The Scoop Podcast: Beyond Typical Ag Retail and Co-op Services
As an irrigation water management specialist at Centra Sota Cooperative based in Minnesota, Rebecca Schubert does farmer outreach, education and program partnerships while running the cooperative’s water management program.
As a technical service provider, Schubert assists farmers with opportunities via USDA-NRCS. She says this expansion is beyond what has been assumed a co-op can provide while also helping farmers pull together all aspects of their approach to conservation.
“Farmers get an opportunity to get financial assistance through the government to further their conservation efforts, and we get to be on the frontline of that,” Schubert says. “We get to come help them complete the program and help them along the way. It’s been a great way to connect the cooperative with the public sector.”
The expansion of services into environmental and water management includes moisture sensors installations, water irrigation uniformity testing, and services Schubert says are “beyond the typical retail ag co-op.”
“When we think of retail ag co-op we think fertilizer, fuel, feed. This is really a service that takes that one step further, and it incorporates all that and more into their conservation practices,” Schubert says.
As an example of the type of water management program she’s assisted with, Schubert gives an example of a farmer who installed their first center pivot two years ago.
“He really took to me and relied on me to help educate him along the way as far as water management, when to water and how much to water. He's really been grateful along the way, and we've really developed an amazing client-consultant relationship,” she says.
Within the co-op, the water management team works with other divisions.
“Any of our recommendations that go along with our environmental service programs, like farm planning or nutrient management planning through NRCS, are when our crop advisors can come to us as a resource,” Schubert says.
Schubert started at the co-op as an intern, and today she helps mentor the intern program, a full circle experience she says is very rewarding.
