It seems like “dollars spent” has become the new metric for reporting improvements in soil and water conservation. I totally agree, we should know how much money is being spent on protecting our natural resources, but I think “dollars spent” is a misleading way to report progress. Taxpayers are entitled to information that contains more specificity, such as tons of soil or pounds of nitrogen kept from entering water bodies. Better yet, progress reporting should include efficiency information such as the cost of saving a ton of soil (cost/ton …
The End or the Start?
This week I find myself sorting through a mountain of turbulent emotions. After a wonderful ride of 22 years, I am no longer the CEO of Agren. Last week, we inked a deal with a major agribusiness whereby they acquired Agren and our software. As I said, this announcement comes with a range of emotions. The process of selling Agren has come with feelings of sorrow and loss. I would be lying if I said this process has been easy. It is difficult to walk away from a life-time spent pursuing a passion and realizing the rewards of relationships …
What’s bugging Tom
I’m Tom Buman and this is what’s bugging me… Everybody wants to put their best foot forward. I get it. I realize it is important to report the good news, but when the good news is misleading, it bugs me. So here’s what’s bugging me. Yield vs. Profitability: For years, conservationists have criticized farmers who just look at yield and not profitability. But now, the headlines are espousing cover crops because they increase yield. Conservationists are on the cover crop bandwagon. I realize that cover crops are good conservation practices, but …
Deny, deflect, defend
Recently, I have heard some environmentalists complain about using tax payer money to clean up the environment. They say, “let the polluters pay,” meaning farmers should pay the entire bill. Really? Wow, talk about denying, deflecting, and defending. It is my sincere hope that people study the impacts of climate change and its effect on nitrogen and phosphorus runoff before denying culpability. I hope they realize they are part of the problem and need to be part of the solution; unless, of course, these environmentalists deny climate change is …
More hired men or more tractors?
Hybrid corn, a one-row corn picker and a hand-tied pickup hay baler were just a few firsts pioneered in Shelby County, Iowa, by my grandpa, Will Buman. By 1950, Grandpa, was farming over 1,000 acres of land. For one farmer with 3 sons and one hired man, that was a lot of land. But let me qualify that. Grandpa also owned 6 tractors; more than one tractor per field hand. And at the time, six tractors definitely exceeded the average farmer. Grandpa understood that technology, not workers, increased production. Grandpa also understood farming …
Better than average?
“In the field of social psychology, illusory superiority is a cognitive bias whereby a person overestimates their own qualities and abilities, in relation to the same qualities and abilities of other persons.” The Iowa Farm and Rural Life Poll is always fascinating. But one question was especially illuminating in this year’s survey. Farmers were asked, “Compared to other farm operations in your area, how well do you think your farm operation is performing in controlling soil erosion?” Seventeen percent (17%) rated themselves far above …