“Farming in Tough Times” webinar kicks off free series for farmers

Community development groups in southeast Minnesota are working together to produce a new series of five free webinars for farmers called “Growing Stronger Together”. The series will kick off on Friday, June 12 at 10 a.m. with a webinar entitled “Farming in Tough Times.” With low commodity prices, high debt loads, and challenging weather in recent years, farmers are experiencing a high amount of stress. It can be challenging to know how to approach someone under a lot of stress, and the session is designed for individuals experiencing stress or anyone who has ever thought, “I should say something, but I wouldn’t know what to say.”

In this session, Emily Krekelberg with the University of Minnesota Extension will review the nature of farm stress, discuss how to identify stress, provide strategies for communicating with stressed individuals, and review available resources. Krekelberg is the Director of the Rural Stress Task Force, leading Extension’s statewide effort to address rural stress issues such as farmer mental health, the opioid crisis, and access to care. She grew up on a dairy farm and has a BS in Animal Science and a Masters in Agricultural Education from the University of Minnesota.

The “Growing Stronger Together” webinar series will be held throughout June and July and will cover a variety of topics that can provide tangible information to farmers in any stage of their business. Future workshops include “Direct Marketing for Farmers” on June 23 at 5 p.m. and “Grant Money for Farmers: How to Maximize Funding to Grow Your Business” on June 30 at 10 a.m.

More information on the upcoming webinars, as well as registration details, can be found on Eventbrite.com by searching “Growing Stronger Together” or visiting houstoncountymn.com/agriculture/.

“Growing Stronger Together” is a partnership between the Houston County Economic Development Authority and Community and Economic Development Associates (CEDA). The webinars are sponsored by the MN Department of Employment and Economic Development, the Southern Minnesota Initiative Foundation, and Merchant’s Bank. For more information, please contact the Houston County EDA office at EDA@co.houston.mn.us or call (507) 725-5836.