AgLink
Engaging Oregonians Around Agriculture
APR-JUN 2021
Special Issue:
Stress and Wellness in Oregon Agriculture
PRST STD US Postage PAID Portland, OR Permit No. 5
President’s JOURNAL
There For Each Other Sometimes health can fall low on our list of priorities as professionals dealing with all the stress of the real world while navigating our seasonal work and market conditions. Ignoring health can create bigger problems, though. With COVID-19, people have sometimes forgotten about or avoided their basic care, leading to “collateral” diseases like advanced infections or heart disease. Even before the pandemic though, there has been a major area of wellness that people have long avoided addressing: mental wellness.
In natural resources, the subject of mental health can have negative connotations. Words like “weak” or “not tough enough” come up often. We in agriculture have a tendency to keep ‘toughing’ it out and to tell people around us to suck it up and keep going. The problem with this attitude is that all of us have limits. Sometimes toughing it out is not possible. We as humans have a large range of “normal” states of mental health. One day we can be happy-go-lucky or not have a care and the next we can be stressed out and lethargic. Feeling tired and overwhelmed in times of stress can be completely normal, but they can also be signs of mental fatigue and illness when they don’t improve. It is important that we accept the fact that our mental state is as important and in or out of our control as much as an illness such as the flu. Unfortunately, dismissing mental health and good habits can make us less likely to recognize a problem and ask for help. I for one went through a time in my life when my mental health was not as good as it could have been. I would wake up with anxiety, I would want to nap all the time, and had a hard time focusing on tasks. My wife noticed these issues before I did. She discussed them with me and let me know it was okay to be struggling. We discussed my physical state (I was out of shape) and other issues related to my health like blood pressure and diet. She encouraged me to talk with my doctor about it, but I was embarrassed and didn’t want to discuss these personal issues with a stranger. However, with my wife’s support and encouragement, I did sit down with my doctor and work through all those problems. To make a long story short, my doctor helped me work out a plan to address both my mental health issue (depression) and my physical issues. This has led to a long-lasting relationship with my doctor that opens the door for me to discuss issues with her well before I end up in a bad place physically or mentally. My point in telling this story is to highlight how my wife helped me identify the issues I was unwilling to admit to myself. Now in my life I try to pay attention to others around me, be that family members, employees or co workers. I have never had to call a mental health line for someone, but I have given people the opportunity to discuss stress in their lives. If I had to reach out for someone I would. I could call my county health administration and ask for resources they have available to help the specific person I was worried about. Many times people are just experiencing life and knowing people care and will help can give them the strength they need. So, please remember we are all going through some sort of struggle and that doesn’t make us weak or soft. Trusting people are there for us and being there for each other is where it starts.
Fred Geschwill Oregon Aglink President 2 AgLink
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Engaging Oregonians Around Agriculture
VOLUME 16, ISSUE 2
NEW LOCATION 2195 Hyacinth St NE Suite 105 Salem, OR 97301 971-600-0466 www.aglink.org OFFICERS Fred Geschwill, President F & B Transplants Michelle Markesteyn, Vice President Rootopia Abisha Stone, Treasurer SEDCOR Terry Ross, Secretary Integrated Seed Growers, LLC Megan Thompson, Past President Sage Fruit STAFF Mallory Phelan Executive Director Allison Cloo Director of Membership and Programs Leah Rue Program & Events Coordinator Danielle Meyersick Program Coordinator Liz Schaecher Program Coordinator
CONTACT US TO ADVERTISE IN OREGON AGLINK ADVERTISING AND GUEST FEATURES: ALLISON@AGLINK.ORG ©2021 Oregon Aglink. All rights reserved. Nothing contained within may be reprinted wholly or in part without the written consent of the publisher, Oregon Aglink. The opinions and perspectives published herein are those of the authors and should not be construed as those of AgLink® magazine.
Oregon Ag Fest Rolls Out a Perfect Plan for 2021 Event
“I’m proud of our team at AgFest for putting together this year’s Drive Thru version. Our volunteers and board have done an amazing job at finding ways to offer a visual of agriculture, provide entertainment, and the ag education our mission is aimed at, but in a new format that works in today’s environment.”
While so many events have transitioned to virtual formats in the last year, Oregon Ag Fest has adapted in a different way for 2021: a drive-through version! Instead of the normal in-person visit at the Salem Fairgrounds, visitors will pay by the carload to drive through different educational stations at the Clackamas County Fairground and Event Center in Canby from Friday through Sunday, April 23-25.
As in years past, exhibitors aim to showcase the importance of agriculture in Oregon, from heritage displays to lots of animals, farm equipment, plants, and more. Attendees will learn more about how much food can be produced on one acre and see things like sheep shearing in action. At the end, guests will have the opportunity to take home seedlings, hazelnuts, and an “Ag-Venture Kit” filled with activities to keep the education going once they get home.
According to Oregon Ag Fest executive director Michele Ruby, the event has always been marketed from Eugene to Portland, but “this year’s Canby location may make us more accessible to the greater metro area and a more urban audience.”
— Jake Wilson, Oregon Ag Fest board member Grange Plants & Animal Activity
Equipment
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Acre Display
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GREEN GATE FOOD EXIT
OAN Plant Take Home
“Agventure Kit”
Take Order & Pay
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Nosey’s Neighborhood (see enlargement)
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Chicken Coop
Equipment
Animals
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Equipment Animals Equipment Animals
PAPÉ Hazelnut
Ice Cream & Grilled Cheese Order Pick Up
Steam Engine
STOP #2 Hazelnut Samples
Dog Herding
Grange Plants
Llama Alpaca
Sheep Shearing
Horse
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OWA
Heritage Display Covered Wagon & Antique Tractors
Poultry Goats
Llama Shows
Canby FFA Mobile Unit
Forestry
Volunteer Lounge
OWA Road Side Signs
Pens Sheep
Yamhill Musem Trailer
4H Truck Beef NOSEY’S NEIGHBORHOOD
OAN Plants
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Farmer Feeds Plate Exhibit
STOP #1
Activity Booklet
For Oregon Aglink members hoping to promote this event and education about Oregon agriculture, you can encourage employees, customers, family, friends and neighbors to attend Ag Fest and experience the wonderful world of agriculture for themselves! Contact Oregon Aglink to receive a digital flyer to print and hang at work, include in customer bags, or share with any community partners you have. Aglink also has event graphics that can promote this important event on websites and through social media.
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Volunteer Check-in
BLUE STAGING PARKING RED LOT VOLUNTEER PARKING
April 23–25, 2021 11 am–5 pm daily
Clackamas County Event Center 694 NE 4th Ave, Canby, Oregon WWW.AGLINK.ORG
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2021 Annual Membership Meeting After rescheduling due to COVID restrictions and a historic winter ice storm, the 2021 Oregon Aglink Annual Membership Meeting occurred virtually on March 4. Members voted to approve last year’s minutes and the treasurer’s report for current Oregon Aglink finances. Based on recent mail-in ballots, the Board of Directors serving this year were announced (find the full list on Page 11) and the Executive Committee will serve for another year in their officer roles.
Year in Review
In spite of challenging times, including wildfires, a pandemic, and storms, Oregon Aglink staff and committees successfully adapted most of Oregon Aglink’s signature programs (Adopt a Farmer, Small Farm Safety, Crop ID signs) and fundraisers (Friends of Oregon Agriculture Golf Tournament and Denim & Diamonds auction). The flexibility of new programming like virtual field trips and online auction bidding will be useful even as the organization returns to normal in the coming year!
Association Health Plan
Rick Skayhan, Health and Life Director from Leonard Adams Insurance Co, joined the annual meeting to cover the newest Oregon Aglink member benefit: an association health plan that offers group rates and great savings. Employers with at least one qualifying part-time employee can contact Rick and his team to discuss the 21 health plans and 3 dental plans that include providers statewide, not just in metro areas. Member testimonials so far point to high satisfaction with the quote and on-boarding processes, especially since employer groups can switch at any time and are not limited to their current plan renewal dates. For more info, contact Rick at ricks@lacoinsurance.com or via phone 503-922-4834.
Northwest Ag Innovation Hub
Alex Paraskevas, Rural Innovation Catalyst and Polk County business retention and expansion manager from SEDCOR, joined the video call to discuss the Northwest Ag Innovation Hub. Keeping Oregon farms competitive and on the cutting edge of technology can be difficult when farms rarely get the chance to offer direct input on technology but still assume great risks as early adopters. Through a regional farmer network, the Hub will connect farms with developers and entrepreneurs to collaborate on new crops, products, and processes that reflect what producers actually want and need in today’s agriculture. For more info, contact Alex at alexp@sedcor.com or via phone 503-931-3148. 4 AgLink
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Taking Care in Business: Stress and Mental Health on Oregon Farms In this year’s special presentation, Betsy Hartley of Oregon FFA moderated a panel of subject specialists discussing mental health and stress in agricultural workplaces and rural communities. Oregon Aglink is grateful to have had the participation of speakers who often agreed but always had unique insights to offer from their experience. Ivan Estrada works with OSU Extension’s Coast to Forest program to improve access to mental health and substance abuse resources, Liz Hill is a Total Worker Health Adviser at SAIF, and Paul Giger is a psychiatrist and the Medical Director for Providence Behavioral Health. An early idea that the panel revisited often was defining mental health. Alternatively called mental wellness by some, the panelists established strong connections or parallels between mental health and physical health overall. Rather than a “character flaw” or something shameful, says Estrada, “it’s something we should be approaching much like diabetes, cancer, and other health issues we’re more comfortable discussing already.” One advantage to that parallel, according to Giger, is that language around acute injuries and chronic illness can help people understand that mental health also benefits from check-ins and sometimes long-term management in the case of common conditions like depression or anxiety. “There’s a spectrum” rather than someone being completely ill or completely well, says Hill, “most of us at one point or another in our life can struggle with mental health.” All of the panelists agreed that normalizing the subject, and our experiences, is a big step in improving our collective mental wellness. Myths and stigmas about mental illness or addiction are not the only barriers to getting help. Many rural areas might have limited resources for mental health emergencies or long-term support like therapists and psychiatrists. With the Coast to Forest program, Estrada and others are working to create a list of county-by-county resources for rural communities in Oregon. One unexpected windfall from the pandemic, says Giger, is that telehealth is becoming a more accepted option for support. Available does not always equal accessible, though. As Hill points out, “not all employers can provide benefits. It can be cost-prohibitive.” Yet the increasing awareness and demand might be shifting priorities in available coverage. According to Hill, “over the last two years, [SAIF has had] more employers open up to say they’re having a problem with stress or want to talk about suicide prevention.” Rather than alarming, we can see that trend as encouraging: addressing the problem is a solid step toward directing the resources to solve it.
A final theme of the panel was the role of workplaces, communities, and other “teams” in mental health. The stress and isolation of COVID-19 has only compounded the isolation you commonly find with struggles like depression or anxiety and even more generally in some rural work. Supervisors and team members can be instrumental in asking those initial questions about how someone is doing. “We’re all humans,” says Giger, “we can recognize when someone seems ‘off’ or isn’t doing well, especially when we know them.” In addition to identifying resources and training people with programs like QPR (see p. 6-7), Estrada brings up the idea of establishing policies and protocols. “We all know the plan in the workplace if I trip and break my leg,” he says, “but we don’t really have that if someone is in a mental health crisis.” Even before a crisis emerges, though, employers can encourage their workers to speak up and ask for help before the breaking point. Hill, for instance, likes the question: “How do you make the behavior you want the easy behavior to choose?” For Giger, that might look like bringing up the topic of stress or mental health at workplace meetings to pave the way for more open conversations. According to Hill, people are 80% more likely to utilize a resource when a supervisor has mentioned it in a positive way. Creating easier and better choices for employees to seek help is essential to a system where individuals work together to support each other through their hardest times. Workplace injuries and deaths that can be linked to stress and mental health struggles can affect the entire workforce and whole rural communities where everyone seems to know everyone else. Hill explains further: “people who see the behavior as individual but then see the community impact learn pretty quickly that it’s a community effort to learn and prevent that and recognize signs that someone is struggling. I don’t think anyone would argue that the community needs to pull together to prevent that.”
Thank you to our moderator, panelists, and attendees for giving time to this important topic. For further resources, visit aglink.org
THANK YOU EVENT SPONSORS
WWW.AGLINK.ORG
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Heads Up: This article discusses the tough topic of suicide. Prefer to just look at resources? See bottom of next page.
Groundwork to Save Lives: Oregon Farm and
Ranch Stress Assistance Network By Allison Cloo
In farming and ranching communities throughout the state, the unexpected loss of a respected colleague or loved one is a hard blow to those who knew them. This holds true when the death was intentional. Sometimes, but not always, it becomes clear that the person had been traveling a long and difficult road — one paved with familiar stressors such as poor health, poor harvests, or poor market conditions. While statistics about farmer suicide can be difficult to pinpoint with accuracy, the fact remains that many among us know or have heard about someone dying by suicide. Global and national efforts to prevent farmer suicide and the difficulties preceding it are widespread at this point, but what options are there in Oregon? It’s a question that Cassie Bouska and Julie Leep with OSU-Extension in Coos County hope to answer with the formation of Oregon’s Farm and Ranch Stress Assistance Network. Recently hired to assist with the program, Leep acknowledges that strengthening communities to deal with stress and suicide can be tough new territory. ‘“Coming into it, I never knew this was an issue,” says Leep. “Starting this job, the reality of it is mind-boggling and it’s heartbreaking. We just need to have those conversations and reach out to our friends and our neighbors and take care of each other. We don’t always do a good job of that.” In October 2020, Leep reached out to Oregon Aglink about partnering with the new program and promoting it to Aglink members. While FRSAN is technically a national program funded through a grant from the USDA and its National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA), the regional networks receive and then disburse funds to even smaller networks designed to raise awareness, respond to local needs, and highlight available resources. Finding partner organizations to boost the message has been tough during COVID. Many offices have been operating on limited hours or with staff at home. Conventions and industry 6 AgLink
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meetings have also been held virtually or even cancelled, like the 2021 event for Oregon Dairy Farmers Association, where Bouska and Leep would have had a booth with OSU Extension. Face-to-face conversations can make all the difference in convincing agricultural professionals that there is a need to address stress and mental health at a community level. “We have to sell this program to people,” says Bouska. “Sometimes seeing a poster or an ad can make it look like just another class or whatever. Having that personal connection especially for a sensitive topic is what makes this work.” Future strategy sessions and needs assessments will look at long-term plans for FRSAN in Oregon, but for now the strategy is to build awareness and get people to the resources that will start making an immediate difference. As of spring 2021, the website includes video resources, links to research and strategies on dealing with stress, and a list of upcoming QPR training sessions. QPR stands for “Question, Persuade, Refer,” an intervention tool for community members to recognize signs of suicidal thoughts in their peers and begin the process of getting someone to the help they need. The process has three clear steps: question the person gently but directly about their desire or intent to commit suicide, persuade them to seek or accept help, and then refer them to appropriate resources. There are QPR trainings tailored to many different settings and audiences such as school health professionals, veterans service providers, and emergency service workers. The training offers guidance on how to approach these difficult conversations, often with suggested questions or examples to better prepare community members. In the agricultural community, that can include some strategic phrasing to help navigate around stigmas regarding mental health, emotions, or asking for help.
A primary goal of QPR is to reduce the chances someone will attempt suicide. A secondary benefit of having people in every rural or agricultural community trained in QPR methods means that the conversations can also start taking place before the crisis. “The whole goal is to get an awareness out there that there ARE resources and that what you’re maybe feeling is one, a real thing, and two, a pretty normal thing,” says Bouska. “You can get help early before it develops into something terrible. There’s help for you. It’s not a bad thing to get help.” The “refer” portion of QPR has raised some questions about which resources are accessible in rural spaces. Getting to a doctor or a specialist can be challenging in the more remote areas, and sometimes finding support for mental or emotional needs is a tall order. “Thinking about long term, if someone’s in crisis, we’ve got the hospitals and people pretty well situated around our two counties,” says Leep about the Coos and Curry area. “For a longer-term plan of getting people on their feet and in their best state of mind, finding a therapist is really challenging. There are not a lot of options.” There is hope that increased awareness will also raise the likelihood of calls to prioritize this aspect of public health. From telehealth options to funding programs that bring certified professionals into rural areas, finding avenues to get help is as important as identifying that need in the first place. In the meantime, making those conversations easier is a strong beginning. In recalling how her presentations about mental health and suicide can go with meetings of local cranberry growers, Bouska recalls the initial sense of discomfort in the room. “You’re mostly just met with silence,” she says. “It’s a big group of people, mostly men, some women.” Bouska knows that breakthroughs can take time. It might take a week before someone calls back to say they appreciated the presentation because they have personally struggled with thoughts of suicide and received help from their peers. Even if people don’t know how to respond right away, many members of the ag community are seeing the importance of being more open about tough subjects. “You know,” she says, “they hear you when you say things.”
For more information, visit
https://extension.oregonstate.edu/ farm-ranch-stress-assistance-network
Need to talk right now?
Nation Suicide Prevention Lifeline: 1-800-273-8255 Nacional de Prevención del Suicidio: 1-888-628-9454 Crisis Text Line: Text HOME to 741741
Just like planting any other seed, you have to trust that an idea is germinating. With FRSAN and the increasing awareness of stress and mental wellness in the Oregon agricultural community, the conditions might just be ideal. WWW.AGLINK.ORG
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Hard Times Don’t Have to Mean More Losses By Allison Cloo
On average, 700 people get killed per year while working in agriculture in the United States. While many agricultural jobs might have you working out in a field or shop by yourself, we know that most farms or ranches involve some sort of connection with other people, whether it’s fellow employees or family who help run the operation. That means roughly twice a day, a group of people are coming to terms with the loss of a friend or coworker due to an accident on the farm. On top of the loss of human health or life, and the costly penalties or expenses that can add up as a result, accidents on the farm can attract more accidents as workers are dealing with stress and grief. Their focus may not always be on the task at hand, and that’s a recipe for even more tragedy. “We see a link between a bad incident occurring and a recurrence of other injuries,” says Eric Lloyd of Oregon Risk Management Solutions. Rather than seeing it as compounding bad luck, though, he suggests some strategies that can help prevent accidents in the first place as well as the other accidents that follow. Mindset matters. “In an incident analysis, one of the things you traditionally delve into is mindset,” says Lloyd. If your focus is divided, can you take 5 minutes to write down the problem for later and center on the task at hand? Do you need water, food, or a quick break to get your bearings?
Workers’ comp that really works Low premiums, great service, and an unmatched commitment to safety—that’s workers’ comp that really works.
Set an Example. We know that people often take their cues from the group or a strong leader. If you start with “I’m having a hard time today. If I mess up and forget my safety glasses will you remind me?” that makes it easier for others to watch your back and speak up. This habit also makes it easier for someone to say “Hey, it seems like you’re having a hard day. What can I do?” As Lloyd says, “We can pretend to be big tough John Wayne types all we want, but John Wayne probably had bad days too.” There are high standards and tough jobs everywhere in agriculture. It might seem counterintuitive to slow down and check in with each other, but that might just save you from a first accident as well as the likelihood of another right after. As always, safety doesn’t have to be at odds with productivity when it means preventing costly accidents or time lost due to repairs. Cultivating a safety culture that includes check-ins and chances to refocus or address problems is a good investment for any operation, but especially one recovering from a recent accident or loss. APR / MAY / JUN .8 AgLink
saif.com
The Secret Ingredient for Adopt a Farmer Success By Allison Cloo
While we often point out the important relationship between farmers and teachers in our Adopt a Farmer matches, one of the other important dynamics in the early years was the relationship between farmers and program sponsors. The field trips and classroom visits at the center of Adopt a Farmer programming couldn’t happen without the farmers who contribute their time and space to middle school classes. However many of the elements that also keep the program running, such as bus funding, activity supplies, and funds for Oregon Aglink staff hours, couldn’t happen without the contribution of sponsors who are willing to ante up for agricultural education. How do the sponsors hear about Adopt a Farmer? In many cases, it’s the farmers themselves. Two of our farm matches from the first year, led by Amy Doerfler of Doerfler Farms and Molly McCargar of Pearmine Farms, set up connections with our earliest and now longest-running sponsors of Adopt a Farmer programming. Doerfler helped bring Northwest Farm Credit Services to the table, and McCargar brought the program to Doug Hoffman, then-president and CEO of Wilco. The long-term relationship between farmers and their financial institutions or cooperatives mean that opinions of one often carry more credibility for the other. In the words of Oregon Aglink executive director Mallory Phelan, “companies end up believing in the programs because their customers are participating.” The willingness of a busy farm to open its gates to a middle school classroom shows that a program like Adopt a Farmer is worth the investment. In the case of NWFCS and Wilco, that’s become a long-term investment that spans more than simply paying for bus trips.
While many fundraising efforts focus on tangible results like the number of buses or activity packages going to students, an essential element of the Adopt a Farmer program is staff guidance and program development. The funding from partners like Wilco or NWFCS helps pay for Oregon Aglink staff to make the farm and school matches work. Pairing a farmer and teacher is only one part of the formula: staff take the time to match activities, coordinate busy schedules, meet the special needs of classrooms and their students, and ensure that farmers have all the support necessary to showcase their operations. A central message of Adopt a Farmer in recent years is that “farming is a team sport.” There might be one person in the cab of a tractor or combine, but an entire network of people like family, colleagues, suppliers, finance specialists, and processors who help keep that farm or ranch running. Adopt a Farmer, like Oregon agriculture itself, functions best when those investments of people hours and money reflect, in the words of Phelan, “flexibility and a respect for the people doing the work.” Whether preparing the ground for planting or spending hours cultivating a new relationship between a farmer and local teacher, the participants of Adopt a Farmer are grateful for the sponsors that keep this unique piece of agricultural education rolling year after year.
Oregon Aglink is celebrating our tenth year of the Adopt a Farmer program. This is the final article focusing on important roles in the early years. WWW.AGLINK.ORG
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2021 SPRING EVENTS April 23-25
OREGON AG FEST
CLACKAMAS COUNTY EVENT CENTER; CANBY, OR
11 am - 5 pm daily
Visit oragfest.com to book a time
May 27
OREGON AGLINK BOARD OF DIRECTORS MEETING LOCATION TBD
WELCOME NEW MEMBER!
Hood River Seed
12 pm
August 13
FRIENDS OF OREGON AG GOLF TOURNAMENT
CHEHALEM GLENN GOLF COURSE; NEWBERG, OR
Tee off at 8 am
Purchase tickets at aglink.org
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Know someone who should join? Share this magazine with them! They can contact us at info@aglink.org with questions or sign up for membership at www.aglink.org/membership
Executive NOTES Old Habits and New Normals
2021 OFFICERS Fred Geschwill, President F & B Transplants Michelle Markesteyn, Vice President Rootopia Abisha Stone, Treasurer SEDCOR Terry Ross, Secretary Integrated Seed Growers, LLC Megan Thompson, Past President Sage Fruit DIRECTORS Nicole Anderson, Wilco Joe Beach, Capital Press Ryan Bennett, Northwest Onion Company Dave Buck, Aldrich Advisors Jeanne Carver, Imperial Stock Ranch Dave Dillon, Oregon Farm Bureau Amy Doerfler, Doerfler Farms Brandon Emery, Corteva Jeff Freeman, Marion Ag Service Eric Groves, George Packing Justin Gutierrez, Columbia Bank Kathy Hadley, Hadley Family Farms Kerisa Kauer, MetLife Andrea Krahmer, Northwest Farm Credit Services Pamela Lucht, Northwest Transplants Margaret Magruder, Magruder Farms Molly McCargar, Pearmine Farms Jennifer McCarthy, Rabo AgriFinance Myron Miles, Miles Ranch Lori Pavlicek, 4-B Farms Karren Pohlschneider, French Prairie Gardens Dick Severson, Severson Farms
Folks who work in the fields, pastures, forests, and ocean space across our state are used to comparing year over year what is within the normal range of their operation by a variety of markers. Buds pushing out on fruit trees, heavy rain or lack thereof, bloom and pollination, pests or disease, and of course, harvest start and finish all are indicators of the next thing to come, an indication of external and uncontrollable factors or simply useful for future decision making. Some farmers or ranchers note these transitions mentally, others jot them down in a notebook, and plenty more use technology to track key data points along the way, relying on historical weather, yields, and more to help them make improvements for the next season. These markers are even used just for posterity and reminiscing on the good and bad from every year as a farmer, rancher, forester, or fisher. Given the past year, it seems everyone — whether in agriculture or not— is reflecting on their pre-pandemic lasts. Photo memories timestamp the last year, like empty grocery store shelves or the run on toilet paper that have inevitably popped up on your newsfeed. While it can feel that so much has changed in the past year, including the food supply chain adjusting to newly-needed distribution channels, one thing has remained — Oregonians producing the food, fiber, and materials we use every day. After a year of canceled events and modified work for many, it’s obvious why all the people along Oregon’s food and shelter supply chains were considered essential. They may have had to adapt how the work gets done in order to help slow the spread of COVID-19, but at the end of the day, the cows still need to be milked, plants keep growing, and from farmworker to truck driver to grocery store clerk, essential industries worked to ensure we all had what we needed. Farmers, ranchers, fishers, and foresters are never working for a thank you, but one year into a global pandemic feels like a good time to recognize all the parts of our day enabled by the people working on farms, ranches, boats, and in the forests around our state. These are the folks to thank for the milk with breakfast cereal, the paper napkin used with lunch, and the burger or fish sticks for dinner. Every day, there are so many reminders of what agriculture and forestry enable use to do. These items and habits are essential parts of our day, and we’re all part of a symbiotic relationship, playing a vital role in the success and sustainability of our family farms, ranches, fisheries, and forests. For many - in agriculture or not - the pandemic shined a light on our subconscious habits we may have taken for granted or decided to change. Maybe new normals were established like routines and more time with children at home or to yourself with less social events to attend. As we work toward another harvest season, let’s think about the chance we have to establish new normals of gratitude, of reaching out, of growing new skills no matter how old or established we feel. It takes great energy and fortitude to embrace change, especially when we don’t have total control. Lucky for us, the adaptability inherent in Oregon agriculture means that we are in this for the long haul and ready to face anything — especially together.
Mark Shipman, Saalfeld Griggs Josh Stolpe, Papé Machinery Sam Taylor, Pacific Ag Solutions
Mallory Phelan Executive Director WWW.AGLINK.ORG
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People on the go may not know what you’re growing — give them a sign.
Crop ID signs have been attached to fence posts along Oregon roads and highways for more than 30 years. Commuters, tourists, and even your neighbors might be asking
“What’s growing there?” and you can answer it with one of our easy-to-road corrugated plastic signs. Visit aglink.org and click on “Our Work” to learn more about Crop ID signs and how you can order them!