Off-Farm Income

On tomorrow's Ag Business episode we are going to be discussing create and outside the box ways of creating off-farm income to support your dreams of farming or your farming lifestyle.  This interview that I conducted with Stacy Funderburke about agricultural easements outside of Atlanta, Georgia back in 2021 is a perfect lead in to tomorrow's episode.   Below are the original show notes. SHOW NOT...

What a wonderful thing an inquisitive mind can be.  This is especially true for an FFA student, and it always amazes me how soon this begins to show itself. For today's guest, Meredith Shanks, her inquisitive mind started to show very early, and this was partially because she was able to begin the FFA very early.  In Portage, Wisconsin students are able to begin the FFA in the 6th Grade, which is...

Our Tuesday episode this week coincidentally comes out on my 49th's birthday!  Talking about my birthday is not really what I want to do, but as I thought about the fact that one year from today I will be turning 50, I had some thoughts.  Really what it has come down to is that my vision of what my farm life would look like comes more true each and every season.  As we see 100 degree temperatures...

As you all know, I am a big fan of SAE Grants, and I wish that every FFA student would take advantage of this opportunity.  So, I don't take it lightly when a student does.  In today's "Featured Freshman" episode we are talking with Ella Raatz from Colby, Wisconsin.  Ella lives in town, keeps dairy heifers at the farms of people that she shows cattle for and is already an officer of her FFA chapte...

Tip Of The Week Know your rights, and also know that law enforcement is trying to do the right thing. Rural Crime In The U.S. https://www.khon2.com/hawaii-crime/waianae-farm-pleads-for-help-after-special-fencing-was-stolen/ https://www.pahomepage.com/news/state-police-looking-for-monroe-county-tractor-thief/ Across The Pond, Down Under And Up Above https://www.fwi.co.uk/machinery/atvs/tracker-firm...

On today's episode we are profiling a company that has come up with a very unique concept to improve farming and improve lives locally, here in the United States, as well as globally.  I will be speaking with Randy Krotz, the CEO of Agwiki, and he will be talking all about the concept and why it is both beneficial to American Farmers while being benevolent to the rest of the world at the same time...

On tomorrow's ag business episode I am profiling a company using a new concept of social media to improve farming and share farming methods all over the world.  I thought replaying a solo episode I did about how to use Linkedin to grow your business would fit in nicely for our re-cap episode.  So, I am replaying episode #678 for you today. Below are the original show notes: Who Am I? I recently pu...

Tessa Camacho is the very first "featured freshman" guest to come on the Off-Farm Income Podcast.  And she came highly recommended by a previous guest, Mackenzie Camacho, who happens to be her older sister.  You might remember MacKenzie from episode #1195 when she was an American Star Finalist, and when I was lucky enough to meet her in person at the National FFA Convention in 2021. Tessa is part...

Today is the first time I've been behind the microphone since 6/21/22 and the first time I've been on the farm since 6/22/22.  I've got stories to share!  Plus, we are doing something special with FFA interviews for the rest of the summer.   More Places You Can Listen to Off-Farm Income And Matt Brechwald:    

Hi Everyone.  Just a quick episode today while I am out celebrating our Declaration Of Independence to say Happy Fourth Of July and thank you for all you do in agriculture! More Places You Can Listen to Off-Farm Income And Matt Brechwald:    

I was have not been in or anywhere close to the farm studio all week.  Since, I produce the rural crime episodes "fresh", the day before they publish each week, I was not able to produce one for you this week up to the quality standard that I hold myself to. In lieu of a "stale" rural crime episode I decided to share the rural crime prevention tips that I created for Sirius XM Channel 147 with you...

I did an episode a few months back titled "it was all because I wanted cattle".  Everything that is currently true about my present and future lifestyle can be traced back to this one desire.  Today's guest has the same type of story, and oh, where that has taken her. In addition to a love for cattle and a desire to have raising livestock be a part of her life, Eliza Walton has hustle....major hus...

Tomorrow I am profiling a young lady that has dove into the feed business in a huge way.  As a great lead in to that interview, I chose to replay this powerful interview with Sandy Hansen-Wolff about the challenges she faced and the things she overcame in establishing her own feed and see business. The original show notes can be found below.   SHOW NOTES KEY IDEAS:  Our guest today was thrust into...

I've done two interviews with students from New Hampshire in the history of the show, and today is #2.  What a fascinatingly different way of life then I am used to in the West! Our guest today is a lobster fisherman.  Ella Byrne has grown up in the lobster industry with an entrepreneurial father who is a self-taught lobsterman and also has a maple syrup business on land.  Ella has been fishing lo...

Have you ever heard of "peecycling"?  Apparently it is a thing, and today let's talk about it.  With these fertilizer prices, anything is worth considering! More Places You Can Listen to Off-Farm Income And Matt Brechwald:    

Holden Nuhn first appeared on the Off-Farm Income Podcast back in 2019 when he was a 9th grader on episode #623 .  This was before Covid, and we had no idea what was coming!  Back then I was so impressed with his "could-do" attitude, and how he had found a way to show dairy animals even though he didn't have any of his own. On Today's episode, Holden is back!  We are going to be catching up on wha...

Tip Of The Week Steel, Copper & Fuel are all expensive - guard anything of value right now. Rural Crime In The U.S. https://www.salina.com/story/news/2022/06/15/salina-grain-elevator-sees-theft-over-30-k-copper-wire/7610694001/ https://www.wbko.com/2022/06/15/ohio-county-sheriffs-office-searching-stolen-vintage-plow/ https://www.14news.com/2022/06/14/mpd-looking-stolen-skid-steer-belonging-pollard...

Soooo, you want to know what my favorite business that I've ever profiled on the show is do you?  Well, I still can't pick, but a brewery where delicious beers, delectable meals and lots of fun are all located has to be in the top three! Today's guests, Trent and Vicki Bushner, are full-time farmers in Yuma County, Colorado.  And for the past 25+ years, Trent has just happened to be a hobby brewer...

Tomorrow we are featuring a farm couple who has started a fun and successful brewery in Eastern Colorado.  I thought a look back and the opportunities surrounding hop farming would fit right in. Below are the original show notes: SHOW NOTES KEY IDEAS:  I have three themes that I want to cover this week.  All of them have to do with entrepreneurship: Hop Farming Business Opportunities Currently we...

I am always happy and honored when a listener reached out and requests to be part of the show.  Sometimes it is a fit, and sometimes it is not, but I am always thrilled that they want to be part of what we are doing here.  Our guest today is one such listener.  Kyleigh Render is a very impressive FFA student.  She will be "graduating" from high school in one month, but there is a twist to her stor...

I have been saying for quite sometime that direct marketing grass finished beef at a premium price was the equivalent of selling a luxury item and that when the economy got bad there would be less customers for this type of product.  I've also been curious about the entire local food movement that has been growing and thriving for so many years now. I believe that it is a foregone conclusion that...

Rarely does this happen, but today's interview features the daughter of my previous Friday episode guest.  Shelby Shuman has just finished her junior year of high school, and she has been conducting auctions since she was twelve years old.  Early on in her auction career she knew she wanted to start her own business, but she never really implemented it until her freshman year of high school when s...

Tip Of The Week Keep you cell phone with you around the farm: https://wgno.com/technology/man-tracks-apple-watch-to-find-sons-stolen-car/ Rural Crime In The U.S. https://ktvo.com/news/local/man-uses-fake-67500-check-to-steal-tractor-hay-rake-from-outside-memphis https://whky.com/tractor-truck-stolen-from-springs-road/ https://www.turnto23.com/news/crime/kcso-seeks-help-iding-farm-equipment-theft-s...

Is there any more fundamental business to the world of agriculture than that of auctioneering?  I say "no".  Auctioneers have been there in good times and in bad times, whenever folks need to sell farms, ranches, equipment or otherwise, for whatever reason.  The auctioneer is always there trying to maximize what these folks get for their lifetime of work and for their next chapter. Today's guest,...

On tomorrow's ag business episode we are featuring a gentleman who has made an interesting career out of auctioning farm and ranch real estate.  On the following Monday we are featuring his daughter, who is in the FFA and is also an auctioneer.  It is a complete look into the world of this interesting and fundamental career.  So, for our re-cap episode this week I wanted to take a look back at som...