By Jimmy Dula, NFU Intern The United States farm bill, as one would expect, addresses agricultural issues such as trade, conservation, and crop insurance. Some would be surprised, however, to learn that food stamps and nutrition programs are also included in the bill. In fact, the 2014 Farm Bill allocated $756 billion in spending over 10 years … Read More
By Lura Roti, South Dakota Farmers Union Traditionally, Lakotas don’t have a background in farming or ranching, but they do have a strong heritage of cowboying and rodeo, explains Elsie Meeks. Meeks, 62, ranches on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation with her husband, Jim, 71. “The Lakotas were a horse nation. Horses were essential to … Read More
Are you a fruit or vegetable producer? LiveWell Colorado and UpRoot are conducting a survey on gleaning, and they need your help. Gleaning is the act of gathering leftover produce after a harvest. “Leftover” produce includes seconds, imperfects, or produce that will not be sold or distributed for any reason – in other words, produce that … Read More
By Jimmy Dula, NFU Intern For the past several months, we have been talking about how you, as a farmer, can access markets through technology, value-added goods, institutions, and more. Today, we’re going to flip the tables and talk about how markets can access you. Farmers feed people, a fact at the core of who we are … Read More
By Lura Roti, South Dakota Farmers Union Middle of Nowhere might be the best way to describe the location of Pat and Barb Clark’s ranch, which is located on native rangeland 40 miles southeast of Lemmon and 30 miles east of Meadow. Homesteaded in 1915 by his grandfather, Avery Clark, and great-uncle, Harry, the Clarks, … Read More
By Kriss Marion, Owner and Operator of Circle M Market Farm In America, children are fond of computer games. When my children were young, they played games called Age of Empires and Rise of Nations for hours. These games, still popular today, are strategy-based storylines for which each scenario begins with collecting resources – sheep, coal, … Read More
By Jimmy Dula, NFU Intern Diversity may be the hottest buzz word for agriculture, both large and small. Relying on one product or commodity to support the entire farm can be a gamble, putting the operation at higher risk. As farmers, we need to expand our approach to diversifying farm revenue to access as many potential markets as possible. We have … Read More
By John Hendrickson, Stone Circle Farm and Small Farm Works Tools and equipment appropriate for small-scale, highly diversified vegetable farms have been a passion of mine for a long time. I discovered one of my favorite tools about 12 years ago while living in Japan. I was abroad with my wife, who was doing international … Read More
By Thomas Driscoll, Director of Conservation Policy and NFU Foundation Whether growing grain and hauling it to the same elevator your grandparents did, raising vegetables to sell to your neighbors, managing a small herd or a big one, beginning producers seek greater efficiencies for their farms and ranches. Running an operation efficiently is critical for … Read More
By Lura Roti, South Dakota Farmers Union While some ranchers are nervous about what will happen to their operation when they are ready to retire, David and Brenda Reis are not too worried. “All of our kids want to take over the ranch. That would not be sustainable, but the one thing about having a … Read More