Western Illinois University Collegiate Farm Bureau Expands Farmer Appreciation Efforts

Jul 23, 2024

For the eighth consecutive year, the Western Illinois University Collegiate Farm Bureau has supported local farmers through their annual Harvest Bag project.

Collegiate Farm Bureau members worked together to assemble more than 200 bags, each containing water, snacks and a thank you note. After preparing the bags, members split into groups and delivered them to farmers in four counties during harvest.

“When you think about it, not many farmers get recognition for going out in the field during harvest and spending pretty much every day, all day, there for weeks,” said Western Illinois Collegiate Farm Bureau President Kaitlin Tapley. “This is our way of showing those farmers that we appreciate them and what they do for the world.”

New this year, the chapter expanded their project beyond McDonough County to include Schuyler, Fulton and Adams counties. The Harvest Bag project was made possible through a $500 grant awarded by the American Farm Bureau Young Farmers and Ranchers mini-grant program. The grant supports Collegiate Farm Bureau chapters in recruitment, leadership development, community service outreach, officer development, purchase of educational materials and/or registration costs for conferences.

“This mini-grant is what helps our chapter continue to give back and help farmers want to continue to be in the agriculture industry,” said Tapley.

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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.