Because our magazine puts more emphasis on new ideas that might help our readers survive, we tend to write more about the scramblers than the quietly resigned. But even some of these more optimistic folks are having doubts these days. Not long ago an officer of the Iowa Corn Growers Association told me privately that he didn't see much future for most people in raising conventional corn and soybeans in Iowa. That's an astounding statement from someone leading one of the strongest state commodity groups in a state that often ranks first in U.S. corn production. Because our magazine is subscription based and not controlled circulation, we have a very diverse readership that includes large commercial farms and smaller part time farms.
Farmers are independent thinkers as well as independent business operators.
There will never be complete unanimity among farmers on government policies. Even among like-minded producers, members of National Farmers Union or American Farm Bureau, votes on policy issues at annual meetings can at times be very close. But recently, two areas of common ground have emerged among the pessimists and optimists, large and small producers. First, nearly everyone in production agriculture is worried and threatened by the recent wave of consolidation among agricultural suppliers and buyers of farm products. It worries Paul Hitch, one of the nation's largest cattle feeders.