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"There are so many factors that are out of your control. Oftentimes people fail to realize the risk a farmer is taking to put the crop in every year." 

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"There are so many factors that are out of your control. Oftentimes people fail to realize the risk a farmer is taking to put the crop in every year." 

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Many people don't realize all the factors that go into every aspect of farming and because of the way supermarkets operate people don’t really have to think about how much it took to get that produce there because it is always so readily available. Many factors are out of the control of the farmers but because food is always abundant at grocery stores many don’t think about what it takes to get that food ready for sale. There is a lot that is out of the control of the farmers such as weather but, with the help of technologies like GMOs farmers are able to combat some environmental factors (Naig, 2018).

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Five years ago, our Department of Agriculture partnered with Iowa State University, the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) and others to develop the Iowa Nutrient Reduction Strategy as a science-based model to guide our water quality efforts. Since that time, we have regularly reviewed the progress we're making and identified ways to do even more to protect our natural resources.

Accurately measuring what's happening in Iowa's watersheds is complicated. We know - and numerous studies have shown - that many factors, such as soil type, landscape and weather can have a significant impact on surface water and nitrate levels.

Unfortunately, the water quality story in the June 24 edition of the Register focuses primarily on monitoring data and doesn't address other key factors that must also be considered in water quality assessments. Even the authors of this current study, Chris Jones and Keith Schilling, conducted a study just three years ago that showed that weather is the highest correlation with nitrates, not farming. At the time, they told the Register that "nitrate trends can be tricky, subject to large swings brought on by drought or heavy rains."

Additionally, a 2016 report prepared by the DNR in collaboration with our department, Iowa State and the IIHR Hydroscience and Engineering Center, also documented the impact that extreme rainfall events can have on both nitrogen and phosphorus loads into surface water. The report shows stream bed and bank erosion during those events contributed to fluctuations in nitrates and phosphorus and that "year to year variation in precipitation is likely the biggest factor in the variability of nutrient concentrations and loads and the main reason why measuring statistically significant trends in nutrients is difficult."

When you test, where you test, and the weather at the time makes all the difference in measuring water. If we measure the rivers - especially now when we're looking at widespread flooding - we see weather effects, rather than things farmers, landowners or cities can control. We can't control the volatile weather we're experiencing right now, but we can mitigate impacts to the landscape by the types and number of conservation practices implemented. This, along with long-term water monitoring, is a more accurate indicator of our progress.

While farmers and landowners are making great progress in soil conservation, we are just getting started in our quest to reduce nitrogen loss. Prior to the Iowa Nutrient Reduction Strategy being implemented five years ago, the primary focus of conservation for Iowa farmers was reducing soil erosion, not nitrates. Now, 90 percent of the funds through the Water Quality Initiative go to proven practices focused on reducing nitrogen loss.

Iowa has been a national leader in the development and implementation of nitrogen reduction conservation practices including wetlands, bioreactors and saturated buffers. Other states are using our strategy as a model because it is working and will work over the long term. I'm proud of our farmers and the incredible culture of conservation we've seen instilled since the implementation of the Nutrient Reduction Strategy. We are set to continue scaling up proven, science-based practices.

Mike Naig (Photo: Contributed)

More than 250 partners are supporting 65 rural and urban demonstration projects across the state. We have brought in more than $38 million from partners to support the work, including a recently announced $1 million grant from EPA focused on conservation drainage practices to reduce nitrogen loss. The Nutrient Research Center at Iowa State is coordinating monitoring efforts and conducting research of additional practices that can help reduce nutrient levels.

Landowners and community members are embracing conservation practices and are committed to making a difference. This is a complex issue. Weather, timing, funding and implementing proven conservation practices are all important factors to consider. Yet, Iowans are embracing the challenge of improving water quality and will continue to do so. We have much more work to do, but we are headed in the right direction.
Mike Naig is Iowa's Secretary of Agriculture.
Read or Share this story: https://dmreg.co/2N8tBVO

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Farmers are working to reduce nitrate levels, but some factors are out of their control

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Five years ago, our Department of Agriculture partnered with Iowa State University, the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) and others to develop the Iowa Nutrient Reduction Strategy as a science-based model to guide our water quality efforts. Since that time, we have regularly reviewed the progress we're making and identified ways to do even more to protect our natural resources.

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"My generation has access to a wealth of tools that previous generations did not have. It makes it way more interesting and way more efficient." 

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"My generation has access to a wealth of tools that previous generations did not have. It makes it way more interesting and way more efficient." 

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A common misconception when people hear "family farm" is that they instantly think it's some small operation that could only feed a few people. Another misconception I think people have is that farming hasn’t changed that much over the years. This quote shows that farming has evolved and continues to become more efficient also the farmers in this movie show that just because it is a family farm doesn’t necessarily mean that it is a small operation. In an article from the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences states that with population growing rapidly the only way to keep up with food production is to keep developing new technologies that allow farmers to work more efficiently (Tilman, Blazer, Hill, Belfort, 2011).

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Global food demand and the sustainable intensification of agriculture

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Global food demand is increasing rapidly, as are the environmental impacts of agricultural expansion. Here, we project global demand for crop production in 2050 and evaluate the environmental impacts of alternative ways that this demand might be met.

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"One of the biggest hurdles we're fighting right now is public perception." 

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"One of the biggest hurdles we're fighting right now is public perception." 

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This movie explored multiple issues they are facing that stem from public perception such as use of GMOs and animal mistreatment. One of the farmers talked about how chicken was being marketed as "hormone free" which was true, but all chicken was hormone free and this made the public think that other chicken was packed with hormones. This shows not only how uneducated the public is when it comes to food but also how a large part of farming is the business side of things. In an article from A Nature Journal, organic farmers were suing GMO producers and the organic farmers had a lot of support from the community (Bouchie, 2002). GMOs are a polarizing topic where many people take a side before being fully educated on the issue.

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"There are definitely romantic notions about farming, and I think the more people talk to farmers that notion will go away. Most people don’t think about where their food comes from." 

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"There are definitely romantic notions about farming, and I think the more people talk to farmers that notion will go away. Most people don’t think about where their food comes from." 

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I also believe that farming is romanticized, and that people have a picture in their head of what it is and what it's like to be a farmer but, like the quote says I think if more people actually talked to their local farmers there would be a more realistic perception. In an article from Kenyon College it is stated that through farmers' markets has increased participation in the local food movement.  It was also stated in the article that participation in farmers' markets and local food is reliant on the location, with the most successful ones being in areas of average or above average socio-economic status (Schupp, 2016).

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Just Where Does Local Food Live? Assessing Farmers' Markets in the United S...: Discovery Service for Illinois State University

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"There's a disconnect between the farming population and the non-farming population and it's difficult to bridge that disconnect." 

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"There's a disconnect between the farming population and the non-farming population and it's difficult to bridge that disconnect." 

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I chose this quote because having a family farm and after watching this documentary I believe the general population is under educated and disconnected from what farming in the US is really like. The American Journal for Agricultural Economics states that farmers face many misconceptions from consumers depending on what type of farming they do. Misconceptions range from a variety of things like use of GMOs, animal mistreatment, and organic vs conventional farming. The article also reported that when Illinois residents were surveyed about the importance of agriculture to the economy varied based on the distance from a major metropolitan area (Sexton, 2013).

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Market Power, Misconceptions, and Modern Agricultural Markets | American Journal of Agricultural Economics | Oxford Academic

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Although microeconomics textbook writers continue to point to agricultural markets as examples of competitive markets, in reality probably none are, especially