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Diverse Corn Belt Movie: Film on Crop Diversity Has Regional Flavor
Regenerative Farmer Will Glazik is Featured in New Documentary
Local Food Forum shares information about new films that focused on better-for- people-and-the-planet farming. We recently helped promote the Chicago premier of World Without Cows — a film that comes down on the benefit side of the cattle-raising cost-benefit ratio — and will have a deeper analysis of the film soon.
That said, it is especially rewarding to promote films that highlight the work of people I've come to know. And that happens to be the case with The Diverse Corn Belt: Growing a Resilient Future.
The documentary — based on the work of the Diverse Corn Belt Project — focuses on three farmers whose growing practices are aimed at advancing crop diversity to improve soil health and address the dominance of conventionally produced corn and soybeans on our valuable farmland.
Will Glazik of Paxton, Illinois is one of the featured farmers. Will and his brother Dallas Glazik are the fifth generation of his family's farmers in the east-central Illinois community, located near Champaign. They grow organically, following after their parents, who transitioned to organic 20 years ago at a time when the momentum was behind conventional agriculture.
Their Cow Creek Farm also is among a small number of farms across the nation that have created their own distilleries to convert the grain they grow into spirits. And their Silver Tree Spirits in the small city of Paxton is hosting The Diverse Corn Belt movie's Illinois premiere on the evening of Thursday, November 12.
I have had the pleasure of joining in group tours of the farms and distillery the past two summers. I am a big admirer of the work being done by the Glazik family, and I was pleased to learn about that the documentary is featuring their work.
And Will Glazik is not the only Chicago region better-food advocate involved in the production: cinematographer Matt Weschler has deep experience in the subject. Matt's 2016 documentary Sustainable — in which legendary Illinois farmer-advocate Marty Travis is the central figure — is one of the best movies in this genre.
A trip to Paxton on November 12 is highly recommended if you can make it. If you are unable to be there, the film will be available to watch online for the full month of November.
Here is some more info from the Diverse Corn Belt Project.
For more than a century, the Midwestern U.S.A. has been known as the Corn Belt. Over the last 60 years, farmers have increasingly focused on just two crops: corn and soybeans. But today, across the region, farmers, entrepreneurs, and community leaders are driving a renaissance in locally grown food.
The Diverse Corn Belt follows three innovators who are reimagining family farms, building new markets, and creating value-added businesses. Together, they demonstrate how greater agricultural diversity can improve soil health, strengthen resilience to economic and environmental challenges, and create new opportunities for farmers and rural communities.
More than a farming documentary, The Diverse Corn Belt shares the stories of the people working to grow a resilient future — one rooted in healthier land, stronger local economies, and a broader vision for the future of the Corn Belt.
The Farmers
Will Glazik
Will Glazik is a fifth-generation organic farmer and co-owner of Silver Tree Beer & Spirits in Paxton, Illinois, where he and his siblings make sustainable, grain-to-bottle whiskey and vodka using crops grown on their family farm. They also grow food-grade corn which makes its way into tortilla and baking markets.
Wendy Johnson
Wendy Johnson and her husband Johnny run Jóia Food Farm, a diverse perennial based livestock and organic grain farm located near Charles City in Northeast Iowa. Wendy and her father co-manage Center View Farms which grows corn, soy, oats, rye and hay. They are currently working to integrate livestock into their row crop operation.
Landon Plagge
Landon and Anne Plagge grow a rotation of corn, soybeans, and food-grade oats on 4,000 acres [in Latimer, Iowa]. For over a decade they have utilized no-till practices while growing a diverse crop rotation, and a mix of cover crops – focused on economically and environmentally sustainable agriculture across the supply chain.
Filmmakers
Wil Crombie
Wil Crombie is a Minnesota-based farmer, filmmaker, digital marketer and entrepreneur whose work bridges regenerative agriculture and digital storytelling. Wil’s work on his family farm, Organic Compound, informs his creative projects, and his films at Man Alone Media shape how he farms — a symbiotic relationship that drives his storytelling.
Anders Gurda
Anders Gurda is a filmmaker and storyteller with deep roots in agriculture. Through Freestone Media, he creates authentic films that connect people to the land, the farmers who steward it, and the stories that inspire stronger communities and lasting change. [Editor's note: Anders Gurda in 2015 co-founded OGRAIN (Organic Grain Resources and Information Network at University of Wisconsin-Madison).]
Matt Wechsler
Matt is an award-winning filmmaker from Chicago and the founder of Hourglass Films. He is a self-taught filmmaker who grew up in a family video production business. After servicing 500+ clients over 12 years, Matt decided to hang up his work-for-hire hat to pursue his dream of documentary filmmaking. He has since been nominated for two local Emmy awards and has won several film festival awards. Matt’s passion to solve complex issues continues to drive his desire to make films.
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