Congratulations to the 40 Quota Counties for 2019!

Forty Counties met or exceeded their overall membership goal for 2019. Congratulations!

NEFB Serving Agriculture…Growing Membership

Nebraska Farm Bureau (NEFB) is excited to see the work that is being done by county Farm Bureaus and agents to recruit and retain members. Even though state and American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF) quotas were not met this year, we had 40 county Farm Bureaus reach their membership goals,” Phil Erdman, NEFB vice president of membership said Oct. 15.

“We don’t measure success just in numbers of members. The amount of activity and work that county Farm Bureaus are doing to engage their neighbors and involve their members in addressing the issues that affect their farm or ranch. That’s a success,” he said.

Nebraska Farm Bureau ended the fiscal year with 58,187 total members, of which 6,032 were new members.

2019 Quota Counties by Region are:
NORTHWEST – Garden, Grant, Morrill, Sioux
NORTH CENTRAL – Boyd, Brown, Cherry, Custer, Garfield, Logan, Loup, McPherson, Rock, Wheeler
SOUTHWEST – Chase, Frontier, Harlan/Furnas, Hayes, Perkins, Phelps/Gosper
SOUTH CENTRAL – Clay, Hamilton, Kearney/Franklin, Nuckolls, Seward, Thayer, York
CENTRAL – Buffalo, Butler, Colfax, Greeley, Merrick, Polk
NORTHEAST – Burt, Dakota, Knox
SOUTHEAST – Gage, Johnson, Nemaha, Richardson

(In addition to these individual county goals, the counties in the North Central Region collectively met the overall membership goal for their region.)

These county Farm Bureaus will receive recognition at the NEFB Annual Meeting in Kearney, including a certificate and photograph with NEFB President Steve Nelson, a $250 check from Nebraska Farm Bureau, and a free postcard mailing to their ag members in the 2020 membership year.

Counties also are being recognized for their work in recruiting and getting ag members involved in their county this year under the “Just Ask” membership campaign.

• 15 county Farm Bureaus received the “County Farm Bureau Works” incentive of $20 for each new ag member they got involved in 2019. (Blaine, Boyd, Cherry, Cheyenne, Custer, Dundy, Gage, Harlan/Furnas, Lincoln, Logan, McPherson, Phelps/Gosper, Richardson, Rock, and Thomas)

• Nine county Farm Bureaus were designated “Early Harvest Counties” by meeting their new ag member goal by March 31 and received $250. (Cheyenne, Colfax, Frontier, Garden, Grant, Hayes, Logan, Scotts Bluff, and Wheeler)

• 10 Century Club Grant Awards were awarded to county Farm Bureaus for projects they were working to complete in 2019. (Blaine, Boyd, Cheyenne, Harlan/Furnas, Keith, Knox, McPherson, Pawnee, Thayer, and Wayne)

“I also want to thank our county leaders and Farm Bureau Financial Services (FBFS) agents – working alongside our Regional Managers – who reached and retained members this year. That partnership is vital to the future of Farm Bureau in Nebraska and with 40 counties hitting their membership goal, we are building a strong foundation for the future through membership growth,” Erdman said.

“At Nebraska Farm Bureau, we have made a concerted effort to double down and invest even more in county Farm Bureaus as we begin our second century of service to Nebraska agriculture,” Erdman said. “In 2019 alone, we will have invested over $16,000 in direct financial support to county Farm Bureaus and the work they are doing through the ‘Just Ask!’ campaign.”

“Raising the Steaks”
During the final month of the membership year NEFB partnered with FBFS agents, who had expired members with services where a membership is required, in “Raising the Steaks” by cleaning up their expired members in exchange for a box of steaks from Certified Piedmontese – a Farm Bureau member benefit partner. 

“This was a great partnership with Kris Rowe, vice president of marketing for Farm Bureau Financial Services in Nebraska, and his team. This year, 1,111 expired memberships were renewed through the work of the FBFS agents and their staff. I am excited that 33 agents met their goal, but more importantly, nearly every agent participated,” he said.

The 2019 membership year ended with 58,187 members. Retaining existing members and getting their membership paid helps Farm Bureau at the county and state levels with our budget and retention numbers.

“As we approach the 2020 membership year, there has never been a more important time for county Farm Bureaus and their members to work together to address the issues they face,” Erdman said.

It all starts with an ask.
“Who will you ask to join in the work you do every day to ensure a strong Nebraska for all? When counties actively work to recruit and retain members it benefits more than just the county Farm Bureau – it benefits all Nebraskans,” he said.