Off-Farm Income

Holden Nuhn first appeared on the Off-Farm Income Podcast back in 2019 when he was a 9th grader on episode #623.  This was before Covid, and we had no idea what was coming!  Back then I was so impressed with his "could-do" attitude, and how he had found a way to show dairy animals even though he didn't have any of his own.

On Today's episode, Holden is back!  We are going to be catching up on what he has been doing...

Tip Of The Week

Steel, Copper & Fuel are all expensive - guard anything of value right now.

Rural Crime In The U.S.

https://www.salina.com/story/news/2022/06/15/salina-grain-elevator-sees-theft-over-30-k-copper-wire/7610694001/

https://www.wbko.com/2022/06/15/ohio-county-sheriffs-office-searching-stolen-vintage-plow/

https://www.14news.com/2022/06/14/mpd-looking-stolen-skid-steer-belonging-pollard-sons-excavating/

Across The...

Soooo, you want to know what my favorite business that I've ever profiled on the show is do you?  Well, I still can't pick, but a brewery where delicious beers, delectable meals and lots of fun are all located has to be in the top three!

Today's guests, Trent and Vicki Bushner, are full-time farmers in Yuma County, Colorado.  And for the past 25+ years, Trent has just happened to be a hobby brewer.  So, a couple of ...

Tomorrow we are featuring a farm couple who has started a fun and successful brewery in Eastern Colorado.  I thought a look back and the opportunities surrounding hop farming would fit right in.

Below are the original show notes:

KEY IDEAS: 

I have three themes that I want to cover this week.  All of them have to do with entrepreneurship:

Hop Farming Business Opportunities

Currently we are planting record acreage of hops...

I am always happy and honored when a listener reached out and requests to be part of the show.  Sometimes it is a fit, and sometimes it is not, but I am always thrilled that they want to be part of what we are doing here.  Our guest today is one such listener.  Kyleigh Render is a very impressive FFA student.  She will be "graduating" from high school in one month, but there is a twist to her story.  Kyleigh is homeschooled...

I have been saying for quite sometime that direct marketing grass finished beef at a premium price was the equivalent of selling a luxury item and that when the economy got bad there would be less customers for this type of product.  I've also been curious about the entire local food movement that has been growing and thriving for so many years now.

I believe that it is a foregone conclusion that the American economy, and reall...

Rarely does this happen, but today's interview features the daughter of my previous Friday episode guest.  Shelby Shuman has just finished her junior year of high school, and she has been conducting auctions since she was twelve years old.  Early on in her auction career she knew she wanted to start her own business, but she never really implemented it until her freshman year of high school when she joined the FFA and was requi...

Tip Of The Week

Keep you cell phone with you around the farm: https://wgno.com/technology/man-tracks-apple-watch-to-find-sons-stolen-car/

Rural Crime In The U.S.

https://ktvo.com/news/local/man-uses-fake-67500-check-to-steal-tractor-hay-rake-from-outside-memphis

https://whky.com/tractor-truck-stolen-from-springs-road/

https://www.turnto23.com/news/crime/kcso-seeks-help-iding-farm-equipment-theft-suspects

Across The Pond, Down Un...

Is there any more fundamental business to the world of agriculture than that of auctioneering?  I say "no".  Auctioneers have been there in good times and in bad times, whenever folks need to sell farms, ranches, equipment or otherwise, for whatever reason.  The auctioneer is always there trying to maximize what these folks get for their lifetime of work and for their next chapter.

Today's guest, Scott Shuman, has made ...

On tomorrow's ag business episode we are featuring a gentleman who has made an interesting career out of auctioning farm and ranch real estate.  On the following Monday we are featuring his daughter, who is in the FFA and is also an auctioneer.  It is a complete look into the world of this interesting and fundamental career.  So, for our re-cap episode this week I wanted to take a look back at some of the other auctioneers who ...

I am starting to think that plant breeders are born, not made.  At least every time I interview a young man or woman with this passion it appears that is correct.  In today's interview I am speaking with a junior in high school that has already obtained $10,000 in funding to begin an apple orchard on his high school's property.  Gabe Olson-Jensen is our featured guest, and look at this list of accomplishments:

Baxter Black, who I have been a fan of for at least three decades has passed.  In 2015 Baxter generously agreed to be a guest on the Off-Farm Income Podcast when we had barely began and had no catalog and no reputation.  He provided me with a great, long-form interview as well.

The world learned that Baxter was ill and on hospice care back in January of 2022, and in February of 2022 we replayed his interview as tribute.  We are doi...

It is so interesting how students answer the elevator question I ask them during my interviews.  Mallory Bowers' answer may be the most interesting that I have heard thus far.  She told me that "agriculture saves lives", and then she went on to articulate her thoughts on why this is.  Everything from people finding their purpose to the basic need for food was included in her explanation.

I guess I should not be surprise...

Tip Of The Week

If somebody pays for $20 worth of gas but is pumping for hours, you might check it out.

Rural Crime In The U.S.

https://www.wwnytv.com/2022/06/08/thousands-gallons-thieves-using-modified-trucks-steal-gas-stations-police-say/

https://www.ocala.com/story/news/courts/2022/06/07/prosecutors-ocala-florida-drop-charges-death-600-pound-pig/9999829002/

https://www.12news.com/article/news/local/arizona/friend-remembers-gi...

In today's episode I get to learn about a species of livestock that I had never heard of before, the Pacovicuna.  A Vicuna is the wild ancestor of the Llama, and they have characteristics in their fiber that just cannot be replicated by Llamas.  Jane Lavene and her husband, Arthur, raise the largest herd of Pacovicuna's in the U.S. on their farms in the Denver, Colorado and Salida, Colorado areas.

In today's episode Jan...

Today, I am replaying my interview with James Budd of Alpacas Of Montana.  This is perfect segue into our ag business interview tomorrow, talking about luxury wool and fleece production.  At the time I did this interview with James he had built a worldwide brand with Alpacas Of Montana.  He continues to grow and succeed, and it is my pleasure to bring the interview to you again.

Below are the original show notes:

KEY ...

There was a very consistent theme running through today's interview with Lane Colston from Western Hills High School FFA.....people.  When I asked Lane about why he had joined the FFA, he talked about all the great people he had known who had been FFA members, and he also talked about the great people he has been able to meet by being a member.  When we talked about the reigning horse world that he is ...

INTRODUCING SAMUEL JIMENEZ!

Buckle up to learn something new in this episode.  I sure know that I did when I was conducting the interview!

Samuel Jimenez has just graduated high school, and he has just been awarded a California State Proficiency Award in Specialty Animal Production Placement.  How you ask?  By raising thousands of Koi Fish in his families business in Madera, California.

Sam's parents have a business called Mad ...