PLENTY TO CELEBRATE
AT THE ANNUAL MEETING
Fred Kirschenmann says “I am not a scientist or a technician. I
am a farmer and a philosopher. I am aware that in our industrial
culture that makes me intellectually suspect and a bit of an oddball
... In my defense I want to note that philosophers and farmers have
played an important role in human civilization. Farmers have helped
us to stay alive, and philosophers have helped us to learn how to
live.”
These were the opening remarks from Kirschenmann’s address at
the Shivvers Lecture 1 in September, 2000. They paint an
intriguing picture of the man who will deliver a keynote address
entitled “Farmers – Who Needs Them?” at PFI’s Annual Meeting
in January, 2001. Dr. Fred Kirschenmann became director of the
Leopold Center for Sustainable in July, 2000 following a nationwide
search. At the time of his appointment, he managed the 3500-acre
certified organic Kirschenmann Family Farms in south central North
Dakota. Kirschenmann also helped found Farm Verified Organic, nc., a
private certification agency, and the Northern Plains Sustainable
Agriculture Society.
Kirschemann’s farming experience and PFI’s long standing
friendship with the Leopold Center he directs, make Fred a great
choice for keynoter as PFI celebrates its 15th birthday. Fred says,
“I really am looking forward to the PFI conference. By some
estimates the states of Nebraska and Iowa will lose between one
fifth and one third of their farmers within the next two years. PFI
and the Leopold Center have each developed some strategies to help
farmers stay in business over the past fifteen years. Now we have to
figure out how to extend what we have learned and how to develop
partnerships with many other segments of society to create a new
agriculture that works for farmers, for the environment and for our
urban and suburban neighbors. I want to explore some ideas for
implementing that new agenda with the PFI membership.”
Is it really PFI’s 15th birthday?
We suppose it depends on where you start counting. But the truth
is it was in the winter of 1984-1985 that Dick Thompson and Larry
Kallem began discussing the need for a group to share information
about farming methods that proved profitable and environmentally
sound. After a well attended series of lectures of “biological
farming” workshops organized by ISU professor Robert Dahlgren, a
small group joined together around Thompson and Kallem to form an
organization they called Practical 
Farmers
of Iowa. Since 1985 it has become widely known for its commitment to
sustainable agriculture. We have plenty to celebrate.
You can fill in the details yourself starting Friday evening when
PFI families are invited to gather at the Ames Gateway Holiday Inn
for an evening of music, a fill-it-in yourselves timeline of PFI
history and a trivia quiz. You can practice on the questions in the
box on the next page.
1 Shivvers Lecture, for Iowa Beta
Chapter, Gamma Sigma Delta, an agriculture honor society. For
complete text, see www.leopold.iastate.edu.
