The Off Farm Income Podcast

Tip Of The Week Bluetooth padlocks – play audio below https://www.offincome.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/Bluetooth-Padlocks-12721-6.33-PM.mp3 Rural Crime In The U.S. https://www.ktvq.com/news/montana-ag-network/montana-livestock-brand-re-record-deadline-dec-31  Across The Pond, Down Under And Up Above https://www.eastbourneherald.co.uk/news/people/eastbourne-police-say-dog-attacks-on-sheep-leave-scene-like-a-horror-story-3496680 https://bc.ctvnews.ca/2-arrested-after-attempted-theft-at-farm-on-flood-damaged-sumas-prairie-1.5710575 https://www.farmersjournal.ie/ford-tractor-stolen-in-kildare-668526 Chalk One Up For The Good Guys https://fremonttribune.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/fremont-man-found-guilty-in-connection-with-farm-burglary/article_dc500ea5-1195-5687-b3b7-225fcb04394c.html Teens arrested after stolen tractor involved in ‘several’ hit-and-runs More Places You Can Listen to Off-Farm Income And Matt Brechwald:        

I know I shouldn’t, but sometimes I look at the U.S. as two sets of people – “Ag” and “Non-Ag”.  Of course, I consider myself to be on “Team Ag”, and I also see that our team is extremely outnumbered….something like 98 to 2!  So, when I conduct an interview with a student that comes from a “non-ag” background, got involved in the FFA and now is not just a proponent for agriculture but is going to work in the industry and be highly successful, well, I have a big smile.  And I think, “Yes! We moved a great person over to our team!”. Today’s guest is a great example of one of these folks.  Lashawna Vogel has so many positive attributes and has accomplished so much already that it is impracticable to try and list them all here.  With that said, the thing that stands out to me, so big, is that she grew up outside of agriculture.  One of her aunts encouraged her to take ag classes and join the FFA because she knew how positive it could be for Lashawna.  Lashawna gave it a shot, and the rest, as they say, is history! Actually, it is not quite history yet.  Lashawna is still competing and accomplishing a lot in the FFA.  Right now she is serving as a state officer for the State Of Wisconsin.  And, she is one of just four national proficiency finalists in the category of Agricultural Communications!  She has been working as a “media intern” in the FFA since her 8th-grade year when she was awarded that position in her middle school chapter.  She continued that throughout high school and has grown her skill set more and more each year. Now, that exposure, the training, and the challenges are all culminating in national recognition.  She is also pursuing a degree in agricultural marketing and communications and plans on advocating for agriculture through the medium in the future. Those of us on “Team Ag” are truly lucky to have had Lashawna join the team! SUPERVISED AGRICULTURAL EXPERIENCE: Ag Communications HIGH SCHOOL: Denmark High School, Denmark, Wisconsin MASCOT: Vikings FFA ADVISOR: Mary Handrich CONTACT INFORMATION FOR LASHAWNA VOGEL: Click on the picture below to be taken to the Denmark High School website: Lashawna’s FFA Advisors’ Email Address: handrichm@denmark.k12.wi.us Denmark High School’s Telephone Number: 920-863-4200 Support FFA  Donate to FFA – One way that FFA students are able to start small businesses is through an FFA grant of $1,000.  In 2014, 141 FFA students received these grants.  With your donations, more students can get this head start – pay it forward. REASONS TO DONATE TO FFA: Only 2% of Americans grow and raise most of the food and livestock consumed by the other 98% as well as the rest of the world.  FFA is providing the needed education, training, and resources to Americans that will carry that torch forward and ensure that America continues to have inexpensive, quality food. Rural Communities will rely on entrepreneurship in the future for population growth and job creation.  The FFA is a major catalyst to that entrepreneurial growth. Farmers, ranchers, and those working in agriculture give the rest of America incredible amounts of freedom because the search for food is as simple as going to the grocery store: “Because American farmers are able to provide for so many of us, they give more and more of us the freedom to pursue goals and livelihoods beyond growing the food we need to survive.” U.S. Secretary of Agriculture, Tom Vilsack  More Places You Can Listen to Off-Farm Income And Matt Brechwald:        

SHOW NOTES\nINTRODUCING ANNA LINK!\nAs an entrepreneur, I really appreciate people who go out and seize opportunities.  Actually, people who create their own opportunities are the ones that impress me most of all.\r\n\nOur guest today, Anna Link, did just that, and that is how she wound up being on this show.  Anna reached out to me and another agricultural podcast host, Rob Sharkey, on Twitter and requested to be a podcast guest.  I had her send me an email and let me know what she has been doing in the FFA, and it was a no-brainer.  I booked her on the show right away.\r\n\nCreating her own opportunities seems to be a character trait of Anna’s, as requesting to be a guest on this show is certainly not the only time that she has done this.  Anna raises Hereford hogs, and she does so because they are so underrepresented in the show pig world.  But she did not stop there.  She started a Facebook group for people with Hereford hogs in Missouri.  That group has grown and now has spread across state lines.\r\n\nAnna also took the initiative to be part of the 4H as well as the FFA, as her parents were not pushing her to go that direction, she lives in town and does not have a farm.  Those efforts have led her in a good direction though, and she found herself serving as her chapter’s president as well as her area’s reporter.\r\n\nEnjoy this episode with this exciting young student.\r\n\nSUPERVISED AGRICULTURAL EXPERIENCE: Agricultural Communications, Bee Keeping & Pork Production\r\n\nHIGH SCHOOL: Moberly High School; Moberly, Missouri\r\n\nMASCOT: Spartans\r\n\nFFA ADVISOR: Mark Belcher\r\n\nCONTACT INFORMATION FOR ANNA LINK:\r\n\nClick on the picture below to be taken to the Moberly High School Ag. Department’s website:\r\n\n\r\n\nAnna’s FFA Advisor’s Email Address: markbelcher@moberlyspartans.org\r\n\nMoberly High School’s Telephone Number: 660.269.2600\r\n\nFFA LINKS:\r\n\nNational FFA Organization\r\n\nSupervised Agricultural Experiences (SAE’s)\r\n\nSupport FFA \r\n\nDonate to FFA – FFA students can start small businesses through an FFA grant of $1,000.  In 2014, 141 FFA students received these grants.  With your donations, more students can get this head start – pay it forward.\r\n\nREASONS TO DONATE TO FFA:\r\n\n\nOnly 2% of Americans grow and raise most of the food and livestock consumed by the other 98% and the rest of the world.  FFA provides the needed education, training, and resources to Americans that will carry that torch forward and ensure that America continues to have inexpensive, quality food.\r\n\nRural Communities will rely on entrepreneurship in the future for population growth and job creation.  The FFA is a major catalyst to that entrepreneurial growth.\r\n\nFarmers, ranchers, and those working in agriculture give the rest of America incredible amounts of freedom because the food search is as simple as going to the grocery store:\r\n\n\n“The future of American agriculture depends on the involvement and investment in America’s youth, In order to prepare for the population of tomorrow, we need to encourage America’s youth today, and show that careers in agriculture are profitable, rewarding, and vital.”. U.S. Secretary of Agriculture, Sonny Perdue\r\n\n \r\n\nMore Places You Can Listen to Off-Farm Income And Matt Brechwald:\n   \r\n

Subscribe To Our Weekly Email\r\n\n\n\n\r\n\n\r\n\n\n\n\n\n\nINTRODUCING  JAYLA WASHINGTON:\r\n\nIt is always difficult to quantify what I love about interviewing FFA students the most.  Each time I try I do come back to a common theme, and that is that the projects these students take on are all vision and almost no mitigation due to real-world realities.\r\n\nAs adults when we start a project or business we have to do it within certain confines.  We still need to make the mortgage payment, we don’t want to lose our life savings that are in the 401K, we have to keep enough time in our schedule to be a good spouse or parent, etc., etc.  These realities of adulthood can really scale back a project or even make it seem unworkable.\r\n\nWith FFA students they just aren’t subject to these things, and they can let their imaginations run wild.  Normally, by the time I have found out about them and invited them to be on the show, these ideas have turned into something wonderful.\r\n\nThat is definitely the case with today’s guest, Jayla Washington.  Jayla is in her third year of the FFA at Lowcountry Leadership Charter School in Hollywood, South Carolina.  Prior to entering the FFA Jayla had been observing her grandfather’s efforts to serve their community by growing vegetables and donating them to people in need in the surrounding community.  Of course, one of the major aspects of the FFA is service, so when Jayla became a member this seemed like a natural fit for her.\r\n\nThus began “Produce For All”, which is Jayla’s non-profit operation to provide organic, fresh, and healthy food into a local food desert in her area.  This started out with her networking with food banks to get food into these areas, but it has grown.  As of our interview, Jayla has been awarded a $1,000 SAE grant two years in a row.  The first year from the CCOF in Santa Cruz, California, and Bob Evans Farms this year.  Both of these grants have enabled her to expand her operation with equipment so she can produce even more organic produce to donate into her local food desert.\r\n\n\r\n\nJayla definitely has a vision.  She is a junior in high school right now, and one of the things she wants to do with this project before she graduates is turned it into a placement SAE for another FFA student.  She is planning on going to college in Alabama to study horticulture, and she wants somebody to continue to run this non-profit while she is away.  So at the same time that she is keeping organic produce flowing into an area where it is really needed she will be creating an SAE opportunity for another student.  Brilliant!\r\n\nJayla has discovered a career path that will help her to aid other people in need through being a horticultural therapist.  This was the first time that I had ever heard of this profession, but she explained to me how it works.  She is completely dedicated to service, and it is wonderful to see where is going to take this.\r\n\nConnect with Jayla’s Local Farm on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jaylas_local_farm/\r\n\nSUPERVISED AGRICULTURAL EXPERIENCE:  Produce For All | Jayla’s Local Farm\r\n\nHIGH SCHOOL:  Lowcountry Leadership Charter School, Hollywood, SC\r\n\nMASCOT:  Navigators\r\n\nFFA ADVISOR:  Katie Bell\r\n\nCONTACT INFORMATION FOR JAYLA WASHINGTON:\r\n\nClick on the picture below to be taken to the Lowcountry Leadership Charter School website:\r\n\n\r\n\nJayla’s FFA Advisors’ Email Address: kbell@lowcountryleadership.org\r\n\nLowcountry Leadership Charter School’s Telephone Number:  (843) 889-5527\r\n\nFFA LINKS:\r\n\nNational FFA Organization\r\n\nSupervised Agricultural Experiences (SAE’s)\r\n\nSupport FFA \r\n\nDonate to FFA – FFA students can start small businesses through an FFA grant of $1,000.  In 2014, 141 FFA students received these grants.  With your donations, more students can get this head start – pay it forward.\r\n\nREASONS TO DONATE TO FFA:\r\n\n\nOnly 2% of Americans grow and raise most of the food and livestock consumed by the other 98% and the rest of the world.  FFA provides the needed education, training, and resources to Americans that will carry that torch forward and ensure that America continues to have inexpensive, quality food.\r\n\nRural Communities will rely on entrepreneurship in the future for population growth and job creation.  The FFA is a major catalyst to that entrepreneurial growth.\r\n\nFarmers, ranchers, and those working in agriculture give the rest of America incredible amounts of freedom because the food search is as simple as going to the grocery store:\r\n\n\n“The future of American agriculture depends on the involvement and investment in America’s youth, In order to prepare for the population of tomorrow, we need to encourage America’s youth today, and show that careers in agriculture are profitable, rewarding, and vital.”. U.S. Secretary of Agriculture, Sonny Perdue\r\n\n \r\n\nMore Places You Can Listen to Off-Farm Income And Matt Brechwald:\n   \r\n

Hi everybody.  I want to talk to you about life today.  I heard from a good friend last night who I hadn’t talked to in a while.  All through our twenties he never quite had the coordination or ability to play sports that the rest of us did, and then in his 40’s he was diagnosed with a rare, degenerative disease that explained what had been going on all of that time.  And speaking with him last night, he told me that he was now having another issue, this time with his vision.  Soon he is going to be traveling to Salt Lake City to see a specialist to rule out a different syndrome.  \r\n\nAs I get to my late 40’s, I have been thinking about my parents some more recently.  My mom was diagnosed with lung cancer when she was 53 and died when she was 58.  Ironically, this episode is coming out on her birthday.  \r\n\nMy father was diagnosed with renal cancer when he was 62 and died when he was 67.  Both of them were heavy smokers, and both drank hard liquor nightly, for most of their lives.  I don’t smoke or drink more than the occasional beer, and I am hoping that is the difference maker that will allow me to outlive my parents average length of life of 62.5 years.  \r\n\nThis has been on my mind over the past couple of years, and it has definitely been influencing life decisions.  As an example, I had a very good friend reach out to my wife and I recently and invite our family to join hers on a cruise in 2022.  \r\n\nAs you all know, taking a vacation away from your farm is difficult enough, but this cruise leaves out of Miami and lasts for seven days.  In the lower 48 you cannot get further from Kuna, Idaho then Miami, Florida.  So, in and of itself this will be a difficult vacation for us to go on.  \r\n\nIn addition to that, Autumm and I ruled out cruises as vacations years ago.  We went on one together in 2006 to the “Mexican Riviera”.  I really enjoyed it, she did not.  It was the second cruise that each of us had ever gone on, and we decided that we would look at other vacations options in our life.  \r\n\nHowever, in light of my thinking about life and the fact that we all have an “off button” that God can press at any time I went to Autumm and asked her to make an exception and go on this cruise.  The me of 5 years ago might have passed on this opportunity, thinking we will have time to spend with these friends at some other time in the future.  However, the me of today doesn’t take that for granted and realizes that getting to spend that much time visiting and catching up with close friends is a rare gift, and knew that this was an opportunity that might not come again.  \r\n\nWorse yet, it was the type of opportunity that I could see myself looking back on as an elderly or terminally ill person and wishing that I had done.  I made up my mind to not have this particular regret when I reached one of those two stages of life.\r\n\nBack to my friend who now has the issue with his vision, he has always eaten better than me, exercised more and stayed more trim.  Yet, he has had an abundance of health issues that have limited his ability to do the things that we used to love doing together, like playing sports and hiking.  I don’t live as hard of a lifestyle as my parents, but I definitely could eat better, exercise more regularly and cut out the diet sodas.  So, on one hand my decisions are being impacted by my parent’s early deaths and on the other I know how fortunate I am when I see what my friend has been going through and how it has limited his life.  \r\n\nI do quite a bit of my computer work at a coffee shop called the Latte’ Da in Kuna.  There is something about the hustle and bustle and background noise that helps me to focus better than if I were sitting in my quiet studio at my house.  So this morning I got all the irrigation set, did a bit of feeding and gave bottles to our four kids who are still on the bottle.  Then I fed the dogs and cats, took a shower and hopped on my motorcycle and rode into town.  Finally the weather is getting nice enough for regular riding!\r\n\nWhen I got to the coffee shop I looked around and saw a number of people who, for one reason or another, were able to spend some leisure moments there there this morning.  Some looked like they might be retired, others might work weekends and have Mondays off and maybe some were like me and were entrepreneurs.  It is interesting to be an observer of this community that I call home as it transitions.  You have all heard me talk about the growth and loss of farms here as Kuna transforms from a farming community to a bedroom community for Boise.  If you come into town at around 7am on a weekday, especially in Winter when it is still dark, you see nothing but headlights on all the main roads in Kuna.  They are all headed one direction, and that is north – towards Boise.  \r\n\nAs soon as that morning commute is over, Kuna changes back to a small town.  The bulk of the population has left and gone to work in Boise, traffic reduces and the folks who are left either have the day off or don’t have to fight that commute for their jobs.  Either way, those of us who get to live and work in Kuna lead a much different life, and I always feel lucky to get to stay out here during the day.  \r\n\nI was looking around the coffee shop this morning and observing these “non-commuters” that inspired this episode.  I don’t know the real story of all of these people’s lives, but I know mine.  And thinking about mine, makes me think about yours.  \r\n\nThis June will make 8 years since I walked away from my career as a police officer so that I could stay out  here and be done with what’s in “there”.  That was the right decision for me.  Back then, having more time with my daughter before she was grown up and out of the house was the main reason for this decision.  That was long before I ever even thought about starting a podcast.  Today, my perspective has broadened, mostly because of being able to talk to all of you every week.  \r\n\nI want you all to live your best life with however much time you have left and however much physical health you have left.  Hopefully, all of you have multiple decades of life and quality of life left.  But again, there is that divine “off-button”.  I look around and see people my age with cancer and people who are supposed to be just starting their “golden years” getting diagnosed with terminal cancer for no apparent reason.\r\n\nWhen you see something like that, you can’t help but wonder why them and why not me.  That is totally natural.  It is actually a mild form of what people in the military and law enforcement know as “survivor’s guilt”.  When it is not you who doesn’t get killed or doesn’t get sick or doesn’t get killed in the traffic accident, you wonder “why not me”?\r\n\nIn the climactic scene of Saving Private Ryan, Tom Hanks tell Matt Damon to “earn this”.  Except for one soldier, Tom Hank’s complete company of about 8 men, are killed trying to save Private Ryan.  He is saved, and as Tom Hank’s character is dying he tells him to “earn this”.  Talk about the ultimate version of survivor’s guilt.  \r\n\nAt the end of the movie you see a man, broken down, begging his wife to tell him that he lived a good life.  Ultimately, he is coping with the survivor’s guilt and he realizes that it can only be assuaged by the knowledge that he didn’t take one day for granted. \r\n\nWhen I am on that cruise in 2022, I am going to smile everyday.  Not because of the decadence or the tropical location or the beautiful sites, but because I am going to value that time with my good friends so much and not take one day for granted.  \r\n\nWhen I decided to start this show, and I tried to figure out how to build this as a business there was a lot of advice out there on the internet.  People in this space instructed me to define my “avatar”.  What they meant was to define my ideal listener so I would know who I was talking to when I made these shows.  \r\n\nThis idea of my “avatar” is still fuzzy to me.  Doing a show like this for seven years will make that more fuzzy because I hear from so many of you, and none of you are exactly what I had pictured.  Really, how could you be?  \r\n\nBut when I make an episode like this, I find myself speaking to me.  The me that I was in 2010 before we bought our farm, before I started a business and when I thought that the life I am living now was only possible for other people.  Back then, I had a dream of the lifestyle that I am living now, but I didn’t dare allow myself to think of it.  It would make me depressed because I couldn’t find a way to make it happen.\r\n\nLooking back, it seems so simple, but I know that it is not.  Today, I am speaking to all of you who are in the position that I was in, back in 2010.  There is a different way to live, and I want to be the person who shows you that it is possible.  For those of us in this audience, this dream involves farming and staying out of the city.  \r\n\nThere are a myriad of people in this world who live in ways that nobody in the main stream are ever going to tell you are possible.  If somebody in your sphere of influence coming up through high school or in college told you that you could live differently than 99% of our population count yourself as very lucky and remember what they told you.  Most of us only hear about one path – get an education, get a job, buy a house and retire at age 65 with retirement being defined as the absence of work.  However, most of us never are told that we can do something unconventional that fulfills us while still providing us with an income, health insurance, the ability to have a home, etc.  \r\n\nIt’s funny, when Autumm and I talk about alternatives to our current work, we each have an example of somebody we saw living unconventionally that is our example of a path that would be interesting to us.  I think I should mention here that I love my life.  Off-Farm Income is not a bunch of B.S.  But I still have moments when I wonder about what I would do under different circumstances or if I could no longer life this way for some reason.  \r\n\nVacation is where you usually find these people who are living differently.  For Autumm, it is a woman that we saw leading an exercise program on the beach in Miami a couple of years ago.  I was going to a podcasting conference in Orlando, so the three of us flew to Miami a couple days early.  On the beach on day, Autumm, saw a woman, younger than her, leading an exercise class for people who were there on vacation.  She talks about doing this all the time.  \r\n\nFor spring break this year, Autumm, Hattie and I went to Hawaii for five days.  We had to comply with some extra provisions regarding Covid, but because Hawaii was just opening back up we got a really inexpensive trip over there.  \r\n\nI am new to the world of motorcycle riding, but I am hooked.  While we were there I rented a motorcycle and I had a day to myself, riding all over the island of Oahu.  I rented my motorcycle from a place called “Chase Hawaii Rentals”.  They are right in Waikiki, and the three of us walked over there one morning for me to pick up the bike that I had rented. \r\n\nThey are located on a small, corner lot, tucked back off of the main streets of Waikiki, so there was a bit less traffic and noise at their location.  There was a guy working there who gave all the riders instructions on the specific bikes and made sure that everything was running correctly.  \r\n\nI rented a Triumph Street Twin from them and had an incredible day.  I squeezed every minute out of that rental and returned it right around 5:30 pm that evening.  The same guy was still there, inspecting the motorcycles as people returned them.  Of course, everyone who was returning them were telling him all about their day and the great rides that they had.  \r\n\nOf course, I did the same, and it turned out that this guy had a brother who lived in Idaho and coached basketball at a high school.  We talked about motorcycles, riding in Hawaii and Idaho basketball for a while and then I walked back to the hotel.  \r\n\nThis guy found a way to live in paradise, make his living around motorcycles and to participate in what is most likely one of his customer’s best days every, every day!  Let me ask you.  If you are this guy, you love motorcycles, you love Hawaii and you love helping people have an incredible day, what else do you need?  This is the job that I think of, when Autumm and I talk about what we would do, it it were not this.  \r\n\nSo, it’s not all about vacations, and I am not suggesting that you are going to find something in which every moment of every day is absolute bliss.  However, let me be the voice that tells you that it is possible for you to find a way to live that is going to be unlike anything that anyone you know is doing.  Just because they don’t understand it, doesn’t mean that it is not possible.  \r\n\nLet me be the friend who understands what you want and encourages you to pursue it.  And let me be the friend who tells you that life is finite, quality of life should not be taken for granted and you should make whatever you are dreaming about happen before the opportunity passes you by and you are left with nothing but regret for not grabbing the opportunity when it was available.\r\n\nAnd last, let me be the person to tell you that if hard work with livestock or tractors, out in the weather is your definition of bliss than go for it!  There are thousands of weird people in this audience who have the exact same definition of a dream life.  Come be weird with the rest of us!  \r\n\nMore Places You Can Listen to Off-Farm Income And Matt Brechwald:\n   \r\n

Subscribe To Our Weekly Email\r\n\n\n\n\r\n\n\r\n\n\n\n\n\n\nINTRODUCING  BETHANY KELLER:\r\n\nThe tagline for the Off-Farm Income Podcast calls agriculture “the ultimate lifestyle business”.  I have made the argument for why this is true many, many times.  One thing that we have never really done is delved deeply into why people are so attracted to this lifestyle.  What is it that will make people work twice the hours for half the money just to be part of this group?\r\n\nOne answer to that is community.  It is the community that we are so fortunate to be part of in agriculture that pulls people in.  People in agriculture have old-fashioned values, and one of those old values is helping each other out.  I think what keeps that ever-present in agriculture and farming is the fact that any of us can find ourselves in a situation that we cannot get out of ourselves at any moment.  The need to call on neighbors or even strangers is always there.\r\n\nToday’s interview profiles exactly why we love this community so much.  It all starts with Bethany Keller.  Bethany is a senior at Newberry High School in Newberry, Florida.  She has been in their FFA chapter since middle school.\r\n\nAbout a year ago Bethany lost her grandfather to cancer.  About a month after that she began her 2021 fair project, which was a steer that she was going to show and then sell at her county fair in March of 2021.  Like any fair project, there is a lot of work involved, but with a steer, I think there is more.  You have to start sooner, your feed cost will be higher, your purchase cost will be higher, you have to halter break, you need bigger equipment to transport a steer – everything is magnified.\r\n\nTo get motivated for a project of this scope a student needs to see a reward on the other end.  Normally, that reward comes at the auction when you make money off of your steer.  This was Bethany’s motivation, and this was totally appropriate.  But about halfway to the fair Bethany found out that one of her friends had been diagnosed with cancer, and he and his family were facing significant medical bills.\r\n\nHer friend’s diagnosis changed everything for Bethany.  She decided then and there to forgo what she was going to make from the steer and to donate all the proceeds to help him with the medical bills.  He resisted, but she insisted and it was done.\r\n\n\r\n\nThe fair arrived in March, and the night prior to the auction she was taken around the show ring, and a fair representative told her story and what she was doing.  The following day at the auction, the auctioneer told the story again.  Then the bidding for her steer began.  By the time it was all said and done, Bethany’s community had bid her steer up to over $14,000.  She was able to provide a great donation to her friend and his family through her selflessness and the generosity of her community.\r\n\nThat is a community and lifestyle worth making sacrifices to be part of!\r\n\nSUPERVISED AGRICULTURAL EXPERIENCE:  Cattle Production\r\n\nHIGH SCHOOL: Newberry High School, Newberry, FL\r\n\nMASCOT:  Panthers\r\n\nFFA ADVISOR:  Amanda Burkett\r\n\nCONTACT INFORMATION FOR BETHANY KELLER:\r\n\nClick on the picture below to be taken to the Newberry High School website:\r\n\n\r\n\nBethany’s FFA Advisors’ Email Address:  burkettal@gm.sbac.edu\r\n\nNewberry High School’s Telephone Number:352-472-1101\r\n\nFFA LINKS:\r\n\nNational FFA Organization\r\n\nSupervised Agricultural Experiences (SAE’s)\r\n\nSupport FFA \r\n\nDonate to FFA – FFA students can start small businesses through an FFA grant of $1,000.  In 2014, 141 FFA students received these grants.  With your donations, more students can get this head start – pay it forward.\r\n\nREASONS TO DONATE TO FFA:\r\n\n\nOnly 2% of Americans grow and raise most of the food and livestock consumed by the other 98% and the rest of the world.  FFA provides the needed education, training, and resources to Americans that will carry that torch forward and ensure that America continues to have inexpensive, quality food.\r\n\nRural Communities will rely on entrepreneurship in the future for population growth and job creation.  The FFA is a major catalyst to that entrepreneurial growth.\r\n\nFarmers, ranchers, and those working in agriculture give the rest of America incredible amounts of freedom because the food search is as simple as going to the grocery store:\r\n\n\n“The future of American agriculture depends on the involvement and investment in America’s youth, In order to prepare for the population of tomorrow, we need to encourage America’s youth today, and show that careers in agriculture are profitable, rewarding, and vital.”. U.S. Secretary of Agriculture, Sonny Perdue\r\n\n \r\n\nMore Places You Can Listen to Off-Farm Income And Matt Brechwald:\n   \r\n

Tip Of The Week\r\n\nIf The Price Is Too Good To Be True, Do Some Investigation Before You Purchase\r\n\nRural Crime In The U.S.\r\n\nhttps://www.chattanoogan.com/2021/4/13/426607/Timber-Theft-Cases-Reported-Across-Tennessee.aspx\r\n\nhttps://www.kaplantoday.com/news/sheriff-warns-residents-recent-thefts-vermilion-parish\r\n\nhttps://www.bakersfield.com/news/catalytic-converter-theft-spreads-to-local-orchards/article_64965fca-994a-11eb-bcc6-c7e2cfce7cd7.html\r\n\nAcross The Pond, Down Under And Up Above\r\n\nhttps://www.fwi.co.uk/news/crime/more-ebay-tractor-scam-victims-tell-us-their-stories\r\n\nChalk One Up For The Good Guys\r\n\nhttps://www.newsdakota.com/2021/04/14/edgeley-man-sentenced-for-cattle-theft/\r\n\nhttps://www.avonandsomerset.police.uk/news/2021/04/two-men-charged-following-high-value-farm-thefts/\r\n

SHOW NOTES\r\n\nToday’s Friday episode is a little bit different than normal.  There are two major points of value in this episode.  First, is the lesson that when you take the step to reach out to others for help or advice you just never know where it will take you.  Second, are some practical tips about how to start your own podcast for your own form of off-farm income. \r\n\nThe way this all started is that a young lady named Ashley Elsbernd, who is currently a junior at South Winneshiek High School, reached out to Warren Clark of AgPR Media for advice about starting her own podcast to profile the projects and accomplishments of her fellow FFA members.  Warren then referred her to me to see if I could help her.\r\n\nInstead of just trading some emails and answering some of her questions, I decided to have Ashley on the show and have her interview me.  This forced her to think up questions that she wanted answers to, and it took her way out of her comfort zone.  However, by the time it was all said and done, Ashley had completed her first-ever podcast interview, and she had the experience to take her deeper into her project.  Oh, and she and any of you who are interested had information that could help you to develop your own podcast as your form of off-farm income.\r\n\nI hope this was both helpful and entertaining for all of you.\r\n\n \r\n\nMore Places You Can Listen to Off-Farm Income And Matt Brechwald:\n   \r\n\n \r\n\n \r\n

SHOW NOTES\nKEY IDEAS: \r\n\nOne of the mantras of this show is that if you want to farm and to farm successfully you need to be willing to relocate.  This has everything to do with land prices and land quality.  If you live in an area that has inflated land prices due to land buyers that are not ag-related, your chances of making it and farming full-time decrease because of this increased land payment.\r\n\nI have never had a great answer, only a good one, for how to go about finding the right place outside of your area.  There are millions of farmable acres across the United States.  How can a person truly go find just the right spot?\r\n\nFortunately for me, I was connected to Steven Brockshus, the founder of Farm Finder, through the American Farm Bureau Federation.  In today’s episode, I get to speak with Steven all about this great business and website that he started that is designed to allow anyone to find the perfect piece of farm ground for their interests.  This can be done by entering the exact parameters you are looking for, checking the soil types, viewing the sale prices of comparable farms, etc.\r\n\nAnd, in addition to all of this, I get to profile a wonderful success story of a previous FFA national officer who has taken his time in the FFA to the next level.\r\n\nADVICE FROM STEVEN:\r\n\nPURPOSE: Know your purpose when you start a venture.  It is important to know where you are trying to go in order for you to get there.\r\n\nLIVE: When looking at farm ground it is really important to know whether or not you want to live there.  This really influences the decision process and how good of a farm you purchase.\r\n\nFINANCE: Have your financing in order and understand the numbers.  Without this, the best farm in the world might still fail.\r\n\nCONTACT INFORMATION:\r\n\nWebsite: https://www.farmlandfinder.com/\r\n\nFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/FarmlandFinder\r\n\nTwitter: https://twitter.com/FarmlandFinder\r\n\nLinkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/farmlandfinder/\r\n\nEmail: steven@farmlandfinder.com\r\n\nMore Places You Can Listen to Off-Farm Income And Matt Brechwald:\n   \r\n\n \r\n

Subscribe To Our Weekly Email\r\n\n\n\n\r\n\n\r\n\n\n\n\n\n\nINTRODUCING JENNA SPANGLER:\r\n\nObviously, the reason that I started interviewing FFA students was their involvement in entrepreneurship.  The way that the FFA facilitates exposure and learning in entrepreneurship is second to none.  And, as the title of this episode suggests it really is an entrepreneurship incubator.\r\n\nThat is very apparent in our interview with today’s guest, Jenna Spangler.  Jenna is a very competitive person, and upon joining the FFA she found that this organization served her competitive spirit very well.  Through a myriad of different contests and competitions, she found exactly what she was looking for.  Then the day came that she wanted to go on a mission trip and needed to raise $150 to make this happen.  Jenna decided that she would make ice cream and sell it to people for the fundraiser and actually pre-sold what she needed to raise.\r\n\nThis motivation is what led Jenna to be exposed to business and entrepreneurship.  She found herself really enjoying making and selling products to other people and wanting to explore this further.  Well, she just happened to be in the FFA already.  Of course, this organization not only promotes but rewards entrepreneurship, and she found just the backing and encouragement that she needed.  This led her to seek out opportunities outside of the FFA to learn even more about entrepreneurship, and Jenna Lou’s Homemade Ice Cream was born.\r\n\nToday Jenna is preparing to finish high school and go to college to study in pursuit of growing this business even more.  She has reinvested her profits and upgraded her equipment, allowing her to produce even more ice cream in less time.  Jenna has a vision, and she has figured out what she needs to do to make that vision a reality.  It will be very exciting to see where this all goes.\r\n\nVisit Jenna Lou’s Homemade Ice Cream online here: https://www.facebook.com/jennalous.icecream\r\n\n \r\n\nSUPERVISED AGRICULTURAL EXPERIENCE:  Jenna Lou’s Homemade Ice Cream\r\n\nHIGH SCHOOL: Bushnell-Prairie City High School, Bushnell, IL\r\n\nMASCOT:  Spartans\r\n\nFFA ADVISOR:  Alison McGrew\r\n\nCONTACT INFORMATION FOR JENNA SPANGLER:\r\n\nClick on the picture below to be taken to the Bushnell-Prairie City High School website:\r\n\n\r\n\nJenna’s FFA Advisors’ Email Address:  mcgrewa@bpcschools.org\r\n\n Bushnell-Prairie City High School’s Telephone Number: ​309-772-2113\r\n\nFFA LINKS:\r\n\nNational FFA Organization\r\n\nSupervised Agricultural Experiences (SAE’s)\r\n\nSupport FFA \r\n\nDonate to FFA – FFA students can start small businesses through an FFA grant of $1,000.  In 2014, 141 FFA students received these grants.  With your donations, more students can get this head start – pay it forward.\r\n\nREASONS TO DONATE TO FFA:\r\n\n\nOnly 2% of Americans grow and raise most of the food and livestock consumed by the other 98% and the rest of the world.  FFA provides the needed education, training, and resources to Americans that will carry that torch forward and ensure that America continues to have inexpensive, quality food.\r\n\nRural Communities will rely on entrepreneurship in the future for population growth and job creation.  The FFA is a major catalyst to that entrepreneurial growth.\r\n\nFarmers, ranchers, and those working in agriculture give the rest of America incredible amounts of freedom because the food search is as simple as going to the grocery store:\r\n\n\n“The future of American agriculture depends on the involvement and investment in America’s youth, In order to prepare for the population of tomorrow, we need to encourage America’s youth today, and show that careers in agriculture are profitable, rewarding, and vital.”. U.S. Secretary of Agriculture, Sonny Perdue\r\n\n \r\n\nMore Places You Can Listen to Off-Farm Income And Matt Brechwald:\n   \r\n

I had an interesting opportunity pop up this weekend regarding consulting in my old field of law enforcement.  It is not something that I am pursuing, but it is something that could be lucrative and really rewarding.  Even though I was not interested, I have a friend who would be, and she is extremely qualified.\r\n\nToday I spoke with her on the telephone about this, and I couldn’t help but laugh at my commitment to my agricultural lifestyle.  As I was preparing three bottles of milk replacer for some bottle baby goats we have, I was talking with her about a possible six figure consulting gig that could take her all over the country and possibly the world.  I felt like that stereotypical actor in a movie who gave it all up and now feels jealous about his previous colleagues who are making it big.\r\n\nI will talk all about that and a bit of farm update on today’s show.\r\n\nMore Places You Can Listen to Off-Farm Income And Matt Brechwald:\n   \r\n

Subscribe To Our Weekly Email\r\n\n\n\n\r\n\n\r\n\n\n\n\n\n\nINTRODUCING ANNA RIDENOUR:\r\n\nI’ll start this post by saying happy birthday to today’s guest, Anna Ridenour, as her episode release date is on her 18th birthday!  And, that does not happen that often.\r\n\nAnna is the epitome of what can happen to a student when they get involved in the FFA.  I have seen more than once that a student who joins the FFA has a passion develop, they develop skills to serve that passion and they find themselves at a very advanced stage of life development by the time that they graduate from high school.\r\n\nIn Anna’s case, I have a hard time believing that there was ever a time that she did not have all the passion and enthusiasm that she currently has for agriculture, but those things grow over time.  Today, Anna is serving in multiple officer positions both at her chapter and regional levels, and she is pursuing a spot on the Minnesota State Officer Team.  She and her sister have been developing a sheep and goat business since they were seven years old, and they are seeing great success with this, selling livestock into over half of the states.\r\n\nAnna has her eye fixed on college next and veterinary school after that.  She has recognized that as a goat producer herself, her region of Minnesota does not have many veterinarians with significant knowledge about goats.  Since this is her passion and she wants to serve her community, she sees herself filling this void as a large animal vet.\r\n\nThere are a lot of lessons to be learned in this great interview.  One of the most important is how to find your passion.  It would be very easy to listen to Anna and believe that she has always known exactly what she wants to do, but that is not the case.  She is just so fired up about the FFA, farming, and life that she has tried a lot of things since joining the FFA in sixth grade.  This has not only resulted in success, but it has resulted in failure in some cases.  Most importantly, Anna has been able to identify what she is not passionate about by trying things that were not the right fit.\r\n\nThis is an important lesson.  Sometimes we identify our passion not by figuring it out, but by figuring out what is not our passion and looking at what options are left.\r\n\nSUPERVISED AGRICULTURAL EXPERIENCE:  Goat & Sheep Production\r\n\nHIGH SCHOOL: Triton High School, Dodge Center, MN\r\n\nMASCOT:  Cobras\r\n\nFFA ADVISOR: Robert Ickler\r\n\nCONTACT INFORMATION FOR ANNA RIDENOUR:\r\n\nClick on the picture below to be taken to the Triton High School website:\r\n\n\r\n\nAnna’s FFA Advisors’ Email Address:  rickler@triton.k12.mn.us\r\n\nTriton High School’s Telephone Number: (507) 418-7530\r\n\nFFA LINKS:\r\n\nNational FFA Organization\r\n\nSupervised Agricultural Experiences (SAE’s)\r\n\nSupport FFA \r\n\nDonate to FFA – FFA students can start small businesses through an FFA grant of $1,000.  In 2014, 141 FFA students received these grants.  With your donations, more students can get this head start – pay it forward.\r\n\nREASONS TO DONATE TO FFA:\r\n\n\nOnly 2% of Americans grow and raise most of the food and livestock consumed by the other 98% and the rest of the world.  FFA provides the needed education, training, and resources to Americans that will carry that torch forward and ensure that America continues to have inexpensive, quality food.\r\n\nRural Communities will rely on entrepreneurship in the future for population growth and job creation.  The FFA is a major catalyst to that entrepreneurial growth.\r\n\nFarmers, ranchers, and those working in agriculture give the rest of America incredible amounts of freedom because the food search is as simple as going to the grocery store:\r\n\n\n“The future of American agriculture depends on the involvement and investment in America’s youth, In order to prepare for the population of tomorrow, we need to encourage America’s youth today, and show that careers in agriculture are profitable, rewarding, and vital.”. U.S. Secretary of Agriculture, Sonny Perdue\r\n\n \r\n\nMore Places You Can Listen to Off-Farm Income And Matt Brechwald:\n   \r\n

Tip Of The Week\r\n\nFamiliarize yourself with your local crime stoppers page.\r\n\nRural Crime In The U.S.\r\n\nhttps://sanduskyregister.com/news/313827/reward-goes-up-for-farm-crime-info/\r\n\nhttps://www.katc.com/news/vermilion-parish/sheriff-warning-residents-of-recent-atv-four-wheeler-thefts\r\n\nAcross The Pond, Down Under And Up Above\r\n\nhttps://www.graincentral.com/news/crime-is-rife-on-farms-yet-reporting-remains-stubbornly-low/\r\n\nhttps://www.somersetcountygazette.co.uk/farmer/19218230.police-operation-easter-targets-wild-bird-egg-thieves/\r\n\nChalk One Up For The Good Guys\r\n\nhttps://news.yahoo.com/ec-man-gets-probation-large-015000192.html\r\n\nhttps://rivercountry.newschannelnebraska.com/story/43632945/airboats-drones-help-stop-thieves-in-floodstricken-nemaha-county\r\n\nMore Places You Can Listen to Off-Farm Income And Matt Brechwald:\n   \r\n\n \r\n

SHOW NOTES\r\n\nI know that the title of this episode might be a little bit misleading.  I mean, does anyone really get a full night’s sleep during calving season?  However, we here at Off-Farm Income have uncovered an innovation that we would like to share with you.  And, if the innovation works as advertised, and you grow to trust it, I believe you will get a lot of sleep during calving season. \r\n\nI want to give my disclaimer, the same way I always do when we profile a companies product or service.  These folks are not sponsors of our show, they have not paid us any money and we are not seeking them as a sponsor.  At the end of this interview, they did offer to send us some products to test, which we are going to do, but we reached out to them to profile this innovation because it sounds like it could be a game-changer for cattle farmers.\r\n\nToday I am interviewing Stephen Fagan.  He is the head of operations and design for Moocall.  Moocall is a company based in Dublin, Ireland that was founded by cattle farmers.  They have developed a system for calving detection on cattle and another one for heat detection in cattle.\r\n\nIn the interview, Stephen explains how both devices work as much as he can without giving away trade secrets.  He also talks about the benefits and what you can do with these devices.  This is a very exciting innovation in agricultural technology for knowing when a cow or heifer is about to calve when your cow has been serviced and whether or not she was settled.  I am excited to bring this to you today!\r\n\nConnect with MooCall:\r\n\n\r\n\nWebsite: https://moocall.com\r\n\nFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/moocall\r\n\nInstagram: www.instagram.com/moocallofficial\r\n\nTwitter: www.twitter.com/moocallofficial\r\n\nEmail: hello@moocall.com\r\n\n \r\n\nMore Places You Can Listen to Off-Farm Income And Matt Brechwald:\n   \r\n\n \r\n

Advice For The Beginning Cattle Farmer\nI have had two situations/conversations recently that have really made me want to ask everyone to hit the pause button for just a second before putting cattle on their places.  And this has really made me think about this a little bit deeper.\r\n\nLet me first start by saying that as a person who loves agriculture, wants to see agricultural land preserved, likes the diversity of people farming, and really enjoys cattle – I am all for people discovering this great animal and engaging in this industry.\r\n\nHowever, cattle are not a species of livestock that you can just decide you want to raise and then begin.  You really need to know what you are doing here, both for reasons of being humane and because of the impact on your financials.\r\n\nSmall livestock like goats, sheep, and even pigs can be easy to start out with.  But cattle are just too big for you to start off with if you have no experience and you don’t have the correct equipment.  The larger the animal, the less margin for error and less ability you will have to correct your mistakes.\r\n\nOnce you get a cow to shut off the thinking part of her brain and start running away from you with that thousand-yard stare, you are in big trouble.  My goal is for you to never hit that point.  But if you ever do, I want you to be able to handle it.\r\n\nWhat I Have Been Seeing\nThis is what I have been seeing recently that has caused me to make this episode.  I have been seeing too many instances of folks with zero experience raising cattle but who have purchased a property putting some cows on it with no other planning.  I’ve also seen these folks get themselves in a bit of a bind when it comes time to doctor the cows, catch the cattle or separate the cows from the bull.\r\n\nI think the mistake that so many people make is not seeing what is really going on around them.  As folks drive through the countryside you see cattle grazing peacefully on pastures or out on the range, and it is a pastoral scene that you would like to replicate on your own place.  But what you are not seeing is the time, experience, and planning that goes into achieving that scene.\r\n\nThere are a lot of very experienced cowboys and cowgirls out there who have loved cattle their entire lives and have been working with cattle their entire lives.  And if you get the chance to watch them work with cattle, they can make it look very easy.  But it is not.  This is one of those situations in which the person is so good at what they do, that they are making it look easy.\r\n\nIf you have never worked with cattle before, this like watching Stephen Curry hit a 3 point shot or Tiger Woods sink a 40 foot put and saying “I can do that”.  They make it look easy because they are professionals.  You are not.  There is a lifetime of practice, desire, and intuition between the head of that putter and the hole that the ball eventually drops in.  You, as the new cow farmer, have a long way to go.\r\n\nWhat Should You Do\n\nMake Friends With Neighbors\r\n\nReinforce Your Fences\r\n\nBe Picky About The Cattle You Buy\r\n\nGet The Correct Equipment\r\n\nGet Some Education\r\n\nLearn About Flight Zones And Pressure\r\n\nTeach Yourself To Walk Away\r\n\nGet Some Experience\r\n\nStart Slow\r\n\nSpend Time With Your Cattle\r\n\nLearn About Electric Fence\r\n\nKnow The Reasons That Cattle Will Push Fence\r\n\nRotate Your Pastures\r\n\n\nYou, Will, Get There\nI am excited for you, and you are going to get there.  But let’s not get in too big of a hurry.  You can get started pretty quickly with smaller livestock like goats, sheep, and even pigs.  But, if cattle are where you are headed, you need to really think about these things before you jump in.  If you don’t, you might end up losing a lot of money.  Worse yet, you might wind up with a cow that needs help you cannot give it because you can’t get it caught or can’t control it.\r\n\nMore Places You Can Listen to Off-Farm Income And Matt Brechwald:\n   \r\n\n \r\n

Subscribe To Our Weekly Email\r\n\n\n\n\r\n\n\r\n\n\n\n\n\n\nINTRODUCING ISAIAH HOPKINS:\r\n\nI have a lot of favorite businesses that I profile on the Off-Farm Income Podcast, and the business we will profile today is quickly becoming my favorite for FFA students. \r\n\nI have talked many times over the years about how I think the development of a lawn care business in the FFA can lead a student to unbelievable entrepreneurial success.  I have gone as far as to say that in the same way that the dry cleaning business was called the “future millionaire-maker” back in the 1980s and 1990s, I think the lawn care business takes its place as the “future millionaire-maker” of today.  Well, over time I have come to learn that there is an even more basic first step to this business, but it is a very important one.  That is the repair and maintenance of small engines.\r\n\nIn today’s episode, I am interviewing Isaiah Hopkins.  Isaiah has a vision for a future of business endeavors.  He is a junior in high school, and he is just getting started recognizing the possibilities by fixing up broken-down motorcycles and lawn equipment and then reselling them at a profit.  This is a natural lead-in to the lawn care business because small engine repair and a mechanical aptitude are so important there.  Also, the ability to find old equipment, sometimes for free, fix it up, and use it to make money with the best definition of “bootstrapping” I have ever heard!\r\n\nAs Isaiah gets more experience with his business, record keeping, and insuring a profit he is expanding into lawn care.  He sees this as the conduit that can help him make the money that will allow him to go into other entrepreneurial ventures like rental houses and storage units.  I believe he has an excellent plan, and the only thing that can stop him will be if he changes his mind!\r\n\nSUPERVISED AGRICULTURAL EXPERIENCE:  Dirtbike Refurbishing & Landscape Management\r\n\nHIGH SCHOOL: Tunstall High School, Dry Fork, Virginia\r\n\nMASCOT: Trojans\r\n\nFFA ADVISOR: Jessica Jones\r\n\nCONTACT INFORMATION FOR ISAIAH HOPKINS:\r\n\nClick on the picture below to be taken to the Tunstall High School website:\r\n\n\r\n\nIsaiah’s FFA Advisors’ Email Address: jessica.jones@pcs.k12.va.us\r\n\nTunstall High School’s Telephone Number: (434) 724-7111\r\n\nFFA LINKS:\r\n\nNational FFA Organization\r\n\nSupervised Agricultural Experiences (SAE’s)\r\n\nSupport FFA \r\n\nDonate to FFA – FFA students can start small businesses through an FFA grant of $1,000.  In 2014, 141 FFA students received these grants.  With your donations, more students can get this head start – pay it forward.\r\n\nREASONS TO DONATE TO FFA:\r\n\n\nOnly 2% of Americans grow and raise most of the food and livestock consumed by the other 98% and the rest of the world.  FFA provides the needed education, training, and resources to Americans that will carry that torch forward and ensure that America continues to have inexpensive, quality food.\r\n\nRural Communities will rely on entrepreneurship in the future for population growth and job creation.  The FFA is a major catalyst to that entrepreneurial growth.\r\n\nFarmers, ranchers, and those working in agriculture give the rest of America incredible amounts of freedom because the food search is as simple as going to the grocery store:\r\n\n\n“The future of American agriculture depends on the involvement and investment in America’s youth, In order to prepare for the population of tomorrow, we need to encourage America’s youth today, and show that careers in agriculture are profitable, rewarding, and vital.”. U.S. Secretary of Agriculture, Sonny Perdue\r\n\n \r\n\nMore Places You Can Listen to Off-Farm Income And Matt Brechwald:\n   \r\n

Welcome to our Tuesday episode at the finale of March Madness everyone.  On today’s show I am covering various topics:\n\nTrying out some new audio technology\r\n\nEaster, 2021\r\n\nMarch Madness and the incredible Gonzaga/UCLA game on Saturday night\r\n\nPulling goats in the middle of the night and bottle feeding.\r\n\nPulling calves, thankfully during the day time.\r\n\nWhat a “city surrogate” is in my vernacular\r\n\n\nI hope you enjoy the show!\r\n\nMore Places You Can Listen to Off-Farm Income And Matt Brechwald:\n   \r\n

Subscribe To Our Weekly Email\r\n\n\n\n\r\n\n\r\n\n\n\n\n\n\nINTRODUCING MATTHEW GRAB:\r\n\nYou may wonder how we can produce so much food in the United States on an ever-shrinking footprint of ground with fewer and fewer people being involved in production agriculture.  The answer is the natural curiosity of the American Farmer coupled with a passion for agriculture and an innovative mind. \r\n\nThese characteristics that have made the American Farmer great are evident throughout the spectrum, from the 80-year-old farmer who is trying hard not to retire to the 16-year-old who is dreaming of how they can become a farmer.\r\n\nIn today’s interview, I am lucky enough to interview one of these farmers.  At age 18, Matthew Grab is already accomplishing amazing things in the FFA and in agriculture.  He lives on his family’s grain farm in Freeburg, Illinois and one of the crops they grow is soybeans.  As part of Matthew’s supervised agricultural experience, he and a friend decided to see how hail damage would impact the yield on soybeans.\r\n\nThe two of them set up a test plot of soybeans to experiment on, but the question was, how were they going to replicate hail?  A very fun and innovative solution was thought up.  They would shoot the soybean plants with a shotgun from a distance to simulate hail stones comes down and ripping the soybean leaves.\r\n\nTheir initial hypothesis was that hail damage would decrease yield.  This is a very natural hypothesis.  However, they ended up demonstrating that at the stage of development that they simulated the damage the yield wound up increasing.  This was very interesting, so the next year they replicated the experiment on a larger scale using a herbicide at a very low rate.  This also increased the yield.  They entered this experiment into the FFA’s National Agriscience Fair, and they won!\r\n\nIt is this type of natural curiosity and love for what they do that has always led the American Farmer to produce more with less.  And it is this type of innovation and spirit in Matthew’s generation that gives me the confidence to know that we will find a way to continue to feed the world as our world’s population continues to grow.\r\n\nSUPERVISED AGRICULTURAL EXPERIENCE:  Agriscience Research, Ag Mechanics & Repair\r\n\nHIGH SCHOOL: Freeburg Community High School, Freeburg, IL\r\n\nMASCOT: Midgets\r\n\nFFA ADVISOR:  Dusti Ingles\r\n\nCONTACT INFORMATION FOR MATTHEW GRAB:\r\n\nClick on the picture below to be taken to the Freeburg Community High School website:\r\n\n\r\n\nMissy’s FFA Advisors’ Email Address: inglesd@fchs77.org\r\n\nFreeburg Community School’s Telephone Number:\r\n\nFFA LINKS:\r\n\nNational FFA Organization\r\n\nSupervised Agricultural Experiences (SAE’s)\r\n\nSupport FFA \r\n\nDonate to FFA – FFA students can start small businesses through an FFA grant of $1,000.  In 2014, 141 FFA students received these grants.  With your donations, more students can get this head start – pay it forward.\r\n\nREASONS TO DONATE TO FFA:\r\n\n\nOnly 2% of Americans grow and raise most of the food and livestock consumed by the other 98% and the rest of the world.  FFA provides the needed education, training, and resources to Americans that will carry that torch forward and ensure that America continues to have inexpensive, quality food.\r\n\nRural Communities will rely on entrepreneurship in the future for population growth and job creation.  The FFA is a major catalyst to that entrepreneurial growth.\r\n\nFarmers, ranchers, and those working in agriculture give the rest of America incredible amounts of freedom because the food search is as simple as going to the grocery store:\r\n\n\n“The future of American agriculture depends on the involvement and investment in America’s youth, In order to prepare for the population of tomorrow, we need to encourage America’s youth today, and show that careers in agriculture are profitable, rewarding, and vital.”. U.S. Secretary of Agriculture, Sonny Perdue\r\n\n \r\n\nMore Places You Can Listen to Off-Farm Income And Matt Brechwald:\n   \r\n

Tip Of The Week\r\n\nConsider a gravel driveway so anyone coming in makes more noise.\r\n\nRural Crime In The U.S.\r\n\nhttps://www.q13fox.com/news/atf-and-crime-stoppers-offering-cash-reward-up-to-6000-for-id-of-burglar-who-stole-15-pistols-in-auburnv\r\n\nhttps://www.telegraphherald.com/news/tri-state/article_5da0dc01-3614-59a6-815a-0b7ba08ae583.html\r\n\nAcross The Pond, Down Under And Up Above\r\n\nhttps://www.bristolpost.co.uk/news/bristol-news/police-investigating-after-familys-horse-5255796\r\n\nhttps://www.scotsman.com/country-and-farming/thieves-target-farmers-costly-all-terrain-vehicles-3185476\r\n\nChalk One Up For The Good Guys\r\n\nhttps://www.getsurrey.co.uk/news/surrey-news/stolen-dog-reunited-owners-eight-20260342\r\n\nhttps://local12.com/news/local/pair-charged-after-20-mile-police-chase-in-stolen-pickup-pulling-a-trailer-with-an-atv-cincinnati\r\n\nhttps://www.chattanoogan.com/2021/3/25/425577/Man-Who-Stole-Vehicles-And-Equipment.aspx\r\n\nMore Places You Can Listen to Off-Farm Income And Matt Brechwald:\n   \r\n

SHOW NOTES\r\n\nEverybody knows that obtaining land is the single biggest obstacle to overcome for a new or beginning farmer.  And the current state of real estate all over the U.S. is pushing us towards the point that it seems almost impossible.  So, if a person wants to farm on a commercial scale, what are they to do. \r\n\nIn our society, innovation always seems to answer these difficult questions, and it may very well be true this time as well.  On today’s show, I get to speak with Alex Albu of FarmBox Foods.  Alex and his colleagues have developed a system of vertical farming in storage containers that can be placed anywhere, in any climatic conditions, and get somebody farming.\r\n\nIt is really a very interesting concept.  A person on a small, residential lot could start farming in one of these containers and be producing the same farm revenue that could only be replicated on 30+ acres of ground.  And of course, the investment in this equipment, while significant, pales in comparison to the ground and is not subject to growing seasons or environmental difficulties like storms, freezes, or drought.\r\n\nIn our interview, Alex states that farmer is recovering their initial investment in their systems in about two years.  That is pretty good if all you need to do is purchase a 1/2 acre lot and one of these pieces of equipment to up and running.  And, in this system, Alex suggests growing the best of lettuces and mushrooms to tell at premium prices to restaurants, grocery stores, and individuals through farmers’ markets.\r\n\nThis is really a very innovative idea, and I am very excited to see where it goes and how many people it can help to get started farming.\r\n\n\r\n\nConnect with Alex Albu & FarmBox Foods:\r\n\nWebsite: https://farmboxfoods.com/\r\n\nFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/farmboxfoodscolorado\r\n\nInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/farmboxfoods/\r\n\nLinked In: https://www.linkedin.com/company/farmbox-foods/\r\n\nEmail: info@farmboxfoods.com\r\n\n \r\n\nMore Places You Can Listen to Off-Farm Income And Matt Brechwald:\n   \r\n