Farming is one of backbones for state’s economy

I grew up on a small hobby farm just outside of Northfield surrounded by hundreds of acres of our neighbors’ cropland. My dad based his landscaping business out of our small three-and-a-half-acre plot, and we raised chickens and pigeons in the small coop on our property.

Every day, I rode the school bus into town with friends and neighbors who shared their stories of working on the farm. The pride in their voices and their strong and independent spirit is something I’ve never forgotten.

Farming has always been one of the backbones of the Minnesota economy – it’s part of who we are as a state. Minnesota is home to more than 68,000 farms, and nearly half of the state is cropland.

Yet today, it’s no secret farmers have experienced several economic setbacks. Weather, low commodity prices and unstable trade relationships are just a few of the challenges farmers have faced, and those challenges are taking their toll.

Click here to view the original article from the Redwood Falls Gazette.