Farming runs deep in who we are. It’s not just what we do – it’s how we measure our days, our years and often our worth. There are moments of pride that few other professions will ever know. But alongside those victories comes a quieter truth that many farmers carry alone – constant pressure.

Each year, grain producers in Idaho with Farm Service Agency (FSA) base acres face an important enrollment decision: Should they sign up for Agricultural Risk Coverage (ARC) or Price Loss Coverage (PLC)?

Farmers, ranchers, landowners, renters, real estate agents, bankers and interested neighbors all have one question in common: What is a fair market rate for renting agricultural land?

Healthy communication can be defined in many ways, but in general, all these ways include three main themes: clarity, respect and promoting understanding. Making sure you are building healthy communication habits, especially surrounding topics like your mental health, doesn’t just happen. It is a skill that is learned by practice and planning.

High prices cure high prices. Low prices cure low prices.This adage has never been truer than in today’s volatile commodity markets.

How do you walk away to end an unpleasant or dangerous conversation when it is occurring in your head? One way to interrupt internal conversations is to take a break from your daily routine. Vacations can do wonders for morale, but respite can also be gleaned from shorter, more frequent intermissions to your daily life.

Our local farmers are under financial pressure, face unpredictable weather and market swings, and are under an overwhelming cultural expectation to “rub some dirt on it” or “cowboy up” and get through it regardless of how they feel. All of these things just compound the strain and lead to silence and, in some cases, tragedy.

Succession planning protects the family operation before crisis forces decisions no one is ready to make.