Many agriculture groups talk about the importance of advocating for agriculture, but how exactly do farmers do that? Cody Carpenter, the owner of Redrock View Farms in Wisconsin, talks about how he advocates for dairy farming when he connects with elected officials.
“The thing that I tell legislators is this isn’t just a job to me. It’s a lifestyle, and I think that is something that’s really unique to farming. It’s a lifestyle. It’s not just something I punch in and punch out. I carry it with me all the time. I’m very proud of it. The generational aspect of this is always important to us, and how we raise our kids in this lifestyle, and all of these things that add up to make it more than just a nine-to-five job. I think that’s hard to translate, sometimes, via hard numbers about what we’re doing in total production and all the technology. But yeah, it’s a lifestyle, not just a job.”
Chad Zuleger, the executive director of the Dairy Business Association in Wisconsin, said it’s important for producers in every state to talk about the benefits of agriculture for the state and country.
“I’d like to add on to that, and Cody talks about it being a lifestyle, but it’s a lifestyle that’s immensely important to the state of Wisconsin. It really is the culture, and he talks about a family lifestyle. This is a lifestyle that benefits the state of Wisconsin and every resident in our state. It is more than just a job. It really builds our communities in rural Wisconsin. Wisconsin is so much more than just Madison, Milwaukee, and our urban areas. There’s so much history and value in rural Wisconsin, and we’ve got to continually beat that drum because Madison, Milwaukee, and our urban centers really do take up a lot of the news cycle, and we hear a lot about that. But really, what’s happening on the ground in these rural communities is critical, and dairy farming is a really essential part of that rural lifestyle.”