Our Ohio Weekly: 104th Ohio Farm Bureau Annual Meeting
Ohio Farm Bureau members celebrated “Our Legacy, Our Future” as the organization held its 104th annual meeting earlier this month in Columbus.
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Farm Bureau delegates set policy direction
“The policy work that our delegates do during our annual meeting is what being a grassroots organization is all about,” said Jack Irvin, Ohio Farm Bureau’s vice president of public policy. “Now that their work is done, our work begins with lawmakers in Columbus and Washington, D.C. as we continue to act on the issues important to our members and all of Ohio agriculture.”
Landowner rights, energy development and the Ohio State Fair were among the topics discussed by delegates at Ohio Farm Bureau’s 103rd annual meeting. A record 385 delegates representing all county Farm Bureaus participated in the debate and discussion.
“The policy work that our delegates do during our annual meeting is what being a grassroots organization is all about,” said Jack Irvin, Ohio Farm Bureau’s vice president of public policy. “Now that their work is done, our work begins with lawmakers in Columbus and Washington, D.C. as we continue to act on the issues important to our members and all of Ohio agriculture.”
Members supported transparency for landowner energy lease holders, including proper notification of lease transfers and a requirement of well inspection reports to landowners. Delegates also voted in favor of protecting the Ohio State Fair. They encouraged a strategic review to enhance the fair as an event, as well as protecting the current location and addressing the needs of the facilities of the Ohio Exposition Center.
Ohio’s hunger challenges also were addressed as members agreed to supporting government incentives for producers who distribute surplus and cosmetically imperfect produce to local food banks. New policy also calls for roundabouts to be engineered and constructed to accommodate modern farm equipment and tractor trailers and use graduated curbing where possible.
Other policy votes addressed recognizing the importance and promotion of urban agriculture and enhancing the process and notification procedures when rivers are designated by the state as wild or scenic rivers.
More than 800 members and guests attended the meeting in Columbus Dec. 9-10. Ohio Farm Bureau’s mission is working together with Ohio farmers to advance agriculture and strengthen the state’s communities. Learn more at ohiofarmbureau.org.
This is a news release for use by journalists. Questions should be directed to Ty Higgins, 614-246-8231 or [email protected].
I'm eternally grateful for the support Ohio Farm Bureau scholarships provided in helping me turn my dreams into reality.
I appreciate the benefit of having a strong voice in my corner. The extras that are included in membership are wonderful, but I'm a member because of the positive impact to my local and state agricultural communities.
I see the value and need to be engaged in the community I live in, to be a part of the decision-making process and to volunteer with organizations that help make our community better.
Farm Bureau involvement has taught me how to grow my professional and leadership experience outside of the workforce and how to do that in a community-centric way.
With not growing up on a farm, I’d say I was a late bloomer to agriculture. I feel so fortunate that I found the agriculture industry. There are so many opportunities for growth.
Labor has always been an issue, mainly because we are a seasonal operation. So that's a challenge finding somebody who only wants to work three months out of a year, sometimes up to six months.
Knowing that horticulture is under the agriculture umbrella and having Farm Bureau supporting horticulture like it does the rest of ag is very important.
If it wasn't for Farm Bureau, I personally, along with many others, would not have had the opportunity to meet with our representatives face to face in Washington.
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