One of this year's Centennial Farms belongs to EllaFaye Johnson of Marquette County. She tells Mid-West Farm Report that her late husband, Wayne, did not want to continue farming the way his dad did, and so they started Westfield Nursery & Florist in 1946 to serve the surrounding communities. Pictured from left to right: Sam, EllaFaye, Anna and Wayne Johnson in the greenhouse in 1947. Wayne's parents, Sam and Anna, frequently worked in the greenhouse and flower shop. The greenhouse provided spring bedding plants (geraniums, petunias, etc), vegetables & throughout the year chrysanthemums, carnations, poinsettias, Easter lilies, etc. They had plenty of plants and flowers to sell to local customers and to use for weddings, funerals and special occasions. EllaFaye's daughter, Barbara, helps share the history of the Centennial Farm.

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George Tipler shares the story of his family’s land in Winnebago County. He's accepting the Sesquicentennial Farm and Home Award this year for his 21-acre parcel in the town of Clayton. He shares fond memories of farming with his father and grandfather and the stories of hauling cattle back when vehicles couldn't go more than 50 miles per hour. The Sesquicentennial program is in its 25th year. These stories are brought to you courtesy of Compeer Financial. Pictured is George as a baby on the tractor with his dad.

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Lori Mesik Hamilton's great grandparents, immigrants of the Austria-Hungarian Empire, moved from Colorado to Ashland County after her great-grandmother was struck with tuberculosis. They thought the crisp air would do her good. Lori says crisp was an understatement -- when she was farming as a girl on the Century Farm, she remembers using a crowbar to pick the ice off the barn door to milk cows. This is just one memory she has of her family's farm in Moquah, a dairy farm until 1999. Today, her younger brother farms beef and crops on the 500 acres. This Century Farm story is brought to you by Compeer Financial.

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In every corner of Wisconsin, you can probably find a family farm with a legacy that goes back 100 or 150 years. We’re sharing the stories of those Century and Sesquicentennial Farms thanks to Compeer Financial. One of the 100-year-old farms being recognized this year belongs to Joe Kirschbaum of Bloomington in Grant County. That’s where his family milked cows until the late 80s and the 160-acre farm has since diversified to beef and hogs before Joe retired. He says it was a great place to grow up and live, and the land treated the family well over the years. 

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Wisconsin agriculture can always surprise you!  That might be the feeling you get when you hear the story of Trembling Prairie Farm in Markesan.

John Bobek, Farmer and Owner, Trembling Prairie Farms, is an Indiana native that farms the tricky soils of his Markesan farm.  It's rich in nutrients, but fickle when it comes to crops it favors.  So when the opportunity to grow celery in partnership with Alsum Farms and Produce, John felt his soils were up to the challenge.

It's one of several crops that Trembling Prairie produces that are featured in grocery stores all around the upper midwest.

Bobek talks with Pam Jahnke about the current growing season, customer preferences, and how partnerships in the industry are changing.

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Any family that includes a member that's got some health or mental disabilities faces challenges in finding services that can help them manage through "life".

Pam Jahnke visits with Sally Flaschberger, Project Manager-Living Well, Co-Leader Partners in Policymaking with the WI Board for People with Developmental Disabilities.  Wisconsin's BPDD has assembled a toolkit to try and help families uncover resources they may have overlooked.

Flaschberger says that families with disabled members, and those individuals trying to live on their own with disabilities face some real risks of abuse, neglect and isolation.

The toolkit is designed to provide people with disabilities easy access to resources and plain language guides on how they can stay healthy, safe, and socially connected in their lives.  This free, statewide resource is available online or printed versions can be requested.

The Healthy, Safe and Connected toolkit is appropriate for use by people with disabilities, with support from their families, service providers, schools, non-profits, and other groups that work with people with disabilities. It is free and available to download in PDF versions from the Wisconsin Board for People with Developmental Disabilities website.  Print versions of the toolkit are available to order at this link:  Wisconsin-BPDD Toolkits Order Form

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The Wisconsin Cheese Makers Association (WCMA) announced today it is launching a Health & Safety Group, designed to help WCMA members across the country protect their most valuable resource: their workforce.

 WCMA Senior Director of Programs & Policy Rebekah Sweeney, talks with Pam Jahnke about why cheesemakers across the state are excited to engage in this discussion.

The first meeting of WCMA’s Health & Safety Group, will focus on the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) recently announced Local Emphasis Program (LEP), focused on food manufacturers’ safety practices. LEP inspections and enforcement actions began in Wisconsin on July 19, but OSHA officials have noted their plan to expand its scope to Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, Minnesota, and Ohio in October 2022.

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With fuel prices getting a lot of consumer attention, Pam Jahnke visits with Roland Koenig of Marquis Ethanol in Necedah about how that industry responded.  Koenig says that ethanol margins have been good, and they're contributing to bringing fuel prices down.

Consumers may think that chicken is always a "deal" at the grocery store - but that may not be the case today.  Stephanie Hoff talks with DATCP livestock market specialist, Jeff Swenson, about how chicken competes with beef and pork price-wise.

When you enjoy a rodeo, do you think of the animals as athletes?  You should!  Allison Lund gets a unique perspective on how rodeo managers find livestock talent and take care of it during performances on the rodeo circuit.  She talks to Cory Check, Owner of CC Bucking Bulls in Gays Mills. 

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The Wisconsin Honey Queen is out and about educating consumers about the value of bees and what's at risk if habitat isn't maintained.  Jill Welke talks to WI Honey Queen Shannon Lamb.

Ashley Huhn with the Steffes Group joins Pam Jahnke to talk details about holding an auction.  Ashley says auctions are usually a once in a lifetime experience, so you need trusted professionals to help.  Sponsored by the Steffes Group.

Rami Aburomia from Atoms to Apples Orchard in Mount Horeb says the apple crop is sizing up nicely after a tough 2021 season.

With thunderstorms in the forecast, Pam Jahnke visits with UW Veterinarian, Dr. Marie Verbrugge, about why pets react the way they do to thunder, and what pet owners can do to try and calm them down.

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Heat's building again this week and that's a problem for Wisconsin's dairy cows.  Stephanie Hoff visits with UW-Extension Animal Safety Specialist, Jennifer VanOss about what's at risk if farms don't address and protect against heat.

Ashley Schumacher from Alcivia Cooperative is Pam Jahnke's guest on the Alcivia Coop Talk show.  She focuses in on Alcivia's community support of county fair youth, local fire departments and other groups.

Ryan Yonkman with EverAg joins Pam Jahnke as a guest from Chicago.  Cheese prices have melted in recent days and Yonkman says it's all about keeping the U.S. competitive in the global space.

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