Barton County Farm Bureau honored Tanner Brown for his aggressive role in the conservation of our natural resources by presenting him with a Natural Resources Award at the BCFB Annual Meeting in August.

“I am not a big producer, farming 1,000 acres,” Brown said. He says he does not want to be a big farmer, but would rather be an efficient farmer. Tanner along with his father strives to be as efficient as possible and makes every acre useful while taking care of the soil.

Tanner is a fifth-generation farmer and has lived and worked on the farm his entire life. He began helping his father at the age of 9. In addition to farming, he works full-time as a Registered Nurse.

The Browns changed to a row crop operation from 2012-2017, but have since returned to having a 90% alfalfa operation. The conversion has allowed them to use less herbicide and alfalfa improves the soil naturally.

In 2020, Tanner and his father started a cow/calf operation to better utilize their acreage and become more efficient in their farm operation, using a variety of conservation practices. The Browns recently applied and were approved for an EQUIP irrigation cost share program. This will help them manage water usage much better.