Save the date: the IL Corn Growers Association will celebrate 50 years of service to farmers on August 8, 2022 in Bloomington at the DoubleTree Hotel.
The IL Corn Growers Association was incorporated on July 30, 1971 by John Curry of Victoria, Housel Roberts of Altona, Rolland Main of Altona, John Block of Gilson, and Donald Love of Galva. The group’s first meeting was held at the Knox County Farm Bureau in Galesburg on February 18, 1972.
Since then, ICGA has a long history of advocating for Illinois corn farmers on a myriad of issues. In the 70s, ICGA farmer leaders were focused on membership drives, building county corn organizations, considering an Illinois corn checkoff program, and understanding trade.
Today, the conversations are more about infrastructure (locks and dams), ethanol policies, environmental regulations, pesticide registrations, and farm bill program development. The farmer leaders focus on environment and conservation practices more than they needed to in the 70s.
But they talked a lot about farm prices and interest rates in the 80s.
They talked about locks and dams in the 90s.
They talked about renewable fuel standards in the early 2000s.
And they talked about crop insurance in the 2010s.
What we know is that each and every year, ICGA farmer leaders gather together to discuss and resolve the issues that impact Illinois corn farmers. They trigger calls to action when needed. They invest their own time getting to Springfield, IL and Washington, DC to make sure farmer voices are part of the conversation.
There’s a lot to celebrate here and the IL Corn Growers Association hopes that our membership will show up to celebrate with us.
