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M O N TA N A
GRASS ROOTS
F E E D I N G T H E F U T U R E T H R O U G H F A R M E R S U N I O N E D U C AT I O N A P U B L I C AT I O N B Y M O N TA N A F A R M E R S U N I O N
RAISING YAKS...THE MONTANA WAY B Y LY N D S AY B R U N O E D I TO R
Where in Montana can you find a Tibetan Yak and a resident camel? Nestled near Kalispell is Spring Brook Yak Ranch, home to Tibetan yak, horses and Carlos the Camel. Jim and Carol Watson own the 1,000 acre ranch which is under a permanent conservation easement with the Montana Land Reliance. The Watsons received Carlos the camel in a trade for a yak heifer and bull from a ranch in Colorado. Christy Novak is the rancher manager and lives on the property. Spring Brook Ranch produces national champion show stock, fiber, pack stock and meat stock. The yak are raised as high-end breeding stock for other yak breeders. Jim grew up on a ranch in Mississippi.
NONPROFIT ORG US POSTAGE
PAID LIVINGSTON, MT PERMIT NO. 93
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MEMBER profile
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SPRING BROOK RANCH
He moved to Bozeman in the 1980’s to work as a mechanical engineer. The ranch was originally started by Carol’s parents with mostly bison. When Carol’s parents passed away they took over the operation. Jim Watson said his background in agriculture has come in handy. “We have learned a lot by trial and error and much of it is standard cattle animal husbandry,” said Watson. “Nutrition of the animal is very important. With each animal we slaughter we take liver samples to give us a greater understanding of the nutrition program we should Christy Novak manages Spring Brook Ranch. Courtesy of Spring Brook Ranch. be following.” Montana makes for an ideal environment for yaks because the higher altitude accommodates the yak’s lung capacity. They survive at 14,000 feet in the mountains of Tibet and need a good cold winter to flourish. They can stand heat as long as the climate is dry. There are less than a handful of yak breeders in Montana. The highest concentration of yak breeders is in Colorado because of its close proximity to the nation’s largest stock show in Denver.
as tame as you want to make them. When the yak cows develop trust they pass that on to the calves.”
A Knack for Science and Genetics Not only does Spring Brook Ranch breed high-end stock, they also pride themselves on their studies of yak genetics. Their primary customers are in North America, with business expanding in Alaska. Their artificial insemination program is robust. “We have gotten quite good at it. For instance in Alaska Novak says what differentiates they haven’t had new genetics in yaks from beef cattle is their many decades. Shipping semen to personality. “They are so much Alaska has resulted in five bulls. smarter than cows. That gives them a rich personality. They are C O N T I N U E D O N PA G E 5
Novak says trust of humans gets passed on from mommas to their babies. Photo courtesy of Spring Brook Ranch.
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PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE BY
WA LT E R S C H W E I T Z E R
I was privileged to help represent NFU at an unprecedented meeting bringing together 6 diverse groups representing the cattle industry to discuss livestock market issues. Members from NFU, American Farm Bureau Federation, National Cattlemen’s Beef
to be done then they would work towards a common goal. This was achieved at the Phoenix meeting. The livestock groups Association, R-CALF USA, and the United reached a consensus. We agree that there is a States Cattlemen’s Association talked openly problem with packer concentration, and that and candidly about a wide range of important we need to have oversight of the packers. An issues facing our industry today, including but interesting side note JBS, the world’s largest not limited to: packer concentration, price packer, quit NCBA after this meeting. transparency and discovery, packer oversight, Packers and Stockyards Act enforcement, This issue is nothing new. Over 100 years level of captive supply, and packer capacity. ago livestock producers and elected officials We agreed on several action items including created the Packers Stockyard Act. We must but not limited to the following: Expedite join forces once again to enforce the Act. the renewal of USDA’s Livestock Mandatory Reporting (LMR), including formula base prices subject to the same reporting 2021 CONVENTION NEWS: requirements as negotiated cash and the NEW BYLAW: ADDITION OF creation of a contract library. Demand the MAIL-IN BALLOT VOTING Department of Justice (DOJ) issue a public During the last MFU convention the meminvestigation status report and as warranted, bership passed new bylaws that allowed for conduct joint DOJ and USDA oversight of mail-in ballots. A member has to have atpacker activity moving forward. Encourage tended at least one MFU sponsored event investment in, and development of, new or a local MFU meeting to qualify for a independent, local, and regional packers. mail-in ballot. This will allow members to I think this was an important first step and hope we can continue to work together on a common message. I have often heard our elected officials say if the livestock groups could reach a consensus on what needs
be able to vote on policy and leadership if they attend a MFU event or meeting in their area. Convention Details: October 29-30 Heritage Inn Great Falls
MFU FOOD SECURITY FOR US CAMPAIGN RECEIVES EXCELLENCE AWARDS
and 2J’s Fresh Market for telling their story Individual Category: Social Responsibility to help elevate the issue of food security Award of Distinction nationwide.” • Montana Farmers Union: Food Security Video “Wendt is pleased to receive Communicator Individual Category: Activism Wendt Advertising is the recipient of the Awards for both excellence and distinction,” Award of Distinction Communicator Awards of Excellence and a said Brenda Peterson, Wendt CEO and • Telly Award Telly Award for their work on the Montana President. “We work closely with our clients To learn more, and to take action for food Farmers Union Food Security for US campaign. to produce creative products that deliver security visit foodsecurityforus.com. According to Wendt the Excellence Awards results. These awards are well deserved, and are the highest honor given to entrants whose we are honored to be recognized as one of the ability to communicate is the best in the field. best in the industry.” Below is a list of awards The Communicator Awards received over given for the Food Security for Us campaign: 6,000 entries world-wide. The Telly Award • Montana Farmers Union: “Food Security was given for MFU’s “Food Security for Us” for Us” video. Campaign Category: Integrated Campaign Award of Excellence “We are so pleased to see our Food Security for • Montana Farmers Union: “Food Security Us campaign recognized at the national level,” for Us” Website said President Walter Schweitzer, Montana General Category: Activism Farmers Union President.“The message of Award of Excellence food security is more important than ever • Montana Farmers Union: “Food Security GROW PROCESS EAT LOCAL LOCAL LOCAL as the pandemic has put a microscope on a for Us” broken food system, and the need for action. Campaign Category: Social Responsibility HELP SHORTEN We appreciate Wendt for their hard work, Award of Distinction MONTANA’S FOOD CHAIN and all the project participants especially the • Montana Farmers Union: Food Security following MFU members: Brett Debruycker, Video Eric Bergman, Jacob Cowgill, Peter Jennings,
WHAT IS FOOD SECURITY?
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WELCOME NEW MEMBERS!! Member
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Grady & Teresa Breipohl, Saco Shane Anderson Cherry Valley Farms Inc., Glasgow Del Hansen Wad Jackson, Glendive Watts Agency Janshen Farm LLC, Miles City Watts Agency Tim & Shirlene Watts, Miles City Watts Agency Donna Quick, Circle Kaylen Lehner Big Muddy Grazing Assoc. Inc, Culbertson Jesse Fleming Edwin & Georgia Bray, Mussellshell KJ Fauth Glynn & Peggy DeVries, Conrad Dirk Elings Terry & Lorilyn Wubben, Manhattan Craig Parker Michael & Natalia Derks, Fromberg Wes Schwend Kemph Farms Inc., Pompeys Pillar Melissa Wacker Denise Pugh, Bozeman Art Hoffart Robert Holst, Bigfork Andy Luedtke Randall & Shalann Bowe, Melrose Sara Nye LeRoy & Alvaretta Morin, Arlee Andre Marcure Christopher Neher, Stevensville Andre Marcure Rebecca Schneider, New Port Beach CA Andre Marcure Richard & Celine Lingford, Dillon Judy Siring Aaron & Alyssa Granley, Bainville JR Johnson Claire & Tom Baiz, New York City,NY Walter Schweitzer Juliet & Lowell Hahn, East Helena Margie Arnst Stacie & Scott Schissler, Great Falls Kyle Hager Julie & Charles Maxwell, Ulm Blake Standley Lisa Sanchez & Jim Carrell, Loma Fort Benton Elementary Jenny & Jeremy Marn, Belt MFU Office Ashley & Josh Gustafson, Great Falls MFU Office Madeline & Matthew Little, Geraldine MFU Office Jessica Shortridge, Sand Coulee MFU Office Jarrod & Tanya Murgel, East Helena MFU Office Jesse & Krystal Jerome, Helena MFU Office Eric & Mandi Dirk, Great Falls MFU Office Jennifer Roberts, Great Falls MFU Office Fanatasia Stordahl, Great Falls MFU Office Krystal & Greg Ferguson, Great Falls MFU Office Casey & Jeff Dawson, Belt MFU Office Misty & Giles Fish, Helena MFU Office Molly & Peter Wilson, Sand Coulee MFU Office Jennifer & Christian Banks, Floweree MFU Office Jessica Beeman, Great Falls MFU Office Erin Jones, Belt MFU Office Stephanie & Steven Cordeiro, Great Falls MFU Office Dawn & John O’Leary, Great Falls MFU Office Becky & Bradley Platis, Great Falls MFU Office Brooke Corry, Great Falls MFU Office Brad Gilchrist, Great Falls MFU Office Stacy Griessmer, Great Falls MFU Office Lisa & Alex Watson, Great Falls MFU Office Jordana Glick, Belt MFU Office Jennifer & Christian Banks, Floweree MFU Office David & Shannon Harper, Absarokee MFU Office Susan & Richard Gobbs, Helena MFU Office Katy & Thomas Lovell, Helena MFU Office Tammie Lund-Smith, Frenchtown MFU Office
IN THIS ISSUE Rebuilding Food Resiliency Road Show Details Page 4
Member Profile: Spring Brook Yak Ranch cont.; Details on Celebrate Agriculture 2021 Page 5
Join us for the 2021 Members’ Picnic! Page 6
MFU Enters the Meat Processing Market Page 7
Legislative Scorecard Page 8 & 9
2021 Arrowpeak Camp Sneak Peek! Page 10
MFU Travels to Fort Benton for Ag Days; Column by Montana Department of Agriculture Director Christy Clark Page 11
PO BOX 2447 300 RIVER DRIVE NORTH GREAT FALLS MT 59403 PHONE: (406) 452-6406 1-800-234-4071 FAX: (406) 727-8216 mfu@montanafarmersunion.com www.montanafarmersunion.com Board of Directors: Walter Schweitzer, President Rollie Schlepp, Vice President, Conrad Jan Tusick, Secretary/Treasuer, District 6, Ronan Erik Somerfeld, District 2, Power Jeff Bangs, At-Large Director District 1& 2, Inverness Eric Bergman, District 1, Fort Shaw Brett Dailey, District 4, Jordan William Downs, District 5, Molt Ben Peterson, At-Large director, Judith Gap Sig Rudie, Fairview, At-Large director Sarah Rachor, Sidney, District 3 State Office Staff: Jan Johnson, Office Mgr., Assistant Secretary/ Treasurer Lyndsay Bruno, Communications Director/ Editor Justin Loch, Membership Director Rachel Prevost, Camp Advisor/Education Violet Green, Education Coordinator Audra Labert, Digital Marketing Specialist Matt Rains, Special Projects
Copyright © Montana Farmers Union, 2021. Montana Grassroots is the official publication of the Farmers Educational and Cooperative Union of America, Montana Division. MFU reserves the right to reject any advertisements. Third Class bulk postage paid at Great Falls MT 59401. Membership: $50.00 per year Montana Grassroots is published monthly. Article submissions are requested by the 15th of the month. Copy Editor: Jan Johnson Editor/Designer: Lyndsay Bruno
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Richard & Aariel Tange Heitstuman, Helena John & Barbara Skoyen, Chinook Newell & Linda Roche, Lewistown Barbara Lodman & Michael Peterson, Lewistown Marita Valencia & David Ballman, Lewistown Paul Tuss, Havre Dale & Arlys Williams, Chinook Aubrey Williams, Havre Bill & Cathie Bradbury, Havre George Amen, Billings 3
MFU Office MFU Office MFU Office MFU Office MFU Office MFU Office MFU Office MFU Office MFU Office Judd Long
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MFU TRAVELS TO CENTRAL & EASTERN MONTANA WITH WORKSHOP SERIES
BY JUSTIN LOCH M E M B E R S H I P D I R E C TO R
In May Montana Farmers Union was able to get back on the road with the workshop series Rebuilding Food Resiliency. We visited Havre, Shelby, Choteau, and Lewistown. In June we will present to the communities of Billings, Miles City and Sidney. In June we will visit the Eastern Montana communities of Billings, Miles City and Sidney. Our first tour was met with great success and attendance. President Walter Schweitzer gave a general overview of MFU and organizational events. The highlight of President Schweitzer’s presentation was the glaring issue of food resiliency. Years ago Montana raised close to 70 percent of the food that lined grocery store shelves. Most major communities had a meat processor, bakery, flour mill, and milk bottling facility. Today, less than 20 percent of food in grocery stores comes from
JUNE 2021
Montana producers. Schweitzer stated the need for local processing and food distribution amongst our communities. Along with his presentation Schweitzer strongly stated the need for Country-of-Origin Labeling. He went on to say that Montana raises the best beef in the world and consumers deserve to know where their meat comes from.
turn out skilled butchers to help rebuild and fill Montana’s meat processing services.
MFU lobbyist Rachel Prevost gave a presentation on the 2021 Montana Legislature. Some of the big items that MFU worked on were Country-of-Origin Labeling, Right to Repair, and Truth in Labeling. Rachel worked closely with legislators to help MFU members and Following Schweitzer, Jesse Anderson with producers work on policy that would benefit Senator Tester’s office and Christy Clark, Montana ag producers. Rachel also presentDirector of the Montana Department of ed on Commercial Property Assessed Capital Agriculture and attorney Cort Jensen, talk- Enhancement program. C-PACE is a tool ed about funding opportunities for commu- that can finance energy efficiency and renewnities through the American Rescue Plan. able energy improvements on commercial Clark talked about Montana Resiliency Grant property. Program. The department is requesting funds for local produce and protein production Other presenters included representatives and distribution, on-farm storage, and resil- from local economic development groups ient supply chain infrastructure. Producers in the various communities. This included can sign up for updates from the Montana Michael Peters with Bear Paw Development, Department of Agriculture at https://agr. Curtis Shuck with Port of Northern mt.gov, visit the newly launched website ar pa. Montana, Laurie Lorher and Marita Valencia mt.gov or call 1-844-406-ARPA (2772) for pro- with the Central Montana Resource Council gram information. and Mary Jenni with Montana Lamb and Beef. A recorded session of the workshop series Next, Matt Rains who manages special proj- will be available on our website at montanaects for MFU, presented on a cooperative meat farmersunion.com. processing project that Montana Farmers Union is working on. The goal of this project THANK YOU TO OUR is to provide a live-to-package meat process- SPONSOR! ing solution for Montana livestock producers. As the cooperative develops by the steering committee membership will be available for producers. Along with the developing cooperative MFU is working closely with Montana State University Northern in Havre to develop a meat cutting curriculum that will help to
Walter Schweitzer introduces Jesse Anderson with Senator Tester’s office who spoke on federal funding for rural broadband and emergency services.
Montana Department of Agriculture Director Christy Clark presents on funding opportunities through the American Rescue Plan in Havre. 4
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M E M B E R P RO F I L E C O N T I N U E D
Spring Brook Ranch strives for more of a bison conformation. Novak said they focus their genetics on breeding yaks with docility which comes down to strong bloodlines and good genetics. Secondly, is good conformation. “Our yaks tend to be 100 to 200 pounds larger than the typical yak. We like big stocky shoulders, a heavy bottom , a really strong back and good spring of rib. It’s also important their legs aren’t too straight as they are mountain cows. If their legs are too straight it can make breeding more challenging.”
Yaks thrive in cold weather thanks to a dual coat. Photo courtesy of Spring Brook Ranch.
Nutrition is a very important aspect of raising yaks. Novak said it’s important to regularly sample soil and water. She has heard of yaks that despite having access to knee deep grass in California because of the clay type soil they were starving to death. The yaks eat native range and local hay in the winter which comes off an organic farm. “This fits in with the story of our local customers,” said Watson. “They don’t want anything artificial and our customers trust us to do the right thing.”
The Business Model Evolves Watson said the industry has changed in recent years. Their business for high-end breeding has dried up. “One of their primary focuses is selling the meat which Watson said tastes much like bison. Yak meat is packed with protein and very lean.
well in a penned in stall.” Said Novak. “They are range and grazing animals. They need room. They are so multi-purpose. You can plow with them and ride them. Every part of the meat is useable and of course there is the fiber component.”
Social media has helped with the education of the yak breed. Novak started the Facebook Like many others COVID hit the business page Yak 101. “I started it six years ago and pretty hard. “It killed our meat market for a have over 2,000 members. People from all time with restaurants shutting down and peo- over the world responding to different situaple not willing to pay a premium for our prod- tions. Whether it be minerals, nutrition, calvuct. We continued to butcher and donate to ing, fencing or grazing. It covers everything the food banks and Blackfeet Tribe.” from hoof to horn.” Watson said they are starting to see things take a turn for the better. They sell their meat to a few area restaurants and two small grocery stores in Kalispell. Watson recommends the short ribs. They also make nitrate and MSG free sausage. “It gives our restaurants an opportunity to upsell to something different,” said Watson. “We focus on quality versus quantity.” Advice for Aspiring Yak Breeders “I start out by questioning why they want yaks,” said Watson. “Someone who wants a fiber animal for hand spinning is going to want a very different phenotype than someone who wants strictly a meat animal. Some just want pasture pets. We have an opportunity to choose our customers wisely.” Novak said facility and land are important if a person is going to raise yaks. “They don’t do
• • • •
YAK FACTS
Highly Intelligent Yaks are very social. Yak Meat is 95-97% lean. Yaks are pack Animals. They can carry 20% of their body weight. • Yaks are the only animal that can survive at 20,000 feet because of their lung capacity. • Yaks love the cold! They can survive at -40 degrees thanks to their dual coat. • A yak’s life expectancy averages 20 years.
MFU PROUD TO SPONSOR CELEBRATE AGRICULTURE 2021
MSU will be holding Celebrate Agriculture 2021 on November 12-13. The Ag Econ’s Outlook Conference kicks off Friday morning at The GranTree Inn. That evening MSU will hold its annual dinner celebrating this year’s Outstanding Ag Leader along with our scholarship donors and recipients. Montana Farmers Union is a Platinum-Plus Sponsor of Celebrate Ag this year. “Education empowers the next generation of farmers and ranchers and MSU does an excellent job of preparing future leaders in agriculture,” said Walter Schweitzer, Montana Farmers Union President. “We are proud to be a sponsor of Celebrate Agriculture once again!” Also for your consideration is nominating someone you respect for the Outstanding Agricultural Leader Award. August 30 is the deadline to nominate. You can do so by visiting: https://www. montana.edu/news/21147/msu-college-of-agriculture-seeks-nominations-for-outstanding-leaders. The biggest event will be, as always, the Saturday pre-game brunch before the Bobcats take on the Vandals of Idaho. This year MSU is hosting this campus gathering in the Rendezvous Dining Pavilion.The public schedule for Celebrate Ag!! can be found at http://agriculture.montana.edu/ celebrateag/. 5
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MFU MEMBERS’ 20
Picnic 21
AT ARRO WPEAK LODGE
DEDICATION TO THE MERRILL FAMILY • JULY 17, 12–4 PM UPPER HIGHWOOD CREEK ROAD, HIGHWOOD MONTANA WHAT: Bring your appetite for southern cuisine and your
dancing shoes for the 2021 Members’ Picnic at Arrowpeak Lodge in the beautiful Highwood Mountains.
PICNIC FAIR: Tim Bass with Country Table will treat us to a southern style shrimp boil plus hamburgers and all the fixings! MUSIC: The band Common Ground will perform live! Enter a
TRAIL DEDICATION: Join us in celebrating the Merrill family for
their years of service with the dedication of the Merrill Trail.
raffle to win Montana made goodies made by MFU members! All proceeds of the raffle benefit Arrowpeak and MFU educational programming.
YOUTH AWARDS: We will also present the Torchbearer Award to
R.S. V.P.
MFU youth. This award signifies many years of youth education in Farmers Union, and also acknowledges the valuable leadership skills the recipients of this award are developing.
ETA IL S FO R M O RE D G O TO VP A N D TO RS
nion.com.
montanafarmersu
SE E W E H O PE TO ! LY JU IN U YO
BA Common Ground
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MFU ENTERS MEAT PROCESSING INDUSTRY WITH MOBILE UNIT/COOPERATIVE PROJECT in-state USDA certified facilities with constant B Y M AT T R A I N S S P E C I A L P RO J E C T S M A N AG E R
Food resiliency concerns have propelled Montana Farmers Union to enter the meat processing industry. In true Farmers Union fashion, MFU is working with local Montana producers to develop a producer owned meat processing cooperative. With local beef producers on the steering committee, the groundwork for the slaughter facility is firming up.
year-round capacity for years. As local ranchers are disadvantaged with transportation costs and regulations to the major packing plants, the financial burden of raising finished cattle has never been more apparent. Additionally, as more online farm-to-fork retailing opportunities develop with demand from larger cities, Montana ranchers can establish “Montana beef ” as a top-quality option.
The future cooperative will be member owned and incorporated in the State of Montana Tentatively, the facility will be located near with bylaws and board of directors voted Havre and serve as a drop-off location for on by the membership. MFU is working producers to have their cattle slaughtered, with the Montana Cooperative Development aged, cut and wrapped with USDA certification. Center (MCDC) on the entire process, and The facility will be composed of a converted it is expected to begin incorporation mid semi-trailer and multiple CONEX shipping to later summer. Once recognized by the containers all redesigned for sterilized meat state, Montana producers will be able to processing. Initial throughput will be 2-5 head join the membership and take on ownership per week with growth expectations of 15-20 responsibilities. Initially, the cooperative is head a day over the next few years. being constructed with members receiving first rights and lower rates to the annual Montana livestock producers have asked for allotment of hanging space. The non member
public will be allowed to utilize the remaining space to ensure capacity is maximized. Labor in the meat processing industry remains a primary constraint. MFU is working with MSU-Northern to potentially develop a Meat Science curriculum with training opportunities at the co-op facility. Although there are multiple hurdles to get the courses started early studies have highlighted the need for butchers across the state. Essentially, the idea is to develop Montana college students with complete skill sets in the meat processing industry and provide interns hands-on training at the facility. Callicrate Meats (St Francis, KS and Colorado Springs, CO) has sold their mobile slaughter unit (MSU) semi-trailer to the cooperative as the principle component of the facility. The slaughter unit has the capacity to take twenty animals from live to USDA certified halves in one day. Additionally, Mike Callicrate from Callicrate Meats is offering training and guidance to ensure the processing facility is a success.
Images of the mobile slaughtering unit.The tentative location for MFU’s unit will be near Havre and will serve as a drop-off location for producers.
Matt Rains spent a week training with Mike Callicrate at the Kansas facility.
A big thank you to the following members for supporting MFU’s Youth Leadership Development Program! K J Fauth FU Insurance, Billings Bryan Jones FU Insurance, Hamilton Tom McKenna FU Insurance, Lewistown Charles Monroe FU Insurance, Kalispell Aeric Reilly FU Insurance, Great Falls
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2021 Legislative Scorecard To wrap up the legislative session we have compiled a legislative scorecard reflecting the following House and Senate bills. Montana Farmers Union will continue to work on these policy initiatives, and will monitor interim legislative activity. We encourage you to continue to contact your legislators and urge support of Right to Repair and Country-of-Origin Labeling. Lobbyist Rachel Prevost is available to answer legislative questions at 406.452.6406 or at rprevost@ montanafarmersunion.com. • SB 210 -- Revise laws related to country of origin labeling: This bill requires that a placard designating “Born, raised, and processed in the USA” or “Imported/ Origin Unlabeled” be placed in the vicinity of the beef and/or pork at the store. The bill was killed in the Senate Agriculture, Livestock, and Irrigation Committee, with a 5-6 vote. [Scorecard Note: This was a committee vote to table the bill. In the scorecard, a “Y” vote supported the bill, while a “N” vote did not support.] • SB 273 -- Generally revise laws related to agricultural equipment repair: This bill would provide that the manufacturers of electronics enabled equipment provide farmers and ranchers, as well as independent repair shops, the tools necessary to repair their own equipment. The bill failed to pass its 2nd reading vote on the Senate Floor, 20-30. [Scorecard Note: This was a 2nd reading floor vote. In the scorecard, a “Y” vote supported the bill, while a “N” vote did not support.]
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2021 HOUSE VOTE SCORECARD
• HB 324 -- Generally revise certain labeling laws. This bill requires that a placard designating “Born, raised, and processed in the USA” or “Imported/Origin Unlabeled” be placed in the vicinity of the beef and/or pork at the store. The bill was tabled in the House Agriculture committee and also failed to get to the House floor on a 34-65 vote blast motion. [Scorecard Note: In the scorecard, a “Y” vote supported the bill, while a “N” vote did not support. A = Absent]
Representative
• HB 390 -- Generally revise laws related to equipment repair: This bill would provide that the manufacturers of electronics enabled equipment provide farmers and ranchers, as well as independent repair shops, the tools necessary to repair their own equipment. This bill was killed in the House Judiciary Committee with a 7-12 vote. [Scorecard Note: This was a House Judiciary committee vote to kill the bill. In the scorecard, a “Y” vote supported the bill, while a “N” vote did not support.]
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EDUCATION
MONTANA FARMERS UNION 2021 YOUTH CAMPS
junior 1 (ages 8–12) june 20-24
senior/teen 1 (ages 13-19) july 11–16
please visit the camp website link for camp information, covid updates, registration, and other camp details.
teen 2 (ages 12–15) july 18–23 CONTACT
junior 2 (ages 8–12) jun 25-jul 29
e-mail violet green at vgreen@montanafarmersunion.com 406.452.6406 | 800.234.4071
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MFU PRESENTS A LESSON ON POLLINATORS AT AG DAYS IN CHOUTEAU COUNTY B Y A U D R A L A B E RT D I G I TA L M A R K E T I N G S P E C I A L I S T
After a year-long pause from in-person events, MFU staff were happy to participate in the Fort Benton Ag Days hosted by Chouteau County Extension Office. The annual event welcomed 4th and 5th graders to the Chouteau County Fairgrounds. “Montana kids are so lucky,” said Rachel Prevost while setting up to give a lesson about pollinators. “I always enjoyed going to Ag days when I was younger. The event gives you the opportunity to learn about parts of agriculture that you may not be familiar with.” Prevost, who lobbied for MFU during the 2021 Legislature, is stepping into her counter-roll in education programming and is also assisting with Arrowpeak Camp this season. During the lesson, kids read aloud and learned about critical pollinator species including the well-known honey bee. They also learned about bats and moths. The kids also discussed why pollination is critical to food production, and to a variety of plant species. As an activity each student made their own beeswax candle. They were able to sample honey from one of Montana’s sweetest industries. Many rural students who have connections to bees and hives on their
A MESSAGE FROM DIRECTOR CLARK
Rachel Prevost gives a pollinator lesson in Fort Benton for Ag Day.
family farms were eager to share stories about bees and their first bee stings. Students also learned about sheep and wool production, horsemanship on the ranch, farm-to-table food production, soil health, and the role of farm machinery in agriculture. In addition to Montana Farmers Union, Chouteau County and Big Sandy Conservation Districts, Natural Resource Conservation Service, MSU Extension, 4-H and FFA were all present.
Following a successful legislative session, the Montana Department of Agriculture is busy building the framework for bills that were signed into law, including everything from weed free gravel to hemp as animal feed. We are also working hard to secure a portion of the state’s allotment of federal American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds to strengthen our food supply chain and advance Montana Agriculture as we continue adapting to COVID19.
“I had a blast presenting at Ag Days in Fort Benton,” said Prevost. “All the students were very eager to learn about the importance of pollinators and asked great questions. It’s so awesome to see these young students so keenly interested in agricultural production.” If you are interested in having Montana Farmers Union present at your event, please contact the state office at 406.452.6406 or at mfu@montanafarmersunion.com.
Transformation and Workplace Development Advisory Commission. At this point, we are making sure that our $50 million grant program proposal meets federal requirements and are seeking input so that we have a comprehensive package to present to the committee at their next meeting.
the department, a talented team dedicated to our mission of serving Montana Agriculture and growing prosperity under the Big Sky. We will continue Mike’s legacy with the three goals he set for our staff in mind: professionalism, teamwork, and high-quality customer service. I am eager get back out in the field and engage with farmers, While details continue to ranchers, and researchers this develop, one thing is for certain, year, and am looking forward Montana’s ARPA Program is in to hearing your feedback on the good hands with Mike Foster MT Ag Resiliency Program at The department’s ARPA taking the lead. Governor Greg the Rebuilding Food Resiliency proposal, the Montana Gianforte appointed Mike to Roadshow events—hope to see Agriculture Resiliency Program, steer the state’s distribution of you there! The MT Agriculture was included in House Bill 632 ARPA funds, making me the Resiliency Program Overview can which is now being reviewed by acting director on May 21. I am be viewed on the MDA website at the Economic Stabilization & happy and humbled to be leading agr.mt.gov. 11
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