Norman Borlaug Statue to be Installed on U.S. Capitol

Feb 28, 2014

A bronze statue will be placed in the U.S. Capitol next month in honor of Normal Borlaug.

Borlaug, was a famous American plant scientist best known for developing high-yielding wheat varieties, and is often referred to as the father of the agriculture movement – the Green Revolution.

In 1970, Borlaug was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his work in food and agriculture. He also won numerous other accolades including the Presidential Medal of Freedom and the Congressional Gold medal, the highest civilian honor a person can receive in America.

The statue will be installed in the National Statuary Hall of the United States Capitol on March 25. It will take place on National Agriculture Day, and what would have been Borlaug’s 100th birthday. He died in 2009, in his 95th year.

South Dakota artist Benjamin Victor created the statue, which depicts Borlaug in his element – standing in a field of wheat, taking notes.

Video: Evolution of Beef Cattle Farming

The Clear Conversations podcast took to the road for a special episode recorded in Nashville during CattleCon, bringing listeners straight into the heart of the cattle industry. Host Tracy Sellers welcomed rancher Steve Wooten of Beatty Canyon Ranch in Colorado for a wide-ranging discussion that blended family history and sustainability, particularly as it relates to the future of beef production.

Sustainability emerged as a central theme of the conversation, a word that Wooten acknowledges can mean very different things depending on who you ask. For him, sustainability starts with the soil. Healthy soil produces healthy grass, which supports efficient cattle capable of producing year after year with minimal external inputs. It’s an approach that equally considers vegetation, animal efficiency, and long-term profitability.

That philosophy aligned naturally with Wooten’s involvement in the U.S. Roundtable for Sustainable Beef, where he served as a representative for the Colorado Cattlemen’s Association. The roundtable brings together the entire beef supply chain—from producers to retailers—along with universities, NGOs, and allied industries. Its goal is not regulation, Wooten emphasized, but collaboration, shared learning, and continuous improvement.