The U.S. Army pointed me to this great story about our soldiers in Afghanistan doing agribusiness duty. The photo comes from Staff Sgt. James McDonnough. In it Sgt. 1st Class Randy Wright, a pest management specialist with the Illinois Army National Guard’s 1-14th Agribusiness Development Team, takes the reigns on a team of draft horses during a visit to an Amish farm Sept. 13, 2011. The 1-14th ADT visited multiple farms in the Amish community to assess agricultural practices and technologies, which could be implemented during their upcoming deployment to Kunar Province, Afghanistan.
Approximately 60 Soldiers from across Illinois, as well as two Soldiers from Michigan and South Dakota respectivley, have been deployed to Kunar province since June with the Illinois Army National Guard’s 1-14th Agribusiness Development Team.
The 1-14th Agribusiness Development Team, or ADT, which consists of a headquarters element, a security force platoon and a platoon of 12 agriculture experts, have been assisting the Government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, or GIRoA, in revitalizing and establishing a strong, growing and sustainable agriculture industry.
The Illinois team’s mission is part of a broad effort that involves multiple National Guard ADTs from several states, each operating within its own province. The teams typically come from mid-western states, such as Missouri, Nebraska, Indiana and Iowa, which are known for agriculture production.
Col. Fred Allen, commander of the 1-14th ADT, said it makes sense for Illinois to field such a specialized team.
“Illinois was a great choice for a few reasons,” said Allen. “We are one of the largest agriculture states in the U.S., both by population and production. This is also represented within our National Guard formations and the many citizen Soldiers who work full time in the agriculture industry. Illinois also has some of the top agriculture colleges in the nation, at both community college and university levels. It was amazing how many Soldiers we found in our ranks that had, or were working toward, agriculture degrees.”
The Illinois Soldiers have educations and backgrounds in agronomy, plant and soil science, forestry, engineering, pest management, zoology and hydrology.