Iowa farmers give peace a chance

Mar 28, 2022

Iowa farmers show symbolic support for the people of Ukraine.

Farmers in Hubbard, Iowa gathered to arrange their tractors into the peace symbol as a way to show solidarity with the people of Ukraine.

Nineteen farmers from the area brought their tractors out to make the symbol—only truly visible from the air (see image above), as nearly 100 people gathered at a local school to host a candlelight vigil, offer prayers, and a moment of silence for those affected by the Russian Federation invasion of Ukraine.

Donations were also gathered with plans to send the money to a church in Hungary where numerous Ukrainian refugees were forced to flee.

The Russian Federation invaded the Ukraine on February 26, 2022. With the war ongoing, Ukrainian farmers will be hard-pressed to plant crops this year, as towns and cities have fallen under the onslaught.

It is estimated that over 3.9 million refugees have left Ukraine as of March 27, 2022, with about 6.5 million people displaced within the country as of March 18, 2022.

Video: Evolution of Beef Cattle Farming

The Clear Conversations podcast took to the road for a special episode recorded in Nashville during CattleCon, bringing listeners straight into the heart of the cattle industry. Host Tracy Sellers welcomed rancher Steve Wooten of Beatty Canyon Ranch in Colorado for a wide-ranging discussion that blended family history and sustainability, particularly as it relates to the future of beef production.

Sustainability emerged as a central theme of the conversation, a word that Wooten acknowledges can mean very different things depending on who you ask. For him, sustainability starts with the soil. Healthy soil produces healthy grass, which supports efficient cattle capable of producing year after year with minimal external inputs. It’s an approach that equally considers vegetation, animal efficiency, and long-term profitability.

That philosophy aligned naturally with Wooten’s involvement in the U.S. Roundtable for Sustainable Beef, where he served as a representative for the Colorado Cattlemen’s Association. The roundtable brings together the entire beef supply chain—from producers to retailers—along with universities, NGOs, and allied industries. Its goal is not regulation, Wooten emphasized, but collaboration, shared learning, and continuous improvement.