2023 State of Ag Report to Be Released on National Ag Day

Contact: Sam Ziegler
President, GreenSeam
507.385.6640
sziegler@greenseam.org

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

2023 State of Ag Report to Be Released on National Ag Day

Mankato, MN, March 9, 2023 – You’re invited to join GreenSeam, Governor Walz and Commissioner Petersen, MDA State of Ag Address (invited) and other key leaders on National Ag Day to be one of the first to view the 2023 State of Agriculture Report. The Report will be released on Tuesday, March 21, at Minnesota State University, Mankato Strategic Partnerships Center 424 N Riverfront Dr, Mankato, MN 56001 from 1:30 pm – 4:30 pm. Second Floor Hubbard Building. A live stream will be available on GreenSeam’s Facebook page. 

 

The State of Ag Report is a result of a comprehensive survey and a series of focus groups of Minnesota’s agribusinesses and related industries. It reveals the perceptions, directions and opinions on the economy and other major issues impacting businesses in the agriculture industry and places emphasis on education, as well as talent attraction and retention. GreenSeam has conducted the State of Ag report for the third year in a row to better understand how businesses, organizations, and leaders view opportunities and challenges facing agriculture in Minnesota. These valuable findings enable GreenSeam to better understand, serve, and support the workforce, businesses, organizations, and communities we call home.

Event Agenda:
1:30 – 2:00 pm: Registration 

2:00 – 2:15 pm: Governor Walz and Commissioner Petersen, MDA State of Ag Address (invited) 

2:15 – 2:25 pm: City of Mankato Special Address  

2:25 – 3:00 pm: State of Ag Report Release: Dr. Kalyvaki, Megan Roberts, and Dr. Spencer with Minnesota State University, Mankato 

3:00 – 3:30 pm: Living in the Middle of Everywhere: Rewriting the Rural Narrative, Jennifer Hawkins, UMN Extension 

3:30 – 4:30 pm: Networking 

There is no cost to attend this event. Please RSVP here: https://greenseam.org/stateofag/
Facebook live available during the event at: http://www.facebook.com/GreenSeam

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About GreenSeam: GreenSeam is not only a region that spans across southern Minnesota and northern Iowa, but also a nonprofit organization dedicated to strategically building and connecting the region’s extensive agricultural business assets to the world by enhancing collaboration and investment with public and private sector partners. We are committed to the long-term prosperity of southern Minnesota and northern Iowa by strengthening collaborations and partnerships, growing businesses and their workforces, as well as communities they call home. GreenSeam is a business unit of Greater Mankato Growth, Inc. 

Christensen Farms’ Donates 200lbs of Pork to South Central MN Food Recovery

FOR MORE INFORMATION

Courtney Malone

Office: 507-385-6657

Mobile: 612-718-5068

cmalone@greatermankato.com

 

MEDIA INVITATION

Christensen Farms’ Donates 200lbs of Pork to South Central MN Food Recovery

 

MANKATO, MN (August 8, 2022) – GreenSeam’s annual Celebration of Ag took place, Thursday, July 21, 2022, at the ISG Field in Mankato. In addition to the program, baseball game, booths, and networking, there was a new activity that sparked the interest of that evenings’ guests. Christensen Farms brought two 35 pound nursery pigs to the game and for every pig or agricultural question that their staff received, Christensen Farms would donate a pound of pork to South Central MN Food Recovery.

 

“Protein is more difficult to come by and is highly coveted by our food recovery initiative. The pork will be utilized to create ready-made-meals to be distributed to food-insecure individuals and families throughout the greater Mankato area.” – Sheri Sander-Silva with SCMNFR

 

We would like to invite you to Wooden Spoon Monday, August 15th at 4:30pm, where 200 pounds of ground pork will be delivered to South Central MN Food Recovery. The ground pork will be turned into ready-meals, and with the help of partners it will be distributed to people who are low-income and/or Black, Indigenous, or people of color. 

 

“At Christensen Farms, we are proud to serve the noble purpose of providing safe, nutritious pork to families across the country,” said Amber Portner, Christensen Farms Communications Manager. “For many families in the Midwest and throughout the country, putting food on the table can be a daily challenge, and providing a key source of protein is not just a daily luxury, it is essential.”

 

Sam Ziegler, Director of GreenSeam states “Every year the Celebration of Ag gets bigger and there are new ways that businesses within the GreenSeam region can create engaging ways to step up and lead by example. This opportunity with Christensen Farms and South Central MN Food Recovery is the first of hopefully many opportunities that GreenSeam will be able to assist in.”

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About GreenSeam:

GreenSeam is not only a region that spans across southern Minnesota and northern Iowa, but also a nonprofit organization dedicated to strategically building and connecting the region’s extensive agricultural business assets to the world by enhancing collaboration and investment with public and private sector partners. We are committed to the long-term prosperity of southern Minnesota and northern Iowa by strengthening collaborations and partnerships, growing businesses and their workforces, as well as communities they call home. GreenSeam is a business unit of Greater Mankato Growth, Inc.

 

About Christensen Farms & Feedlots, Inc.

Christensen Farms is one of the largest, family-owned pork producers in the United States, marketing approximately 3 million hogs per year. Headquartered in Sleepy Eye, Minnesota, the company operates throughout the Midwest with facilities in Minnesota, Iowa, Nebraska, Illinois and South Dakota. Christensen Farms owns three feed mills, manages 143,000 sows on 44 farms, and oversees more than 350 nurseries and grow finish sites. The company employs nearly 1,000 people and maintains 1,500 contract partnerships.

The company is vertically integrated with a strong presence across the pork value chain – from farm to fork. Christensen Farms is the largest shareholder of Triumph Foods LLC, a producer-owned primary pork processing plant in St. Joseph, Missouri. In turn, Triumph Foods own 50 percent of Daily’s Premium Meats, a specialty pork processor of bacon and other premium pork products. Triumph Foods also holds a 50 percent partnership in Seaboard Triumph Foods, LLC of Sioux City, Iowa, a primary pork processing plant.

 

About South Central MN Food Recovery

South Central MN Food Recovery (SCMNFR) was developed in 2019 and is designed to provide nutritious meals to families in need by using high quality food that would otherwise be going to the landfill. SCMNFR accepts large quantities of fresh produce and meats, makes into ready-meals, and works with partners to distribute to people who are low-income and/or Black, Indigenous, or people of color.  

SCMNFR is an organization working to reduce food insecurity and food waste in the community.  Wooden Spoon is a commercial restaurant, caterer and bakery committed to partnering with local organizations to help increase food security. There is a need for low cost or no cost, nutritious, ready-to-eat meals for people in South Central Minnesota and food is being turned away from retailers and not being consumed.  To address these challenges, SCMNFR and Wooden Spoon collaborate in utilizing recovered food as available to prepare meals that are distributed to community members in need through local organizations. Meals are provided free of cost. 

Jerad Michels – Eide Bailly

Tell us about yourself and business.

I grew up on my family grain and hog farm that’s located just outside of North Mankato. From as early as I can remember, I wanted to be a farmer. When it came time to go to college, I wanted to get a degree in agriculture but Minnesota State University – Mankato did not offer a degree in agriculture at the time. I didn’t want to leave the Mankato area because I wanted to continue to work at my family farm. I decided to go into business and received my undergrad and master’s in accounting at MSU – Mankato. Thankfully, I can still work on my family farm and help prepare taxes for Agricultural businesses/farmers.

Why does your business invest in GreenSeam? 

Eide Bailly invests in GreenSeam because many of our clients are directly or indirectly tied to agriculture. From directly working with farmers or businesses that are impacted by the status the farm economy is in, Eide Bailly wants to see growth in the region.  

Do you recommend others to invest in GreenSeam and why? 

I would recommend others to invest in GreenSeam because its one of the few Agricultural advocates in the area. It’s an investment into the current and future growth of Agriculture.  

How does GreenSeam, the organization, shape the future of agriculture, business, and communities in the region?

GreenSeam is investing in the future through education, addressing concerns, and bringing the industry together.  By bringing Agricultural classes to the area more individuals can learn about the impact it has and keep the talented individuals in the region. GreenSeam has forums to find out what local businesses are struggling with. Once they have targeted the issues, they are looking to work towards a solution as a collective. Bringing businesses together, the industry has the knowledge to work together and grow.

Share with us some of the opportunities your business/industry receives from being in the GreenSeam region.

Eide Bailly has benefited by other businesses and individuals knowing we have a strong Agricultural accounting group in the area to support them. We have the specialization to provide consulting and tax services to provide them the help them need.

What would you share with someone considering moving to and working in our region?

I would share that GreenSeam is here to help. The issues you are having, others are facing too. The industry is strong and GreenSeam is here to help the region stay strong in Agriculture. 

Program Manager, Michalia Cyphers

Valerie Johnson

GreenSeam Volunteer of the Year