Next-Generation Farmers
Becky Nyman of Hilmar, Calif., recently visited with AgriTalk host, Chip Flory, about being the next generation dairy farmer. Nyman works alongside her brother on the home farm where they milk 1,200 Jerseys.
When raised by farmers, our earliest lessons in leadership, stewardship and life in general occur with the rhythms of the seasons. It turns out, even in a season of loss the learning continues.
“If handled improperly, transition events can be the death of your business. Or it can strengthen your business and clearly outline who you are and where you want to go,” says Dick Wittman.
How are you showing up on the farm? Do your actions meet up with your goals? Rena Striegel, a farm succession planning consultant, encourages the next generation of on-farm leaders to do some self-reflection.
While many in the agricultural sector wonder who will make up the next generation of farmers, another legitimate question is who will make up the next generation of industry professionals.
Formulating your farm’s succession plan is likely not a straight line. Polly Dobbs, an Indiana attorney who is part of a seven-generation farm family, says it’s important to stay focused on your end goals.
The clock is ticking — and the current estate-tax exemption is set to plummet at the end of 2025. The smaller exemption coupled with inflation and land values likely means increased assets and estate-tax rates.
Know what it takes to become a high-level leader.
We asked previous awardees of the Top Producer Next Gen Award to reflect on lessons they’ve experienced in business and management.
Anyone who wants a say in how business assets are handled after they pass on should have some sort of transition plan in place. If not done correctly, then the outcome might be settled at a farm auction.
When the four Hansen brothers came back to the small family dairy farm in Hudson, Iowa, which had operated since 1864, things needed to expand. Hansen’s Dairy has since taken ‘side hustle’ to a whole new level.
Thirty years ago, I received my high school diploma. As my daughter, Cassie, recently walked across the stage to receive her high school diploma over the weekend, I thought about the advice I had to offer her.
Our herdsman, Julio’s attention to detail and good eye for cattle allows us to put attention into strategically planning the several expansion projects that we’ve taken on over the last 18 years.
Hesston Geddes admits the opportunity to live and work in Hawaii’s lush tropical backdrop enticed him to travel to Waipahu, to take on the manager role at Cloverleaf Dairy, the last commercial dairy in Hawaii.
Alex Neuenschwander, a fourth-generation dairy farmer, is headed to the Indy 500 winners circle this weekend to hand out the iconic bottle of milk. His secret to success on the farm? Finding efficiency at every level.
When a pair of sisters set out to help the family farm, they didn’t think they’d end up on Forbes’ 30 Under 30 list. On the debut of Grow Getters, a podcast about ag’s most creative side hustles, they tell their story.
Head to the Lone Star State, and everything is bigger, or so they say. That doesn’t only refer to big hats and big hair, it also applies to dairies, as the average size in the Panhandle hovers around 4,000 cows.
Growing up with a long line of strong women, Jessica Pralle-Trimner, a Wisconsin dairy farmer, does not back down from hard work and wholeheartedly believes women play an integral role on dairy farms across the U.S.
Travel to the rolling hills of Pennsylvania, and you’ll meet Hayley and Stephanie Painter who not only made the Forbes 30 under 30 list, but have also created one of the fastest growing yogurt company in the U.S.
Farm kids have learned to quickly survey what needs to be done and take the lead to get it done. No questions asked. This is one reason farm kids stand out. They have learned to get tough during tough times.
NBA superstars Charles Barkley, Shaquille O’Neal and Kenny Smith learned how to hand milk a cow on live television thanks to a Madison, Georgia dairy farm, Big Sandy Creek Farm.
An ‘ah-ha’ moment when young leaders realize the power within themselves to advocate for the dairy industry often unfolds at the Holstein Foundation’s Young Dairy Leaders Institute (YDLI). This year was no exception.
All I can say is God bless American dairy farmers. You work hard despite the hardships that come your way. We need dairy farmers to continue to push forward to produce nutritious dairy products to feed the world.
I encourage you to look at the star players on teams, and when you get to know more about them, more times than not, you’ll learn they learned all they needed to excel in sports from growing up on a farm.
Ask any dairy farmer how they feel about today’s markets and they will say that the economics don’t add up. This is true in any state, but certainly being highlighted in Wisconsin, as last year they lost 455 dairy farms.
With a slogan of “raised, not sourced,” Tim Haer had a wild idea to differentiate their business: create a vending machine to sell meat produced on their family’s farm, an idea he says that’s been wildly successful.
In just a decade on the farm, Virginia dairy farmer Ben Smith’s journey has been one of dedication and innovation, which is what makes him the 2023 Milk Business Young Producer Award winner.
Lance Sommers has transformed his family’s 2,000-acre grain and dairy farm by integrating technology and boosting efficiency to free up time to refocus efforts on other aspects of their operation.
In 1984, Farm Journal’s personal ads connected Pat, a farm girl from Iowa, with Doug, a dairyman from New York, sparking a love story that led to marriage and the fourth generation of Fuller Acres Farm.