A Yuma lettuce farmer was named president of the Arizona Farm Bureau after its former president, Stefanie Smallhouse, stepped down for personal reasons.

John Boelts ascended into the role from his position as the state Farm Bureau’s first vice president. He will continue in that role through the end of the year when a new election for state Farm Bureau president is scheduled. He will have the option to run for state president at that time.

Boelts farms about 3,000 acres of vegetables, cotton and forage crops in the Yuma region. He remains active in state Farm Bureau leadership, having previously served two terms as the Yuma County Farm Bureau president and over 10 years in state Farm Bureau leadership.

Boelts helped spearhead a national Farm Bureau leadership tour of Yuma County last March that brought in national Farm Bureau leaders, including American Farm Bureau President Zippy Duvall for a farm tour and visit to the international border with Mexico.

“It was a great opportunity for me and Stefanie to get to share about our corner of the state and what we’re doing in the winter, which I think some folks may not have been aware of,” Boelts said.

The tour helped illustrate the need for H2A labor reform at the national level, which Boelts said remains a top concern for the Arizona Farm Bureau.

Related:AFBF board tours Yuma ag, visits border

“H2A works, but it’s painful to work through,” he continued.

U.S. farmers saw some labor reform during the George W. Bush presidency. Those reforms were removed during the Obama presidency.

“We’re losing market share to other countries, especially in our labor-intensive crops,” Boelts said. “Zippy realizes that we’re short on workers and we’re trying to get something done on that at a national level.”

Labor need highlighted

The Arizona visit by national Farm Bureau leadership didn’t change U.S. Farm Bureau policy, but it highlighted the need to aggressively continue what has been a political issue for generations. Boelts believes the continued attention on the matter keeps up the political heat by various agricultural organizations.

Boelts should know. Each day during the winter, buses of farm laborers from Mexico are transported from international border crossings with California and Arizona to harvest vegetables grown in the desert.

As important as labor is to Arizona farmers, water is perhaps more important. Without it, Boelts says Arizona agriculture does not exist. This will continue to be an issue Boelts and Arizona agricultural leadership must deal with, whether it’s water from the Colorado River, or from aquifers around the state.

Related:Ariz. water regs appear ‘predetermined,’ ag leader says

The sustainable ability to power the pumps needed to move this water is also a high priority for the Arizona Farm Bureau.

Another hot topic of concern for the state’s ranchers, particularly those with public land leases, are issues surrounding those leases and the ability to operate them in the face of issues surrounding the Endangered Species Act. Mexican Gray Wolf releases in eastern Arizona are just one of several issues facing livestock producers in the state, he said.

Under state Farm Bureau bylaws, Boelts will serve the balance of Smallhouse’s term, which ends in November. He said he will likely run for election at that time, which starts a 10-year clock of five, two-year terms that he could serve under current state Farm Bureau policy.

Along with the leadership transition, Pinal County Farm Bureau President Richie Kennedy became first vice president, and Yavapai County Farm Bureau President Sharla Mortimer is the state Farm Bureau’s new second vice president.

Boelts’ executive committee includes Graham County Farm Bureau President Ben Menges, and Cochise County Farm Bureau President Stephen Klump.