A new soy-checkoff-funded study has found that animal agriculture plays a signifiant role in the support of the nation’s economy. The analysis shows animal ag, U.S. soy’s top end user, increased gross national product by $123 billion in economic output, improved household earnings by over $21 billion and added 645,629 jobs from 2004-2014. According to the Economic Analysis of Animal … Read More
DFA Honors Seven Members of Distinction
Each year, one member farm from each of the Dairy Farmers of America’s (DFA) seven regions is honored during the DFA Annual Banquet. The 2016 Members of Distinction are: The Central Region honors went to the Hanke family, Hanke Farms Inc, of Sheboygan Falls, Wisconsin. Though multiple disasters have struck the operation, including a massive silo collapse, personal tragedy, and … Read More
Last Call for Farm Mom of the Year Nominees
There is one week left to submit your favorite farm mom into Monsanto’s America’s Farmers Mom of the Year Contest. Submissions will be accepted through Tuesday, Mar. 29, and Monsanto encourages everyone to nominate moms who go above and beyond to care for and protect their farms, families, communities and the agriculture industry they love. “Our 2015 Southeast Region Farm … Read More
2015 America’s Pig Farmer of the Year Winner to Hold Call
The deadline to apply to be the next America’s Pig Farmer of the Year is March 13. The award recognizes a U.S. pork producer who demonstrates excellence in raising pigs using the We Care ethical principles and in sharing his or her story with the public. On March 7 at 6 p.m. CST, the 2015 America’s Pig Farmer of the … Read More
Two Missouri Counties Deemed Agri-Ready
Missouri Farmers Care recently announced that Audrain and Carroll have become the first counties in Missouri to receive the program’s new “Agri-Ready” designation. The announcement, made earlier this month at the Audrain Agribusiness luncheon in Mexico, Missouri, included Agri-Ready’s hope that the designations will encourage growth and development of local agricultural enterprises. The Agri-Ready program, established in 2015, was developed … Read More
Ag Jobs for Military Veterans
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation have joined forces to increase employment opportunities in the agricultural sector for military veterans and their spouses. “Today’s agreement opens the door for thousands of service members who participate in Hiring Our Heroes events around the world to benefit from USDA’s vast array of tools and resources,” … Read More
Smashing Stereotypes About Women In Farming
While an abundance of stereotypes have painted agriculture as a male-dominated industry in the public’s eye, livestock producers know that on a farm, it is your work ethic, not your gender, that makes you a valuable farmer, and four female pig farmers have stood up the smash the “boys game” stereotypes in a new video circulating the internet. The video, … Read More
New Resources for Beginning & New Farmers
According to research from American Farmland Trust (AFT), many beginning farmers and ranchers find identifying the right land to purchase or lease—at an affordable price—to be one of their most significant challenges. Accessing the capital needed to start or expand a farm business is also hard. AFT’s Farmland Information Center (FIC) along with Farm Credit is offering free new online … Read More
Learn How to Keep the Farm in the Family
We are seeing fewer and fewer young people returning the their family operations and just because you are blood doesn’t mean you have a right to the farm. Succession planning is one step many families forget about when it comes to the future. AgriLegacy is a growing Midwest company whose main focus is helping farm families keep the farms in … Read More
Marketing to Producers in the Techie Age
Jared Spader has a strong and diverse background in agriculture. Currently, he is the US operations lead for AgCall, which serves as a human resources, project management and consulting firm for the ag community. Jared’s experience as a producer and marketer led him to moderate the producer panel at the recent NAMA Bootcamp. The panel is always a highlight for … Read More