AMES, Iowa — A public screening of the documentary, Farmers for America, and a young farmer panel discussion will be held on Feb. 20 at 6 p.m. at the Iowa State University Alumni Center located at 429 Alumni Lane in Ames, Iowa.
Narrated by actor and host of Dirty Jobs Mike Rowe, the film was created to celebrate, inspire and support young farmers. This event is free and open to the public. Complimentary pizza with locally-sourced ingredients will be served prior to the film screening. Preregistration is requested online (https://iastate.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_d0bWnbpQ819N9HL) by Feb. 16.
The event is co-sponsored by the Iowa State University College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, the Iowa State University Beginning Farmers Network, Iowa State University Beginning Farmers Center, Iowa State University Agricultural Entrepreneurship Initiative and Practical Farmers of Iowa.
A panel discussion featuring the film’s director and young farmers will take place following the film. Panelists are:
- Kellie Blair (’06 forestry, agronomy). Blair farms with her husband AJ (’03 ag business) on their fourth-generation corn, soybean, cattle and pig operation AKR Farm near Dayton, Iowa.
- Scott Henry (’12 ag business, international ag, finance). Henry is a partner and business development manager for LongView Farms, a row-crop grain operation specializing in seed production near Nevada, Iowa, with his parents Steve (’83 farm operations) and Laurie (’83 animal ecology).
- Nicole Jonas (’02 horticulture). Jonas is owner and operator of Red Granite Farm in rural Boone County, Iowa with her husband, Steve (’01 horticulture). Red Granite Farm is a diverse operation including three acres of vegetables; 400 laying hens and over 200 varieties of hardy perennials, vines, shrubs, annuals and succulents.
- Ben Wikner, a senior in agricultural studies. Wikner is a second-generation farmer with his brother Neal on a swine and row-crop farm near Farmersburg, Iowa.
- Graham Meriwether, the director, writer, producer, cinematographer and editor of Farmers for America. Meriwether previously directed the documentary, American Meat.