The state's Department of Agriculture plans to implement a wide-ranging strategy to promote Indiana’s 57,500 farming operations over the next 10 years, officials announced Monday.
The presentation of the plan, made to about 200 agriculture representatives at The Ritz Charles event center in Carmel, also drew Gov. Eric Holcomb and Lt. Gov Suzanne Crouch to the podium.
“Having a plan is critically important. It’s also important to the market so that folks know there is certainty and predictability when they are looking at where to invest,” said Holcomb. “So this plan is right down that strike zone. It will play a critical part in us continuing to grow our ag investments.”
The plan calls for dozens of agencies to promote seven priorities including economic and community development, natural resources, food and agricultural innovation and education and career development.
“All of Indiana agriculture came together to develop this plan. There is enough common ground among all those to come together and lift up those core, what turns out to be seven key priorities,” Indiana State Department of Agriculture Director Ted McKinney said.
The plan, which has 86 items requiring action by the state and other agencies, draws on Indiana being home to global agribusinesses and diverse natural resources as among the state’s strengths but also cites as a weakness the public’s perception and lack of understanding of some aspects of agriculture.
The plan has been in the works for 18 months. One component seeks agriculture education curriculum options for K-12. However, a recent bill that would have added agriculture science classes in high schools failed to gain a hearing in the legislature.
The bill’s author, Rep. Don Lehe, R-Delphi, said Monday that he was a “little skeptical” of it passing the legislature and that the concept may have been too new for some legislators.
Lehe said, “I think there was a lot of feeling of, how do you force a school to have an ag class for some of these schools that are very urban? But my response is, we’re seeing some of the largest growth in FFA for example and agriculture in some of these urban schools.”
Holcomb added, “This is an area where I agree with Rep. Lehe, that’s it’s important that our students when they leave high school and they’re holding a ticket to their success in their hand, agriculture education is critically important in a vast part of our state.
“As technology intersects with agriculture of yesterday we have to make sure that we’re equipping our students with the skills they need,” Holcomb said.
Lehe said he might introduce a similar bill next session.
The state Department of Agriculture has plans to work with the Indiana Department of Education in determining future curriculum.
“We do believe that we can find a way to introduce more of this curriculum,” McKinney said. “Driving this is the fact that too many of our youth think that milk originally comes from the local retailer. I’m not blaming them. I’m blaming saying we can’t let that happen.”
He continued, “When they find out a cow on the farm produces that milk or a pig on the farm produces that terrific pork chop from the state fair, then there becomes a more profound and deeper appreciation for what goes on on a farm and that’s ultimately what it’s about.”