YF&R program helps develop the next generation of farmers

BOISE - From Jan. 30 to Feb. 1, about 180 young agricultural producers came to Boise to attend Idaho Farm Bureau Federation’s annual Young Farmers and Ranchers Leadership Conference.

These young producers from 18 to 35 years of age came from across the state and they represented most of the farm commodities produced in Idaho.

They represent the future of agriculture and they will also be the future leaders within their city, county and all of Idaho in a rapidly changing environment. They will also be leaders in their local schools and communities and they are brilliant and full of ideas, energy and enthusiasm.

The YF&R program is designed to help provide these amazing young farmers and ranchers the skills and resources they will need to thrive in the future and become the next leaders of the state’s most important industry.

In order for Farm Bureau to remain strong, relevant and viable, we have to continue to train that next generation.

We have many young producers in this state who are brilliant but they also need to develop the personal and leadership skills that will help them take their game to the next level.

The day before the conference began, I joined the YF&R leadership committee, which consists of the state chair and the chair of each of five districts, as they spent the day in our state capitol attending and addressing both the House and Senate agriculture committees. They also visited with the governor in his office, asking him questions and interacting with him.

The Young Farmers and Ranchers program is designed to help train these producers and provide them experiences and opportunities to lead so that they can become the future voice of Idaho agriculture.

Many leaders in the IFBF organization, including members of the group’s board of directors, went through the YF&R program, as did many Idaho lawmakers.

I credit my involvement in the program with helping cultivate my deep love for Farm Bureau. My membership in the program led me to serve as a district YF&R chair and eventually as the state program chair.

That led to me being selected to serve on IFBF’s board of directors and truthfully, if I had not joined the YF&R program, I probably wouldn’t be president of this great farm organization today.

Farm Bureau is in my blood and my involvement with the YF&R program is what cultivated that love for Farm Bureau.

I saw at a young age that Farm Bureau was an organization where my voice and ideas could be heard and amplified through the organization’s grassroots efforts. None of us are powerful in ourselves but our power comes when we add in thousands of other Farm Bureau members across the state and we are unified on issues.

That’s the power of Idaho Farm Bureau and the Young Farmers and Ranchers program is the platform that allows a lot of younger producers to be introduced to the organization. When we combine our future leaders with the more experienced and seasoned members, we become so much stronger.

The YF&R program has different contests that provide opportunities for members to win some big prizes. But the contests are just one of the many facets of the program, which provides an array of leadership development opportunities.

One of the biggest benefits of the program is that it allows young farmers and ranchers, who are trying to establish themselves in the agricultural industry, to meet and network with other young producers from around the state.

Farming and ranching are tough business and a person can get discouraged easily when times, and prices, are difficult. The YF&R program allows farmers and ranchers to share experiences with other producers and learn from them.

Many times, advice picked up from another young producer in the program has resulted in a young farmer or rancher improving their own operation’s bottom line.

Another big benefit of the program is that it provides young producers an avenue to have their voices heard and have a say in the future of agriculture. As the old saying goes, if you’re not at the table, you’re probably on the menu.

As an organization, Idaho Farm Bureau Federation has to invest in the next generation and, as Sen. Mark Harris, a Republican rancher from Soda Springs and former YF&R member, told IFBF members recently, the Young Farmers and Ranchers program is our organization’s built-in succession plan.

My message is boiled down to this: Farm Bureau needs you, young farmers and ranchers, and you need us.