We’re excited to introduce you to MDI Coordinator, Doug Fjerstad who serves the northwest region of Minnesota which includes the counties of Beltrami, Cass, Clearwater, Hubbard, Itasca, Kittson, Koochiching, Lake of the Woods, Mahnomen, Marshall, Norman, Pennington, Polk, Red Lake and Roseau. Doug is a Farm Business Management Instructor for 43 years and has his office in Fosston, MN.
Tell us about your farming background…
I farm myself, and we milked cows till 1997. At that time we transitioned into a beef cow/calf operation. We are a third generation farm. My grandfather came from Norway and started dairy farming in 2001. My dad took over in 1947 with dairy and beef, and then we took over in 1980 with diary and transitioned into beef in 1997.
What influenced your decision to farm?
I always liked everybody working together as a family unit.
What is your favorite aspect of what you do at MDI?
My favorite aspect of what I do is to help people with problems that come to play on the family farm. I like to see things progress into future generations.
If you could go back in time and give yourself a good piece of advice, what would it be?
Make sure to take time to enjoy the beauty of every day.
What is your favorite dairy product?
That would have to be cheese.
What do you enjoy doing in your free time?
Go on family vacations.
Stay tuned for more future Coordinator highlights next month. If you’d like to contact Doug, call (218) 435-6656 or email: [email protected]
