New farmers in Montana have access to helpful website

Feb 10, 2016

Farmlinkmontana.org acts as a one-stop shop

By Diego Flammini
Assistant Editor, North American Content
Farms.com

Between finding land, getting their finances in order, acquiring equipment and other vital pieces to run a successful agricultural operation, new farmers may find themselves being tugged in many different a directions.

A new online service in Montana is designed to provide new farmers and ranchers with the answers to many of the questions they may have.

Farmlinkmontana.org includes information on finances, marketing, internship and mentorship information. The new site also acts as an avenue for people selling land to connect with farmers looking to acquire land, and provides access to in-person classes about agribusiness.

Farmlink Montana snapshot

“Connecting Montana’s beginning farmers and ranchers with the tools they need to succeed,” the site’s homepage reads.

Annie Heuscher, program director for Community Food & Agriculture Coalition in Missoula told the Helena Independent Record that many beginning farmers knew resources existed but didn’t know where to find them.

The website launched after the coalition received a $250,000 grant from the USDA.

Sue Ann Streufert, director of member relations with the Montana Farm Bureau told the Montana newspaper that helping young farmers get started is key in maintaining a healthy agricultural industry; according to the National Agricultural Statistics Service, the average age of a principal operator in 2014 was 58.9.

Start2Farm.gov estimates the average age of farmers across the United States is about 57 years old – up from 55 years old about five years ago; there’s also been a 30 percent increase in farmers over 75 years old and a 20 percent decrease in farmers under 25 years old.

Video: Evolution of Beef Cattle Farming

The Clear Conversations podcast took to the road for a special episode recorded in Nashville during CattleCon, bringing listeners straight into the heart of the cattle industry. Host Tracy Sellers welcomed rancher Steve Wooten of Beatty Canyon Ranch in Colorado for a wide-ranging discussion that blended family history and sustainability, particularly as it relates to the future of beef production.

Sustainability emerged as a central theme of the conversation, a word that Wooten acknowledges can mean very different things depending on who you ask. For him, sustainability starts with the soil. Healthy soil produces healthy grass, which supports efficient cattle capable of producing year after year with minimal external inputs. It’s an approach that equally considers vegetation, animal efficiency, and long-term profitability.

That philosophy aligned naturally with Wooten’s involvement in the U.S. Roundtable for Sustainable Beef, where he served as a representative for the Colorado Cattlemen’s Association. The roundtable brings together the entire beef supply chain—from producers to retailers—along with universities, NGOs, and allied industries. Its goal is not regulation, Wooten emphasized, but collaboration, shared learning, and continuous improvement.