Seventeen Beginning Farmers Take Part In National Farmers Union Two-Day Session
September 17, 2016 Seventeen beginning farmers, representing demographical, geographical, and production diversity in agriculture, recently attended the National Farmers Union (NFU) Beginning Farmer Institute (BFI) in Washington, DC.
“A large part of the Beginning Farmer Institute’s success is the collaborative learning experience the program provides. The beginning farmers and ranchers not only learn from Farmers Union and industry experts, but they learn a lot from each other by asking questions and sharing their individual experiences,” said Roger Johnson, president of NFU. “NFU is proud to offer this program that supports beginning farmers and celebrates the diversity in agriculture production today.”
The first session’s agenda was developed by the input of the beginning farmers and focused on advocacy, conservation, and farm credit. In addition, attendees toured local Arcadia Farm in Alexandria, VA, and the USDA Farmers Market in Washington, DC, to learn about sustainable farming practices and business management.
NFU’s BFI provides beginning farmers and ranchers with hands-on technical training that emphasizes many of the challenges beginning farmers may face in their careers, enabling them to be successful in their operations and in this industry. The beginning farmers and ranchers participating in the 2016-17 BFI program are:
- Betty J. Anderson, Wisconsin
- Jaime Baker, Wisconsin
- Brittany Ann Bula, Wisconsin
- Layne E. Cozzolino, Wisconsin
- Jimmy Dula, Colorado
- Tommy Enright, Wisconsin
- Caitlin Hladky, Colorado
- Justin Loch, Montana
- Katie Jantzen, Nebraska
- Christy Ottinger, Maryland
- De’Quinton Robertson, Iowa
- Eric Robert Sannerud, Minnesota
- Amanda Schaub, Montana
- Ariana Taylor-Stanley, Washington
- Josh Stolzenburg, Wisconsin
- Zach Teske, Kansas
- Daniel Waldvogle, Colorado
