Dairy crisis takes an emotional toll on farm families

The dairy crisis has farmers grappling with record low prices and the prospect of losing their livelihood, and the situation has taken a deeply emotional toll, Lynda Waddington reports for The Iowa Independent, an online publication. If you're looking for a good example of how to to a feature story on the crisis, here's one. (Iowa Independent photo)

Near Stockport, Ia., the Lunsford family runs a small dairy farm, L & L Ayrshires, where cows and calves are known by names, generational history and personalities. A daughter, Jennifer Lunsford, told Waddington, “This is a family farm. It isn’t just because we run and operate the farm, but because all aspects of what we do and how we treat the herd is as family. We give them the same considerations that other people give to pets or extended family.”

That bond is beyond an industry gone awry, says clinical psychologist Mike Rosmann, executive director of AgriWellness. He says consumers have become disconnected from the food supply and take too lightly the connection farmers and livestock share. “Our understanding of where food comes from deteriorates because we kind of take it for granted.” Facing foreclosure, Rosmann told Waddington, is when farmers are most vulnerable. “These farm families become very afraid that where they get meaning in their lives will be removed from them.” (Read more)