skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Thursday, March 28, 2024

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Pulling back the curtains on wage-theft enforcement in MN; Trump's latest attack is on RFK, Jr; NM LGBTQ+ equality group endorses 2024 'Rock Star' candidates; Michigan's youth justice reforms: Expanded diversion, no fees.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg says rebuilding Baltimore's Key Bridge will be challenging and expensive. An Alabama Democrat flips a state legislature seat and former Connecticut senator Joe Lieberman dies at 82.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Historic wildfires could create housing and health issues for rural Texans, a Kentucky program helps prison parolees start a new life, and descendants of Nicodemus, Kansas celebrate the Black settlers who journeyed across the 1870s plains seeking self-governance.

Program Connects Retiring Farmers with New Farmers

play audio
Play

Monday, July 6, 2015   

EAST TROY, Wis. – Millions of dollars are being made available through the Transition Incentive Program (TIP) to connect retiring farmers with new farmers. The program is intended to help solve a persistent problem among new farmers seeking access to available farmland.

David Andrews, executive director of the Michael Fields Agricultural Institute in East Troy, says he wholeheartedly supports TIP for a variety of reasons.

"The average age of farmers is roughly 60 years old," says Andrews. "There's going to be a whole generation retiring in the next few years, and it's a way to increase the number of farmers rather than just allowing farms to continue to get bigger."

Andrews says TIP is already making a difference in several states, but is still underused. The Michael Fields Agricultural Institute has information on how retiring farmers and beginning farmers can access the program at www.michaelfields.org.

According to Andrews, TIP has a number of additional benefits, including the program's direct impact on supporting local economies. He says maintaining a solid base of smaller farms, rather than fewer giant farms, has a real impact.

"What's happened over the last 20, 25 years is farms have gotten bigger," he says. "There aren't as many kids, so the schools don't thrive, the communities don't thrive, and these small villages scattered around the Midwest are fast disappearing."

Andrews says many young people want to get into farming, but have difficulty affording the land it requires. TIP connects those who are retiring from farming with those who want to get into it – a goal Andrews says "just makes sense."

"It does work well, especially for a retiring farmer, and especially since the increase in land prices," he says. "It's very difficult for a new farmer, or a young farmer or veteran, to get started in farming."


get more stories like this via email

more stories
A report from the Tennessee HealthCare Campaign recommended the federal government needs to strengthen 340B drug pricing and other federal negotiation mechanisms to make needed medicines more readily available and less expensive for hospitals to purchase and administer. (Spotmatikphoto/AdobeStock)

Health and Wellness

play sound

A recent report examined how some rural Tennessee hospitals have managed to stay afloat despite financial challenges. The report includes interviews …


Social Issues

play sound

Earlier this month, a new Arizona Public Service rate hike went into effect and one senior advocacy group said those on a fixed income may struggle …

Social Issues

play sound

Michigan recently implemented a significant juvenile justice reform package following recommendations from a task force made up of prosecutors…


Nearly 13 million Americans receive health coverage through unique plans under both Medicare and Medicaid. They are known as Dual-Eligible Special Needs Plans. (Adobe Stock)

Health and Wellness

play sound

Medicare and Medicaid are key sources of health coverage for many Americans and some people qualify for assistance under both programs. With lagging …

Social Issues

play sound

A mix of policy updates and staffing boosts has helped to put wage theft enforcement on the radar in Minnesota, and officials leading the efforts are …

More than six in 10 Americans favor keeping the abortion pill mifepristone available in the U.S. as a prescription drug, while over a third are opposed, according to a Gallup poll. (Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

New research shows more than six in 10 abortions in the U.S. last year were medically induced, and U.S. Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto - D-NV - is …

Social Issues

play sound

Colorado is working to boost the state's agricultural communities by getting more fresh, nutritious foods into school cafeterias - and a new online …

Social Issues

play sound

Missouri lawmakers are concerned with protecting people from the potential risks of the increasing accessibility of AI-generated images and videos…

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021