Special Report: Food Attitudes Pages 4, 5


The Pioneer Woman shares blogging tips Page 6


InsIde:


News in Brief ............... 2 Around Indiana ............ 3 Communication ........... 6 Education .................... 7


A PublicAtion for Voting MeMbers of indiAnA fArM bureAu


March 7, 2011 Issue No. 008


Food check-Out Week focuses on healthy, nutritious food


—From the AmericAn FArm BureAu


Among the many Farm Bureau groups that reached out during Food Check-Out Week, Feb. 20-26, was the American Farm Bureau Women’s Leadership Com- mittee.


“Stretching Your Grocery Dollar with Healthy, Nu- tritious Food,” the official theme of Farm Bureau’s Food Check-Out Week, reflects the fact that Ameri- cans from all walks of life continue to work through an economic squeeze. Dining out less often and preparing more meals at home is the new reality for many Ameri- cans, noted Terry Gilbert, a


Kentucky farmer and chair of the AFB Women’s Leader- ship Committee. On behalf of the Ameri-


can Farm Bureau, Gilbert and the committee donated $2,500, as well as food, to the Ronald McDonald House in Jackson, Miss. They were joined at the Jackson event by represen- tatives of the Mississippi Farm Bureau WLC. Ronald McDonald Houses provide a “home-away-from-home” for the families of seriously ill children receiving medical treatment at area hospitals. The Food Check-Out


Week connection between Farm Bureau and Ronald McDonald House Chari- ties was forged more than


county photos sought In the April 4 issue of


The Hoosier Farmer, we’re planning to run photos from as many Food Check- Out Week activities from around the state as we can. Space could be tight, but we’ll do our best to include as many photos as we can. Also, time is short – the deadline for submit- ting photos is probably only a week or so after you receive this issue. To be considered, pho- tos must be: • Digital – high-resolution only. Only photos of publication quality (300 dpi, or dots per inch) can be considered.


• Submitted by March 16. E-mail submissions to Kathleen Dutro, Hoosier Farmer managing editor,


Indiana Farm Bureau P.O. Box 1290


Indianapolis, IN 46206


AFB Women’s Leadership Committee members prepare to deliver groceries to the Ronald McDonald House of Jackson, Miss. (L to R) Terry Gilbert, chair; Sherry Saylor, vice chair; Frances Price of South Carolina; Ethel Nash of West Virginia; Ginny Paarlberg of Florida; Gabe Ottolini, director of global development, Ronald Mc- Donald House Charities; Angela Ryden of Colorado; Isabella Chism of Indiana; and Margene Harris of New Mexico. American Farm Bureau Federation photo


a decade ago. Since the program was initiated in the mid-1990s, Farm Bureau members have donated ap- proximately $3 million in food and monetary contribu- tions to Ronald McDonald Houses and other worth- while charities during Food Check-Out Week. Again this year, AFBF and


kdutro@infarmbureau. org.


• Accompanied by cap- tion information, in- cluding the date and location of the event, the county Farm Bureau that is involved, and the people who are pictured. The name and phone number of the person submitting the photo also needs to be included. If you have any ques- tions, call Kathleen Dutro at 327-692-7824.


Non-Profit Organization U.S. Postage


P A I D Huntington, IN


Permit NO. 832


the Soybean Checkoff are partnering on a joint Face-


book page to promote Food Check-Out Week. AFBF will donate $1 to Ronald McDonald House Charities of Southwest Virginia for every person who “likes” the page by the end of April, up to $3,500. Visit the page and add your “like” to help: www.facebook.com/Nation- alFoodCheckoutWeek. Other Food Check-Out Week events in Mississippi


during Food Check-Out Week included the AFB Women’s Leadership Com- mittee staffing supermarket demonstration stations at Kroger and McDade’s gro- cery stores. In addition, members of the national committee assisted Missis- sippi Farm Bureau Women in outreach to legislators at information booths at the state capitol.


news is mixed on legislation


addressing tax issues it provides would cover both tile and in- stallation equip- ment but will not be available to commercial in- stallers. It now moves to the House, where its spon- sors are Reps. Don Lehe, R-Brookston; Bill Friend, R-Macy; Dale Grubb, D- Covington; and Phil Pflum, D-Milton. As of The Hoosier Farmer’s Feb. 25 deadline, it hadn’t yet been assigned to a House committee. Less fortunate was SB 271 (authored by Sen. Brent Waltz, R-Greenwood), which would have allow counties to exempt all per-


—By KAthleen m. Dutro PuBlic relAtions teAm


A bill that will specifi- cally exempt from sales tax drainage equipment used by farmers on their own farms passed the Indiana Senate, and it did so in time to es- cape the turmoil caused by the walkout of the House Democrats.


Senate Bill 419, which


was authored by Sen. Den- nis Kruse, R-Auburn, and supported by Farm Bureau, sailed out of the Senate on Feb. 22 on a vote of 46-1. It had previously been passed by both the Senate Agricul- ture & Natural Resources and Tax & Fiscal Policy committees. The exemption


sonal property from property taxes. The bill, which was supported by Farm Bureau, was approved unanimously by the Commerce & Eco- nomic Development Com- mittee but, because of its fiscal impact, was reassigned to the Tax & Fiscal Policy Committee, where it did not receive a hearing.


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