Did You Know the Farm Bill is a Jobs Bill?

Did you know American agriculture supports 16 million American jobs?  This includes jobs in rural and urban areas alike, creating not just farm but also equipment, manufacturing, bio-based manufacturing, food and fiber processing, bio-energy production, retail jobs, and more.

Passing a new farm bill before the current bill expires in September will provide the certainty that farmers just like you, need to continue innovating and producing the world’s safest, healthiest and most abundant food supply.  Along will reducing the current deficit and increasing investment, the farm bill will provide successful job initiatives that strengthen:

• export opportunities for farmers’ global markets
• support for local farmers’ markets and food hubs that connect farmers to schools and other community-based organizations
• training and access to capital for beginning farmers
• help for American veterans to start agriculture businesses
• growth in bio-based manufacturing and bio-energy production
• agriculture research, and
• rural development

We love being involved in an industry that is working hard to provide jobs critical for an economic recovery. (Go, agriculture!) And it’s great to know that the farm bill is truly a “jobs bill.”

So, tell us…do you work in the agriculture industry? What job initiatives do you think are important to include in the 2012 Farm Bill?

They’ve worked at Farm Credit for 215 years!

Well, total that is…that’s right, our employees celebrating their service anniversaries in the month of June have worked a total of 215 years for Farm Credit!  We take pride in the fact that our employees choose to spend the majority of (or all for some) their careers with our business.  We believe it really shows how much they love their job and serving customers, just like you!

So here’s a big congratulations to those employees celebrating service anniversaries in June:

35 years – Jim Aird, MidMD Regional SVP (Frederick)

30 years – Dave Clark, Loan Officer (Denton)

30 years – Sandy Stahl, Loan Specialist (Shoemakersville)

30 years – David Stutzman, Loan Officer (Shoemakersville)

25 years – Marty Desmond, Area Lending Manager (Dover)

20 years – Kelli Wilson, Loan Officer (Frederick)

15 years – Maggie Johnson, Loan Specialist (Dover)

10 years – Rebecca Bowmaster, Credit Analyst (Lancaster)

10 years – Mark Schnebly, Credit Manager (Hagerstown)

10 years – Andrew Terrell, Loan Officer (Lancaster)

Thank you for your continued service to Farm Credit.  We look forward to you adding many more years with us to the 215 you already have!

If you are looking for a career change, check out our current job openings.

WV Agriculture Department opens search for seasonal employees

The Agriculture Department of the state of West Virginia has begun searching for seasonal employees for Summer 2012, according to a press release.

The Cooperative Agricultural Pest Survey Program is seeking assistance with its season for pest surveying and the position is open from the middle of May through August 31. This position requires laboratory work with field work outside the office, which is at the Gus R. Douglass Agricultural Center in Guthrie.

The Cooperative Forest Health Protection Program is looking candidates who can perform insect and survey work while also fulfilling laboratory work from the middle of May through the end of August.

The department of agriculture also is seeking assistance with its Gypsy Moth trapping program, which runs from April through late August. The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Gypsy Moth Slow the Spread Program is associated with West Virginia's effort, which will be based in counties in the state's central and southern regions.

The hourly payscale for the seasonal opportunities with the West Virginia Department of Agriculture range from $11 to $13.60. Some travel is required, for which employees will need their own vehicles. The department will reimburse travel expenses.

Northeast farms are employing fewer people

For large periods of American history, the number one occupation in the country was farmer. Of course, the transition to an industrial country has changed this, but the U.S. has managed to stick to its agricultural past fairly well. Unfortunately, the Northeast is slowly losing people who once worked on farms, which may make it difficult for prospective farmers to attract laborers.

According to Farm and Dairy Magazine, there were around 36,000 workers in Northeast U.S. farms during the month of October. This is 1,000 individuals down from the year before. What's more, the average weekly hours worked has dipped from 41.9 hours to 39. A combination of the economic conditions throughout the country and the transforming American working landscape has put farm employees at a disadvantage.

As a result, people applying for farm land loans need to be sure that their business plans and loan applications provide provisions for how best to staff their agricultural operations. Make sure to be familiar with the websites and organizations that are effective at finding workers for various farm jobs, such as Farm Job Search or Agri-Management.com.