A win-win-win

By Pete Hanebutt, NDFB Public Policy Director

In America today, the average farmer or rancher produces enough commodity products to fill the pantries of well over 150 of their fellow citizens. We’ve come a long way from the subsistence farming which still exists in many parts of the world. In a low population state like North Dakota this translates into the simple truth that our farmers need to find multiple markets past the farm gate.

For years we in agribusiness have focused on finding new markets or expanding export markets. Unfortunately, in North Dakota we have ignored one huge market which could potentially grow right in our own back yard – and help our local economies along the way. We’ve chosen to say: “Not in my backyard” instead of saying, “Let’s do business in our backyard.”

A recent report from the United Soybean Board highlights usage of soybeans, primarily in livestock feed, throughout the 50 states. It’s disappointing to see our state rank 39th in the nation for soybeans used as feed. We are an extremely rural state, and we are apparently not using locally grown soybeans within our borders. Instead, we are dependent on foreign markets like the Chinese for our profitability.

Even more insulting in the USB study is the revelation that Vermont, a state ranking 45th in land mass, but similar to us in population, uses more U.S. grown soybeans than the 18th largest state, North Dakota. We choose every year to give away a market for locally grown, locally harvested, locally shipped, and potentially locally fed soybeans, simply because our state has turned its back on feeding livestock.

As a consequence, our state is not only dependent on foreign markets, but has also discouraged young people from returning to grow family operations in their home state.