The Liberator

"We are feeding and raising our animals well so our neighbors can be fed well."

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Farmer to Farmer Inspiration
By Kerry Hoffschneider

Event attendees taking copious notes.

BROKEN BOW, Neb. – RegeNErate Nebraska held a farmer to farmer meeting on Thursday, Aug. 1 at Govier Farms near Broken, Bow, Neb. The meeting was spearheaded by Graham Christensen of RegeNErate Nebraska, GC Resolve and GC ReVOLT, with the purpose of assisting farmers and ranchers who are interested in, or in the process of transitioning to, regenerative practices that improve soil health and productivity while increasing the bottom line.

“This event was designed to put you in a position to net more per acre by doing the right thing,” said Christensen to the group in opening comments.

Presenters included: Clay Govier, who spoke about why he is starting to transform their family’s operation with more regenerative practices with his brother Logan. Also, Graham Christensen, who is beginning to adopt regenerative practices on his family farm near Oakland, Neb. with his brother Max. Nate Belcher is owner of Green Acres Cover Crops, Cover Crop Exchange and Hybrid 85. Belcher talked about the benefits of adding multi-species cover cropping and the profit opportunities that arise when making changes. Del Ficke of Graze Master Genetics closed the day with his presentation on increasing profitability with plant diversity and cattle. Ficke went from farming 7,000 acres to 700 and is more profitable today due to regenerative practices. His team consults with farmers across the nation.

Event sponsors included: Patagonia, Indigo Ag, the Farmers Business Network (FBN) and the Nebraska Farmers Union Foundation.

Clay and his brother, Logan.

Govier Farms – Clay Govier
Clay Govier and his brother Logan operate a primarily no-till corn and soybean farm near Broken Bow, Neb. and are incorporating organic crops (while looking into organic no-till because organic production typically requires tillage), yellow field peas and other cover crops to create more diversity and market opportunities. The have also hired a livestock manager to incorporate cattle back on the farm that Clay said will only enhance their goals of restoring soil health and profitability to their family business.

“One of the reasons we are trying to move towards a more regenerative ag program on our farm is to be more resilient – resilient against Mother Nature and resilient from an economic standpoint,” Clay said, noting they are doing this by adding more crop diversity, increased crop rotations and relying less on synthetic fertilizers and herbicides.

“By planting different crops, you are breaking up the pressure of being forced to plant and harvest everything at the same time,” Govier said, pointing out one of the benefits of looking at these types of regenerative practices. “I really hope in the future that our government policy can start supporting more crop rotations and more diversity and not be 100 percent reliant on trade and commodities.”

Graham and his brother, Max.

RegeNErate Nebraska – Graham Christensen
Christensen and his brother Max, are regenerating their fifth-generation farm outside Oakland, Neb. He is also passionate about building a network of farmers and others committed to regenerative agriculture across the state and nation, “to amplify and help all of us to move in this direction more aggressively for the betterment of individual farming operations and the soil.”

Christensen said adopting regenerative agricultural practices while restoring rural communities could not come at a better time as much of Nebraska faces unprecedented flooding along with neighboring states coupled with the sixth year the average farm is in the red, “I have friends in the Missouri River Valley that don’t know if they will ever farm again. Not any generation that has come before us has written or told us about experiences they have had like this . . . We have to make changes to become a more resilient people. The United Nations says we have only about 60 harvests left because we are degrading the soil so aggressively. Then there’s our water quality – the nitrates are through the roof at our farm in Eastern Nebraska. Our streams are over twice the legal level to drink out of. A lot of this is because we are not able to soak up those excess nutrients.”

“We have the solution and the solution lies in the soil. We can store carbon. We can increase water-holding capacity, water infiltration and organic matter and have increased productivity,” he said. “Dr. Jerry Hatfield with the USDA (United States Department of Agriculture) showed us by raising organic matter from 2.5 percent to four percent that there is a net increase per acre of $150/acre. This two to three percent rise is attainable if we get to work on this.”

Christensen admits they are not a fully regenerative farm yet, but it’s all about taking the first steps, “Twelve years ago we talked to our parents about going no-till. Just last year we convinced dad to do cover crops and planted oats and we knew we did not need Roundup to spray that off – we got enough roots to create stability there and intrigued other family members to let us keep going.”

“We are also planning to reintegrate livestock through rotational grazing mechanisms across our operation and to use their valuable natural fertilizer. This is the first-time cattle will be back on our farm since the early 1980s,” Christensen said. “The first steps we can all do that are easy and low-cost are adding that layer of cover and finding a way that cattle or other livestock can rotate across the system.”

In closing, he said adamantly, “I think the future holds a lot of positive opportunities.”

Nate Belcher

Green Acres Cover Crops, Cover Crop Exchange and Hybrid 85 – Nate Belcher
“What are you buying in a $280 bag of corn?” Nate Belcher posed this question to farmers in attendance. “It turns out a significant portion of that $280 are cruises, billboards, advertising and tons of hats.”

Belcher, who has created what he calls a “no-frills” seed company with his partner and an aggressive cover crop consulting and soil health business that is dedicated to farm profitability, wants farmers and ranchers to assess the value of what they are getting and to consider their options outside heavy input agriculture.

“Our goal is always what will maximize the benefits for the farmer. The regenerative portion has to pay. So, what is the vision for your farm? What does your farm look like a year from now and then in 50 years when you are transitioning to your kids and grandkids? If you are waking up every day and just putting out fires on the farm, that’s all you are going to do. There is a better way,” Belcher said.

“We realize the farming landscape is changing and you don’t want to be left behind,” he added. “What I have found working with different producers is they need to be making a bigger value circle. Ask yourself, ‘How do I make the circle big enough so that other people fit in that circle – from family members to neighbors? How do I make our operation work for other people too?’ We need to work together moving forward. We need to get back to where we can all win.”

“The other thing I like to remind people is if you don’t help yourself, who is going to do it for you? If you are looking at reducing fertilizer, are you going to go to your fertilizer supplier? You are not going to go to your chemical supplier to lessen your chemical usage. You have to figure some of this out on your own,” he said.

Belcher encouraged farmers to try and make dramatic changes on a small portion of their farms, “If all of you did one experiment that was off the wall and you found successes in one or two acres, that can make some real money down the road. Work with neighbors to do experiments to figure out what works in your area and on your soil. That is huge.”

Del Ficke

Ficke Cattle Company/Graze Master Genetics – Del Ficke
“My generation doesn’t mean anything if we don’t get this right,” said Del Ficke. “There won’t be anything for them or the generations to follow.”

Ficke transitioned his farm and his now registered trademarked Graze Master composite cattle herd from several thousand acres to a 700-acre regenerative operation that is more profitable today than before, “We’ve made a lot of big transitions and have consulting clients wanting to follow-suit in about 40 different states.”

“We started a small meat company, a local deal, and saved thousands of dollars by eliminating synthetic chemicals and other inputs on the farming side,” he said.

By working with nature instead of against it, Ficke said he has just two goals, “to have the most accountable genetics on earth and and the most accountable cow herd on earth.”

Ficke reiterated repeatedly, “Neighbors have to figure out what neighbors are doing outside their own backyard and local community. There was a time when neighbors talked. My grandfather always said the day the horses left, and the tractor came, is the day we replaced community with competition. We have to get back to a more community-based program where neighbors take the time to really understand the needs of their community.”

“When we get the soil right, society corrects itself. Everything in society improves – the food system, medical system, everything. If we are going to wait for the politicians, it is not going to happen. We are the ones who have to make the changes,” he said.

“We have so much to unlearn about the ag systems that did not have our best interests at heart. We need to re-program. Everything has already been done in history, everything is cyclical. Cover crops were all the rage in the early 1800s. What we tend to forget about is our ability to read history. We can prevent every mistake because someone has already made that mistake if we are willing to learn,” Ficke pointed out.

“Ag people suffer from the Stockholm Syndrome – when you become friends with your captors. I know that because I was suffering from that same disease. A lot of people did not have my best interest at heart – things that did not help my family, soil and damn sure not my bank account. My mom is 100 percent Czech and about 10 years ago she said, ‘Everyone is making money but us. Send them packing.’”

“King Solomon said there is nothing new under the sun. Learn, relearn, unlearn and read, read, read,” he went on. “The more you get away from agriculture, the more time you can get out of your own backyard, the more good things you will start to do. When I was just a young boy, my dad sent me away from home and put me on every ag tour across the country. I got to be in most of the states before I was 16. See what everyone else is doing, because your perspective is pretty narrow when all you can see is corn and soybeans and everything is the same. Get out and see what is really going on.”

“My goal is to make your lives better. My goal is to have more confidence in you than you have in yourself. We have to see what we have to work with on our own operations. We have to get out of the mindset that we raise crops for the government. It is a horrible way to farm. When we start bringing the diversification back, our profitability will come back,” he said.

“If there was a category for soil on the endangered species list, it would top it. It’s all depleted. So, what does that mean for future generations? Your legacy is not a new tractor or buying new farm ground. Your legacy is to leave something for the future generation. Amassing extra farm ground, when you don’t take care of what you have now, doesn’t make sense,” Ficke said passionately.

“Everyone can go home and change 10 percent. We do it with people all the time. We are running out of time to get these practices implemented and to convince the naysayers this will work. Our phone rings off the hook now from people who would not give me the time of day three or four years ago. Bankers who helped get people in the position they are in, call me the most,” he said.

“I believe in you and I believe in the soil movement and I believe we can get this straight and corrected globally if everyone just does a little bit to start with. Once you see how it works that is all you want to do. I love the people who come to me and brag that they can raise the most corn and the heaviest weight steer. But I ask them, ‘What did that cost? What is your net profit?’ I have clients that are at $1,100 net profit per acre and clients calling me for help that are negative $700 per acre,” he said.

“I can talk to any denier out there and when they set foot on our farm and see what we are doing in 30 minutes they are ready to change their entire operation,” Ficke said in closing. “What the ears cannot hear the eyes cannot deny. The economy of this whole deal will force us to change. We will see things mandated at some point if we do not change. We will run out of water and our precious soil resources unless we change. Never stop learning and do something about it.”

Graze Master Meatballs

Alyssa Ficke's famous secret recipe.

Children are back in school and spaghetti is something they always seem to enjoy after a long day of learning. Graze Master Beef makes great meals kids love, everything from hamburgers to sloppy joes and pasta.

Join us at the market or give us a call to stock up on Graze Master Beef today!

Don’t forget to come and see us at the Seward Farmer’s Market. The market runs every Wednesday through October from 5 to 7 p.m. We will be featuring Graze Master Beef along with Anchor Meadow Farm eggs and honey.

Contact Emely Hendl at 402-613-5483 or Del Ficke at (402) 499-0329 to order your Graze Master Beef today. Ask about our delivery options too. Thank you!

Attley squeezes little sister Hayden before heading off to kindergarten.
Thank you for your support of Graze Master Beef everyone! Have a great year!

A Sweet Line-Up of Honey Products!
Anchor Meadow Farm excited about new offerings . . .

We were very proud that our honey earned a purple ribbon at the Seward County Fair. It was a winner because of Matt Hendl's beekeeping expertise and Del Ficke's wonderful crops and pastureland cared for without sythetic inputs. Thank you Anchor Meadow Farm supporters.

We have new products! We are now offering solid beeswax lotion bars, raw honey, honeycomb and wound salve. It's all-natural and we would love for you to try some. Thank you!

Call Emely Hendl at Anchor Meadow Farm with any questions: 402-613-5483

529 College Savings Plans
The future will be here before you know it . . .
By Kirk Peterson

As we all grow up and head out into the real world, we realize how overwhelming some things can be. For those that pursued a higher education after high school, many also realize there are multiple debts that need to be paid as soon as they leave college.

I was fortunate enough to have a family who thought ahead regarding those debts and started a 529 college savings plan for me. They never intended to pay for all my schooling, but they did want to relieve some of the financial stress that comes along with it. The amount they saved for me was less than half of what I owed in debt – still, their foresight provided a huge stress reliever knowing that was in place.

My 529 was funded with birthday and Christmas money as well as some random, tax-deductible contributions made by my folks and grandparents. This money would have otherwise been spent on toys or sat in a simple bank savings account where it grew about half the pace the price of a gallon of milk rises throughout time.

There are some nice attributes you get with a 529 savings account that you don’t get with non-qualified savings and investment accounts:

Contributions are tax deductible up to a specified amount (see your state’s 529 regulations). This is nice for lowering taxable income while funding an account for your loved ones.
Anybody can start an account for any minor. I started accounts for my own child, the same as I started one for my nieces and nephews. Instead of giving them a check, I put money into their 529 account.
Accounts are transferrable between siblings (see your state’s 529 regulations). This allows you to have flexibility with accounts if for some reason one child doesn’t need the account.

These 529 accounts must be used for educational expenses, and now can be used for college and high school expenses (see your state’s 529 regulations). This allows you to put money away like you would a health savings account, except it’s for educational expenses instead.

For more information please feel free to reach out to me!

Kirk Peterson
Phone: (402) 519-0330
Fax: 308.528.1132
401 E. 4th St. #101
Minden, NE 68959
kpeterson@sellefinancial.com

Motivated by Service

Nate Belcher

I welcome your phone calls or texts about my services and products. My intention is to truly help and I stand by that intention. Thank you so very much!

Sincerely, Nate Belcher

Contact:
Nate Belcher – (402) 580-0015

www.hybrid85.com
www.greenacrescovercrops.com/

Ficke Cattle Company Scenes

Cattle moving into a new paddock.

Celebrating the web of life.

"Nature does not hurry, yet everything is accomplished." Lao Tzu

No electronic or mechanical reproduction of The Liberator is permitted without direct consent of the author, Ficke Cattle Company. Contact (402) 499-0329 or fickecattle@outlook.com Thank you so much for reading!

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Ficke Cattle Company - Graze Master Genetics · Ficke Cattle Company · 873 182nd Road · Pleasant Dale, NE 68423 · USA