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Cedarville Magazine
Whilemany of us will spend the summer
working inside air-conditioned offices and
perhaps enjoying a family vacation, a tight-
knit community of harvesters will traverse
the country in travel trailers, from Texas
to Montana. For up to seven months, they
will labor long hours in the heat harvesting
America’s wheat crops. This way of life may
seem difficult to imagine for urban and
suburban Americans, many of whom have
little understanding about how a loaf of
bread gets to their kitchen tables.
For Conrad Weaver ’88, President of
Conjostudios, LLC, this is a story that needs
to be told. Since 2011 he has been shooting
and producing a documentary film called
The Great American Wheat Harvest
.
Its promotional trailer, featuring Miss
America 2011, Teresa Scanlan, has already
won an award.
Since his childhood on a northeast Ohio
dairy farm, Weaver has loved agriculture
and farming. He spent summers milking
cows, baling hay, and cultivating corn on his
grandfather’s farm. Although the majority
of American farms today are still family-
owned, Weaver has found that small, family
farms are being eclipsed by 10,000-acre
industrial farms. He wanted to capture the
harvesting stories and lifestyle before it was
too late.
Weaver recently spent a week with
a harvesting family in Nebraska whose
lives revolve around the harvest. Each
year in May, they pack up their RV and
live on the road working nonstop through
September. As he interviewed the family’s
teen daughters, Weaver learned that their
dad drives the combine, their mom drives
the grain truck, and the girls do the laundry,
shopping, and cooking for the family and
take the meals out to the field workers
each day.
by Carol Lee ’96
Feeding America: Behind the Scenes
“Every two or three weeks they move north to the next wheat farm,” saidWeaver. “They
recalled all the places around the country where they’ve celebrated the Fourth of July. Their
favorite family memories are sitting in the back of their pickup truck together watching the
sunset. They live and breathe this life and wouldn’t think of doing anything else.”
This project has been educational for the former psychology major and
Cedars
editor
who always had his camera in hand. “Although the average age of a farmer is 57 years old,
younger people are showing a renewed interest in agriculture,” Weaver said, “but this is not
the way your grandfather farmed. The industry today is steeped in the science of farming,
learning how to grow more with less.”
Weaver learned that it takes about 10 years of research before seed is released to a
farmer to buy and plant. He interviewed a wheat genetics professor at Oklahoma State
University who leads one of the top wheat breeding programs in the country. They are
cross-pollinating and testing a number of wheat varieties — first in their greenhouses,
then in their test fields, and finally in a baking lab — to produce the best possible seed that
yields the best tasting bread.
“Their end goal is to create wheat varieties that will produce more yield in the same
amount of land with less water,” Weaver said. Researchers project the world population
will top nine million by 2040 at a time when natural resources, like water, are already in
high demand. “The Southwest and Midwest in particular are facing drier conditions, and
researchers are working on wheat varieties that will grow better in arid conditions and
produce more food on the same amount of land,” he said.
Weaver has seen God’s hand in this project from the beginning, from professional
connections and personal friendships he has made to the organizations and corporations
that have come on board to raise money and sponsor the film. With help from a small crew,
Weaver is doing the principle photography and production himself. He anticipates a March
2014 debut in Washington, D.C., on National Agriculture Day followed by a 10-state tour
of the “wheat belt.” He is also pitching the film to national cable networks.
“It’s important for consumers to know what goes into food production,” Weaver said.
“This project has givenme a greater awareness about the food I eat and a deeper appreciation
for what it takes to feed America.”
Conrad Weaver ’88
is President and owner
of Conjostudios, LLC. He and his wife, Jodi,
live in Emmitsburg, Maryland, with their two
children and their garden. Find news and
updates about the film online on Facebook
(search “wheat harvest movie”) or Twitter (@
wheat_harvest). You may contact Weaver at
.
Carol Lee ’96
is the Managing Editor
of
Cedarville Magazine
and Senior
Communication Specialist in Marketing. You
may contact her at
.
Photos: ConradWeaver
