Farmers are the best conservationists we have

COLUMBUS – Education is agriculture’s most powerful tool in helping the public understand farm practices and programs.
Jay Lehr, Heartland Institute science director, encouraged those at the Ohio Farm Bureau Federation Trends and Issues Conference Jan. 27 to become environmental activists and help spread the word about farm conservation practices.
“My message is to talk about things and educate people about agriculture,” he said. “If we all become activists, we can win back the hearts and minds of the people.”
Surveys. Lehr said he surveyed people in Chicago and Washington D.C. to find out what they knew about fertilizer. The results of his survey showed 90 percent of respondents in Chicago and 70 percent of respondents in Washington D.C. knew nothing about it. When asked for a definition of fertilizer, the No. 1 response was toxic byproducts from manufacturing.
Lehr gave five key messages to help people spread factual information.