Serving proudly since 1873 as the beautiful Nebraska Panhandle's first newspaper
Serving proudly since 1873 as the beautiful Nebraska Panhandle's first newspaper
A Sidney farmer has been chosen to represent the southern Panhandle on the Nebraska Wheat Board.
In a press release this week, it was announced that Tyson Narjes was appointed to the board by Gov. Pete Ricketts to represent Nebraska's wheat production district two, which covers Kimball, Cheyenne and Deuel counties. He is replacing Potter farmer Rick Larson, who served on the board for three five-year terms.
While it is the smallest production district physically, Wheat Board Executive Director Royce Schaneman said the district is largest when it comes to wheat production. Half of the state's wheat production comes from the Panhandle.
"We're excited to have him," Schaneman said. "He's passionate about agriculture and about wheat. He will be a great addition to the board."
Schaneman said he is also excited that at 29 years old, Narjes brings another younger farmer to the board.
"We like to have a mix of young and old," said Schaneman. "Tyson comes from a progressive background and operation. He'll bring with him newer ways of farming and we like to have that as an addition."
The Wheat Board's primary duty is to administer Nebraska Wheat Checkoff proceeds. The fund has been in existance since 1955, when Nebraksa farmers asked the Legislature to form the checkoff and overseeing board to help promote their product.
Today, checkoff funds are used primarly in five areas: Promotion, Education, Marketing, Research and Federal Farm Policy.
The Board meets quarterly, and its seven members (six appointed within districts and one at-large) serve without pay. Terms are five years. Narjes' first meeting will be Nov. 16 in Lincoln.
"I'm really looking forward to it," Narjes told the Sun-Telegraph. "It's going to be an education and eye opening experience, especially as a wheat farmer."
Narjes said serving on the board lines up with his enjoyment of people and learning more about his industry.
"And anything we can do to contribute to the industry is good for everyone," he said.
Narjes farms with his family, continuing an operation that has been going in Cheyenne County for more than 100 years. He has also been active in other activities serving the area, including serving on the Cheyenne County Farm Bureau Board and the Kimball-Banner-Cheyenne County Extension Board.
The Nebraska Wheat Board is a state agency responsible for overseeing the wheat check-off to ensure future viability of the wheat industry for our farmers.
Nebraska Wheat is made of two organizations the Nebraska Wheat Growers Association is a non-profit, membership-based organization working to represent the state's wheat farmers.
Nebraska is home to more than 1.7 million people and 48,000 farms and ranches. More than 5,000 of those farms produce wheat. Nebraska farmers raise Hard Red Winter (HRW) and Hard White Winter (HWW) wheat. HRW wheat has a significant amount of protein and is typically used in breads, rolls, all purpose flour, and some sweet goods. HW wheat is the newest class of wheat to be grown in the United States. It is used in oriental noodles, yeast breads, flat breads, hard rolls, and tortillas. It has similar milling and baking qualities of the red wheats, but with a sweeter, more mild flavor.
Wheat is an important commodity in Nebraska, with farmers producing an average of 74 million bushels annually. Approximately 50 percent of Nebraska's wheat is exported annually.
Western Nebraska is the primary growing region for wheat in Nebraska. Over half of Nebraska's wheat is grown here.
The mission of NWB is to increase both domestic and foreign consumption of wheat and wheat food products through marketing and research, as well as to help develop and maintain both domestic and export markets for the Nebraska wheat producer. NWB will accomplish this by investing the wheat check-off in the areas of research, international and domestic marketing, policy development and publicity and education.
The Nebraska Wheat Board invests one-third of the check-off in research. Many of these funds are used for contracting projects with companies like the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and the USDA's Agricultural Research Service. NWB traditionally funds anywhere from 10 to 15 wheat research projects with an emphasis on disease and pest resistance, drought tolerance, Nitrogen and water use efficiency, end-use characteristics and biotechnology.
Reader Comments(0)