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Starting and Sustaining a Women's Ag Marketing Club

Kelvin Leibold and April Hemmes

Summary

In 2011 a NCRME grant for $15,000 was awarded to the Hardin County Extension Council to provide support for "Women in Ag Marketing Clubs." The purpose of the grant was to expand on the existing group. Today we have over 30 women that participate and we continue to meet though the winter months. The programs have provided a means for women to network and share information, concerns, and marketing ideas in a learning environment for women. The program has used a range of methods for providing information on topics such as market outlook, hedging, grain contracts, grain marketing plans, insurance, and financing. The program is now delivered as a hybrid program to be more inclusive.

The experiences and sharing have helped the women gain additional confidence in their marketing skills during this challenging and volatile marketing timeframe. The risk management skills gained from the networking have increased their profitability over time as well. This group has succeeded because it is led by the women in the group and facilitated by Extension. They have ownership and encourage each other to participate in the group and in leadership. Women have also been involved in leadership rolls such a director on the United Soybean Board, president of the local bank board, and officer on a regional cooperative board of directors. We would be glad to share why we think this group has thrived throughout the years and have women talk about how it has helped their operations.

Details

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