Local farmers and residents assembled at Ferris State University on Saturday to talk to candidates running for local, state and federal elections about agriculture policy.
Attendees voiced their concerns about immediate issues affecting farmers like fuel and fertilizer prices, and long-term issues like pesticides and energy alternatives.
Fuel and fertilizer prices have risen significantly following the ongoing war in Iran.
Large amounts of those commodities can’t pass through a key waterway that sits between the United Arab of Emirates and Iran, called the Straits of Hormuz.
This is causing prices for fuel and fertilizer to rise and because of the blockage, some fertilizers aren’t available at all.
Big Rapids resident, Dave Treece comes from a long line of farmers. He’s concerned about how farmers are dealing with limited resources and rising prices.
“It’s affecting the prices of things that farmers need to operate, not just survive, but to just operate,” Treece said. “What affects farmers affects all of us, but it affects the farmers in a concentrated dose. But we all feel it, whether we're farmers or not.”
Treece said Michigan farmers experience a unique set of problems.
“They face a lot of challenges in the supply chain. They have a lot of challenges with dealing with the environment, with energy use, energy production,” Treece said. “There's a lot on the plate for farmers and it really kind of defines what's happening on this side of the state.”
Missy Collins has a small organic farm in Mecosta County. Collins said she and many other small farmers work other full-time jobs because farming alone doesn’t pay the bills.
“That is something that needs to change,” Collins said. “There needs to be a stronger focus on keeping things local, keeping things smaller, and keeping our money in small farms in this state, keeping more of our food in this state.”
Tracy Ruell, a candidate for State House, said she supports legislation that would allow farmers to subsidize solar power — something she believes would help farms stay running during tough seasons.
Ruell said she grew up on a dairy farm that shut down after cattle and chickens ingested polybrominated biphenyls (PBBs) following a mass feed contamination in 1973.
“I often think to myself, if solar was available back then, and my father and my uncle could have put 20 acres and leased it to a solar company,” Ruell said. “That could have allowed our farm to continue until people started purchasing dairy again.”
Other candidates on the panel talked about giving farmers more agency in solar legislation, and diversifying the types of energy used on farms.
Collins asked the panel how they would protect Michigan’s watersheds, soil, and residents’ health from pesticides through legislation.
Rachel Howard, a candidate running for US Senate, said getting rid of pesticides would take time.
“I would far prefer that every single thing we eat be natural, organic, not treated with pesticides or herbicides,” Howard said. “But we also have to recognize that there needs to be a slow process that allows our smaller and mid-sized farms to sustain while we are able to account for the impact that would be made.”
Collins said she wants a quicker policy solution that will address the health impacts of pesticides.
“I don't know that we have a long time to change things,” Collins said. “We really need to look at how we fund food production, how we handle food production, and what we really consider important as far as quality of life for humans on this planet, and specifically for Michiganders in an area that has the largest water source on the planet.”
