Beth Rachut’s extensive involvement and leadership with the Mitchell County Farm Bureau, as well as in her community of Osage, has earned her the prestigious Young Farmer Leadership Award for 2017. It was presented during the Iowa Farm Bureau Federation’s 99th annual meeting Dec. 5-6 in Des Moines. 

The award, presented by IFBF, honors a young farmer under 35 years old who demonstrates outstanding leadership in Farm Bureau, agriculture and the community. The award is in honor of Bob Joslin, IFBF president from 1986 to 1987, who was well-known for his support and encouragement of young farmers. 

Rachut along with her husband, Steve, raises feeder cattle and grows corn, soybeans, retail sweetcorn and commercial potatoes and onions. Rachut is the co-owner of an ag consulting business that assists farmers across Iowa in working through regulations and programs related to farming, such as manure management plans and comprehensive nutrient management plans.

Connects with non-farming audience, shares information
Rachut is a graduate of the Iowa Farm Bureau Ag Leaders Institute and member of IFBF’s F.A.R.M. Team, a group of farmers who work to connect with a non-farming audience to share information about today’s farming practices and what those practices mean for the general public. She serves on the Mitchell County board of directors as vice president and served as the chair of the Mitchell County Farm Bureau Young Farmers Committee from 2007 to 2017. Rachut has also represented Mitchell County Farm Bureau at the Iowa Capitol to voice concerns from her county.

Rachut has held a variety of other positions in agriculture, including serving as a board member of Mitchell County Women, Land and Legacy; a member of the Osage FFA advisory board, as agricultural liaison for the Osage Community Schools Committee for Technical Trades; and a volunteer superintendent for the Mitchell County Fair Floral and Agricultural open class show.  

Investing time, energy
Rachut has been instrumental in planning events to connect her community to agriculture through farm tours, “Farm to Table” events and engaging with students inside the classroom by bringing in live baby animals. She’s also given back to her county by organizing donations to county food banks, providing opportunities to youth through her role as a Cattlemen’s Beef Queen adviser and being part of the Mitchell County Farm Bureau SHARE Fund committee, which aims to create valuable rural-urban partnerships and projects.

“This year we had a very impressive pool of young farmers nominated by their county Farm Bureaus. Beth stood out as a leader who has invested her time and energy locally to make her community and county grow,” said Mary Foley Balvanz, IFBF leadership training manager.

As the Young Farmer Leadership Award recipient, Rachut receives a $1,500 home and workshop certificate from award-sponsor John Deere, a 90-day no-payment and no-interest John Deere financial certificate up to $5,000, a $750 Fast Stop gift card from Growmark and expense-paid trips to the 2018 American Farm Bureau Federation annual convention in Nashville and the 2018 Growmark annual meeting in Chicago.

Marion County young farmer wins discussion meet
Justine Stevenson of Knoxville placed first in Iowa Farm Bureau’s Young Farmer Discussion Meet Dec. 5 during the annual meeting. As winner, Stevenson will represent Iowa at the Young Farmer and Rancher National Discussion Meet during the American Farm Bureau Annual convention in Nashville Jan. 5-10. 

For her victory in the competition, Stevenson received a John Deere X380 riding lawn mower, a 90-day no-payment and no-interest John Deere financial certificate up to $5,000, and an expense-paid trip to the 2018 Growmark annual meeting in Chicago in August.

Dialogue on issues, challenges facing agriculture
The young farmer discussion meet encourages dialogue about issues and challenges that affect agriculture. It tests young farmers’ knowledge of ag-related issues and their ability to express their opinions and vision for critical agriculture issues. Such skills are vital in an age when consumers are increasingly engaged in food safety and environmental issues, and the need to tell agriculture’s story is crucial. 

The Young Farmer Discussion Meet is a yearlong competition with the opening rounds held during the IFBF Young Farmer Conference in February, and the top eight contestants compete during the IFBF annual meeting. The four finalists competed in one final round, and the winner was recognized during the Young Farmer Award ceremony. Contestants are judged on cooperative attitude and problem-solving, as well as implementation, delivery, analysis of the topic, and the quality of their opening and closing statements.

Source: Iowa Farm Bureau