Alan Kemper was once the president of the National Corn Growers Association. Now the Lafayette, Ind., farmer is back on the national farm scene again, this time as a vice president of the American Soybean Association.
In his new role, he will serve for the next year with eight other soybean growers on the ASA Executive Committee. He also will have duties on ASA's Public Affairs Committee. It's more than just a ho-hum assignment. The committee intends on a two pronged approach, Kemper says: 1) working to extend the biodiesel tax incentives and 2) developing new proposals for the '07 Farm Bill.
Kemper's resume shows he's well qualified to speak for American farmers. He's been active in a number of Indiana farm organizations, and was honored as an Indiana Prairie Farmer Master Farmer in the '90s. It's the same award that's now co-sponsored by Indiana Prairie Farmer and the Purdue University College of Agriculture.
World trade has always been one of Kemper's special interests. While with the National Corn Growers Association he served as chairman of the U.S. Ag Tam at the GATT/WTO Conferences in Brussels and Geneva. He also later served on President Clinton's Development Task Force on Sustainable Agriculture.
Alan and his wife, Susan, also helped co-host the successful Lafayette Farm Progress Show in '01. It was the last Farm Progress Show held in Indiana, and featured a six-acre corn maze by Purdue University, displaying the power of GPS technology, plus extensive tiling demonstrations that featured installing smaller diameter tile on closer spacing. That trend has since caught on across northern Indiana, as far east as Wells County, on Pewamo soils.
Today Kemper raises corn, soybeans and cattle. He farms with his son, Brian.