America's Heartland - Episode 322

Episode 322

Jason Shoultz visits the "World Food Prize" conference in Des Moines, Iowa where farmers gather to honor American producers working to end world hunger.
Pat McConahay is in Vermont where the Cabot Farm dairy farmers produce some of the best cheese in America. They like to say, "Cheddar is Better!"
Reporter Yolanda Vazquez travels to Michigan to see how farmers there bring in a sweet harvest of sugarbeets. And Jason visits Iowa and Kansas where Heartland farmers are targeting a new source of income by opening their fields to hunters.

Making A Difference
It's often said that American farmers feed the world.But it's not just our food and fiber that make a difference - it's our knowledge. Scientific advances in agriculture have spared millions of people from starvation. And in Iowa's state capital of Des Moines, hundreds of people from around the globe gather to award people helping feed the world.

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Cheddar Is Better
There’s another place in the heartland where innovation and ingenuity are being rewarded – Vermont. In fact, the Green Mountain state is probably one of the cheesiest places in the Heartland…and we mean that in a good way. Vermont is already well known for its maple syrup. But you may not know that Vermont also claims the largest number of cheese-makers.

Sweet Beets
Sugar beets are playing an increasingly important role in American agriculture. Michigan was an early pioneer in growing sugar beets and it’s still one of the top five producers in the United States. And Michigan is where sugar beets are grown and turned into sweet products for your dinner table.

Targeting Profits
To stay profitable in the Heartland today, farmers, ranchers and growers often have to look for other forms of income. Case in point – what do you do when the crops are harvested and the fields lay fallow? Well, in places like Iowa and Kansas, some savvy farmers are welcoming sportsmen onto their land – and making a tidy profit in the process.

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The American Farm Bureau Foundation for Agriculture, Farm Credit, and the United Soybean Board make presentation of America's Heartland possible.

Additional production and promotion assistance is provided by
The American Soybean Association, National Corn Growers Association, National Cotton Council, U.S. Grains Council,
National Association of Wheat Growers, and the National FFA Organization.