"Field to Market is unique in its approach to defining and addressing the environmental and socioeconomic impacts of agriculture", said Alexander. "We take an outcomes-based approach to metrics, and let producers figure out what works best for them."

For the whole story, click here.

NCGA Staffer Moves to House Agriculture Committee

NCGA says farewell to DaNita Murray, Director of Public Policy in the NCGA Washington, D.C. office. She will be heading to the House of Representatives Agriculture Committee as Counsel for Chairman Frank Lucas (R-Okla.).

"DaNita has handled some of NCGA's most technical and difficult issues," NCGA Vice President of Public Policy Jon Doggett said. "She is recognized in Washington, D.C. as an expert on ag biotech and trade issues. DaNita is a tremendously talented and extremely hard working professional."

Murray has served on the association's government relations staff for over four years and has been responsible for the important issues of trade, biotechnology and research for NCGA. Prior to joining NCGA, DaNita worked at the United States Department of Agriculture in the Farm Service Agency, the Office of Congressional Affairs and the Office of Food Safety. She also previously worked for a South Dakota member of the House of Representatives. DaNita received her Undergraduate degree from South Dakota State University and her Law degree from Drake University Law School.

"Much of her success at NCGA and in Washington is because she has never forgotten her roots from her family's farm in South Dakota," Doggett said. "She has been a very dedicated colleague and we look forward to working with her in a new role."