Farm Aid 2023 kicks off with Friday forum on the past, present and future of Indiana farms

The music of founders Willie Nelson, Neil Young and John Mellencamp will always take center stage at Farm Aid, which returns to Indiana on Saturday, but the event kicked off with a program Friday that goes to the heart of the benefit concert's true mission.

The pre-festival Friday Farmer Forum included local farmers, experts and advocates discussing the state’s agricultural culture and looking ahead to what the future holds for Hoosier farmers.

The series of panel discussions took place at the Wellington Fishers Banquet and Conference Center.

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Virginia Pleasant hosted a morning discussion that explored how Hoosier farmers contribute to the past, present and future legacy of agriculture in the state and how to navigate the path forward to protect the planet from further harm.

Pleasant moderated a conversation with farmers Mark Baird, Denise Jamerson and Robert Frew that explored what kind of barriers new farmers face and how Hoosiers can best carry on an agricultural legacy.

Baird, a fifth-generation Hoosier farmer, runs Wholesome Harvest Farms and is the executive director of the Tipton County Foundation, a philanthropic nonprofit institution. He said one of the biggest barriers to entry for future farmers is the cost of getting started.

The costs of new equipment can be astronomical, and an average new farmer simply cannot afford that, he said.

“If we want to perpetuate our next generation, we feel we had to do something direct to consumer,” Baird said. “Cut out the middleman and you gain the middleman’s profit.”

Direct-to-consumer farming isn’t Baird’s only agricultural revenue, but diversifying that income keeps him optimistic farms will be sustainable for future generations. He also noted the prevalence of pressures from corporate farms but thinks the farming community can do a better job educating the public that there still are a lot of family farms in the state.

Frew operates a small permaculture farm in Bloomington and has been involved with migrant farm workers since 1977. Education is a big part of Frew’s programs and he advocated for new farmers to build as big a network as possible to help get the operations off the ground.

“We try to share with others what we have learned and make that knowledge more accessible,” Frew said. “Finding out who are the key people you need in your phone or Rolodex, that can help you be successful. You have to have that core support group.”

Jamerson is another fifth-generation farmer whose family has been tending Indiana lands since before the Civil War. She said one of the misconceptions in Indiana is that there were no Black farmers in the state.

“We come from an African American farming community, so we’ve already debunked that misconception,” Jamerson said. “We are here growing and providing for our communities. Farmers have a desire to provide, and that desire is still very much here in Indiana and in our hometown families.”

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She also cited a generational gap exposed by the fact that younger generations today don’t know how to farm or where their food comes from. The educational programs will help rebuild that knowledge.

“We’re Hoosiers,” Jamerson said. “So, who’s your farmer?”

Nelson, Young and Mellencamp launched Farm Aid in 1985 "to raise awareness about the loss of family farms and to raise funds to keep farm families on the land," according to the event's website. While the all-star festival concerts have been annual events, the organization behind them works year-round, the website says, "to build a system of agriculture that values family farmers, good food, soil and water, and strong communities."

Karl Schneider is an IndyStar environment reporter. You can reach him at karl.schneider@indystar.com. Follow him on Twitter @karlstartswithk

IndyStar's environmental reporting project is made possible through the generous support of the nonprofit Nina Mason Pulliam Charitable Trust.

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: The music is great, but Farm Aid doesn't exclude its agricultural ties