By Kentucky Farm Bureau News Staff

The purpose of the Kentucky Farm Bureau Young Farmer Program is to provide opportunities for young adults to participate in the overall Farm Bureau program and give responsibility in areas that will best develop their leadership potential.

As Kentucky Farm Bureau begins to celebrate the 75th anniversary of its Young Farmer Program, its director Taylor Nash is excited about the program’s history, as well as its future.

“I'm blessed to have the opportunity to lead a lot of the efforts within the program, but I think I'm getting just as much as any participant,” he said. “I'm getting to sit there beside them as they're going through training opportunities or sit on a phone call as we start thinking strategically about how to grow this program in a county. And it's fun to be alongside this journey rather than looking from an outside perspective.”

Nash said the program has a storied history but he is just as excited about what the future holds.

“In looking back, it's been exciting to see the new programs and things that we've added on throughout the year,” he said. “Now that we're approaching 75 years, it just seems like the perfect time to step away and appreciate all of the success that has happened to get us to this point.”

The Young Farmer Program members range in age from 18 to 35 and participate in several events and training opportunities learning everything from policy development to advocacy.

“We want to make sure these young voices are heard and the way that we do that is help them grow and train to be leaders in our industry as well as within the organization as they start this journey with Farm Bureau,” Nash said.

As the average age of the farmer has increased over the past few years, bringing the next generation both to the farm and to Farm Bureau is important in keeping farms sustainable and ag advocacy efforts continuing for the future.

“It’s not that our young people aren’t interested in agriculture, but in getting the resources and access to the ability to get in this industry, and they can't do that alone,” Nash said. One of the things about this program that is important to me is doing what we can to help them find the resources they need to be able to be on the farm and be involved in this industry.”

With the goal of the long-standing Young Farmer program being to develop young individuals into ag industry leaders, it is no surprise we see countless past and present Farm Bureau board members who were a part of the program, whether that is winning a contest themselves or being on the advisory committee. Current President Eddie Melton even began his Farm Bureau career with the Young Farmer program. He said the more opportunities that can be provided to the next agricultural generation, the better.

"Our youth and young farmers represent the future for our organization, the agriculture industry, and civic leadership at all levels," he said. "The more we can do for them through programs like Young Farmers, IFAL (Institute for Future Agricultural Leaders), and Collegiate Farm Bureau, the better our future will be on and off the farm."

Nash said all of these programs work together to ensure the success of those involved and to help support the Farm Bureau now and in the future. It has been impactful for the last 75 years with no plans on slowing down.

“We’ve had a great 75 years, and if I'm here in 75 more, still doing this, that's wonderful,” he said. “I know there's some really good things coming in 2025 and 2026, and we have our eyes set on the future.”

Permission is granted to reprint this article in its entirety in both print and online formats. Credit to: Kentucky Farm Bureau News.