Paul Taylor of Esmond and Kenneth Hartman of Waterloo are former and current IL Corn farmer leaders being named 2021 Master Farmers this week at the Farm Progress Show in Decatur, IL. IL Corn congratulates them on the honor.

Kenneth Hartman represented farmers in southern Illinois on the IL Corn Marketing Board from 1997 to 2006 and later on the IL Corn Growers Association Board of Directors from 2008 to 2017. Hartman currently sits on the National Corn Growers Association Board of Directors and has served in that role since 2017.

Paul Taylor served on the IL Corn Growers Association Board of Directors from 2006 to 2015, serving as the association’s president in 2013. Additionally, Taylor represented farmers on the National Corn Growers Association Board of Directors from 2013 to 2017.

Taylor and Hartman have also led the association in other capacities, from testifying in Washington, DC to performing in consumer education campaigns. Both farmers are examples of what it means to show up for Illinois farmers and how to make an impact in your industry.