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Minnesota corn farmer replies to Star Tribune's "Big Ag" editorial on buffer strips

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Kirby Hettver

Kirby Hettver, a fifth-generation farmer in Chippewa County, wrote a response to a recent “Big Ag” editorial in the Star Tribune.

On Sunday, the Minneapolis Star Tribune published an editorial dismissing the conservation efforts of farmers by labeling farmers and the grassroots organizations they belong to as “Big Ag.”

The editorial was spurred by the opposition of the Minnesota Corn Growers Association (MCGA) and other family farm organizations to Gov. Dayton’s proposal to mandate 50-foot buffer strips along all Minnesota waterways in farm country. This statement from MCGA President Bruce Peterson highlights why the organization opposes to the one-size-fits-all legislation.

What was troubling about the Star Tribune’s editorial was its cliched and lazy labeling of Minnesota farmers as “Big Ag.” Here’s an excerpt from a response to the editorial written by Kirby Hettver, a farmer in DeGraff, Minn., who also serves on the MCGA board of directors:

As the spotlight shines brighter on farming and water quality, we need to do all that we can to ensure that the discussion remains informative and constructive. Using meaningless and inflammatory labels such as “Big Ag” to paint farm organizations opposed to the one-size-fits-all legislation with a broad and inaccurate brush accomplishes the exact opposite.

Hettver’s complete response was published in the March 19 Star Tribune and can be read here.

If you farm in Minnesota, be sure to read Hettver’s response and stand up for Minnesota farmers in the comments section. Also, share Hettver’s response with your fellow farmers, friends and neighbors.

As farmers, it’s up to us to help people better understand why farmers and groups like MCGA fully support the use of buffer strips to protect water quality, but do not support a one-size-fits-all buffer law. It’s also up to us to push back whenever a major media outlet or anti-ag activist groups attempt to score cheap points in a discussion about an important topic like water quality by labeling all Minnesota farmers, whether they’re large, small or somewhere in-between, as “Big Ag.”

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