Smack in the middle of a state that makes the most of its agricultural diversity, Midland County’s Sarah Zastrow brings to Farm Bureau a similarly diverse skill set. Beyond raising row crops alongside multiple family generations, Zastrow is an accomplished mental health advocate, helping lead efforts to balance psychological wellness with the demands of a hard-working farm community.
Now her resume also includes service on the Michigan Farm Bureau Board of Directors, as the new representative of the Young Farmer program, succeeding St. Joseph County’s Riley Brazo.
A relative newcomer to the organization, Zastrow’s Farm Bureau involvement began in 2018, originally to seek practical guidance beyond what family brought to the table. What she found was a supportive community with more to offer than mere advice.
She quickly found herself on the Midland’s board of directors, then Young Farmer chair, then county president. In 2021 she won the state-level Young Farmer Discussion Meet and the next year took home MFB’s Young Farmer Leader Award. Soon she was representing District 8 on the state Young Farmer committee, which she now chairs.
Zastrow’s involvement also includes ProFILE; candidate evaluation, Promotion & Education and rural-urban activities; State Annual Meeting delegate; and a stint as Midland County Farm Bureau president.
Outside the organization her expertise as a farm-stress guru has evolved from passion to livelihood. Her Cultivate Balance business and Throwing Wrenches Mending Fences podcast both combat mental health challenges within the farm community.
At home, Zastrow is among four generations working 1,400 acres of corn and soybeans in both Midland and Saginaw counties. Her roles include business planning and decision-making, financials, inputs, purchasing, marketing and managing both risks and assets. Future plans include expanding acreage, earning MAEAP verification and diversifying commodities to include specialty crops and possibly aquaponics.
She and her husband Zack live near Merrill and to date have added two members to a fifth generation. Scout and Colton are still a little undersized for field work, but in time…