Stop teaching and start building relationships

What happens when your neighbors turn on you? What do you do when the county no longer wants your farm to be in business? How do you react when you read negative press stories or hear gossip around town about your livestock enterprise?

What happens when everything you do – and have always done – is being challenged by the people in your community?

These are the tough questions some farmers in my rural state of South Dakota are experiencing right now as their county wages a war against any and all expansion of agricultural enterprises in the surrounding area.

It all started with a farmer’s proposal at a county commissioners’ meeting. He wanted to obtain a permit to put up a hog barn, which would allow him to expand his farming business without buying more land. It was his hope to be able to invite his son home to farm with him, and the pig operation would diversify the family’s sixth-generation crop farm.

And that’s where the you-know-what hit the fan.

An activist group got wind of it and quickly rallied the troops, staging protests at zoning meetings, inciting hate in the newspaper, working to vote off the pro-agricultural county commissioners, and to regulate and litigate the area farmers out of business.

Soon, local doctors were warning the community about the dangers of hog farms. The dust, they said, would certainly cause asthma and allergies in children.

Next, three new county commissioners, with a decidedly anti-ag agenda, were voted onto the board. Now they’re looking for added permits and increased restrictions and requirements on things like air, water, and manure.

Described by the farmers in the area as the “soap opera” that just won’t quit, these producers are literally fighting to keep their land. They are fighting for their right to farm. And they are fighting for food security. They hope that even though they’ve lost the battles, they’ll ultimately win the war and regain community trust in who they are and what they do.

After all, farmers and ranchers are just like consumers. They live and work in the community, paying taxes to support local roads, infrastructure, and public schools. They attend the same churches, buy groceries at the same places, go to the same sporting events, and support the same main street shops as everyone else in the community.

Yet, they’ve been painted to the be the bad guy, the boogeyman, the evil no-good, property value-destroying, money-hungry farmer. And that simply isn’t right.

I was asked to come speak at an event hosted by this small group of farmers; they wanted to educate people in the community about what they do. I was excited to go and share my story, but I warned them that people don’t want to be “taught” something – they want to be “shown.” They want to “feel” something.

Let me explain. Today’s society views food as more than just sustenance; it holds values that indicate what we find most important. Beyond taste and nutrition, today’s consumer cares about animal welfare, the environment, and how the food was produced.

They want to meet a farmer, look them in the eye, ask them questions, shake their hand, and feel connected to their food. That’s why grocery store produce may wither and rot before it’s purchased, while farmers’ market stands sell out in hours. These individual growers have built connections with their local customers, and they’re earning a premium for their product as they do it.

No matter what type of production you’re involved in, if we are to be successful in agriculture, we must stop educating and start building relationships.

So what do you do when the community turns on you? First, figure out how you can identify the shared values you have with your neighbors, and then begin the process of making connections, building trust, and making long-lasting friendships, where people care about your success as much as you care about their happiness.

Eat, drink, and be merry, folks; but if you’re not a farmer, remember that one did put that food on the table for you.

The views and opinions expressed in this column are those of the author and not necessarily those of Farm World. Readers with questions or comments for Amanda Radke may write to her in care of this publication.