MSU Extension Launches New Beginning Farmer Resource at Great Lakes Expo

Nov 17, 2025

By Jonathan LaPorte

Running a farm business involves passion, vision and drive to be successful. These qualities are especially important for new or beginning farm managers as they face a number of challenges early in their careers. Common challenges include knowledge of production, finding land, constructing or retrofitting housing facilities and financing. Recognizing the significance of these and many other farming challenges, a new resource to assist beginning farmers has been developed by Michigan State University (MSU) Extension and the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) with support from GreenStone Farm Credit Services.

The Beginning Farmer Resource and Decision-Making Guide provides a pathway to resources a new farmer or decision-maker may need to get started and support their production journey. Starting with production in mind, resources give farmers an introduction to important farming topics and direct them to education and decision-making tools and how to connect with agricultural partners.

Source : msu.edu

Video: Season 7, Episode 2: From Data to Decisions in Swine Production

Data can provide a clear picture of trends and performance across a swine farm, but its greatest value comes from putting those insights into action. In this episode, Dr. Edison Magalhães, assistant professor in the department of animal science at Iowa State University, discusses how producers can leverage data to make informed decisions that improve herd performance from birth to market. He highlights the challenges of siloed data across different teams, the impact those gaps can have on performance and the importance of integrating data to gain a more complete picture of herd health and productivity. He also explains the PROSPER (Predictors of Swine Performance) tool, which combines data from multiple sources to help producers better understand herd performance.