Momentum
5 Questions with Marion Kertz
How would you describe your farming operation? My father got into farming in 1934 when he purchased a small parcel of land during the Great Depression. Our family has been farming the same area near Ste. Genevieve, Mo., ever since, and we now also farm across the river in Illinois. […]
Taking a Wider View
The energy market is full of questions these days. What is the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) up to and has the cartel reestablished its relevance? How much of a factor is Russia playing? Where does the United States stand with its abundant shale oil production and new […]
Dameron Elected to MFA Oil Board of Directors
Tony Dameron of Vandalia, Mo., was elected to represent the East Central district on the MFA Oil Company board of directors through a special election held on Sept. 21 in Mexico, Mo. The special election was held to fill the seat that became vacant due to the untimely death of […]
Afterschool Program Broadens Students’ Horizons
Every day after school, about 50 children from Chillicothe, Mo., arrive at the North Missouri Center for Youth and Families. The kids range from kindergarteners to eighth graders, but they all take part in the center’s PowerUP! Afterschool program, which provides a nurturing environment for tutoring, help with homework, enrichment […]
Network Ops Team Tackles Tech Issues to Improve Customer Service
Throughout the spring and summer, MFA Oil has been hard at work upgrading its phone systems, enterprise content management system and server infrastructure to better care for customers. These efforts have been handled by the company’s Network Operations department, which has worked diligently to replace outdated technology and install solutions […]
Driving with Data
I was recently asked by an employee what I think MFA Oil Company will look like in the future and whether I feel we are still prospering. Both are great questions and probably something I don’t talk about enough. I feel the company will be much larger in the future […]
Aged to Perfection
After producing award-winning goat cheese for more than a decade, Baetje Farms is poised to begin a new chapter With the pull of a rope, a trap door at the end of the milking parlor rises. Eight Saanen dairy goats enter, moving in unison like choreographed dancers taking the stage. […]
How Blockchain Could Disrupt Agriculture
Frank Yiannas walked into his staff meeting with a package of sliced mangoes. As he set it down on the table, he looked at his team of Walmart colleagues and said, “The traceback study starts right now. Hit the clock.” Yiannas wanted to know from which country the mangoes came […]
Coalition Seeks to Grow Demand for Biodiesel
When Missouri soybean farmers began investing their checkoff dollars into biodiesel research in 1991, they set the wheels in motion for the development of a renewable fuel that would drive demand for their crop and provide a clean-burning alternative to petroleum diesel. “Biodiesel started out as an idea—an opportunity to […]
Fill Propane Tanks Now to Save Later
As the summer temperatures rise, the crisp winds of fall and winter can seem impossibly far away. In the heat of the summer, it can be easy to put winter to-do’s, such as filling up your propane tank, on the back burner. But filling tanks now, rather than waiting until […]
Help Wanted
Finding Farmworkers is a Challenge When Dannie Daughhetee reached out to his local unemployment office in West Memphis, Ark., last fall looking for help in filling four positions on his 5,000-acre rice, soybean, corn and cotton farm, he received 18 applications. Only four people bothered to show up to the […]
Drought cuts pasture growth
In dry weather with short pastures, Missouri cow-herd owners face tough culling decisions. One way to match cows’ needs to available grass is to sell cows. Give careful thought to which grass eaters go first, says Eric Bailey, University of Missouri Extension beef nutritionist. Under drought stress, identifying those cows […]