The Henderson-Polk-Transylvania FSA office saluted Polk County farmers on Earth Day, Friday, April 22.

The men and women who put food on your supper table have made major advances since that first Earth Day in 1970. Each year, these producers have developed better methods to protect land, water and air. While Americans have joined forces to encourage better stewardship of natural resources, the FSA said North Carolina farmers, including Polk County, were doing something about it. According to the FSA, North Carolina’s farmers and producers were already working the soil and living the message of natural resource management before it was fashionable.

North Carolina’s farmers depend on the earth’s productivity to support not only their families, but to provide the food, fiber and fuels exported to the entire world. It stands to reason that local farmers are the first stewards of natural resources. In order to ensure an abundant food supply, sustainable fuel and fiber, they know they must first conserve and protect the environment.

The FSA said North Carolina farmers appreciate the fragility of natural resources and know the high importance of safeguarding the environment for the next generation. It’s why Polk County farmers continually learn better ways to grow crops, improve livestock raising methods and refresh the land.