NEXT MONTH: From Jonathan Eisenthal via Minnesota Corn, VERBATIM: “A big focus of the 2025 Soil Management Summit is how to successfully reduce tillage in a Minnesota cash crop operation. The 2025 agenda features sessions on nutrient management, cover crops 101, and pests as well as getting nutrients applied with reduced tillage, strip-till 101, and when to employ strategic tillage. The two day event, January 29 and 30 at the Mayo Event Center in Mankato, will draw experts and technicians from across the Midwest, in part because it takes place in conjunction with the Midwest Cover Crop Council annual meeting.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/41gEspc (SPONSORED: Minnesota Corn Growers Association)
SOLAR: From Mark Dorenkamp via Brownfield, VERBATIM: “Solar farms displacing productive farmland will likely remain a sensitive topic among farmers in 2025. Minnesota Farmers Union president Gary Wertish says solar sites should not be located on prime crop ground. ‘But then I see the investments (by) utilities (so) they want it close to their transmission lines, and it’s more economic for them to do that. But it is a concern, we don’t want to lose prime farmland. But then again it gets to be a property rights issue too.’ He tells Brownfield another concern is landowners who don’t actively farm.” LISTEN: https://fluence-media.co/3VqB0oa
BIRD FLU: Via USDA, VERBATIM: “Today, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) is announcing the start of its National Milk Testing Strategy (NMTS), which builds on measures taken by USDA and federal and state partners since the outbreak of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) H5N1 in dairy cattle was first detected in March 2024. Today, USDA is issuing a new Federal Order, as well as accompanying guidance, requiring that raw (unpasteurized) milk samples nationwide be collected and shared with USDA for testing. This new guidance from USDA, which was developed with significant input from state, veterinary and public health stakeholders, will facilitate comprehensive H5N1 surveillance of the nation’s milk supply and dairy herds.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/3VrdEPs
GOODNEWS: MNGood – the good stories of Minnesota from non-profits, philanthropy and corporate giving. SIGNUP: https://fluence-media.co/MNGOODSignUP
Check out all the episodes of Sunday Take on 830 WCCO. CLICK: https://fluence-media.co/3KsuDrZ
WORKFORCE: From Mark Dorenkamp via Brownfield, VERBATIM: “There are concerns layoffs across the agriculture workforce will continue. Ag economist Christopher Pudenz with Iowa Farm Bureau says a 2024 study showed at least 23 ag-related businesses in Iowa have let more than 4,000 employees go through mid-September.” PUDENZ: “And fundamentally, the downturn that we have in this ag economy starts at the farm gate. Net farm incomes are down (in Iowa) between 20 and 25 percent over the past two years.” LISTEN: https://fluence-media.co/49msV9P
DROUGHT: The new Drought Monitor reflecting data as of Tuesday shows little change from a week earlier – 89% of the state remained abnormally dry with 57% in drought. MAP: https://fluence-media.co/3zN8TDo
MOROCCO: From USDA Foreign Ag Service via X, with an update on a trade mission joined by representatives from the Minnesota Department of Agriculture and Minnesota Soybean Growers. VERBATIM: “Last tour of the @USDA FAS Morocco Agribusiness mission! We took a tour of @TM_Officiel #TangerMed Africa’s hub, serving nearly 40 ports and 22 countries in Africa.” PHOTOS: https://fluence-media.co/4gkwuQ6
DAIRY: From Mark Dorenkamp via Brownfield, VERBATIM: “A Minnesota dairy farmer hopes improvements to the dairy safety net are included in the next farm bill. Fran Miron of Hugo says Dairy Margin Coverage calculations need to be updated to reflect current costs of production. ‘And what farmers need in the way of a return to continue to survive out there.’ He tells Brownfield the lack of an adequate safety net has resulted in many small and medium-sized dairies going out of business.” LISTEN: https://fluence-media.co/3Bq6G6b
EXCELLENCE IN AG: From Mary Divine via Pioneer Press, VERBATIM: “Fourth-generation dairy farmer Luke Daninger of Forest Lake recently won the Minnesota Farm Bureau Federation Young Farmers & Ranchers Excellence in Agriculture competition and will represent Minnesota in the national competition in San Antonio next month. Daninger, 34, is an agronomy sales manager with Ag Partners Coop in Goodhue, Minn., and works at his family’s farm, Autumnwood Farms, in Forest Lake. The 110-cow dairy has been in the family since 1902; the family built the creamery in 2008.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4gkDLPW
CHRISTMAS: From Audrey Kletscher Helbling via Owatonna People’s Press, VERBATIM: “It was, in some ways, like going back to my childhood family farm in southwestern Minnesota. But rather than traveling 120 miles, I arrived from neighboring Faribault at Souba Greenhouse, a farm site and business on the western edge of Owatonna, for ‘Christmas on the Farm.’” READ/PHOTOS: https://fluence-media.co/49pujZb
INTEREST: From Mark Dorenkamp via Brownfield, VERBATIM: “Interest can be a hidden cost farmers need to manage. Joe Barker is with CHS Hedging. ‘When I talk to farmers about marketing their crop, I try to remind them about the cost of money and what can happen to them on interest costs.’ He tells Brownfield recent data from the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City shows the average interest rate for an operating note is about 8.3 percent.” LISTEN: https://fluence-media.co/4f9XMaO
DEADLINE: From MDA via X, VERBATIM: “Reminder: Applications for our Sustainable Agriculture Demonstration Grant, which funds innovative sustainability-focused research or demonstration projects on Minnesota farms, are due by 12/12/24.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/3OK45Y8
GRANTS: Via Agweek, VERBATIM: “The Taylor Family Farms Foundation recently awarded 17 grants totaling $300,000 to support rural improvements and child care needs in small towns in southern Minnesota. The Taylor Grants, supported by a donation from Glen Taylor, were distributed by the Southern Minnesota Initiative Foundation (SMIF), and went to support rural improvements and child care needs in small towns of 10,000 or less in SMIF’s 20-county region, according to Tim Penny, president and CEO of SMIF.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/3OKQ1gI
FORUM: If you’re interested in having the Fluence Forum host a topic, please contact Blois Olson at bloisolson@gmail.com
SOYBEANS: From Mark Dorenkamp via Brownfield, VERBATIM: “Soybean cyst nematode resistance is an ongoing challenge for farmers. Iowa State University professor Greg Tylka says two decades of heavy use of PI88788 soybean varieties built up resistant SCN populations, so more growers are turning to Peking varieties.” TYLKA: “We see sometimes 20 bushel per-acre yield increases from switching from PI88788 resistance to Peking resistance, so farmers need to embrace that.” LISTEN: https://fluence-media.co/4f8FN4F
TURKEYS: From Michael Johnson via Agweek, VERBATIM: “Imagine almost 5,000 elementary students entering a barn filled with 40,000 turkeys. It’s not something that happens these days with important biosecurity measures in place. The technological advances of a virtual field trip provided by Minnesota Agriculture in the Classroom make it possible. That’s what happened just two days before Thanksgiving, Nov. 26, on a virtual field trip that is available for viewing on YouTube now, but was seen live by about 230 Minnesota classrooms during a half-hour tour. The trip was targeted toward kindergarten through fifth-grade students and brought in classrooms from all corners of the state. It was a near-record crowd for the tour, according to Sue Knott, Minnesota Ag in the Classroom education specialist.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/3VsWgK2
Copyright © 2024 Fluence Media, All rights reserved.
As someone who subscribed, or as a member of the Minnesota AgriGrowth Council you are receiving this email.
Our mailing address is:
Fluence Media
PO Box 270031
Golden Valley, MN 55427