Thank a Farmer Week, February 2-8

FM92 would like celebrate Missouri Farm Bureau’s “Thank a Farm Week.” This is a celebration of the U.S. food supply as provided by America’s farmers and ranchers.

Farmers and ranch families only make up 2 percent of the United States population, yet they produce food for the world.

Of every retail dollar spent for food, 81 cents goes for marketing expenses. This includes processing, packaging, wholesaling, distributing, transporting, and retailing food products. The remaining 19 cents goes back to the farmer who uses it to pay for operating costs in providing raw products for food. The farmer’s share is used to purchase farm equipment, fertilizer, fuel, seed, feed and other input costs.

Thank a Farmer Week is an appropriate time to ‘thank a farmer’! As a career, they have chosen to spend their livelihood providing food and fiber for our nation and abroad. Those of us in Bates County and other rural counties would like to take the time to just say “Thank You” to the farmers for all they do to help feed our families.