Daniel Jossund from the Ada-Borup-West FFA Chapter in Minnesota

INDIANAPOLIS – (Friday, Nov. 3, 2023/National FFA Organization) – Everyone on the border between North Dakota and Minnesota knows that snow is a hassle, but for Daniel Jossund, dealing with snow is one of the many ways he earns a living.

“In the wintertime, I push snow in Fargo at night running a payloader,” Jossund said.

Jossund is no stranger to operating heavy machinery. As a member of Ada-Borup-West FFA in Minnesota, he farms on both his parents’ land and his own land to raise sugar beets, corn, soybeans, wheat and alfalfa. He’s particularly focused on baling straw and alfalfa, with over 1,000 acres baled in 2022.

“I own all my own machinery for all the haying and the baling, and I have my own semi for trucking,” Jossund said. “Everything to do with the baling is all on my own. I use my parents’ machinery for the crop farming.”

Farming is a family business for Jossund. He began working on his supervised agricultural experience (SAE) when he was a teenager with the help of his parents and his brother Andrew Jossund. However, Jossund said his parents aren’t balers by trade, so he learned a lot about the practice from other local farmers.

“I got started with it when I was 14,” Jossund said. “I bought a small square baler to start baling with my brother Andrew. He’s nine years older than I am and, as we got older, he had other interests and I started baling more — and I bought him out of the baling business.”

Now 20 years old, Jossund said owning 150 acres of land at such a young age is one of the things he’s most proud of. Jossund is currently majoring in agribusiness at North Dakota State University, and he said he’s planning on continuing to expand his current farming operations after he graduates.

“The college degree is pretty much just to have a degree and meet people,” Jossund said. “That’s the best part about it. All the people I’ve met.”

Jossund’s advice for FFA members starting their own SAE is to persevere — you might not like your job every day, but it’s a good job if you’d still rather be doing it than anything else.

“That’s what I always tell myself when I’m out in the field and stuff’s not going right or I have hay that gets rained on or whatever. ‘Oh, I hate this.’ But then I think there’s nothing else I’d rather be doing than this,” Jossund said.

Jossund joined Broadcast Desk Intern Hannah Whetstone to share his FFA story, memorable experiences, and wise advice for aspiring young producers.

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