Once again I am excited to share with you the tremendous conversations that have occurred about farm and ranch life in the heartland. I am part of the ARISE USA Tour that is scheduled to spend 114 days traveling to 48 states for 85 stops. Last week things really involved a very spiritual connection. I have had folks in hotels, truck stops and very random spots ask if they can personally pray for our journey. Without question, God’s presence is leading the mission.
For the past 21 years I have tried to find a way to present the real story of food production to the non-farm public. In the past three weeks, it has become clear that I have found the best opportunity to get that done. The climax of the first 30 days would, without a doubt, be the event that occurred at Running Creek Ranch near Elizabeth, Colorado, on June 6. The official numbers would indicate that over 700 people made their way outside of Denver for this event.
Here is where it gets really good. Of the over 700 attendees, it is estimated that less than 10% of the attendees were from the farm/ranch community. We all know that Colorado is clearly the battleground state for the future of all animal agriculture. Here is the deal: The preservation of animal agriculture is not about helping farmers/ranchers but rather about educating and helping consumers.
As emcee of the event, I made abundantly clear the importance of animal agriculture to the health of the planet. It has been scientifically proven that folks who eat animal protein and fats excel at cognition. Folks who eat animal products are smarter as studies have proven, including those of Lindsay Allen with the U.S. Department of Agriculture, who did work in Africa and with children.
At the end of the day, this tour has been the absolute best endeavor I have been a part of yet in the quest to educate the consumer. I cannot tell you how many times folks have told me that they had no idea what the farmers/ranchers must endure to continue to produce their food supply. If nothing else, the city folks who take food production for granted now understand there is a huge level of bureaucracy farmers must overcome to make their operations work.
With every passing news story, the elite continue to chase acquisition of the land that enables life. I think that is the real story. Why are the global elite continuing to amass large amounts of land? Honestly, the only answer is total control of food production. I find it very interesting that even these non-farm audiences understand the more land that the global elite own, the tougher it is to control the domestic supply of food.
So the real solution to the current issue is a better infrastructure for the production of local food. The real answer is that we get back to what communities used to be like. I fully endorse and understand that certain regions of the nation are better suited for some types of food production, but we must think about food not only as a means of domestic security but also community security.
The message of ARISE USA is to take this country back, beginning at the county level. Free the churches, schools and local businesses to conduct operations as the locals see fit. No one at the state or federal level is going to pave the path to make your freedom happen. We the people must take matters into our hands and take this country back to one nation under God and putting people above politics.
Editor’s note: Trent Loos is a sixth generation United States farmer, host of the daily radio show, Loos Tales, and founder of Faces of Agriculture, a non-profit organization putting the human element back into the production of food. Get more information at www.LoosTales.com, or email Trent at [email protected].
