Rural grocery stores often run on margins as thin as a penny on the dollar, and one wrong decision can put a store under. In this episode, Charlotte Narjes of the Nebraska Cooperative Development Center and Ansley Fellers of the Nebraska Grocery Industry Association discuss the pressures facing small-town grocers, from competition and ownership transitions to credit card fees and changes to SNAP and WIC. They also preview the 2026 Grocery Industry Summit in Kearney and explain how cooperative ownership models have helped some Nebraska communities bring back a store after it closed. Find out mo
With: Jessica Groskopf and Anastasia Meyer, Agricultural Economists, UNL Center for Agricultural Profitability. This episode takes on one of the hardest parts of a farm or ranch transition: splitting assets among heirs. An equal split on paper doesn't always add up to a fair one, especially when one child has worked the operation for years and others haven't. The conversation walks through how families can weigh contributions, expectations and long-term goals when deciding who gets what. Listeners will hear practical ways to start that conversation early, before decisions get made under pressu
Brad Lubben, Nebraska Extension policy specialist and director of the North Central Extension Risk Management Education Center, joins the podcast to break down the risks producers are managing in a divided ag economy. Crop producers are working through tight margins and leaning on government payments, while cattle producers are enjoying record prices that come with a catch: higher costs to buy replacements and rebuild the herd. Lubben walks through the five areas of risk, production, marketing, financial, legal and human, and explains why the human side, from labor to succession planning, ofte
An estate plan tells the government what you want done at your death, but it does not teach anyone how to run a farm, and that gap is where many families get stuck. In this episode of the five-part Nebraska FARMcast series on building a farm succession plan, Jessica Groskopf, Extension agricultural economist at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, breaks down the four documents at the heart of an estate plan: a will, a power of attorney, a health care power of attorney and a living will. She explains probate, how a trust can help you avoid it, and why beneficiary designations and property titli
Most farmers and ranchers never plan to fully retire, which is why Jessica Groskopf calls this stage sunset planning rather than retirement. In the final episode of the five-part Nebraska FARMcast series on building a farm succession plan, Groskopf, Extension agricultural economist at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, looks at what it takes to shift from owner-operator to owner. She covers the financial questions to work through with an ag-savvy financial adviser, why long-term care is one of the biggest concerns families face, and how renting out land in retirement can affect Social Securit
A farm can pass to the next generation on paper long before the next generation is ready to run it, and that gap is where transitions break down. In this episode of the five-part Nebraska FARMcast series on building a farm succession plan, Anastasia Meyer, Extension agricultural economist with the Center for Agricultural Profitability at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, breaks succession into three parts: labor, management and ownership. She explains why management is the hardest piece to hand off and the easiest to skip, and how bringing an heir into bank meetings, insurance meetings and s
Before a farm or ranch moves to the next generation, families have to answer a hard question: is the operation viable enough to support another household? In this episode of the five-part Nebraska FARMcast series on building a farm succession plan, Anastasia Meyer, Extension agricultural economist with the Center for Agricultural Profitability at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, walks through business planning and the family meetings that make a transition work. She covers how to talk openly about financials and debt, who to invite to the table, and the ground rules that keep those conversa
Succession planning often begins with a legal document, but that document is only one piece of a much larger process. In the first episode of this five-part Nebraska FARMcast series on building a farm succession plan, Anastasia Meyer, Extension agricultural economist with the Center for Agricultural Profitability at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, explains why a good plan is really a transition plan, one that unfolds over three to five years or more. She covers the conversations families need to have, the fears both generations bring to the table, and the team of professionals, from an ag-
Feeder cattle prices can drop faster than any producer expects, and Livestock Risk Protection insurance is one tool for managing that risk. Jay Parsons, professor of agricultural economics and director of the Center for Agricultural Profitability at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, joins the show to explain how LRP works for feeder cattle, why participation in Nebraska has climbed sharply in recent years, and how the program has changed for new and beginning producers under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. Parsons draws on 21 years of tracking a single policy to show when the coverage pays o
A pilot study from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln looked at what livestock sale barns provide beyond their economic function, and found they play a significant role in supporting rural community and personal well-being. Nebraska Extension livestock systems educators Bethany Johnston and Randy Saner share findings from surveys and interviews conducted at four sale barns across the state. They discuss why more than half of attendees said socializing was their main reason for coming, how sale barns build trust between buyers and sellers, the way these markets support local businesses, and wha
Anastasia Meyer, extension educator in agricultural economics with the Center for Agricultural Profitability at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, breaks down what belongs in a written farm or ranch lease and why it matters, especially for landowners who recently inherited ground. She covers the difference between cash rent and crop share arrangements, what Nebraska's verbal lease law requires if there is no written agreement, and clauses that often get overlooked, including soil fertility, irrigation equipment, corn stalk grazing and baling limits, water rights, and hunting or recreational a
Retirement looks different in agriculture than it does in most professions, and stepping back from day-to-day management doesn't have to mean stepping away from the operation entirely. In this episode of Nebraska FARMcast, host Lexi Bodlak, a Nebraska Land Link intern, talks with agricultural economists Jessica Groskopf and Anastasia Meyer about what a successful generational transition actually requires, from handing off decision-making gradually to putting agreements in writing, even within families. They also cover the practical friction points that often get overlooked, including mismatche
When wildfires hit central and western Nebraska this spring, producers were left with urgent questions about recovery, and USDA stepped in with several programs to help. In this episode, host Morgan Bonifas, CAP intern, shares a recording from a CAP webinar featuring USDA Farm Service Agency staff Hilary Miracle, Megan Sunderland and Dana Ingerson, along with Conor Ward from the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service. They walk through assistance available for livestock losses, grazing and forage losses, fencing and water infrastructure repair, debris removal and conservation programs tie
