McCowan gets agrivision award

INDIANAPOLIS — Norm McCowan’s efforts in agriculture have earned him a state award.
McCowan, rural Portland, received the Indiana Agrivision Award on Wednesday from Lt. Gov. Sue Ellspermann at the Indiana State Fair. The honor goes to those who show demonstration, vision, innovation and leadership in their field in agriculture.
Among his many efforts in agriculture and conservation, McCowan is president of Bell Aquaculture, a fish farming operation that operates facilities in Redkey and Albany.
“It was an exciting time,” said McCowan, “and especially an exciting time for aquaculture as they see aquaculture as a part of agriculture. …
“We’re just trying to show everyone the technology is there, and Indiana is a great place to grow aquaculture.”
Bell is the largest Yellow Perch aquaculture facility in the United States. It has its fish farm in Albany on land that was originally farmed for dairy and grain, and a processing plant located on Ind. 67 about a half mile south of Redkey.
“It is my privilege to recognize Norman McCowan with this honor,” said Lt. Gov. Sue Ellspermann in a press release. “The vision, team-building and sense of service he has consistently shown is an asset to his business, his specific industry, the state and national agricultural sectors and his community. The efforts of citizens like Norman are what makes Hoosier agriculture such a great success story.”
Representatives from both the U.S. Department of Agriculture and Indiana Soybean Alliance nominated McCowan for the honor.
He and Bell have strong ties with soybean farmers because, McCowan said, a large amount of soybeans go into aquaculture feed.
“Norman McCowan has demonstrated vision in fish production, processing, research, economic development and the use of soybeans as a sustainable feed ingredient that is helping Indiana to be recognized domestically and internationally,” wrote Indiana Soybean Alliance Chief Executive Officer Jane Ade Stevens in her letter nominating McCowan.
In addition to his work with Bell, McCowan has been an advocate and activist for conservation in the area.
He is the president of Quail Forever, a group he helped form that focuses on preserving and creating a habitat for quail and other birds. He also serves on the boards of Friends of the Limberlost and Loblolly Swamp Remembered.
And he has turned his 30-acre property at 1497 W. 150 South into a wildlife sanctuary, which includes a three-acre pond with a variety of fish that attract birds such as osprey, green heron, blue heron and kingfisher. He also has a 10-acre field planted in Sorghum, a grain that is a good food source for birds.
“I believe it should be important to all of us to think about how we can sustainably raise … produce or protein,” McCowan said. “We’ve got to be good environmental stewards. We’ve got to leave things better than we found them.”[[In-content Ad]]