A Salute to Agriculture The h Heartbeat tbeat of the Plains
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Spring 2018 Edition
Northeastern is looking to the future... in Precision Agriculture, Agriculture Technology, and Innovative Agriculture Northeastern is always looking for new and innovative ways to keep up with the everchanging technology. The addition of new degree and certificate options in Precision Agriculture, Agriculture Technology and Innovative Agriculture they are doing just that. Students will focus on the following areas: • UAV - Drone Operation • GPS Systems • Variable Rate Applications • Remote Sensing • Soil Moisture Sensing • Data Collection and Analysis
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SALUTE TO AGRICULTURE • FEBRUARY 28, 2018 • 3
Salute to Agriculture
4 • FEBRUARY 28, 2018 • SALUTE TO AGRICULTURE
WHAT’S INSIDE Olympian visits Quail Ridge Dairy ........................ 5 Mitchek carries on second-generation business .. 8 Hemp production coming to Morgan County ...... 10 NJC Farm Bureau tackles tough questions ........ 13 Dixon calling it a career ................................... 15 Ag technology ................................................. 20 Bath chasing his passion ................................ 23 Fust to lead CHS Grainland .............................. 26 Annie’s Project ................................................ 27 Colorado FFA grants ........................................ 30 Brand inspectors ............................................ 32 Griffith takes helm at Brush FFA ....................... 36 Deroche pivots to Platte .................................. 37 Livestock judging breeds success .................... 38 Artificial insemination ..................................... 41 Peetz Farmers Co-op celebrates ....................... 45 Reck’s real estate success .............................. 48 Livestock lobbyist ........................................... 51 New extension agent ....................................... 53 Merino FFA ..................................................... 55 Caliche FFA ..................................................... 56
STAFF
Fort Morgan Times file photo
Harvesting winter wheat.
This publication is brought to you by the staff of the Sterling Journal-Advocate and the Fort Morgan Times newspapers Publishers Julie K. Tonsing, Journal-Advocate Brian Porter, Fort Morgan Times Advertising Executives Andrew Ohlson, Fort Morgan Times Buffie Dechant, Fort Morgan Times Kim Francis, Journal-Advocate Steve Buxton, Journal-Advocate Project Editors Sara Waite, Journal-Advocate Robert Leininger, Fort Morgan Times Editorial Staff Callie Jones, Journal-Advocate Jeff Rice, Journal-Advocate Lisa Young, Journal-Advocate Kyle Inman, Journal-Advocate Jenni Grubbs, Fort Morgan Times Brandon Boles, Fort Morgan Times Paul Albani-Burgio, Fort Morgan Times Vicki Severson, Fort Morgan Times Support Staff Heather Thomas, Journal-Advocate Josephina Monsivais, Fort Morgan Times Project Design Kent Shorrock
Salute to Agriculture
Olympian visits Quail Ridge Dairy Milk ad campaign features Katie Uhlaender
“We were pretty excited when they called and asked us if they could do it with us,” she said. “We’d never played with Olympics people before.” This campaign was being put together by MilkPEP, which is By Jenni Grubbs one of the organizations that puts Fort Morgan Times together educational advertising on behalf of milk producers. Fort Morgan’s Quail Ridge “They were looking for a dairy Dairy has a connection to the that’s well-managed because the 2018 Olympic Winter Games, athletes are well-managed,” Kraft which ended only days ago in said. PyeongChang, South Korea. Such athletes depend on milk Skeleton racer Katie Uhlaender for the nutrition to drive them in of Team USA visited the dairy their training and competition, last fall and now is featured in she said. advertisements promoting the Also, Kraft is an athlete herself, benefits of drinking milk. riding horses and competing in Mary Kraft, co-owner of Quail dressage. Ridge Dairy, said she had been Those were some of the criteria MilkPEP / Courtesy photo surprised to get the call last Sep- MilkPEP and Team USA used for Katie Uhlaender, a skeleton racer for Team USA, visits with Quail Ridge tember asking her dairy to be picking out the locations for Dairy owner Mary Kraft, right, during a tour of the Fort Morgan dairy in involved in the “My Focus” ad shooting such commercials for November, 2017. They are being filmed by a crew from MilkPEP for a video campaign. See QUAIL RIDGE, pg. 6 promoting the benefits of drinking milk for Olympic athletes, like Uhlaender.
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SALUTE TO AGRICULTURE • FEBRUARY 28, 2018 • 5
Salute to Agriculture
QUAIL RIDGE from page 5
this campaign. Another bonus was that they had a female Olympic athlete in mind, and Quail Ridge Dairy had a female running it. Kraft was quick to give her husband, Chris Kraft, credit for being involved with running the dairy, too. “Chris and I are exceptionally involved together in making things work,” she said. The pick of Quail Ridge Dairy as the location also was due to how many Olympic athletes from Colorado were expected to go to South Korea to compete. “Colorado has the most Olympic athletes going,” Mary Kraft said in an interview before the Olympics began. “A huge number of the athletes MilkPEP selected made it in.” When Uhlaender travelled from Colorado Springs, where she trains, to the Fort Morgan dairy for the shoot, Mary Kraft encountered an athlete who was also excited about the science going on at the dairy. That makes sense in light of Uhlaender having studied animal science and behavioral science at Colorado Mountain College. But she also wanted to learn more about the process of producing milk and how dairies like Quail Ridge ensure it will be of high quality and be good for fueling athletes, Mary Kraft said. “She was so enthusiastic and got more enthusiastic as the day
MilkPEP / Courtesy photo
Mary Kraft, left, tells Olympic skeleton racer Katie Uhlaender about the small hotels that young calves live in at Quail Ridge Dairy until they are old enough to be in larger pens or pastures. Kraft was giving Uhlaender a tour of the dairy while they also were shooting a commercial promoting milk in November 2017.
went on,” the dairy owner recalled. As they roamed the dairy, mov-
6 • FEBRUARY 28, 2018 • SALUTE TO AGRICULTURE
ing from spot to spot set up for shooting the video, Mary Kraft and Uhlaender spoke about how
the science used for raising dairy cows meshed with the science of See QUAIL RIDGE, pg. 7
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Salute to Agriculture
QUAIL RIDGE from page 5
training athletes, since there were science-based concepts used for everything going on at the dairy. Of course, they also spoke about what Uhlaender gets from drinking milk and how that helps her with her training. “I feel like I go sledding for a living, so I don’t know if I really work,” she said. “But I definitely put a lot of work into prepping for that. Part of that is my nutrition.” Because of its vitamins and protein, Uhlaender called milk a “nutrient powerhouse.” “Protein is huge for maintaining muscle mass and recovering from all of my workouts,” she said. “I train every day for Team USA, and so it is filling me with joy and pride to see all of this hard work and how much goes into feeding those cattle to produce what helps me become a great athlete.” “We feel like it’s a whole team effort,” Mary Kraft replied to Uhlaender. “Our job is to make everything well fueled.” The video also shows Uhlaender even getting to attach the milking machine to a cow’s udders. Thinking back to the day of shooting it brought a happy note to Mary Kraft’s voice. “We shot the whole thing in one day,” Mary Kraft said. “It was a pretty short day because Katie was training. We filmed between 1 and 6 in one afternoon. It was pretty grueling. They had shots lined up, but part of it was pretty fun – just a rolling conversation.” Mary Kraft said she spoke with Uhlaender about how cows needed exercise, the right nutrition and enough sleep, just like with athletes. “It was interesting,” Mary Kraft said. “Cows spend some time doing their job and then recovering, matching up closely to what Katie was doing.” The day of shooting felt “kind of like a reality TV show,” Mary Kraft said. “We just fed on each
MilkPEP / Courtesy photo
Katie Uhlaender, a skeleton racer for Team USA, visits with Quail Ridge Dairy owner Mary Kraft, right, during a tour the Fort Morgan dairy in November 2017. They were shooting a video for MilkPEP to promote the benefits of drinking milk for Olympic athletes, like Uhlaender.
other’s energy, talking about things we love. Anytime you can find someone you mesh that well with, it’s a lovely day.” Mary Kraft said she planned to follow closely how Uhlaender does at the 2018 Olympic Games, which were held earlier in February. “The interesting thing is with Katie, there was some controversy in the last Olympics,” Mary Kraft said, with the skeleton racer coming in fourth place and missing out on a bronze medal by only .04 seconds. And thanks to a doping scandal that involved the 2014 Russian medal winner, for almost four years Uhlaender thought she then had gotten the bronze, even mentioning it in the video. But in
early February, the Court of Arbitration for Sport overturned Olympic bans for the Russian athletes, which could mean reinstating the bronze medal to Uhlaender’s competitor. It could be years before that issue is finally settled. But that could be strong motivation for the American skeleton racer in the 2018 Olympic Games, since she only would have needed a little bit more at the 2014 Olympic Games to have the medal be hers outright. “A little more is always doable,” Mary Kraft said. The Fort Morgan dairy owner also was excited to be able to showcase both her dairy and the importance of milk through the video and ads, which she and the
dairy volunteered to do, not as a money-making endeavor. “For everything we do, we’re interested in how the community moves forward,” she said. “If I could turn it into a revenue stream, I sure would, but I think the revenue stream is people drinking milk.” And she is excited for people to watch the video or see the ads. “There should be quite a number of things showing cows and how important milk is to fuel (the athletes’) bodies,” she said. To view the video, visit https:// www.facebook.com/TeamUSA/ videos/10155330505342686/. Jenni Grubbs: jgrubbs@fmtimes.com or Twitter @JenniGrubbs
SALUTE TO AGRICULTURE • FEBRUARY 28, 2018 • 7
Salute to Agriculture
Damon Mitchek carries on second-generation businesses Father Allen Mitchek launched business in 1960 with purchase of his first truck By Kyle Inman Journal-Advocate Staff Writer
Damon Mitchek owns and operates Mitchek’s Diamond W Grain LLC, the last remaining privately-owned grain elevator in Logan County and one of seven remaining in the entire state. As other elevators have been bought up by co-ops, Mitchek is hopeful that the second-generation business can stay as it is. “It keeps costs down and you should be able to bid a little better for the farmer,” Mitchek said. “It’s good for the community; if they aren’t here then I’m not here and if I’m not treating them right then I won’t be here, so it’s a big circle.” Allen Mitchek, Damon’s father, bought the grain elevator where it sits today in 1977 from Commercial Grain Company. The purchase came after Allen bought his first truck while still working for Sonnenberg’s and started selling corn and soybean meal, establishing Allen Mitchek Feed and Grain Trucking (now A & D Trucking, LLC) in 1960. He also owned farms and was involved in three different feed-
Kyle Inman / Sterling Journal-Advocate
(From left) Mitchek’s Diamond W Grain is made up of Charrisa Edwards, Krisandra Taylor-Sidebottom, Rich Kiolbasa, Louise Williams, Jacqui Mitchek and Damon Mitchek.
lots, along with several other business ventures throughout that time. Damon grew up in agriculture, farming and raising bottle calves at the age of 7. In 1983, at 13 years old, Damon began working at his father’s feedlot off Highway 138. He shifted his focus to the commodity and trucking side of the agribusiness industr y in
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1995, doing grain business and dispatching for his father. He carried on the family tradition and learned the business, remaining employed by Mitchek Elevator until obtaining ownership of A & D Trucking in 2016. The father and son worked sideby-side for 39 years up until Allen’s passing in December 2016.
Damon obtained all interests in the grain elevator and established Mitchek’s Diamond W Grain in September 2017, previously named Mitchek Elevator. The name change was made partly to preser ve Allen’s love of the cattle business. “The Diamond W was actually my father’s cattle brand,” Damon said. “We just thought it would be neat to incorporate his cattle interest back into the other side of it. I’m just carr ying it on in a way and starting over.” The licensed and bonded capacity of Mitchek’s Diamond W Grain is 2.3 million bushels. The business purchases much of the locally farmed corn and wheat, merchandises it in Sterling and hauls it west to feed yards and feed mills to buy and sell. A & D Trucking provides transportation of aggregate products and commodities such as corn, wheat, wet distillers grain, rock, fertilizer, beans and molasses. The company ser ves in an 115 air-mile radius with local and Front Range contracts. Kyle Inman: 970-526-9298, inmank@journal-advocate.com
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Salute to Agriculture
There’s a new crop coming Hemp production is coming to Morgan County
By Vicki Severson Fort Morgan Times
Hemp production is coming to Morgan County. According to United Cannabis Chief Operating Officer Chad Ruby, his company, which is new to Morgan County, is bringing with it new jobs, farming opportunities and economic benefits. What it is not bringing, according to Ruby, is pot. A little off-the-beaten-path in Weldona, an old building is being repurposed for a brand new multimillion dollar facility. The project is being funded entirely by United Cannabis and built by local subcontractors. The facility will process hemp grown by local farmers and turn it into products that can be used for a multitude of things. According to Ruby, United Cannabis will be ready to begin operations in approximately 60 days. Once in operation, the company is set to employ 50-60 new workers who, Ruby said, they would like to hire entirely from Morgan County. The positions will be varying, from entry-level workers up to chemists. What will be produced at the
Vicki Severson / Fort Morgan Times
United Cannabis Chief Operating Officer Chad Ruby is shown with a contractor who are working on the new facility.
facility, according to Ruby, may surprise some people. “Our name is misleading. We’re actually a biotech company, not a pot company. We utilize the science and research behind hemp. There are many uses for hemp that have nothing to do with pot or getting ‘high,’” said Ruby. “Hemp comes from what’s called a dual use plant. The plant has three parts. There are a stick, a flower and a seed. The stick gets separated from the flower and the seed. The stick part of the plant is used
in hundreds of materials we use every day and don’t even realize it. It’s a very versatile product.” Some of those products, according to Ruby, are things like insulation, concrete and even fiberglass for cars. The seed, he said, is used in lotions and oils found in health food stores, as well as used for medicinal purposes. According to experts, the medicinal products created with hemp are used to treat conditions such as seizures, Schizophrenia, PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder,)
migraines, chronic pain, nausea from chemotherapy and even Multiple Sclerosis. The products, which are still being studied, have thus far shown minimal to no side effects, according to reports. According to chemists, there are two different chemical compounds excreted from the hemp plant. One is the more commonly known THC (tetrahydrocannabinol,) which creates the effects of getting ‘high.’ The other compound has no known psychoactive See HEMP, pg. 11
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Salute to Agriculture
HEMP from page 10 effects, that compound is called CBD (cannabidiol.) According to Ruby, the hemp oil products, which will be made at the United Cannabis facility, are made from industrial hemp. This means the products do not have psychoactive effects because the industrial hemp only contains at most, trace amounts of THC, incapable of producing a high. United Cannabis recently patented a medicinal product called Prana Therapeutics. These products, according to the company, provide patients a simple way to mix and match cannabinoids for therapeutic purpose. Patients who begin treatment with United Cannabis products are also enrolled in what is called the A.C.T. Now, extended patient service, which is built into the cost of the medicine. According to the company, the A.C.T. Now program assigns them to a nurse that will assess his or her current medica-
Ruby’s partners opened one of Colorado’s first cannabis dispensaries, which, according to Ruby, served over 10,000 patients a year. “They had terminally ill people coming in. People with metastatic cancers, seizures and other chronic diseases, just searching for last chance at help,” he said. “We had really good success. Some of those people are still alive today and some of them they were able to give comfort to in their final days.” As far as how the hemp will be turned into medicinal products, the facility will have an onsite laboratory, employing chemists. For more information on hemp CBD Vicki Severson / Fort Morgan Times derived products for medicinal purposes, visit www.proThe future processing lab of United Cannabis. jectcbd.org What does this new company tions and create a personalized record health conditions, schedule mean for local farmers? Right now, program. follow-ups and continue to fineaccording to Ruby, China is the The patient’s information is then tune their programs with their biggest industrial hemp producer entered into a HIPAA-compliant assigned health professional. in the world. The company is hopcloud-based software, according to The medicinal side of United Ruby. The software is used to Cannabis started in 2009, when See HEMP, pg. 12
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Salute to Agriculture
HEMP from page 11 ing to reduce costs of importing hemp and provide a good bumper product for local farmers and give them an off take location to bring the crops as they’re harvested. “Last year only 10,000 acres of hemp was farmed in Colorado. For farmers who get involved now, hemp could prove to be very lucrative, much more so than even corn or potatoes, because it is a commodity which is in high demand and short supply,” said Ruby. “What we aim to do is team up with local farmers and help them get started. We will source them seeds, cuttings and starts and help them through the process. We can test soil and do what is needed to work through the farmer’s goals with them. There are multitudes of different types of hemp crops that can be grown depending on the desired final product.” According to Ruby, United Cannabis works under state and federal regulations and adheres to all
is a zero-carbon footprint operation, which uses every part of the crops they process. Those interested in applying for jobs at United Cannabis are encouraged to apply now, via phone at 844-278-2420 or email staff@unitedcannabis.us. No experience is necessary for many positions and training is provided. Farmers interested in growing hemp are also encouraged to act now, as planting season for hemp begins in May. Farmers must comply with all Vicki Severson / Fort Morgan Times state and federal regulations, and Local contractors work on building the administrative offices for United Can- be registered with the Colorado nabis. Department of Agriculture. New farmers who have questions about how to get started can regulations of the 2014 Farm Bill. “We want to hire in Morgan Ruby also said the company is County. We want to work with the find information at newfarmers.usda.gov/first-steps. interested in working with local local agriculture college students More information on United colleges and their agriculture stu- and other technical colleges to dents, as a source of jobs, as well provide education and training for Cannabis can be found at unitedcannabis.us or follow them on as being a possible teaching this new industry,” he said. Facebook or Twitter. source. The facility, according to Ruby,
If you’re doing what you love, with the ones that you love, you’ll never work a day in your life. 12 • FEBRUARY 28, 2018 • SALUTE TO AGRICULTURE
Salute to Agriculture
NJC Farm Bureau members tackle some tough questions
Student organization helps prepare them for hard decisions By Jeff Rice Journal-Advocate Staff Writer
If you talk to farmers and ranchers about the future of their calling, you might get a little discouraged; commodity prices are stuck in low gear, input prices continue to rise, and the new farm bill is still pretty much a blank slate. On the other hand, maybe you’re talking to the wrong people. Spend a few minutes with members of Northeastern Junior College’s Collegiate Farm Bureau Chapter, and you’ll start feeling pretty good about the future of American agriculture. The NJC chapter sent eight members to the 2018 National Young Farmer and Rancher Conference in Reno, Nev., in mid-February where some of them participated in what’s called a “discussion meet,” a sort of competitive roundtable where participants try to come up with answers to some of agriculture’s most vexing questions. We sat down with three of the eight before they left and asked
Jeff Rice/ Sterling Journal-Advocate
From left: Lindsay Wagner, Nick Vollmer, Haley White.
them some questions of our own. We talked with Haley White, a sophomore from Firestone. Haley comes from a non-farm background and wants to do agricultural instruc-
tional outreach to developing countries and, eventually, end up teaching high school ag classes. Lindsey Wagner, a freshman from Otis, is the product of a small dry-
land family farm. While she knows she probably won’t be able to farm the land her family has worked for five generations, she hopes to find a
See BUREAU, pg. 14
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Salute to Agriculture
BUREAU from page 13
“different avenue in agriculture,” and help her brothers when they take over the farm. Nick Vollmer, president of the NJC chapter, is a sophomore from Merino where his family runs Vollmer Farms and Livestock, a moderately large farming and ranching operation. After getting his degree in animal science, Nick plans to go back to help run the family-owned operation. This was his second year to attend a YF&R conference. The interview has been edited for length and clarity. JOURNAL-ADVOCATE: It has been said recently that Americans have done such a good job teaching others how to farm that it is beginning to hamper our ability to export farm commodities. Do you see that as a challenge? HALEY WHITE: I wouldn’t exactly agree with that. We grow so much product, and we can grow some of the things (they need) that they can’t grow, so I don’t think our export market is about to die off. I don’t think they are going to be able to farm to the extent that they need to farm to sustain themselves. LINDSEY WAGNER: We can farm a lot cheaper here than in some other areas, for instance, in Africa, so it’s easier for us to farm. But it is hard to export it because of the cost (of exporting.) J-A: There are students at NJC who are not from a farm background who want to go into production agriculture. Is that a wise move? NICK VOLLMER: I think it’s a good thing, especially with less than 2 percent (of Americans) in production agriculture. We want those kids, whether they’re going to be running farms or if they’re going to be the talent and labor and provide their knowledge. It’s good to get this influx of people who don’t have a rich agricultural background (because) a lot of our advisors seek out a lot of job opportunities, and those (students) can get those jobs. J-A: What needs to be done to make it easier for young farmers and ranchers to get into business? N.V.: The biggest challenge is the availability of land, you see a lot of
Farm Bureau meet a family affair The National Young Farmer and Rancher Conference in Reno was a family affair for the Vollmer family. Nick Vollmer, a sophomore at Northeastern Junior College, is president of the NJC Collegiate Farm Bureau Chapter and the Reno, Nev., conference was his cities buying land just for the water rights, like Parker bought farm land north of Sterling and took it out of production so they could have the water. And then there’s the (USDA’s Farm Service Agency) requirement that to qualify for their programs, 80 percent of your income has to come from the farming operation, so even if you have a second job, it can’t provide more than 20 percent of your household income. I think some of those regulations need to be changed a little bit, especially if you want new people to come in. J-A: Young farmers coming into a family operation are being told they need to also bring new sources of revenue. What is the potential for new revenue sources from the family farm and is an organic component or some other non-traditional source the way to go? N.V.: I think there are always ways of diversifying an operation. In today’s age, especially when you look at commodity prices, you can’t just raise crops, you have to vertically integrate yourself. Say you sell seed and grow crops, you’re diversifying the operation, and I think that’s one way to bring new income. With organic, there’s a lot more process, a lot more protocols, like the way you fertilize, but I think the payout most of the time is worth the extra process to be certified. H.W.: I think non-traditional agriculture really has a place, especially now with the public not being as in touch with agriculture. I’m not saying everybody needs to have themselves an organic farm, but if we can serve that niche market then let’s
14 • FEBRUARY 28, 2018 • SALUTE TO AGRICULTURE
second national conference. But he’s following in some big footsteps. Nick’s older brother, Kreg, a student at Adams State University in Alamosa, represented Colorado in the national Collegiate Discussion Meets in Reno. Kreg Vollmer had won first place in the
statewide discussion meets. There was another NJC connection as well; Brett Arnusch of Keenesburg, now attending Colorado State University, attended Reno as the second-place statewide discussion meet winner. Arnusch graduated from NJC last year.
do it. At the end of the day we have to keep our farms running and if somebody’s willing to pay three times the price for something that’s labeled organic, we should serve that market. L.W.: I know that organic doesn’t produce as much but our cost would be less, so it could be feasible (out in eastern Colorado) but we’re a dryland farm and we have to look at the soil nutrients. I don’t think we have the nutrients in the soil that would be needed that they have closer to the Front Range. J.A.: How do you see Farm Bureau’s role as we get further into the 21st century? H.W.: I think we’re a way to bridge the gap between farmers and the legislators in Washington. N.V.: I would agree with that. The thing about Farm Bureau is that it’s a grassroots organization. There’s a policy book that’s based on what Farm Bureau stands for, and the senators and representatives can go look at that policy book and know that the policies are based on the moral beliefs of the members. There are a lot of what-ifs, so things that (legislators) may run into in the future, Farm Bureau already has a policy on that. J-A: Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue recently released the USDA’s top priorities for the 2018 farm bill. What do you think should be at the top of that list? L.W.: I agree with Secretary Perdue, it’s trying to keep farmers on their farms and ranchers on their ranches. That has to be the No. 1 priority.
H.W.: I really feel like the financial burdens that farmers face needs to be looked at. N.V.: The estate tax has been a topic of discussion for a lot of farm bills. If you’re a young farmer and you have this farm that’s worth millions of dollars and then you have to pay this estate tax on it, but you don’t have the income to pay that, and you end up having to sell the farm just to pay the estate tax. If they can get rid of the estate tax, I think that would be an important thing to look at. J-A: What are your expectations for the National Young Farmer and Rancher Conference in Reno? H.W.: I’m looking forward to meeting more young collegiate members from around the states, networking with them. I’m assuming there are going to be more policy stuff that we’ll sit in on and discuss. L.W.: I’m looking forward to the tours. They have over 75 of them that we can go on, so I’m signed up for a dairy tour, and I’m anxious to see their operation. N.V.: There are a lot of networking opportunities with other collegiate members. I think we’re the only junior college, or one of the only ones, across the nation that attends this conference, so it’s really awesome to have the opportunity to network, not only with the other collegiate members, but also with industry leaders where you have to mix it up and talk with other agriculturists, so that’s great. Jeff Rice: 970-526-9283, ricej@journal-advocate.com
Salute to Agriculture
Janice Dixon calling it a career
Janice Dixon to retire March 2 from Morgan County CSU Extension By Jenni Grubbs Fort Morgan Times
For 35 years, Janice Dixon has spent a lot of her time focussing on other people. But soon, the director of the Morgan County Colorado State University Extension office will find herself with a lot more free time that she could spend on herself. That is because Dixon is set to retire from CSU Extension on March 2. She started with CSU Extension in 1983, getting hired on as the 4-H and youth development agent in Morgan County. “That’s a long time ago,” Dixon said while discussing her career with CSU Extension and upcoming retirement.
Growing up
Dixon grew up on a farm on a farm west of Grover, which is about 75 miles northwest of Fort Morgan. Grover is a small community that sits southeast of Cheyenne, Wyoming, and northeast of Greeley. “There’s not too many people there,” Dixon said. But there was a 4-H program, and Dixon participated in it for a decade
Jenni Grubbs / Fort Morgan Times
Janice Dixon sits in her office Feb. 7. The Morgan County CSU Extension director will retire March 2 after 35 years.
while she was growing up. She did “a little bit of everything” in 4-H, including projects dealing with clothing, foods, knitting, home beautification, leathercraft, photography, veterinary science and raising breeding and market sheep. She graduated from Pawnee High School in Grover in 1972.
and moved to Fort Collins. Initially, Dixon thought she wanted to be a veterinarian, but she quickly decided she “didn’t want to go to school that long.” But she had been in 4-H for 10 years as a child, and had enjoyed working with animals and science. So she picked biology as her major at CSU and earned a bachelor’s Adult life degree in biology. That was followed Next up, she went to Northeastby getting a master’s degree in adult ern Junior College in Sterling for education at CSU, which she comtwo years. pleted in 1979. “I’m a big proponent of NJC,” Dix“The degrees were pretty much on said. “I think they do a great job.” back to back,” she said. After NJC, she transferred to CSU
But Dixon also was working “pretty much the whole time I was in college” and doing “all kinds of stuff.” Her jobs included tending to lab mice, working on the assembly line at Teledyne Waterpik, cashiering at a restaurant, secretary for the CSU Geology Department and washing cars. While she was working at Teledyne Waterpik, she met fellow assembly line worker and CSU student Mike Dixon. They started dating and would get married in 1978. When her husband, now a certified public accountant, took a job with Anderson, Doty and Co. CPA’s in Fort Morgan, she moved with him. Janice had been working at a U.S. Post Office in Fort Collins, and she was able to transfer to the post office in Fort Morgan. “I was the first woman in the Fort Morgan post office,” she said, crediting then-postmaster Harry Roenspies and calling him “a great individual.”
Joining CSU Extension
About a year later, Janice was hired for the job she really wanted: 4-H and youth development agent for the CSU Extension office in Morgan County. “I had been looking at Extension jobs, and an Extension job became available,” she recalled of her career change in 1983. “I had a 4-H background,” she said. At that time, the Extension office
See DIXON, pg. 16
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DIXON from page 15 was located in the shopping center on East Railroad Avenue. “Chester Fithian was director of the office,” she recalled. “Luann (Boyer) had just been hired the year before (as family consumer sciences extension agent). Don Edgerton was the livestock agent. We had two support staff at that time, Judy Knott and Barbara Finch.” The office also had a mimeograph machine, which the agents uses for putting out newsletters. There were not any computers there at that time. “Reports were done in onion skin because the building leaked,” she said. “We were careful about what we left on desks. The program ran about the same like it does now, with a lot of good volunteer support.” The building that currently houses the CSU Extension office was built in Fort Morgan in 1985, and not terribly much changed with the big move, although they did get the office’s first computer ahead of changing locations. Janice recalled that it was a very small Mac, which was good for general word processing. “We streamlined the fairbook after we got it going,” she said. “That
saved time. It was extremely helpful to have the spreadsheet and data management.”
Lots of memories
Something that has not changed in 35 years is how much the 4-H program depends on volunteers, Janice said. Her favorite memories of running the 4-H program are loaded with references to those volunteers, as they helped make possible a large number of trips, camps, the 4-H Exchange program and most everything else that happens with 4-H and the annual Morgan County Fair. Janice had a hard time picking only one or two things out as the best of 35 years, but she did point to the collective 4-H Exchange trips and summer camps. One such summer camp involved taking kids in a covered wagon to Nebraska on the Oregon Trail and living and eating similarly to the trip that the settlers had made in the 1840s. For exchange trips, the idea is that a group of Morgan County youth in 4-H and a group in another state participate in a two-year-long experience, where the first group See DIXON, pg. 17
Salute to Agriculture
DIXON from page 17
comes to Morgan County one year and then the next year the Morgan County group travels to the other group’s home state. In 1984 and 1985, that exchange was between 20 Morgan County 4-H members and a group from Eaton County in Michigan. Each group sent a handful of adult volunteers along for the trip. “We’ve done a lot of great stuff with volunteers,” Janice said. But her worst memory during her years with Extension also is from a summer camp that got completely rained out and had to leave Adena and head back to the Extension office in Fort Morgan. Still, that “trip” wound up being fun for the kids. “Here at Extension, you never get bored,” Janice said. “There’s always something going on. And the community’s very supportive.” As for the Morgan County Fair, she said it has “really changed a lot” from her early years at Extension. A main change is having as many buildings as are at the Morgan County Fairgrounds today. “When I started, they didn’t have the event center or the multi-purpose building,” Janice recalled. “They had just built the indoor arena. There have been a lot of good changes.” A couple of those changes also involve the locations for events. “We used to have interview judging in a church in Fort Morgan,” she said. “We used to have the dances in a parking lot. There’s been some real improvements with facilities and scheduling.” She also had some years when the fair was affected by the weather. “Your fear with fair is always a tornado and how to handle that,” Janice said.
Raising a family
In 1988, Janice gave birth to her daughter, Claire. Her daughter later would be in 4-H, but that was no more odd for Janice than for teachers who wind up having their own in kids in class or at least at the same school. “It’s like everyone does,” Janice said. In 1996, the Dixon family moved
to their current home, located south of Brush. When Claire was in elementary school, she had a family history project that would affect the family’s future vacation plans. “My daughter got involved with a fifth-grade project and it kind of expanded from that,” Janice said of their travels to places like Pennsylvania and Virginia in part to study genealogy and history. “We’ll go to cemeteries and libraries. Part of that is you learn American history, travel patterns, how people migrated.” As recently as 2015, Janice and Mike Dixon travelled to the Volga Region of Russia to study family history. “It’s become something we’ve all enjoyed,” Janice said. “It’s been fun, and wow, we’ve really learned a lot.” Claire is now an adult, working as an immigration attorney in Denver, the proud mother said.
More responsibility
In 2003, Janice was named the director of the Morgan County office, and for a while she also was in charge of the Logan County office. That started in 2009. “CSU had done some clustering in Logan (County),” she recalled. “People had retired in Logan, and the counties worked together.” In 2017, she was back to directing only the Morgan County office, and that was OK with Janice.
Same mission
Although some of the direction may have changed, the Morgan County CSU Extension continues to follow the same mission it had when Extension began in 1914, Janice said, sounding proud. “We still look back on the original mission of taking research information from the land grant college and helping our communities,” she said. “We still think that’s our mission.” The first 4-H club was started in Morgan County in 1915, she said, pointing to the Corn Club Contest where kids competed with raising 1 acre of irrigated corn and 1 acre of dryland corn. The top prize in that contest was a corn sheller and the second-place prize was a pig. See DIXON, pg. 18
SALUTE TO AGRICULTURE • FEBRUARY 28, 2018 • 17
Salute to Agriculture
DIXON from page 17 Something that began while Janice was still fairly new in Extension was a farm equipment safety program, and there was a local example for why that was needed. “In 1992, two farmers died in Wiggins from tractor accidents,” Janice recalled. “Extension told us to get farm equipment safety information out to farms. As a staff, we thought we could have the most impact if we worked with kids.” So the Morgan County CSU Extension began offering farm safety programs in the schools, even if they did not have as many students who lived on farms. “To me, that was an example of Extension making a difference,” Janice said. “We probably reached about 10,000 kids.” And that program continues, with Extension agents working with FFA chapters to provide farm safety information to elementary students every three years. “We did one last spring,” Janice
recalled. Sometimes, organizations like Morgan County REA or Morgan County Ambulance Service will join in on such programs, offering electricity safety, first aid or accident prevention information to the kids. FFA chapters also have offered information about steering clear of tractors or staying safe around them in the case of an accidental power take off happening without warning. “We just make kids aware that this happens really quickly and can be very dangerous,” Janice said. “We’ve been doing that for a long time.” The Fort Morgan Young Farmers and the Morgan County Cattlemen’s Association have also helped with these programs, she said. And these sorts of agriculture education activities for youth are a big part of what CSU Extension has done in Morgan County throughout Janice’s time there, whether through 4-H, the in-school programs
or trips to the National Western Stock Show. “As an office, we’ve worked on educating young people about agriculture and how important it is, even today,” she said. “Even though we live in a rural community, families may not be involved in production agriculture.” That could be the case even for parents who work at agriculture-related industrial jobs at the beef, cheese or dairy facilities in Fort Morgan, Janice said. “We thought it was important for their kids to understand about their food supply,” she said. “That’s kind of been the focus we’ve taken – making sure kids get agriculture education. Also, we’re using the research at the university and getting that information out to Morgan County.”
While the whole staff at the Morgan County CSU Extension office likely will miss Janice after she retires, Extension Agent Marlin Eisenach definitely will notice her absence. He has worked with Janice for a long time now, both as a fellow agent and as his boss. “It’s going to take big shoes to fill Janice’s position,” he said. “I’ve been with Extension for 30 years. I’m shooting from the hip here, saying that (about replacing Dixon’s position), because I know.” To honor her, Dixon’s office will host a retirement open house from 2 to 6 p.m. Friday, March 2, at the Morgan County Fairgrounds in Brush. Then on March 3, Dixon said she plans to “probably sleep in.” Dixon does not plan to just sit at home for her retirement, though. “There’s other things I’d like to try,” she said. “Before I worked for Ready to retire In 2018, Janice now is about ready Extension, I never had a job for more than 14 months. Maybe I’d to retire as she wraps up her 35th like to try some of those things year with CSU Extension. “The staff is in really good shape,” again.” she said. “There are young people Jenni Grubbs: jgrubbs@fmtimes.com with good ideas here.” or Twitter @JenniGrubbs
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Salute to Agriculture
Ag technology: Producer driven for the 21st century Technology in agriculture is all about ‘time and money’ By Lisa Young Journal-Advocate Staff Writer
Technology for today’s farmer is being driven primarily by the needs of producers, according to Nate Young, who sells farm equipment at 21st Century Equipment in Sterling. “It’s customer driven solutions,” Young said. “The number of acres a guy has to cover a day versus what he did 10 ears ago, 20 years ago has drastically increased ... and it’s all about doing more with less.” For many producers, the shortage of qualified farm workers has augmented the need for better technological advances. Better technology means farmers can do more of the work themselves or hire workers who don’t need a ton of training. “The more we can automate a unit or a piece of equipment, the quality of the employee they have
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run the equipment,” said Young, who reminisced about the days when his grandfather and greatgrandfather took pride in being able to “follow the mark” while
planting. In those days if a farmer drove four miles an hour while planting he was traveling at top speed. See TECHNOLOGY, pg. 21
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Salute to Agriculture
Lisa Young / Sterling Journal-Advocate
John Deere’s trade marked AutoTrac Vision in 9470RX Tractor
TECHNOLOGY from page 21 Now, Young said, with new technology they’re pushing the envelope with planters that hit eight to 10 miles an hour. The tractors on today’s operations have gotten larger, faster and smarter, giving producers a chance to perfect their timing when it comes to getting their crop in the ground. “It’s all about timing and our windows are shortening up, so when we do have that optimum time window we’ve got to go gang busters to get it all done,” Young said. And that’s where advanced technology can make the difference: by increasing the number of acres a farmer can plant in one day or night. Producers are no longer limited to working only in the daytime thanks to improvements in the global positioning systems (GPS) in today’s farm equipment. Young, who farms north of Sterling, said his operation plants most of their corn at nighttime simply because they all have day jobs. They take a few hours before nightfall to set up their guidance systems and equipment before planting in the moonlight. GPS technology once cost upwards of $30,000 per unit when it first came out over five years ago. Most producers weren’t willing to pay money for a tractor that
could do the driving; after all, that was the farmer’s job. But now, with the need to increase acres just to survive, farmers realize that the new technology is more necessity than luxury. “It’s pretty cheap technology anymore,” Young said. “We’ve got capabilities now where the machine will actually turn itself around, put the implement in the ground and keep on driving. All you have to do is touch a button on the steering wheel to tell it which way you want it to turn.” Young said that as of last December John Deere has a new integrated technology called AutoTrac™ Vision. The technology uses a front-mounted camera on machines to detect early-season corn, soybeans and cotton at least 4 to 6 inches high. According to information on John Deere’s website, “This guidance system helps sprayer wheels stay in the center of each row and dramatically reduce yield-robbing crop damage, even if planter drift causes misalignment or the AB line from planting isn’t available at spraying.” The advancement lets farmers spray faster with less fatigue and is useful in tight application windows. Farmers can increase sprayer speeds from 14 up to 18 mph, See TECHNOLOGY, pg. 22
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Salute to Agriculture
TECHNOLOGY from page 21
allowing them to cover 20 percent more acres per day. According to John Deere, the AutoTrac™ Vision “helps sprayer operators of all experience levels do their jobs with higher productivity because they can better focus on other things besides steering.” Young also talked about John Deere’s active implement guidance (AIG) systems. He said the technology is especially useful with three-piece mounted equipment that’s tied to the tractor. “You don’t have to worry so much about your implement getting off; it will stay right with it, because it’s married to the tractor. So, if we’ve got something that’s got a pivoting tongue or uses a draw bar, well your tractor may be straight but the implement can sit there and swag.” The technology works by placing another GPS globe on the implement that reads a signal off the tractor. The technology not only helps keep the tractor in line but it also keeps the implement in line as well. Young said he used the technology last year with a sugar beet digger with a steerable rear axle. The driver was able to use the implement without having to constantly check over his shoulder to line up the digger. The driver was able to focus on other aspects of the operations. “It reduced operator fatigue considerably and allowed them to get more production in a day’s time just because it increased their efficiency,” Young said. “Everything we’re doing is to increase efficiencies.” With inputs being very expensive and commodity prices low, today’s farmers have to maximize every penny they possibly can, Young said. “In order to give ourselves the best opportunity to stay in business, generate a return on our investment, we’ve got to maximize every efficiency, so you’re managing time, you’re managing mother nature, you’re managing all of your inputs and technology is
9470RX Tractor with John Deere’s trade marked AutoTrac Vision
“It’s all about timing and our windows are shortening up, so when we do have that optimum time window we’ve got to go gang busters to get it all done.”
Lisa Young / Sterling Journal-Advocate
then access that information anywhere and anytime they need to. Young said from his perspective there isn’t much of a down side to the ongoing push for more technology in agriculture. Every year farmers are finding more and more uses for technology in farmNate Young ing and “once you have it, you 21st Century Equipment don’t want to do without it.” “I think in order for you to survive, you have to adopt this techanother tool for the farmer.” ties is to depend on the emerging nology. The information that these The need for technology technology that can open up new machines give us back — from advancements in agriculture also possibilities in time management. planting data to tillage data to fercomes down to the changing “It allows them to have a little tilization to yield data — those are times and changing farm families. more flexibility and a better qualiall data that we collect for a twelve The days are long gone when ty of family life,” Young said. month time period and help us everyone on the farm lived, “Everything’s done on your cell make our decisions,” Young said. worked and made their living on phone. We can start and stop a There’s little doubt that 21st the farm. Now, the wife or hussprinkler on our cell phone.” century technology has now band may both work away from According to Young, if producbecome a trusted advisor for the farm to make ends meet. ers equip their tractor with wiretoday’s ag producer and as Young Young said that today’s farmer is less data transfer capabilities, as said, “it helps take the guess and expected to not only farm and soon as they pull out on a field all by golly out of planning for the work another outside job but is the information about what they future.” also expected to be involved in the are doing can be uploaded to Lisa Young: 970-526-9281, activities of the family. The only cloud data storage and then sent lyoung@journal-advocate.com way to balance all the responsibili- to their cell phone. Farmers can
22 • FEBRUARY 28, 2018 • SALUTE TO AGRICULTURE
Salute to Agriculture
Keith Bath: Chasing his passion
Bath learned farming business from his father, many mentors By Jenni Grubbs Fort Morgan Times
grown quite a bit over the years. But other things have stayed exactly the same. “I still live in the same house I was raised at,” Bath said. “Mom brought me home from the hospital, and I haven’t lived anywhere else.” He also does not plan on moving. “It has a lot of my heart and soul in it, just like all of these farms around here do,” Bath said.
Keith Bath figured out early on what he wanted his life to look like. “I knew when I was 5 years old what I wanted to do with the rest of my life,” he said. It had to involve farming and agriculture. “There is nothing more exciting to me than to produce food that School days people can put on their table and provide nourishment,” Bath said. As a boy, he really did not like “I do not want anything more than school, “but I knew I needed some that.” sort of education.” Jenni Grubbs / Fort Morgan Times The Morgan County farmer has Still, when he was in the classKeith Bath stands in his office at Keith Bath Farms just east of Fort Morgan. been successful in achieving that room, there was really only one Behind him, at left, is a picture of the lit up cross that stands on one of his goal and his Keith Bath Farms has farms southeast of the city. See BATH, pg. 24
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BATH from page 23 thing on his mind: farms. “I used to get teased in school about my obsession with farmers because that’s all I talked about,” Bath recalled. When he was in eighth grade, he had a teacher named Margaret McGraw who Bath said really understood him. “Me and her connected immediately, and she knew what my passion was,” Bath said. “Margaret came to my desk one day. Mom and dad were struggling to keep the farm. It was tough back then, still is. They were afraid we were going to lose the place, and that’s all we had back then. Dad was getting behind on the farm.” The teacher saw Bath staring out the window in class. “Margaret came over to my desk, leaned down, said, ‘Keith, where you at right now?’” Bath recalled. “I was honest with her. I said, ‘My mind is still out in the field helping dad get the sugar beets out right now.’ She said, ‘Pick up your books and get out of here. I know where your mind is. I know where your passion is.’” He did just that, leaving the school in 1964 and riding his small motorcycle back to the farm. On his way out of the school, “I got confronted by other teachers, the athletic director. They said, ‘If you stay in school, you’re good enough to get a basketball scholarship.’ Basketball was my sport. I went out, got on the motorcycle, and that was the end of my schooling.”
Full-time farmer
It was the right choice for Bath, but there were people who did not understand that. “They called me a dropout,” he said, a note of pain in his voice at that memory. But while that may have been the end of Bath’s formal education in classrooms, his real schooling was only beginning. “When you come to that crossroad, all you can do is keep going,” he said. “Am I going to let what they said just destroy me or motivate me?” For Bath, the answer was to
Jenni Grubbs / Fort Morgan Times
This picture of a 32-year-old Keith Bath hangs in the farmer's office at Keith Bath Farms just east of Fort Morgan. Glancing at it recently, the now 67-year-old asked where the time had gone.
chase after the motivation side of it. “I went from there to farming with dad,” he said. “I had a passion for marketing corn and trying to conduct proper business.” Bath had witnessed other farms that were doing things in ways that he considered improper, such as not respecting workers or sharing the farm’s success with them enough for the workers to support their families. Seeing that happen elsewhere gave him the drive to show it could be done a different way on his farm and still be successful. “Through God’s grace, I was very lucky,” Bath said. “When I got to be 18, 19 years old, I started grinding feed corn and selling it to various feedlots. They mentored me in business, took me under their wing.”
24 • FEBRUARY 28, 2018 • SALUTE TO AGRICULTURE
That was when Bath found himself in school again, but in a realworld school where he would learn the skills and ways of thinking that would set him on a path for agricultural success.
Riding out the times
Today, Keith Bath Farms includes irrigated farms that stretch from “a couple miles east of Fort Morgan to Dodd Bridge Road,” he said. “They’re all farms that the old Germans from Russia migrated on in the late 1800s. I’m still farming the first farm that my dad ever bought.” Bath also credits his father’s work ethic and the example it set for him as factors in why Keith Bath Farms is as large and productive as it is today. “Without those mentors and my father, I probably wouldn’t have
survived,” he said. Bath remembers a time when it seemed like that would be the case for his father. “In 1969, when the beets froze, the banker came out and put up ‘for sale’ signs,” he recalled. “My dad made me go out and pull them down. It was the farming economy in 1969. Today, we are blessed.” His farms supply about 45 dairies with flake corn for animal feed. While a lot of that feed corn is grown on his farms, some of it comes from other area farms. The corn is ground and partially cooked at Keith Bath Farms just east of Fort Morgan, from there it is hauled to dairies “from the Front Range to the eastern edge of Colorado,” plus to five dairies in Utah. “We depend on the dairymen,” See BATH, pg. 25
Salute to Agriculture
BATH from page 24 Bath said. “We all depend on each other.”
Building a business
Bath still loves talking about farming, but there is a different theme to how he talks about it now than when he was in school as a boy. “Business is probably what I love talking about,” Bath said, but he often mainly sticks to the business of farming and agriculture. “I learned it the hard way, but also the easy way. I had successful businessmen as mentors to me through my teens, 20s, 30s and 40s. I took their advice and ran with it.” He also got to learn from what did not work for others. “Sometimes you learn from a successful person, but also from a person who had made mistakes,” he said. “They’re both helpful.” Bath found that there were “three key ingredients to building a successful farming operation.”
The first one was “having a huge work ethic. Second was “having common sense.” Finally, “it better be your passion, and don’t get in it just for the money.” Another lesson Bath was learning was the importance of all those who were working for him and around him on the farm. “It didn’t take me long to realize how valuable my co-workers had become to me,” he said. “The game of business is a lot like the game of football. How good is your quarterback without a strong line to block for him? How good is a line without a quarterback to know what play to throw?” Bath was seeing what could happen when a team was working together, whether that team was on a gridiron field or a corn field. “I have come to realize in the Jenni Grubbs / Fort Morgan Times last 10 years, it is not anything Keith Bath stands with five of his 22 co-workers as flake corn dumps down about my success, but it’s about from the machine that partly digests it so that it is ready to be feed for dairy the success of the whole team,” he cattle. Keith Bath Farms supplies such flake corn to 45 dairies in eastern See BATH, pg. 26 Colorado and five more in Utah.
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Salute to Agriculture
BATH from page 25 said. And that is a big part of why he calls the people who work for Keith Bath Farms his co-workers, not his employees or hired hands. “I have 22 co-workers in this company,” he said. “They all have families and children. I feel very responsible for them, their quality of life.” That even led to including them in business decisions over the years. “In the last 10 years, every time I have had an opportunity to expand this business, I gather up my co-workers,” Bath said. “It was not going to be my decision without their input because I couldn’t do it alone.”
because they depend on me. When I conduct proper business, it also enhances their life. Conducting improper business would make them and their children suffer.” And seeing others succeed because of what he and his business are able to provide to them is important to Bath. “One of my greatest loves is seeing my co-workers live good, proper lives,” he said. He also seeks to have familystyle relationships with his vendors, dairymen and suppliers. “That’s what it’s all about to me – relationships,” Bath said. Something else that he wanted to point out he had learned was Jenni Grubbs / Fort Morgan Times the importance of humility. Keith Bath holds up a couple handfuls of the flake corn produced just east Looking to the future “Don’t ever forget how you got of Fort Morgan. Keith Bath Farms supplies such flake corn to 45 dairies in The 67-year-old also acknowlyour start,” he said. “Always maineastern Colorado and five more in Utah. edges the passage of time and tain your humbleness.” how that leads to other considerFor Bath, it all goes back to that ations. did focus on my passion, not mon- a very greedy person,” he said. plan he formed as a boy, that he “It’s starting to be about them ey, and the success would show It also makes him realize that he was going to be a farmer. It’s a more than it is me,” he said. up. It would pay off.” has become what so many busigoal he has chased all of his life “Another of my greatest loves is That takes Bath back to his goal ness owners were for him as a and not one he ever plans to leave just to see this younger generation of operating his idea of a proper young man: a mentor. behind. coming up and being successful in business. “I’ve become the mentor that my ag, just like I got to be. I have “Any business owner that has mentors were to me in my young- Jenni Grubbs: jgrubbs@fmtimes.com or Twitter always told the younger generabeen successful on the behalf of er years,” Bath said. “I owe it to @JenniGrubbs tion, follow your passion and you his leadership and his co-workers’ my co-workers and their families will always be successful. I always hard work and does not share it is to conduct proper business
Evan Fust to lead CHS Grainland
HOLYOKE – CHS Inc., leading U.S. farmer owned cooperative, has named Evan Fust as general manager for its CHS Grainland business based out of Holyoke. In his new role, Fust will lead all operations of the grain, feed and energy co-op serving farmers and ranchers across northeastern Colorado and southwestern Nebraska. He officially joined CHS Grainland on February 5. In his previous role as Environmental Health and Safety (EHS) manager for the Country Operations division of CHS, Fust led safety program initiatives divisionwide and oversaw a broad team,
directly and indirectly, of safety professionals for CHS. With more than 15 years in the ag business, he started working in grain merchandising and elevator operations even as he finished his bachelors in agribusiness management from Southwest Minnesota State University, Marshall, Minn. In 2008, he joined CHS Northern Plains, Gettysburg, S.D., as a location manager, then moved to inventory and compliance, and finally his EHS position. Fust was raised on a Rutland, North Dakota, farm. He’s served on numerous board committees for his rural electric co-op and credit
26 • FEBRUARY 28, 2018 • SALUTE TO AGRICULTURE
union. “Evan brings a lifelong commitment to the cooperative system and a strong background in leadership with a focus on operational success,” said CHS Grainland Chairman Chad Osborne. “He says he’s missed working directly with producer-owners and is looking forward to learning more about the unique needs of the farmers and ranchers of CHS Grainland.” CHS Grainland is part of CHS Inc., a leading global agribusiness owned by farmers, ranchers and cooperatives across the United States. Diversified in energy,
grains and foods, CHS is committed to helping its customers, farmer-owners and other stakeholders grow their businesses through its domestic and global operations. CHS, a Fortune 100 company, supplies energy, crop nutrients, grain marketing services, animal feed, food and food ingredients, along with business solutions including insurance, financial and risk management services. The company operates petroleum refineries/ pipelines and manufactures, markets and distributes Cenex® brand refined fuels, lubricants, propane and renewable energy products.
Salute to Agriculture
Annie’s Project gives confidence and knowledge to ag women
Annie’s Level II training is planned for the near future
By Lisa Young Journal-Advocate Staff Writer
In the past two years Annie’s Project has provided women in northeastern Colorado a unique opportunity to gain confidence and knowledge as they take their place in today’s ag industry. Annie’s Project is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that seeks to provide educational programs to strengthen the role of women in agriculture. Annie’s Project started in northeastern Colorado in the fall of 2016 at the recommendation of Dr. R. Brent Young, CSU Extension Agriculture & Business Management Specialist. Young had previously taken training to become a state coordinator and trained facilitator for the program while teaching at North Dakota State University in Fargo. According to the official website, Annie’s Project is available in 33 states and helps to advance decision making skills, cultivate problem solving techniques and teach record keeping for participants. The program also offers second level courses in business, estate, retirement and succession planning. One key element of the program is developing networking skills and handling farm transactions. Last year Young approached Kelly Huenink, Northeastern Junior College Agriculture Business Coordinator, to help him start the program in Colorado. Huenink agreed and spent the first year shadowing her mentor and learning more about the influential program for women. Commenting on the first year of
the program, Huenink said, “Who knew it would be so wildly successful that we’d have waiting lists to sign up, that it would get all the good press that it got, so of course we knew we wanted to keep doing it.” Because interest in Annie’s was growing, Young organized a facilitator training workshop in the fall of 2017, where roughly 25 new Annie’s Project facilitators were trained to lead six-week courses and provide education in five risk areas including: financial, human resources, legal, market and production. Young’s efforts paid off and now Annie’s Project has qualified facilitators across Colorado. The proLisa Young / Sterling Journal-Advocate gram has been especially fruitful Kelly Huenink, Annie’s Project facilitator at Northeastern Junior College. on the Eastern Plains where Young works and lives. Huenink said this spring there are five Annie’s Projects taking place at the same time. The six weeks classes are taking place in Sterling, Fort Morgan, Holyoke, Wray and Burlington. According to Huenink, the classes are primarily funded by local financial institutions. She said Farm Services is the main contributor in most states. Locally the Bank of Colorado and a private business, Schuppe Hay Farms, provided financial resources for the classes at Northeastern Junior College. Alfalfa Pasture Mixes Cover Crop Mixes “We’re fortunate here because we have six college students takSmall Grains and Custom Mixes ing the course who were fully funded by Schuppe Hay Farms,” Huenink said. Schuppe Hay Farms is located 20 miles northeast of Sterling. The hay farm owned and operated by Mike and Kammy Schuppe grows and markets quality forage products for commercial cattle operations, dairy farms and feedlots across the United States. Cost to attend Annie’s Project Call for a dealer near you 800.421.4234 training is $60 per woman, which 101 East 4th Street Road, Greeley, CO 80631 according to Huenink mainly covSee PROJECT, pg. 28
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Salute to Agriculture
PROJECT from page 28
ers the cost of the pre-training evening meals. The full price to attend Annie’s is roughly $155 a person. This year’s spring class held at NJC consisted of six college students and 15 older women. The courses were held Jan. 18-Feb 22, with co-facilitators Emily Mollohan and Kelly Huenink of NJC, who said the classes were a service of the Agriculture Business Management Program of the college. “What we are seeing is that it’s helping our adult ABM program numbers because women from the Annie’s Project then want to be in our ABM classes because they can see the value of diving in deeper,” Huenink said. When it comes to Annie’s Project, the emphasis is on building confidence and knowledge in women. To accomplish their goal, Huenink said they are careful to make the students feel at ease. “We try to find female speakers just because the whole premise of
es at NJC met on Thursday evenings for three one-hour sessions per evening. Participants gathered at 5:30 p.m. before the classes to share a meal. Huenink said the time gives women a chance to get to know one another better and even form natural mentoring relationships. At least one NJC student and an older student have developed such a friendship during the course. Among the topics taught during Annie’s Project at NJC this spring were estate planning, insurance for farm families, farm leasing, web soil survey, women and money, basic financial documents, Farm Service Agency, Natural Lisa Young / Sterling Journal-Advocate Resources Conservation, crop Annie’s Project students prepare for class. insurance, grain marketing, interpretation of financial documents, Annie’s is that women will feel if they’re not the best expert on and enterprise analysis. more comfortable asking questhe subject. So, if we can’t find “A lot of Annie’s is just exposing tions in an environment that is all someone highly gifted in that area, women to things they didn’t women,” Huenink said. “However, we will use a male speaker.” already know existed,” said we don’t choose a female speaker Women who attended the cours-
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Salute to Agriculture
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Huenink, who explained that women who take the courses come away with more confidence in their ability to contribute on their farms. “They can have a greater role in the management side, especially the marketing side,” Huenink said. There’s research that shows that women tend to be the better commodity marketers because once they see that they’ve reached their target goal, they’re ready to sell, whereas a man may tend to wait and hope the market goes up. Huenink also said that married women who take Annie’s often share what they’ve learned with their husbands, who in turn will reach out to the CSU Regional Engagement Center for more information. In this way, Annie’s Project is proving to be a win-win for everyone on the family farm. For the most part, Annie’s Project focuses exclusively on the women who attend the classes, like Jordyn Holmes, who grew up in agriculture and currently has a small herd of Hereford cows. Holmes said she enrolled in Annie’s in order to learn more about how to manage money both personally and professionally before they “got a lot bigger.” “I would most definitely recommend Annie’s Project to other women. Women in agriculture sometimes just tend to be in the background of many operations and I believe they need to know why decisions are being made. And also so they can put an educated idea into how to successfully
Lisa Young / Sterling Journal-Advocate
Andy Steinert, NRCS, teaches a class on Web Soil Survey to a room full of eager learners.
run the operation,” Holmes said. Shannon Ragan, another Annie’s student, is a sophomore at NJC who said she chose to take the sixweek course because she is “very passionate about agriculture.” “My degree is agricultural education, and I hope to one day be able to have a small operation of my own in the future. I have been told countless times it is very important to take classes involving ag business,” Ragan said. “Annie’s Project is a way for me to start understanding more concepts of book keeping, accounting, and the business side of running a farm/ ranch.” The young lady said she’s
gained a lot of insight from Annie’s so far, but the most important lesson is having support from different professionals in the community and learning how to take care of her money. “I’ve also learned, if you can make a budget and live off of it, it is better to stick to it and continue to save that money or put it towards another loan payment,” Ragan said. Before attending NJC, Ragan was active in 4-H and FFA showing mainly market lambs. She was involved in leadership during her high school years and now at NJC, where she is active in Aggies and Farm Bureau.
“For women who want to learn more about different aspects of the accounting and record keeping side of farming/ranching, Annie’s is a great way to make connections and learn,” said Ragan. She added, “I am very fortunate to be a part of Annie’s and I am excited to see where my future in agriculture will take me.” There doesn’t seem to be any slowing down when it comes to the growth and enthusiasm for Annie’s Project and according to Huenink, plans are being made to add Annie’s Level II training in the near future. Lisa Young: 970-526-9281, lyoung@journal-advocate.com
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Farm | Garages | Equestrian | Commercial SALUTE TO AGRICULTURE • FEBRUARY 28, 2018 • 29
Salute to Agriculture
Colorado FFA Foundation gives out over $90,000 in grant funds
Foundation celebrates FFA Day at the Stock Show
Heifer Wrangle—participants use grant funds to purchase a heifer and throughout the course of the experience learn all aspects of the beef industry. Breeding Animal program –participants use grant funds to purDENVER— The Colorado FFA chase any type of breeding aniFoundation presented FFA memmal. They learn how to care for bers and FFA Chapters from all the animal(s) and experience the across Colorado with grant funds life cycle of animals. Alex Hishito assist FFA members and chapnuma of Wiggins was one of the ters improve agricultural experirecipients. ences in their local communities. Innovation Agricultural ExperiStudents and chapters were preence program—participants use sented grant funds for four differgrant funds to develop any type ent programs that the FFA Founof agriculture entrepreneurship dation and the Colorado FFA experience with an emphasis on Association host each year. innovation. Students are paired Those programs are: with an industry mentor and
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A few student members are shown during FFA Day at the Stock Show.
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communicate quarterly. School-based Agricultural Experience Program—participating schools use grant funds to establish or enhance school based experiences so that all students in the chapter can participate and learn business operations skills. Chapter Improvement program—participating programs use grant funds to purchase equipment, supplies, or curriculum that will benefit the total agricultural education program and help students prepare for a career in agriculture. All programs were made possible through generous donations of Foundations, companies, orga-
nizations and individuals that value and support youth in agriculture. FFA is an integral part of the Agricultural Education Division within the Colorado Community College System. The Colorado FFA Association currently has enrollment of over 6,200 members and 112 chapters. The FFA mission is to make a positive difference in the lives of students by developing their potential for premier leadership, personal growth and career success through agricultural education. For more information about Colorado FFA, visit www.coloradoffa.org or www.coloradoffafoundation.org.
SALUTE TO AGRICULTURE • FEBRUARY 28, 2018 • 31
Salute to Agriculture
Brand inspectors match ancient codes with modern documents Livestock brands have language of their own By Jeff Rice Journal-Advocate Staff Writer
They show up occasionally on the sides of vehicles, at the top of stationery and even stitched into shirt collars and cuffs. Most westerners recognize them: livestock brands, coded marks used primarily to identify animal ownership. In the traditions of the livestock industry, they also identify their owners’ ranches and feeding operations, and have become as indelibly stamped on Colorado’s heritage as on the sides of the animals they identify. They are the special province of Chris Whitney, Colorado’s State Brand Commissioner, and the 70 brand inspectors who work for him verifying brands whenever those animals are sold or transported. We caught up with three of those brand inspectors, Jay Groom, Paul Brandt and Trey Stull, on a recent Wednesday as they went about the business of inspecting brands during a livestock sale at Sterling Livestock
Jeff Rice / Sterling Journal-Advocate
Paul Brandt, left, and Trey Stull study the brand on a cow to match it with the paperwork from the seller prior to a recent livestock sale.
Commission Co. Sterling Livestock is one of the 27 markets where Colorado’s brand inspectors do what they do. And what they do is match the
livestock industry’s ancient secret In the hours before the sale code of markings seared into the began the three men — Groom is flesh of chattel animals with mark- the brand supervisor for the Sterings recorded in a massive tome ling District while Brandt and called The Brand Book. See INSPECTORS, pg. 33
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Salute to Agriculture
INSPECTORS from page 33
Stull are brand inspectors — verified the brands on hundreds of cattle, checking each animal against the brand drawn on a sale ticket. “It’s an identification of private property,” Groom explained. “When cattle are bought and sold, there’s a legal transfer of title, and the brand is how we identify that property.” Brands also have to be verified any time an animal is transported more than 75 miles within the state or whenever it crosses state lines. Cow herds that regularly cross the Colorado-Nebraska state line during the course of a year present special challenges. The Sterling District stretches westward from Nebraska to New Raymer and southward from the state line to Atwood, taking in parts or all of Sedgwick, Logan, Weld and Phillips counties, and there are ranches that straddle the state line. “When they take their cattle up to Nebraska, we’ll verify the brand on our side,” Groom said. “When they bring them back, (the Nebraska) inspector will verify them.” Brand listings in the Colorado Brand Book have to match the sale paperwork, or there has to be additional paperwork explaining why things don’t match. During a recent day at the sale barn Brandt had to track down a discrepancy between the names listed in the Brand Book and the name listed on a bill of sale. As it turned out a
Texas, California and Wyoming. Livestock branding may seem like an anachronism in this age of microchips and hardy plastic tags, but there’s a good reason it’s still done. Brands won’t wash off, break off, or work their way out. The scientific term for a brand is “pyroglyphic,” or a written mark created by burning. Most histories of livestock branding date the practice to the ancient Egyptians, about 4,000 years ago, who started by burning their marks into the hides of their cattle. The modern word brand is derived from the word “brandr,” a word from ancient Norse meaning “to burn.” Around 950 A.D. a “brand” referred to a burning piece of wood. By the 1300s it was used primarily to describe a torch, essentially a burning piece of wood that is used as a tool. By the 1500s the meaning had changed to refer to a mark burned on cattle Examples of the language of livestock brands. to show ownership. According to the article “The couple had forgotten to list both of warrant, conferred upon peace Hot History and Cold Future of their names on the bill of sale; officers...” They can be authorized Brands” published in the Journal Brandt contacted the couple and to equip their vehicles with sirens of Managerial Sciences in 2007 by confirmed that both were agreeand emergency running lights, Saif Ullah Khan and Owais Mufti, ing to sell the cattle. and in some cases may be authocattle brands conveyed more than The devil, as they say, is in the rized to “carry arms.” just ownership. details. Inspecting brands can get seri“It was by burning that early For the most part, inspecting ous sometimes. Although the man stamped ownership on his livestock brands is a fairly routine Sterling crew wasn’t involved, a livestock, and with the developvocation, but it can get exciting million-dollar theft case in Califor- ment of trade, buyers would use sometimes. According to Article nia and Texas, involving cattle sto- brands as a means to distinguish 53 of the Colorado Revised Statlen from ranches in several states between the cattle of one farmer ute, brand inspectors carry badg- including a Logan County ranch, from another,” Khan and Mufti es and are “vested with all the was solved last year with assiswrite. “A farmer with a particularpowers of arrest, with or without a tance from brand inspectors in
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Salute to Agriculture
INSPECTORS from page 33
ly good reputation for the quality of his animals would find his brand much sought after, while the brands of farmers with a lesser reputation were to be avoided or treated with caution. Thus the utility of brands as a guide to choice was established, a role that has remained unchanged to the present day.” It was after livestock was branded that tradesmen began imprinting their own special marks on their wares, starting with brickmakers in ancient Egypt. From that practice we get the modern concept of “name brands.” Branding came to the United States from Mexico and became essential in the American West, where 19th century cattle herds roamed freely across the open range. Colorado is still an open range state, which means cattle can pretty much go wherever they want to; if you don’t want your neighbor’s bovines on your property it’s your responsibility to fence them out. Of course, most ranchers do some fencing to make it easier to find their cattle when the time comes; the animals are expensive and a good cow can produce tens of thousands of dollars’ worth of calves during a lifetime. A crucial part of any roundup was separating animals according to brands; calves were identified according to the cows they accompanied and were likewise branded. It was during this time that the unique language of American livestock brands developed. Jimmy Stamp, a researcher and writer for Smithsonian Magazine, said brands have their own set of symbols and rules. “At its most basic, a cattle brand is composed of a few simple letters and numbers, possibly in
Paul Brandt searches the Colorado Brand Book while verifying a sale ticket.
combination with a basic shape or symbols like a line, circle, heart, arc or diamond,” Stamp wrote in 2013. “But these characters can also be embellished with serif-like flourishes to create myriad pyroglyphics. For example, such serifs might include extraneous wings or feet added to a letter or number.” Characters and, in some cases, whole brands can be embellished, reversed or rotated, and there’s a specific nomenclature for each of these variations. For instance, tilde-looking wings attached to the top of a letter make it “flying” while lines attached to the bottom make it “walking.” A character or
Jeff Rice / Sterling Journal-Advocate
Jay Groom searches a livestock database looking for an animal that needs See INSPECTORS, pg. 35 to be verified.
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Salute to Agriculture
INSPECTORS from page 34 brand laid on its side is “lazy,” and upside-down makes it “crazy.” Thus, the letter “L” displayed on its side would be “lazy L.” Letters and symbols can be joined before being rotated or reversed, and additional markings over, above or alongside can make the brand hanging, rocking, barred or slashed. The Colorado Brand Book contains more than 30,000 registered brands, and while the brand inspectors in the Sterling district are familiar with most of the local ones, their brand books are never farm from their reach. On the day we visited with them, all three inspectors spent time leafing through the giant books. The ideal brand on a new calf, according to Groom, is about 3 inches across. Any smaller and it gets to be hard to read. The brand will grow with the animal so by the time the critter is feedlot size, the brand is fairly easy to read. Other animals are branded as well. Horses tend to be “freeze branded” with an iron supercooled with liquid nitrogen or dry ice and alcohol. Sheep are sometimes branded as well, but their brands are inspected only if a buyer or seller requests the inspection. Livestock brands sometimes are tattooed on an animal’s ear or inside the lip, but those are not considered actual brands and the inspectors don’t use them for verification. “That’s mostly for the owner’s
Author’s brand, fourth from the top, as it appeared registered to G.J. Rice in the 1962 Brand Book. The ovals to the right of the brand indicate an ear notch as further identification of animals.
Keeping family brand honors one’s heritage Jeff Rice / Sterling Journal-Advocate
Brand inspectors are law enforcement officers who carry badges issued by the state.
peace of mind,” Brandt said. “But it’s not an official brand, as far as we’re concerned.” At the end of the day, according to Brand Commissioner Whitney, a livestock brand is an animal’s “return address,” and that philosophy is shared by the inspectors who work for him. “The brand is important if a calf gets lost,” Brandt said. “If the brand is legible, the calf will come home.” Jeff Rice: 970-526-9283, ricej@journal-advocate.com
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My interest in this story was spurred (no pun intended) by the fact that I own the livestock brand registered by my grandfather in 1921. I grew up seeing that brand on everything he owned — a pin in his hat, his belt buckle, his saddle, and certainly his horses. Even the spurs he bought at the National Western Stock Show the day he submitted his brand for registration have the mark engraved on them. They are now displayed on the wall of my study. Said aloud, the brand is a “reverse lazy JR slash.” In the Colorado Brand Book it appears in the company of several similar brands, hence the need for trained brand inspectors to keep things straight. My brothers and I pay a $350 fee every five years to keep the brand registered; if a brand lapses for seven years it can be claimed by anyone willing to pay the overdue registration fees. We occasionally get
offers to buy the brand but so far no one has come close to an interesting price and I doubt they ever will. My sons have assured me they will continue to maintain the brand when I “no longer need it.” We use the brand as a form of family heraldry. At least one of my brothers has had a ball cap and a shirt embroidered with it. I use it on all of my personal stationery and it appears on my business cards, as a Facebook avatar, and even on the side of my pickup. People who don’t know me have accused me of being “all hat and no cattle” for using it that way but I think Grandad would be proud to see his “mark” being put to use. To me it’s more than just a family heirloom, it’s a piece of Colorado history. By using it I’d like to think I’m honoring an industry that helped build my hometown, my state and my country. Jeff Rice
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Salute to Agriculture
A testimony for local FFA Courtney Griffith takes over helm of Brush FFA Chapter By Vicki Severson Fort Morgan Times
Future Farmers of America’s (FFA) Brush Chapter has a new president this year. Courtney Griffith, a senior at Brush High School is this year’s leading lady. According to Courtney her job entails things like presiding over meetings, helping appoint members to committees and coordinating activities within the chapter. “I have loved FFA since my freshman year. As a freshman, I always looked up to the officer team because I knew I wanted to become one. I think my favorite
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ing to be one of the members that the rest of the chapter looks up to,” said Courtney. According to their website, FFA is essentially a student organization for those interested in agriculture and leadership. The organization, however, sites that it is not just for those who aspire to farming, but also future doctors, teachers, scientists or anyone with a hunger for leadership skills and experience. Students who participate take part in activities which introduce them to things such as entrepreneurship, internships and things such as raising and selling animals or crops, building farm equipment and even buying and reselling seed and fertilizer. In addition to the skills part of FFA, students also participate in serving their communities. FFA is made up of state associations, which are then divided into local chapters. How does one become an FFA president? According to Courtney it is a fairly involved process. “I started serving on the Brush FFA officer team when I was a sophomore in high school. I served as an executive committee member and the secretary before I became the president. There
Courtesy photo
were an application and an interview process last fall. All the members who were running for an office filled out their applications. We then had formal interviews with an interview committee. Our interviews were a week before our annual chapter banquet, where the results of the interviews were announced,” said Courtney. According to Courtney, FFA holds conventions in which participants from across the country are able to meet up and learn together. “One of my all-time favorite memories in FFA was attending the National FFA Convention in Kentucky my freshman year. Walking out of the stadium arena and seeing over 60,000 blue jackets was so incredible. It showed me just how amazing this organization is and how lucky the agriculture industry is to have so many young people interested in being involved in this field. This is when I made the commitment to become as involved in my chapter and the FFA organization as possible,” said Courtney. Courtney has served in the FFA in several capacities and claims her most valuable take away will be her learned appreciation for
See GRIFFITH, pg. 37
Salute to Agriculture
GRIFFITH from page 36
teamwork. After high school, Courtney plans to study animal science and agricultural business. “I am really passionate about agriculture and want to remain in this industry after high school. Through my years in 4-H and FFA, I have also been very involved in livestock judging. While in college, I plan to continue livestock judging as well. This involvement will allow me many opportunities to further study the field of agriculture, all these experiences will build my foundation of knowledge as I move into the workforce,” said Courtney.
As for the challenges involved in being an FFA president, Courtney has had to learn how to be able to decipher which ideas presented by fellow members will best benefit the chapter. “Overall, my presidency year has been nothing short of amazing. I have one of the most amazing officer teams and chapters to work with. There are a lot of new members in our chapter this year that have amazing ideas and plans for not only existing but new events as well. My biggest challenge has been to work through these ideas and help implement
those which will have the biggest impact,” said Courtney. Courtney claims that being in FFA has been one of her favorite parts of high school. Courtney believes the lessons learned in FFA will serve her in her future, such as time management, teamwork and delegation of tasks. “Being the Brush FFA chapter president has taught me a lot of valuable lessons. I think one of the biggest things that will benefit me in the future is the ability to function as a team. Everyone has their own strengths and bringing these strengths together helps create a
cohesive team. Throughout my four years in FFA, I have been on several committees and officer teams. These experiences have taught me the importance of working together with others and delegating as need to make sure the task is completed well and in a timely fashion,” said Courtney. According to representatives, FFA is funded through sponsorships and individual donations. National dues for each member are $7 annually. For more information about what FFA is and how to get involved, visit at www.ffa.org
Deroche Contractors pivots to Platte Ave. Pivots dealer opened new sales facility last June
Deroche Contractors, which was founded by Fort Morgan natives Vince and Laurie Deroche in 1993, started out doing repairs on pivots. However, the business moved into selling new pivots and pivot parts as a dealer four years ago. The Deroches had previously run By Paul Albani-Burgio the dealership out of their home at Fort Morgan Times 24584 County Road R but chose to move it to the more central location Since June, drivers on West Platte on Platte to make it more conveAvenue in Fort Morgan have been nient and accessible for their cusgreeted by a sight that is common tomers. outside of city limits but unexpected “We decided to just move into within them: an irrigation pivot. town to make it more official and That pivot’s presence signifies the expand,” Laurie Deroche said. arrival of Deroche Contractors new “This is just a better location.” Reinke center pivots dealership at Vince uses software programs to 310 West Platte in Fort Morgan. design the center pivots at the deal-
ership. One program allows him to access county land records to view land plots and get their measurements. A second program is then used to design each pivot to fit in and water that plot. The pivots are then custom-built by Reinke Manufacturing in Nebraska and delivered directly to the field. “[The pivots] come in on a truck in pieces,” Deroche said. “They unload them, they set them up and then they make them run and make them water.” Reinke Territory Manager Scott Yakel attended Tuesday’s opening event and said he was impressed by the new dealership and expected customers to be as well. “It’s very welcoming to walk into,”
Yakel said. “They’ve got control panels on display and there’s literature available. Pretty much everything you need to know about Reinke you can find at this dealership.” Yakel said Vince is on his way to attaining the designation of “diamond dealership” which is conferred to Reinke’s top dealers according to the company’s internal dealership quality and service standards. “We are extremely proud to have him as a dealer,” Yakel said. “He services his market very well and this new facility, which is just really awesome, speaks volumes about his tenacity to grow his business.” Paul Albani-Burgio: 970-441-5103, paul@fortmorgantimes.com
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SALUTE TO AGRICULTURE • FEBRUARY 28, 2018 • 37
Salute to Agriculture
NJC livestock judging breeds success for students involved Team has 60+ year history on campus By Callie Jones Journal-Advocate News Editor
The storied tradition of the livestock judging team at Northeastern Junior College spans over 60 years and it’s been one of numerous successes, as evidenced by the many award trophies and banners that filled the ballroom at a recent social “reunion” event. It all started when Hilbert Kahl came to NJC in 1952 as an agriculture instructor. At the time there were just two teachers in the ag department, but soon student enrollment and the number of instructors grew. Just two years later, in 1954, Kahl launched the livestock judging program. NJC has the distinction of having the longest continuous junior college livestock judging program in the state of Colorado. Kahl served as the team’s coach until 1968, when he became dean of vocational education. In his final year of coaching, Kahl was unable to go to the livestock show in Houston, Texas, due to an illness, so one of his students, Chester Vetter, took the team to the contest and they were named the reserve champion team. “He really cared about every one of you as an individual and he would go to bat for you. He would work with you and he
Callie Jones / Sterling Journal-Advocate
Photographs of former livestock judging teams at Northeastern Junior College on display at the program's spring social "reunion" event Feb. 3, 2018.
would take those of us that didn’t have much talent and help us get better as livestock judges,” recalled Dale McCall, one of Kahl’s students, who was on the team in 1966 and coached from 1975-77. Other livestock judging coach-
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es have included Allen Nelson, Mike Anderson, Larry Pollart, Ben Cooley and Randell Von Krosigk. Several of the coaches spoke about the exceptional program at the recent spring social, recalling how it has grown over the years. When NJC’s livestock judging team first started, students competed at just a couple events each year, traveling to contests in a crammed station wagon. Soon, they moved on to a Checker. and now they have a van and a trailer that they use to travel to numerous competitions throughout the
year. By the end of the season this year’s team will have judged at shows in Omaha, Neb; Tulsa, Okla.; Fort Collins, at Colorado State University; Kansas City, Mo.; Louisville, Ky.; Denver; and San Antonio and Houston, Texas. One thing hasn’t changed though: the successful students this program produces. “Back in the day and even now, those three letters, NJC, they mean something. You talk about the judging industry, they mean something, you talk about the See JUDGING, pg. 39
Salute to Agriculture
JUDGING from page 38
animal science industry they mean something. You talk about agricultural education, NJC means something and it still does — how’s that for a legacy,” said Pollart, who was on the 1985-86 team, coached from 2000-06 and since then has served as assistant coach. He shared some of the “givens” about NJC’s livestock judging teams in the past and now. “They were going to compete, I promise you they were going to compete,” Pollart said. “They were going to work, every NJC (team) that stepped on that floor they were going to be there and they were going to evaluate livestock, not just go to class.” Most importantly, whether they did well or did poorly, NJC’s teams have competed with integrity and they do things the right way. Pollart pointed out that past judging team members have gone on to be successful com-
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Callie Jones / Sterling Journal-Advocate
Northeastern Junior College's livestock judging team has a long history of success, as evidenced by the many award trophies and banners on display at the spring social Feb. 3, 2018.
mercial cattlemen, feedlot guys, hog and sheep producers, veterinarians, pharmaceutical repre-
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sentatives, nutritional representatives, lawyers, bankers, farmers, college professors, fathers and mothers. “Maybe, just maybe the best thing that this legacy of NJC judging has is the successful people that it raises.” Anderson, who was on Nelson’s 1984-85 team, coached from 1991 to 2001 and now is chair of the ag department, recalled how his former coach was able to take students — good students, who maybe weren’t ready for the judging team — and turn them into a competitive judging team. “When we left, either your classroom or the judging program, we knew that we could be successful in life,” he said about Nelson. Anderson pointed out that livestock judging is unique in that it’s not an extracurricular activity; it’s a co-curricular activity, which means it’s an extension of what NJC’s ag instructors teach.
“Livestock judging provides this unique motivating experience, that has a competitive edge to it, where we can take the lessons we teach in the classroom and lab and take that to a whole different level,” he said. The importance of the fundamentals of livestock evaluation to the agriculture industry should not be underestimated. “I think sometimes we forget a little that we need people that can evaluate a product, that can discern things and better livestock, to make improvements in this industry,” Anderson said. “We’ve got 9, 10 maybe 11 billion people to feed in the year 2050, we’re going to need better livestock, more livestock and more people that have this background.” Some of the key things that the livestock judging program at NJC thinks are important and wants to keep instilled are that students have the ability to evaluate live-
See JUDGING, pg. 40
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Salute to Agriculture
JUDGING from page 39 stock far beyond just placing four animals in a contest; have the opportunity to engage, learn from and network with real leaders in the livestock industry; have the opportunity to grow; and that students learn critical thinking and communication skills. “No other thing I can think of in education teaches people the skills of critical thinking to the level that livestock judging does,” Anderson said. “That ability to make decisions, to me, along with the communication skills, sets livestock judgers apart.” NJC wants employers to be able to tell right away that a student was a livestock judger; they want students to learn to be a contributing member of a team; “The other thing I want to keep is... no matter whether we’re first or last there is value in the hard work and the sacrifice and the dedication it takes to be on a judging team,” Anderson said.
Callie Jones / Sterling Journal-Advocate
Currrent sophomore members of the Northeastern Junior College livestock judging team are, from left: Elijah Patten (Byers), Colton Kerbs (Briggsdale), Tiffany Connelly (Bridgeport, Neb.), Stephanie Connelly (Bridgeport, Neb.) and Sydney Williams (Wisner, Neb.).
He pointed out that to be competitive is a gift. “I think part of what you learn
in livestock judging is you learn how to deal with success and you learn how to deal with failure and
winners don’t always win, but winners always work towards winning,” Anderson said. Cooley, who was on the team in 2000-01 and served as coach from 2006-2012, loved every minute of coaching students. “Every team is different; all those individuals were unique and I probably learned more from them then they did from me. I was thankful for every single moment and experience that they gave me, as much as I gave them,” he said. Von Krosigk wrote in a letter that was shared by ag economic instructor Wendy Lewis, “as a coach and mentor, you’re in charge of teaching these young people life lessons, lessons like teamwork, leadership, accountability and punctuality. These lessons go far beyond the awards banquet and the backdrop.” Callie Jones: 970-526-9286, cjones@journal-advocate.com
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salute to Agriculture
Dairies are ‘all about the females’
Quail Ridge owner: Artificial insemination far safer for workers By Jenni Grubbs Fort Morgan Times
Chris Kraft has a favorite part of his dairy operations at Badger Creek Farm and Quail Ridge Dairy southeast of Fort Morgan. Just heading to the maternity building and the pens next to it at Badger Creek brings a smile to the dairyman’s face. “If I got fired from my job, that’s where I would go,” he said. But the odds of his wife, the dairy’s co-owner, firing him are fairly small, Craft acknowledged. Fortunately, he can visit the dairy maternity whenever he wants, as long as he has time. One of those visits happened Feb. 7 as he gave the Fort Morgan Times a behind-the-scenes look at what it takes to have all the mother cows and calves that are needed for operating a modern dairy and producing large quantities of milk. At Quail Ridge, everything is managed by using artificial insemination and taking a fair amount of the guesswork out of the biological process of having enough cows getting pregnant and then having babies to keep the milk flowing all the time.
Jenni Grubbs / Fort Morgan Times
Badger Creek Farm/Quail Ridge Dairy worker Jose Lino wheels a newborn calf from the field where she was born into the maternity building. Once inside, Lino recorded data about the calf's mother and father, attached an ear tag with an RFID chip to calf's ear, applied iodine to her naval and fed her colostrum to build up immunity. About 25 calves are born every day at Quail Ridge Dairy.
At Quail Ridge, the only bulls to be found are the bull calves that are separated out right after birth and then picked up the next morning by a cattle feeding company, Kraft said. Quail Ridge has been using arti-
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ficial insemination for 25 years. “We believe in it strongly for three big reasons,” Kraft said. The first is worker safety. “When you have bulls in a pen and the guys got to go get the cows three times a day, it’s a little
dangerous,” he said. “Bulls are dangerous animals.” Kraft recalled a time when he was hit by a bull in a pen while trying to move the animal to another pen. See BREEDING, pg. 42
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SALUTE TO AGRICULTURE • FEBRUARY 28, 2018 • 41
Salute to Agriculture
Jenni Grubbs / Fort Morgan Times
Quail Ridge Dairy foreman Desidario Baquera waits for the sample of bull semen he just pulled out of the liquid nitrogen container to thaw so that he can use it to inseminate a cow. It is a process that usually happens about 53 times per day at the Fort Morgan dairy.
BREEDING from page 41
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“He threw me up in the air, got me down and was grinding on me,” he said. “It’s one of those see-your-life-flashing-before-youreyes things.” Afterward, Kraft had an extremely sore chest but no broken ribs or worse. He knew he had gotten lucky. He then had a dream about having to explain to the wife of one of his workers about a deadly encounter with a bull. “We made a decision we weren’t going to have bulls around anymore,” Kraft said, calling it “too risky.” Secondly, Quail Ridge is seeking to “advance the genetics of the herd as far as we can,” Kraft said. With artificial insemination, the dairy can choose “the best bulls in the world” for siring its calves. “Productivity of the animals and physical traits will be better,” Kraft said. “It will help (the cows) be longer lasting and have a better quality of life.” Third, artificial insemination helps stop the spread of disease at the dairy. “If you have a bull that is common to a lot of cows, they have STD’s like us. That can be detrimental to the herd,” he said. “If
you don’t have a bull, you just avoid it.” This logic is not anything unusual for a modern dairy, Kraft said, with most, if not all, Morgan County dairies primarily using artificial insemination. It is a fairly standard process. But not all of the dairies go about it in exactly the same ways, using different technology to keep track of the cows’ cycles or for picking the specific bull semen samples to use on certain cows. “Now that we’ve made the decision to use artificial insemination, there’s a couple technologies we can use that are good for the herd,” Kraft said. “We report all information to the Dairy Herd Improvement Association. That information gets sent to the USDA in Baltimore, Maryland. We have a lot of information about what certain traits bulls are good at.” One benefit from that is being able to pick bulls know for producing small calves to use on the “virgin heifers,” or ones that have not yet given birth, Kraft said. That way, these cows’ first calving will be easier and less traumatic on them. “That calving is the most diffi-
See BREEDING, pg. 43
Salute to Agriculture
BREEDING from page 42
cult event that cow goes through,” he said, and then it happens again pretty much every year after that. There is a newer technology that lets a dairy purchase bull semen that is likely to produce specifically a bull calf or a heifer calf, Kraft said, but Quail Ridge Dairy is not currently using it. “It can push it male side or female side, but it’s not 100 percent accurate,” he said of the about 10-year-old technology. “It’s really weird. It’s a cool technology. The sperm cells are really tiny. They dye them so they pick up a color” indicating likelihood of a extra Y chromosome resulting from the cells fertilizing an egg, and then a “sorting gate” separate out the colored cells. An even newer technology for artificial insemination of dairy cattle involves DNA analysis, just like when humans seek to learn their family history. “We do genome typing, so we can figure out which traits make a cow more productive, healthier, last longer,” Kraft explained. “We can trace ancestry.” That can allow a dairy willing to pay the cost for such DNA typing to even more closely match a certain bull to a certain cow and increase the chances of having a better calf. “We do not use that,” Kraft said, although he added “yet,” since Quail Ridge was likely to give this still-expensive technology a try at some point. He said there are other dairies in Morgan County that have
same spot in their three-week estrous cycle. When the animals are in heat, that chalk is more likely to get rubbed off by another animal rubbing up against them, which signals the dairy workers that the cows with that color of chalk are probably about ready for artificial insemination. Kraft said that cows have fairly regular cycles and about the same gestational period as humans. Each day, the dairy has about 53 cows ready for insemination, he said, which adds up to about 373 per week. He has a huge spreadsheet to keep track of this and he accesses it frequently on his iPad. “There is technology today that can be put around a cow’s neck, Jenni Grubbs / Fort Morgan Times kind of like a Fitbit, that shows Quail Ridge Dairy foreman Desidario Baquera gets the needle filled with bull when they are in heat,” Kraft said, semen ready for insertion into the reproductive system of a cow at Quail but he pointed out it was still pretRidge Dairy. Artificial insemination is the norm at the Fort Morgan dairy, as ty expensive. “Chalk is very old it is at many, if not most, dairies in Morgan County. school tech, but it works.” There also is a specific color of already started using it. said. chalk used for virgin cows and “Like all technologies, every“All these things work in beef other cows that are confirmed as body has their reason for doing or cattle, too,” Kraft said, but artifipregnant. That way the cows can not doing,” Kraft said. cial insemination is more common mingle in a pen and be easily sepRight now, the cost for using on dairies than at beef operations, arated as needed. this is about $30 to $40 per aniwhere the cows are not routinely When it’s time for artificial mal, he said. rounded up and brought into insemination of the cows, it is like“I would probably do it on the barns. “It’s a lot easier to turn a ly that no one is more experibaby calves,” Kraft said. “Then I bull loose in a pasture.” enced at Quail Ridge Dairy than would really know this is an aniThere is one area where Quail foreman Desidario Baquera. mal to pay more attention to” so Ridge Dairy takes a decidedly “Desi’s been with us for 30 he could see if it had been a good low-tech approach to its artificial years,” Kraft said. “He’s a very investment. insemination program: keeping knowledgeable guy.” And the brave new world of track of which cows are likely to It was Baquera who Kraft had using sex semen and genome typ- go into heat. demonstrate artificial inseminaing for artificial insemination of Workers paint colored chalk on tion during the Times’ tour of the See BREEDING, pg. 44 cattle is not only for dairies, he a pen of cows that are in about the
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SALUTE TO AGRICULTURE • FEBRUARY 28, 2018 • 43
Salute to Agriculture
BREEDING from page 43
dairy. The process starts in a small, white trailer where Baquera pulled the semen sample out of a liquid nitrogen-filled container. He then thawed it before putting it in the syringes, covering the needles with disposable pipettes and gloving up his whole left arm. He then left the trailer with the case with loaded needles and entered the pen with the cows. Baquera identified the cow he was about to inseminate, got behind her, reached into her rectum and felt for the reproductive tract. Once that was found, he knew where to stick the needles for the best chance of the process resulting in a calf. “That’s what we want,” Kraft said. “Then the cow starts milking. Cows don’t make milk unless they have a baby. We can’t have a dairy without a good reproduction system. It’s so very important, and it’s something we do every day.” When pregnant cows are close to reaching their 283-day gestational period, they are moved to the maternity pen over at Badger Creek. From there, most cows have their babies without any help. After a calf is born, a worker will take wheelbarrow out into the pen and scoop up the baby animal and bring it into the maternity building. There the calf gets an ear tag attached, iodine applied to its naval and a meal of colostrums, which will provide various immune system boosters to the
spend a few weeks in larger group pens without huts next to nursery area. “It’s just raising kids up,” Kraft said, still smiling. Within eight to nine months, Baquera or another Quail Ridge worker could be inseminating these now-grown cows, and in another nine months after that the calves could be in the maternity pen about to have their own first calves. It’s a cycle that repeats itself over and over at Quail Ridge and other dairies, making it business as usual for Kraft and his workers. But Kraft still got excited about sharing that process with someJenni Grubbs / Fort Morgan Times one who did not know much The bull semen sample used for artificial insemination on a cow at Quail about it at the start of the tour, Ridge Dairy can be traced to a specific animal thanks to records that are especially the part where the newkept by the dairy using the sample and the company that provided it. born calf was brought into the maternity building only minutes after it touched the ground for the first time. newborn, much like with humans. getting fed milk twice a day by the “It’s new life,” Kraft said. “All The average age a cow gives dairy workers, Kraft explained. that work we did in getting that birth to her first calf at Quail “When we wean them, we move cow pregnant, this is where it Ridge and Badger Creek is 22 them to ‘hotels,’” which are slightpays off,” he said. “I love cows. I months, Kraft said, and about 25 ly bigger huts with little pens that love the dairy.” cows are calving each day. can hold three calves. These Someone who would not be at “That’s when they being their group huts help the animals accliall surprised by this reaction from productive life,” he said. “Before mate with being with other anithe dairy farmer is his wife and that, they’re eating you out of mals, since after another two dairy co-owner, Mary Kraft. house and home.” weeks they will be moved into “That’s one of the reasons he is But he was grinning at the same pens with 16 animals in them, such a wonderful dairy farmer,” time as he finished up the part of Kraft said. Mary Kraft said. “He really loves the tour at the maternity building. At this point, the calves are his cows. He gets so excited with From the maternity, the female becoming ruminants, meaning them; he’s like a 16-year-old.” calves are taken to the nursery, they are ready to eat hay and which is made up of several rows grain and no longer need to be fed Jenni Grubbs: of tiny huts for individual calves. milk. The calves stay in the hotels jgrubbs@fmtimes.com or Twitter They stay there for two months, for about two months and then @JenniGrubbs
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Salute to Agriculture
Peetz Farmers Co-op celebrates a century of pride, independence Grain marketing company plans to remain independent By Lisa Young Journal-Advocate Staff Writer
In a time when small, farmerowned cooperatives are merging with large, corporate grain companies, Peetz Farmers Co-op has vowed to stand tall and not take a knee. The resolve to be independent can be seen in their mission statement: “To be locally owned and to strive for profitable growth through superior services and products at a competitive price.”
“We refuse to merge at this point. We just don’t see the point of it,” said CEO Phil Schumacher, who began his 27-year tenure at the coop from behind the driver’s wheel of a field truck. Originally from Sidney, Nebraska, Schumacher has spent 42 winters in Peetz and he plans to stay high on the Peetz Plateau surrounded by wind turbines and wheat fields. It’s up on that plateau in northeastern Colorado where toughminded farmers have a bulldog’s resolve to help the small elevator maintain its pride and independence for as long as they can. Peetz Farmers Co-op has a rich history dating back 100 years, when farmers in the area decided
Lisa Young / Sterling Journal-Advocate
Phil and LuAnne Schumacher at Peetz Farmers Co-op. Phil serves as the See CO-OP, pg. 46 President/CEO and LuAnne is the company’s office manager.
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Salute to Agriculture
CO-OP from page 45
to protect their own interests and find a way to compete against the companies that were just looking to make a profit. “The farmers didn’t feel like they were getting a fair shake. They thought they were getting jabbed by not getting enough for their grains and they were paying too much for their fuels, so they formed their own co-ops,” Schumacher said. “They claim that in Peetz, Colorado the day the co-op opened the other competitor closed down.” The co-op’s grain elevators, scales, feed mill, fuel tanks and office stand on five narrow acres between Burlington Northern and Sante Fe railroad tracks to the west and State Highway 113 to the east. The rural highway connects Peetz to the two nearest cities: Sterling is 25 miles to the south and Sidney is 17 miles to the north. Peetz Co-op’s business consists of grain services, fertilizer and chemicals, feed, feed grinding, bulk feed, fuels — including both gas and diesel — propane, and a service station on Main Street across from the community center. Schumacher said the primary business for the co-op is their grain elevator, which takes in wheat, corn and millet. Wayne Schumacher is the elevator’s grain merchandiser, who ensures that the farmers and the co-op make a profit on their commodities. “He pulls the trigger on when to move it, when to sell it. The main thing is to clean out the bins so we can take the new crop in,” Phil
to $7 per bushel the co-op saw profits go to $27 million; however, on average the elevator usually does $22 million in sales. “It varies, especially when the grain and fuel prices go up or down,” he said. “We’re a small business, compared to say a business in Sidney that does something like $50 million, but we’re on our own.” Schumacher, like the farmers he works with, is proud that the co-op hasn’t caved and joined other, larger grain companies, “I tell my board all the time, don’t merge. I’ve watched these companies merge... and they don’t make any more money than we do. I feel like it’s better for the co-op.” Schumacher said a merger with Lisa Young / Sterling Journal-Advocate a larger company would damage The elevator at Peetz,Colorado has been operating for over 100 years. the company’s independent spirit and spell doom for the small service station in Peetz, something area. Schumacher said. that has already happened in other Schumacher said during corn Harvest time is crunch time for places. He said the bigger compathe elevator. Late nights and week- harvest the elevators shipped out end availability are a must. It’s dur- 750 thousand bushels from the ele- nies typically liquidate the service stations because they aren’t profiting those times that Schumacher’s vator in Peetz and over 2 million able enough. wife LuAnne, the company’s office bushels from the newer bins in The Peetz service station, while Iliff. manager, and the company’s 13 only a fraction of the co-op’s busiCorn from the elevator is employees step up their game. ness, serves as an important hub trucked out mostly to ethanol “Peetz takes in roughly 1.2 milfor the community. Customers can plants and feedlots. Schumacher lion bushels and then at our Iliff find fuels, propane services, light estimated that up to 80 percent of facility, we do about 1.7 million snacks and routine mechanical the corn from Peetz and Iliff goes bushels,” Phil Schumacher said. repairs at the Cenex station on “That’s what we can hold here, but toward the production of ethanol instead of shipping out of the coun- Main Street. In addition to the we take in more than that in a Main Street station, Schumacher try or going to feedlots. One big year’s time.” said the co-op is actively involved The Iliff facility came on board in buyer of area corn is the Sterling with Colorado Retail Ventures, 2011 when the co-op purchased 20 Ethanol, LLC. In 2016-17 the co-op did $17 mil- owning 17 percent of the business acres from Stephen Breidenbach to construct a grain storage facility lion dollars of business. Schumach- that consists of 14 or 15 convenience stores throughout Coloraer said when grain prices were up and an office building in the Iliff
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do, Nebraska and Kansas. According to Schumacher, the co-op sells roughly 2.4 million gallons of propane fuel and other fuels to the surrounding area from both the service station and their fuels distribution center at the Peetz elevator. Their gas and diesel fuel business, which also includes around 850 propane tanks, spreads out 86.3 miles southwest to Briggsdale, Colorado and 57 miles north to Broadwater, Nebraska. “We just purchased a brand new semi that will go to North Platte or Denver to pick up our fuel,” Schumacher said. The semi then takes the fuel to their distribution center south of the Peetz elevator grain bins. From there, the fuels are transported by light tanker trucks to farmers and ranchers in the region. The co-op is a farmer-owned company where membership costs $25 per share. Members can have either a voting or non-voting share
in the business. Voting members must have either a farm or ranch operation and file a schedule F on their taxes. Members with shares are entitled to a percentage of the profits from the co-op each year. To keep the co-op independent, the board and CEO have made changes over the years to produce positive growth for the co-op and profits for the shareholders. Schumacher said growth itself has been the biggest change over the years. When Schumacher started working at the co-op, fuel sales were 400,000 gallons; today they handle up to 2.4 million gallons a year. As for the grains, they’ve grown from 700 to 800,000 bushels up to almost 3 million bushel capacity. Through the years they have also made the investment in bigger and better trucks to service their customers and they’ve bought land to expand their grain capacity. “The name of the game is speed. So, we’ve increased what we can
Lisa Young / Sterling Journal-Advocate
The Peetz Farmers Co-op Company service station serves the farming and ranching community.
take in here,” said Schumacher, who’s proud of the fact that Peetz now has four pits and Iliff has two pits for trucks to dump their grains. But, the CEO knows there’s more that needs to be done if the co-op is going to stay competitive and independent amidst a fast changing agriculture industry. To keep their edge, the co-op purchased 20 acres last July for needed expansion. The new Peetz site sits across Highway 113 to the
east, where Schumacher has plans to put in a modern office, larger scale, higher capacity grain bins and perhaps even a new service station. For Schumacher and the board of directors, the bold purchase is one of the many ways they plan to maintain both the pride and independence of Peetz Farmer’s Co-op for another 100 years or more. Lisa Young: 970-526-9281, lyoung@journal-advocate.com
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Salute to Agriculture
Building strong relationships key to Reck’s real estate success
Long-time land broker values clients’ trust By Sara Waite Journal-Advocate Editor
Walking through the front doors of Reck Agri Realty and Auction is like walking into a trophy room of sorts. The framed items that line the walls say a lot about what the business Marc Reck and his wife, Jennifer, started in 1990 is all about. Yes, there’s the obligatory “brag wall,” highlighting professional achievements and accolades — but it’s tucked into a corner that is easily overlooked. Dominating the front room of the company’s new “home” on E. Chestnut Street — they moved in following the South Platte River flood in 2013 — are photos of auctions past. While Reck says it’s a good marketing tool to show that the sales can draw a good crowd, what stands out as he talks about the pictures is the stories he can tell about the people who were there. In one photo, he quickly identifies some local producers — some of whom have since passed away — with a smile that lets you
financial means and way of life. Like all successful relationships, it’s a matter of trust, and that’s something Reck has the utmost respect for. “That’s one of our core values,” he said. On his business card, Reck’s title is listed as broker/owner, and he says his business is primarily land brokerage — helping people sell and purchase ag real estate. The Reck Agri team also includes three full-time employees and an associate broker. But don’t let the titles fool you: “Basically, we’re problem solvers.” In the simplest terms, he said, selling real estate is usually the result of the “4 D’s:” debt, death, divorce or dissolution of partnership and/or corporations. “We’re Sara Waite / Sterling Journal-Advocate there to help people work through Marc Reck stands in the entrance to his business of nearly 30 years, Reck it.” Agri Realty & Auction, surrounded by photos from past auctions. That can mean taking on some other roles as well, such as mediator and even counselor, particularknow he’s talking about friends. what Reck’s business is about is There’s an air of quiet pride as he building relationships with people. ly when dealing with families or estate situations. If a property has points out an auction with world Part of the process of helping been in a family for a long time, champion auctioneer John Korrey, clients sell their agricultural land there tends to be emotions another local. And there’s real involves knowing their story — involved that can impact the sellemotion in his voice as a photo of not only what they’re selling, but ing process. For many owners, the Bruce Evertson, a major oil prowhy. Reck said it’s important for ducer in Nebraska, brings up the him to understand what the client land is a part of their way of life and their legacy, as much as it is memory of Evertson’s tragic death wants — or needs — to get out of their business. a few years ago. the sale, which means he is privy Being able to work with people When it comes right down to it, to personal information about their
See RECK, pg. 49
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and having their trust is key in those situations. That means having a reputation for getting things done, having a good marketing plan, finding a buyer and closing the sale, Reck said. And although such situations have their challenges, “I love to sell property that’s been in a family for a long time, because that means that it’s treated that family well, and it’s usually well taken care of,” he said. It might also mean that potential buyers have been waiting for the property to come on the market for a long time and are anxious to bid, he added. There are several clients that Reck is working with now where the land has been in the family for 100 years — and given the likely buyers, the property won’t be back on the market for decades more. It’s part of a transition that Reck said is one of the three main factors impacting ag land right now: what he calls the “aging genera-
Courtesy photo
Reck Agri Realty & Auction is located at 535 E. Chestnut St. in Sterling.
tion.” The Reck Agri territory covers 31 counties in eastern Colorado, the Nebraska panhandle, southwest Nebraska and northwestern Kansas, encompassing some 21,000 landowners. Reck estimates about 45 percent of those owners are absentee. “We’re currently seeing an ownership change from the second to third generation,” he said, explaining that the land has passed from the grandparents who bought it in the early 1900s down through
their children, and is now turning over to the grandchildren. “Eighty percent of our business comes from working with people who are with estates or somebody who’s inherited a property and now wants to sell,” he said. He cited estimates that over 65 percent of the land ownership will change in the next 10 years due to the generational turnover. “And those are some pretty important facts for people who own land. That’s pretty important, because that means the majority of the
ground, the ownership’s going to change,” he said. Two other factors that are central to his industry are commodity prices and interest rates. With commodity prices low, he said, “buyers are more discerning.” When commodities are strong, there’s more of a demand for land, and buyers are more likely to pay more even if the land’s not in great shape. But when prices are tighter, “they really look at how much herbicide, how much fertilizer” and how long it will take to make the land productive enough to be worth the investment, which can drive down land values. Using a graph he made that shows the trends in interest rates, commodity prices and land values since 2000, Reck notes that 2010 brought “a perfect storm” of drought, a low dollar, high export demand, excellent production and low interest rates. Nobody wanted to sell, and land prices climbed,
See RECK, pg. 50
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SALUTE TO AGRICULTURE • FEBRUARY 28, 2018 • 49
Salute to Agriculture
RECK from page 49
peaking around 2014. But then commodities tanked, sparking a couple of years of declining property values. Now Reck sees those land values levelling off, and predicts prices will remain fairly stable for awhile. A sustained increase in commodity prices could raise land values, while rising interest rates could push them back down. But, he explained, an individual parcel’s value can be affected by more local concerns — quality, reputation and the strength of the neighboring landowners. That’s a reflection of some of the more universal aspects of the real estate business. But while some of the basic principles may be the same, Reck believes strongly in the importance of specializing in a certain type of real estate, because each requires its own skill set. While a residential real estate broker is going to focus on square footage, whether the water heater works or how many bedrooms a home has, Reck said the “features” he’s looking at are things like water rights, mineral rights and soil types. Those are the kind of facts he’s familiar with, having grown up on his family farm. And that’s why, when he decided to pursue a career in real estate, he chose to specialize in agriculture. “You can’t do everything, and I love ag,” he said. Another unique aspect in agricultural real estate is that, “when we sell ag land, we are seeing consolidation of ownership,” he said.
ent on how to go about liquidating their land. One of the advantages of an auction, he noted, is that you know that the land will be sold by a specific date; Reck Agri averages about 76 days from the date he contracts with a client to the final closing on a property. As of last year, Reck said the business has completed over 295 live auctions. They also launched a new, online-only option for aucCourtesy photo A graph created by Marc Reck shows trends in land values, commodity pric- tions and have conducted seven of those since last summer. es and interest rates since 2000. Reck said the business has “always been known as being on the leading edge” when it comes He said over 75 percent of the buy- put 3,000 to 4,000 miles in on the to technology. They developed a road in a typical month. ers he works with are other farmproprietary online bidding platFortunately for buyers, bidding er-operators in the area who are form for multi-parcel auctions that on a parcel of land no longer looking to add to their operation. allows bidders to participate in live At a recent auction in Otis, the six requires travel, no matter where auctions remotely. Their online-onthey are in the world. parcels he sold went to six differWhen Reck started his business, ly auctions are timed — they start ent local farmers. A bright spot, he most ag land was bought and sold on a certain date and time and run said, was that two of the buyers for a set length of time, then bidthrough private treaty — transacwere under the age of 40. The consolidation of agricultural tions similar to purchasing a home ding closes and everything’s done. It’s comparable to eBay or, for property is part of a cycle, he not- through a residential real estate ed. “We see some individuals who agent, where the contract is nego- farmers, Big Iron. tiated privately through the buyer, put together large properties and “There’s pros and cons to either seller and broker. At the time, auc- one,” Reck said. “It just puts anothnow they’re getting older, and tions were considered “a method they’ll either transfer to the next er tool in the toolbox.” generation or the land will be sold of last resort,” Reck said. However, he admits that with the In 2001, Reck Agri started doing online-only option, a part of him and maybe split up,” he said. Unfortunately, sometimes those more auctions and auctions have misses the crowds and face-to-face become first choice for a lot of sales are the result of poor estate interaction that a live auction can people. In their current location, planning or succession planning, bring. they have a separate building to he said. Having good plans in For someone who clearly cherhold live auctions. place is a major challenge of land ishes the relationships he forms There are positives and negaownership, and “the lack of (planwith the people he works with, it tives to the different methods of ning) creates business for us.” only makes sense. selling a property, and his compaAnd it’s not business he’s hurting for. Reck said that with the size ny provides that information when Sara Waite: 970-526-9310, of the company’s territory, he can making a recommendation to a cli- swaite@journal-advocate.com
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Livestock lobbyist has deep roots in Colorado agriculture Morgan County native grew up on political farm household
dren said recently during a conversation in the Capitol’s basement cafeteria. “There are very few ag legislators, but many urban and suburban ones, and especially with term limits it’s a constant education program.” While he may only represent one ag organization, Holdren By Jeff Rice works closely with other agriculJournal-Advocate Staff Writer tural lobbyists to get needed information to the lawmakers. They go by any number of “Sometimes we sort of form a innocuous titles — legislative coalition, especially if there’s an affairs specialist, issues consulissue that affects all of us,” he tant, strategies advisor — but said. most of us just call them lobbyWater issues present a special ists. And to hear state senators challenge to people like Holdren. and representatives talk about “It’s easy for (urban legislators) them, they are an essential part of to turn on a spigot, but they don’t the lawmaking process. understand how water law Steve Holdren is one of those works,” he said. “They don’t realpeople. Most of his time is spent ize what it means that we’re a getting information to Colorado’s headwater state, that all of our legislators on behalf of the Colowater flows out of the state, and rado Livestock Association, his that as the population grows, primary client. there has to be that balance Representing stockmen’s inter- between what they use and what ests to the Colorado General they let flow out.” Assembly requires Holdren to When it comes to water, Holhave a wide-ranging knowledge of dren said, urban legislators tend Colorado agriculture. And while to focus on the needs of the Front Jeff Rice / Sterling Journal-Advocate Range. he is on good terms with all of “They forget that there’s Kersey Steve Holdren, center, chats with Sen. Jerry Sonnenberg, left, and Logan Colorado’s rural legislators, most County Commisioner Byron Pelton outside Sonnenberg's office in the Capiof his time is spent with city folk. and Wiggins and Fort Morgan,” tol. Holdren touches base frequently with Sonnenberg, who is President Pro he said. “The biggest challenge is educating (urban) legislators,” HolSee SEXTON, pg. 52 Tem of the Colorado Senate.
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SALUTE TO AGRICULTURE • FEBRUARY 28, 2018 • 51
Salute to Agriculture
HOLDREN from page 51
Holdren has more than just a financial incentive to represent CLA. He has a strong emotional bond with rural Colorado because he is from here. Born toward the end of the “baby boom,” Steve Holdren grew up on a cow-calf ranch north of Weldona and, as the son of Buck Holdren, the then-chairman of the Morgan County Democratic Committee, he was steeped in the politics of agriculture. “I was always around politics, it was always being talked about in our house, and it was always about what it meant to the farmer and rancher,” he said. “It was different then, though, because there were a lot more people in the rural counties.” Holdren graduated from Fort Morgan High School in 1975, spent two years at Northeastern Junior College and then went on to Colorado State University, where he earned his bachelor’s degree in animal science. He wanted to go into ranching, but with the nationwide agricultural shakeout well under way, ranching opportunities were slim in the late 1970s and early 1980s. Instead, Holdren was recruited by the Rocky Mountain Farmers Union as a “staff person.” It wasn’t long before he was registered as an RMFU lobbyist and his first session was the 1981 General Assembly. Some legislators thought he was an intern.
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“More than once I was asked to run errands for one of the senators,” he said with a laugh. Thinking that young Holdren needed seasoning and needed it fast, Farmers Union paired him with a retired legislator to teach him the ropes. The partnership seemed at first to be short on instruction and long on reminiscing. “We’d go have lunch and he’d tell me all of these great stories about the history of the legislature,” Holdren said. “But I came to realize that what he was telling me was how things worked in this place. Those lunches were pretty valuable.” By 1987 Holdren was ready to strike out on his own and he’s been working the onyx-lined corridors of power ever since. Holdren’s not entirely on his own, of course. He has a knowledgeable and powerful partner in Bill Hammerich, Colorado Livestock Association’s CEO. “Bill and I communicate almost daily, sometimes several times a day,” Holdren said. “I keep up on the legislation being introduced and part of my job is to send stuff to him and say ‘Here, take a look at this, tell me what you think.’” The bills he looks at aren’t just agricultural bills, either. There aren’t many “ag bills,” as such, he said, but there are bills on such things as water, transportation, and workman’s compensation that affect CLA.
Yes, workman’s comp. CLA offers its members workman’s compensation coverage, one of the few such organizations to do so. Even bills that may look like a consumer protection can come to Holdren’s attention, such as the ill-fated House Bill 17-1043, variously known as the Country of Origin Law and the meat placard bill. Promoted by the Colorado Independent CattleGrowers Association. it would have required retailers to post notices as to the country of origin of their beef products. CLA opposed the bill because of its complexity and, according to one legislator, Holdren provided important information on the bill. “He was a big part of that coalition,” said Rep. Jon Becker, R-Fort Morgan, a member of the House Agriculture, Livestock and Natural Resources Committee that indefinitely tabled the bill, effectively killing it. “He made sure we understood why some people were arguing for it and why those arguments didn’t hold up, and he did it in a calm fashion.” People like Holdren are important to the legislative process, Becker said, because no lawmaker has the time to thoroughly research every bill that comes across his or her desk. “It’s extremely important to find a lobbyist you can trust, and one who will give you a complete explanation of his position,” he
said. “Steve does that; he tells you not only his side of the story, but the other side, as well. That’s extremely valuable information.” Holdren will be involved later in the session in work to extend the Colorado Environmental Agriculture Program. Senate Bill 33, sponsored by Sen. Jerry Sonnenberg, R-Sterling, and in the House by Becker and Rep. Jeni Arndt, D-Fort Collins, has been introduced and will be assigned to the Senate Agriculture Committee. The bill not only renews the program but replaces its three-year sunset provision with a seven-year deadline. “We feel it’s important to have one-stop shopping when it comes to ag environmental regulations and fees,” Holdren said. “This program does that.” With 37 years in the Capitol, Holdren has spent more time under the gold dome than almost any of the legislators he works with, and with his burly presence and white beard, no one will mistake him for an intern now. He jokes easily with the lawmakers he contacts and when they speak, he listens intently. He hands out a dozen business cards a day, and they identify him as a “government relations consultant.” But everyone knows why he’s there. Or, as Juliet Capulet once observed, “A rose by any other name would smell as sweet.” Jeff Rice: 970-526-9283, ricej@journal-advocate.com
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Salute to Agriculture
4-H is about life skills, agent says New extension agent hits ground running in Logan County
in his office recently. “And (Moffat County) is a one-person office, so I really didn’t have a lot of time to work with livestock, which is really my first love.” “We” are Sexton, his wife Lacey, daughter Laramie and son By Jeff Rice Logan. Journal-Advocate Staff Writer J.D. Sexton graduated Poudre High School in Fort Collins in 2001 and came to Sterling to Showing prize market and attend Northeastern Junior Colbreeding animals at the county lege. While earning his AAS he fair isn’t only about agriculture, according to Logan County’s new competed on the college’s livestock judging team, an avocation 4-H, livestock, and agriculture he continued when he went on to agent. the University of Wyoming and It’s about life. earned his bachelor’s in animal J.D. Sexton, 34, is the newest science. It was there that he met member to Colorado State University’s Logan County Extension Lacey, a Craig native. After graduating UW, the SexOffice and he’s wasted no time tons moved to Eastern Wyoming jumping into his duties. IntroCollege in Torrington where he duced to the Logan County Fair coached the livestock judging Board on his fourth day of work, team and taught animal courses. Sexton briefed the board on Next came a move to Craig, changes to the livestock prowhere J.D. sold Purina feed for gram. What was impressive was three years before joining the that he was already informed about the changes after meetings CSU Extension team in the single-agent office. with the livestock superintendents and with the families “When this (Sterling) position involved. came open, it was perfect for us,” he said. “I wanted to be more of a Sexton comes to Sterling from team member and work with Craig where he was the Moffat youth livestock members and County Extension agent for five livestock producers.” years. The Logan County position has “We wanted to get back closer to the Front Range, but we didn’t plenty of opportunity for that. Besides the large 4-H presence, want to be on the Front Range,” the county is a significant producSexton said during an inter view
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er of beef, being home to no fewer than 13 feedlots. Sexton said one of his top priorities is helping livestock owners make their herds and flocks more productive. “Whether it’s herd health, reproduction, risk management, the challenge is always, how to help them survive in a business that it’s really tough to survive in,” he said. “What it comes down to is marketing animal protein that’s a safe, wholesome protein for the family.” The livestock industr y has made long strides toward better animal safety, Sexton said, and the increased pressure to produce high-quality food is a good thing. “We’ve come so far in taking care of the welfare of animals,” he said. “The result is that we get a better carcass by doing that,
and that means increased profitability.” There’s also the challenge of quality vs quantity — ag producers improve profits by increasing yield while consumers want higher quality. “As producers, whether it’s crops or livestock, we have to talk about quantity,” Sexton said. “Prices for commodities aren’t going to grow over time, so the way we increase our income is producing more. But the consumers are told they want quality. I’m not opposed to that. We can produce high quality, if they’re willing to pay for it.” Asked about the trend away from the “pretty cow” contests of tradition and toward more production-oriented projects like the Supreme Heifer program, Sexton said the trend is certainly useful,
See SEXTON, pg. 54
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Salute to Agriculture
SEXTON from page 51
but there is still a place for traditional showmanship. “My mentality is I believe we’re using livestock to teach kids life skills,” he said. “They’re learning discipline, how to keep a schedule, learning a work ethic. They’re learning that there’s a creature out there that depends on them for its feed and its health.” He said the livestock projects help the whole 4-H program, whether the 4-H’ers are in livestock, rocketry, or cake decorating. “The discipline is the same throughout the program, and a lot of times the kids not in the livestock programs see the kids with the livestock projects and are inspired to get involved. It’s a great way to recruit new youth to the ag world,” he said. The biggest challenge facing the livestock industry, Sexton believes, is getting those young 4-H’ers in a position to have their own livestock operations. It’s almost prohibitively expensive to buy the equipment and livestock needed to start up an operation, he said. “We’re faced with finding ways to pass these family farms and ranches on to the next generation, and we have to meet that challenge,” he said. “Otherwise, it comes down to monopolized, vertically-integrated corporate business.” The extinction of the family farm, it is almost universally
Jeff Rice / Sterling Journal-Advocate
J.D. Sexton is the new livestock specialist at Logan County's Colorado State University County Extension Office.
believed, would lead to much higher food prices. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Americans spend only 6.6 percent of their household income on food. The next lowest country is Singapore at 7.3 percent while Pakistanis, at the other end of the spectrum, spend nearly half their earnings on food each year.
One reason Americans spend so little, the USDA says, is because Americans are overall wealthier than anyone else in the world, which skews the standings a little. But a more important reason is the productivity of American farmers and ranchers. U.S. producers are the most efficient in the world and highly competitive commodity markets
help keep prices of foodstuffs down. That means farmers and ranchers have to work harder to keep input costs down. “The biggest thing is becoming really business minded,” Sexton said. “And that’s where the Extension service comes in. We have tools they can use to keep their costs down and keep their farms and ranches in business.”
Without farming, there would be no commerce
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Salute to Agriculture
Merino FFA members stay active Students attend BIG Conference, National Western Stock Show
By Tye Barton Merino FFA Reporter
This fall, nine Merino FFA members attended the National FFA Convention in Indianapolis, Indiana, where they had the chance to attend leadership workshops, educational tours, a career fair and convention proceedings. It was a special convention for us this year as we cheered on Gus Gill as Colorado’s national officer candidate and Nick Vollmer as one of only four members being recognized as a Star American Farmer See MERINO, pg. 57
Courtesy photo
Merino FFA Officer Team: Tate Everhart, Tye Barton, Zach Karg, Lauren Fritzler, Brooke Mertens Rylee Nelson, Nathan Batt. Not pictured, Lydia Stegner.
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Salute to Agriculture
Caliche FFA planning activities Members enjoy hands-on experiences
By Brooke Stromberger and Kinlie Lewis Caliche FFA president and vice president
The Caliche FFA chapter is getting to into their busiest time of year! During the second semester all students are really busy. The Caliche FFA did take some time to attend the National Western Stock Show as a reward trip from first semester, although we did have Brooke Stromberger showing market hogs and Kinlie Lewis showing breeding beef. Bryce Hill was also helping with the Cattle Show. Also during January, the CTE students in the FBLA and the FFA volunteered at the Iliff Head Start to participate and mentor preschool students in the annual R.I.F. program. Along with reading, the CTE students had an opportunity to play with the students in a variety of settings from learning centers in the classroom to the outdoor playground area. The officer team is focusing on planning a great FFA week for the entire chapter to participate in. They are also starting to plan their annual Labor Auction. This year, Caliche FFA has chosen to offer for the first time a “Rocky Mountain Oyster” dinner at their
Courtesy photo
Caliche High School FFA members Skyler Armstrong, Matt Dedrickson and Tate Green recently toured the shop at G&M Equipment.
Labor Auction this spring. Please look for more details to come on our Facebook page. Along with these two big events, individual students have been working hard on speeches, proficiency applications, and deciding on the CDE (Career Development Events) they would like to participate in! With some many options, choosing that one event to participate in can be difficult for some of our students.
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Proficiency applications are a huge event for a few of our students as well. The students that choose to participate in the proficiency application contest have to have a resume, letter of recommendation, an up-to- date record book, and the actual application. This application takes a lot of time and dedication to get done, but our students enjoy filling them out! All in all, the Caliche FFA chapter has been hard at
work in various aspects of our year! We look forward to finishing the year out strong by completing all of these events!
Spotlight on Students
Clayton Funkhouser and Bryce Hill The two FFA members recently got a hands-on look at agriculture’s high-tech future and earned some cash for their chapSee CALICHE, pg. 57
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Salute to Agriculture
CALICHE from page 56
Merino FFA Chapter at the National Western Stock Show.
MERINO from page 55
Courtesy photo
attend, and a day where the members cook a pancake breakfast for the teachers. Other upcoming events are the officer banquet, award recipient. chapter at Chili’s on the way officer selection, the creed conAlso, our Introduction to Ag Sci- home. test, and prepared and extemporaence and Technology class attendNumerous Merino FFA memneous speaking contest. ed the BIG (Becoming Involved bers attended the district leaderAlso, the career development as a Greenhand) conference in ship conference at NJC.The keyevents are coming up in April and September, and 44 members and note speaker was a former May. These events allows memone advisor attended the National Merino FFA member and former bers to select a CDE ranging from Western Stock Show in January. state FFA president Gus Gill. Land Classification to Veterinary They all spent the day at the stock Some upcoming events that our Science and to compete in district show looking around and expand- chapter will be holding include and even state levels. ing their education on livestock, FFA week. A few of the days we Merino FFA has had lots of sucas well as business ethics. The are planning to have for that week cess and fun over the past several years, and we thank the communichapter got to attend the rodeo are the annual elementary farm ty for its support! and stopped to eat dinner as a zoo, a fun night for members to
ter in the process. They worked with Dusty and Roxi McCormick, of Advanced Agri-Solutions, to help set up a weather station at Caliche, as well as worked with producer(s) on a soil probe to better determine soil moisture and to inform producers when they should irrigate and how much they should irrigate. It was a great learning experience for the students. Skyler Armstrong, Matt Dedrickson and Tate Green The three members of the Caliche Mechanical and Technical Class toured the shop of G&M Equipment. They were taken through the scenario of what process a technician would follow when servicing a piece of equipment. The chosen piece of equipment was an in-line baler similar to the one the students are working on in class.
SALUTE TO AGRICULTURE • FEBRUARY 28, 2018 • 57
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A MESSAGE FROM ALLEN BOELTER, GENERAL MANAGER, CARGILL FORT MORGAN … Ag gricullture trully is the “Heartbeat of the Plains..” When I start thinking about alll the ways in which ag plays a part of our evveryday lives, it is beyond amazing.. I ca annot think of even one activity that we do o every day that does not have its roots in ag.. That is how it is for us here at Cargilll, too.. Our very existence reliess on the agricullture producer.. Without them, our circle of life woulld be broken.. We work together, hand in hand. They supply the cattlle, we supplly the venue for that beef to find its way on to your table.. Together, we can then help better the lives of our friends and famillies, as welll as our community. Cargill values communitty, of giving back.. We are proud supporters of people an nd events in our community in order to make things better. Cargill values agriculture e and its farm and ranch producers for helping create the qualitty of life that we alll hold so dear.. They work so hard to produce e those commodities that we have come to rely upon and cherish.. On behalf of the 2,100 emplloyees of the Fort Morgan Cargilll, Thank You, to these prroducers and supplliers of cattlle.. They grow the finest quality beef and have forged a strong working partnership with Cargill that is meaningfull and profitablle for alll.
Thank you Northeast Colorado Beef Producers – You are Quite Simply – the
BEST!