Thanks to factors that included war, universal price increases for inputs and the continuing effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, 2022 was another challenging year.

But despite challenges, Farm Bureau and its members persevered.

For the seventh year in a row, INFB ended its membership year with a gain in total membership. The final figure was 267,848 members, which represents a gain of 1,385.

“Even when things are at their toughest, Hoosier farmers rise to the challenge. And we will do that in the coming year,” INFB President Randy Kron said in his annual remarks at the state convention. “Farmers aren’t afraid of hard work.”

Listed below are some of the activities, events and initiatives that INFB, its staff and its members worked on in 2022.

Advocacy

The Statehouse reopened for in-person visits for the 2022 session, and 82 members from 30 counties traveled to Indianapolis to meet with their legislators. Members connected with the session in other ways, too:

• 1,454 messages from 613 members were sent to legislators as a result of INFB’s action alerts.
• 530 members responded to INFB surveys.
• 422 tuned in to the Friday legislative updates.

Following the Nov. 8 general election, 84 of the 87 candidates endorsed by Indiana Farm Bureau AgELECT, the organization’s state-level, nonpartisan political action committee, won their races.

Collegiate Farm Bureau/FFA

Approximately 35 students representing all three active Collegiate Farm Bureau chapters – Purdue, Vincennes and Huntington universities – participated in Indiana Farm Bureau’s Collegiate Discussion Meet. The winner was Purdue senior Sydney Wiesehan.

INFB also sponsored youth events that included FFA Advocacy Day and the Elite Leadership Luncheon, which recognized local FFA chapters that focus on ag literacy in their communities.

Convention and conferences

• INFB returned to Indianapolis for its annual convention in 2022, and more than 850 members attended. Delegates reelected INFB Vice President Kendell Culp, who has served in this position since 2015.
• The delegate session was held Aug. 27, when 234 farmers and agribusiness professionals from across the state met to discuss issues that included broadband internet access, renewable energy and the Indiana Grain Indemnity Fund.
• Indiana Agricultural Law Foundation’s 2022 Estate and Succession Planning for the Family Farm workshop was a virtual event attended by 225 farmers and attorneys.
• The INFB Drainage School was presented virtually and in person, with 62 in-person and 87 virtual participants.

Educational outreach efforts

• INFB’s Ag in the Classroom volunteers gave 935 presentations in 2022, reaching nearly 47,000 students.
• 2022’s INFB Book of the Year was My Family’s Soybean Farm, by Katie Olthoff. Sixty-four counties and other education outlets participated by distributing 1,225 copies of the book.
• Back-to-school packages were shipped to 539 agriculture and family and consumer science teachers across the state.

Health plans

Indiana Farm Bureau Health Plans continued to grow and had nearly 3,200 active plans and covered more than 7,000 lives by the end of 2022.

Indiana Ag Law Foundation

INAgLaw, a 501(c)(3) charitable organization established by INFB in 2005, raised a total of $175,000 for the year via a donation match program approved by the INFB board of directors and through donations from county Farm Bureaus, family farms, individuals and agribusinesses.

Among the important cases INAgLaw worked on were two that will be ruled upon by the U.S. Supreme Court later this year. One involves California’s Proposition 12 and the other, which is called Sackett v. Environmental Protection Agency, involves the definition of Waters of the U.S. (WOTUS). In both cases, INFB and INAgLaw filed “friend of the court” briefs.

Indiana State Fair

• In 2022, INFB continued its focus on youth programs, sponsoring the Exhibitor Experience, the Supreme Drive and showmanship contests, and offering branded items to approximately 3,000 animal project exhibitors and prizes to Supreme Showmanship and Supreme Drive winners.
• Taste From Indiana Farms, sponsored by the INFB Women’s Leadership Committee, was moved to the Indiana Arts Building. A total of 128 volunteers participated during the event’s four-day run, providing food samples and information about Indiana agriculture to 5,140 consumers.

Media outreach/coverage

INFB secured 994 news stories in 2022. The most popular topics included the market basket surveys, the Russia-Ukraine war, carbon sequestration, input prices and state convention. Ninety-nine INFB members representing 48 counties were featured in 275 articles.

Membership

For the seventh consecutive year, INFB ended its membership year with a gain. The renewal figure for 2022 was 92.03%, which represents INFB’s seventh highest renewal percentage in 27 years.

The final number for 2022 was 267,848 members, which represents a gain of 1,385. Voting membership ended at 67,984 members, which was a decline of 606 members from the previous year.

Publications

INFB produced five publications throughout 2022: The Hoosier Farmer, My Indiana Home, the FB Feed, The Dispatch and The Pulse, a monthly publication about INFB Health Plans for Indiana Farm Bureau Insurance agents. New to 2022 were The Check-Up, an electronic publication sent to members who have an INFB Health Plan, and Field Notes, an update from INFB President Randy Kron to county leaders. The Check-Up went out once in 2022 and will go out twice in 2023, while Field Notes goes out monthly.

Strategic plan

INFB began rolling out a new strategic plan last fall, including new mission and vision statements. In creating the plan, INFB worked with Aimpoint Research and collected data in new ways from new sources, including a survey responded to by more than 1,000 people, two all-day sessions for county Farm Bureau leaders, district and county meetings held by district directors and listening sessions with state committees.

Website, social media

INFB’s social media channels continued to grow in 2022. From January through December, likes to INFB’s Facebook page increased by 10%, Instagram followers by 11% and LinkedIn by 27%. The greatest growth was for INFB’s YouTube channel, whose audience grew by 35%.

INFB’s Online Member Profile platform, which rolled out in October 2021, saw significant growth during its first full year of operation. As of the end of 2022, more than 1,200 members had updated their OMPs, which allow members to personalize their interactions with INFB, access information such as their membership number, and indicate their INFB programs of interest. It also allows them to manage their INFB publications, including opting to receive My Indiana Home and The Hoosier Farmer either via U.S. mail or digitally.

To access the Online Member Profile, log in to your account at www.infb.org and select “My Account.”

Young Farmers & Ag Professionals

• The 2022 YF&AP Conference had 161 attendees.
• The YF&AP Discussion Meet was held during INFB’s annual convention. It was won by Rachel Hyde of Hamilton County, who went on to reach the final four at the American Farm Bureau Federation’s 2022 convention. Winning the two other major YF&AP awards in 2022 were Johan and Déjanne de Groot of Huntington County, Achievement Award; and Carter and Abby Morgan, Vermillion County, Excellence in Agriculture Award. The Morgans went on to qualify in the top 10 at the AFBF convention.

In his annual remarks at the state convention, Kron concluded by thanking INFB’s members for their hard work.

“I am so proud of them for what they do to support our organization,” he said.