It's perfectly understandable why so many folks care how farmers care for the land; it doesn't just need to be protected because it feeds us, but because our fertile soils and watersheds always have and always will be Iowa's most valuable asset.

But there's a growing concern that some well-intentioned folks have taken efforts to be sustainable to a whole new level, calling for the sacrifice of property rights, food production and jobs for the sake of 'speciesism' (choosing plants or animals over people).  'Speciesism' seems to be 'de riguer' these days in Hollywood and national media, so that's probably why the subject packed the house this week at the 2012 American Farm Bureau Federation annual meeting.

Rob Gordon, senior advisor for strategic outreach for the Heritage Foundation (http://www.heritage.org/about), says being environmentally-sustainable is important, but too often regulations are put in place which go beyond common sense. "Science has to be 'good science' which means it must follow scientific method. That means if you conduct an experiment and write down how you do it, I should be able to replicate your results.  Right now species are added to endangered lists based on 'best available data,' which doesn't mean rational, duplicated, sane or even scientific."

Gordon then went on to illustrate that point by way of the Pleistocene Snail.

The Pleistocene snail (http://www.fws.gov/midwest/endangered/Snails/iops_fct.html) is a tiny snail that lives on rocky outcropping areas in Iowa and was declared 'endangered' in 1978.  So, the government took over land and created the National Wildlife Refuge near Dubuque to protect the snails.  But, there were snags in maintaining the tiny creature's population because, according to Gordon, the biggest threats remained: the lack of an Ice Age and humans.  It seems well-intentioned environmentalists who went out to 'count' these tiny snails were killing them by accidentally stepping on them.   Since these tiny snails thrived in glacial conditions, the government deemed that the next best 'savior' for the Pleistocene is to keep the National Wildlife Refuge near Dubuque in place, and wait for the next Ice Age.

"Clearly, this is a case of speciesism and regulation run amok.  We have to remember that environmental policy can't be good environmental policy if it doesn't take people into account," says Gordon.

In an age when snails are deemed more important than farming, feeding people or employing them, something is wrong.  That's why folks like Gordon are out there reading the fine print, calling for people to ask questions and demand conservation efforts be based on repeatable, scientific results that take human beings into account.  Waiting for the government to realize this however, could take...until the next Ice Age.

 

Laurie Johns is Public Relations Manager for the Iowa Farm Bureau.                        1/11/2012

Checkoff Supports Improved Fieldprint Calculator to Help Farmers Meet Customers' Needs

ST. LOUIS (January 11, 2012) - U.S. soybean farmers now have an updated tool that can meet the needs of some customers who want proof U.S. soy has been sustainably produced.

That's why the soybean checkoff continues to support the Field to Market alliance and its updated Fieldprint Calculator, a tool U.S. soybean farmers can use to help measure, improve and demonstrate their sustainability performance.

The updated calculator, available on the Internet by clicking here, includes several upgrades from earlier versions. It allows U.S. farmers to analyze individual fields and includes more advanced measurements for soil conservation and soil carbon. Additionally, the tool automatically provides a financial ledger that computes the economic impact of sustainable practices on that farm. It also allows U.S. farmers to set up a secure account to save their information for future use.

Nebraska soybean farmer Mike Thede notes that checkoff-funded research has proven the sustainability performance of U.S. soy production. The checkoff shares that information with U.S. soy buyers to support sales.

"All U.S. farmers are under more and more pressure from our customers, who demand soybeans produced in a sustainable manner," explains Thede, who serves as team lead of the United Soybean Board's Sustainability Initiative. "We need to continue to document our sustainability performance to our end users in order to maintain and expand our markets."

According to a recent checkoff-funded life-cycle study, U.S. soybean production proves to be very sustainable due to several factors. For instance, a soybean plant sequesters more greenhouse gases than those generated by the equipment used to grow, harvest and process soybeans. Additionally, U.S. soybean production and processing have become more efficient because of higher yields, more conservation tillage and reduced energy use.

The Fieldprint Calculator can be used for free by all U.S. soybean, corn, wheat, cotton and rice farmers. First, it asks farmers to enter information about their operation. If desired, the tool can confidentially save any information entered, in which case that information is accessible only by the farmer who saved it.

The tool analyzes the use of that farm's natural resources and inputs to compute its environmental footprint, or "fieldprint." The results show farmers where there's room for improvement. U.S. farmers can also compare their results with those from other farms in their area, state or the entire country.

As a member of Field to Market, the soybean checkoff supported development of the original calculator in 2009, as well as the recent update. More information about Field to Market and the Fieldprint Calculator is available at www.FieldToMarket.org.

For more information on the USB, visit www.UnitedSoybean.org
Visit us on Facebook: www.facebook.com/UnitedSoybeanBoard
Follow us on Twitter: www.twitter.com/UnitedSoy
View our YouTube channel: www.youtube.com/user/UnitedSoybeanBoard

USB is made up of 69 farmer-directors who oversee the investments of the soybean checkoff on behalf of all U.S. soybean farmers. Checkoff funds are invested in the areas of animal utilization, human utilization, industrial utilization, industry relations, market access and supply. As stipulated in the Soybean Promotion, Research and Consumer Information Act, USDA's Agricultural Marketing Service has oversight responsibilities for USB and the soybean checkoff.

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Lisa L. Bierman and the Rock Island County Circuit Clerk's Office held their annual holiday food drive during the month of December 2011. The food collected will benefit  the River Bend Foodbank. River Bend will be collecting the donations this Week.

Circuit Clerk staff were encouraged to bring in food donations and then were eligible to wear jeans for the day. The Circuit Clerk staff were divided into teams based on department and given another incentive of a pizza party for the team that collected the most items at the end. Our staff were also encouraged to solicit others in the Courthouse to donate to their teams to boost their numbers in an attempt to gather the largest numbers of donations. In the end the Traffic Division Won!

"Working with the public everyday makes you even more aware ofthe need for this kind of help, which is so important to our community," says Circuit Clerk Lisa Bierman.

"We have Wonderful staff here and they are always eager to help participate with such a valuable resource for those in need. This is actually our 3rd food drive that We have conducted and plan to participate in many more in the future."

For more information with how you can organize a food drive or help The River Bend foodbank, go to www.riverbendfoodbank.org or call 309-764-7434.

WHEN: 01-21-2012

TIME: 1:00 p.m. - 3:00 p.m.

WHERE: Cool Beanz Coffee House, 1325 30th St., Rock Island, IL 61201

WHAT: Sharon R. Holub, a resident of Davenport, IA, will be available to sign copies of her Children's book, Adventures of the Big Green Van.

When Shayla Christine and Christy Lee want to visit faraway places with their grandfather, they enlist the help of the big green van. With a little magic and a lot of love, the girls begin a journey to see the world with their grandfather in Adventures of the Big Green Van.

For more information, contact Terry Cordingley at 888-361-9473 or terry@tatepublishing.com

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