Two Indiana veterinarians are winners of this year’s Excellence in Agriculture Award presented by Indiana Farm Bureau. John and Marybeth Feutz of Gibson County are a husband and wife team who also farm on a small scale. John told HAT this gives them an opportunity to talk about small scale farming which often gets little exposure but has a big impact on rural communities, “There is a lot of agriculture that goes on in America but on small farms, especially in the livestock industry.” The Feutzs operate a 30 head beef cow operation.
As practicing veterinarians, they are also on the front lines of one of the most controversial issues in animal agriculture today: the use of antibiotics. Marybeth says this position allows them to address the issue on two fronts, with farmers and with consumers, “We have a very unique opportunity as farmers and veterinarians. We see the antibiotic issue from both the animal owner side as well as the animal caretaker side.” She added they can talk with farmers about using the proper medications in the approved way and explain to consumers why these drugs are needed and how they are used. John is a partner with his father, James, in Princeton Veterinarian Hospital while Marybeth serves as large animal internal medicine consultant for the practice. Marybeth is also a full-time blogger and runs the site Agricultured.org, which she hopes becomes a “place where people can go and get their food questions answered.”
