Paul Mugge
Paul Mugge, Sutherland organic farmer and member of the Practical Farmers of Iowa, was awarded the 2020 Sustainable Agriculture Achievement Award on January 18, 2020. He received the award at a presentation at the Iowa State Center Scheman Building the Practical Farmers annual conference in Ames, Iowa. “It’s just humbling, and I certainly wasn’t expecting it,” said Mugge in response to him receiving the award.
The award is given each year to an individual or couple that has shown exemplary commitment to sustainable agriculture, generously shared their knowledge with others, and been influential in efforts to foster vibrant communities, diverse farms, and healthy food.
Mugge has been a Practical Farmers member fir more than 30 years. He and his wife, Karen, farm 300 acres of certifies organic crops. Their rotation consists of corn, soybeans, small grains, and some legumes.
The farm has been certified organic since 2001 and features a mature, 17 year old restored prairie; prairie strips established in 2015; and a beetle bank installed with Xerces Society in 2018.
In 2013, Mugge received Practical Farmer’s Master Researcher Award in recognition of his long term commitment to conducting on farm research and sharing the results with others. To date, he has conducted 65 on farm trials - a Practical Farmers record - and hosted 22 field days on his farm over the years.
His most recent field days include two events he hosted last summer exploring his work establishing prairie and beneficial insect habitat, and organic row crop production and mechanical weed control on his farm.
Mugge also served on the Practical Farmers of Iowa board of directors from 1990 to 1998, and has been active in leadership and volunteer roles with many other organizations over the years.
In October, Mugge was selected as the recepient of the Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture’s 2019 Spencer Award, which recognizes farmers, researchers, and teachers who have contributed significantly to the environmental and economic stability of the Iowa farming community.
With all his work and experience with Practical Farmers, we asked him what his proudest achievement was while working with Practical Farmers so far. “For my own benefit, I’d say that the relations and social interactions with others on farm research was beneficial. It’s hard to say, but I think that the prairie strips seemed to appeal to a lot of organic farmers.”