The Radke Report

With the spring thaw comes its own fair share of challenges, and contending with the mud while many are in the thick of calving season is no fun at all.

But with the promise of warmer days, green grass, and plenty of hay to be cut, I keep telling myself that all of this moisture is an answer to prayers, with much of the country finding relief from the ongoing drought that has caused many producers to decrease their cow inventory or disperse altogether.

With cattle inventory down 3% and the smallest U.S. beef cow herd numbers since 1962, opportunities abound in this space — if you can find and afford to rent the grass, handle the rising input costs, and find ways to capture true value in a space where it is growing increasingly challenging to sell in the commodity market.

Yet, for those willing to innovate, pivot, and drive their product to meet the demand for wholesome, nutritious, well-marbled beef, the sky is the limit. It’s really a shift in perspective — refusing to be a price taker and focusing on becoming a price maker instead.

Yes, this agriculture life isn’t for the faint of heart. We work long days with very little reward sometimes. However, when we look at the rich blessings we have in good years and bad, we know that every pain, every tear, and every plan gone awry is worth the toil.

So Teddy, I agree with you. Let us rather run the risk of wearing out than rusting out. So when we get to the end of our life, we know we lived it fully, putting our whole heart into a noble pursuit.

Ranching isn’t for the faint of heart, and yet, how often do we find ourselves feeling weary? A calf that doesn’t make it. The tractor breaks down. The snow keeps piling up. We push ourselves beyond our physical limits to take care of the stock. And these pressures and heartaches can take a toll on even the strongest among us.

Yet, on this particular day, as I drove home from the sale, I felt excited. I shifted my perspective beyond the heartaches of production agriculture, and began to focus more on the blessings that this life offers to families just like mine.

We have a Friday night routine in our house. We have a classic pizza and movie night, and it’s a great way to unwind after a busy week.

Pizza is a classic American staple, and it also happens to be the center of my new children’s book, “Roll, Spread, Sprinkle, Bake.”

Last week, the new book officially released, making it number-eight in my series of food and agricultural books for children.

It’s a goal of mine to continue to educate and empower the next generation of kids, so they know where their food comes from and can be critical thinkers in the face of endless anti-agriculture propaganda in kids books, cartoons, and movies.

This week, my daughter, Scarlett and I had the opportunity to do exactly this. Thanks to an invitation from the Pipestone Public School, we read my books and presented to 850 K-12 students. 

The most popular part of our program was playing “stump the cowgirls,” where the kids had the opportunity to ask us anything about agriculture. Their questions sure kept us on our toes, and it was an engaging, productive day that I hope plants positive seeds with these young people about who we are in the farming and ranching community.

I firmly believe that we can impact the next generation of consumers, one page, one story, and one conversation at a time. Let’s get to work, my friends! 

If you're experiencing a rough start to 2023 - take a deep breath! This too shall pass. Dust yourself off. Reset those goals.

Anticipate road blocks up ahead, and take things in stride when your best laid out plans go sideways.

Don’t take your stress out on your family members. Remember you are a team, through thick and thin, and don’t forget that it can only go up from here! Right?

Oh, and if there's one resolution we can all stick to, it's this -- EAT MORE BEEF!

It is a shame to see our elected officials be so completely out of touch with what the American people need. It’s not a hiking trail. It’s not an electric car and a carbon credit. It’s safe, affordable, and nutritious food. It’s access to clean water. It’s heat for the winter months. It’s safeguarding the economy to ensure Americans don’t need second, third, and fourth streams of income just to make ends meet. It’s encouraging home ownership, and savings, and the ability to accumulate wealth over time, faster than the rate of inflation. It’s nurturing the nuclear family, and promoting a sound educational system that guides our children in the way we should go.

At every turn, it appears we are on the wrong path, and it’s disheartening to say the least. However, as for me and my family, we will continue to work hard, save our pennies, raise our kids to know and love God, serve our community, love our neighbors, and stick together through the ups and downs that life brings. Maybe if enough of us do exactly that, society and our elected officials will follow suit.