Year: 2021

by Marnie Werner, VP, Research & Operations The Census Bureau released the first round of data from the 2020 Census last week, and it was a nail-biter. These are the basic numbers, the new 2020 population of each state, which is used to determine how many seats each state will get in the U.S. House ...

EXCERPT: “The number of Minnesotans who died from drug overdoses rose sharply in 2020, despite a concerted effort to recognize those deaths as public health crisis. According to the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) a total of 1,008 people died from drug overdoses statewide in 2020, compared to 792 in 2019. That amounts to a ...

EXCERPT: “The COVID-19 pandemic had many vacationers looking for quiet getaways within driving distance of home – resulting in a windfall for rural Airbnb hosts. The COVID-19 pandemic had many vacationers looking for quiet getaways within driving distance of home – resulting in a windfall for rural Airbnb hosts. The online rental service said hosts in Greater ...

EXCERPT: “Beth Ford’s campaign to extend high-speed internet service to rural America gathered more momentum Tuesday when Land O’Lakes announced creation of the American Connection Corps. Ford, president and CEO of the agricultural cooperative, has spearheaded a national coalition’s efforts to close the digital divide, which places many farm communities at a disadvantage to their urban counterparts ...

EXCERPT: “This verdict we’ve been talking about it to put it in context not only heard around Minnesota but all around the world. Yeah. And you don’t have to live in the Twin Cities to know how big of a moment this is. John Lauritsen continues our coverage in Western Minnesota. Here in Willmar about ...

EXCERPT: “Jackson-based Federated Rural Electric is one of many rural electric cooperatives working to keep the lights on for farmers and rural residents of southwest Minnesota. Scott Reimer, Federated’s general manager, knows the industry well and understands how essential it is for farmers. Born in Huron, S.D., Reimer started in the industry 43 years ago, ...

  By Marnie Werner, VP Research I’ve been talking a lot about child care in the last month, and in those presentations, I’ve been telling people how the two biggest barriers to attracting workers in rural areas is a lack of child care and a lack of housing. This week, instead of child care, I ...

  Across the state, an army of younger senior citizens use their own private vehicles to serve as volunteer drivers, providing an essential service to the elderly and disabled in rural communities where public transit can be sporadic or non-existent. According to the transit providers who coordinate these rides to grocery stores, clinics, and other ...

EXCERPT: “When Chuck Tryon took over as president of Owatonna-based Bushel Boy Farms in early October 2020, the U.S. was still a couple months away from an approved Covid-19 vaccine. In late November, Minnesota would go on to experience its worst peak of Covid cases. Like virtually every business at the time, Bushel Boy faced a great ...