Vine's Ag Days Presentation Will Focus On Adding Revenue Streams To Current Operations

This year at the MonDak Ag Days and Trade Show, Hailey Vine Director, Food and Agriculture Development Center (FADC), will be presenting 'Value Added Agriculture Opportunities'. Vine has been in her current position at the FADC under the Great Northern Development Corporation for two years this June. She describes her position as "being a walking resource" to assist food and agricultural entrepreneurs through market research, putting together business plans, assisting with grant writing, and more.

"Our goal is to be on-the-ground support from the Department of Agriculture and help producers thrive where they're at," Vine said.

Vine's presentation addresses creating additional revenue utilizing the commodities producers already have; by incorporating value added ag opportunities, producers are able to keep more of every dollar in their pocket. For instance, cattle ranchers can designate a certain number of animals to be slaughtered, processed, and then sold. The beef they sell then becomes a value-added product in which they are getting a higher price than they would selling the live animal, and becomes an additional revenue stream. Another way to enhance the value of products is to meet market demand for organic or locally grown produce and grass fed beef.

"More often than not, people are willing to pay more for locally grown food, which we see at Farmers Markets for example," she stated. "Consumers are willing to pay more because there is value in knowing where your food comes from."

Agritourism is another example of a value added agricultural opportunity.

"Agritourism combines the top two industries for the purposes of entertaining and educating. Offering tours of agricultural operations captures the tourism audience," Vine explained.

Vine hopes that producers reach out to her as she serves 12 counties and has a lot of resources to offer, including access to new markets. She encourages people to visit the Great Northern Development Corporation online at gndc.org, or reach out to her directly via email at [email protected].

"I see how hard farmers work to feed the world, and I love this job because I get to help them in what they do," she added.

The MonDak Ag Days & Trade Show is a Sidney Area Chamber of Commerce and Agriculture event that is held annually to provide agricultural education and introduce the latest in ag-related technology. It will be March 2 and 3 at the Richland County Event Center, Sidney, with a banquet dinner taking place at 6 p.m. on March 2 at the Sidney Elks Lodge. There will be a social prior to the banquet beginning at 5 p.m. For more information, or to purchase banquet tickets, visit their Facebook page at facebook.com/mondakagdays.