September 2024 Member Spotlight: Amy Bruch

You’ve maybe heard the idea that farming isn’t a job, it’s a calling. Our September member spotlight shines on Amy Bruch of Cyclone Farms in East Central Nebraska, and that’s her philosophy. To Amy, organic farming is a lifestyle and for nearly a decade Amy has been dedicated to growing her organic farm and thriving in this system.

Amy grew up doing farm chores with her father and it didn’t take long for her to realize she wanted to turn farming into a profession. Amy began her career as an agricultural engineer for General Mills, but soon found herself farming in Brazil with her future husband. The two farmed in a developing agricultural area, and this would become one of those life experiences that would stay with Amy throughout her career and shape her farming ideology.

The farmland in Brazil was called cerrado in Portuguese, which translates into scrubland; it was the frontier and had highly acidic soil that needed improving. However, by learning more about the soil and how to balance the ecosystem they were working with, their crops started to succeed. But soon, home and the farm in Nebraska called due to the sudden passing of Amy’s father. Amy and her husband, Tyler, returned to the U.S. and as 6th generation farmers began a new farming journey.

The farm wasn’t organic at the time, but by using what they learned from their work in Brazil, they brought the idea of a balanced system—especially a balanced soil system—to the farm. Now, after almost a decade of farming organically, Amy has found that innovation, balance, learning from other farmers, and using her experiences to help the next generation of organic farmers is what’s most meaningful.

Amy’s vision is to get more people involved in organic farming, especially young people. The more farmers there are in this movement, the more continuous improvement can occur and protect integrity and further enhance programs like crop insurance for organic producers and market availability. But Amy realized one way in which to create positive change was to apply for an NOSB board farmer seat and was appointed for a five-year term. Now Amy is working on expanding the resources, tools, and systems available to organic farmers. Amy’s focus includes continuing to improve organic integrity and exploring how the private sector can rally around organic to help grow the industry.

To Amy, these two ideas can work in tandem to lift up the industry. With the addition of the transition to organic partnership program (TOPP), there is a renewed energy to assist growers to transition to organic. Amy believes this is important and that encouraging a focus on retention of existing organic producers and continuing to ensure integrity while focusing on market outlets is a good place to start. The USA is a net exporter of conventional commodities and almost a net importer of the organic commodity counterparts such as organic corn and organic soybeans. If companies made the choice to buy from domestic organic farmers first they could create a more efficient and transparent organic supply chain, grow organic market opportunities for domestic producers, diversify farmers’ crops, and support soil health. Domestic producers want to ensure all are playing by the same rules and many have long been worried about the impact on the market as fraud increased, but the solution has been slow to come.

Another lesson Amy learned from her time in Brazil is that any situation can be overcome with the right approach, and she knows that farmer voices are critical to making policy changes that support and protect organic farmers. Another way to promote positive change in organics is to become active in advocacy, and that is one of the reasons Amy really appreciates teaming up with OFA which aggregates the voice of the farmer to create positive policy changes for the organic community. By digging deeper into these issues through advocacy and getting involved in policy work, farmers can be their own best advocates when it comes to helping the industry grow. Amy’s goal with this work is to create a future where kids growing up on family farms today will have market access, a pathway to continue the family operation, and most of all, fair policy support to protect their farming businesses.
You have to have an entrepreneurial spirit to be in organic farming, Amy pointed out, and that seems especially true when you think you only have a limited number of seasons in your lifetime to do what you love. She reminds us all that learning from and overcoming challenges, getting to know other farmers and processes, and embracing innovation every year is a gift that this system provides for organic farmers. It’s what keeps us all going so we have the ability to breathe more life into the work each season.