Pennsylvania Secretary of Agriculture Russell Redding addressed local farmers and area high school Future Farmers of America students at the Kutztown Rotary Club’s annual Urban-Rural Night at the Kutztown Grange Feb. 1.
Also in attendance were Rep. Gary Day, Sen. Judy Schwank and Rotary District Governor, Linda R. Young, who offered brief remarks.
Honored at the event were Dave and Jill Kopfer of Blandon as Berks County’s 2016 Outstanding Farm Family, Kutztown and Fleetwood Rotary Club’s Students of the Month, Nathanael J. Fay of Brandywine Heights High School, Ayla Blatt from Kutztown Area High School, Nate Guldin of Oley Valley High School and Future Farmers of America students from Kutztown and Oley High Schools.
During Redding’s remarks, he noted that the farming is the dominant industry in Berks County, but will not stay that way without the significant help from communities. He also mentioned that every day 300 acres of farmland is sold for other uses in Pennsylvania. Simultaneously, every third row of corn in our local cornfields and every third acre of beans find a new home exported to a different country. An active Q&A session took place after his speech as Redding answered questions about policy from local farmers.
Redding spent much of his life in agriculture. Growing up in Gettysburg among 10 brothers and sisters. In high school, his teacher convinced his father to let him attend Penn State University for agricultural science and Redding went on to become the Pennsylvania State Secretary of Agriculture.
Kutztown Rotary Club has sponsored Urban-Rural Nights every year since 1938. This year about 130 guests were in attendance, including Rotarians, Oley and Kutztown high school’s Future Farmers of America (FFA), members of the Kutztown Grange, and area farmers.
According to Rotarian Bob Hobaugh, this event was established to honor and give a well-deserved pat on the back to our farmers and the agriculture industry because they make our quality of life better, support the local economy, and are the backbone of our state.