Farmers are the ultimate environmentalists. Farmers are good at making a crop, they just don't know when to sell it. We need to get farm policy in place where you can make a long-range plan. We have to have a new Farm Bill. Farm planning and diversification are key, as farmers are doing whatever they can to make their farm work, even relying on off-farm income.
Farmers face three risk areas.
Marketing is complex and people don't want to ask questions so they give up trying to learn. A business plan is necessary during hard times to get a loan, yet farmers rarely want to know how the bank views their financial situation. Marketing clubs are a great thing, and those who stay with them learn a lot. Politics are essential to good farm policy. We don't do a good job showing ourselves as good stewards of the environment.