For Information Like Degrees Offered, Annual Costs, Etc., Please Click The Banner Below:

The Agricultural College Episode is designed to profile agricultural trade schools, junior colleges, colleges and universities around the U.S.  This episode is an effort to replicate the conversation that prospective students, parents and ag teachers might have with agricultural schools at trade show like the National FFA Convention.

Abilene Christian University is in Abilene, Texas, and in my opinion it is in the perfect location for Texas adventure and Texas agriculture.  I have been on campus myself and like the area very much.  ACU has had an agriculture program for some time, but with fluctuations in faculty go fluctuations in programs.  So, today they are highly specialized in animal science but have no agronomy.  ACU is a private, Christ based university, and on today's show Dr. Jim Carpenter joins me to talk all about it.  

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Tip Of The Week

When is being neighborly not enough?

Rural Crime In The U.S.

https://www.click2houston.com/news/local/2023/06/04/thieves-steal-dump-calf-from-brookshires-dewberry-farm/

https://www.natureworldnews.com/articles/56800/20230605/103-cattle-one-dog-dead-oklahoma-property-woman-arrested-surviving.htm

Across The Pond, Down Under And Up Above

https://randfonteinherald.co.za/421458/mapogo-recover-sheep-stolen-in-dennydale-or-at-least-two-arrests-in-stock-theft-incident-in-dennydale/

https://www.southwalesguardian.co.uk/news/23568394.police-warning-powys-dog-owners-sheep-suffer-bites/

Africa

https://www.news24.com/news24/southafrica/news/eastern-cape-prison-officer-and-companion-killed-over-alleged-stock-theft-state-bakkie-torched-20230605

https://ke.opera.news/ke/en/society/789529e825b9be331ad9326e0195a4be

Chalk One Up For The Good Guys

https://holtvilletribune.com/2023/06/04/sheriffs-deputies-arrest-alleged-thief-recover-stolen-tractor/

https://krocnews.com/two-men-charged-in-20k-rochester-area-storage-burglary/

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Natalie McFarland is a lifelong agriculturist turned agriculture entrepreneur.  Officially launching McFarland Productions in 2014, she began telling the story of agricultural companies to help them serve others.  Working primarily with business to business customers but frequently with business to consumer customers Natalie has grown her list of services from photography only all the way to being the marketing department for several of her clients.

Natalie and her team a great knack for capturing agriculture and the Western Lifestyle, and every single team member has an agricultural background.  On today's episode with Natalie I really tried to focus on what the keys to marketing to agricultural customers.  If/when you start your small, agricultural business you will be getting involved in marketing, like it or not.  What are some of the ways you can stand out to the customers that you want to serve?  Today, Natalie and I try to answer that question.

On tomorrow's ag business episode I am speaking with a woman who discovered her niche in marketing to a specific agricultural audience.  She and her husband, like so many of us, are trying to carve out their spot in the world of agriculture and are facing the pressures of high land prices and encroaching urban areas.

I talk about this concept a lot on the show, and one of the premier themes I have dealt with over time has been that of existing in agriculture on the rural/urban interface.  I thought this was a great tie in with our guest tomorrow, and wanted to bring back a solo episode that I made about this phenomenon today.

The Vega FFA Chapter has amassed over $1.1 million in scholarships and prizes through Ag Mechanics competitions in the State of Texas over the past 20 years.  Jay Newton is the FFA Advisor and Emily Carlson is the Chapter President of the Vega FFA Chapter, and they join me on today's episode to discuss this incredible accomplishment and journey.

Starting in 2001, Jay Newton began to look at the FFA Experience a different way.  Clearly, livestock projects dominated what students did for SAE projects, but he saw holes in those projects and opportunities for skill development that were being missed.  So, he got the idea to try something radical.  So, the next time he took his chapter to Houston, after the livestock shows were over they stayed an extra day and watched the Ag Mechanics competitions.  Then, on the way back to Vega they discussed putting the chapter's efforts towards ag mechanics rather than livestock.

The students were on board, so Jay took the idea to the school board.  This was the tough sell, but he was ready with a partnership that he had formed that would allow any FFA student to have a livestock project if that was what they wanted to do.  Permission was granted, and the journey began.  20 years later, the small Vega FFA Chapter, has a story to tell and an example to share of achieving great success through Ag Mechanics.

Obviously we've had some unexpected setbacks on our farm recently.  In today's episode I want to address those a bit more, how we handled the emotion of it and why a transition is being made.  Also, I'll give you my review of the Hells Canyon Days Festival in Cambridge, Idaho: Hint - It was awesome...

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Sydni Wilson has just finished her junior year of high school and has already become a freelance, agricultural writer.  She has a house full of house plants, and she raises meat chickens and does all the of butchering herself, with the help of her father.  Talking with Sydni in today's interview there was a recurring theme - when she finds and interest, she goes "all in".

A fascinating part of this interview with Sydni was her love of writing.  She has started many fiction, writing projects and written the first chapter of a novel.  Then she puts it away and revisits it weeks to months later.  In most of the cases she realizes that, that initial idea was not the one that is going to drive her to write a whole novel.  It is a process, and it is an interesting way to determine which idea will give you enough motivation to carry it all the way through to a completed book.

Sydni's hobby of writing led her to an opportunity to become a freelance writer for an agricultural newspaper, while still in high school.  Today she is using those writing skills to deliver agricultural information to people who need it.  Sydni is very happy with the discovery of a practical application for her love of writing.  She has done the same with plants, and says that her love of plants and horticulture may have actually eclipsed her love of writing!

For Information Like Degrees Offered, Annual Costs, Etc., Please Click The Banner Below:

[caption id="attachment_386296" align="alignright" width="106"] Hannah-Rose Foote: Student Ambassador and 2022 National FFA Officer Candidate[/caption]

The Agricultural College Episode is designed to profile agricultural trade schools, junior colleges, colleges and universities around the U.S.  This episode is an effort to replicate the conversation that prospective students, parents and ag teachers might have with agricultural schools at trade show like the National FFA Convention.

The State University Of New York at Cobleskill offers as wide of a variety of options for learning in agriculture as I have run across, particularly in animal agriculture.  In today's episode we will be profiling degrees from Animal Science to Dog Training and from Dairy Science to Fermentation.  It is fascinating all the different directions you can go at this "magical" agricultural university in Upstate New York.  

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Tip Of The Week

Do you insure your hay and other feed?

Rural Crime In The U.S.

https://www.texarkanagazette.com/news/2023/may/30/deputies-arrest-man-in-horse-pasture-after/

https://www.fox19.com/2023/05/31/stolen-cincinnati-school-bus-chased-into-indiana-cornfield-suspect-custody/

https://www.nwahomepage.com/news/cobblestone-farms-dealing-with-string-of-thefts/

Across The Pond, Down Under And Up Above

https://www.edp24.co.uk/news/23547232.animal-activists-hand-sandringham-theft/

https://www.wisbechstandard.co.uk/news/23555533.huntingdonshire-four-agricultural-gps-system-thefts-month-may/

https://nation.cymru/news/rural-communities-in-wales-targeted-by-cross-border-criminals/

Africa

https://www.iol.co.za/sport/rugby/fight-back-and-well-kill-your-children-former-springbok-hooker-lukas-van-biljon-stabbed-in-farm-robbery-2a42e37c-b5f6-455f-aad1-726fad841494

http://www.times.co.sz/news/140379-mum-son-shot-dead-at-lundzi.html

Chalk One Up For The Good Guys

https://www.ketk.com/news/crime-public-safety/32k-worth-of-stolen-hay-livestock-feed-recovered-in-east-texas/

https://www.altoonamirror.com/news/local-news/2023/05/martinsburg-cattle-theft-resolved-with-guilty-plea/

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Sheldon McKinney is the Executive Director of the Kentucky FFA Foundation.  She is also the president of a group of foundation directors who have come together to collaborate on how to best support the FFA in their individual states.

On today's episode Sheldon is joining us to discuss how fundraising works, where the money goes and what it means to be a 501(c)3 organization and why that is necessary.  The business of fundraising at the national, state or local level is a big business.  As Sheldon says, money should never be an obstacle that stops an FFA student from taking advantage of the myriad opportunities available to them through the organization.  State FFA Foundations exist to connect chapters and students to donors who want to support youth, agriculture and agricultural education.

On tomorrow's Ag Business Episode I am speaking with the executive director of the Kentucky FFA Foundation.  We are going to be speaking about supporting state FFA Foundations as well as a new group of FFA Foundation Directors that has been formed called LEADS.

Anytime I think of Kentucky FFA, I think of this interview with Kaitlyn Elliot.  I was so impressed by the old school manner in which she and her grandfather were growing, harvesting and processing sorghum.  And, she sent me some delicious syrup which we thoroughly enjoyed.  So, in honor of our Kentucky guest tomorrow, I am bringing this interview with Kaitlyn back.

Mylie Rexing is a district and chapter FFA officer and soon to be agriculture student at Purdue University.  She has been working her father's butcher shop for several years, throughout high school.  During that time an idea occurred to her to make ready to cook meals for people to purchase from the shop that would simplify meal prep for them at home.  Mylie's Meals To Go was born.

Mylie has come up with a number of iterations of ready to go meals during this time, and that took her all the way to being an Indiana State Finalist in Ag Sales.  During that time Mylie wanted to give back to her community, and she came up with a program of donating milk to families who needed with every sale of a ready to prepare meal.  Mylie stated that her family has always been one that gives back, and she had watched that example while growing up.  So, it felt like a natural fit for her to incorporate giving into her own business as well.

I hope you all had a great holiday weekend and took some time to remember those who have made the ultimately sacrifice so we could do exactly that.  I have a couple of thoughts that I have been wanting to share with you, and today I will finally get to do it:

• Hard Work As a value - teaching non-traditional ag students about the world of work they are entering
• Having a job or business that is not automatable and cannot be replaced by AI

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Olivia Black is a senior in high school, a second year FFA student and the Michigan Star Award Winner in Agribusiness.  In Olivia's school district the FFA Chapter is run by the Ionia County Career Center, and high school students are only eligible to attend there starting in the 11th Grade.  Olivia has grown up showing cattle and pigs and with a significant family history in the Dairy Industry, so she knew that she wanted to be in the FFA.  When she started her junior year, she enrolled in an agricultural course at the career center, making her eligible for the FFA, and she joined.

Two years prior to this is when Olivia's journey as an entrepreneur began however.  Olivia has a rare gift that only a small percentage of entrepreneurs have.  She was dissatisfied with a product that she was using on her show pigs, and rather than keep looking for something that worked better or settling for what she had, she decided to make her own.  Absolute Products was born at that moment, and she has been developing this business ever since then.

Now, at age 17, Olivia has stood out among all the other FFA students in Michigan, even though she has less than two years of records.  She is selling her product all over the Upper Midwest, and she plans on expanding even further.  In addition, she is finding that while her product was developed for use on pigs, it works well on both dairy and beef cattle.

Olivia loves the livestock exhibition world, but she realized that in the not too distant future she was going to age out eligibility to show livestock.  So, she has created a business that will keep her connected to this world and will help exhibitors everywhere solve some of their most frustrating issues.  Olivia is off to college soon to get a degree in Ag Business, and it is all directed at growing this business.

For Information Like Degrees Offered, Annual Costs, Etc., Please Click The Banner Below:

The Agricultural College Episode is designed to profile agricultural trade schools, junior colleges, colleges and universities around the U.S.  This episode is an effort to replicate the conversation that prospective students, parents and ag teachers might have with agricultural schools at trade show like the National FFA Convention.

Angelo State University is located in San Angelo, Texas and sits in the number one goat marketing spot in the number one goat producing state in the entire nation.  Corey Owens, our interview guest today, grew up on a ranch 70 miles west of San Angelo where they raised 1,100 meat goats.  As a goat raiser myself, I could barely get off the topic of Angelo State University being the perfect place for a student who wants to specialize in goat production.  Of course, on Angelo State's 6,000 acre research ranch there is much more to study than just goats.  In today's interview we will learn all about it.  

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Tip Of The Week

Are your local legislators addressing the rising issue of livestock theft by activists?

Rural Crime In The U.S.

https://www.fox61.com/article/news/crime/wallingford-farm-life-size-mm-stolen-display/520-b63b9869-2f4c-4b54-aa82-dc623daa9b45

https://www.globalvillagespace.com/GVS-US/report-60k-tons-of-ammonium-nitrate-lost-in-shipping-as-explosive-chemical/

https://www.fbi.gov/contact-us/field-offices/cleveland/news/fbi-cleveland-seeking-public-information-surrounding-mink-farm-crimes

Across The Pond, Down Under And Up Above

https://www.farminguk.com/news/nine-people-charged-after-spate-of-burglaries-from-north-wales-farms_62638.html

https://www.fwi.co.uk/news/crime/video-thieves-caught-on-cctv-stealing-gps-kit

https://www.offalyexpress.ie/news/home/1175072/gardai-investigating-after-tractor-stolen-and-driven-around-before-being-abandoned-in-tullamore.html

Africa

https://ntvkenya.co.ke/news/cattle-raids-resurface-along-the-kenya-uganda-border-threatening-a-15-year-old-peace-accord/

https://www.pd.co.ke/news/pokot-tugen-communities-bury-the-hatchet-vow-to-end-livestock-theft-181565/

Chalk One Up For The Good Guys

https://www.bigcountrynewsconnection.com/idaho/woman-arrested-after-allegedly-stealing-horse-and-then-car-in-asotin-county/article_17dbbee4-f674-11ed-977a-b38b6916bbb3.html

https://www.kentucky.com/news/local/crime/article275579721.html

https://www.thedailynewsonline.com/top_story/ortt-proposes-livestock-theft-law/article_3de7a0a9-d0bf-59d8-bee0-204210a522cc.html

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Colleen Cummings is the owner of 2 Farm Boys Soap, a goat farmer and a mother who was looking for a way to engage her two sons in agriculture on her small farm in Heber City, Utah.  There is a lot of family history on that small farm.  Colleen's husband's family started farming that ground in the early 1900's.  Since then, the land has been split up, and today they raise goats and grow hay on 15 acres of what was once a much larger, family farm.

Like so many people with goats, one thing led to another, and Colleen and her family ended up raising goats on their small acreage.  However, her husband had been raised on a farm, so keeping and feeding livestock just for fun was not an option.  The goats had to have a purpose.  Ultimately, with this in mind, Colleen was exposed to the idea of making goat milk soap and tried it out.  It took a bit to get the recipe correct, but once she figured it out product ideas and designs started coming out.

Today Colleen has a nice system in place.  She only milks goats part of the year, but is able to freeze enough milk to keep her making soap all year round.  Also, she sells at one farmers market only, every other week, for part of the year.  And, the big event is the National Finals Rodeo.  Colleen and the family have haded to Las Vegas two years in a row now, selling soap at one of the largest venues in Las Vegas - Country Christmas - which is held at the Rio.

On tomorrow's Ag Business Episode I am interviewing an entrepreneur with a goat milk soap business.  As you know, the goat milk soap business is one of my favorites to profile.  Well, tomorrow's guest discloses that her family got goats first, and then her pragmatic husband said that these goats need to pull their own weight if they are going to stay.  And that is what led to their goat milk soap business.

This reminded me of the interview I did with Sydney Gordon way back in 2016.  She loved goats and talked her father into getting some for their farm.  However, he said the same thing - "these goats need to pay for themselves".  And that is what led her goat milk soap business.  I thought this tied in perfectly with tomorrow's show, and I am happy to bring it back for you today.

On today's episode I get to do something that I love, and something new that is a lot of fun.  I will be profiling a great, Idaho FFA Student named Zane Nichols, and I will be promoting a summer kickoff festival in Cambridge, Idaho called Hells Canyon Days.  So, this episode will be a bit different than normal.

In the first half of the episode I am speaking with Zane, who will be working in the concession booth on behalf of the Cambridge FFA on Friday night of the festival at an event called "Bulls & Broncs".  I will also be speaking with the president of the Cambridge Commercial Club, Blake Loveland, and we will be talking all about the festival.

After I finish that part of the episode it is back to Zane to talk about beef cattle and working on a grain and hay operation as well as which sport he hopes to play at the next level.  Enjoy the episode!

Our woes on the farm this year continue.  I've known this was coming, but I confirmed it Friday at our veterinarian's office.  All of my cows are open.  We will be having no calves this year as our bull quit producing viable sperm sometime over a year ago, and I did not catch it because I did not have him semen tested, and I did not have our cows preg tested.

This is a hard lesson for me, and it is embarrassing....and I am telling all of you all about it on this episode.

Dori Stuever is a driven FFA student, a regional officer, a business owner and the feature of a newspaper article about her maple syrup business, County Line Kinds Pure Maple Syrup.  Concentrating on marketing through social media, Dori is selling maple syrup throughout the United States, and she is the 6th generation in her family to be in this business.

Dori is also partnered with two neighbors, either tapping their trees or using their sugar shack for refining her maple sap into maple syrup.  Being from the wide open, treeless spaces of Southwest Idaho, it is difficult for me to imagine, but Dori spends a lot of time in the woods of Michigan.  She is either locating trees to tap, tending to her current taps or make sure that her prospective trees are healthy.

Dori is primarily home schooled, but she signed up for agriculture classes when she was in the 7th grade so that she would be able to be a part of the FFA.  The FFA is another family tradition for her, going back to the days when her female relatives were not allowed to participate.  When Dori is not at Capac High School for her agriculture classes, she is at home tending to her taps and frequently doing school work out in the woods because that is where she spends her time.

For Information Like Degrees Offered, Annual Costs, Etc., Please Click The Banner Below:

The Agricultural College Episode is designed to profile agricultural trade schools, junior colleges, colleges and universities around the U.S.  This episode is an effort to replicate the conversation that prospective students, parents and ag teachers might have with agricultural schools at trade show like the National FFA Convention.

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

Tip Of The Week

Take the time to verify checks, request a cashier’s check or do the transaction at the bank

Rural Crime In The U.S.

https://www.unioncountydailydigital.com/articles/farm-watch-crime-prevention-program-comes-to-union-county/

https://www.wcjb.com/2023/05/13/lcso-deputies-are-searching-portable-sawmill-stolen-work-site/

http://www.columbiamagazine.com/index.php?sid=127344

Across The Pond, Down Under And Up Above

https://www.kent.police.uk/news/kent/latest/policing-news/stolen-items-recovered-in-rural-burglary-arrest-near-paddock-wood/

https://www.miragenews.com/agforce-urges-members-to-beef-up-farm-security-1006065/

https://www.shropshirestar.com/news/crime/2023/05/14/thieve-steal-community-fruit-trees-only-planted-in-telford-recently/

Africa

https://www.the-star.co.ke/news/2023-05-15-farm-manager-attacked-by-illegal-fishermen-in-crime-wave/

https://ng.opera.news/ng/en/society/f8ab91b7629623dbb48c149a0f86c876

Chalk One Up For The Good Guys

https://www.fox43.com/article/news/crime/organic-crops-fraud-scheme-minnesota-pennsylvania/521-63f1592c-d6d1-4257-b2f8-f3635b4ee5a1

https://www.magnoliastatelive.com/2023/05/14/cows-and-calves-stolen-from-mississippi-farmer-located-and-returned-suspect-identified/

https://www.agdaily.com/livestock/oklahoma-man-arrested-hot-checks-cattle/

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Tom Henson is the owner of T&T Services in Lapeer, Michigan along with his business partner and bowling partner, Tonya.  I found Tom and Tonya's ad on Craigslist and was immediately drawn to it because of the ad for wasp removal.  It was apparent that Tom was offering a suite of services that anyone in the world of farming would already have much of the equipment for, and I wanted to interview him to show other people what was possible.

It turns out that Tom has a very interesting story beyond his business.  He retired from Ford Motor Company where he spent a large part of his career hand building engines for Shelby Cobra's.  He is also a professional bowler with an average of 232!  Tom has bowled in professional tournaments, is in four leagues and averages 50 games per week!

I had a fascinating time learning about the Ford engines and the bowling.  Eventually we got into the business....

On tomorrow's Ag Business Episode I am interviewing an entrepreneur who drew my attention with an ad about wasp removal.  This made me think about the two hives of bees that I lost to wasps several years ago, and of course bee and honey production.  So today I am revisiting an interview I did with Alan Mikolich about this very business.

Taylor Crouch is a sophomore in high school and her FFA chapter's reporter.  She is also a three sport athlete and a serial entrepreneur at the age of 15.  There is a lot to talk about from this interview with Taylor, but throughout all of the different sports, livestock shows, businesses and ways of connecting with people throughout the U.S. one theme stood out.  The more active you are in high school, the more opportunities that you will be exposed to.  In this way, students who are very involved really do have an advantage.

Based on Taylor's description of herself, I would call her an extrovert.  However, not everyone is an extrovert, and that is fine.  I think what is proven in this interview that is introverted students need to find a way to get outside of their comfort zone and become active.  The reason is that the activity will lead you to meet new people, be exposed to different circumstances and experience new things.  Somewhere inside of all of that activity there is something that will resonate with you, and will help to shape your future.

I consider myself an introvert, and I think my daughter is one also.  I don't think that a person needs to be as social as Taylor to be exposed to many opportunities.  But, and introverted person still needs to follow their interests and get involved in those interests.  The biggest challenge for them may be not allowing their natural introversion to keep them from pursuing those interests.  And, as Taylor points out in the interview, the FFA is an excellent place to learn to push those comfort zones and to start getting exposed to situations that will eventually spark and interest.

Well, I've definitely had better years on our small farm here in Kuna.  At this point in the year, this has definitely been the worst year we have ever experienced.  Last week, on two consecutive mornings, I found kid goats that had been killed by coyotes.  On top of that, we have other issues going on that are going to harm our bottom line on the farm in the future.

On the other hand, some ideas I have put into place on the farm are working great, and I have a new friend in agriculture and podcasting that we get to celebrate on today's episode.

I've got all of that, and a bit of discussion about people with no boundaries on today's show.

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Agustin Luna is a sophomore at J.W. Nixon High School in Laredo, Texas, he is the chapter's reporter and he is responsible for cooking the pork ribs on the barbecue team.  That's right, the barbecue team.

Until an article popped up on my news feed the other day, I was unaware that there was such a think as a high school barbecue competition.  However, Agustin goes to school in Texas, so I shouldn't have been surprised.  Agustin and his team have qualified to be in the state championship in may, just a few days before this episode is aired.  The championship is held in Round Rock, at the baseball field that was built there to honor Nolan Ryan.  How can you get more Texas than barbecue and Nolan Ryan.

Agustin and each of his teammates are assigned an item to cook for the competition.  Each dish is scored individually by judges, the scores are compiled and a gross score is given to each team.  The top teams from each regional competition get to advance, and J.W. Nixon is one of those teams this year.  This is not an FFA competition, but at J.W. Nixon High School the team is from the FFA chapter.

For Information Like Degrees Offered, Annual Costs, Etc., Please Click The Banner Below:

The Agricultural College Episode is designed to profile agricultural trade schools, junior colleges, colleges and universities around the U.S.  This episode is an effort to replicate the conversation that prospective students, parents and ag teachers might have with agricultural schools at trade show like the National FFA Convention.

Wake Tech. is a community college in North Carolina that offers an Associates of Applied Science Degree in John Deere Ag Systems.  Our guest today is Professor Joh Paige Kearns, and we are going to be speaking with him about the trade school route, and how this program works.  This is a very interesting interview as we explore how students can go to school for free, find a very rewarding career and learn to be experts on some of the most complex machinery ever invented.

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Tip Of The Week

Think before you click

Rural Crime In The U.S.

https://whnt.com/taking-action/bbb-consumer-alerts/bbb-scam-alert-young-farm-equipment-falls-victim-to-corporate-identity-theft/

https://tscra.org/crime-watch-equipment-stolen-in-garfield-county-oklahoma/

Across The Pond, Down Under And Up Above

https://www.independent.ie/irish-news/crime/senior-civil-servant-identified-as-suspect-in-attack-on-farmer-in-hillwalking-assault-case/a488592600.html

https://www.bordertelegraph.com/news/23504743.investigation-underway-third-sheep-attack-weeks/

https://www.thescottishfarmer.co.uk/news/23505803.farmers-warned-vigilant-thefts-agricultural-vehicles/

https://www.psni.police.uk/latest-news/man-his-seventies-left-very-shaken-when-masked-men-enter-his-property-east-belfast

Africa

https://punchng.com/court-jails-25-year-old-for-sheep-theft/

https://www.news24.com/news24/southafrica/news/police-officer-arrested-for-allegedly-stealing-cattle-from-farm-in-the-north-west-20230507

Chalk One Up For The Good Guys

https://ktvl.com/news/local/parolee-arrested-after-burglary-crime-spree-in-rural-medford-jackson-county-sheriff-office-police-criminal-trespass-stolen-property-evidence-arrest-jail

https://www.ksn.com/news/crime/arrest-made-in-rural-reno-county-burglary/

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Stacy Carr is an Agricultural Consultant and Coach from Johnson City, Tennessee.  Hearing her story, it is obvious what it takes to be able to consult young and beginning farmers with no experience in the way that can - decades of work and experience in agriculture.

Stacy has a fantastic, exciting and rewarding business, but it is not the type of business that you just choose and start.  This business takes a passion for all aspects of agriculture that has driven you to take your own risks, do your own work and spend your own money over a lifetime pursuing farming.  Stacy has done that, in multiple different states and in multiple different ways.  And today, she is reaping the rewards of all of that knowledge and experience by being able to share it with people from all walks of life, including young families who want a rural lifestyle, and help them to succeed in farming.

In today's episode Stacy and I discuss all of that experience, and how her business works.  We will also talk about who the people are that want an agricultural lifestyle so much that they are willing to pay for somebody to guide them to that destination.

On tomorrow's Ag Business Episode I am interviewing a woman with an incredible breadth of knowledge and passion for farming, livestock, gardening and the soil.  She has a very unique and successful model of consultation for small farmers and left me realizing how little I actually know.  So, for today's re-cap episode I am going back to a 2016 interview I did with David Ridle of Skagit Farmers Supply where he was consulting with people on small acreages, as an employee of the co-op.

Seth Ariens is the Indiana State FFA President.  Amazingly, he is also the Indiana State Star Farmer.  In a great FFA state like Indiana, either one of those accomplishments puts you among the elite to ever have worn the blue jacket in the Hoosier State, but to be selected to both of those coveted positions, on the same night no less, puts you in rare air indeed!

In today's episode Seth describes his pathway to becoming a state officer.  In describing this his says something that is a real key to the success that he is currently experiencing.  He never looked at any of the officer positions that he held as a stepping stone.  He went into all of them determined to serve as best as possible in that position, and the rest kind of took care of itself.

On the side of being the State Star Farmer, Seth has had some "happy accidents".  I wouldn't call it luck however.  We always say on this show that luck is preparation meets opportunity.  Well, Seth looked at some things that happened as accidents and turned them into opportunities.  For example, when his Australian Shepherd was unintentionally bred by another Australian Shepherd, Seth took advantage of the moment to sell the puppies and add this to his record book.  His SAE was diversified agriculture, and her was another opportunity to diversify.  It is this outlook on looking for opportunity that has helped to propel him to such great heights.

On today's farm update I'll be talking about how I think I am overstocked on the farm, and the recycled and new methods I am using to try and take advantage of all the forage on the whole property.  Plus more....

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Brook Cutchin is the secretary of the Deane Bozeman FFA Chapter in Southport, Florida.  She is also just 16 years of age and slated to graduate high school one year early later this month.  She is heading to college next fall and has been accepted to a programed called "3 & 3", which means in her fourth year of her bachelor's degree she simultaneously begins graduate school, which for her will be studying the law to become an attorney and advocate for agriculture.

Brook first got introduced to the FFA her 9th grade year of high school when she took a required, introduction to agriculture class.  At that point she realized that she wanted to raise livestock, and she has been engaged in the FFA ever since.  She even raised and showed her own pig, showing and selling it at the Florida State Fair this past February.

The FFA has exposed Brook to many experiences that she never expected, and it played a major role in accelerating her time high school and graduating early.  One of the experiences that Brook had through the FFA, that drew my attention to her chapter, was facilitating a goat yoga class for people in her community.  She, along with other chapter members and supporters of her FFA chapter, put on a goat yoga class, for free.  Donations to help the chapter build a livestock barn were accepted, but there was no charge to attend.

I've always wondered what the appeal of goat yoga is.  Brook informed me that the point is to help people with anxiety about doing yoga in front of others, to let that go because everyone is watching the goats and not each other.  I certainly believe that is what happens.

For Information Like Degrees Offered, Annual Costs, Etc., Please Click The Banner Below:

The Agricultural College Episode is designed to profile agricultural trade schools, junior colleges, colleges and universities around the U.S.  This episode is an effort to replicate the conversation that prospective students, parents and ag teachers might have with agricultural schools at trade show like the National FFA Convention.

Utah State University has as many options for agricultural study as I have come across in doing these interviews.  On today's episode I speak with Makenna Osborne, a graduate of Utah State's College of Agriculture and Applied Sciences, and now a Recruitment Specialist for "CAAS".  Makenna lists the many opportunities through the Utah State University including becoming a pilot and even making chocolate!

Here is the link for the aviation program fees at Utah State University: https://caas.usu.edu/avte/course-fees

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Tip Of The Week

Keep an eye on your decorative horses.

Rural Crime In The U.S.

https://www.wkyt.com/2023/05/03/police-investigating-multiple-thefts-decorative-horses-ky-town/

https://www.agdaily.com/crops/16k-chemical-theft-might-not-pay-but-reporting-the-thieves-will/

https://www.wearegreenbay.com/news/local-news/tractor-stolen-off-of-jobsite-in-calumet-county-sheriffs-office-asks-residents-to-keep-an-eye-out/

https://www.katc.com/news/st-landry-parish/st-landry-crime-stoppers-help-needed-solving-theft-of-farm-equipment

Across The Pond, Down Under And Up Above

https://www.farminguk.com/news/police-charge-six-men-after-suspected-agri-thefts-worth-nearly-1m_62545.html

https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.google.com/url?rct=j&sa=t&url=https://www.swindonadvertiser.co.uk/news/23499717.man-arrested-police-rural-burglary-near-faringdon/&ct=ga&cd=CAEYACoUMTY2NjE3NjQyNTM1NzIxNTAzNDgyGmVhNjgzN2MxNmMwNjhjOGQ6Y29tOmVuOlVT&usg=AOvVaw16CnIzFWoQm_Nz35Q-mMjr&source=gmail&ust=1683389109703000&usg=AOvVaw3o0ctoER2dOV3zX9pvv2uG

Africa

https://www.iol.co.za/news/crime-and-courts/four-alleged-robbers-arrested-for-terrorising-farming-community-in-limpopo-found-with-stolen-goods-9ad0fd00-aa41-461b-84ad-f69f65a7ee57

https://www.monitor.co.ug/uganda/news/national/angry-mob-burns-truck-lynch-two-suspected-cattle-thieves-4222842

https://newsroom.gy/2023/05/04/life-imprisonment-for-cattle-farmer-who-killed-burnt-workers-body-over-stolen-goat/

Chalk One Up For The Good Guys

https://www.wkow.com/news/deputy-chases-car-into-farm-fields-near-poynette/article_ef8eb950-eaf7-11ed-92fa-cfca46c2d15d.html

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Caleb Branson and Shelby Redcorn are the owners of a business that is essential to keep production agriculture going in the U.S. and to keep their small community functioning in the Panhandle of Oklahoma where they live.  Caleb has been operating cranes since he was a child, and both he and Shelby have been self-employed for their entire lives.  Neither of them know anything different than getting paid when there is work and tightening the belts when there is not.

In 2017 they started C&S Crane And Steel, offering a myriad of services to farmers and other industries.  From building grain storage facilities to replacing augers on bins, it is this, behind the scenes business, that is there to keep farmers going.  During the interview I asked what motivates a farmer to build their own grain storage facility, and, as you would expect, it was all about giving the farmer the best chance of creating a sustainable business.  But those facilities and other pieces of equipment like them could not be built if it weren't for entrepreneurs like Shelby and Caleb who have the expertise and took the risk to purchase the equipment that provides their community the ability to continually improve their operations.

There is folklore surrounding the American Farmer that brings with it a certain prestige, and deservedly so.  We are all standing on someone's shoulders, and without folks like Shelby and Caleb, American Agriculture just couldn't operate and feed the world the way that it does.

On tomorrow's Ag Business Episode I am profiling a husband/wife team that has a unique and fascinating business serving farmers in the panhandle of Oklahoma.  That gave me the thought of replaying Jonathan Demcack's interview from 2015 again for you.  He started a business called "Droplet Irrigation" here in the Treasure Valley of Idaho, providing service to farmers, and I thought it was a great tie in with tomorrow's show.

Brycen Cole is in the 8th Grade and is a Junior FFA Member at Roby High School in Roby, Texas.  Ever since he discovered podcasts, he has wanted to be a guest on one.  So, when he heard that I was going to be interviewing one of the high school FFA members at Roby, he proactively asked his advisor to ask me if he could come on the show. I like proactivity.  I obliged.  

Brycen shows steers, plays three sports and is excited for the future.  He told me that he is not sure what he will do, but he is certain that he will either be a basketball coach or an FFA advisor in the future.  For now, he has his sights set on becoming an official FFA member next year and getting busy with everything that the FFA has to offer.  

I have an exciting announcement in today's farm update.  Hattie has been selected as her FFA Chapter's President.  This comes on the heels of her being selected as her FFA District's President.  So much of what she is accomplishing now has roots in the audience of this show supporting us and helping us grow, and we wanted to say thank you!

And, for students that are considering becoming a technician for a tractor manufacturer I have a story to share with you today.  Depending on why you have chosen this path, this announcement may make a difference as to whether or not you continue to pursue this.

Here is the link to the article: https://coloradosun.com/2023/04/25/right-to-repair-farm-equiptment-colorado/

Matthew Ruff is a farmer from Ohio, a first year student at The Ohio State University and part of a family of agriculturists and innovators.  Matthew's parents both grew up on farms and decided that they wanted to farm as well.  So, after their marriage in 1997, they started pursuing enterprises that could lead to having their own farm.  Ultimately, they purchased their own property and kept building it up.  Today, Matt farms over 4,000 acres along side his parents, brother and sister. 

What initially drew my attention to Matt was an article I read indicating that he had an "ear corn" enterprise.  However, the article did not describe the specifics of the operation.  During the interview I found out that he has taken over responsibility for growing 25-40 acres of ear corn with the intention of picking it, shucking it, bagging it and selling it on Amazon!  

During the interview Matthew explains that there is strong demand for ear corn, still on the husk, by people who want to feed it to wildlife like squirrels and deer.  He said that they have shipped bags of corn grown on their farm to every state in the lower 48!  What an amazing niche....

For Information Like Degrees Offered, Annual Costs, Etc., Please Click The Banner Below:

The Agricultural College Episode is designed to profile agricultural trade schools, junior colleges, colleges and universities around the U.S.  This episode is an effort to replicate the conversation that prospective students, parents and ag teachers might have with agricultural schools at trade show like the National FFA Convention.

Wilmington College is a private university located in the heart of Ohio Horse Country.  It boats a significant agricultural program and two separate university farms, one devoted just to horses.  On today's episode Professor Daren Wright, the Director of the Equine Program, joins me to talk all about the college as well as the equine program specifically.  We will also discuss the way that the scholarships at Wilmington work, and how this private institution stays competitive with public universities on cost.  

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Tip Of The Week

It’s not hard to get signage or a uniform

Rural Crime In The U.S.

https://www.facebook.com/183151455376856/posts/pfbid02P2tzkAuJQDeJQoAGY6DSGoipdE1MRNegwPWe5bLpn1xEP7KX7AGfpB35ap3iXFihl/?mibextid=cr9u03

https://www.kxxv.com/news/law-enforcement-searches-for-answers-after-burglary-in-madison-county

https://q1065.fm/tractor-stolen-from-greenway-equipment-in-hermon/

Across The Pond, Down Under And Up Above

https://www.farminguk.com/news/police-find-lamb-in-back-of-a-car-alongside-10-000-worth-of-drugs_62483.html?fbclid=IwAR0zsrbUGgX9fRW4HFpysPF6AP-zgs3r5IH6I9CwBFO4v_y-z-k7YCF9nF0

https://www.armaghi.com/news/portadown-news/farmer-fears-cattle-stolen-from-field-in-portadown/208451

https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/offbeat/man-broke-into-fruit-machine-after-spending-familys-holiday-money-at-the-bar/ar-AA1appt8

Africa

https://www.iol.co.za/capetimes/news/more-than-18-000-people-prosecuted-for-stock-theft-in-five-years-bheki-cele-6f25e696-a9bc-4988-a8d6-847a77efa427

https://www.kbc.co.ke/news/top-story/article/38259/bandits-have-no-place-in-kenya-kindiki-tells-senators

Chalk One Up For The Good Guys

https://www.facebook.com/100076447704733/posts/pfbid0dK9aGtzSGRHXTeZLr9AXHwwY6punaWMkEo3fchTCWJ21xEzReVgKZWUVd77ndowBl/?mibextid=cr9u03

https://www.wrtv.com/news/local-news/rush-county/rush-county-man-arrested-after-stealing-more-than-47-000-in-soybeans-and-corn

https://www.erienewsnow.com/story/48789656/corry-man-charged-for-selling-stolen-tractor

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Tyler Schake is the owner of T&T Mobile Washing.  Growing up farming, Tyler always took pride in, and got very good at washing the farm equipment.  In his mid-20's he came to the realization that he wanted to go out on his own, and working on the family farm was no longer the right fit for him.  At about the same time Tyler and his wife had their first son, and he knew that his responsibilities in life were increasing.

It was at this point that Tyler took the thing that he had developed a passion for on the farm, washing equipment, and turned it into a business.  Starting with just a pickup, box trailer and pressure washer Tyler is now running three trucks, 7 full time employees and serving an area with a radius of about 275 miles.  He is cleaning combines and other farm equipment for dealerships and farmers, and he is doing fleet cleaning for trucking companies.

In today's interview Tyler talks a lot about what he experienced when he decided to start his own business.  Also, he educates me quite a bit on the reasons why a mobile washing business like his is so valuable to trucking companies.  We talk a lot about entrepreneurship and a lot about this great business.

On tomorrow's ag business episode I am speaking with an agricultural entrepreneur who has taken "cleaning" to a whole new level.  I thought this interview with Sean Westergaard from 2016 about his gutter cleaning business was the perfect lead in.

Adam Johnson is the chapter president of the Sleepy Eye FFA Chapter in Sleepy Eye, Minnesota.  He is also the 2022 Minnesota State Proficiency winner in the category of poultry production and a 2022 National Silver Award winner.

During his time in high school Adam has been raising meat chickens during the summer for his supervised agricultural experience.  He has been using the pastured poultry model and chicken tractor model taught by Joel Salatin, with a twist.  Adam and his family do all of the butchering of the birds, and they use a cylindrical chicken plucker to remove the feathers.  However, they found that there were still small feathers to be pulled and pin feathers to be burnt off of the birds, even after doing that.  That is a very time consuming process.

To remedy this extra time that is needed, Adam and his family started skinning the birds to circumvent the need for this process.  Of course, there will be customers who want the skin on the birds.  So, they have shifted their business model to finding customers who want the birds skinned.  This has worked, and now they have altered their operation so it serves everyone equally.

In today's episode I have a short farm update and some thoughts about why having a horrible job as a teenager is so valuable.  I'll even tell you a story from a job I had when I was 14 years old.

Plus, and update on the growth of my community.  Here is the link to the article that I read:

https://www.ktvb.com/mobile/article/news/local/growing-idaho/kuna-population-explosion-mayor-joe-stear-growth-schools-fire-services/277-096af5b1-6b53-4125-946d-d65a4027f071

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Lillie Cagle is the newly elected Tennessee FFA State Sentinel, and former East Tennessee Regional FFA President.  She is also the chapter president of the Bledsoe County FFA and a senior in high school.

Lillie has a very unique story of how she came to be involved in the FFA.  From the age of 12 -14 Lillie had some major responsibilities in her family, and even though her family raises cattle and she lives in an agricultural community she had not given any thought to the FFA or even knew what it stood for.  However, around the beginning of her freshman year of high school those family responsibilities came to an end, and she was left kind of wondering what to do with her newly discovered free time.  That is when the then president of the Bledsoe FFA Chapter invited her to an FFA meeting and told her that he thought it would be good for her.  Nothing has been the same since.

Lillie has started an agricultural education project called "Ag Across The Board" aimed at teaching elementary students across the State Of Tennessee about agriculture.  She has even run a summer camp to teach about agriculture and received upwards of $15,000 in donations to purchase a trailer and be a mobile agricultural education resource.  Lillie is making a huge difference in the world of agriculture, and after hearing this interview you will think so too!

For Information Like Degrees Offered, Annual Costs, Etc., Please Click The Banner Below:

The Agricultural College Episode is designed to profile agricultural trade schools, junior colleges, colleges and universities around the U.S.  This episode is an effort to replicate the conversation that prospective students, parents and ag teachers might have with agricultural schools at trade show like the National FFA Convention.

Caitlin Alba, Recruitment Specialist with the Univeristy Of Wisconsin Stevens Point, joins me on the show today.  Stevens Point, Wisconsin is located right in the middle of the state, and I have interviewed multiple students from Wisconsin and surrounding states who have chose this university to study forestry, fisheries and natural resources.  I have been excited to profile them since I started this episode, and today we finally get to do so.  

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Tip Of The Week

If You Are Armed, Be Responsible And Learn How To Handle Fear - a new tactic for animal right's activists is spreading, and this does not mean that you can just start shooting.

Rural Crime In The U.S.

https://www.wgrz.com/article/news/crime/police-urge-local-farmers-to-be-alert-for-suspicious-activity-on-farms-animals/71-e3b58ab1-a6a7-425a-bb6d-9a348416a9ff

https://www.nbc4i.com/news/local-news/columbus/man-charged-with-assault-during-horses-medical-procedure-at-ohio-state/

https://www.facebook.com/100041702812369/posts/pfbid0EtTAimhczPhRaQKYpjq9iHDGZu8jQNKAxaTPYt7sfNf9gjynzZ9CNnvweE2V5AGZl/?mibextid=cr9u03

https://www.facebook.com/tscra/photos/a.10151880629109687/10160446777279687/

(prosecuted for cattle embezzlement in Oklahoma in 2018)

Across The Pond, Down Under And Up Above

https://www.expressandstar.com/news/crime/2023/04/15/arrest-made-after-herd-of-cows-stolen-from-farm-found-120-miles-away/

https://www.chroniclelive.co.uk/news/north-east-news/northumberland-farm-man-jailed-trailer-26730849?int_source=nba

https://www.staffordshire.police.uk/news/staffordshire/news/2023/april/appeal-after-more-than-400-tree-saplings-stolen/

https://www.farmersjournal.ie/over-20-sheep-stolen-in-donegal-761240

Africa

https://www.blueprint.ng/man-jailed-for-stealing-one-yam-gets-niger-cjs-leniency/

https://spectrumlocalnews.com/tx/dallas-fort-worth/ap-top-news/2023/04/20/cattle-raiding-by-jihadis-soars-in-mali-fuels-conflict

https://www.namibian.com.na/farmers-urged-to-stop-hiring-zambians-as-cattle-herders/

Chalk One Up For The Good Guys

https://www.kalb.com/2023/04/19/alexandria-man-arrested-theft-poland-community/

https://www.foxnews.com/us/utah-registered-sex-offender-arrested-after-dressing-up-elmo-around-kids-farmers-market-police

This is BJS’s first recidivism study on sex offenders with a 9-year follow-up period. Fewer than half of released sex offenders were arrested for any crime within the first 3 years of release, while more than two-thirds were arrested within 9 years. - https://bjs.ojp.gov/content/pub/press/rsorsp9yfu0514pr.pdf

https://vault.si.com/vault/1999/09/13/every-parents-nightmare-the-child-molester-has-found-a-home-in-the-world-of-youth-sports-where-as-a-coach-he-can-gain-the-trust-and-loyalty-of-kids-and-then-prey-on-them

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Jerry Stephens is the Northern Plains, Regional Sales Manager of Agoro Carbon, and in today's episode he will be talking to us about getting paid to sequester carbon on your farm.

Today's episode is one of those in which I need to give a disclaimer before beginning.  Agoro Carbon is not a sponsor of the Off-Farm Income Podcast, and they did not pay me to record this episode.  Also, they are not a prospective advertiser.  I agreed to have them on the show today because what they are offering might be a source of revenue for you that can help you to achieve and sustain the lifestyle in farming or ranching that you are seeking.

Carbon offsets are a hot topic, and farmers hold some of the best possibilities of capturing carbon through the practices they use on their farms and ranches.  Agoro Carbon works in the area of voluntary carbon sequestration, meaning that there is no government involvement, and none of their buyers are compelled by the government to participate.

In today's episode I strive to have the conversation with Jerry that you would have, if you were considering working with Agoro Carbon to sequester carbon on your farm and to generate a new source of revenue.

Tomorrow's ag business episode is featuring a way of creating extra revenue on your farm.  This may be a fit for some of you and not a fit for others, but I like to bring these ideas forward for you to do your own research and find out if they would be helpful to you.  For our re-cap episode today I went back into the archives and found this interview with Ryan Conklin talking about another possible revenue source on your farm.

Casey DeVries is the "Test Plot Chairman" for the Forreston FFA Chapter in Forreston, Illinois.  If that is a title you have never heard of before, it was also a new one for me.  Casey's family has been farming in the Forreston area since 1948 when his great grandfather purchased farmland there.  Today some of their land sits across the road from the high school.  So, during Casey's freshman year he suggested doing test plots of corn in that field to compare varieties and provide the agriculture department a way to do hands on learning.  The project stuck and is still doing four years later, and will continue after Casey leaves high school.

Casey and his family have a large farm and a large shop.  Working on machinery and engines in the shop is a significant part of keeping the farm going.  So, Casey has been doing something mechanical since around age 5.  When it came time for an SAE, he decided to challenge himself.  He purchased an old tractor, brought home and tore it all apart.  He restored the transmission, the rear end and even painted it himself.  And then he marketed it on Facebook Marketplace and Craigslist.  Within one week it was sold to a gentleman in Wisconsin!

Forget the past, focus on the future?  Is it all or one.  Did I invent a metaphor.  You will find all of this out and get a detailed farm update on today's episode.  Also, what is the "DIY Death Trap"?

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Rylee Terveen is her FFA Chapter's President, a national Bronze Proficiency Award winner and a driven entrepreneur.  Growing up in a family of agricultural entrepreneurs, Rylee knows what direction she wants to take for her future career.  She will be graduating high school this year, and then it is off to South Dakota State University to study entrepreneurship.

There is a family business already established that Rylee can move into.  As a matter of fact, she plans on taking it over along with her sister and running their families hunting lodge.  However, it is a seasonal business, and, maybe more importantly, it is not of Rylee's making.  Rylee knows she wants to be self-employed, and she knows that she wants to create something of her own.  So, when college is done and when it is time to move into her career, she will be forming a business based on the knowledge she already has and the knowledge that she has yet to gain.

For Information Like Degrees Offered, Annual Costs, Etc., Please Click The Banner Below:

The Agricultural College Episode is designed to profile agricultural trade schools, junior colleges, colleges and universities around the U.S.  This episode is an effort to replicate the conversation that prospective students, parents and ag teachers might have with agricultural schools at trade show like the National FFA Convention.

On today's episode Dr. Doug Ullrich, a professor in and chair of the School of Agricultural Sciences at Sam Houston State University is joining me.  Sam Houston State is located in Huntsville, Texas and as Dr. Ullrich describes it houses a very pragmatic, working class type of student seeking four year degrees in agriculture.  A very interesting opportunity popped up during this interview, and that was working with exotic animal species from Africa, Asia and the Middle East as a result of an agreement that Sam Houston State University has with a "high fence game ranch" in the area.  There are certainly unique opportunities at Sam Houston State, and this is another example of a pathway to the agricultural career that you are seeking.

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Tip Of The Week

Money can disappear very fast

Rural Crime In The U.S.

https://www.tri-cityherald.com/news/local/crime/article274240930.html

https://bluebonnetnews.com/2023/04/12/montgomery-county-sheriffs-office-seeking-tips-for-stolen-tractor-trailer-in-cleveland/

https://www.kait8.com/2023/04/12/stolen-fertilizer-truck-found-submerged-ditch/

Across The Pond, Down Under And Up Above

https://www.farmwatcher.co.uk/alerts/man-arrested-and-charged-after-£70k-machinery-theft-in-aberdeenshire?utm_campaign=171d27cd-18d0-44e6-82a9-21722119cf7d&utm_source=so&utm_medium=mail&cid=2a9cfada-76bc-4efd-8b52-0c6a560c9d01

https://www.youngwitness.com.au/story/8155933/fears-for-20-two-week-old-stolen-ostrich-chicks/

https://www.kildarenow.com/news/home/1084978/kildare-gardai-investigating-after-horse-transporter-and-puppies-stolen.html

Africa

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-65221387

https://chimpreports.com/dokolo-prison-escapee-killed-by-mob/

https://www.the-star.co.ke/news/2023-04-12-kinangop-farmers-angry-over-theft-of-livestock-farm-produce/

Chalk One Up For The Good Guys

https://houstonherald.com/2023/04/man-indicted-on-theft-of-timber-on-mark-twain-national-forest/

https://tscra.org/man-faces-felony-charges-in-robertson-county-cattle-theft-case/?fbclid=IwAR3WmRMOCk-9Cp9aM5Gk0QSV8Mey1-jzaqMGtegT9DHBhmSuXveqJNjAk4w&mibextid=Zxz2cZ

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Mark & Marcia Ruff are production agriculture farmers in Ohio and the owners of at least three businesses that compliment their farm.  Along with their three children and all of their, year round employees, they are farming 4,000 acres of wheat, soybeans and corn.  This all started back in 1997 when they knew they wanted to farm, and took a leap of faith with Mark leaving his full-time, city job to focus just on farming.  Back then they were leasing approximately 300 acres.

Today, Mark and Marcia have proven themselves very capable both in the world of farming and in small business  So much so, that opportunities literally come knocking on their door.  They have a container loading facility on their property now and run this business for farmers in their community, and, as Mark describes in the interview, he didn't know anything about container loading until some folks showed up as his door and proposed the idea.

In this day and age people will tell you that there is no way to get started farming without inheriting land or being independently wealthy when you begin.  However, Mark and Marcia are living proof that this is not correct.  Today's interview with each of them will inspire you and leave you with no excuses if you truly want to farm.

On tomorrow's ag business episode I am speaking a couple who started their farm from scratch in 1997 and have grown it to 4,000 acres.  They say it can't be done, but tomorrow we are proving them wrong!

This episode with Matt Kellog, talking about different niches for farmers at all levels is the perfect tie in for tomorrow's show.

Kyleigh Lock is just a sophomore in high school, but has accomplished a lot in just a short period of time.  She is already her chapter's president and a district officer, and she has one several proficiency awards at the area and district levels.  She is completely devoted to the FFA and to agriculture and it shows.  When I asked her if she had any activities outside of the FFA, her answer was "yes, in the 4H", which made me chuckle.

Kyleigh is trying to build up her show string of heifers with superior genetics and phenotypes so that she can find success at larger and larger shows.  However, obtaining heifers is not a cheap thing to do, so she has gotten creative.  She has entered and succeeded at multiple different calf scrambles to obtain the show heifer she is ultimately looking for.

Kyleigh has already mapped out a pathway to becoming a veterinarian, and she already knows that she wants to open her own practice in the future.  Something about her work ethic tells me that she is going to make it happen!

Hi everyone, I get to do something on today's episode that you have given me the privilege of doing.  I am reviewing a product that a manufacturer sent to me for free in exchange for me testing and reviewing it.  The product is the "Chickcozy" automatic chicken coop door, and I am giving it five stars!  This product has been in use on my farm for several weeks now, and I have been able to check it every night, in the middle of the night while I'm looking after our goats who are kidding.  Every night it is closed, not one chicken has been locked out of the coop and no predators can get into the coop to kill our chickens.  Then the next morning when I get up, the chickens are out in the run, hunting and pecking.

The "Chickcozy" has worked just as I had hoped it would, and it has taken one little thing, that sometimes seemed like a big thing, off of my daily workload.  I no longer have to make two trips a day to the chicken coop to let out or lock up chickens.  And, even if that is not a big deal for you, the "Chickcozy" will act as a failsafe for you on those rare occasions that you forget!

You all know that you are my priority, and I would not recommend a product to you if I had not used it and believed it was worth the money.  I can say that both of those things are true in the case of the "chickcozy".  You can find the "Chickcozy" at https://chickcozy.com/.

In addition to my produce recommendation on today's show, I'll be talking about equipment breaking down, equipment getting fixed and the never ending process of the kidding season!  Happy Spring and Happy Easter everyone...

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Hi everyone, I get to do something on today's episode that you have given me the privilege of doing.  I am reviewing a product that a manufacturer sent to me for free in exchange for me testing and reviewing it.  The product is the "Chickcozy" automatic chicken coop door, and I am giving it five stars!  This product has been in use on my farm for several weeks now, and I have been able to check it every night, in the middle of the night while I'm looking after our goats who are kidding.  Every night it is closed, not one chicken has been locked out of the coop and no predators can get into the coop to kill our chickens.  Then the next morning when I get up, the chickens are out in the run, hunting and pecking.

The "Chickcozy" has worked just as I had hoped it would, and it has taken one little thing, that sometimes seemed like a big thing, off of my daily workload.  I no longer have to make two trips a day to the chicken coop to let out or lock up chickens.  And, even if that is not a big deal for you, the "Chickcozy" will act as a failsafe for you on those rare occasions that you forget!

You all know that you are my priority, and I would not recommend a product to you if I had not used it and believed it was worth the money.  I can say that both of those things are true in the case of the "chickcozy".  You can find the "Chickcozy" at https://chickcozy.com/.

In addition to my produce recommendation on today's show, I'll be talking about equipment breaking down, equipment getting fixed and the never ending process of the kidding season!  Happy Spring and Happy Easter everyone...

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Daniel Laurent is a sophomore at Caldwell County High School, but he might as well be an instructor already when it comes to the breeding and showing of pigs.  He is just in his second year of the FFA, officially, but all of his four older siblings were in the FFA and he has been talking and getting FFA experiences for the past 13 years since his eldest sister joined.

Daniel has a passion for animal agriculture, which has been apparent his entire life.  When he was 8 years old he did his own research and told his father that he thought they should change their entire pig breeding operation from Yorkshires to Duroc's.  He has his argument well thought out and documented, and eventually, this happened.

Today Daniel gets more excitement out of seeing a 10 year old kid win in the show ring with a Laurent pig than he does actually winning himself.  He loves the process of matching up the correct pigs phenotypically and genotypically and then seeing the success it brings.  All of this, and he still does not even have a driver's license!

For Information Like Degrees Offered, Annual Costs, Etc., Please Click The Banner Below:

The Agricultural College Episode is designed to profile agricultural trade schools, junior colleges, colleges and universities around the U.S.  Thisepisode is an effort to replicate the conversation that prospective students, parents and ag teachers might have with agricultural schools at trade show like the National FFA Convention.

On today's episode I am joined by Deana Core, an Assistant Dean in the College Of Agriculture as well as Caitlin Parks, a junior and College Of Agriculture Ambassador.  I am definitely excited for any student who is going to attend Kansas State University and study agriculture after this interview, and you will be too!

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Tip Of The Week

Planting season is coming, is your GPS equipment secure?

Rural Crime In The U.S.

https://www.wbtw.com/news/state-regional-news/horse-gambling-bill-beats-long-odds-passes-south-carolina-house/

https://apnews.com/article/technology-education-lotteries-journalism-893a47d6d48f08d013d9e9374ca11ea1

https://www.kwch.com/2023/04/06/sheridan-county-sheriff-says-80-cattle-missing-near-hoxie/

https://www.eunicetoday.com/public-safety/antique-tractor-stolen-palmetto-area-field

Across The Pond, Down Under And Up Above

https://www.edinburghnews.scotsman.com/news/crime/fife-crime-kelty-farmer-devastated-after-16-lambs-killed-and-four-injured-in-dog-attack-on-blairadam-farm-4096208

https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-cumbria-65209163

https://www.countypress.co.uk/news/23439608.isle-wight-dog-attack-sees-sheep-killed-compensation-paid/

https://www.leaderlive.co.uk/news/23421080.wrexham-family-distraught-goat-suspected-stolen/

https://www.suffolk.police.uk/news/latest-news/thefts-gps-farm-equipment

Africa

https://www.thesouthafrican.com/news/crime-police-arrest-three-men-with-16-stolen-sheep-7-april-2023/

https://www.namibian.com.na/22-sheep-stolen-at-otjimbingwe/

https://www.the-star.co.ke/news/2023-04-06-cattle-rustlers-face-life-imprisonment-in-new-senate-bill/

Chalk One Up For The Good Guys

https://www.tsln.com/news/two-ellis-county-men-charged-in-cattle-theft-case/

https://www.newsweek.com/man-steals-school-bus-dead-deer-naked-police-chase-pennsylvania-1793028

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Brian Simpson is the owner of Dirt Man X and RV Dump Bucket in Austin, Texas.  He moved from Michigan to Austin about 9 years ago.  As a previous owner of an excavation company in Michigan, he had the equipment and expertise to bring with him on the trip south.  But, he couldn't bring his reputation because nobody in Austin knew him.

In today's episode Brian and I talk about serving farmers in Michigan and ranchers in Texas.  We discuss going a little bit backwards in business from having loads of business through word of mouth to having to advertise and build trust and a reputation again.  We also discuss how to move a business with that much equipment.  What gets sold?  What comes along?

Brian has great advice for those just getting started, and there are some stories of digging stuff up that you never wanted to find and the lights and sirens that come with those moments.

On tomorrow's episode of the Off-Farm Income Podcast, we are featuring a gentleman who has spent his career running his own excavation business.  We will be highlighting what it took for him to move his business from Michigan to Texas.

This interview reminded me of another great guest who had come on the show back in 2018.  Back then, Jon McNees was an FFA student.  He had been working his father's excavation business for years, and he was progressively getting more and more responsibility.  What I loved about the interview with Jon, is that he did not just think it was his birthright to work in that company.  Even in high school he was doing whatever he could to add value to the company.  He was able to do this through his participation in the FFA and by learning as much as he could about soils.

Bringing back this interview with Jon is the perfect lead in, to tomorrow's ag business episode.

Austin Elam is a senior at Paxton-Buckley-Loda High School in Paxton, Illinois.  Prior to his sophomore year of high school Austin never envisioned himself as an FFA member, but because of Covid he was forced to choose one of two elective courses, introduction to agriculture or home economics.  He chose agriculture, and after being introduced to different discussions about livestock he was totally hooked and became very active in the FFA.  

Today Austin is preparing to graduate high school, and he has decided that he would like to return to the classroom in the future as an agriculture teacher.  He has found a program in Illinois that will allow him to attend a community college and take courses through the University Of Illinois leading to a bachelor's degree.  Through this method he will be able to obtain his degree without paying the high cost of tuition at Illinois.  Austin is a pragmatic thinker, and he plans to bring that back to the classroom for future agriculture students.  

There is a lot going on, on our farm and in our lives right now.  We have definitely broken into spring and are charging forward with our farming season.  Here is what is in our farm update today:

• A change in advertising
• College visits in Texas
• Kidding season is underway
• Our current stats on goats
• Hattie's SAE project and grant
• Afternoon feeding for afternoon kids and calves
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Isaac Hopke is the current Wisconsin State FFA Secretary.  He is also the owner of American Landscaping in Spooner, Wisconsin and a student at the Univeristy Of Wisconsin, River Falls.  Isaac's family purchased their farm when he was just four years old, but he can still remember the transition.  From that point forward he developed a passion for the agricultural life and began showing animals in the 4H.

When 7th Grade arrived, Isaac was eligible to sign up for the FFA in his middle school.  At the same time his older brother was slated to go the National Convention but had to drop out, so Isaac took his place.  After seeing his first National Convention, Isaac was hooked! He has been totally devoted to serving in the FFA ever since.

Isaac continues to run American Landscaping, even as a full-time college student.  And, he is currently changing his business status from sole proprietor to LLC.  He has all of his options for a future career open right now with self-employment remaining at the top of the list.

For Information Like Degrees Offered, Annual Costs, Etc., Please Click The Banner Below:

The Agricultural College Episode is designed to profile agricultural trade schools, junior colleges, colleges and universities around the U.S.  This episode is an effort to replicate the conversation that prospective students, parents and ag teachers might have with agricultural schools at trade show like the National FFA Convention.

Weatherford College is a junior college located about 30 miles from Fort Worth in Texas. WC boasts a very strong rodeo team as well as a very solid foundation for students who will eventually transfer to a university to finish their four year degree.  Joining us today is the Department Chair of Agriculture, Business & Communication, Vance Christie.  Vance is a product of the junior college system just like me, and he offers a lot of reasons that starting your agricultural college career at Weatherford College is the right choice!

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Tip Of The Week

Have you assessed the value of the timber on your land?

Rural Crime In The U.S.

https://www.the-sun.com/lifestyle/7691064/legal-experts-break-laws-garden-without-knowing/

https://www.agdaily.com/news/kentucky-police-investigate-farm-stolen-walnut-trees-valued-at-30/

https://www.ptleader.com/stories/jefferson-county-sheriffs-log-gone-to-pot,110798

Across The Pond, Down Under And Up Above

https://www.cornwalllive.com/news/uk-world-news/rise-quad-thefts-leave-sheep-8276560

https://www.freepressseries.co.uk/news/23405044.quad-seized-becoming-stuck-mud-torfaen-farm/

https://www.thescottishfarmer.co.uk/news/23412447.fuel-theft-doubled-2022-reports-insurer-nfu-mutual/

https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/topstories/world/864657/spain-police-arrest-16-in-olive-heist/story/

Africa

https://www.newvision.co.ug/category/news/rubanda-farmer-arrested-over-murder-by-mob-156531

https://www.standardmedia.co.ke/nyanza/article/2001469649/how-nyumba-kumi-has-helped-fight-violent-groups-in-kuria

Chalk One Up For The Good Guys

https://www.actionnews5.com/2023/03/24/miss-men-arrested-theft-ring-trucks-farm-equipment/

https://www.knoe.com/2023/03/22/ldaf-arrests-west-carroll-man-accused-felony-theft/

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Other than 5 or so years in the Air Force, Keith Pearson, has lived and farmed in Tomah, Wisconsin for his entire life.  However, in 2015 the stress, long days and physical labor of farming was catching up with Keith and he decided to retire.  As a result he sold 1090 acres of his 1100 acre farm and went to work in town to keep himself busy.  However, a city job was not the right fit for Keith, and as life happened that became more apparent.  So, Keith decided that in order to stay busy he was going to start his own business.  

Keith missed being in the seat of a tractor in the spring and smelling the soil as it was newly turned over.  So, he found a way to do that and have a business.  Pearson Custom Tilling was born.  Today, Keith is busy from the beginning of spring planting season until the end of September tilling people's gardens, plowing people's land, seeding deer plots or mowing acreages. 

This side business gives him the ability to work on restoring Allis Chalmers Tractors over the winter, and bringing their life and luster back.  Keith is a farmer through and through, and now he gets to share all of that knowledge with his neighbors and the new people moving in around him with visions of farming and sustainability.  

There is something about the smell of dirt that moves some people to action.  On tomorrow's ag business episode I am profiling a farmer who retired, sold his land and took a day job in town.  However, after a year of that he missed the smell of freshly turned Earth, especially in the spring time.  So, he started a tilling business and is thriving.

For today's re-cap episode I want to go back to episode #54 that featured Larry Hildebrant.  He had a custom rototilling business, and he was also driven by working the soil.  In Larry's case he even did some of his tilling for free, depending on the situation for the customer.  Larry's interview is a perfect re-cap episode to lead us into tomorrow's ag business episode.

Aidan Yoho is the 2022 State Star Farmer of Kansas FFA and the State Secretary.  He will hold both of those titles until July of 2023.  But back in July of 2022, Aidan was simply an FFA Member from Yates Center, Kansas who was attending his state convention and who had thrown his hat in the ring in these two categories.  As it turned out, state star farmer and the state officer team were both announced during the same session of the state convention.  So, within 20 minutes of Aidan's life he went from not holding either of these titles to holding both!

So, where did this all start for him.  It started with a passion for farming that still exists on Aidan's land today, his great-grandfather.  Aidan's great-grandfather started farming with his brother on leased ground over 50 years ago.  Today, Aidan farms with his father and his great-grandfather, but unfortunately his grandfather passed away in 2021.  Being able to work with and learn from this great-grandfather has taught Aidan many valuable lessons about being successful in agriculture.

One of those lessons is that there is money to be made doing things that nobody else wants to do.  Aidan listened to this advice, and that is how he got his start.  Both in cattle and forage production, he applied the same philosophy.  Aidan started out purchasing dairy cross calves that needed to be dehorned because they were cheap and not many people wanted them.  He also identified problem areas on the farm that nobody wanted to mess with and started growing hay on them.

Today that has developed into an operation that allows Aidan to farm the more desirable hay ground and to purchase better cattle that end up making him more money in the long run.  He has his sights set on returning to the family farm and running it when the time is right, but for now he is giving his full focus to making a run at being the American Star Farmer in a couple of years!

Today is a true farm update episode after a couple of weeks of going topical on Tuesdays.  We will be discussing:

• Water in the creek
• A bit of green poking through in the pasture
• Hattie selected as district president
• Four kids on the ground
• Still waiting on calves
• Unseasonable cool and it seems like it is going to stay that way - the leaves and the birds don’t seem to care - must be all about daylight hours

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Makenzie McDaniel is a senior at Flowing Wells High School in Tucson, Arizona, and she is the "student advisor" member of her FFA Chapter's Officer Team.  Makenzie has her sights set on becoming an ag teacher and FFA Advisor herself, and this role on the officer team suits that pursuit perfectly.

In this role, Makenzie watches how her fellow chapter members are progressing, sees what they need help with and is there to answer questions.  When one of them is stumbling or has questions, she is there to assist, but without taking over, just by advising.  It takes a lot of maturity to know how to advise without completely taking over the show, an Makenzie is already there.

In addition to her role on the officer team, Makenzie raises a market steer and market goat for the county fair, and she keeps them at the school's facility.  This allows her and students who don't have land to raise animals and get that real world experience.  Makenzie has applied to attend the Univeristy of Arizona, right there in Tucson, to study ag education.  And, in about 5 years, I am hoping to be interviewing one of Makenzie's FFA students!

For Information Like Degrees Offered, Annual Costs, Etc., Please Click The Banner Below:

The Agricultural College Episode is designed to profile agricultural trade schools, junior colleges, colleges and universities around the U.S.  This episode is an effort to replicate the conversation that prospective students, parents and ag teachers might have with agricultural schools at trade show like the National FFA Convention.

Tarleton State University is located in beautiful Stephenville, Texas (one of my favorite places in the entire Lonestar State!).  For ag students Tarleton State University boasts a 700 acre ag facility including livestock processing, ag fabrication and a retail outlet for the general public.  Stephenville has a population of just 22,000 residents but is within an hour of a major airport in Dallas/Fort Worth.

The Dean of the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources, Dr. Barry Lambert, joins me today to talk all about Tarleton State University.

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Tip Of The Week

Defensible Space

Rural Crime In The U.S.

https://news.yahoo.com/chicken-rescuers-used-loophole-beat-123000261.html

https://www.agriculture.com/news/livestock/10000-reward-offered-in-northeast-iowa-livestock-vandalism-case

https://kiwaradio.com/lightssirens/reward-offered-for-information-in-suspicious-primghar-area-fire/

https://www.wktv.com/news/crime/state-police-searching-for-trailer-stolen-from-westmoreland-farm/article_94d09afc-c814-11ed-bd1c-8726a0ebef63.html

https://bigislandnow.com/2023/03/20/hawaiʻi-island-police-be-on-the-lookout-for-a-stolen-tractor/

Across The Pond, Down Under And Up Above

https://www.farminguk.com/news/rural-crime-crackdown-sees-arrests-after-more-than-100-vehicles-stopped_62295.html

https://cochranenow.com/articles/search-leads-to-arrest-for-rural-break-ins-assault-

https://www.drumhellermail.com/news/35407-rave-communication-tool-supports-crime-reduction-organizations

https://www.agriland.co.uk/farming-news/stolen-40k-pump-and-4k-trailer-recovered-in-derbyshire/

Africa

https://www.thesouthafrican.com/news/five-people-arrested-in-northern-cape-for-stolen-sheep-and-car-21-march-2023/

https://www.thesouthafrican.com/news/police-arrest-three-suspects-recovered-livestock-19-march-2023/

Chalk One Up For The Good Guys

https://roanoke.com/news/local/illegally-cut-tree-brings-four-month-prison-term-for-giles-county-man/article_c2edcc20-c756-11ed-bbc5-8f3d9c52ff93.html

https://www.fox5dc.com/news/trio-arrested-for-burglaries-targeting-frederick-county-farmers (Originally reported on this in February)

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Kent and Shannon Rollins are the force behind teaching the world how to cook like a cowboy.  On their YouTube Channel, "Kent Rollins Cowboy Cooking" and their new book, "Comfort Food The Cowboy Way", they share the wisdom, weather and recipes of the American West.  

This all started somewhere around 1983 when Kent started cooking for an outfitter in a New Mexico elk camp.  But really, it started much earlier than that when Kent was a kid and in his later years of being a ranch hand.  At some point he traded in the branding iron for the cast iron, and he went to work making sure that cowboys were well fed before and after their long days in the saddle.  

There are some traditions of the American West that are thought to be gone, that still exist.  Cooking for cowboys on the range from a chuck wagon is one of those.  In Kent and Shannon's book you get a glimpse of this tradition through the incredible photos that Shannon has taken while they are on ranches cooking.  And in Kent's words, he captures the impact of the weather and how the right meal can ease the burden of facing the harshness of Mother Nature from the saddle all day.  

Elisabeth Watkins was a guest on the Off-Farm Income Podcast in 2018.  At that time she was an FFA student at Central Catholic High School in Modesto, California.  Amazingly, Elisabeth was already a television cooking personality at that point.  She had taken her love for cooking and agriculture, combined them inside and outside the FFA and taken them to incredible heights.  She won her way onto a teen cooking challenge television show in New York City while still in high school, came away the winner and that propelled her to many different opportunities.

On tomorrow's Ag Business Episode I am profiling a chef and his new cookbook.  Going back to what Elisabeth was able to do and continues to do with her culinary skills is the perfect tie in for tomorrow's show, and I am happy to replay her episode again today.

Wyatt Black is a sophomore in high school and is already mastering the art of adding value and finding profit.  Wyatt has grown up with and around agriculture on his families small farm near Casstown, Ohio.  As a member of the Miami East FFA Chapter, he needed to develop an SAE.  That was no problem because he and his father had already been finding, repairing and re-selling used equipment for years.  It was a natural fit, and Wyatt turned this into his project.  Wyatt tends to specialize in fixing up trailers if he can.  He says that he sees the highest demand for them, and they are generally the easiest to repair.

I saw an article pop up on Bloomberg today with the title, “Farmers Can’t Keep Hogging the Water in Parched Southwest”.  I was unable to read it because it is behind the paywall, and I do not have a subscription.  However, this is a topic that I have thought a lot about.  

Allie Koss is the owner and creator of Happy's Horse Treats.  She is also a sophomore in high school and the FFA Chapter Sentinel at the Arizona Agribusiness & Equine Center of Paradise Valley, Arizona, which is a charter school specializing in agriculture.  All students at the AAEC are FFA members, but there are different levels of activity for each of them.

Allie has grown up in the city, and her parents are not experienced in agriculture.  However, at age 4 Allie said she wanted to take horseback riding lessons.  Being wise parents, they did not just let Allie jump right into full blown lessons.  For one year they took her to the Phoenix Zoo where she could get exposure to horses and some experience riding to gauge if her level of enthusiasm was genuine.  It turned out that it was, and Allie has been riding horses ever since.

One day, at the barn that she rides at, a veterinarian was floating the teeth of a horse and showed Allie how to do it.  From this point she was hooked and knew she wanted to be a veterinarian.  This led to conversations with older people at the barn and the discover of the AAEC.  Ultimately, this led her to the agricultural charter school and the FFA.  It also led to her experimenting with making horse treats, her friends telling her that she should start a business and eventually, the birth of Happy's Horse Treats.  Today, Allie sells horse treats from coast to coast and plans on growing her business through the end of high school, but possibly until she begins veterinary school in several years.

For Information Like Degrees Offered, Annual Costs, Etc., Please Click The Banner Below:

The Agricultural College Episode is designed to profile agricultural trade schools, junior colleges, colleges and universities around the U.S.  This episode is an effort to replicate the conversation that prospective students, parents and ag teachers might have with agricultural schools at trade show like the National FFA Convention.

Texas A&M Commerce is located in the small, Northeastern Texas town of Commerce, Texas and provides abundant opportunity for developing your future in agriculture.  On today's episode, Dr. Randy Harp, the Dean of Agricultural Sciences & Natural Resources, joins the show to talk all about Texas A&M Commerce.  We hear a lot about the family feel of smaller enrollment colleges on the show.  Dr. Harp does a great job of illustrating the benefits of this.

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Tip Of The Week

Consider smart combination locks

Rural Crime In The U.S.

https://www.kwtx.com/2023/03/14/dallas-teens-riding-stolen-horses-struck-by-vehicle-one-killed-two-injured/

https://www.12newsnow.com/article/news/crime/chambers-county-sheriffs-office-investigating-after-horse-stolen-from-winnie-ranch/502-6d01bbcc-b747-43c1-b854-78d5dc349829

https://krdo.com/lifestyle/animals/2023/03/16/__trashed-4/

Across The Pond, Down Under And Up Above

https://www.herefordtimes.com/news/23385776.sentencing-delayed-man-admitted-stealing-cadbury-creme-egg-cargo/

https://www.getreading.co.uk/news/reading-berkshire-news/farmer-sick-tired-lack-police-26452948

Africa

https://www.independent.co.ug/nakasongola-235-cattle-stolen-in-10-months/

https://www.news18.com/buzz/when-200-inmates-escaped-from-uganda-prison-after-removing-their-uniforms-7304869.html

Chalk One Up For The Good Guys

https://www.kimt.com/news/minnesota-woman-pleads-guilty-to-burglarizing-a-north-iowa-farm/article_f8b71386-c394-11ed-bffe-c7e9f2222ee7.html

https://www.twincities.com/2023/03/15/southern-minnesota-farmhand-charged-with-fatally-shooting-his-employer-last-fall/

Kacee Bohle is a fourth generation farmer from Illinois, a career agriculturist and an Ag Coach.  On today's episode we are going to focus in on her business of career coaching in agriculture.  Kacee has two main customer bases - agriculture students and professionals moving into or out of agriculture.  She deals with a lot of diverse situations in this business, but being an entrepreneur gives her the flexibility to do so and to adapt to each unique situation.

Kacee's coaching is reflection of her own experiences.  When she was graduating high school she did not really know where her future in agriculture resided, but she knew that it was in agriculture.  She is the only one of her siblings interested in taking over the family farm, and she feels pressure to do so to keep the legacy alive.  And, she has had multiple experiences in agricultural industry that make her uniquely qualified to help other people find their paths.

On tomorrow's ag business episode I talking with an agricultural career coach.  This got me thinking of what episode to replay for you on today's episode, and it became clear.  Our guest tomorrow specializes in helping people find their careers in agriculture.  The other side to that same coin is how can you develop your farming and agricultural lifestyle at home.  So, in today's re-cap episode I am going back to a special coaching session I did with Wendy from Ontario, Oregon about this very thing.

Preston Sechrest is a 2022 SAE Grant Recipient.  He is also the treasurer of the East Davidson FFA Chapter in Thomasville, North Carolina, and he is going to use his grant money as well as money that he saved from working at a grocery store to purchase his first dairy heifer for showing.

This all began for Preston during his 9th Grade year of high school.  He was considering becoming a game warden in the future, he still is actually, so he took an animal science class as an elective.  When his teacher, Mrs. Leonard, did a unit on introduction to the FFA, he thought he had been tricked.  However, by the end of school year he had been hooked, and he was a full-fledged FFA member.

His advisor encouraged Preston to go to a dairy cattle showing clinic to get introduced to this event.  He went, and he took to it.  People could not believe that he had never showed cattle before, and he got several offers to show for other people.  He has done ten heifer shows for a neighboring farm since then, and this has sparked an interest that Preston believes he will have for the rest of his life!

Today I am breaking down an article that is talking about the new phenomena of "Bare Minimum Mondays".  Here is the link if you'd like to read it yourself: https://www.kmaland.com/news/business/bare-minimum-monday-marks-latest-quiet-quitting-trend/article_38ef856d-0a0c-5016-9a2d-6e5e11a176d6.html

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Taylor Lacek is the 2o22 Minnesota State Star Farmer and a second semester student at South Dakota State University studying Agriculture Business & Communications with a newly added minor in journalism.  She has a passion for telling agriculture's story, and has her sights set on being a column writer in agriculture.

Taylor's grandfather got the family involved in raising show cattle generations ago, and Taylor has continued that onward.  Today, Taylor keeps abreast of the latest technology and methods in cattle breeding, employing embryo transfer and even looking into cloning to develop the genetics in her herd.  Taylor taught me about a method of dealing with calves that are not getting going after birth during the interview called the "Madigan Squeeze".  It was clear that she is constantly consuming information on the industry that she is passionate for, and it is this consumption that will turn her into a great purveyor of agricultural information.

For Information Like Degrees Offered, Annual Costs, Etc., Please Click The Banner Below:

The Agricultural College Episode is designed to profile agricultural trade schools, junior colleges, colleges and universities around the U.S.  This episode is an effort to replicate the conversation that prospective students, parents and ag teachers might have with agricultural schools at trade show like the National FFA Convention.

The Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College is located in Tifton, Georgia.  Andrew Thoron is a professor and the Department Head o the Agricultural Education and Communications Department.  Today Andrew joins us to talk all about ABAC At Tifton.

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Tip Of The Week

Pay yourself first?  What about the government?  (equity theft)

Rural Crime In The U.S.

https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=pfbid02QsndY18RDrxQw6QgYU38Nad9jEfworsfAfdWsXoA7hfxz979JqsjFmBiUMGtUGezl&id=100071992819041&mibextid=qC1gEa

https://mcdowellnews.com/news/local/mcdowell-sheriff-s-seeking-suspects-in-farm-equipment-theft/article_5cd5467e-bdfc-11ed-8d58-dfb8d594d8f2.html

https://lancasteronline.com/news/local/lancaster-farm-sanctuary-owners-say-someone-tried-to-break-into-barn-on-property/article_71c20248-b91f-11ed-8b7a-e7a140c74cb0.html

Across The Pond, Down Under And Up Above

https://www.thescottishfarmer.co.uk/news/23371241.mps-back-laws-making-harder-steal-equipment-farmers/

https://uk.news.yahoo.com/ruthless-raiders-jailed-ramming-police-133300075.html

https://www.thewestmorlandgazette.co.uk/news/23372260.theft-25-sheep-appleby-maulds-meaburn/

https://www.irishexaminer.com/news/munster/arid-41087269.html

Africa

https://briefly.co.za/south-africa/154764-old-mans-14-cattle-stolen-mpumalanga-heartbroken-police-continue-investigate/

https://www.capitalfm.co.ke/news/2023/03/pastoralists-mps-want-president-ruto-to-personally-take-charge-of-north-rift-operation/

https://theeagleonline.com.ng/police-arraign-man-35-over-alleged-goat-theft-2/

Chalk One Up For The Good Guys

https://abc30.com/foster-farms-stolen-chickens-activist-group-jury-selection-begins/12927353/

https://www.weeklycitizen.com/story/news/local/2023/03/07/geismar-suspect-arrested-in-prairieville-horse-theft-investigation-ascension-parish-deputies-report/69983476007/

https://www.kmjnow.com/2023/03/06/man-arrested-after-stealing-tractor-worth-100000-in-tulare-county/

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Caite Palmer and Arlene Hunter are the hosts of "The Barnyard Language Podcast - "Real Talk About Running Farms and Raising Families".  They are both farmers in different situations.  Arlene and her husband are full-time dairy farmers in Canada with no off-farm jobs. Caite and her husband farm
about 200 acres of row crops and raise livestock in Northeast Iowa and both of them work off of the farm.  Caite and Arlene were brought together by a podcast, met on a Facebook group corresponding to that show and have only met in person one time.  However, they have been hosting a weekly show together for almost two years!

I was recently a guest on the Barnyard Language Podcast.  I enjoyed the conversation so much and was so impressed with how these ladies went about their business, I invited them to be guests on Off-Farm Income as well.  They tackle some tough issues on their show - everything from parenting to domestic violence in rural communities.  They have a mission and a big vision of how they can inspire more farming podcasts that will help farmers.  I love it, and am thrilled to have interviewed them and to feature them on the show today!

On tomorrow's ag business episode we are featuring a team of agricultural podcast hosts who deal with real world issues and the challenges of parenting on a farm.  These two ladies found each other through a shared passion to help folks with these challenges.  One of them lives north of the border in Canada.

Their interview reminded me of the fantastic appearance that Elaine Froese had on the show discussing how to keep the family from splintering when farm transition and farm sale towards the end of a parent's career or life occurs.  This is a great tie in with tomorrow's show as we feature two guests who deal with the challenge of family on the other end of the spectrum, when children are at their youngest.

Dane Haverkamp is the owner of Triple H Custom Hay. He is also a junior in high school, his FFA chapter's vice-president and a family farmer with his parents on their ranch in Kansas.  Dane likes all aspects of agriculture, but his families operation is almost exclusively raising registered Black Angus Cattle.  Around Dane's 8th Grade year he told his folks he would like to get his own equipment for cutting, raking and baling hay on their farm rather than having it done by a custom business.  However, his parents told him that the amount of work needed on their farm would not justify the purchase.  So, Dane came up with the idea of starting a custom hay business of his own to justify the purchase, and made sense.  Dane purchased his own baler, swather and later a rake to start the business.  In exchange for the work he does on the farm, he uses his parent's tractors to operate the implements.  Today, Dane operates Triple H Custom Hay and has a growing business that he plans to operate for years to come.

I think our farm is at a point where I could just cruise if I wanted to.  However, I keep looking at ways to improve, become more efficient and to become more profitable.  What is that in me, and in all entrepreneurs?  Does it ever go away?

Sydney Bruchhaus is the Louisiana State FFA Secretary, the Louisiana State Star Farmer and a senior in high school.  To hear that an FFA student has achieved both state office and won a state star award is incredible enough, but to hear that they did this while still in high school is extremely rare or maybe never heard of.  However, that is not the last or maybe even the most amazing part of Sydney's story.  

Sydney spend the first two years of her FFA experience being quiet and shy.  She took leadership roles and was a chapter officer, but she preferred to be the person who got things done in the background.  However, at the beginning of her junior year of high school Sydney's FFA Advisor pushed her to participate in a public speaking contest.  Sydney was nervous, which pushed her to practice, and she wound up taking second place in the entire state.  

That second place price lit a fire in Sydney, and from that point on she was doing whatever public speaking that she could.  She developed her skills very rapidly and devoted all of her time to practicing.  Within 9 months of that first contest it was time for the Louisiana State FFA Convention, and she had decided to pursue becoming a state officer, even though she had only served as a chapter officer and not an area or district officer.  And then, she was selected at the same convention that she won star farmer.  

Sydney is living proof that it is never too late to do something great, and that you can accomplish things that other people think are impossible.  

For Information Like Degrees Offered, Annual Costs, Etc., Please Click The Banner Below:

The Agricultural College Episode is designed to profile agricultural trade schools, junior colleges, colleges and universities around the U.S.  This episode is an effort to replicate the conversation that prospective students, parents and ag teachers might have with agricultural schools at trade show like the National FFA Convention.

The University Of Arkansas is located in Fayetteville, Arkansas and is the home of the Dale Bumpers College Of Agriculture, Food And Life Sciences.  Madison Estepp is the lead ambassador for Bumpers College, and she joins us on this episode to talk all about studying agriculture at the University Of Arkansas.

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