Michigan Farm Bureau State Level Question 2 

Leveraging Farm Bureau’s Grassroots Network to Break Barriers in Local USDA Certified Meat Processing 

Join us at The BLOCK Party! 

Get ready—this month’s episode of The Block Party is officially LIVE, and you won’t want to miss it! Tune in now and catch up on this episode and all past episodes at: https://www.buzzsprout.com/2134475. 

We’re diving back in with Matt Gibson, a Young Farmer leader, and MFB staff member Pierce Bennett as they explore a powerful and timely topic: “With the continued ripple effect of supply chain challenges related to meat processing, how can Farm Bureau leverage its grassroots network to reduce barriers and create pathways for the development of local USDA certified meat processing?” 

Did this discussion spark a policy idea for you? Awesome! Share it with your local County Farm Bureau Policy Development Committee Chair—or submit it online using the link provided below. 

Have thoughts, ideas, or something you’d love to hear on a future episode of The Block Party? Ashley wants to hear from you! Send your feedback her way and keep the conversation going at [email protected] 

Resources: 

• Michigan Farm Bureau Young Farmer Discussion Meets 
• Michigan Farm Bureau Policy Amendment / Idea Form 

AFBF Discussion Meet Questions Series (Michigan Farm Bureau – State Level Question 1)

Attracting and Retaining Rural and Large Animal Veterinarians: How Farm Bureau Can Lead the Way

The American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF) Discussion Meet is a competitive event that helps young farmers and ranchers build skills in researching issues, developing solutions and communicating them in a collaborative setting. In this episode, we unpack one of the state-level Discussion Meet questions—offering helpful context whether you’re thinking about competing or you’re simply interested in the future of rural veterinary care.

Join us as we dive back in with some of our incredible Young Farmer leaders as they explore a powerful and timely topic from Michigan Farm Bureau’s Discussion Meet Competition State Level Question 1: “Rural and large animal veterinary practices and professionals continue to decrease in numbers across the country. How can Farm Bureau help attract and retain rural and large animal veterinarians for member communities?”

Get ready—this month’s episode of The Block Party is officially LIVE, and you won’t want to miss it! Tune in now and catch up on this episode and all past episodes at: https://www.buzzsprout.com/2134475.

Did this discussion spark a policy idea for you? Awesome! Share it with your local County Farm Bureau Policy Development Committee Chair—or submit it online using the link provided below.

Have thoughts, ideas, or something you’d love to hear on a future episode of The Block Party? Ashley wants to hear from you! Send your feedback her way and keep the conversation going at [email protected]

Resources:

• Michigan Farm Bureau Young Farmer Discussion Meets
• Michigan Farm Bureau Policy Amendment / Idea Form 

Michigan Farm Bureau District Level Question 2 

Join us at The BLOCK Party! 

Get ready—this month’s episode of The Block Party is officially LIVE, and you won’t want to miss it! Tune in now and catch up on this episode and all past episodes at: https://www.buzzsprout.com/2134475. 

We’re diving back in with Seth Earl, Mason County's 2025-2026 President, and Darcy Lipskey, current MFB State Promotion & Education Committee Member as they explore a powerful and timely topic: “How can Farm Bureau and its young leaders leverage relationships with agricultural youth organizations to attract more young leaders to the Young Farmers and Ranchers program?” 

Did this discussion spark a policy idea for you? Awesome! Share it with your local County Farm Bureau Policy Development Committee Chair—or submit it online using the link provided below. 

Have thoughts, ideas, or something you’d love to hear on a future episode of The Block Party? Ashley wants to hear from you! Send your feedback her way and keep the conversation going at [email protected] 

Resources: 

• Michigan Farm Bureau Young Farmer Discussion Meets 
• Michigan Farm Bureau Policy Amendment / Idea Form 

Join us at The BLOCK Party! 

Get ready—this month’s episode of The Block Party is officially LIVE, and you won’t want to miss it! Tune in now and catch up on this episode and all past episodes at: https://www.buzzsprout.com/2134475. 

We’re diving back in with some of our incredible Young Farmer leaders as they explore a powerful and timely topic: “Growth in rural areas can strain rural energy infrastructure. How can Farm Bureau work with stakeholders to advocate for practice planning at the local, state and national levels that safeguards affordable, reliable energy access for farmers and ranchers as well as their rural neighbors while protecting farmland from unnecessary eminent domain?” 

Did this discussion spark a policy idea for you? Awesome! Share it with your local County Farm Bureau Policy Development Committee Chair—or submit it online using the link provided below. 

Have thoughts, ideas, or something you’d love to hear on a future episode of The Block Party? Ashley wants to hear from you! Send your feedback her way and keep the conversation going at [email protected] 

Resources: 

• Michigan Farm Bureau Young Farmer Discussion Meets 
• Michigan Farm Bureau Policy Amendment / Idea Form 

*Please excuse the audio issues in the beginning of this episode*

Join us at The BLOCK Party! 

This month’s episode of The Block Party is live and ready for you to listen, check it out!  To listen to this episode and others, visit: https://www.buzzsprout.com/2134475.  In this episode we will meet our 2026-2027 ProFILE Class and hear what they have to say about this issue, building excitement for agriculture careers and supporting young farmers.  We will hear it from them, first hand and you won’t want to miss this episode. 

Did this discussion spark a policy idea for you?  Be sure to submit that idea to your local county Farm Bureau Policy Development Committee Chair.  You can also submit your policy idea online here.  

If you have additional thoughts or feedback on what you would like to hear at The Block Party, pass that along to Ashley at [email protected] 

Resources: 

• ProFILE: https://www.michfb.com/agriculture/education/young-farmer-program/profile-institute 

Join us at The BLOCK Party! 

This month’s episode of The Block Party is live and ready for you to listen, check it out!  To listen to this episode and others, visit: https://www.buzzsprout.com/2134475.  We will listen in on an AFBF Newsline reviewing the annual farmland value survey and join in on the state young farmer committee’s DM chats as member Chris Sanford and MFB’s staffer Matt Kapp explore real issues farmers are facing.  You won’t want to miss this episode. 

Did this discussion spark a policy idea for you?  Be sure to submit that idea to your local county Farm Bureau Policy Development Committee Chair.  You can also submit your policy idea online here.  

If you have additional thoughts or feedback on what you would like to hear at The Block Party, pass that along to Ashley at [email protected] 

Resources: 

• DM Chats: https://youtu.be/m8z22D-2kMA 
• AFBF Newsline: https://www.fb.org/newsline 
• AFBF Market Intel: https://www.fb.org/market-intel/real-estate-rising-farmland-values-hit-record-high  

Join us at The BLOCK Party! 

This month’s episode of The Block Party is live and ready for you to listen, check it out! In this episode we will hear from the Michigan Agriculture in the Classroom Manager, Michelle Blodgett, who shares what MFB is doing beyond food and financial contributions to fight food insecurity in the state. To listen to this episode and others, visit: https://www.buzzsprout.com/2134475  

Did this discussion spark a policy idea for you?  Be sure to submit that idea to your local county Farm Bureau Policy Development Committee Chair.  You can also submit your policy idea online here.  

If you have additional thoughts or feedback on what you would like to hear at The Block Party, pass that along to Ashley at [email protected] 

Resources: 

• https://miagclassroom.org/ 
• https://www.endhungerinmichigan.org/  
• https://agclassroom.org/matrix/companion-resources/1214/  

Join us at The BLOCK Party!

This month’s episode of The Block Party is live and ready for you to listen!  Deb Schmucker, MFB's Field Operations Division Director joins in a discussion regarding issues on farmers' minds to compliment the discussion topic written by Jeremy Nagel.  Check it out!  To listen to this episode and others, visit: https://www.buzzsprout.com/2134475 

Did this discussion spark a policy idea for you?  Be sure to submit that idea to your local county Farm Bureau Policy Development Committee Chair.  You can also submit your policy idea online here. 

If you have additional thoughts or feedback on what you would like to hear at The Block Party, pass that along to Ashley at [email protected]

Join us at The BLOCK Party!

This month’s episode of The Block Party is live and ready for you to listen!  Mecosta County Farm Bureau member, Cora Okkema joins to share her personal experience with Young Farmer Discussion Meets and the overall Young Farmer Program.  Check it out!  To listen to this episode and others, visit: https://www.buzzsprout.com/2134475 

Did this discussion spark a policy idea for you?  Be sure to submit that idea to your local county Farm Bureau Policy Development Committee Chair.  You can also submit your policy idea online here. 

If you have additional thoughts or feedback on what you would like to hear at The Block Party, pass that along to Ashley at [email protected]

Additional Resources

·       Discussion Meets

·       Discussion Meet Training Videos

Join us at The BLOCK Party!

The next episode of The Block Party is live and ready for you to listen!  Join us as we talk with Michigan Farm Bureau’s staff members Jeremy Nagel and Hannah Meyers.  In this episode we explore a common question in our grassroots organization, do smaller producers threaten Farm Bureau’s integrity?

Check it out!  To listen to this episode and others, visit: https://www.buzzsprout.com/2134475 

Did this discussion spark a policy idea for you?  Be sure to submit that idea to your local county Farm Bureau Policy Development Committee Chair.  You can also submit your policy idea online here.  

If you have additional thoughts or feedback on what you would like to hear at The Block Party, pass that along to Ashley at [email protected]