EXECUTIVE OUTLOOK The certainty of our Farm Bureau family in uncertain times By Thad Doye Executive Director, Oklahoma Farm Bureau
he only thing that seems certain in this world is uncertainty. Farmers and ranchers are used to facing uncertainty on a daily basis. From the weather that impacts our crops, our livestock and every decision we make to market prices fluctuating based on a wide array of changing factors, we in agriculture are used to a rollercoaster ride of good times and lean times. Now that our world has had to face the reality of a global pandemic, uncertainty has crept into almost every corner of our country and our world. The things that we assumed were rock-solid have been shaken, along with our daily lives. In the years before a virus swept across the globe, Oklahoma farmers and ranchers faced challenging growing conditions and ever-sinking prices for their crops and livestock. It is not just last year – it has been a series of down years in agriculture that have impacted our farm and ranch families, along with their local communities. Add to all this the uncertainty of an upcoming presidential election and the implications it has for our nation, and you can almost feel the unease around our country. With so much uncertainty from our homesteads to our biggest cities, it is easy to get disheartened and find ourselves worrying. But farmers and ranchers have never backed down from
a challenge. Our agriculture family has never run from adversity. Rather, we come together, dig in our heels and work even harder to build a future as one community. Through these unprecedented times, our agriculture community will stand as one. And Oklahoma Farm Bureau members will continue to speak with one consistent, measured voice. We will continue to work for our members – our farm and ranch families – to work on the tough issues that matter to our rural communities, even when farmers and ranchers must take care of business back home during critical times. The power of a Farm Bureau membership is that we work together, along with our professional staff, to keep a watchful eye on our industry. As the Coronavirus outbreak demonstrated, the next challenge will not always be the one you expect, and OKFB is always ready to jump into action, speaking as one voice to ensure agriculture’s future in our state, our nation and our world. Through all the uncertainty, I am certain in the fact that farmers, ranchers and rural Oklahomans are a resilient people built out of hardship, and what we are experiencing today is just one more challenge in the path forward. It definitely is not our first, and we know it will not be our last. — Thad Doye And I am proud of the role that Farm Bureau will play tackling the challenging issues, providing a voice for agriculture and leading the way in advocacy to ensure we all make it through not just this tough time, but the next ones as well.
Through these unprecedented times, our agriculture community will stand as one.
8 — Oklahoma Country