Albright Family from Calhoun County received the Wergin Good Farm Neighbor Award
Secretary Naig awards family for outstanding leadership in agriculture
DES MOINES, Iowa (June 26, 2020) – Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig presented the Wergin Good Farm Neighbor Award to the Albright family in Lytton, Iowa, today. The farm is run by Ben and his wife, Susan, Ben’s younger brother, Nick, and father, Alan.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the award presentation ceremony was limited to the family. Secretary Naig and the Albright family practiced social distancing while receiving the award live on WHO Radio’s The Big Show.
“The members of the Albright family are great conservation leaders. They realize there’s no one-size-fits-all solution to improving soil health and water quality and have invested in a variety of practices to determine what works best for their land,” said Secretary Naig. “These investments not only help to improve the soil and land now, they help preserve it for future generations. It’s my honor to present them with the Wergin Good Farm Neighbor Award.”
The family has a diversified crop operation, where they have implemented numerous water quality practices. The Albrights use buffer strips, grassed waterways, no-till, settling basins, manure management, nitrogen stabilizers, conservation tillage, and Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) windbreaks. In addition, they have increased the amount of cover crops from 20 acres to 320 acres since 2012.
Along with crops, the brothers also own two feedlots. In 2006, they purchased their first feedlot from their father, Alan. One of the top priorities of their livestock operation is to focus on the wellbeing of their animals.
Together, the two brothers practice animal care and emphasize manure management practices to protect the environment. The Albright family was nominated for the Wergin Good Farm Neighbor award by Darcy Maulsby.
For several years, Ben was involved in a research study about the economics behind grazing cover crops. Within the community, he served as president of the Calhoun County Farm Bureau and is now a voting delegate. Albright is also an Iowa Farm Bureau Federation (IFBF) Ag Leaders Institute graduate, former IFBF Young Farmer Advisory Committee vice-chair, Practical Farmers of Iowa member and Soil Health Conference presenter, Garfield Township clerk, and a Calhoun County Cattlemen board member.
The Wergin Good Farm Neighbor award is made possible thanks to financial support from the Coalition to Support Iowa’s Farmers. This award recognizes Iowa livestock farmers who take pride in caring for the environment and their livestock, and being good neighbors. It is named in memory of Gary Wergin, a long-time WHO Radio farm broadcaster who helped create the award.