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Ohio Farm Bureau delegates set policy

Ohio Farm Bureau delegates set policy that will guide the organization in the coming year during the recent OFBF annual meeting.  

Brandon Kern, senior director of state and national policy, says there was a lot of discussion about landowner rights and energy development.

“That included making sure landowners receive adequate notice when there are proposed projects that could include landowner impacts in their area,” he says. “There’s been a call for greater transparency and disclosure, so landowners have all the information they need to make the decisions and be prepared.”

He tells Brownfield delegates focused on issues that have been top of mind during the past year and a half.

“We didn’t have a lot of new groundbreaking policy come forward. In a lot of the conversations that I was having with members, they were really encouraging us to continue with what we’ve been focusing on for the last 18 months or so,” he says. “That’s getting supply chains back up and running again, making sure farmers can move their commodities to market, increasing concern they are feeling about inflationary pressures taking place in the economy, and broadband development.”  

Ohio Farm Bureau President Bill Patterson says delegates voted in favor of protecting the Ohio State Fair.

We really wanted to make sure we’re advocating for the Ohio State Fair. It’s very important as these conversations go through that the state fair remains robust and a centerpiece for agriculture in the state,” he says.

They also encouraged a strategic review to enhance the fair as an event, protect the current location, and address the needs of the facilities of the Ohio Exposition Center.

OFBF says other policy votes addressed recognizing the importance and promotion of urban agriculture and enhancing the process and notification procedures when rivers are designated by the state as wild or scenic rivers.

Audo: Brandon Kern