Pearson offers words on crop futures, life in general

PRAIRIE CITY — Mike Pearson and John Lee met years ago. It was easy for the two to get to know each other.

“John’s not shy,” Pearson said.

That was just one of many jabs the national TV program host took when he spoke March 10 during a 10th-anniversary celebration of Lee’s Green Acres Unlimited shop in Prairie City. Pearson, a Winterset High School graduate, Grinnell resident and host of the nationally syndicated program “Market to Market” offered plenty of current market trends, global economic issues and life issues.

“If you’re weighing corn vs. beans, corn is a safer bet — especially if you tend to be on the higher end of yields,” Pearson sad. “Anyone planning to do beans, that’s a riskier market. I’d really look to get them sold, in the near term.”

Pearson used plenty of self-deprecating humor in his talk, which lasted about an hour. He also stumped for Lee’s business, which was the site of a hamburger fry celebration.

Lee took Pearson on a brief tour of his welding and painting operation before Pearson spoke, and thanked several people, one by one, for their contributions to Green Acres before introducing Pearson. The TV host dogged himself for some of his own less-than-intelligent moves on investments, including his purchase of a 20-year-old pickup truck.

“I saw this truck, and while I was out on a speaking trip, my wife was helping with the hay, and she jumped down into the truck bed,” Pearson said. “Well, rust weakens truck beds, and her feet went clean through it. She called me and gave me a piece of her mind, and I’m glad we bought a comfortable couch, because I slept on the couch a lot over the next few months.”

The serious side of his talk focused on how events in China and South America affect markets in Chicago, Kansas City and rural Iowa as quickly as ever. He mentioned a number of predictions, like a 30-year increase in proteins, but also pointed out how phenomenons make forecasting tough. Pearson said a friend sent him a photo of high beef prices at a Chicago butcher shop, and then sent a photo of a long line of eager beef customers.

“Americans can’t get enough beef,” he said. “The good times aren’t over for cattle. We’ve almost priced ourselves out of the international market, and almost only Americans are eating their own beef, and we’re importing some.”

He pointed out that 220,000 babies are born worldwide each day, but even with the world population predicted to go from 7 billion to 9 billion in the next 30 years, farmers must market to the right customers in order to both feed the world and remain profitable.

Pearson said Asia is the market expanding the fastest — not simply because of rapid population growth, but also because of the growth of the middle class. Going from middle to upper class doesn’t change the amount of protein in most people’s diets, he said, but going from poverty to the middle class means a move from a grain-based diet to one that includes much more protein.

The Grinnell resident pointed out what he calls a “fascinating disconnect” between the respect the American farmer receives as an individual and the low regard for farming as an industry, fueled by social-media posts about political issues such as insecticides, GMOs and large cooperations taking over in the fields.

“Americans are about three generations removed from the farm, on average,” Pearson said. “Ninety-six Americans aren’t involved with farms, and many get their farm knowledge from Facebook.”

Pearson closed his speech by imploring farmers to get involved with government decisions and policies that affect farm economics.

“When agriculture stands up with a voice, we not only stop foolish policies — we do more than that,” Pearson said. “We show that we’re all really proud of who we are, and what we’ve built. We have to share that.”