Arizona Agriculture Connection with Maricopa County Farm Bureau

This episode of Arizona Agriculture Connection focuses on Suicide Awareness Month and why suicide prevention matters in agriculture, citing 2024 U.S. figures of 48,824 deaths by suicide and millions more who considered, planned, or attempted. The host explains that farmers and agricultural workers are about twice as likely to die by suicide, describing unique stressors such as lack of control over...

The episode recaps September agriculture news, highlighting the Bureau of Reclamation’s finalized 10-year Colorado River plan featuring smaller, shared lower-basin cuts totaling 1.25 million acre-feet, with Arizona taking the largest share: a 760,000 acre-feet cut through 2028 plus 300,000 acre-feet in voluntary savings. It notes Lake Powell release adjustments could occur if elevations drop below...

In this farm edition of Arizona Agriculture Connection, Clint Gladden of Gladden Farms and Saddle Mountain Dairy shares the history and structure of his fourth-generation family operation in Buckeye/Palo Verde, where they milk about 4,000 cows and farm 3,000 acres growing alfalfa, corn, sorghum, triticale, and wheat for silage. Clint manages the farm side while his older brother Josh manages the d...

This week’s Arizona Agriculture Connection reports that wheat futures falling after Russian media said Russia is taking steps to protect grain vessels amid the war with Ukraine; Russia is the world’s largest wheat exporter with USDA estimating 46 million metric tons expected to ship. President Trump announced an executive order allowing 300,000 metric tons of ground beef imports under lowered tari...

In this episode of Arizona Agriculture Connection, Nicole Clements talks with Noel Carter, General Manager of the Buckeye Water Conservation and Drainage Districts, and Stan Barnes, President of Copper State Consulting Group, about water management challenges and developments in Arizona. The conversation delves into the complexities of water policy, including different types of water sources, hist...

This episode congratulates Sine Kerr on her nomination to Biggs’ ticket for Arizona’s inaugural lieutenant governor position, noting her long-time support of agriculture, current role as director of the Arizona Farm Service Agency, and Farm Bureau leadership training that helped her move from the dairy farm to the Arizona Senate. Federally, the farm bill stalled in the Senate Ag Committee on a 10–...

The episode features Joanna Allhands, a former Arizona Republic opinion writer and new Arizona Farm Bureau team member, discussing her journalism path from Indiana to Arizona via the Pulliam Fellowship and a 21-year career at the Republic. She describes the difficulty of leaving a “calling job,” the rapid shift in news consumption toward fractured, social-media-driven echo chambers after 2016, and...

In a remote recording of Arizona Agriculture Connection live from Flagstaff’s Little America Hotel during the Arizona Farm Bureau Women’s Leadership Committee Summer Agricultural Conference, Nicole introduces agriculture communications intern Holly Anderson and discusses her first three weeks in the internship. Holly describes discovering agriculture through high school FFA, competing in public sp...

Today, Nicole previews the upcoming Summer Agricultural Conference, noting half a day Thursday and a full day Friday, with keynote speaker Sierra Anthony of Butcher Solutions, a cutting demonstration, and a chance to win meat, and encourages registration at azfb.org/events. The episode revisits a live conference conversation with former state senator and current Arizona Farm Service Agency (FSA) e...

This week, Nicole highlights federal agriculture updates while the state legislature is on break. The Great American State Fair runs through July 10 on the National Mall, with the Arizona Department of Agriculture showcasing Arizona agriculture. In Congress, House Ag Committee Chair Rep. G.T. Thompson has proposed the Securing Agriculture’s Workforce Act of 2026, noting immigration reform has not...

The episode recaps Arizona’s 57th Legislature ending sine die on June 13 at 4:45 AM, noting Arizona Farm Bureau tracked over 200 bills. Laws signed include SB 1198 (Arizona Beef Council and Veterinary Medical Examining Board), SB 1335 (Groundwater Savings Credits), SB 1336 (State Land Department continuation and oversight), HB 2104 (Agricultural Property Classification and Inspection), and HB 2105...

In this Arizona Agriculture Connection episode, Nicole is on site as she interviews Queen Creek poultry producer Brittany Quigg, highlighting women in agriculture. Quigg is an Arizona native and longtime Queen Creek resident, describes starting in 4H, teaching herself poultry processing after raising a turkey for the state fair, and forming Moonlight Rose Farms in 2019 to sell eggs at farmers mark...

In this Dairy Month episode of Arizona Agriculture Connection, Nicole welcomes back Dr. Michelle Schack (“the Dairy Doc”), the show’s first-ever guest, to discuss her new children’s book, Dairy Doc’s Discovery Goggles: Milk from Cow to Carton. Schack, a dairy cow veterinarian and mom, wrote the book after frequent questions and misinformation about milk on farms and social media; she also intervie...

This week, we are back from a DC trip with federal, state, and Farm Bureau updates. The USDA confirmed the first US detection of New World screwworm in nearly 60 years in South Texas on June 3, 2026, with additional cases in Zavala, La Salle, and Gillespie Counties, Texas, and Lee County, New Mexico; there are currently zero cases in Arizona. Containment depends on rapid producer detection and rep...

Live from Washington, DC, at the American Farm Bureau ACE Conference, during the International Year of the Woman Farmer, Nicole interviews Chilean farmer and Virginia Tech researcher Ale Aguirre. Aguirre shares her background running a family farm in Coyanco, Chile, previously exporting organic blueberries and hydrangeas worldwide and now focused on alfalfa for local livestock. She is completing a...

In this episode of Arizona Agriculture Connection, Nicole interviews Shawn Wood, First Vice President of Arizona State Farm Bureau. Shawn shares her background growing up on a farm in Buckeye, Arizona, her initial aspiration to become a commercial pilot, and her eventual return to her agricultural roots. She discusses the significant challenges and leadership roles she has undertaken within the ag...

Today, Nicole interviews Sherry Saylor on Arizona Agriculture Connection from Saylor’s office at Buckeye Elementary, where she is retiring after 40 years as a school counselor. Saylor recounts moving from South Carolina to Buckeye in 1974 after her father-in-law sold a Phoenix-area farm due to urban encroachment, and how Farm Bureau helped her learn agriculture and find her role as a spokesperson...

The Mid-May Ag Report covers Arizona Capitol updates as the House passed a state budget package 33–22 and the Senate approved it, but Governor Hobbs vetoed the 16-bill package, sending it back to negotiations; with her bill moratorium still in place, non-budget bills are largely on hold as lawmakers return June 1 and aim to pass a budget before the June 30 deadline to avoid a shutdown. The 2026 se...

This week, Nicole dives into an update on state and federal policy and encourages participation in Farm Bureau advocacy. She notes that the Arizona legislative session is past 100 days, with attention on budget negotiations as bill movement slows under a governor’s signing moratorium. Federally, the Farm Food and National Security Act of 2026 (Farm Bill 2.0) is being heard in the U.S. House, and v...

In this episode of Arizona Agriculture Connection, Nicole reports that state legislative activity has slowed after Governor Hobbs announced a moratorium on signing bills until the legislature sends her its budget, vetoing measures that arrived afterward. Lawmakers are working on their budget while the finance advisory committee revised April state finance projections from $577 million to $377 mill...

This week, Nicole interviews Maricopa County Farm Bureau government relations intern Gabriel Flores on Arizona Agriculture Connection. Gabe is an ASU sophomore double majoring in sustainability and business management, shares his ranch upbringing in Queen Creek and how he found the internship through a friend. He discusses career interests in sustainable energy (SRP/APS), consulting to reduce carb...

The update covers Arizona legislative activity as major committee work concludes and the focus shifts to floor action, while budget negotiations await resolution of Propositions 1, 2, and 3 funding totaling about $300 million in a tight fiscal year; adjournment is estimated for late April, with budget work possibly extending into June. Key bills discussed include SB 1519 on off-highway vehicle wei...

Nicole, host of Arizona Agriculture Connection, gives many thanks to attendees, sponsors, members, speakers, and elected officials for a successful Farm City Breakfast celebrating National Ag Week and National Ag Day. She notes a stakeholder meeting with the Maricopa County Flood Control Division and requests input on concerns to inform the department’s 2026 management plan and priorities. The nex...

In this episode of Arizona Agriculture Connection, Nicole reunites with Eric Wilke of Arizona Grain for a markets-focused update. Wilke shares his background in commodity markets and explains Arizona Grain’s diversified roles in inputs, marketing (including durum wheat), animal feed, consumer bird seed, and locally bred crop genetics. He discusses how the “one big beautiful bill” strengthened agri...

Today on Arizona Agriculture Connection, Nicole recaps a busy March for Arizona Farm Bureau, highlighting key events like the record-breaking Strikeout Hunger food drive at Surprise Stadium, Pi Day outreach at the capitol by the Women’s Leadership Committee, an agribusiness roundtable hosted by the Arizona Department of Agriculture, and Ag Fest with legislators. It also invites listeners to the Ma...