Recently, as I was talking with one of my local farmer friends, I was impressed with the idea that the farm and urban communities depend a lot on each other. One could not exist with out the other.
As we talked, my friend mentioned that he had to see if his wife had time to run to town. He needed a new battery for his pickup and some special oil and grease for the combine. Then he learned she wanted to get some groceries for baking while she was in town. Without urban areas and the stores and services that are available, farming and living would be difficult.
At the same time, we were talking about the fall harvest coming up. Soybeans vary in maturity across the county and some are about ready for harvest. Other fields are still very green and need more time before harvest. Yields are expected to be good.
Corn generally looks good and a lot of choppers are out there chopping the corn to be put in the silo. Before long, the combines, like giant bugs, will be moving up and down the fields harvesting the dry crop. Much of that is fed to local dairy and beef herds with a lot going to market or storage.
All this points out the fact that the agricultural community is busy harvesting what will become, in various ways, our food supply and a host of other products including fuel for our cars. Local farmers join with those across the nation to make sure we continue to enjoy many choices and an abundance of food.
Unfortunately, there are some that want to take away our right of choice and tell farmers how to farm. Ohio's agricultural community, with the bi-partisan support of the Ohio legislature, the governor and Ohio Department of Agriculture, decided that people in Ohio could best decide what is good for the state.
Issue 2, which will appear on the ballot, will do several things. It will assure Ohio families that they will have a safe, locally grown food supply. It will bring together the best Ohio expertise in animal care to ensure excellent care of our herds and flocks. Consumer confidence in Ohio-raised food will be reinforced. Ohio's agricultural viability will be maintained, the number one contributor to our economy, and regulatory control of Ohio's farms will be kept in the state where it belongs.
Consumers in Ohio, along with our agricultural community, will benefit from Issue 2. This legislation had remarkable bipartisan support from both political parties in the legislature along with Gov. Ted Strickland and Ohio Department of Agriculture director Robert Boggs.
Farms of all sizes will benefit from Issue 2 because it will ensure that decisions about animal care are made by Ohioans in Ohio.
Yes, Issue 2 is important to both consumers and the agricultural community. They depend on each other.
Parker is retired from The Ohio State University and works with the local Farm Bureau Board.