‘Where our heart and our passion is’: New CropLife America video highlights need for continued crop protection innovation for U.S. family farms

ARLINGTON, VA — CropLife America (CLA) today released the latest video in its Farmer Voices Matter campaign, featuring Cara Riekhof and her family of GR Farms in Higginsville, Missouri. The video highlights the essential role pesticide crop protection tools play in helping farmers grow safe, high-quality food. Cara and her husband, Garrett, are sixth-generation farmers who grow soybeans and food-grade white corn that’s used to make tortilla chips.

“The farm is where our heart and our passion is. It’s our livelihood. It’s the thing that we wake up in the morning and we love to do,” said Cara Riekhof, co-owner of GR Farms. “We are constantly monitoring and analyzing every seed placement and pesticide application because it is important that we know the inputs going into our farm for our family as well as our food consumers. We want to be able to show where their food came from and that it was raised safely with care.”

The new Riekhof video can be viewed at  farmervoicesmatter.org.

CLA’s Farmer Voices Matter campaign shares the stories of America’s family farmers and the role science-based, rigorously regulated pesticide crop protection tools play in  agriculture. Through firsthand experiences from the field, the campaign helps foster greater understanding of modern farming practices and agricultural innovation.

“Stories like Cara’s remind us that pesticide crop protection innovation supports both the families who grow our food and the consumers who rely on it,” said CLA President and CEO Alexandra Dunn. “At a time when many people are increasingly disconnected from how food is grown, it is important that farmers can share their experiences and explain the tools they use to produce safe, healthy, and affordable food. That’s why their voices matter—and why we are proud to help amplify them.”

The Riekhof video joins a growing library of farmer stories featured on the Farmer Voices Matter platform. With more than 96 percent of U.S. farms family-owned, the campaign helps ensure farmers’ perspectives are represented in conversations and policy decisions that affect their ability to continue feeding families here at home and around the world.

To watch the Riekhof family video and learn more about the Farmer Voices Matter campaign, visit farmervoicesmatter.org.

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About Farmer Voices Matter

Farmer Voices Matter is an initiative of CropLife America to increase public education about the importance of pesticides to American farmers. The campaign features real family farmers sharing their stories about how crop protection products help them grow safe, abundant food for the nation and the world. Learn more at farmervoicesmatter.org.