News

Tour offers farmers educational opportunities

Hoosier farmers face another year of tight margins and an ag economist says adopting new management practices can help farmers increase their bottom line.

Jim Mintert is the director of Purdue’s Center for Commercial Agriculture.  “Most economists think we’re in the range of $3.50 corn to around $4.00,” he says.  “Cost of production on most farms is still above that on a per bushel basis.  As a result there’s a challenge there for farmers – ‘how can I adapt, how can I innovate, how can I reduce my production costs’.”

He tells Brownfield next week’s Purdue Farm Management Tour gives farmers an opportunity to network with farmers who have implemented new technologies on their farms.  “All of these farms have done things with respect to trying to improve their margins,” he says.  “If you come home with one or two good ideas that you can implement on your farm – you’ve had a pretty good day or a pretty good couple of days.”

The tour is June 22 and 23 and will visit a total of four farms with diverse operations in Carroll and Howard counties.

Registration deadline is TODAY (Friday, June 16).  Information can be found HERE.