Farmers must change their own attitudes and work to change the government if they expect to survive in agriculture, said Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Patty Judge.

Judge spoke Sunday afternoon at the Holiday Inn Gateway Center to about 100 members and family of the Farm Operation Club for the Iowa State Agricultural Studies Banquet. Judge was the keynote speaker for the banquet that honors outstanding students and ISU’s agriculture program.

The number of rural communities are continuing to decline and the age of the farmer is continuing to increase, said Judge, who has lived and worked on a farm all her life.

“How are we going to keep you on a rural farm?” she asked the audience.

One way is to put the profit back in farming, Judge said.

“If there’s profit in farming, I believe people are going to choose farming,” she said. “It’s a great way to live, a great way to raise your children, but it’s not so great to be financially stressed all the time.”

She said a government must be built that can respond quickly to changing global conditions.

“We are in a global economy and do not have the luxury of not paying attention to those forces,” she said.

Judge said she also believes in responsive government. Her recent trip to Washington, D.C., was one of “real frustration” because she found the bureaucracy “heavy-handed.”

“I am somewhat skeptical of the process in Washington,” she said. “I believe that we can have a government that listens and responds.”

During her speech, Judge said she promotes advocacy of independent farmers.

“Who’s going to own land in the next century? We’re looking at the largest transfer of land in this state,” she said. “In whose hands will it be in? In yours or corporate America’s? We make the decision.”

On a local basis, Judge encouraged education and new ways to market.

“Iowa is still the king of agriculture,” she said.

Judge also addressed the issue of environmental concern and said it is important to remember there are more people living in urban centers than on farms.

“We are now the minority,” she said. “They believe we are contaminating their water, fouling their air and causing general havoc throughout the countryside.”

Judge suggested the dual measures of education and prevention prove Iowa farmers are the “best stewards of the land” and are able to co-exist with their urban friends.

Students present at the banquet said Judge’s speech had an impact.

Patrick Lentz, Farm Operation Club secretary and junior in agricultural studies, said the “change of the land and how farmers are going to have to take over the future” was important to him.

Ryan Bristle, Farm Operation Club president and sophomore in agricultural studies, said Judge covered many important points.

“I enjoyed how she addressed the issue of change,” he said. “She is a great liaison between Iowa and the rest of the world.”