Event

Date/Time
Date(s) - September 20, 2022
8:00 pm - 9:00 pm

Categories

• Events
• Learning
• Young Agricultural Professionals

American Farm Bureau is hosting a second competitive event training Zoom will take place Tuesday, Sept. 20 at 8 p.m. This training will take a deep dive into Discussion Meet questions 1, 2 and 5 with experts on the subjects of the questions. Joining us will be Veronica Nigh, senior economist for the American Farm Bureau Federation; Jackie Mundt, communications and marketing manager for Kanza Cooperative Association; and Gary Matteson, senior vice president of Beginning Farmer Programs and Outreach for Farm Credit Council.

Register

On the call, experts will share their knowledge on the following questions:

1. How can Farm Bureau effectively support and equip young farmers and ranchers to successfully manage economic and infrastructure challenges to ensure healthy and sustainable farms and ranches across the country?
2. Due to current economic demands, many farmers and ranchers spend a lot of time outside the “fence rows” on off-farm jobs. How can Farm Bureau become more accessible and welcoming to members who are working in related fields and juggling responsibilities on and off the farm?
3. Many external influences are causing supply chain disruption for agricultural goods. How can Farm Bureau reduce the impact of external influences through policy development and programming?

Veronica Nigh is a senior economist at the American Farm Bureau Federation with a focus on international trade, labor, taxes and food safety. She joined the American Farm Bureau Federation as an economist in 2011. Prior to joining Farm Bureau, she worked for the USDA Foreign Agricultural Service in the Office of Negotiations and Agreements as an international economist. Nigh also served as an international marketing specialist at the Missouri Department of Agriculture. She’s a native of Savannah, Missouri. She holds a bachelor’s degree in agricultural economics from the University of Missouri and a master’s in economics from American University.

Jackie Mundt lives in Preston, Kansas with her significant other Marc on his family’s farm where they grow wheat, corn, soybeans, sorghum and have cow calf pairs. She is the Communication and Marketing manager for Kanza Cooperative Association in Iuka, Kansas. She holds a bachelor’s degree in agricultural communications from California State University-Fresno and is currently working on a graduate degree through Kansas State University. Mundt serves as a state board member for Kansas Farm Bureau’s Political Action Committee and past president of the Pratt County Farm Bureau. She is also actively involved in youth leadership development as an advisor for the Pratt Community College Collegiate Farm Bureau, Skyline FFA and Pratt County 4-H Ambassadors.

Gary Matteson has more than 40 years of experience in the farming and agriculture industry. He eads the Farm Credit program serving young, beginning and small farmers and ranchers at the Farm Credit Council, the system’s national trade organization. Matteson coordinates efforts within Farm Credit’s nationwide network and among many national organizations to ensure that YBS farmers have the opportunities they need to success. The Farm Credit System provides young farmers loan assistance, mentoring and business planning support. He also helps the YBS Farmer program build diversity in farming by encouraging agricultural operations that bring a focus to locally grown foods near urban areas.