Posted: 01.21.2010

Farm women from Iowa, Grant and Lafayette Counties and the surrounding area are invited to participate in the Heart of the Farm – Women in Agriculture conference to be held Wednesday, Jan. 27, 2010. This program provides farm women with the opportunity to network with other farm women and get answers on farm liability insurance, employee management, marketing basics, cost cutting strategies for the home and farm and managing stress during difficult times.

The conference begins at 9:30 a.m. and ends at 3 p.m. and will be held at the Quality Inn, 1345 Business Park Rd, Mineral Point, located off Hwy 151, Exit 40.

Topics and presenters include:

-- Straight Talk About Insurance. David Wright, Agriculture Instructor, LaFarge High School.

-- Employee Management. Yogi Brown, dairy farmer, Sunburst Dairy, Belleville.

-- Marketing Basics. Kevin Bernhardt, Professor of Agribusiness, University of Wisconsin-Platteville School of Agriculture and UW-Extension farm and risk management specialist.

-- Cost Cutting Strategies for Home and Farm. Gene Schriefer, agriculture agent, Ruth Schriefer, family living agent, Iowa County UW-Extension

-- Managing Stress. Kathy Schmitt, Community Services Specialist, Wisconsin Farm Center, Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade & Consumer Protection.

Heart of the Farm- Women in Agriculture conference series is a UW-Extension program that is committed to addressing the needs of farm women by providing education on farm business topics, connecting them with agricultural resources and creating support networks.

Due to grants and sponsorships from Wisconsin Milk Marketing Board and the Iowa County UW-Extension office, the registration costs for this year’s Heart of the Farm has been reduced from last year. Pre-registration is $10 per person, with registrations due by Jan. 20, 2010, or $15 per person at the door. There are also a limited number of scholarships available to cover registration fees. Please contact Joy Kirkpatrick at 608-263-3485 to request a scholarship.

To register for the conference, send payment to: ATTN: Heart of the Farm, Iowa County UW-Extension, 222 N. Iowa St., Suite 1, Dodgeville, WI 53533. Make checks payable to CDP. Visit the Heart of the Farm website www.uwex.edu/ces/heartofthefarm to download a brochure.

Heart of the Farm – Women in Agriculture is sponsored by the UW Center for Dairy Profitability and the Iowa County UW-Extension. Partial funding for the program is provided by USDA Risk Management Agency and the Wisconsin Milk Marketing Board.

For more information or to register call the Iowa County UW-Extension office at 608-935-0391 or the UW-Center for Dairy Profitability at 608-263-3485.

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