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Ag Secretary Candidates, Zumbach And Gaesser, Talk Issues With Carroll Residents During Their Campaigns To The June Primary

Photo (l to r) Senator Dan Zumbach and Ray Gaesser

 

Two of the candidates vying for the Republican nomination in the Iowa Secretary of Agriculture June 5 primary made campaign stops in Carroll Monday. Both men are farmers, Ray Gaesser, who farms in Adams County, and Senator Dan Zumbach, who farms in Delaware County. Zumbach says this is his 40th crop, and the first one he has not planted totally himself. He says his lifelong passion and career in farming paired with his other experiences make him the choice to lead Iowa’s economic future and to promote what we have to offer to the rest of the world.

The ever-changing face of agriculture and the demographics in the more urban areas of our state have resulted in somewhat of a disconnect according to both candidates. Zumbach says four years as the ranking member of the Iowa Agriculture Committee, the last two as chairman, has given him opportunity to act as a liaison. He says that the most important characteristic he can bring to the position is that ability to communicate.

Gaesser too has spent a lifetime in agriculture. He took over the family farming operation in Indiana at the age of 15 after his father passed away, then moved to Iowa, where he and his family have farmed between Lenox and Corning for the past 40 years. Gaesser has also volunteered in local and state economic development, serving as president of both the Iowa and American Soybean Associations. He says he has worked on many, many legislative issues, including building up the renewable fuel industry in Iowa in the early 2000s. This is the type of work, he says, brings him the experience needed to be effective in the Secretary of Agriculture office.

However, the most important thing he needs to know to be successful is how to build relationships. That is the foundation of effectively continuing innovation in this vital industry, Gaesser says.

Zumbach, who has received the endorsement of Senator Mark Segebart, joins Gaesser in talking more in-depth about trade, renewable fuels and the future of agriculture, and we will bring you those details in upcoming broadcasts.

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