When 35 acres of land became available for lease through a family friend, Zach Birenbaum jumped at the chance to start farming on his own. Zach had remained connected to agriculture working at a manure hauling company for the past ten years, as well as on his family’s farm. Now, it was his chance to start his own operation and pursue his passions.
“Living in Manitowoc County, Wisc., farmland like that is pretty hard to come by,” explained Zach. “There’s a lot of competition, so when the land became available, I jumped at the chance.”
Taking the Leap
Zach grew up on his parent’s dairy farm, Condale Acres. “My parents’ both grew up on farms, and when they met each other they both wanted to continue farming. They’re both from southeast Wisconsin and decided to head north until they found a farm they could make their own,” Zach said.
Growing up, Zach and his three siblings helped on the farm, and that’s really where his love of agriculture began. “I knew from a young age I wanted to farm, so when the chance came for me to go out on my own and start cash cropping, I knew I had to take the leap.”
At first when he started farming, Zach maintained his job at the manure hauling company. He quickly became busy, however, and was able to move into full-time farming after only a year. Zach was able to rent the equipment he needed to get started from his parents until he was ready to finance his own. He started reaching out to local lenders for assistance, but they were hesitant to give him the financing he needed. Then he reached out to GreenStone for support.
“I needed financing for equipment as well as an operating loan to help maintain my day-to-day operations,” explained Zach. “That’s when I started working with GreenStone and was able to finance my first combine with them.” After purchasing his own equipment, Zach took the next step and started doing custom combine work for other local farmers in the area in addition to farming his own land.
Mitigating Risk as a Beginning Farmer
As Zach’s operation grew, he began to take on more land and started diversifying his crops. “I started growing wheat to support the needs of the dairy farm and then took on more corn and soybeans as well.” Through working with GreenStone, he was introduced to the benefit of mitigating risk to his crops through crop insurance.
“I had already had such a positive experience. Everyone at GreenStone was very honest, and they provided me with a lot of guidance when I was just getting started. As I started growing and renting more land to farm, they mentioned how beneficial having crop insurance could be for me as a beginning farmer.”
Zach began working with crop insurance specialist Erin Kenneke, who helped him secure the right policy level for his specific needs. “I’ve known Erin just growing up in this area, but getting to work with her is just another reason I really like working with GreenStone. The local relationships and connection to the community they have is really nice.”
Zach was able to receive a higher subsidy rate for his crop insurance policy because of the Risk Management Agency’s (RMA) Beginning Farmers and Ranchers program. “What I didn’t realize was that because I was a young and beginning farmer, there was even more benefit to me seeking crop insurance coverage. I was able to receive extra premium subsidies and waived administrative fees which made the policy more affordable,” said Zach. The USDA has also recently extended the program to benefit young farmers in their first ten years of farming.
“When I started working with Zach, I wanted to make sure we found the right policy level for Zach based on his specific risk,” explained Erin. “We wanted to cover his input costs and protect against the volatility of markets and weather. We added ECO (Enhanced Coverage Option) to his policy, which is an additional crop insurance option that provides coverage to your underlying crop insurance policy deductible. We placed a protection on 95% of the crop insurance commodity price on Zach’s policy, so if market prices decline, that extra coverage per acre will make all the difference in Zach’s bottom line.”
“Having that added peace of mind from having the crop insurance coverage has been key for me,” commented Zach. “Even though it does cost a little bit more money, I think it’s worth it. When you have so much going on, it’s just one less thing you have to worry about.”
“I especially enjoy that Erin stays on top of everything and is able to send me over everything I need to look at or sign right on my phone. It’s really convenient for me as I continue to get busier,” added Zach.
The Ultimate Reward
Zach stays busy farming over 150 acres of corn, soybeans, and winter wheat, which he markets to local co-ops and processors, which roast and press soybeans used in cooking oil. Since farming full-time, he’s also been able to continue his custom combine work for 800 acres of neighboring farmers’ land and has even started doing custom pesticide spraying. He still helps on his parents’ dairy and is responsible for all of the combine work for them as well.
“My goal is to continue growing at a steady rate,” Zach said. “For me though, I’m really motived by the enjoyment of farming and not just by ownership or scale. Not many people can say they get to work with their family either, and for me getting to work with them and do what I love is the ultimate reward.”
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