Conservation Guardians of Northwest Illinois
Sustainable Agriculture
About 70 people braved snow flurries and slick roads to hear Dr. John I. Ikerd, Professor Emeritus of Agricultural Economics at the University of Missouri - Columbia College of Agriculture, who spoke at Highland Community College in Freeport on February 15. The presentation was sponsored by HOMES (Helping Others Maintain Environmental Standards), an organization that has been fighting construction of a large mega-dairy in Jo Daviess County near Nora.
The evening began with a brief talk by Carmen Ferguson, who praised the integrity of her late husband, Lester Johnson. Lester was a Resource Conservationist with the Jo Daviess County Soil & Water Conservation District and one of the original founders of the Jo Daviess Conservation Foundation. Never afraid to stand up for his beliefs, he had testified to the presence of karst in the court case seeking an injunction against building the mega-dairy, or CAFO (concentrated animal feeding operation). He will long be remembered for his dedication to preserving the beauty of our area.
Dr. Ikerd is a strong supporter of animal agriculture and family farms. He was once a supporter of what is referred to as Industrial Agriculture, of which CAFOs are the epitome. "Get big, or get out!" was once his mantra.
The farm crisis of the 1980s, when many small farmers, especially in our neighboring state of Iowa, went bankrupt (some even committed suicide) marked a turning point in Dr. Ikerd's thinking. The late 1980s saw the growth of Sustainable Agriculture, a direct response to Industrial Agriculture. This movement, focusing on organic and local food, and emphasizing stewardship, community and the local economy, he saw as more environmentally correct and economically sound, and he became a strong proponent for the health of the planet.
Dr. Ikerd believes, like Jonathan Safran Foer in his book Eating Animals, that, in the long run, huge CAFOs are not sustainable. Industrial agriculture is driven only by economic self-interest, with no regard for future generations. It sees only the immediate "benefits" with no thought for the future.
He discussed the costs of the mega-farms, which many mistakenly believe are the wave of the future and the way to feed the world. According to Dr. Ikerd, industrial agriculture results in a diminished quality of life and untold social costs. Family farms are forced out of business, and rural communities die. Many studies have enumerated the health risks faced by those who live near these large mega-farms, ranging from increased cases of asthma to sickness resulting from polluted drinking water. A few people benefit economically, but basically jobs go to people outside the area, many of whom are illegal immigrants, easily mistreated and taken advantage of.
The end result is a greater disparity of income: a few people become wealthy, but their prosperity is offset by the larger number of residents approaching poverty levels. The economic disparity results in more crime, a sign of a diminished quality of life.
The upside, Dr. Ikerd emphasized, is that sustainable agriculture is actually better for the world, both now and in the future. Industrial agriculture is highly dependent upon fossil fuel; 10 calories of fossil energy must be spent for every food calorie produced. And we're running out of fossil fuel. Dr. Ikerd declared that more food per acre can actually be produced on family farms with sustainable agriculture than can be generated by CAFOs. It just takes more farmers to do it. That means more jobs and better jobs, happier workers, more humanely treated animals, and a healthier population. It also means a more beautiful area. Dr. Ikerd described, instead of acres and acres of corn and the consequent use of huge amounts of water and fertilizer, a picture of rolling hills of grassland and grazing cattle.
Dr. Ikerd received a standing ovation.
