FROM UW-MADISON DIVISION OF EXTENSION, LANGLADE COUNTY

Landowners leasing the agricultural rights of their land to active farms is critical to maintaining the viability of agriculture in Northeastern Wisconsin.  A significant percentage of farmland is owned by non-farming families in our region and it would be nearly impossible for active farms to be able to afford to own all the land that they need to maintain the economic viability of their operations.  Land rental situations often elicit questions among one, or both, parties revolving around fair value and what types of points should be in a contract.

UW-Madison, Division of Extension, is sponsoring a pair of free events to help both landowners and active producers better understand farmland rent dynamics and farmland rental contracting best practices.  These live webinars are being held on Tuesday, December 15, from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. and on Friday, December 18, from 11 a.m. to Noon.

The Tuesday evening event is sponsored by the Langlade, Lincoln, Marinette, Oconto, and Shawano County offices.  It will feature discussion on rental contracting best practices, WI laws which affect farmland renting agreements, contracting resources available for use, and current farmland sale/rental values in these counties.  Presenters for this session are Dan Marzu, Lincoln & Langlade Counties Agriculture Educator, and Scott Reuss, Marinette County Agriculture Agent.  Shawano County Agriculture Educator Kimberly Schmidt will also be involved in this event.

This event is free to attend.  Pre-registration is required through this registration link: https://go.wisc.edu/d9a4mw or by contacting Dan Marzu, Lincoln & Langlade Counties Agriculture Educator, at dan.marzu@wisc.edu or 608-265-2502.  Registrants will receive e-mail confirmation of their registration which will include the webinar link.

The Friday morning event is sponsored by state-wide Division of Extension and includes a broader discussion of farmland values by Simon Jette Nantel, UW-River Falls Extension Farm Management Specialist.  All participants will then hear about building a robust lease and then have the opportunity to join smaller group discussions on one of five different topics.  Those topics are Renting Irrigated Land; Flexible Leases; Leasing Buildings/Facilities; Grazing/Pasture Leases; and Small Acreage or Long Term Investment Rental Situations.

Registration for the Dec. 18 morning event needs to place by going to this web site:  https://extension.wisc.edu/agriculture/farm-ready-research/ and then select the Dec. 18 Farmland Markets and Leasing Contracts Webinar.  You will be asked to sign up for one of the five discussion topics (breakout rooms) listed above when you register.