|
Click to listen to this article
|
By John Harris, Founder, Paradigm Fresh Inc.
Here we are, over halfway through the first quarter of 2023 already. With that comes the National Onion Association’s (NOA) annual Washington D.C. Fly-In, held Feb. 26 – March 2. Although this trip is a lot of work for all who attend, it is vital in order for onion growers and the onion industry as a whole to continue to operate and function the way that it does.
Not only do we meet with many senators, representatives and their aides, but we also meet with groups such as the EPA, FDA and National Transportation Committee. We discuss a wide variety of topics, including labor issues, IR-4 funding, transportation concerns, chemical labeling, irrigation water testing protocols and the recent concerns of Salmonella. The issues are broad and wide-sweeping, and all of them are issues that concern the viability of our industry. It is vital that every year, a group of us from the NOA set out on this trip to make certain that our voice is heard in Washington D.C.
I have been on this trip five or six times now in my nearly 20 years in the industry, and I can’t explain how important that I believe every issue we address on this trip is. I also believe that everyone we sit down and speak with is happy to see and hear from us. We are the boots on the ground, and many of the suggestions and requests we make on an annual basis are heard. There is follow-up and follow through, and it is a great thing to know that our donated time and energy is making a difference for the entire U.S. onion industry.
I have been attending NOA meetings with my father since I was a young boy. My first memory of an NOA meeting was one summer in the mid-1980s. I must have been around 8 or 9 years old (I’m currently 43) and probably remember the trip because we drove 12 hours from Colorado to Las Cruses, New Mexico. When you are 8 years old, a 12-hour drive might as well be a week. Anyhow, my point is that I have been attending these NOA conventions for a pretty long time. Although the NOA is widely regarded as a growers’ convention, I’m here to lobby anyone in the onion industry, no matter what part of it you belong to, that the NOA is so much more than just a growers’ convention.
The NOA hosts two annual conventions each year. The first meeting of the year is in mid-July and, generally speaking, is in or near an onion production area. The second meeting is usually the week following Thanksgiving and is somewhere warm and beautiful. The amount of networking I have done over the years at these meetings is really overwhelming. I have met so many amazing people connected to the industry. Many of these people, I now consider lifelong friends that I speak with on a weekly basis. I have been to their businesses, their homes and, in a few cases, to their weddings and their children’s weddings. When you get invited to a wedding, you know you have crossed over into a friendship that will always mean far more than the business ever will.
I am not here to tell you to join the NOA. Although you should, and you should attend the meeting; you won’t ever be sorry that you did, I promise. What I am actually here to stand on my soapbox and beat the drum for is being involved and participating in our onion community.
I grew up playing lots of sports as a child and went on to play college football on some really, really good teams. I found that what stood out about us versus the other teams is that everyone on our team wanted the ball to make the big play, and no one ever shied away from being the guy that made that goal-line-saving tackle. Nobody shied away from that moment. Nobody was waiting for someone else to make that play.
Our onion industry has a lot of teammates on the sidelines right now waiting for someone else to make the play. We need everyone’s participation, everyone’s opinions and everyone’s ideas right now. We are facing more and more challenges from so many different angles each day, and they only seem to grow every year. No matter what part of our onion community you come from, whether you are a grower, packer, shipper, buyer, broker, transportation specialist, or equipment and material supplier, we need your participation. Get off the bench and get involved. There is strength in numbers, and education is power. Find a place to donate your time, energy and efforts to the onion industry in some form or fashion and help make a difference for our entire onion community. Go, onions!
