Wisconsin Ag Connection - Holte Honored as UW-RF's 2015 Distinguished Agriculturalist

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Holte Honored as UW-RF's 2015 Distinguished Agriculturalist
Wisconsin Ag Connection - 05/01/2015

The leader of Wisconsin's largest farm organization has been honored by his alma mater with its Distinguished Agriculturalist Award. Wisconsin Farm Bureau President Jim Holte was recognized with the distinction by the University of Wisconsin-River Falls' College of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences at its annual banquet last week. Holte is serving his third term as president of the WFBF and was recently elected to the American Farm Bureau's board of directors. He is a 1975 graduate of UW-RF.

"Jim's background and experience in agriculture, combined with his service to others in the industry as well as his local community and beyond, make him an outstanding recipient for this award," said CAFES Dean Dale Gallenberg.

Holte's involvement with the Farm Bureau began when he was part of the group's Young Farmer program, where he eventually became a county board president before his election to the full organization board in 1995. He is a former chairman of the Wisconsin Livestock Siting Review Board, and served on the boards for GROWMARK, Inc. and Leadership Wisconsin. Jim also sat on the state's agriculture board and is past president of the Wisconsin Beef Council.

Owners of Riv-r-vale Farms in Elk Mound, Jim and his wife Gayle raise 350 head of beef cattle and grow corn, soybeans and alfalfa on 460 acres.

The Wisconsin Distinguished Agriculturalist Award was established in 1970 to recognize individuals who have provided leadership, service and other contributions to the broader agricultural community.

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