Nicollet & Sibley County Ag News

January 2024

Educator to You

Happy New Year! I hope everyone had a wonderful and safe holiday.

Numerous Extension events are coming up, so be sure to checkout the upcoming events section of this newsletter as well as the UMN Extension courses and events page. I am very excited to offer various local programs and workshops this year. Remember, Extension resources are available all year long. If you have any questions relating to agriculture, natural resources or horticulture, or if you have ideas for programming, feel free to reach out!

Best wishes

- Samantha

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Today in Agriculture

Important Changes to Crop Insurance for Oats and Hybrid Winter Rye

The USDA's Risk Management Agency (RMA) Regional Office in Eagan, which oversees crop insurance in Minnesota, Iowa, and Wisconsin, has made some substantive changes to crop insurance options for oats and winter rye. Read more about the changes in the blog post linked below.

Financial help for Minnesota farmers

Extension's Ag Business Management Team created this guide to financial assistance programs for Minnesota farmers caught in the unique challenges brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic. Find the guide by clicking the button below.

More information

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Upcoming Events

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Strategic Farming: Let's talk crops! is back for 2024

Pull up a chair and join in or bring the conversation with you as you go about your day. Whatever works best for you, join us this winter to discuss some of the key issues and questions around commodity crop production facing Minnesota farmers today through the “Strategic Farming: Let’s Talk Crops” webinar series.

More information

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Economic risk of a cattle owner webinar series

Economic Risk as a Cattle Owner is a three-part webinar series to help answer cattle owners’ questions on livestock risk protection (LRP), risk protection for business entities focusing on beef cattle, and how to capture the most money for feeder calves consistently. The webinar series will give producers more tools to help protect their operations.

Jan. 17: Market outlook and livestock risk protection

8:00pm - 9:00pm Charley Fetzer with Commodity and Ingredient Hedging LLC will join us to help you better understand LRP and how to make it work for your operation.

z.umn.edu/BeefJan17

Jan. 31: Establishing business entities for risk protection

8:00pm - 9:00pm Clint Fischer of Braintrust Ag will guide us through the role of business entities in risk protection. While this session will have a cattle focus, all types of farm businesses will benefit from this discussion.

z.umn.edu/BeefJan31

Feb. 14: Building a reputation for bulletproof feeders

8:00pm - 9:00pm UMN Extension’s Dr. Joe Armstrong will present how to provide the best opportunity for your feeders to bring the most, and consistent prices from buyers.

z.umn.edu/BeefFeb14

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MN Ag Expo

January 17th and 18th at the Mayo Clinic Health System Event Center in Mankato.

There is a tradeshow as well as keynote speakers, educational activities and various opportunities for networking.

More information

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Women in Dairy

February 1st at the Crow River Winery in Hutchinson 6:30pm social time and program from 7:00pm - 9:00pm.

Pre-registration by January 17th is required. This year’s program will feature Kristy Pagel from Leading Edge Consulting LLC. As a strategic coach and meeting facilitator, Kristy guides complex dairies and agri-businesses through a proven process to gain clarity, set goals, and align action steps to achieve real results that secure their competitive advantage. More information will be available soon.

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Nicollet County Private Pesticide Applicator Training

February 2nd at the Lafayette Community Center from 9:00am - 12:30pm

Certified Private Pesticide Applicators can recertify by attending an in-person workshop, online Zoom workshop, or successfully completing an online or mail-in exam. New applicators, or those with lapsed certifications can only certify as a Private Pesticide Applicator by taking and receiving a passing score on the Private Applicator exam.

Online registration is optional for in-person workshops and opens on January 3, 2024. Walk-in registration is still offered at workshops. Benefits of online registration include electronic payment and workshop updates.

• No cash or electronic payments are accepted at in-person workshops. Walk-in registration payment must be made by check payable to the University of Minnesota.

• You must bring your applicator certification card and photo ID to the recertification workshop.

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