Trenton Jones is a 2022 National Proficiency Winner in the category of Diversified Horticulture.  He is also a former chapter, regional and state officer in Missouri.  Trenton is currently in his junior year of college at Northwest Missouri State University where he is majoring in Agricultural Media, and he says that he finds himself leaning towards broadcast media at the moment.

Trenton's supervised agricultural experience and business began when he and a friend decided they would raise some plants and sell to friends and family.  Eventually, they went down divergent paths.  Trenton decided that he wanted to grow the business and get more serious about it, and the friend kind of faded out of it.  This led to Trenton taking a job in the industry so he could learn more about the business.  This eventually led to business opportunities for Trenton, filling opportunities that the business he was working for did not fill.  This led to Trenton's business, "Trent's Tropicals", which he closed down last January because of how busy he had become as a state officer.  However, Trenton says that "Trent's Tropicals" might make a comeback.  He is finishing college for now, but that idea is still within the realm of possibilities.  

Tip Of The Week

Brand your cattle, especially if they aren’t close to home

Rural Crime In The U.S.

https://www.drovers.com/news/industry/top-10-scandals-seen-cattle-industry-2022

https://www.thefencepost.com/news/cattle-missing-from-baca-county-colo/

Across The Pond, Down Under And Up Above

https://globalnews.ca/news/9385037/rural-robbery-redwater-new-years-day/

https://www.rsnonline.org.uk/countryside-riders-targeted-by-bike-thieves-amid-record-lows-in-police-detection-rates

https://www.southernstar.ie/news/pedigree-angus-bull-and-four-in-calf-cows-stolen-4254875

Africa

https://www.chronicle.co.zw/five-men-nabbed-for-stealing-35-cattle/

https://www.mmegi.bw/news/jwaneng-police-concerned-by-rising-stock-theft-cases/news

https://www.the-star.co.ke/counties/rift-valley/2023-01-02-two-sisters-killed-by-bandits-amid-prayers-for-peace/

Chalk One Up For The Good Guys

https://www.thegeorgiavirtue.com/georgia-crime/owner-of-farm-labor-company-sentenced-to-prison-for-leading-multi-state-conspiracy-involving-forced-labor-of-farm-workers/

https://www.kwch.com/2022/12/08/kansas-cowboys-help-recover-cattle-after-semi-overturns-highway-50/

More Places You Can Listen to Off-Farm Income And Matt Brechwald:

Farm Link is a program in Nebraska that strives to match up retiring farmers and ranchers with new and beginning farmers and ranchers that are looking for an operation to take over.  The obstacles of entry into farming and ranching are very high, making it difficult for a newcomer to get started.  At the same time there are retiring farmers and ranchers that want to see their land support another family the way that it did theirs, and they are willing to work with a young person to make this happen.  

Allan Vyhnalek is an extension educator for the University Of Nebraska at Lincoln, and he started the Nebraska Farm Link Program in January of 2021.  In today's episode we will discuss how it works, options for transition plans and some of the things he sees that are holding new and beginning farmers back from taking full advantage of this resource.  

More Places You Can Listen to Off-Farm Income And Matt Brechwald:

On tomorrow's ag business episode we are looking at the concept of farm transition again.  It has been several years since I have done this, but it is a topic that we should keep front of mind because it is a valid way to begin farming or ranching.  Back in 2017 I interviewed a young man who was a National Proficiency Finalist and a sophomore in college.  He was raising his own cattle and working for a neighbor on his ranch, and that neighbor was ready to retire.  The neighbor did not have a family member who wanted to farm the ground, and he was transitioning the operation to my guest, Stetson Dittmar.  On today's show we will revisit that conversation.  

Jay McClure is a 2022 National Proficiency Winner in the category of Forage Production.  This is the result of Jay's efforts on his families farm taking over responsibility for hay production under several center pivots.  Jay is now a full-time farmer and has chosen this path as his career for the rest of his life.  

Jay is faced with a unique problem.  The family farm has been in the family for over 100 years, and during that time it has grown more and more reliant on irrigation.  Jay and his family pump water from the Ogallala Aquifer, which is running out of water.  Jay believes that the farm will not run out of water before his father retires, however he does believe that the aquifer will be exhausted before he is ready to retire.  So, in addition to the everyday challenges of production agriculture, Jay is faced with what to do when the time comes and how to continue an over 100 year tradition in face of losing a precious resource.  

On today's farm update show, let's talk about my goals for 2023, including:

• Be better at gopher control
• More frequent pasture rotations
• Sell sweet corn in a road side stand
• Start a working dog
• Become more of a vagabond on Idaho’s back roads
• Graze goats on our canal more
• Start a couple of pack goats

More Places You Can Listen to Off-Farm Income And Matt Brechwald:

Will Sherman is a 2022 National Proficiency Finalist in the category of Ag Processing.  He has been cutting meat at Mound City Butcher Block in LaCygne, Kansas since he was 14 years of age.  At age 18, just months after graduating high school he is already managing the shop.  Will takes a lot of satisfaction from cutting meat.  He sees it as a way to serve his community by preparing their meat for them, whether it be livestock or wild game.  

Will is still deciding whether or not college serves his purposes, but he is sure that butchering is part of his future.  He wants to eventually own his own shop, whether that means purchasing Mound City Butcher Block or starting from scratch.  If he does attend college, his education will be geared towards making him a better business manager and butcher in his chosen profession.  

Hattie Brechwald is a chapter sentinel at Kuna High School, has just started her own herd of goats, is a district winner in two welding methods and is my daughter.  Traditionally, Autumm, Hattie and I record a year end episode for New Years.  However, this year Autumm is sick and is in no shape to be a guest on the show, so it is just Hattie and I.  I have been waiting for Hattie to get far enough along in her FFA journey to be a guest on the show, so I can profile her FFA accomplishments for all of you.  About three months ago I realized that she had reached that point.  Since then, I have been looking for the right time.

Well, it turns out that this year's New Years Episode is exactly the right time.  I completely caught Hattie off guard with this.  She was working this afternoon and then went to visit her grandparents.  When she walked in the door, I told her that tonight was the night.  So, her interview is totally extemporaneous.  We literally recorded it about five minutes after she found that we would be featuring her.  I think she knocked it out of the park, and I am proud she did so well with no time to prepare and no advantages just because her dad is the host!

Jana Earp is the Advertising and Partnership Manager at Texas & Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association in Fort Worth, Texas.  The TSCRA began as a conglomerate of ranchers in Texas that banded together to stop cattle rustling in 1880.  Since the this group has evolved, officially becoming the TSCRA in 1921.  It's mission also evolved and turned from being focused on catching cattle rustlers to helping people succeed not just in raising cattle but in all aspects of agriculture.  

This episode was originally going to be aired as a rural crime episode.  However, it also evolved.  The TSCRA does so much to help people from anywhere in the country to succeed in agriculture that this interview felt more like an ag business episode.  So today, Jana will introduce the TSCRA to all of you and let you know exactly how this organization can help you succeed in agriculture.  

Because of the holidays and the way they fell this year, I am not producing a rural crime episode this week.  However, on tomorrow's ag business episode I am doing a show all about the Texas And Southwestern Rural Cattle Association, which I was introduced to through hosting this rural crime episode.  So, for today's re-cap episode I thought it made sense to go back and revisit a rural crime interview that I had been able to do.  This interview with Debi Metcalf of Net Posse made a lot of sense as there is significant overlap between what her organization does and what the TSCRA does.  So, I'm bringing it back for you today.