As US farmers hit planting season, WQAD8 reporter Eleano Tabone interviews Iowa farmers, including Global Farmer Network member Mark Heckman in this April 27, 2020 piece. Watch here; highlights are below.
WEST LIBERTY, Iowa – Spring is planting season and farmers across the region say they aren’t letting the current health pandemic stop them. America’s grain producers’ remain optimistic.
Crops still need to be planted and people still need to eat.
Corn and soybean farmer Mark Heckman today has about 160 acres of land to plant.
Farmers are some of the most tenacious, persevering people in our community. So with warmer air and soil temperatures, producers are moving in, putting in the hours.
Corn is used in more than 4,000 products on our supermarket shelves. Farmers say if they let COVID-19 stop them, some of those products would cease to exist.
Farmers have always been a resilient bunch, and clearly this year is no different.
According to the USDA, 94 million acres of corn and 85 million acres of soybeans will planted across the nation this year. The fourth largest amount since 1990.