“It catches me off guard at first, but then they tell me they saw me on the billboard on a truck,” said Dial, who raises corn, soybeans, hogs and sheep and is a long-time conservation advocate.

These “moving billboards” are part of an innovative partnership involving the Calhoun County Farm Bureau (CCFB), local farmers, Landus Cooperative and NEW Cooperative. The CCFB worked with area farmers like Dial who were willing to have their photo printed on a large vinyl banner attached to the side of the co-ops’ grain trucks.

There are two versions of the side banners, which measure 4.5 feet tall by 12 feet long. One features Dial in one of his no-till fields and highlights Iowa farmers’ efforts to improve water quality. The other banner features the Brad Black family and the economic impact of agriculture in Calhoun County.

Each grain semi-truck featuring these banners also includes a 3-by-3-foot banner on the back of the truck to provide some key facts that quantify farmers’ conservation efforts and local ag’s economic impact.

-Messenger photo by Darcy Dougherty Maulsby
Brad Black, his wife Rachel, and their three young children from Calhoun County are featured on the side of this New Cooperative semi trailer promoting why agriculture matters. “Featuring local farmers on these trailer wraps catches people’s attention,” said Terry Seehusen, a Farm Bureau regional manager

“Agriculture is critical to Calhoun County’s communities, schools and businesses, because it’s such a key part of the economy,” said John Rosenboom, president of the Calhoun County Farm Bureau and Pomeroy-area farmer. “The Calhoun County Farm Bureau is always looking for ways to promote ag education in our local communities, and these truck wraps help bring ag’s story to a wider audience.”

Trailer wraps generate positive comments

A number of northwest Iowa county Farm Bureau boards have invested in trailer wraps like this in the past year. After the Pocahontas County Farm Bureau came up with the idea, Farm Bureau boards in Palo Alto, Humboldt, Wright and Calhoun counties also implemented a trailer-wrap campaign in 2020.

In addition to NEW and Landus, Pro Cooperative and Gold-Eagle Cooperative have also participated in the trailer-wrap project with various county Farm Bureau boards.

-Messenger photo by Darcy Dougherty Maulsby
Calhoun county farmer Dwight Dial is featured on this semitrailer wrap for his no-till fields and efforts to improve water quality.

“Featuring local farmers on these trailer wraps catches people’s attention,” said Terry Seehusen, a Farm Bureau regional manager who has helped Farm Bureau county board members in his territory coordinate trailer-wrap projects. “These traveling billboards tell a quick, good story about agriculture.”

Seehusen worked with Northland Vinyl Creations in Humboldt to print the trailer wraps, which cost $600 for a 4.5-foot-by-12-foot side banner and a 3-by-3-foot banner. The banners are durable and can last five to six years, Seehusen added.

The trailer wraps have generated a lot of positive comments, said Black, who is featured on a banner with his family, including his wife, Rachel, and their four young children. This banner notes that there are 1,731 reasons why agriculture matters in Calhoun County, highlighting the number of jobs related to agriculture in the county.

“A lot of people tell me they’ve seen our photo on the trucks, and some send me pictures they’ve taken of the trailer wrap,” said Black, a past president of the Calhoun County Farm Bureau and current board member who is a corn and soybean grower.

Having new ways to connect people with agriculture and help them understand the important role it plays in daily life is important, noted Dial, who continues to add more conservation practices to his farm, including a solar energy system to generate electricity. In addition to using no-till, Dial has built terraces, added grass waterways, planted cover crops and installed buffer strips to slow water runoff. He also uses nitrification inhibitors and incorporates hog manure into the soil to better manage nutrients and protect water quality.

“The truck wraps offer a unique way to spread the word about the good that local agriculture does,” Dial said.