Coos-Curry County Farm Bureau receives national award
Coos-Curry County Farm Bureau recently received a national County Activities of Excellence award from the American Farm Bureau. The CAE program acknowledges exceptional grassroots projects, events, and activities at the county Farm Bureau level. Only 24 county Farm Bureaus across the nation earned this honor in 2013.
Coos-Curry County Farm Bureau was recognized for its Coquille Valley Land Acquisitions/Save Family Farms initiative. The campaign works to protect farmland in southern Oregon’s Coquille Valley from being purchased by state and federal government entities and non-profit organizations for wetland restoration — which permanently takes land out of agriculture production.
“It is essential that these prime agricultural lands are protected and preserved for future generations of farmers and ranchers, so we can continue to provide food for the public and for wildlife, and sustain our local economy,” said Sharon Waterman, campaign coordinator, cattle and sheep rancher, and member of Coos-Curry County Farm Bureau.
To achieve this goal, the county Farm Bureau launched a successful public education initiative, which included posting “Save Family Farms/No Wetlands” signs in the Coquille Valley, an informational meeting that aired on public television, the development of a legislative concept for the land-planning process with local lawmakers, and testifying at the State Capitol on the issue.
“Grassroots members who join at the county level are the heart and soul of Farm Bureau,” said AFBF President Bob Stallman. “AFBF congratulates the members of Coos-Curry County Farm Bureau for their excellent work and passion for preserving farmland.”
Waterman will represent Coos-Curry County Farm Bureau during the CAE awards presentation ceremony at the 2014 AFBF Annual Meeting in San Antonio in January.
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* Note to Editors: “Farm Bureau” is a registered trademark; please capitalize in all cases.
The state’s largest general farm organization, Oregon Farm Bureau (OFB) is a voluntary, grassroots, nonpartisan, nonprofit organization representing the interests of the state’s farmers and ranchers in the public and policymaking arenas.
First established in Oregon in 1919, Farm Bureau is organized in all 36 counties and has more than 8,000 member families that are professionally engaged in agriculture. Barry Bushue, an east Multnomah County berry and nursery stock producer, is OFB’s 15th President and Vice President of American Farm Bureau.
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