In a recent commentary regarding "greedy land grabbers" you mention that an established farm family will always have an advantage, especially with the decrease in farms. While this is undoubtedly true one of the hidden dangers is that as an industry decreases in players innovations are inhibited. It has been my observation that farmers only listen to each other and are very reluctant to accept any type of change until Homer, who farms down the road and everyone know is an idiot, prospers due to a new technology or a radical farming method. It also seems that most farmers get their start by being born into a farm family or marrying into one, which brings me to my question: are there any ways for a young college graduate with no family connections to start their own farm?
Dear John,
Carried to its logical conclusion, your argument sounds like justification to remove all constraints against allowing Shell Oil, Walmart, Total, or Toyota from taking over agricultural production -- as if there is zero value to society in having many families on smaller farms, supporting rural towns, schools, and churches.
Van
John,
I have watched your comments about larger farms and fewer farmers, I'm 73 years old and still farm our small farm,I have seen many farmers hang it up and rent out their farms to the "big guy", I have also seen our small towns die, equipment dealers close up and chain store convenience stores drive out the family filling stations, livestock sale barns close,small hog producers go out of business, just to name a few all in the name of your so called "progress",look at the bigger picture and you can see this is not progress, it would be a lot better to have twenty farm families out on 500 acres each than one corporate farmer farming ten thousand acres,we need to work on finding ways to do this.
Al Barclay
Woodward, Iowa
