Retail - General

Iowa Secretary of Ag Weighs In on The H5N1 Battle, Vaccine Potential And Trade Sensitivities

Wed, 29 Jan 2025 13:48:13 GMT

Eggs continue to be a hot topic in the news as supplies are down, prices are up – and expected to go even higher – and consumers are understandably concerned.

At the center of the issue, fanning the on-going problem for poultry and dairy producers as well, is the Highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza A virus (HPAI H5N1).

AgriTalk Host Chip Flory broached the topic with Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig on Tuesday.

At the heart of their conversation was a two-part question – how does the U.S. address the virus and, in the process, prevent any potential negative ramifications on trade?

Naig says the federal government is taking what he described as a three-legged stool approach to addressing the problem in both industries.

He described the three legs of the stool as being USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), individual state animal health officials and industry.

“We work very closely with APHIS on this, meaning that they’re the ones that are providing the indemnity payments to producers. They are providing the disposal and cleanup assistance, but they must work in close collaboration with the states and state animal health officials,” Naig says. “And then, of course, you’ve got to have the third leg, which is industry.”

Biosecurity Measures
Naig noted that while the virus hit the poultry industry hard in 2015, it struck even harder in 2024.

“It’s not just in the Midwest or West, it’s been really all across the country now, affecting the egg laying industry, broilers and turkey production,” Naig says.

A significant positive, Naig says, is that biosecurity measures in the poultry industry appear to be preventing farm-to-farm spread. “The industry continues to get high marks for that, which wasn’t the case in 2015, which was so devastating because we didn’t have those strategies in place.”

“I believe, and our experience has been, that our USDA partners in this regard have been very strong,” he adds.

As Naig addressed the three-legged stool approach the U.S. is taking to addressing the virus in dairy, he says the three partners have more work to do.

“Frankly, there’s been a lot of criticism to share around the three legs, if you will, on how states have reacted, or how strongly USDA should have reacted, and what the industry is doing to try to contain that virus. So, I would say on the dairy side of things, it’s a different story (than in poultry). There’s a lot more work that’s yet to be done to even understand how that virus is impacting those (dairy) herds.”

What Is The Role For Vaccines?
Flory asked Sec. Nagy whether he believes a vaccine could be part of the solution to the virus or whether that would set up too many trade barriers. Flory also asked whether the virus is stable enough for a long enough period of time for a vaccine to be developed that would work effectively.

Both are questions the U.S. is grappling with as it tries to get ahead of the virus in dairy and poultry.

Earlier this month, Reuters reported the U.S. will rebuild a stockpile of avian influenza vaccines for poultry that match the strain of the virus circulating in commercial flocks and wild birds, citing the Department of Agriculture.

Naig told Flory that he believes a vaccine could be developed, with regard to poultry specifically, and its use negotiated into trade agreements.

“Those are challenges, and yet those are things that can be worked on and can be done, but it’s not easily done. I would want to put a flag there,” Naig says.

“I’m supportive of developing … we should try to figure out whether this can be an effective tool. If you’re in the broiler business or if you’re in the turkey meat business or if you’re in the egg business or maybe you’re in the genetics business, those are very different in terms of how you view that vaccine.”

Naig explains part of the different viewpoints on vaccine use have to do with the difference between poultry business segments.

“We need to recognize that those sectors are different in how they’ll view and potentially use a vaccine,” Naig says.

“Don’t treat them all the same. It’ll make way more sense for some than others.”

Naig did not weigh in on vaccine development for the dairy industry specifically.

The full conversation between Naig and Flory on AgriTalk is available below.

Your next read: Think Egg Prices Are Already Too High? USDA Says Retail Egg Prices Could Jump Another 20% in 2025

Virginia Farmer Was Stranded After His Tractor Ran Over Him; What Happened Next Will Restore Your Faith in Humanity

Tue, 01 Nov 2022 22:17:14 GMT

Winding across a hilly, gravel road in Crockett, Virginia, is where you’ll find Allen Dix every day of the week except Sunday.

“This is part of my 75-mile mail route that I travel six days a week,” he says.

As a USPS rural mail carrier, it’s a route he knows by memory, and one he traveled just like any other mail day in early March.

Part of his daily routine as a mail carrier, it’s that same road where John Moody is also a regular.

“Well, I’ve lived here on this farm almost my whole life. This was my grandparents’ farm,” says Moody, who raises cattle in the remote area of Virginia.

For 31 years, John worked for the county USDA Farm Service Agency (FSA), even serving as the county executive director, but now retired, owning cattle for more than 40 years means John never slowed down. And on March 4th, the day just after John had turned 70 years old, his day started as it normally would as he loaded up to feed his cattle.

“I had a hay bale here on the front, and I had a hay bale on the back,” John remembers.

With bales in tow, John stopped to open the gate to feed his cows, the same way he’s done for decades.

“I just pulled off the side road and pulled off in the ditch and let it idle over there, and then I go across the road, open the gate and come back and get on tractor,” says John. “Well, I did that, and I wasn’t paying any attention, but when I turned around and started back toward the tractor, I looked up, and here came the tractor.”

The Accident

His first instinct was to try to jump on to the tractor to stop it, but as he did, John slipped off.

“My right leg got caught under the back tire, and it just pulled me under,” he remembers.

(Farm Journal)

The tractor, with the two hay bales still in tow, ran straight over John, crushing his lower body.

“Luckily, when it ran over me, when it got to my hips, it just turned to the side and went on off into the fence,” John says.

After the tractor charged across him and landed in the fence, John couldn’t move. And John says just seconds after it happened, he was in shock.

“I thought I was paralyzed,” says John. “I couldn’t move either one of my legs.”

But hearing a steady stream of hooves heading straight for the gate still wide open, still unable to walk, in true farmer fashion, it was more than survival on John’s mind.

“So, I crawled over and got the gate shut,” says John. “And I thought, ‘Well, maybe I can pull myself up and get on the tractor.’ So, I pulled myself up on the gate. But I couldn’t take a step or nothing. So, I just laid back down.”

The Rural Route Rescue

By that time it was mid-morning, when the rural road isn’t traveled much. So John knew the best chance of someone rescuing him was to lie in the ditch.

“I kept thinking well, sooner or later the mailman would come, and I laid there about an hour,” he remembers.

And sure enough, Dix, who travels the road daily, pulled up right on time.

“But as I got closer, I noticed the tractor was across the road and it was into the fence, and the tractor was still running,” remembers Dix.

The route and frequent stops are ones Dix knows by heart. And as he pulled off to the side of the road, he quickly realized something wasn’t right.

“I actually found John in the ditch right here along the edge of the road,” he says. “I was kind of approaching him rather cautiously. And, I said, ‘John, are you okay?’ And he said, ‘No, actually, the tractor ran over me.’”

And that’s when Dix immediately called 911.

“911, do you have an emergency,” asked the 911 operator.

“Yes, I’m on Zion Church Road,” you can hear Dix say on the call.

“Is he out of the roadway,” the operator then asked.

“Yes. I’m a mail carrier and I want to stay here with him until someone gets here,” answered Dix.

But after he hung up, John had a call he needed to make.

“John doesn’t have cell phone. He’s old school. So, I gave him my cell phone,” says Dix.

“He called the rescue squad, and I called my wife,” John remembers with tears in his eyes.

“The first thing he said was, ‘What are you doing?’ And I said, ‘Well, I’m working.’ And he said, ‘Could you meet me at the hospital?’ And then I had to sit down,” remembers Debbie Moody, John’s wife. “And I said, ‘What’s happened?’ He said, ‘Well, my tractor ran over me.’ And then I really started to panic.”

She says Dix then took the phone back and explained what had happened as Debbie says she was still in shock.

“When John told me his tractor ran over him, of course. I imagined the worst,” she says.

With Dix still there, the ambulance arrived and rushed John to a local hospital, but it was there the staff realized John’s injuries were too severe.

“They sent me to Wake Forest Baptist in North Carolina, and they flew me down there by a helicopter and they took me to the trauma center, and then they operated the next day on my leg,” he says.

Repairing a hole where gravel had burrowed into his skin, John also had three pins placed where the tractor fractured his pelvis. And it was during surgery the severeness of John’s accident also sunk in.

“The surgeon said, ‘You know, he shouldn’t be alive,’” Debbie remembers. “And I cried. I knew it was bad. But when she put it in those words, I cried and said a little prayer.”

John spent a total of 15 days at the hospital with rehab continuing when he got home. Debbie was a natural at being a nurse, but she was also John’s biggest cheerleader as he worked to walk again.

“It was hard on him because he would be tired and sometimes frustrated,” she says. “But he did very well and pushed hard and did what he had to do.”

Steady Stream of Support

As the recovery process was just starting, it was when the Moody’s returned home they saw support and help from family and friends.

“When we came home one of my neighbors they’d built a ramp for me,” says John. “Another one had brought a hospital bed for me, and I was in that hospital bed for about three months that we set up in the living room.”

And the generosity didn’t stop, as the kindness seemed to keep pouring in.

“I had one neighbor that came and fed my cattle for the rest of the winter, and then I had another one come in vaccinate all my calves,” John remembers.

But it wasn’t just those neighbors who continued to check on John. You see, Dix didn’t just rescue John on March 4th. Right after Dix found John in the ditch, he jumped right in to mend what needed fixed on the farm, as he waited with John for help to arrive.

“I was able to move the tractor off of the fence, get it back to the barn was able to mend the fence,” says Dix.”

Even then, Dix says his job still wasn’t finished.

“And he needed some personal things from the house. I went to his house and got those. After all that was finished, I finished my mail route.”

And for Dix, that’s just what you do.

“We take care of each other out here. We look after each other,” he says.

Rural Route Hero

But from finding John and calling 911, to then repairing the fence and gathering items John needed for his hospital stay, what Dix did on March 4, 2021 extended far beyond his day job, something for which he was recognized recently.

“They actually surprised me with the presentation at the post office. I had absolutely no idea that it was going on,” says Dix.

That surprise and presentation wasn’t just for any award, but the USPS’ Hero Award.

“I’m a little uncomfortable with the ‘hero’ title, because, John and Debbie are the heroes for surviving the accident, her giving him care through this whole thing. And it’s been an emotional six months for them, and for me, too.”

(Farm Journal)

A Humble Hero

With his name now engraved at the USPS headquarters in Washington, D.C., Dix still doesn’t like being called a hero. But to John and Debbie, a hero is exactly what he is.

“Allen is truly a hero. He will always be a hero to the Moody family, because of his quick thinking,” says Debbie. “In this area, people do take care of each other and look after each other, and that was just second nature to him.”

“He saved me from a lot of suffering getting there when he did, or I don’t know when somebody would have got there that day,” says John.

While Dix typically delivers mail, that day, Allen Dix proved to be a rural route hero by delivering an unforgettable rescue. As John and Allen share a new bond, it’s one of which John will be forever thankful.

(Farm Journal)

A New Chapter

As for John, his recovery has been a year in the making.

“I had been thinking about cutting back on my cattle; a third this year, a third next year, and then a third next year and going out of the cow-calf operation and then buying calves in the spring and selling them in the fall,” explains John. “Well, while laid there I thought well, this might be a good time just sell all them. So that’s what I did once I got better.”

However, the accident wasn’t the end of John’s story, as John recently started a new chapter. Nearly a year after John survived the tractor accident and sold off all his cattle knowing he couldn’t care for them at the time, he just purchased 19 head of cattle to graze again. As the cattle returned to the farm in March 2022, it’s affirmation that when you have enough heart and passion, it’s a way of life that not even tragedy can take away.

Farm Journal Announces 365-Day Extension of Farm Journal Field Days

Thu, 22 Sep 2022 00:57:31 GMT

The success of Farm Journal’s inaugural Farm Journal Field Days TM has led to a 365-day expansion of the event, giving agricultural suppliers and service providers timely access to target audiences while also providing farmers, ranchers and growers with the critical information they need for upcoming seasons.

“When we looked back at the opportunities we were able to create for both Farm Journal Field Days attendees and industry partners who engaged with the event, the direction we needed to go was clear — we needed to expand it,” said Andy Weber, CEO of Farm Journal.

In a post-event survey, more than 87 percent of farmers, ranchers and growers that attended said the event met or exceeded their expectations, and 85 percent planned to participate in another Farm Journal online event.

“At the same time, we provided higher quality leads at a fraction of the cost of other farm shows to exhibitors, and we will continue to deliver valuable leads to those that continue to engage in this 365-day approach,” said Weber. “Bringing these groups together in the Farm Journal Field Days platform is a win-win for the industry.”

The 365-day approach will include seasonal “special edition” events delivering what farmers, ranchers and growers need to know right now, including a Harvest Edition kicking off October 19, followed by an Equipment Edition starting in December and going through February 2021. In March, a Planting Edition will launch followed by a Hay, Forage & Cattle Handling Edition in June. Then in August, the 2021 Pro Farmer Crop Tour TM, Farm Journal Field Days Summer Showcase and another #FarmONTM Benefit Concert will round out the summer. Each edition will feature live and on-demand content, networking, new pavilions and featured products and resources in exhibitor booths as well as in-person events and programming.

(Farm Journal)

Farm Journal Field Days Harvest Edition will kick off with new stories, videos and other resources being added to the platform every day while pavilion hosts and exhibitors will be updating content around harvest topics. A new Harvest Pavilion will feature content relevant to farmers during the harvest season, and new exhibitors are expected to join as well. The search for farm locations to host in-person events is ongoing through Farm Journal’s Top Producer Network with plans to cover multiple geographies across the country.

“The landscape of agriculture events is changing, and Farm Journal is excited to offer a marketing alternative that allows our industry partners to get in front of their key accounts and prospects,” said Charlene Finck, president of Farm Journal. “We have built a successful platform, and farmer response is positive, as they see the value of online education and ag industry networking. Farm Journal Field Days is a celebration of learning and entertainment for all of agriculture, and we are proud to be leading the industry in these efforts.”

Farm Journal launched the New American Farm ShowTM experience in August with the 2020 Pro Farmer Crop Tour, the launch of Farm Journal Field Days and its first #FarmON Benefit Concert. All content from these events is still available for on-demand viewing, plus Farm Journal editors are continually pushing new content to the platform. All pavilions are still open as well as exhibitor booths and the networking lounge.

Registration for Farm Journal Field Days is free. To learn more or register, go to www.farmjournalfielddays.com .

What’s Next for Animal Activism in 2021 and What Can We Do About It?

Fri, 18 Dec 2020 21:14:41 GMT

By Hannah Thompson-Weeman, Animal Agriculture Alliance

2020 has taken me so off guard that I am a little hesitant to even attempt to look into my crystal ball and make predictions for 2021. A year ago, I certainly would not have guessed that events and travel would come to a halt in March or that phrases like “mask up” or “social distancing” would be part of our daily conversations. As much as the past year has shown us that being flexible and adaptable is just as valuable as having thorough predictions and plans, I still believe there is merit to taking a moment to reflect on some of the trends we’ve seen this past year and consider how they may impact us moving forward.

The Animal Ag Alliance has remained focused on monitoring animal rights activism this year, and activist groups have not skipped a beat in their efforts to damage the reputation of animal agriculture. Some organizations believe the COVID-19 pandemic is the “tipping point” they need for their messages to go mainstream, and that concept combined with activists trying to take advantage of a new incoming administration means that 2021 could be an even more intense year for activism.

I think we should all be preparing for a few continued trends:

• Activist messaging involving public health and animal agriculture. Activist groups have long claimed that animal agriculture is a threat to public health and the COVID-19 pandemic has added fuel to that fire (despite there not really being any merit to attempting to tie the current outbreak to food production). Unfortunately, this narrative seems to be gaining steam with calls to “reform the food system” to prevent future pandemics. I think we are going to see more and more references to farms as “breeding grounds” for future disease outbreaks and should be focused on debunking that narrative.

• Renewed focus on sustainability. Conversations about the environmental impact of animal agriculture took a backseat for much of 2020, but in the past few months that discussion is heating back up. Restaurant chains like Panera and Chipotle have announced new labeling programs to communicate the environmental footprint of their menu options and we’re starting to hear more about the UN Food Systems Summit coming up in 2021 with an action track focused on “shifting to sustainable consumption patterns.” The animal agriculture community will need to make sure we’re continuing to communicate about our sustainability efforts as we settle into the “new normal.”

• Large-scale protests and demonstrations, including at private homes. Activist groups seem to be upping the ante in terms of protests this year, likely believing that they need to be more and more extreme to get attention. We’ve seen continued protests (despite restrictions on gatherings) everywhere from farms and plants to public health offices, with some involving trespassing and interfering with daily operations. Animal rights activist organizations have also held several protests at the private homes of animal agriculture company and organization leaders, which is a troubling new trend. These continued incidents illustrate that we cannot let farm security slip down our priority list in 2021.

Despite whatever challenges 2021 may bring, know that the Alliance team is here and has your back. Happy New Year!

Read more from Hannah Thompson-Weeman:

Things Animal Rights Activists Say: 2020 Edition

Activists Set Sights on 4-H and FFA Despite Fewer Fairs

Communication Strategy is Critical Part of Crisis Planning

Let’s Talk Turkey, Thanksgiving and Traditions

Tue, 24 Nov 2020 19:08:33 GMT

Thanksgiving may look different in 2020, but farmers are still the focus

As the frantic pace of harvest winds down, we can reflect on another season of abundant effort. The vital work of farmers and ranchers is not always easy — as we saw in 2020. Thanksgiving is a wonderful opportunity to remember despite challenges, we all have many reasons to be grateful.

For many, Thanksgiving 2020 will stray from tradition. Nearly 70% of Americans plan to celebrate Thanksgiving differently this year, according to a recent consumer survey by research firm Numerator. Big gatherings will likely be broken into several smaller ones, which should still mean healthy demand the country’s turkey producers, says Beth Breeding, National Turkey Federation vice president of communications and marketing.

“There’s something very comforting about that Thanksgiving meal with the turkey at the center of the table,” she says. “There could even be an increase in turkey sales because of additional gatherings.”

The change in the size of gatherings could cause demand for smaller turkeys or cuts or parts such as whole breasts. Breeding says the popularity of kitchen tools such as Instant Pots and air fryers have already increased consumer demand and familiarity with these forms of turkey.

“We also expect to see a lot more first timers this year, who have never prepared the Thanksgiving meal before, have a go at preparing turkey,” Breeding says. “Everyone is cooking so much more at home.”

As you prepare for your Thanksgiving celebration, brush up on your knowledge about the traditional holiday dishes:

Turkeys: The U.S. is No. 1 in global turkey production.
Potatoes: The U.S. ranks fifth in global potato production. North Carolina is the leading sweet potato producing state, while Idaho grows the most white potatoes.
Cranberries: The U.S. is No. 1 in global cranberry production. Wisconsin leads the U.S. in production.
Pecans: The U.S. is No. 1 in global pecan production. New Mexico leads the U.S. in pecan production.
Pumpkins: The U.S. is fifth in global pumpkin production. Illinois leads the U.S. in pumpkin production.

Sources: USDA, National Turkey Federation

Join AgDay and U.S. Farm Report on Thanksgiving as they pay tribute to the amazing work and stories throughout America’s countryside in the annual “Harvest of Thanks” special.

#FarmON Concert is Tonight: Watch Live at 7 Central

Fri, 20 Nov 2020 05:56:56 GMT

Lee Brice, Martina McBride, Rodney Atkins and Justin Moore along with a host of other country stars will take the virtual stage at 7 p.m. Central for the #FarmOn virtual concert to benefit the 4-H FOURWARD Fund.

Watch live in the player below:

The concert will raise donations for the 4-H FOURWARD Fund to ensure young people across all communities, with or without internet access, continue to have access to the necessary resources and meaningful learning opportunities to help them thrive. The event will feature images of 4-H members working on their project in a year when many livestock shows and 4-H fairs were cut back or cancelled due to the pandemic.

The #FarmON concert is the final event of Farm Journal Field Days, the New American Farm Show, a three day farm show that combined live, in-person and virtual events hosted on farms in Iowa and Ohio.

US--Election 2020-Rural Democrats

Fri, 20 Nov 2020 05:22:37 GMT

2020 Democrats try to make inroads in rural America 2020 Democrats try to make inroads in rural America By BILL BARROWAssociated Press The Associated Press DENMARK, S.C. DENMARK, S.C. (AP) — Deanna Miller Berry doesn’t often see presidential candidates. So when New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker recently came to Bamberg County, South Carolina, she was primed to unload about a contaminated water system.

“What is your plan to fix it?” Berry asked, her eyes narrowed.

Booker, former mayor of Newark, the largest city in the most densely populated state, assured Berry he cares about the 3,000 residents of Denmark, South Carolina. “This is a time in America where too many people are feeling left out, left behind, not included,” he said, promising “a massive infrastructure investment” targeting “forgotten” places.

The exchange highlights the effort by Democratic presidential candidates to make inroads in rural America. With the first contests unfolding next year in South Carolina, Iowa and New Hampshire, small-town voters will play a critical role in choosing the next Democratic nominee. And the early attention could help the eventual nominee be more conversant on rural issues and compete for votes in places that gave President Donald Trump his most intense support in 2016.

“Organizing in every precinct is the key to winning both the caucus and the general election in Iowa,” Iowa Democratic Chairman Troy Price said.

Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders lamented rural decline during an Iowa swing this weekend.

“All over America, we have tragically seen more and more young people leave the small towns they grew up in, the small towns they love, because there are no decent-paying jobs in those towns — we intend to change that,” Sanders said, drawing cheers at the Iowa State Fairgrounds.

At the same time, California Sen. Kamala Harris was in small-town South Carolina advocating more spending on telemedicine, broadband internet and infrastructure. Booker used his two-day rural swing last month to talk health care, housing, infrastructure and criminal justice, among other issues. New York Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand was the first candidate who ventured to rural northern New Hampshire. Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar has already visited a tiny town in Wisconsin, which will be a general election battleground.

Several candidates plan to attend a March 30 rural issues forum at Buena Vista University in Storm Lake, Iowa — population 10,600.

The approach matters most immediately because the delegates necessary to become the nominee are awarded in part from primary and caucus results in individual congressional districts, even the most rural and Republican-leaning. But investing there also could narrow Republicans’ general election margins, by increasing turnout among Democratic-friendly constituencies like rural black and Latino voters or peeling off white voters or both.

That could flip states like Iowa, Michigan, Pennsylvania, North Carolina — even Florida — that propelled Trump to an Electoral College majority. Besides helping win the presidency, rural gains would be necessary for Democrats to have the muscle on Capitol Hill to enact the kinds of sweeping policy changes they are advocating on many fronts.

“So much of this is about the margins,” Iowa’s Price said.

Beyond the politics, candidates say rural outreach is required of anyone who wants to govern a diverse nation.

“Folks want to be seen,” Harris said. “They want their issues to be heard. ... They could care less about half the stuff that gets covered on cable news networks.”

In Wisconsin, Klobuchar said, it’s “about knowing the issues that matter to people whether they’re Democrats, Republicans and independents — and in rural areas it’s not just about the farm bill.”

The 2018 midterms demonstrated Democrats’ tough realities beyond metro areas, but still offered some bright spots.

AP VoteCast, a national survey of more than 115,000 voters, found rural and small-town residents cast 35 percent of midterm ballots; 56 percent of those voted for Republican House candidates, compared to 41 percent for Democrats. The advantage was wider among small-town and rural whites: 30 percent of the electorate, tilting 63-35 for Republicans. Correspondingly, Democrats’ net 40-seat gain in the House was driven mostly by previously GOP-leaning suburban districts, while Democratic nominees fell short in more rural areas.

There’s no consensus on whether rural success for Democrats is about policy or personality or some combination. Some winners establish a personal brand at odds with the national party — West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin defending the coal industry, Ohio Sen. Sherrod Brown opposing much of U.S. trade policy, Montana Sen. Jon Tester playing up his rancher credentials.

But that won’t necessarily work for a presidential candidate looking to become the face of a party with a decidedly liberal base. None of the declared candidates deviates from Democratic orthodoxy supporting abortion rights and LGBTQ civil rights and opposing Trump’s hard line on immigration — all positions that run afoul of rural and small-town voters who collectively are more culturally conservative than urban dwellers.

Sanders struggled with that balance in 2016 when Hillary Clinton hammered him for some Senate votes against gun measures that most Democrats backed. Sanders noted that many Vermonters, as in the rest of rural America, view guns differently than most big-city residents, but Clinton successfully used the issue against Sanders, particularly with black women.

Would-be Democratic presidents are left to mix economic arguments with biography.

Washington Gov. Jay Inslee grew up in Seattle, but he often mentions that he spent his early adult years in central Washington. He touts his signature issue — combating climate change — as a boon for the “heartland” economy by growing the clean-energy industry.

Klobuchar, a Twin Cities-area native, points to her work on the Senate Agriculture Committee and notes she’s won every congressional district in Minnesota during her Senate career. Sanders, who still speaks with his native Brooklyn inflection, drew roars in Iowa when mentioned using antitrust law to limit corporate power.

Harris notes that California — caricatured in Middle America as a bastion of coastal liberalism — has the nation’s biggest agricultural output. And in South Carolina, she said she heard a lot about jobs and state Republicans’ refusal to expand Medicaid insurance.

Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren notes that long before her Harvard law career, she was a child in Norman, Oklahoma, where her family’s working-class struggles shaped her liberal approach to consumer, labor and finance law.

After hearing Booker, Kenneth Belton, a 63-year-old resident of struggling Fairfield County, South Carolina, said a president doesn’t have to come from his walk of life. Belton just wants the person in the Oval Office to understand him — and then to help.

“It just feels like they’ve been ignoring us,” he said.

Berry, the clean water activist, agreed, crediting Booker and others for what she describes as first steps.

“I’ve heard enough to be inspired,” she said, pausing before adding, “enough to want to hear more.”

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Associated Press writers Sara Burnett in Chicago, Alexandra Jaffe in Des Moines, Iowa, Meg Kinnard in North Charleston, South Carolina, and Hannah Fingerhut in Washington contributed to this report.

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Follow Barrow on Twitter at https://twitter.com/BillBarrowAP.