Corinne Isaak calls the Columbia Basin Foundation (CBF), variously, an umbrella, a vehicle, a conduit and a gathering place for charitable generosity, but those descriptions just scratch the surface in describing an organization that manages more than $14 million in charitable assets and distributed more than $1 million across 10…
After three years of stop-and-go progress, the Sustainable Farms and Fields (SFF) grant program finally has the green light to start funding climate-smart farming practices across Washington state. “Sustainable Farms and Fields is a brand new program we are rolling out. It is intended to support growers who are interested…
Farmers know that regular maintenance is the key to keeping their equipment running smoothly, but sometimes even the tools in the toolbox need a little maintenance of their own. Last October, the Risk Management Agency (RMA) began reviewing the crop insurance program for wheat to determine if improvements should be…
According to the calendar, spring has sprung, but as I write this, we are still freezing up here in Douglas County, so our winter wheat hasn’t woken up yet. Even though the crop is still dormant, I’m needing to make decisions that will greatly affect the upcoming growing season. This…
Taking life day by day is how we roll up here on the Emtman Ranch. As I sit and read so much about everything going on in our country—all the politics, anger, protesting, finger pointing—I think of the man pictured here (and many others in his boots). My husband doesn’t…
Violence broke out. People were arrested; some were beaten. Shots were fired. Vehicles were damaged. A bridge was burned. This could be the news from last week, but I want to take you back to Washington’s “Fish Wars” of the 1960s and 70s. Sport and commercial fishing industries were competing…
Congress initially authorized federal crop insurance back in the 1930s to help agriculture recover from the Great Depression and the Dust Bowl. The Federal Crop Insurance Corporation (FCIC) was created in 1938 to administer the program, which was initially limited to major crops in main production areas of the U.S….
Last month, Dr. David Kohl warned producers that a period of extreme economic volatility is approaching, but along with the challenges it will bring, there will also be opportunities for producers who are prepared. “I think it’s a new era of prosperity if you follow a certain management mindset. If…
