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Creating Higher Standards in FY24
Creating Higher Standards in FY24
October means harvest season for Illinois soybean farmers, and a fresh fiscal year for the Illinois Soybean Association. As we transition over the work, impacts, and successes from the previous year into the new year, and prepare ourselves for the opportunities ahead, we’re creating higher standards for ourselves, for our industry, and for our global value chain.
Like the many Illinois farmers who have been engaged in pre-harvest maintenance, your dedicated ISA team is developing the new skills necessary to drive progress and healthy returns for Illinois growers. We are “building our bench” of highly-qualified, career-oriented professionals who are passionate about their work and see themselves as part of the bigger picture here at ISA.
In terms of programming, performance and scale, creating new standards presents our team with new challenges. Driven by the valuable input and leadership of our Illinois soybean farmer board, ISA is strategically expanding our services and support. This strategic shift will enhance our performance and bolster the competencies we undertake on behalf of our members.
This renewed mindset is guided by three key objectives: fostering sustainability, enhancing farmer profitability, and reshaping future demand for Illinois-grown soybeans. The ISA Departments are poised to achieve significant milestones through innovation, education, and strengthened relationships.
Government Relations: Championing Change
Our Government Relations team is gearing up for action, recognizing the urban profile of the majority of elected officials, which was the catalyst behind our strategic decision to open an office location in Lombard. We are launching a new engagement campaign aimed at not only educating Illinois State legislators about the essential role farmers play as environmental stewards, but also highlighting the remarkable efforts made by our agricultural community to reduce inputs and enhance sustainability. Our goal is to share compelling stories from agriculture, shedding light on the opportunities and challenges associated with adopting new practices.
Market Development: Expanding Horizons
Through our Market Development Committee, we are setting new standards for Illinois soybeans. With exciting projects like the Soy Innovation Center, designed to promote, attract, select, and launch significant projects that lead to innovative soybean uses, we are ready to grow both economic supply and demand. We’re excited to attend the Southeast Asia U.S. Soy Business Development Conference developed to connect U.S. soy suppliers, exporters, and producers with in-country end-users. We will showcase the advantages of infrastructure innovation, and the ways Illinois soy is transforming markets in food, feed, fuel, and industry sectors.
Soybean Production: Cultivating Excellence
ISA's Soybean Production Committee is instrumental in our efforts to raise industry standards. Our outreach will continue to include field days, Soybean Summit and Better Beans events, providing direct engagement opportunities with our farmers. In the new fiscal year we will fund 16 research projects which will address relevant soybean-related topics, bringing valuable insights to Illinois farmers. Through field trials and demonstration fields, we will offer practical applications that empower farmers to make informed decisions aimed at cultivating the best soybeans possible.
Marketing Communications: Spreading the Good Word
With the addition of Michael Whitmer as ISA's Director of Marketing Communications, our focus is now on effectively communicating our initiatives and measuring our progress. The voice of Illinois soybean farmers is powerful, and your story is unique. People want to hear from you. We are determined to amplify your voices across multiple channels. From this magazine to programs like "Illinois 20 Under 40" and the "We Are the 96%" Illinois Farm Families campaign, we are committed to sharing your story across Illinois and beyond.
It's shaping up to be an impressive lineup. But it will not be our extraordinary projects that will move our industry forward. It will be the extraordinary people who are working behind the scenes to ensure the successes our farmers are experiencing today will be sustained well into the future.
Our mission, “To uphold the interests of Illinois soybean producers through promotion, advocacy, research and education,” is more than the work that we do. It’s who we are here at ISA.
