Sarah Kliethermes’s farm story begins each morning on CADA Farms, her family’s multi-generational farm and business near Bunceton in #Agri-Ready Designated Cooper County where they grow soybeans and corn and mill their own feed for the turkeys they raise. Sarah works on the farm and serves as the farm’s communication director. Sarah chooses to connect and share with consumers and fellow farmers because her stories build a foundation for others to trust farm families and Missouri agriculture. “I am energized and excited about outreach!” shared Sarah.

Sarah’s favorite advocacy work is done at home on the farm. She begins each day with her three kids, Maren (11), Caleb (9), and Shawn (7) who help on the farm by walking the turkeys in the barns. She encourages her kids to tell the farm’s story from their point of view. This summer, Maren, Caleb, and Shawn will be sharing about their poultry and crops through interviews that will be featured in the AgVenture activities in the Agriculture Building at the Missouri State Fair this August. Sarah shapes the future of agriculture in her community as a member of the Tipton FFA Alumni and Friends organization. “FFA Alumni is one of the most rewarding organizations that I give back through as we volunteer at local FFA events, help coach members for their contests, and award annual scholarships,” Sarah said.

Sarah is an active volunteer through CommonGround, an organization comprised of women farmers in the U.S. who share how America’s farmers are raising food. “We seek out opportunities to have conversations about food. I may start a conversation talking about my kids with someone else who has kids. The goal is to develop a connection so they are comfortable enough to ask me anything they want to know about their food,” Sarah shared. Missouri With the support of corn and soybean farmers and their checkoffs, CommonGround members volunteer each year during the Hermann Missouri’s Farmer’s Table Wine Trail. This year, Sarah also represented agriculture to consumers in Kansas City at the Heartland Invitational. “The message of the ‘Not a Latte’ campaign was to share that farmers use a minimal amount of pesticides per acre of cropland to help them grow healthy crops. The volume of a coffee cup is ’not a lot’ when used across an entire acre,” Sarah said. 

Sarah is growing her advocacy skills through opportunities to serve and learn. In 2021 and 2022 she participated in the Iowa-Missouri Grassroots Fellowship through Missouri Soybean Association, where she explored U.S. agriculture policy and regulation as it intersects with production agriculture. The experience equipped her to effectively speak on behalf of agriculture and the soybean industry. She has continued national level media training with the American Soybean Association (ASA) since she joined the ASA Communication Team in 2022.  Sarah is completing a two-year commitment as a member of the ASA Corteva Agriscience™ Young Leaders program  which identifies and trains new, innovative, and engaged soybean growers to serve as the voices of the American farmer through leadership, communications, and issue-based training while building a peer network. 

Sarah has presented workshop sessions and been interviewed by Brownfield Ag News. She shared the CADA Farms story as a guest on Shark Farmer Radio. Sarah utilizes her passion for communicating as a volunteer and at her job off-farm where she specializes in crop insurance for the USDA Risk Management Agency. She has helped coworkers learn to share that crop insurance is valuable to consumers, too.

“My passion is to talk with people in person,” Sarah said. “If other farmers want to get involved in ‘ag-vocating’, I recommend that they say yes whenever they can. If a volunteer is needed and you have the time, say yes.” 

CADA Farms is a multi-faceted family business operation. Sarah and her husband Brandon, in partnership with Brandon’s parents Carl and Helen, and brother Austin, grow soybeans and corn. Much of the grain they grow is taken directly to the family’s feed mill, where it is processed and then fed to the family’s turkey flocks. Turkeys arrive on their farm at one day old and are harvested 20 weeks later. CADA Farms has been recognized as a 4R Advocate since 2022. They are passionate about managing resources such as fertilizers and cover crops to protect their farm’s soil for the next generation. CADA Farms shared their on-farm practices and ideas with other farmers at the 2023 Agronomy Conference and Expo hosted by the Fertilizer Institute.

Sarah is the treasurer of the Cooper County Farm Bureau board and serves on the soybean advisory committee for Missouri Farm Bureau. CommonGround is an advocacy effort supported by the Missouri Corn Merchandising Council. The Kliethermes family are members of Missouri Corn, Missouri Soybeans, and Missouri Cattlemen’s Association. These organizations are partners of Missouri Farmers Care. Sarah loves to connect and share about agriculture. Find her on LinkedIn @Sarah Kliethermes.