Ohio Agricultural Council inducts four pioneers into its hall of fame

COLUMBUS – The Ohio Agricultural Council inducted Ohio Columbus Barber, Linus Losh, Tom Price and Bobby VanStavern into the Ohio Agricultural Hall of Fame Aug. 10 at the Rhodes Youth Center at the Ohio State Fair.
The 42nd annual event honored these four professionals for their lifetime service, dedication, leadership and contributions to the Ohio agricultural industry.
Barber. Ohio Columbus (O.C.) Barber, (1841-1920) was one of the first in the United States to apply scientific and business practices to agriculture.
Between 1909 and 1912, he erected 35 permanent stone and brick farm buildings on Anna Dean Farm, near Barberton, Ohio.
The Anna Dean Farms set world records in 1915 with one Guernsey cow producing 24,008 pounds of milk, with 4.5 percent butter fat.
The 756-foot-long concrete dairy barn, 12 acres of greenhouses and hot water incubator for 12,000 eggs were all the largest in the world at the time.
Barber employed two Mennonite brothers named Yoder who stayed with him until his death in 1920 and purchased the greenhouse operations in 1921, which is now known as the Yoder Brothers.
O.C. Barber founded the city of Barberton, Ohio, in 1881, founded a number of industrial companies and the original Akron City Hospital.
A native of Logan County, he graduated from Lakewood High School and held degrees in agronomy from Ohio State University.
Losh. Linus “Lenny” Losh is known for his lifelong work in soil and water conservation services stretching from 1948 to 2000.
His work began in Scioto, Champaign and Shelby counties, where he helped farmers plan and apply soil conservation practices to their land.
Losh moved to the Ohio State Soil and Conservation Services office, serving as chief economist and head of Ohio’s Watershed Planning Party.
During this time, he developed the majority of Ohio’s watershed plans.
From 1963-1980, Losh served in Washington. During his tenure, Losh helped develop the Resource Conservation Act and the regulations to implement it, as well as the rules and regulations for the Resource Conservation and Development Program.
He also worked to develop the USDA’s first National Soil Conservation Program.
As the chief of the Soil and Conservation Services Inventory and Evaluation Section, Losh developed the National Resource Inventory.
From 1999-2000, Losh worked with the Ohio Department of Agriculture to analyze and develop agricultural policy.
For the past several years, he has provided leadership to the Darby Creek Watershed Plan and on the Natural Resources Conservation Services State Technical Committee.
Losh is a fellow of the Ohio Academy of Science, U.S. import-export Agency and Ohio Chapter Soil and Water Conservation Society.
He is the national chair of the Soil and Water Conservation Services Economic Conservation Committee.
Price. Tom Price is a hog, cattle and compost farmer who has actively worked with agricultural-related organizations and agencies to help livestock and poultry producers be good neighbors and environmental stewards.
Price’s enterprise, Price Farms Organics, Ltd., allows his farm operations to flourish in a rapidly urbanizing area, while meeting the yard trimmings disposal needs of Delaware County.
He shares his expertise with Ohio State University classes discussing animal livestock policy and practices, soil and water management and conservation.
A native of Scioto County, Price is a 1960 graduate of Scioto Valley High School and holds a degree in agriculture from Ohio State University.
Price served on the Delaware Area Chamber of Commerce and the Delaware Soil and Water Conservation District.
He has served on the Ohio Pork Industry Strategic Planning Committee, the Ohio Beef Council, OSU Extension Advisory Committee and the Delaware Farmland Preservation Task Force.
Currently, he serves on the Ohio Soil and Water Conservation Commission and the Ohio Exposition Commission.
VanStavern. Bobby VanStavern is an icon in the beef industry. His leadership led to a 1978 meeting with the director of the Certified Angus Beef Program.
His vision for the factors that effect beef palatability led to the eight, science-based specifications for the “Certified Angus Beef” brand, the nation’s first specification-based, branded beef program.
VanStavern’s specifications for Certified Angus Beef brands became the benchmark for premium beef.
A native of Union, W.Va., VanStavern graduated from Union High School in 1947 and earned a degree in 1952 from West Virginia University. He also holds terminal degrees from Ohio State University in animal science.
After serving in the U.S. Air Force, VanStavern began his career at the Ohio Research and Development Center, where he became an assistant instructor.
Since 1960, he distinguished himself as a teacher from the OSU college classroom to Extension and the industry and business sector discussing marketing, consumer trends and product quality.
VanStavern has served the industry at nearly every level: American Society of Animal Science, American Meat Association and the Ohio Extension Professors Association, among others.