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STRATFORD -- "The people business," that's what farming is all about, Aaron Putze told members of Hamilton County Farm Bureau as they gathered at Back Country Winery in late August for the group's annual meeting.
Weaving his talk from Dolly Parton to Norman Borlaug, Putze entertained and inspired as he drew parallels that pointed to diverse lives that had the same focus -- serving people. Parton made people smile and laugh, Borlaug put food in millions of empty bellies.
"Everyone is in the people business," Putze said.
Farmers must be prepared to engage and tell their story of helping feed people in a world where production faces ever-increasing challenges.
A West Bend native, Putze, who serves as Chief Officer, Brand Management and Engagement, for the Iowa Soybean Association, was at the meeting as part of his private business, Putze Ink. The author of two books, including Chuck Long: Destined for Greatness, he delivers timely and inspirational talks across Iowa.
Putze draw the crowd in from the beginning, asking for their concerns, their priorities for farming. With most of his recent audiences, it boils down to what Putze terms the 'Three Ws; War, Weather, and Washington."
"We like to focus on the negative, it's just human nature," Putze said. But he challenged the audience to spin that around and focus on positives, to engage with leaders to push for those positives that can be changed.
Challenges voiced by audience members included high input costs, low commodity prices, repairs and the Right to Repair, policy issues, and, of course, the weather.
In his travels with the Iowa Soybean Association, Putze has visited some of the far corners of the world. In places where hunger has been generational, the people he meets are quick to thank him, to shake his hand, and tell him of their American hero, Norman Borlaugh, 'The man who saved a billion lives."
He never accumulated the wealth of Bill Gates or Warren Buffett, but Borlaugh is remembered as 'The Father of the Green Revolution,' winner of the Nobel Peace Prize, and an ag researcher who helped farmers grow more food and feed more people.
"When I travel, people all over the world know where the United States is, where Iowa is, and they know Norman Borlaug is a hero," Putze said.
"If not for the United States farmer, more people would starve," Putze said. It's as simple as that, and new technologies, such as those fostered by Borlaug have made all the difference.
While Iowans are accustomed to diving miles and miles and seeing nothing but green fields of corn and soybeans, that is a rarity across the globe, Putze noted. Arable land is a more precious resource than oil or gold. He noted that only 6 percent of the globe's land area is suitable for crop production. That leaves a dwindling number of farmers tilling the land to feed the world.
In addition to being inspired by Putze, Farm Bureau members held their annual meeting, electing officers and passing the 2026 resolutions. President Randy Greufe led the brief meeting. Here's a look at the resolutions Hamilton County Farm Bureau members support:
• 1031 Exchange Rules: 1031 Exchange Rules should require the purchaser of ag land to remain in ag production to receive the tax credit. We believe 1031 exchanges should be limited to the same asset type and include livestock and machinery.
• Capital Gains and Basis: Farm assets should be eligible for step-basis when transferred to direct descendants or spouses. They should be allowed to be transferred prior to death.
• Divided Highway Median Expansion: New construction standards should have medians large enough to accommodate agricultural equipment.
• Driver's Education: Driver's education in Iowa should include instruction in safely sharing the road with agricultural equipment.
• Forest Reserve: Land enrolled in the Forest Reserve program should not be leased for hunting or other economic gain.
• ISU Extension and 4-H: We support continued funding of the Iowa 4-H program and ISU Extension.
• Cropland to Pasture: We support additional USDA incentives to convert cropland to pasture. We do not support crop insurance penalties.
• Sales Tax: Materials used to construct agricultural buildings used in a farming operation should be exempt from state sales tax.
• Urban Sprawl/Annexation: We believe the annexation process should include additional options when there is a non-consenting landowner or landowners. The process should include the County Supervisors and Election in addition City Government board approvals.
• Windbreak: We support the use of incentives to be used to establish windbreaks.