The State of Ag: Connecting the dots in 2023

Eyes are on the Midwest. At least in my memory, there has not been another year where the world is paying such close attention to our region — specifically looking at those who grow, process, transport and sell food, feed, fiber, and fuel.

By Sam Ziegler

We produced a crop; we have an economy on solid footing; and the world needs us. We are not a fly-over country. We are the place families need. Ag is everywhere and has an impact well beyond Minnesota. The world of agriculture is an industry which touches us all, which many do not truly understand.

Acute food insecurity globally continues to escalate. According to the recently published Global Report on Food Crisis 2022 mid-year update, up to 205 million people are expected to face acute food insecurity and will need urgent assistance in 45 countries.

In 2022, food prices in the United States increased by 9.9 percent, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Economic Research Service.

Drought and abnormal dryness affected 28 percent of the Midwest in early September, growing in coverage to 73 percent of the Midwest affected by late November, and 215.2 million acres of crops in United States are experiencing drought conditions the week of March 15, 2023.

Feb. 24, 2023 marked one year since Russia invaded Ukraine — bringing farmers to their knees and limiting exports to some of the countries in most need of food and fertilizer.

GreenSeam has spent the last several years shedding light on the important topic of agriculture and the State of Ag report is just one of the many tools used to gather and analyze data to set the stage for future goals. This important undertaking is not a oneperson job. It is up to all of us to work together to make changes in agriculture for future generations.

Each year we have individuals eager to get involved to help with research, manage focus groups, create survey questions, and so much more. I want to thank each of you who took the time to share your real-world examples and share knowledge of the direction of your business; it would not have been possible without you. It is inspiring to see the involvement of all sectors of our economy which connect to ag in Minnesota. We are incredibly proud to have completed the fourth year of The State of Agriculture report.

In this report, you will find the survey responses and an in-depth look at key themes of the eleven-focus group that represented education, research, manufacturing, and processing, just to name a few. The groups insights and individual survey responses provide a look into the challenges we can face together to improve human capital, supply chain, housing and infrastructure, regulation, policies, access to capital and sustainability.

This year we added a specialty section diving deeper into internships and I am proud to say we had over 75 businesses respond.

In 2023, 80 percent of survey respondents agree the state of agriculture in the region is moving in the right direction, compared to 82 percent last year.

Seventy-four percent have an optimistic attitude about the economic prospects of their community in the next 2-3 years, compared to 79 percent a year ago.

While agriculture is the shining light, we don’t want to dismiss the challenges. This is where you come into play. We need each community, each business, and each person to step up to find solutions for the challenges we have. Together we can build bridges to strengthen our future ag leaders. We need to engage those who have been here for generations and embrace those who are looking to start a new and better life here.

I challenge you to expand your idea of what agriculture is, dig deeper, think bigger, and share your story. Our state is driven by people and businesses who are key to the success of agriculture.

Ag proud.

Sam Ziegler, GreenSeam Director, can be reached via email at sziegler@ greenseam.org v