I realize that from time to time it may seem like I’m a little hard on conventional agriculture here in Iowa and around the country. Really, I just am passionate about what we are trying to do and what others are already doing that is outside of the “2009 agricultural box” that it can come across like that (and sometimes I’m just plain hard on something). But, the other day I came across this report from the Iowa Farm Bureau that says 1 in 6 Iowans have jobs either directly or indirectly related to agriculture. I thought that was a good thing for my state…
I’m not sure what the percentage was 50 years ago, but 1 in 6 isn’t too bad in an age where the number of farmers is shrinking, but the size of farms is rising. Our state has found ways to capitalize not only on our great soil and climate from growing corn, but also on our ability to come up with different ways to keep the economy rolling within the agricultural world we have here. There are some very smart people coming up with some pretty crazy things here in Iowa that effect farming all around the world.
Just think how many more jobs agricultural could provide in Iowa if we support for locally raised food continued to grow at the rapid pace that it is growing now … We’d have to add more farmers! Just a little food for thought…
Indeed, as I noted on a comment on my blog the other day, Palin, the author of The Omnivore’s Dilemma, claims we’d have to add 1,000,000 additional farmers if we went organic and local.
Also, I often think the direct and indirect impact of agriculture is grossly underestimated everywhere. Here in Wyoming we always hear that agriculture contributes little to the economy, based on the number of ranchers.
Baloney. When all the stuff they buy to ranch, all all the services they contract for, are included, that’s a lot. And if we add in all the industries that only exist because them, that’s a lot more. Hunting, fishing, and tourism are all simply byproducts of what ongoing ranching provides for here, and are significant contributors to the state’s economy.
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