Off-Farm Income

Today is a farm update episode, and we will be discussing: Mother Nature is so deceptive - looking outside at snow and frozen ground knowing that sometime in the next couple of weeks it is all going to change and I will go from feeling like I am in winter to feeling like I am behind. Winter is definitely my most relaxed time of the year when it comes to the farm.   This is the last week of that….e...

Whitley Anderson is a District Officer in the Lonewolf FFA District in West Texas.  She is also the chapter Vice-President at Snyder High School and immediate past-chapter president.  She raises pigs and chickens and definitely has a passion for agriculture.  As strong as Whitley's love to agriculture is, her love for sharing it with other people is stronger. Whitely is currently a junior in high...

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...

Tip Of The Week Write down serial numbers and recover stolen property Rural Crime In The U.S. https://kdvr.com/news/local/50000-in-equipment-stolen-from-stables-owner-worries-stables-are-a-new-target-to-thieves/ https://www.14news.com/2023/02/23/perry-co-sheriffs-office-seeking-help-identify-truck-involved-theft/ https://www.wjhl.com/news/regional/tennessee/cow-heads-found-illegally-dumped-in-west...

Arin Whitemountain and Tom Masterson are partnering together in Southeast Missouri to bring a niche haying service to very small acreages.  Arin has invested in the necessary equipment to bale very small, round bales on small acreages with low horsepower tractors.  He did it for himself last summer, and has developed a passion for these small and easy to use bales. Arin recently retired from the C...

On tomorrow's Ag Business Episode I am featuring two gentlemen with a very unique hay baling business.  This made me think of the episode I did with Saydee Longhurst several years ago, and how she discovered a niche in how she was selling small bales.  On today's re-cap episode I want to bring back that interview as the perfect tie in for tomorrow's show.  

Noah McMeeken is a sophomore at Slinger High School in Slinger, Wisconsin and he is a recent recipient of a $1,000 SAE grant.  Noah has interests in things that fly.  He and his brother have been raising and showing ducks and chickens for the past several years, Noah loves to fly in aircraft, he is a competitive alpine skier and flies down the mountain and he has developed a deep interest in drone...

Today is a farm update episode, and we will be discussing: Urban Sprawl and disappearing farms The period between the Super Bowl and March Madness When is it a good idea to get a Harley Davidson A better mouse trap Our new Ag College Episode More Places You Can Listen to Off-Farm Income And Matt Brechwald:    

Mackenzie Serrano is a Montana State FFA Officer and the winner of the Montana Star in Agricultural Placement from 2022.  She has a great story of building FFA career in spite of circumstances that would conspire against her.  She started her cow herd in Wilsall, Montana, which happens to be 172 miles from her home in Musselshell, Montana.  She persevered through Covid, working a job at a "blood l...

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...

Tip Of The Week Who is coming to your farm to purchase your products? Rural Crime In The U.S. https://www.nytimes.com/2023/02/14/opinion/foster-farms-chicken-slaughterhouse-animal-cruelty.html https://www.kake.com/story/48344689/palm-beach-gardens-rescue-wants-answers-after-2-horses-stolen-slaughtered-in-miami https://www.wgal.com/article/man-charged-with-horse-theft-and-credit-card-fraud-in-york-...

A.W. Erwin is a syndicated "cowboy cartoonist" with a quick wit and funny personality.  He has been drawing cartoons of cowboys and cowgirls in funny situations for decades now, and this is his form of "off-farm income". Making his home in north central Texas, he is immersed in the cowboy lifestyle knowing people far and wide who are preserving the old ways and arts of cowboying.  To keep his comm...

On tomorrow's episode I get to catch up with A.W. Erwin, who first appeared on our show in 2015 on episode #15!  A.W. has a very quick wit, an incredible artistic ability and he has turned this into a successful business that has supported his family and his ranching endeavors for decades. On today's re-cap episode I am going to bring the very first interview I did with A.W. back.  You can get the...

Grace DiGiovanni is a 2022 National Proficiency Winner in the category of Service Learning.  With a title like that, you know that she had done something significant to help out her community, but after doing a complete interview with her it was obvious that she is wired to help her fellow human. Grace is currently attending college at Creighton University in Omaha, Nebraska.  She has her eyes set...

I have been on a twelve day quest to find the sun, feel it's warmth and find my people.....I succeeded and today I'll tell you all about it... More Places You Can Listen to Off-Farm Income And Matt Brechwald:      

Andrew Snook is the owner of Snook's Lawncare & Landscaping in Mifflinburg, Pennsylvania.  He is also the 2022 Pennsylvania State Star Award Winner in agribusiness.  This all started when Andrew was very young and wanted very badly to push a lawn mover.  Over time that developed to him requesting to go with his grandfather when he was out mowing other people's lawns.  Finally, when Andrew was 11 y...

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...

Tip Of The Week Cameras, Cameras, Cameras Rural Crime In The U.S. https://www.krsl.com/local/150-large-bales-stolen-near-olmitz https://www.wilsoncountynews.com/articles/reward-find-stolen-tractor-get-10k/ https://www.al.com/news/montgomery/2023/02/3-goats-fatally-shot-at-butler-county-farm-suspect-sought.html Across The Pond, Down Under And Up Above https://www.sundayworld.com/crime/courts/gang-s...

Jessica Hart is the owner of Deschutes Farm Services in Bend, Oregon.  She is also a certified veterinary technician and former rancher.  Jessica moved to Bend about four years ago and found herself starting a new chapter of her life in a town that was starting a new chapter of its own.  As many native citizens of Bend were moving out and making room for people emigrating from places like Californ...

On tomorrow's Ag Business Episode I am featuring a guest who learned a lot of different livestock management practices over the years, and then found herself living in an area with a lot of small farms.  She took all of these skills and turned them into a small business helping these new livestock owners. One of those skills is hoof trimming, and that reminded me of early interview with Randy Hett...

Abby VanPelt is the President of the Austin High School FFA Chapter in Austin, Minnesota.  She is a triplet, all of which are in the FFA, and she has an older brother who also was in the FFA.  Her family raises sheep on their farm in Southeast Minnesota, and she has developed her own flock. I often say that luck is the result of being prepared when opportunity strikes.  I don't know that I would d...

I have failed a lot on my farm and as an entrepreneur.  It is all part of the journey, and if you frame your perspective correctly it is part of the fun.  In today's episode I am discussing some of these failures, including: Cover Crop fail - only just a few days of feed on that Holding goats until January  Having listeners find Friday guests Finding a producer More Places You Can Listen to Off-Fa...

Amber Leabo is a 2022 National Proficiency Winner in the category of Specialty Crop Production.  This comes from years of experimentation on her families farm with her father, trying corn, permanent crops and more, finally ending with lavender.  Amber has definitely found her niche growing, marketing and value adding to lavender.  She and her family have set the market in Florida with lavender, de...

For Information Like Degrees Offered, Annual Costs, Etc., Please Click The Banner Below: Today's episode is the very first of a series of episodes we will be producing 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 agricultur...

Tip Of The Week Consider new signage to deter theft Rural Crime In The U.S. https://www.wcia.com/news/teen-arrested-after-driving-stolen-tractor-through-champaign/ https://www.myplainview.com/news/article/chickens-killed-in-fire-at-connecticut-egg-farm-17749860.php Across The Pond, Down Under And Up Above https://www.fwi.co.uk/news/crime/trial-finds-dna-marking-helps-slash-farm-machinery-thefts ht...