While the average age of U.S. farmers and farm size is rising, the tale of young people returning to farm on a small scale “is more common than we think,” economist Kent Olson tells the nonprofit Minnesota Post in a story that looks at two young farm couples. Anne and Peter Schwagerl grow non-GMO corn and Natto soybeans and raise heritage breed Berkshire hogs on 178 acres near Browns Valley, Minn. “If you are going to be a small-scale producer, the more specialized you have to be,” says Peter. On 10 acres near New Germany, Minn, Amelia and Nick Neaton grow produce with a plan to farm on a small and manageable scale. ““These types of farms are really the only ones for young people to get into,” Nick told the Post.
The North Dakota state Senate passed a bill to exempt dairy and hog farms from the state ban on corporate farms, reports the Associated Press. The bill now goes to the House. It would allow non-family farm corporations to own or lease up to one square mile of land. North Dakota is one of nine states that restrict corporate farming, says the AP.