ND Department of Agriculture Press Releases

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE AUGUST 12, 2009

GOEHRING ACTIVATES HARVEST HOTLINE

BISMARCK – Farmers who need combining services and independent combiners looking for work should call the North Dakota Department of Agriculture (NDDA) Harvest Hotline at (701) 328-1500.

Agriculture Commissioner Doug Goehring has activated the hotline because of the lateness of this year’s crops.

“The harvest should be well underway, and it really has just begun,” Goehring said. “This is putting a lot of pressure on producers and combiners to get the crops harvested quickly. Harvest Hotline, which matches farmers with custom harvesters, was created for this kind of situation.”

Goehring said the hotline will be staffed weekdays from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Callers may leave a message evenings and weekends.

Callers to the Harvest Hotline are listed in a database that NDDA personnel use to match producers with combiners. The service is free of charge.

The Harvest Hotline was first used in 1992, when adverse weather conditions caused a heavy demand for custom combining. It proved popular and has since been offered annually as a service for farmers and combiners.

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MEDIA: For more information, please call Ted Quanrud at (701) 328-2233 or tquanrud@nd.gov.