News : Century & Heritage Farm Families honored in Vinton and not the Iowa State Fair

Photo Captions:

The Spurgeon Family post with Gordon who was recognized as a Century Farms member. Pictured next to him are his daughters Cathy and Carol, and Stephan is on the right in the white shirt, carrying on the family tradition. Other members of the family were present for the special recognition.

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The family farm in 1971 and in 1982

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Iowa Secretary of Ag Mike Naig along with Iowa Farm Bureau Federation President Craig Hill made a stop in Vinton on Tuesday, September 1, to present two Century Farm awards and one Heritage Farm award to families who have kept their farms in the family for at least 100 and 150 years respectively.

In 1920, farmland was valued at $69 per acre in 1920. Today, Iowa's agricultural land is on average valued at $7,070 per acre.

At that time, nearly 30% of Americans lived on a farm. Today, farms make up just over 2% of the population.

In 1920, a bushel of corn was worth 54 cents, now it's about $3.25.

Yield per acres was 46.0 bushels in 1920, today it's 198.

In maps from the Secretary of Ag's website, it shows the number of century farms in Iowa indicates that Benton County is the 3rd highest in the number of farms that have been in the family longer than 100 years at 345 farms. (Tama County has 356, and Kossuth has 381) Benton County is in 7th place when it comes to Heritage Farms, those that have been in the family at least 150 years with 38 Heritage Farms.

In a statement from Iowa Secretary of Ag Naig, he said, "The Century and Heritage Farm Program recognizes the strength and the resiliency of Iowa farm families, and the sacrifices each generation has made to retain the ownership of the land for 100 or 150 years," said Secretary Naig. "These families all deserve to be recognized and celebrated for reaching this milestone and being a part of Iowa's rich agricultural legacy.

Agriculture and our farm families have long been critical to the vitality of rural communities across the state and the backbone of Iowa's economy" said Craig Hill, Iowa Farm Bureau President. "It's a tremendous honor to co-sponsor the Century and Heritage Farm programs recognizing the multi-generational farm families that have persevered countless challenges over 100 or 150 years and kept their farms in the family.

The Century Farm families recognized include:

• Gordon Spurgeon Farms, Benton County

• Leo and Linda Lohse, Tama County

The Heritage Farm family recognized include:

• Martens Brothers Farm, LLC - Dale J. Martens and Richard A. Martens, Iowa County

There were 238 families who received the Century Farm award, recognizing 100 years of ownership, and 103 families who received the Heritage Farm award, recognizing 150 years of ownership, this year. Families who received the award in 2020 could choose to participate in a small regional event or the 2021 Iowa State Fair."

Secretary Naig pointed out that this year has been especially hard on farmers. First, the farming industry dealt with the fall out from the COVID crisis and the various shutdowns that resulted from that, then the derecho hit, and now farmers are dealing with a drought. Pointing out that any one of these would make for a difficult year, he especially wanted to recognize the farmers for their strength in the struggles that they faced this year.