This winter, military veterans will have an opportunity to translate hard-won skills on the battlefield into Nebraska's fields and pastures through "Putting the Pieces Together," a U.S. Department of Agriculture-backed program.

Martin Neal served 31 years in the U.S. Army and Army National Guard, and is hosting the next training session at his poultry farm about an hour outside of Lincoln. He believes veterans are well positioned to join the ranks of Nebraska's farmers and ranchers.

"People who choose to be in the military have a certain drive, determination, to get the job done," Neal explained. "Agriculture offers some unique rewards that are really suitable to veterans and their ability to provide and to give back to the community."

Registration is underway for the training, which is set for early February. Veterans will shadow an experienced farmer over the course of an entire year, to give them an idea of what it would be like to operate, plan, manage and finance their own farm. To sign up for the free program, call the Center for Rural Affairs at 402-687-2100. All courses also are recorded and available online.

Wyatt Fraas, assistant director of the Farm and Community Program at the Center, said participants make important connections with other veterans, which can help solve problems and even collaborate on marketing and purchasing down the road.

Fraas pointed out farming is a viable way for veterans to make a living in a place they want to be, and they can also help bridge a critical gap in the nation's food production.

"As farmers get older -- the average age has been climbing every year -- the number of beginning farmers has been falling for the last 30 years," Fraas noted. "We need new farmers to replace some of the older ones. So there are opportunities for people to work into existing operations."

Participants meet for six two-hour business classes during colder months, and five half-days on the farm during the production season on the weekends. Neal emphasized after returning from deployment in the Iraqi desert, he found great comfort spending time in Nebraska's green spaces outdoors.

"As a veteran and someone who has experienced combat-type situations, it's relaxing for me to be able to be outside, to reconnect with nature, reconnect with the land," Neal remarked.

For the second time in nearly a decade, North Dakota is considering changes to a longstanding law that blocks corporate ownership of farms. With lawmakers now hearing debate, both sides of the issue are laying out arguments. Governor Doug Burgum's administration is behind the proposed changes, arguing the state isn't competitive in livestock production. The bill would add ownership exemptions for certain feedlot operations.

Mark Watne, president of the North Dakota Farmers Union, said not only would it deplete the number of independent producers around the state, but also push profits to out-of-state companies. He added there should instead be focus on solutions within North Dakota's state lines.

"What we need to do is build processing plants, we need to find markets, we need to shore up the supply chain where our farmers and ranchers can make a little bit more money - and then we will grow animals in the state," Watne said. It really comes down to economics."

Opponents also contend farmers can build up ownership by forming cooperatives. A key change in the proposal involves removing swine, dairy, poultry and cattle feeding from the definition of a farm or ranch. Opening a window for corporations to partner with farmers can reverse North Dakota's decline in livestock production and complement its other agricultural output, Burgum's staff has contended.

Watne said the approach sought by the governor and other state leaders has had devastating effects in other states, pointing to a major loss of independent farmers in Oklahoma. He said corporate ownership of agricultural land is bad business for smaller producers.

"So, if you've got somebody rooting chickens or hogs today," Watne said, "they're not going to have a really good place to market unless they sign in with these folks and then they're at the mercy of whatever they come up with for contracts."

He and other opponents noted North Dakota voters overwhelmingly overturned similar changes approved in 2015. Other supporters of the bill include the North Dakota Corn Growers Association, which has said the changes would provide more market opportunities for its members for livestock feed. The plan would still maintain strong restrictions on corporate ownership, the group has also argued. The bill's language sets a limit of 160 acres.

The upcoming reauthorization of the Farm Bill should be developed from community needs, not corporate interests, Advocacy groups in North Carolina said. The final Farm Bill will shape what happens in agriculture for the next five years.

Margaret Krome-Lukens, Rural Advancement Foundation International-USA Policy Director, explained the legislation impacts student farming, farmers' access to credit, crop insurance, commodity programs and more. She said decades of food consolidation have placed resources in the hands of a few major corporations, and believes lawmakers should consider community and small farmer voices as they work on the next farm bill.

"Farmers and local communities should be the ones making the decisions about what kind of a food system they want, and not corporations that are coming in and dictating what kind of terms a farmer can get on a contract, or how they're allowed to use the seeds," Krome-Lukens said.

Fewer farmers are using contracts compared with 25 years ago, according to data from the USDA. In 2020, 5% of U.S. farms used marketing contracts, compared with 11% in 1996.

Krome-Lukens pointed out that regardless of operation size, farming is not an easy profession, and added many pieces of the infrastructure of our local and regional food systems have been hollowed out, shrinking options for meat processing or wholesale markets. She said that the upcoming Farm Bill is a chance to rebuild and strengthen local and regional food infrastructure.

"Small-scale farmers and beginning farmers can be at a real disadvantage when it comes to accessing federal resources or farmers who are doing something a little bit different in terms of production or niche marketing or innovative practices," she said.

The nation's small family farm operations held an average of $90,000 dollars in debt, according to 2019 federal data.

Next week, Ohio farmers and their advocates head to Washington, D.C., to push for shifting federal programs toward growing nutritious food, as lawmakers gear up to reauthorize the Farm Bill.

The cost of groceries has increased by 13% over the past year, driven largely by global supply-chain issues and the war in Ukraine.

Angela Huffman, co-founder and vice president of Farm Action, said she believes a strong system of local food suppliers would stabilize Ohio's food economy, and help ensure more families have access to fruits, vegetables, and sustainably raised meat.

"The Farm Bill matters to everybody, because everybody eats," Huffman asserted. "A large part of the reason that we're seeing this skyrocketing inflation -- and frankly, price gouging -- is because a small number of really large corporations are controlling our food system and our government policies."

According to an Urban Institute report, around one in five adults nationwide reported food insecurity in their households in 2020 and again last summer, when historic inflation levels sent food prices soaring.

Huffman added the federal government currently purchases food from major industrial producers. She is hoping the new Farm Bill shifts some buying power to local farmers for schools, hospitals and other community institutions.

"We want to be focused on empowering farmers to do what they do and feed their neighbors, and not just feeding corporate-controlled livestock around the world," Huffman emphasized.

Huffman added farmers are struggling to stay afloat in an era of falling commodity prices and the globalization of agriculture.

"The bulk of the money is going towards feed grains for livestock, which is corn, soybeans, other grains," Huffman outlined. "Farmers are really locked in this system, because that's where the lifeline subsidies are directed towards, and their margins are so slim."

Federal data show in 2019, the nation's small family farm operations held an average of $90,000 in debt.