Change comes for everyone
WHEN I WAS A YOUNG ENGINEER at Fleming-Mason Energy, I used to love driving on country roads in September. Everywhere you looked, there were acres of tobacco plants turning golden as the summer stretched into fall. It almost took your breath away.
Today, if you drive down those same roads, you’ll have to look hard to find a patch of tobacco. It’s not just your imagination—tobacco is disappearing from the landscape. In 2002, there were 537 tobacco farms in Fleming County. Five years later, there were 162. And in 2017, the most recent year we have data for, there were 48. Statewide, the number of tobacco farms fell to around 2,000 during the same period.
As I read this month’s cover story on tobacco agriculture in Kentucky, I couldn’t help but see similarities to our own line of business. In the years leading up to the buyout, Kentucky farmers faced competitive pressures, a quickly changing regulatory environment and challenges that wouldn’t go away simply by pretending they didn’t exist.
Rather than just wishing things were different, leaders worked together to craft a new plan for Kentucky’s agricultural economy. Change was going to be painful, but it was coming one way or another.
In the energy world, similar truths apply. Things are moving fast, and changes are coming. Putting our heads in the sand would be the worst possible strategy. We have to prepare; we have to work together to find solutions; and we have to apply a little common sense.
If you look at Kentucky agriculture, the transition over the last 20 years is remarkable. Tobacco used to account for about 30% of Kentucky’s agricultural cash receipts. That percentage is just 3% today, but total cash receipts are higher than ever. The agricultural economy has diversified into corn, poultry, soybeans, cattle and more. By admitting that change was coming and taking practical steps to prepare, Kentucky agriculture weathered what could have been a disaster and came out stronger on the other side.
Just like Kentucky agriculture 20 years ago, the energy industry today faces inevitable change. Both now and in the future, cooperatives are here to be your advocate. We’re here to keep you informed as we cover developing energy issues in Kentucky Living. And we’re here to work for today while planning for tomorrow, because change is coming—ready or not.
