This quarter, Ag Innovation News (AIN) highlights AURI’s first-year Board Director, Minnesota State Senator Aric Putnam. Sen. Putnam is Chair of the Senate Agriculture, Broadband & Rural Development Committee, Vice Chair of the Higher Education Committee, and member of the Jobs and Economic Development Committee and Taxes Committee. Senator Putnam is also a professor at St. John’s University and the College of St. Benedict. In this edition of AIN’s Board Q&A, he shares his vision for helping Minnesota become the “Silicon Valley of
agriculture.”
Q: Please tell our readers a little about your background
I grew up in Silicon Valley before it became what it is. I watched orchards become apartment buildings that were too expensive for any of my neighbors to live in. But I also saw technology and innovation change lives and create new opportunities in real time. I moved to Minnesota in the nineties to work on a Ph.D. at the University of Minnesota. I’ve been a professor at Saint John’s University and the College of Saint Benedict for 20 years, researching and lecturing on practices of citizenship and how differences matter in the history of the United States democracy.
Q: Why did you want to join AURI’s board of directors?
AURI occupies a unique place in Minnesota’s agriculture economy. Minnesota can become the Silicon Valley of agriculture, and AURI is at the forefront of that work. Equally important, AURI makes a real difference in people’s lives. In AURI we see how government, business and the technical sphere can work together to make a concrete difference.
Q: What do you think is the biggest challenge facing farmers today?
Minnesota’s farmers are resilient and brilliant, creative and dedicated, but they often struggle to make their work profitable to sustain their livelihoods and support their families. Consolidation has made it even harder for farmers to get their work to market. We need to increase access to farming and the ag economy, and to democratize processing and distribution so that everyone can do their best and achieve sustainable success.
Q: How can Minnesota best support its agriculture industry?
The best thing we can do is listen to farmers. For too long, leaders in St. Paul have made decisions for farmers rather than with them. That doesn’t help anyone or solve any real problems. So, from a legislative perspective, the best thing we can do is recognize that we don’t know everything and take the time to listen to those whose work is shaped by our decisions.
Q: What are your goals as a new board member?
I’d love to make it to a meeting. And contribute. Seriously. But with a citizen legislature, it’s a bit of a challenge. Ultimately, my hope is that my service on the board can help sustain AURI and share its important work from a legislative standpoint, as well as from the standpoint of a citizen who cares about agriculture.
Q: Which ag-related issues are most important to you?
Generational transfer is incredibly important. But I’m not just talking about families. We have to find a way to help Minnesota agriculture build on its traditional strengths and grow to its next iteration.
Q: What would you like to achieve in your current term with the Minnesota legislature?
This session will focus on “growing opportunity.” I intend to prioritize bills and hearings that are focused on the intentional development of capacity. Minnesota agriculture needs and deserves thoughtful, equitable innovation. And as Chair of the Senate Agriculture Committee, that’s a big priority for my work in the legislature.
