Farmer Stress

Farm life can be demanding and stressful and those stresses have reached a critical stage with pandemic impacts on top of natural disasters, extreme weather events, financial pressures due to fluctuating commodity prices, labor shortages, trade disruptions and other factors over the past several years. On this Our Ohio Weekly, find out if the issues of farm stress and mental health are getting as much attention as needed when it comes to helping those looking for resources.

Our Ohio Weekly · Farm Stress and Mental Health

00:00 – Highland County farmers Nathan Brown and Brandon Fullenkamp, along with mental health expert Adrienne DeSutter talk about the current status of farm stress and mental health and what is being done to bring the important issue to light across rural America.

23:50 – Hear from Ryan Matthews on “To the Beat of Agriculture”. He is a new member of the Young Ag Professional state committee and he shares how Farm Bureau played an important role in his life and gives some details about the upcoming YAP Winter Leadership Experience.

32:20 – The farm stress and mental health conversation with Nathan Brown, Brandon Fullenkamp and Adrienne DeSutter continues.

42:20 – To prepare for the ag census, USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service is currently conducting the National Agricultural Classification Survey to help identify all agricultural activity across the country. State Statistician Cheryl Turner with the Ohio Field Office of the USDA/NASS Great Lakes Region has the details.

Farm Labor Resources
Labor has always been an issue, mainly because we are a seasonal operation. So that's a challenge finding somebody who only wants to work three months out of a year, sometimes up to six months.
Mandy Way's avatar
Mandy Way

Way Farms

Farm Labor Resources
Strong communities
I appreciate the benefit of having a strong voice in my corner. The extras that are included in membership are wonderful, but I'm a member because of the positive impact to my local and state agricultural communities.
Ernie Welch's avatar
Ernie Welch

Van Wert County Farm Bureau

Strong communities
Leadership development
I see the value and need to be engaged in the community I live in, to be a part of the decision-making process and to volunteer with organizations that help make our community better.
Matt Aultman's avatar
Matt Aultman

Darke County Farm Bureau

Leadership development
Young Ag Professionals program
Farm Bureau involvement has taught me how to grow my professional and leadership experience outside of the workforce and how to do that in a community-centric way.
Jaclyn De Candio's avatar
Jaclyn De Candio

Clark County Farm Bureau

Young Ag Professionals program
Growing our Generation
With not growing up on a farm, I’d say I was a late bloomer to agriculture. I feel so fortunate that I found the agriculture industry. There are so many opportunities for growth.
Jenna Gregorich's avatar
Jenna Gregorich

Coshocton County Farm Bureau

Growing our Generation
Groovy Plants Ranch
Knowing that horticulture is under the agriculture umbrella and having Farm Bureau supporting horticulture like it does the rest of ag is very important.
Jared Hughes's avatar
Jared Hughes

Groovy Plants Ranch

Groovy Plants Ranch
Washington, D.C. Leadership Experience
If it wasn't for Farm Bureau, I personally, along with many others, would not have had the opportunity to meet with our representatives face to face in Washington.
Austin Heil's avatar
Austin Heil

Hardin County Farm Bureau

Washington, D.C. Leadership Experience
Advocacy
So many of the issues that OFBF and its members are advocating for are important to all Ohioans. I look at OFBF as an agricultural watchdog advocating for farmers and rural communities across Ohio.
Mary Smallsreed's avatar
Mary Smallsreed

Trumbull County Farm Bureau

Advocacy
Suggested Tags: