Oct 9
A view from the frontlines: Fighting the tyranny of corporate agriculture in rural America, with Sonja Trom Eayrs '81
Carl Talks
A view from the frontlines:
Fighting the tyranny of corporate agriculture in rural America
with Sonja Trom Eayrs '81
Thursday, October 9, 2025
10 a.m. Central Time
via Zoom
For years, Sonja Trom Eayrs '81 and her family witnessed the now widely known devastation wrought by industrial hog operations—inhumane treatment of animals and people, pollution, the threat of cancer clusters, and more. They’d had enough. In 2014 Sonja's parents filed the first of three lawsuits against Dodge County officials and their neighbors, one of the few avenues available to them to challenge the installation of a corporate factory farm near their intergenerational family farm in Dodge County, Minnesota. They also deeply understood an effect of Big Ag rarely discussed in mainstream media: the hollowing out of their lifelong farming community and economy in service of the corporate bottom line.
Join Sonja as she discusses her recently published book, Dodge County, Incorporated, and shares the story of one family’s efforts to stand against corporate takeover.
Sonja Trom Eayrs is a farmer’s daughter, rural advocate, and attorney. She is involved in several rural advocacy organizations, including the Socially Responsible Agriculture Project, Farm Action, Land Stewardship Project, and Dodge County Concerned Citizens. Trom Eayrs also serves as the business manager for the Trom family farm in Dodge County, Minnesota. For more information about the author, visit sonjatromeayrs.com.
Cost: None.
Unable to join our live event? No problem — we will post a recording of the event on our Alumni Events Recordings page.
Questions? Contact Alumni Relations via email or 800-729-2586.