351 Century and Heritage Farm Families Honored at Iowa State Fair

Program celebrates farms that have been in the same family for 100 and 150 years, respectively

DES MOINES, Iowa (Aug. 18, 2022) — Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig, Iowa Farm Bureau Federation President Brent Johnson and Vice President Joe Heinrich honored 351 Iowa farm families with Century or Heritage Farm designations at the Iowa State Fair today. The program celebrates farms that have been owned by the same families for 100 and 150 years, respectively.

“I always look forward to honoring our Century and Heritage Farm families and hearing stories about their incredible journeys,” said Secretary Naig. “This event is about recognizing the legacy and resiliency of the family farms that make up the fabric of our agriculture communities.”

“Agriculture and Iowa’s farm families are the backbone of the state and an essential part of our rural communities and economy,” said Brent Johnson, Iowa Farm Bureau President. “We are honored to co-sponsor the Century and Heritage Farm programs celebrating multi-generational farm families that have persevered over 100 or 150 years and kept their farms in the family.”

The Century Farm program began in 1976 as part of the Nation’s Bicentennial Celebration. This year, 232 Century Farms and 119 Heritage Farms were recognized. Photos of the recipients will be available at flickr.com/photos/iowaagriculture/albums.

To date, 20,773 Century Farms and 1,685 Heritage Farms have been recognized across the state of Iowa.