By EMMA HOPKINS

Indiana Correspondent

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. — Thousands of navy blue jackets descending on downtown Indianapolis in the fall can only mean one thing: The National FFA Convention.

This year, among the sea of blue and talk of leadership was USDA Secretary Sonny Perdue, attending for the first time as head of the agency. He was present partly for #SpeakAg Dialogues, an interactive forum on major agricultural issues.

More than a social media hashtag, #SpeakAg is part of a challenge put forth by the 2014-15 National FFA officer team, with a mission for FFA members to lead their communities in the language and understanding of agriculture by bringing insightful, firsthand experience to inform their audiences.

Perdue functioned as moderator for the discussion among FFA students and three industry leaders in biofuel, animal health and human consumption. These consisted of Jennie Hodgen of Merck Animal Health, Gunner Greene of Iroquois Bio-Energy Co. and Zach Kinne of Cargill.

“I know FFA students are strong, confident and courageous communicators,” Perdue said, explaining why he believes it is valuable for young people, particularly, to weigh in on agricultural issues.

After a basic communication exercise, students were posed the question of whether human food, animal food or biofuel should be prioritized when determining the fate of undeveloped land on which farmers will need to meet the needs of a projected 9 billion-person population by 2050. An electronic poll revealed that most FFA members in the room believed prioritizing human food was the best choice. Among the guest speakers, various ideas were hashed out.

Greene pointed to innovation as a route to have the best of all worlds. He said corn, for instance, as a resource has come a long way in terms of how it is grown. In the early 1900s, farmers could only hope to get 20-30 bushels per acre, whereas now the national average is about 174.

“That trend line has been perpetually increasing as we continue to farm,” Greene said. “We have no reason to doubt that it’s going to continue to increase. We have this huge resource at our fingertips and the beauty of that, the real reality for me, is that we don’t have to prioritize the usage of farmland. We have the ability to feed ourselves, feed our animals and fuel our vehicles.”

Greene said ultimately it will be up to consumers to determine if biofuel is worth the investment and a necessary component of ag systems.

“The point that I really want to drive home to the group is that we’re in a great spot and we don’t have to establish that priority,” he said. “It’s a real big sandbox, and there’s plenty of room in there for all of us to use it and accomplish our goals.”

Hodgen was led to a similar conclusion that consumer views will be a big factor in how undeveloped land will be used. She said an interrelationship exists among human food, animal food and biofuels.

 “We need the fuel industry, because we in the animal community have come to depend on DDGs and wet distillers as a great protein source, and on the human side, we need the corn to feed our animals and to give us a high-quality protein,” she pointed out.

She added that land used for human residential and commercial development also factors into the land-use equation. “How do we balance providing food to the consumer, while also taking over some farmland for human encroachment? We can’t forget the human component. The key is, do we have consumer acceptance?”

Receiving that acceptance, Kinne said, may require balancing consumer values that do not align with science.

“The fact of the matter is that we have a set amount of land that we are probably not going to gain much more of,” he said. “We really have to realize that resources are declining, and we have what we have, so innovation is really critical. We can’t turn our backs on science.”

Continuing with the theme of communicating and understanding consumers, a member of the Illinois Assoc. FFA, Joseph Birrittier, 18, said the Millennial generation and younger Gen Y’s skills and reliance on social media could be of use.

“As high-schoolers, one of the most important things we can do is to be an advocate for agriculture and food, feed and fuel,” he said. “Where I grew up, there are people who grew up generations away from the farm, and they have no clue where their food is coming from.

“I think it is important to have these conversations with anybody. I think the most important job we have as FFA members is to utilize social media. All people have access to social media, whether they’re from a farm or a city. That’s one of the most important tools we have to ‘agvocate.’”

“Frankly, you, at your age, you have more credibility among your peers than me standing up and giving them a lecture about that,” Perdue agreed. “So, social media is powerful, but also, your knowledge and views are very powerful.”

Kinne echoed him. “Every day we have 200,000 new mouths to feed,” he noted. “That is the challenge of our generation, moving forward, and doing it in a sustainable, safe and responsible way.”

To wrap the session up, Perdue touched briefly on the important role soil science will play in the future of ag innovation – and left the FFA members with a challenge.

“These are all real-world problems that you will confront in your lifetime,” he said. “This isn’t play school. I want to challenge you to communicate to the world what you know about topics such as the things that we discussed.”