It’s time to cast your vote for the next Faces of Farming and Ranching, and two pork producers are in the running.
From Oct. 24 through Nov. 2, visit the U.S. Farmers & Ranchers Alliance (USFRA) Facebook page to learn more about each of the finalists and the work they do, including short videos highlighting their farms and ranches. From there, vote for the person you believe best exemplifies agriculture. The votes will be factored into the final decision to determine the next Faces of Farming and Ranching.
The finalists include pork producers Erin Brenneman of Iowa and Thomas Titus of Illinois. Among the remaining finalists are Carrie Mess of Wisconsin, Jay Hill of New Mexico, Jessica Potter of Colorado, Darrell Glaser of Texas, Carla Wardin of Michigan and Brian Jones of Texas.
The new Faces of Farming and Ranching will be announced Nov. 12 at a press conference at the 2014 National Association of Farm Broadcasting Convention in Kansas City. The winners will participate in national media interviews, public appearances, speaking engagements and other high-profile events for the USFRA, which is supported by the Pork Checkoff.
Meet Erin Brenneman
Brenneman is a pork producer from Iowa who has been farming for 10 years. She moved to the farm after she married her husband, Tim, in 2004.
“Back then, I was a girl fresh out of the city,” Brenneman said. “My favorite thing about farming is truly living my job every day and loving it. I love the amazing responsibility and work ethic that it gives me and I can pass on to my children. I also enjoy sharing my farm experiences very much. I love to answer people’s questions about how their food is raised, because I know how cool it is to someone on the outside looking in.”
Meet Thomas Titus
Titus has been a pork producer nearly all his life. His family operates a grain and hog farm near Arcola, Ill. Titus and his wife, Breann, moved back to Illinois in the past three years to join her family’s farm.
After college, Titus and his wife held corporate jobs in Wichita, Kan., where he worked for Cargill Pork for six years. When an opportunity to return home arose, the couple knew production agriculture was where they wanted to be.
“We raise corn, soybeans, hay, pigs, cattle, goats, chickens, and most importantly we raise kids on our farm,” Titus said. “We are bringing the diversified farm back, and the kids love it. I love being able to raise my family in an environment where they can learn and develop many core character values. What a child can learn and be exposed to on a farm can’t be replicated in any setting, and I wouldn’t have it any other way.”
Click here to vote for the next Faces of Farming and Ranching today.