Off-farm Income

Sign Up To Receive Our FFA Stories Newsletter! Email address: SHOW NOTES INTRODUCING OLIVER FOSS!  Every now and then when I interview an FFA student I get really jealous.  Sometimes there is something that a student is able to do for their job or their business, or they are growing up in a place so different from anything that I have ever known that wish I could have done the same.  Today's episode is definitely one of those. Oliver Foss grew up in New Hampshire.  A state, that until I did this interview, I did not even realize had a coast line.  Well, it turns out that New Hampshire does have a coastline, and it just happens to be the shortest one in the United States at just 45 miles. This small coastline did not stop Oliver Foss from exploring the North Atlantic Ocean however.  Since his sophomore year of high school, Oliver has been working on boats.  He started out on charter boats doing whale watching tours and other tourist activities.  However, he soon graduated to commercial fishing, going 7

Sign Up To Receive Our FFA Stories Newsletter! Email address: Well, it has finally happened.  I have discovered my future farm in Connecticut.  If you follow this link you can read an article all about it. In today's episode I take a tongue and cheek look at a farm for sale in Connecticut that seems to have everything I am looking for: a recording studio, baseball field and, of course, 47 acres of farm ground.  And if you can come up with $19 million before me, you might just steal it away! Where Off-Farm Income And Matt Brechwald Can Be Heard:   Member Of The National Association Of Farm Broadcasters

Sign Up To Receive Our FFA Stories Newsletter! Email address: SHOW NOTES INTRODUCING CLAY GROSSNICKLAUS!  You've probably heard Mike Rowe talk about the "skills gap" and all of the opportunities in the trades for people in the United States.  I am a fan of Mike's and love what he is doing with the Mike Rowe Foundation.  I am also a fan of getting to prove just how right he is through the interviews I do with FFA students every week. On today's show I am speaking with Clay Grossnicklaus.  Clay has been working on equipment with his father for well over a half of a decade.  This has gone from being a job to being a passion for Clay, and he is pursuing this for his career.  Clay is now the recipient of an internship from a local Caterpillar Dealership and Oklahoma State University.  He is going to take the knowledge he already has and turn it into a career working on some of the most advanced, industrial equipment ever produced. Along the way Clay has accomplished some things in the FFA as well.  He serve

Sign Up To Receive Our FFA Stories Newsletter! Email address: SHOW NOTES KEY IDEAS:  The original intent of this show was to bring business ideas to you that might be the solution that allows you to farm full time, live rural or work in agriculture.  In today's episode we are going to return to those roots. Ron Wasson, the creator and owner of Barnyard Discoveries is going to join me for a discussion about the business he created out of necessity when he had no other options.  This idea had been in Ron's head for several years, but it was not until he was out of work with no real options for a new job that he finally put this into practice. That was ten years ago.  Today, Ron runs Barnyard Discoveries as his sole form of income.  He works every month of the year, and he is having a blast.  Barnyard Discoveries is a mobile, agricultural education unit.  It is loaded with written and digital learning materials that educate the public about agriculture, and it boasts its own petting zoo to really bring p

SHOW NOTES If you are interested in this business you will need to start with some shears! KEY IDEAS: ADVICE FROM MIKE HUFFMAN: KNOW YOUR ANIMAL:  Mike highly recommends that you know about the animals you are working with.  This might seem like common sense, but it could be very easy for an business owner who knows llamas to take a job shearing sheep because they need the business.  But if you do not know sheep, this might turn into a disaster.  Mike recommends taking classes from your local extension service, doing an apprenticeship or going to field days put on by llama associations to get the necessary knowledge. FIBER FAIRS: Mike brought this event to my attention, which I had never heard of before.  He said that "fiber fairs" are a great place to meet potential customers. MIKE HUFFMAN'S PERSONAL HABIT THAT IS CONTRIBUTING TO HIS SUCCESS: PROFESSIONALISM: Mike states that he makes a strict habit of calling people back and keeping his appointments.  He noted how rare it was for people in service busines

Sign Up To Receive Our FFA Stories Newsletter! Email address: SHOW NOTES INTRODUCING MEGAN LAMB!  One of best parts of interviewing FFA students is learning about their family traditions and legacies, and then seeing how these students do not take those for granted and continue to honor them.  In today's episode we get to do that again. Megan Lamb grew up on a gladiola flower farm.  This was a tradition started by her family four generations ago.  Today she and her family grow over 10,000 gladiolas and sell them at farmer's markets.  Megan is in the process of expanding their business, "The Country Lamb", to include decorating weddings and other special events. What Megan has been able to do by embracing this family tradition has led to multiple accolades.  In 2017 Megan became a national proficiency finalist for the first time in agriscience research.  In 2018 she did it again in agribusiness.  And, in 2019 she did it, yet again, in specialty crop production! Megan is now attending Cornell Universit

Sign Up To Receive Our FFA Stories Newsletter! Email address: This is Part 2 Of A Two Part Series On Crime Prevention Techniques On Your Farm: Lately I have been noticing an increase in the number of news stories that I am seeing about thefts from farms.  The stories that I have been seeing are about thefts of livestock and chickens, and there is an implication that the thefts are related to perceived food scarcity brought on by the coronavirus. I don't know if this is really happening or if the media is just covering thefts from farms more frequently right now because of the possible connection.  Regardless of what is really going on, all of these stories made me think of sharing a skill set with you that rarely comes into play on this show. In today's episode we will be talking about crime prevention on your farm.  I am going to pull knowledge from my former life as a police officer and apply it to what I know about your farms.  Hopefully with the information that I provide you in this episode, and in

Sign Up To Receive Our FFA Stories Newsletter! Email address: SHOW NOTES INTRODUCING LUKE BERGSCHNEIDER!  Today's episode is a fascinating look into the future of a farmer.  Luke Bergschneider is going to join us and talk all about what he started in high school and what he is carrying forward on his families farm to give him an edge in the future. Luke is raising broiler chickens and turkeys in addition to the traditional corn and soybean farming that his family does in their part of Illinois.  He went out and found how other people do farming differently and then used their methods to give himself another farm revenue source that would not be impacted by low commodity or high input prices. Luke cites authors like Joel Salatin for giving him the business ideas with poultry.  Luke now raises broilers with Salatin's chicken tractor method, and he has a mobile coop for his laying flock.  He has also created his own, modified version of a chicken tractor to raise his turkeys. All of these efforts led Luk

Sign Up To Receive Our FFA Stories Newsletter! Email address: SHOW NOTES KEY IDEAS:  I appreciate all of our listeners' understanding as we alter our format a bit during the coronavirus shutdown.  I have been trying to use the podcast to provide information that I think can be useful for folks navigating these tricky times. Due to the nature of what I do, I happen to be exposed to a lot of information about different opportunities that might be beneficial to you during this moment in time.  So, when I learn of something that I believe could be helpful, I like to share it with you. I am doing exactly that on today's episode.  I will be speaking with Jessica Stewart, the president of Bloom For Good.  Bloom For Good is a fundraising company with a large emphasis on the FFA.  They have a unique way of offering FFA chapters fundraising opportunities that will not violate any social distancing guidelines. Also, Bloom For Good gives a very large percentage of the revenue from the fundraising directly back to

  SHOW NOTES KEY IDEAS: I am happy to introduce you to Zac Fralix of Lawrenceburg, TN today.  Zac has a passion for livestock fitting and showing and agriculture in general.  Zac has managed multiple farms and has his own goat herd.  However, he has been continually recognized for his ability to fit and show goats.  This led to a business opportunity as more and more people requested that he clip and fit their goats.  Today Zac owns Fralix Livestock & Fitting Service.  He fits, shows and teaches his passion. ADVICE FROM ZAC FRALIX: LOVE WHAT YOU DO: Zac is adamant that you need to love what you do.  If you do not, your products or services will suffer. BE THE BEST: Zac suggests that every goat that you fit be better than the last one you did.  Continually improve. BEST BUSINESS ADVICE THAT ZAC FRALIX HAS RECEIVED: NEVER QUIT: Zac learned early on to keep pushing forward and never quit.  This is the key to stopping yourself from giving up just before you find success. PERSONAL HABIT THAT ADS TO ZAC FRALIX'S SU

Sign Up To Receive Our FFA Stories Newsletter! Email address: SHOW NOTES INTRODUCING CHRISTINA BINGHAM!  Sometimes when I am searching for guests for the show I will look at lists of proficiency winners to find someone whose project stands out.  I was doing this recently, and I came across Christina Bingham's name. Well, something about her project definitely stood out!  Christina was a national proficiency finalist in 2019 for fruit production.  That, in and of itself, might seem like something that we would say stands out.  However, when I saw that she was from North Dakota, which is not a state known for fruit production, I thought, "I have to know more about this". So, today, I get to introduce all of you to Christina.  We will talk about how she is tearing up the charts with four raised garden beds full of strawberries, and how a $1,000 SAE grant got her started down this road.  She will also talk to us about being a national gold winner in 2018 for vegetable production and the three different ag

Sign Up To Receive Our FFA Stories Newsletter! Email address: Lately I have been noticing an increase in the number of news stories that I am seeing about thefts from farms.  The stories that I have been seeing are about thefts of livestock and chickens, and there is an implication that the thefts are related to perceived food scarcity brought on by the coronavirus. I don't know if this is really happening or if the media is just covering thefts from farms more frequently right now because of the possible connection.  Regardless of what is really going on, all of these stories made me think of sharing a skill set with you that rarely comes into play on this show. In today's episode we will be talking about crime prevention on your farm.  I am going to pull knowledge from my former life as a police officer and apply it to what I know about your farms.  Hopefully with the information that I provide you in this episode, and in part 2 of this topic which will be released one week later, we can convince wou

Sign Up To Receive Our FFA Stories Newsletter! Email address: SHOW NOTES INTRODUCING GRACE BLANCHARD!  Today's guest is the 2019 Oregon State Proficiency winner in agricultural mechanics.  Grace Blanchard has been working in her parents diesel shop for several years now, and she has learned a lot.  This is what led her to the proficiency award.  Grace doesn't take any of this time with her parents for granted.  When I asked what her advice for other students would be, she talked all about listening to your parents and learning what they are trying to teach you.  I would say this is something that she has learned first hand and lives every day. Grace is now studying to be a secondary education teacher.  A lot of of her experiences in high school as well as in her parents shop have led her to this pursuit.  Eventually, Grace hopes to find herself at the head of the classroom and able to pass along the good things she has learned to other students. SUPERVISED AGRICULTURAL EXPERIENCE: Diesel Mechanics HI

Sign Up To Receive Our FFA Stories Newsletter! Email address: SHOW NOTES KEY IDEAS:  Last July my daughter's lamb did not make weight for the county fair.  This was the second time in four years of showing sheep that this had happened, and it was frustrating.  We had purposefully bought a larger lamb to make sure we would make weight.  And, about two months prior to the fair he was just eight pounds away.  And then, he just stopped eating. About one month after the fair was over the sting of not making weight for a second time was still there.  Around that time, I did an interview for the D&B Supply Show Podcast.  I spoke with Colby Gines, the Chief Operating Officer for Pro-Earth Animal Health, about one of their products called Zesterra. During this interview Colby talked about stress in animals, the build up of acid and the release of the hormone, cortisol.  As he was talking I kept thinking about Hattie's lamb going off feed, and I asked him about this.  He suggested using their product, CattlActiv

SHOW NOTES On this bonus episode of the Off-Farm Income Podcast we are going way back into the archives.  I am replaying my episode with Caleb Pirc.  I first met Caleb when he was eleven.  He and his sister attended a class through the University Of Idaho Extension Service called Living On The Land.  Autumm and I took that class at the same time and were very impressed with both Caleb and his sister. Today Caleb has expanded his operation.  He is currently running sheep, through his intensive grazing management style, on a pasture that I have been leasing for years.  I no longer needed the pasture, and I referred Caleb to the owner as the next renter.  Now, outside my studio window I can see Caleb's electric netting, portable shelters and sheep.  He is doing great, and he is running sheep on pastures all over our area.  This inspired me to run his episode again. LINKS: After careful study Caleb decided to raise Katahdin Sheep or "hair sheep."  He cited that they do not need to be sheered, they do not have an