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CapitalPress.com
August 5, 2016
People & Places
Consultant offers business expertise
Thistlethwaite
focuses on improving
farm eiciency
By MATEUSZ PERKOWSKI
Capital Press
For small farmers, the
difference between making
a proit and losing money of-
ten comes down to seemingly
minor decisions, according to
agricultural consultant Rebec-
ca Thistlethwaite.
People often decide to be-
come small farmers because
they enjoy working outdoors
but don’t thoroughly appreci-
ate the inancial challenges of
agriculture, she said.
“They don’t necessarily
approach it from a business
perspective,” Thistlethwaite
said.
Without a well-considered
strategy, growers risk going
deeper into debt and a “down-
ward spiral” of inancial cha-
os, she said.
“I don’t like to see that,”
said Thistlethwaite. “We’ve
got to keep farmers on the
land.”
Some growers try to pro-
duce a multitude of different
crops rather than specialize in
just a few, which hinders them
from selling anything in large
enough volumes and compli-
cates their cost analysis, she
said. It’s easier to track costs
for a handful of crops to see if
they make inancial sense.
Such analysis can uncover
ways for farmers to more ef-
fectively use their resources
— for example, growing kale
instead of broccoli generates
multiple harvests per season,
instead of just one.
“It takes up the same
amount of space but you’re
getting so much more yield
out of it,” Thistlethwaite
said.
Such changes may appear
insigniicant but they can
collectively push a farm into
proitability, she said.
Western
Innovator
Rebecca
Thistlethwaite
Occupation: Consultant,
author, farmer, program
manager of Oregon State
University’s Niche Meat Pro-
cessor Assistance Network
Age: 41
Family: Husband, Jim
Dunlop, two children
Mateusz Perkowski/Capital Press
Hometown: Mosier, Ore.
Rebecca Thistlethwaite is an agricultural consultant, author and program manager of Oregon State
University’s Niche Meat Processor Assistance Network. She lives in Mosier, Ore.
Buying large machinery is
tempting for many farmers,
but such purchases can lead
to operate less eficiently and
blind them to the true source
of problems, she said.
Thistlethwaite gives the
example of a farmer who
bought a feed mixer to pro-
cess hay and molasses to pro-
vide supplementary feed for
his livestock.
A more economical solu-
tion would be to manage his
pastures to prevent overgraz-
ing, which would avoid the
need to bring in outside feed,
she said.
Such lessons became ap-
parent to Thistlethwaite and
her husband, Jim Dunlop,
during their six years rais-
ing meat animals in Califor-
nia.
Jim had always wanted
to buy a tractor, but once he
igured out how infrequently
it would actually be used, it
became clear that the invest-
ment wasn’t worthwhile.
The couple instead opted
to have neighboring farm-
ers do custom work, and
over time found cheaper
ways to perform the same
functions.
Releasing pigs onto a ield,
for example, will effectively
“rototill” the soil in prepara-
tion for planting as the ani-
mals root around for food.
Small farmers should also
get creative in inancing their
operations,
Thistlethwaite
said.
When Thistlethwaite and
her husband were raising
chickens, a local grocery store
loved their eggs but their farm
couldn’t produce an adequate
supply.
The couple convinced the
company to provide them
with a zero-interest loan that
would be repaid with eggs,
using the money to increase
the size of their lock.
They were able to boost
production enough to repay
the loan and have enough
eggs leftover to increase cash
low, she said.
“If you really want this,
put some money on the table,”
Thistlethwaite said.
Thistlethwaite’s introduc-
tion to agriculture occurred
when she apprenticed at an
organic farm in Idaho, which
led her to work at several
other operations across the
West.
“After that, I was basically
hooked on ag,” she said.
After earning a master’s
degree in international ag-
ricultural development, she
conducted research in Central
America and later worked at a
“farm incubator” in California
where farmworkers learned to
run their own operations.
Many of the pupils had ex-
perience growing crops, but
not managing a balance sheet
or putting together a market-
ing plan.
“I seemed to gravitate to
the business and marketing
aspects,” Thistlethwaite said.
She also met her husband
at the incubator, and together
they launched a farm aimed at
selling meat and eggs through
farmers’ markets and other
niche channels.
After eventually leaving
California, the couple trav-
eled to small farms around the
country to study their busi-
ness models, resulting in a
book, “Farms with a Future.”
Education: Bachelor’s
degree in natural resources
management from Colorado
State University in 1997,
master’s degree in interna-
tional agricultural develop-
ment from the University of
California-Davis in 2001.
Capital Press
BROOKS, Ore. — Antique Power-
land brings families, hobbyists, enthu-
siasts and artists together each year to
experience the history and romance of
steam-powered machinery at the Great
Oregon Steam-Up.
The 46th annual Great Oregon Steam-
Up is a volunteer-driven event that draws
approximately 25,000 people to the An-
tique Powerland living museum to see
fully operating steam-powered machin-
ery over two weekends.
This year’s event continues Saturday
and Sunday, Aug. 6-7.
Show Manager Evan Burroughs said
most of the equipment in the show is pre-
World War II and fully restored.
The show will feature early
steam-powered farm machinery, ire
trucks, vintage trucks, antique cars, log-
ging gear, a unique operating steam saw-
mill and various steam-powered engines.
Burroughs said the event features
more than 500 individual pieces from Or-
Joe Beach/Capital Press
An Aultman & Taylor steam tractor is on
display at the Great Oregon Steam-Up
in Brooks, Ore. The annual event will
continue on Aug. 6-7.
egon, California and the Midwest.
Executive Director Pamela Vorachek
said her favorite part of the event is see-
ing the interest expressed by generations
of attendees.
“We truly have something for
everyone,” Vorachek said.
Each day of the show opens at 7 a.m.
in Brooks, Ore. Visitors should take In-
terstate 5 to exit 263 and turn west on
Brooklake Road.
More than 700 volunteers run swap
meets, lea markets, rafle drawings,
youth-focused events, educational booths
and a daily parade of antique tractors.
Favorites for children are the 1/8-scale
railroad rides and the steam-driven ice
cream maker.
A feature new to the 2016 show is
the Steampunk Art Show. Steampunk is
a genre of science iction that features
steam-powered machinery. Vorachek
said the volunteers added it to attract
younger attendees.
This weekend, Vorachek said visitors
are invited to watch steampunk artist
Chuck Dolence demonstrate how he cre-
ates artwork from radio cables.
Burroughs described the event as edu-
cational entertainment, saying attend-
ees can come just to be entertained
or can dig in and learn a lot from
the vendors and hobbyists who bring
“We gleaned as much wis-
dom as we could from them,”
she said, noting they’ve also
written a book on meat pro-
ducers, “The New Livestock
Farmer.”
They now own 5 acres in
Mosier, Ore., where they raise
fruits, vegetables, chickens
and hogs while Jim works as a
horticulturist at a nearby cher-
ry orchard.
Thistlethwaite,
mean-
while, was recently hired as
program manager of Oregon
State University’s Niche Meat
Processor Assistance Net-
work. She also speaks at sus-
tainable farming conferences
and provides one-on-one con-
sulting about developing farm
business plans.
“I look at it from a natural
resources perspective as well
as a inancial and marketing
perspective,” she said.
their machinery to the show.
“I like being able to show the mod-
ern public the tools their grandparents,
great-grandparents and great-great-grand-
parents used to provide a living for their
families,” Burroughs said. “These are
tools you can trace to modern agriculture
and see that a lot of the features are very
similar.”
Adult admission is $12 for one day or
$20 for a weekend pass. There is a $30
pass for families. Admission for children
younger than 12 is free.
Antique Powerland is a campus made
up of 12 power museums whose mission
is to educate the public about the history
and operation of machines and the role
they played in modern society and the
quality of life.
“Having events like this where you
see the machines running makes it real
and relevant,” Vorachek said. “At Great
Oregon Steam-Up you can watch the
transition and technology changes that
happened to get us where we are today.
It’s what we mean when we say history
comes alive.”
Washington youths win awards at Holstein convention
By JANAE SARGENT
Capital Press
Five Junior Holstein Asso-
ciation members from Wash-
ington state took home awards
from the National Holstein Con-
vention June 27-July 1 in Sara-
toga, N.Y.
The Washington State Hol-
stein Association took 21 junior
members to the convention to
compete in jeopardy, quiz tour-
naments and banner-making
contests.
The convention is aimed at
educating young people about
the dairy industry, providing
Courtesy of Michelle Schilter
From left to right, Noah Berry, Gary Young, Jacy Smith, Cassy Schilter
and Lauryn Young, all from Washington state, won the State Banner
Contest at the National Holstein Convention. Gary, Lauryn and Cassy
are from Chehalis and Jacy and Noah are from Snohomish.
opportunities to see dairy opera-
tions across the U.S. and helping
young farmers network.
Among the Washington
contingent was Cassy Schil-
ter from Chehalis, Wash., who
won the Junior Jeopardy con-
test. Michelle Schilter, a plan-
ning committee member and
Cassy’s mother, said Cassy is
the irst junior member from
Washington to win the national
contest.
The Washington state ju-
niors also won the banner-mak-
ing contest, beating out contes-
tants from nine other states.
“It’s pretty amazing how
many juniors were there,” Schil-
ter said. “Our kids did a really
great job working as a team on
the banner.”
The convention is hosted
by the National Holstein As-
Established 1928
Board of directors
Mike Forrester ..........................President
Steve Forrester
Kathryn Brown
Sid Freeman .................. Outside director
Mike Omeg .................... Outside director
Corporate oficer
John Perry
Chief operating oficer
Capital Press Managers
Mike O’Brien .............................Publisher
Joe Beach ..................................... Editor
Elizabeth Yutzie Sell .... Advertising Director
Carl Sampson ................Managing Editor
Barbara Nipp ......... Production Manager
Samantha McLaren .... Circulation Manager
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EO Media Group
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To Reach Us
Great Oregon Steam-Up puts history on display
By JANAE SARGENT
Capital Press
sociation, which has 20,000
adult members and 8,000 ju-
nior members. The association
is open to anyone interested in
breeding, raising and milking
registered Holstein cattle.
Schilter said the convention,
which is held in different loca-
tions from year to year, is a great
opportunity for kids to see a
world beyond their own back-
yard.
The 2017 National Holstein
Convention will be at the Hy-
att Regency Hotel in Bellevue,
Wash. Schilter said she expects
between 1,500 and 2,000 people
to attend the convention.
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Index
Dairy ...................................... 9
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Correction policy
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www.capitalpress.com and click
on “Submit an Event.” Calendar
items can also be mailed to Capi-
tal Press, 1400 Broadway St. NE,
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Saturday and Sunday
Aug. 6-7
The Great Oregon Steam-Up,
9 a.m.-5 p.m. The Great Oregon
Steam-Up is the largest event at An-
tique Powerland during the year and
it involves all of the museums and
many other participants. One of the
unique aspects of the event is that
GASES / WELDING / SAFETY / FIRE
www.oxarc.com
most of the equipment is operating.
3995 Brooklake Road NE, Brooks,
Ore. Daily admission $12 per person,
12 and under free. www.antiquepow-
erland.com/html/steam-up.html
Sunday, Aug. 7
‘Raised Country’ Music Festival, 1
p.m. Antelope Church lawn, Antelope,
20 Northwest Locations
Ore. The festival kicks off at 1 p.m.
with Joni Harms, followed by an au-
thentic Chuckwagon Barbecue with
Paradise Rose and the harmonies of
Central Oregon’s Mud Springs Gos-
pel Band, while the kids stay busy
with the ranch animal petting area,
face painting and other activities.
Headlining the festival at 3:45 p.m.
1-800-765-9055
will be Susie McEntire.
Saturday and Sunday
Aug. 13-14
Oregon Cannabis Growers Fair,
10 a.m.-4 p.m., Oregon State Fair-
grounds, 2330 17th St. NE, Salem.
Over age 21 only. https://oregon-
cannabisgrowersfair.com/
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