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BISMARCK, N.D. — During his organization's annual meeting, NDFB President Daryl Lies urged members to tell agriculture's story.
“We need to shout agriculture’s story from the rooftops. We have to stand up and tell our story because the people who are telling ag’s story are getting it wrong. We must be responsible for keeping agriculture going,” he said.
NDFB — formerly North Dakota Farm Bureau — held its annual meeting in Bismarck Nov. 18-19. Lies, of Douglas, North Dakota, has been president of NDFB since 2015. He raises hogs, sheep and goats, with an emphasis in show animals, owns Full Flavor Farms and Daryl's Racing Pigs, and serves as a radio host.
Lies' opening night speech focused on the need to advocate for agriculture.
“Now more than ever we must stand up for agriculture on behalf of all North Dakotans and all Americans,” he said. “We have to ensure elitist activists do not continue to erode our property rights based on false climate change claims and fake fixes to such claims. Whether it is attacks regarding essential nutrients which they claim are greenhouse gases or that meat production is killing our planet, we must stay firm.”
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NDFB delegates elected two new state board members and re-elected two state board members during the meeting. The NDFB Board of Directors is comprised of a president elected at large, nine individuals elected from each NDFB district, a Promotion and Education Committee chair and a Young Farmer and Rancher Committee chair.
Brian Nordmark of Bottineau was elected to a three-year term representing District 6, comprised of Farm Bureau members in Bottineau, McHenry, McLean, Renville, Sheridan and Ward counties. Ashley Skarsgard of Stanley was elected to a one-year term as chair of the Young Farmer and Rancher Committee. Craig Vaughn of Cavalier was re-elected to represent District 1, comprised of Farm Bureau members in Cavalier, Pembina, Walsh, Nelson and Grand Forks counties. Tim Schoenhard of Steele was re-elected to represent District 5, comprised of Farm Bureau members in Wells, Foster, Stutsman, Logan and McIntosh counties.
Joining the newly elected members on the board are Lies, District 2 director and vice president Dana Kaldor of Hillsboro, District 3 director Val Wagner of Monango, District 4 director Jason Skaar of Hampden, District 7 director Lucas Lang of Sterling, District 8 director Keith Rockeman of Grassy Butte, District 9 director Weston Dvorak of Manning, and Promotion and Education representative Jolyn Wasem of Halliday.
The annual meeting also included the NDFB Collegiate Farm Bureau Discussion Meet. Kyle Anderson, a student at Dickinson State University, won the meet. Also competing were Konrich Speelmon, also a student at DSU, and North Dakota State University students Tyler Goplen and Stetson Urlacher.
The Discussion Meet helps participants develop their ability to generate meaningful discussion in a committee-like setting. The four finalists discussed how Farm Bureau can effectively support and equip young farmers and ranchers to successfully manage economic and infrastructure challenges to ensure healthy and sustainable farms and ranches across the country.
Anderson, a fifth-year senior from Hamilton, Montana, majoring in business administration, will travel to Jacksonville, Florida, for the American Farm Bureau Federation Collegiate Discussion Meet during the AFBF Fusion Conference in March of 2023.
