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The Country Today
How to win the SAF game, part 2
Federal policymakers and their Big Ag friends have a problem: Their hope to make corn and soybeans the feedstock for sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) hit a wall when the aviation industry ruled that biofuel from either crop did not meet its “sustainable” guidelines. As such, there would be no corn- or soy-based SAF. That’s not the news the biofuel lobby, farm and ag commodity groups, and the Biden Administration wanted. All quickly joined forces to “encourage” the “use of updated scoring by the U.S. Department...
Americans prefer bipartisan cooperation to civil war
Time was, and it wasn’t that long ago, when Hollywood gifted us with epic films depicting heroic high school boys (and cute girls) fighting guerilla actions against invading Russian armies. Starring Patrick Swayze, Charlie Sheen and Jennifer Grey, the 1984 film “Red Dawn” was probably the best known, but Chuck Norris also made one about a commie invasion of Florida. So now it’s “Civil War,” featuring Kirsten Dunst as a crusading journalist struggling to reach Washington to interview an embattled president holed up in the...
Kiefer’s Pine Grove Resort celebrates four generations and 95 years
Most of the old resorts in Sawyer County are gone, sold and replaced with condos, lake homes and McMansions. Some have been replaced with businesses and restaurants. In the 50s and 60s there were over 30 mom-and-pop resorts on Round Lake. Those that remain are few but precious. Kiefer’s Pine Grove Resort on Little Round Lake is one of those — unspoiled and beautifully preserved. In June they will celebrate 95 years of doing what they do best: being an original resort. ...
The Woody family: logging for the long haul
Few families are as appropriately named as the Woodys, an Eisenstein family that has spent generations working with their namesake product. Kyle Woody and his cousin Aaron Troyer are now at the helm of a family business founded long before either of them were born. It all began with their paternal grandfather, the late George Woody. Jim Woody, George’s son, remembers his father as a hard worker. ...
Pig pile
It was the gilt (young sow) Goldy’s time this week. She had been bred to our white boar Benjie, and two weeks ago she had begun showing an udder, and it was time to move her to the barn in preparation for farrowing. The momma pigs just seem to know when it is their time, walking resolutely with Kara through the barnyard from their paddocks to the barn. Already the space was a maternity ward, filled with jug pens of ewes with their lambs. It...
Angus Foundation prepares for golf tournament
The Angus Foundation invites all golf and Angus enthusiasts to enjoy a day on the green at its annual golf tournament, held in conjunction with the 2024 National Junior Angus Show in Madison, Wisconsin. The event, which benefits the Foundation’s mission of supporting Angus education, youth and research, will be held Tuesday, July 2 at the Pleasant View Golf Course in Middleton, Wisconsin. Registration will begin at 6:30 a.m., with a shotgun start at 7:30 a.m. “We are excited to host the 23rd annual Angus...
New rules as avian flu spreads in cattle
With concerns rising about H5N1 avian flu’s spread among cattle herds, the USDA has announced new steps to monitor the situation. As of Monday, the USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service requires testing of dairy cattle being moved across state lines: Prior to interstate movement, dairy cattle are required to receive a negative test for Influenza A virus at an approved National Animal Health Laboratory Network (NAHLN) laboratory.Owners of...
And then there was broccoli
Sometimes, bad days are a blessing in disguise, but you don’t know it at the time. I have learned that whenever I have a bad day, it is not a time to get discouraged or sad. A bad day is often a door that opens up something I never expected. Last week, for example, The Gracious Mistress of the Parsonage had plans to spend three days in St. Augustine with...
Dairy breakfasts
The 31st Annual Breakfast on the Farm is scheduled for 8 a.m. to noon Sunday, June 16 in Weyauwega. The event, sponsored by the Weyauwega-Fremont FFA takes place at the Waupaca County Fairgrounds. The event helps provide scholarships as well as costs for FFA conferences and conventions. Planned activities include a petting zoo and hay ride for kids, and a 50/50 raffle. Children ages 4 and younger are free, while...
The easiest way to win? Rig the rules
That’s what Big Ag and its loyal boosters at the Department of Agriculture (USDA) appear to be doing to make sure their new project, Sustainable Aviation Fuel, or SAF, a hoped-for 3-billion-gallons-a-year jet biofuel market by 2030 and 35 billion gallons annually by 2050, flies despite market gravity and basic science. To clear the way for corn-based ethanol to become the dominant SAF feedstock, “qualifying producers can earn a minimum $1.25 tax credit per gallon” that can “increase to as much as $1.75 gallon” explains...
La Pointe acquires Madeline Island Ferry Line
The Town of La Pointe has bought a boat. Well, five, to be exact, as part of the recently-finalized purchase of the Madeline Island Ferry Line. The town purchased the ferry line Chairman Glenn Carlson considers its “lifeline” for roughly $17.3 million after word the previous owners were interested in selling the operation. Longtime La...
Holocaust survivor's son shares her story in UW-Whitewater visit
WHITEWATER — The world saw some of the worst human rights atrocities in history during the Holocaust. It’s now been nearly 80 years since World War II came to an end and prisoners were liberated. As time passes, their stories become woven deeper in history. Steven Russek continues to tell the Holocaust survivor story of his mother, Dora Russek. He shared it in a presentation on the UW-Whitewater campus Tuesday. ...
A mountain of wool
Chris’ telltale greenish-gray truck pulls into the barnyard early in the morning as we’re doing chores. Shearing season once again has arrived on the farm, and the 120-odd sheep are ready. As the temperatures tentatively climb out of the deep freeze, their heavy wool coats will soon be too intense for their comfort. In the wild, sheep naturally shed their fleece in the spring, rubbing on trees and rocks and anything else that will help them peel off winter’s fibers, just as the bucks do...
At DeForest's Mission Nutrition, volunteers have fun making a difference
In every community, nonprofit organizations help to ensure our neighbors have life’s essentials — food, clothing and housing. And, at the heart of most nonprofits are volunteers, people who want to give back to their community and help others. Mission Nutrition, a food resource for families and older adults within the DeForest Area School District, relies on those who give their time and talent to help sort, pack and distribute food to clients. Many find the work satisfying for a number of reasons, including Kristin...
Mistakes and success from a teaching career, part one
After I graduated from high school in 1952 I enlisted into the US Navy for three years. Because I served during the Korean Conflict, I was eligible for the G.I. Bill. With their help, I began my college education at Mission House (now Lakeland University) in 1956 and graduated in January, 1960. As I was looking for employment, I agreed to meet with Edgerton School District’s Superintendent at a motel in Oshkosh for an interview for an opening in a teaching/coaching position. Fortunately, I was...
Conservation Congress holds spring hearing
PHILLIPS — It was a much larger crowd than usual when the 2024 Spring Hearing of the Wisconsin Conservation Congress convened. They had a full agenda. At stake were their votes on 49 fisheries and wildlife-related questions the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources will consider for regulation changes this year. WDNR officials reviewed the options before the votes. Fisheries Team supervisor Royce Zehr was present from the Woodruff office; DNR...
Total eclipse, totally awesome
Editor’s note: Country Today contributor Larry Scheckel sent us this account of seeing the total eclipse just after the event but, unfortunately, our pagination schedule meant it couldn’t make the paper until today. “Oh, my God, that is so cool,” gushed a teenage boy next to our telescope set up. He was one of nine high school fellows from Purdue, Indiana that caravaned in two cars for two hours to view this once in a lifetime event. These lads were not playing hooky. All Indiana...
That's not a bee's nest
A number of years ago my sister Karen and I went on a girls' camping trip in the state forest over at Big Lake in Iron County. While we were setting up our camp, the campground manager came over to check for contraband firewood (FYI, we were in compliance). The well-meaning host then pointed out a hazard on the campsite: a "bee nest" in a birch tree that he said he would come back later to exterminate. Concerned about the possibility of actual bees and...
Is dull the new cool?
The first (and second) rules of Chuck Palahniuk’s “Fight Club” are the same: “You do NOT talk about Fight Club.” Members of The Dull Women’s Club, however, love sharing why they joined. Rebecca says, “I like putting my slow cooker on and coming back and enjoying the contents, crocheting so much that everyone now has a wardrobe, and displaying toadstool ornaments so our house is full of dotty mushrooms.” In...
Washburn campground expansion halted
The results of a spring vote have put the future of a proposed campground expansion in doubt. Voters have rejected future development along 16 acres across Holman Lakeview Driven near the waterfront. A portion of the acreage encompasses Thompson’s West End Park, where a project to expand the campground was in the works. As a result, plans to add four yurts to the campground as part of an expected $1.2 million project to expand the site can’t move forward without asking the public’s permission first. ...
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Eau Claire Press Company’s rural newspaper, The Country Today, was established in January 1977 and was designed to serve the agribusiness community of west-central Wisconsin. It began as a free-distribution newspaper, and in the summer of 1979 was converted to a paid-circulation publication. Today it is one of Wisconsin’s largest paid-circulation weekly newspapers with distribution throughout Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa, Illinois and Michigan. In October 1983, The Country Today expanded to offer statewide coverage. In recent years, the newspaper has developed an online and social media presence that is updated regularly. The content of the paper reflects the diverse interests of a rural population. In addition to coverage of agricultural issues, The Country Today offers regular columns and features on options for small-acreage farms, outdoor news, horse news and other specialty coverage and recipes. The majority of the content is staff-produced. The Country Today maintains a staff of regional editors and advertising representatives across the state in addition to the Eau Claire office staff. Covering topics of importance to the rural reader in a timely fashion, The Country Today is a newspaper that cares about rural life.
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