Who are you going to trust?!

Oh man, are things muddied up this week by Subway's announcement that they will start using meat from animals that have never been giving antibiotics. Not only that, but they are DELETING comments from people who are making reasonable statements questioning their decision.

I'm pretty sure that even the untrained eye can see what this really is - a public relations maneuver.

July 2015, huge fall out from Jared Fogel scandal. October 2015, this bandwagon decision following a few other restaurant chains. Connect the dots, and you have a case-study for entry-level marketing students.

Here's what it comes down to: who are you going to trust?

So we turn to our good friend, Google.

Including me.

I am a farm gal, but most of my experience and understanding is in dairy and crops. This topic is more about poultry and beef.

So I took to googling information just like anyone else.

Five things I found:

1. It would take days, weeks, months, years to even come close to the collective level of understanding that the agriculture and medical community have. I am NOT in any position to understand all the ins and outs of the antibiotic use and whether there's any connection to resistance.
   
   Here's a comparison this is not meant to be offensive at all, but is something I think a lot of us can relate to. It's like childless people who claim wisdom in parenting decisions and methods. I'm a cattle-less, bird-less person who is humble enough to admit that I don't know how they should raise their animals.
   
   If you are interested in getting a basic introduction to this topic, there are a lot of blog posts available about the topic. Also, many farmers and ranchers and veterinarians would welcome the opportunity to share and answer questions. People love to talk about their passion and share it with others. You just have to take the time to ask openly and kindly.
    
2. These sorts of announcements paint it as an "us" versus "them" topic, but that isn't the case. It's a round table, not a rectangle one. We are all in this together - all wanting healthy food that is readily available at affordable prices to nourish our bodies and souls.
    
3. Nothing in this world is perfect. However, I will put my odds on the agriculture community - including ALL sizes and styles. It's a community that has salt-of-the-earth people throughout. Not perfect (nothing is), but the highest integrity steering them.
    
4. Marketing is a powerful tool. As the receivers of marketing, it's up to us to filter the marketing tactics with a strong mind. I was just talking to someone recently about how one of the highest-used marketing methods is fear-based. I know I've been victim to fear-based marketing messages at times. Be on guard.
    
5. I trust God with all of it. With my own personal health and food decisions, that He is steering our food producers and that everyone around the table will be patient and understanding of one another. Matthew 6:25-34

Highlights of soybean harvest 2015

For all you farmers out there, our total farm average looks like 56 bushels/acre, which is pretty consistent with what we've been getting the past few years. Some fields went as high as 65 and the low end was 45. The couple fields on the low end seemed to have a lot of white mold.

Now that we got that out of the way, here are a few highlights of soybean harvest 2015:

1. It went fast! 540 acres harvested in about seven days.

The guys have sort of a running discussion every year of whether they prefer to harvest beans or corn. From my perspective, I like beans better because of how quick it can be. Also, beans can only be harvested during a certain time of the day, so it makes for more reasonable hours. They take on moisture from the air, so they become "tough" for the combine to handle after dark and need to dry out in the morning. Similar to mowing lawn - the grass just doesn't cut nicely unless it's dried out. Of course there's still maintenance that needs to be done every day, so they're still really long days. Just not like corn where you literally could keep going day and night until it rains.

2. No major breakdowns.

With so much equipment (two combines, three grain trucks, auger to fill the bin) and it's all running for a LOT of hours, there's bound to be things that wear out and break. The question is always the scale of the breakdowns. There weren't any major ones during soybean harvest, so the guys were able to press on every day.

This picture is what Ben found when he emptied his rock trap the last day - a deer antler! That's a rare find! The rock trap is REALLY important when combining soybeans. The bean pods are all the way up the stem of the plant, so you need the combine to cut it off as close to the ground as possible so you don't miss any beans. That creates a potential for rocks to come into the machine. If a rock went past the rock trap, the whole machine would basically become scrap metal because of how much damage it would do. Yikes! 

3. Fall in Wisconsin. Need I say more?

It's been a gorgeous week to spend out in a field! The girls and I didn't get out there all that much during soybean harvest, but the times we did was a lot of fun. I got to run the weigh wagon that we were borrowing to get accurate results of our tests. Molly (2 years old) confirmed that she is still freaked out of the loud noises from the equipment. However, she LOVED playing in the pile of beans that was accidentally spilled. With a crop farm, there aren't as many tasks that the whole family is involved in, so we take advantage of the fieldwork that is conducive to us tagging along. We're glad that we still have corn harvest to look forward to so we can spend even more time out there.

4. I get to analyze!

I'm such a nerd. I enjoy creating spreadsheets to analyze data. We had two soybean tests this year. One was just a plot to test different types of seed. We haven't done one in several years, so it was a good exercise to compare the options side-by-side. This is especially important while margins are tight right now to make sure we are maximizing our profit potential. The other test was to compare different planting methods and see if we want to invest in a new planter. It would be nice to take more time in the slower winter months to do these sorts of things, but the seed companies give the best discounts if you order early because it helps them plan and assess their inventory. Once again, it's important to take advantage of this to maximize profit potential with tight margins. We have to balance the rush of earlier purchases with the need to still analyze the information to make good decisions. (more information about the tests to compare planting methods will come in a later post...)



They finished beans on Saturday, spent Sunday afternoon and all day Monday getting equipment switched over to corn. It was supposed to rain last night into today. I asked Ben what he thought of the possible rain day. He responded that he is excited to put all the tools away. Excited to put the tools away?! I had to make sure my jaw wasn't hanging open. He generally thrives in a state of disarray... Things must really be bad if he is looking forward to cleaning of any sort!

Alas, clear skies this morning so they are picking corn. Putting tools away will have to wait!

My farmer dad...

My younger sister Kayla asked to write a guest post for Father’s Day. The middle sister of three, she’s the only one of us no longer involved directly in production agriculture. Still, she fondly remembers our upbringing on the farm and the values that our dad instilled.

If asked to describe my father in one word, the answer would be simple: “farmer.” Of course he’s a multi-dimensional man who could be described in many ways, but his title as a farmer is so much more than an occupation; it’s a title that encompasses his worldview, character and relationships. In fact, as his daughter, I would be hard-pressed to separate our relationship from the farm. Nearly all of my memories of our interactions have been framed by his role as a farmer.

As a young child, I rode along in the tractor and talked his ear off in an effort to keep him alert. As I grew older, those conversations continued during milking. He listened to my hopes and dreams and encouraged me that I could do anything I put my mind to.

Beyond conversation, though, he molded my character most through his example. In good years, I watched him fill silos, bags and hay mows to the brim to save for worse times.  During downtimes, I learned about the trials of running a business, but also learned to stay the course and trust in God. He taught us to ‘make hay when the sun shines’ and to embrace rainy days to catch up on sleep. Even after eighty hour work weeks, he could always make time to pull a stranger out of the ditch or plow a neighbor’s driveway.

Life on the farm wasn’t always smooth. I’ll be the first to admit that I often resented the work. When my siblings and I made mistakes, oftentimes the lines were blurred between employees being reprimanded and children being disciplined. Although Dad was a hard task-master, he also showed compassion against the backdrop of the farm. I vividly recall running off to the pig pen to cry after being scolded for some petty offense. As we watched the young piglets rooting through fresh straw, he apologized for hurting my feelings showed me mercy.

By modern standards, Dad was (and is) a workaholic. He was such a perfectionist that it pained him to allow hired-help to run things while he was away. A family vacation was usually followed by a drop in milk production. Watching us show animals at the county fair meant leaving dry hay lay in the field. Honestly, it was understandable that he didn’t want to entrust his farm to anyone else. Yet if it was for his children, he made the sacrifice.

As I’ve grown to be an adult myself with a career and two young kids to feed, those nostalgic memories have grown into deep respect. I am grateful that I have an on-going connection with my farmer dad, through which I can better understand the many complexities that play into the decisions and techniques that are used on farms. I have grown even more proud of the responsibility he shows through how he cares for his animals and land. And I am immensely grateful that my two kids get to be there regularly to be part of that same upbringing.  

"Playing it by ear." - a tribute to my mom

Me, my mom and my sister. Photo was taken while we were celebrating Mom's 50th birthday in Nov. 2014.

Mother's Day - it's an emotional day for many. What joy to celebrate the women who gave us life and then did their best to equip us to live it.

This is also a day when some people are filled with longing for their mothers/children who've passed away or the longing to be a mom, some struggle with estranged relationships with their mothers/kids, some are overwhelmed with the physical and emotional exhaustion of motherhood, etc. etc. No mom is perfect - cut your mom a break, and cut yourself a break. If you're harboring any struggle with bitterness or shame, let this be a day for God's grace to wash that away.

Special virtual hug to all farm moms, because there's a good chance you're a "spring widow" on Mother's Day, and the emotions of that hit even harder coupled with the exhaustion of planting season setting in.

The past five years of Mother's Day have meant all kinds of emotions for me. They've been my first times to celebrate that I'm a mother. This new experience and perspective has exposed the reality of all the gratitude and apologies I owe to my mom. They've also shown me the reality of this role - 24/7, sacrificial and full of non-monetary rewards. (That list is so similar to farming - 24/7, sacrificial and full of non-monetary rewards. But this post isn't really about farming...)

There are so many things I now learn from my mom's example as a farm wife. Respecting her husband, supporting his calling, being involved in his calling but with her limits and boundaries for her own sanity and self-fulfillment. The last two weeks, I've embraced something from her that I never thought I would..."playing it by ear."

I don't know if I've ever heard anyone else say that phrase like my mom. In fact, I'm not sure of whether it's a common phrase or if it's just common within our family. (In case it's just us, it means that we won't set a plan for what or when we'll do something, we'll just see what happens when the time comes.) I must have heard her say it thousands of times growing up, and I always thought she was just anti-scheduling and anti-commitment.

I, on the other hand, like to have a plan and stick to it. It drove me crazy that we never set our plans. Not only because I wanted to know what was coming and plan for it, but also because I thought we seemed rude, uncaring, unprofessional.

Now I get it. Don't set the plans because then no one will be as upset when they change. When your life revolves around things like the weather and breakdowns, plans are bound to change at a moment's notice.

It's hard to truly appreciate someone until you "walk in their shoes." That is the case when you have your own kids, and only then do you truly realize what your parents did for you. I'm so grateful to be a farm wife and have this unique opportunity to appreciate what my mom did (does) as a farm wife. I continually ask her questions and seek her advice from the perspective of this role.

So what will I be doing on Mother's Day? We'll play it by ear... :)

Economic Sustainability

Other posts in the sustainability video series:

1. Sustainability - Defining it
2. Environmental Sustainability

Transcript of the video audio (in other words, here's the text version of everything I said in the video)

When it comes to economic sustainability for the farm, the first thing that comes to mind is the financial risk we take every year. We commit all the expenses for the crop months before any tractors even hit the fields in the spring. And then it’s obviously months later until we see how the yields are going to do. And then it’s months even after that until we make the final sale of the crop because we have on-site storage. So that’s an average of around 18 months from hwen we spend the first penny and then months later when we receive the final penny for the crop.

And in between the expense and the profit side of things, there are some big variables that play into the profitability. One obviously is the weather – that’s a huge one – as well as different pests and diseases that are damaging crops potentially. And then the markets – seeing how the actual sale price is doing and the fluctuations in that will obviously affect profitability.

So there’s different business models for every farm. The way our farm is structured and we’re able to maintain profitability is to have a low cost-of-production. That really helps so that whenever we’re putting in a crop, we try to keep our expenses as low as possible. So even if we do have a drought like 2012 or if the market has a downturn like it does right now, we can still be profitable through those years.

What that looks like on our farm when it comes to low cost-of-production, you can mostly see that with the equipment we use. All of the equipment on our farm is decades old. Even when we get a “new” piece of equipment, it’s still very old. And then the guys spend all winter doing all the maintenance and repairs themselves for the equipment. They’re very talented that way. They’re very mechanical. My father-in-law also went to college for mechanical engineering so they even do some major modifications to equipment that will save them from having to buy that equipment or buy the modification. It saves them a lot of money that way, and that obviously helps the budgeting aspect of what we do.

It might be easier for me though if they had the nice, new tractors that are easier to drive. Instead we have these tractors that all have their own tricks to them, so it makes it tricky for me. But in the end, I guess it’s best for the farm.

And we joke around a lot that there’s no need for us to ever go to a casino because we’re gambling enough every day as it is here on the farm.

So, that’s economic sustainability for us here on the farm.

Thank you.  

Environmental Sustainability

Sustainability video series:

1. Sustainability - Defining it

Happy Earth Day! In honor of Earth Day, today's sustainability video message revolves around the broad meaning of environmental sustainability to our farm.

Transcript of the video audio (in other words, here's the text version of everything I said in the video)

Environmental sustainability. I don’t know of many businesses that are as intertwined with the environment like we are as farmers. We do something to the environment and then it reacts and responds and provides something back to us in return. That interaction and engagement is so vital to a lot of the decisions we make of what we do and how we do it.

That often leads to the question of why do we just raise crops on our farm here in southeast Wisconsin near the Illinois border.

And it brings me back to a conversation I had a few weeks ago with our five-year-old daughter. We were at Cabela’s looking at all the fish and we started talking about how the fish are different – the ones that live in the ocean versus lakes versus rivers versus streams. And we talked about how the fish have been purposely created to be suited to those specific environments.

And that’s what we have a lot here in the Corn Belt. The whole Midwest part of the United States – and we’re just in the edge of that – is very well-suited to growing crops like corn and soybeans. Our land is very flat, which reduces the risk of soil erosion and run-off. Our climate is very well-suited and our soil is very fertile and supports those different crops.

Now that’s not to say that there aren’t farms in our area and throughout the Corn Belt that do other things. And we’re very grateful for them and we support them, as well. That’s just to say that’s why we do what we do.

And we’re happy to do that, and we’re happy to be a worldwide supplier of these products that are able to be used for so many different things – they’re very beneficial commodities. For people food, animal food, fuel for our vehicles – a renewable source, as well as for other unique products like crayons or plastics.

And we’re able to supply this on a worldwide scale. There are some other areas of the world that are also well-suited to growing crops like this. Namely South America – Brazil and Argentina – and there’s a lot of areas of the world that really can’t support much row crop production. So we’re considering that we’re using the tools and resources that we have and to be abundantly using them to the best of our ability.

Thank you. 

BEAN seeds are going in the ground!

When spring planting is around the corner, I always say that Ben will drive out to the field one day and doesn't come back for a couple months.

The girls and I went for a walk yesterday afternoon. We swung around by the shop like we frequently do to say "hi" to Daddy and Papa. When we came around the corner, Ben was fueling up the tractor and field cultivator to go work up the first field of the year. So we joined him! How fun that this year, we drove out to the field WITH him! Perfect timing!

This isn't actually the official start of planting though. It's just a test they're doing. We do a LOT of field tests to see what the results are before making a bigger adjustment. This particular test is to plant beans early. Common practice is to plant all the corn and then switch to planting beans, so beans are usually planted around a month after the corn. We've been hearing a lot about the potential benefits of planting beans early, so they decided to test it on 20 acres.

This is not a normal practice. In fact, when my father-in-law went to pick up the bean seed from one of the neighboring farmers who's also a seed rep, he asked if it was okay if he tells other people about it. I imagine it'll sound something like this: Do you want to know what the Nelsons are up to? They're planting BEANS right now! Not sure how that's going to go! Ha!

I see this as one of the benefits of us having a lot of crop acres - we can do a lot of these "field trials" and test different techniques. I imagine that someone with less acreage might want to be more conservative and only do what they know works best for them. A good test also needs to be done on a decent size scale, otherwise it could just be other variables affecting the results.

The pictures are fun, but not the best quality...phone was almost dead, squirmy toddler, lots of bumps...

I love these kinds of family pictures! Molly was freaked out - the chocolate (notice her lips), chips and music helped calm her down though.

At the very tip of the tree on the left was a big hawk waiting for us to kick up some mice. Pretty cool. 

I'm always amazed at how different the view is from the back of a field. We drive by this field ALL the time and look at it from the road, but when you're in back of the field looking toward the road, it's so different. Weird, but true.

Sustainability #1 - Defining it

Transcript of the video audio (in other words, here's the text version of everything I said in the video)

Sustainability. It’s a big buzz word now and everyone wants it, including myself. Now how does a farm know if they’re really being sustainable? There isn’t a line in the sand saying what is sustainable versus what isn’t, so how do they know?

Well the definition is “to be sustained, to endure, to last a long time.” Let’s remember that there’s a difference between sustainable and self-sustainable.

Our farm – my husband and his father – run 1,400 acres of crops. By today’s definition, that really isn’t a cool farm.  We don’t do niche products or direct marketing. We don’t even have animals on our farm. However, we strive to be sustainable and we’re proud of what we do and how we do it.  

By that base definition of sustainability – to endure and last a long time – our farm is sustainable. We actually have the original deed from 1912 – over 100 years ago – when my husband’s great, great grandfather, Andrew Nelson, bought the original 80 acres of the farm for $7,000 total. So my husband is the fifth generation stepping into the farm.

That’s a long time. There’s a lot to be said for that. When you look at American agriculture and the security of our food supply, we’re proud to be part of that backbone. When we can go to the grocery store and have the luxury of so many options and that fit within a family’s budget. We’re proud to be part of that.

So when you go to the grocery store, be thankful for even the common, ordinary food choices.

Thanks for your support!  And stay tuned for some more video messages focusing on the three measures of sustainability – environmental, economic and social. Thank you!

My "can-do" attitude - a blessing and a curse

I've always had a can-do attitude. Other words used to describe this aspect of my personality include drive, determination, problem-solving, confidence, stubbornness, pride and self-righteousness. Notice how those terms gradually shifted from being admirable qualities to character flaws?

They say necessity is the mother of invention. Been there, done that. "Blessing" side.

This weekend was an example of the "curse" side. Ben was gone all weekend on a family ice-fishing trip. Not a huge deal. The only thing to arrange for him to be away was that someone needed to put wood in the outdoor wood burners that heats our house and my in-laws house (his dad was on the trip too).

We are so fortunate to have neighbors and friends who are willing to help out. He actually arranged for one of them to do the wood while he was away.

I just had to open my big mouth. I said I could do the wood - I didn't want to be the damsel in distress who needed a guy to take care of us. I could handle it.

Surely, I could. But did I really want to?

At the time I did. I like physical work and I really like being tough. I would much rather be doing physical work than housework. So it was a task I was happy to take on.

Four problems:

1. I had plenty of other tasks that also needed to be done without adding this.
2. It was bitterly cold the first couple days he was gone so now I volunteered to go out in that weather.
3. The logs are big. I could lift them, but it definitely got my heart rate up. My father-in-law actually scoured through his piles and found all the smaller pieces and stacked them neatly right by the burner. Not sure if he felt bad for me or doubted that I could do it. Either way, it was nice. 
4. I had to arrange doing all this twice a day in two locations while supervising two little kids who couldn't be alone in the house and it was too cold for them to be out with me. 

After a couple times doing it, time got away from me Friday night. I went out there at 11:30 p.m. and didn't see much sign of life to the fire. Even though Ben gave me all the instructions, he hadn't really told me how to get it going from pretty much nothing. It was too late to call anyone. I freaked out a little, put wood in and prayed it would start up. I stayed awake another hour to see if the water temperature rose at all, signaling that it had started. Nope. It dropped slightly.

Without anything else to do, I went to bed..at least I tried to. I was pretty worked up. My logic told me it would be a big deal to just call the neighbor and see if he could help get it going in the morning. The house temperature wouldn't drop that much overnight for there to be any serious problems. That was my logic, which proved to be correct.

What really kept me awake was my irritation that I had failed. Grrrr. My pride was hurting. A lot.

After stewing about it for a couple days, I finally processed the take-away silver lining. Now that I've accepted that maybe I don't want to put wood in, I conveniently have an "out." When you can't do the task well, then it's easier to have someone else do it. It's like various farm tasks growing up - we would purposely avoid learning some of the roles because then we couldn't be expected to do them. Since I didn't really succeed at learning to do the wood, I'm sure I can easily get out of it in the future.

Unless my "can-do" attitude gets the best of me again...

I love winter!

I <3 winter! It's the only season of the year when we have a normal, predictable family schedule.

Winter for us means January 1 (after the holiday craze) through the unknown date when they head out to the fields the first time in spring and don't come back for 2.5 months (slightly exaggerated, but not much).

Don't get me wrong, Ben is still really busy. As an entrepreneur/small business owner, there's always more that could be done. There's the mandatory list of broken equipment that needs a lot of TLC. With all the equipment it takes to farm 1,400 acres and the amount of hours the equipment runs during the year, it's a long list (especially this year). Ben and his dad do basically all maintenance and repairs themselves - it takes a lot of time but worth it for the cost savings. There's also the second list of things that would be really nice to do (usually modifications to fieldwork equipment), and they try to pick a couple off that list each year. Plus all the office work it takes to run a farm all gets done right now - taxes (bleh), informational seminars, purchasing all the inputs for the upcoming year, etc.

A few weeks ago Ben and I talked and actually set his work hours so that we are on the same page, versus just willy nilly every day. It's really nice to set your own schedule, but also really necessary so we can fully-utilize this family time. Now I know to expect him home around 5:30 to 5:45 so we can have dinner and some family time in the evening. Molly goes to bed at 6:30 (transitioning from two naps to one has been hard for her), so this way she always gets some daddy time before bed.

It's one of the bitter-sweet things about being a farmwife - we don't get much normal family time during the parts of the year when it would be nice to do outdoor activities, but yet it makes the dreary part of the year a whole lot sweeter.

Focusing on the "sweet" of the bitter-sweet right now.

Ice fishing on Pleasant Lake = winter family fun

This calls for ice cream!

We all know food can be therapeutic. We recently had two back-to-back reasons for ice cream - one good and one not-so-good.

The guys went to an equipment auction last month. My father-in-law's combine hasn't been doing well at all. Ben says there are many days when he sees him drive off to the edge of the field and he says on the CB, "What's wrong with it now?!" 

They had great luck at the auction. Got a new-to-us combine that's definitely an upgrade from the other one and it was a really good price with 0% financing for three years. Ice cream #1. 

Looks especially nice since it's super shiny!

Less than a week later they were cleaning everything up to put it away until next year. It's the most despised day of the year because of how gross everything is and how long it takes to get it all clean. 

My father-in-law went to put Ben's combine away and didn't realize the auger was out - he must have unknowingly bumped the lever when he was cleaning out the inside. Screeeeeeeeech. The auger hit the side of the shop. Not a good day for Ben's combine. Ice cream #2. 

Add that to the already-long list of winter projects - fixing the auger.