Wisconsin’s ag secretary appreciates USDA funding for mental health programs

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Wisconsin’s ag secretary appreciates USDA funding for mental health programs

Wisconsin’s ag secretary says he appreciates the USDA’s announcement of granting 500-thousand dollars to the Wisconsin Farm Center to assist with mental health services. Randy Romanski with the Department of Agriculture, Trade, and Consumer Protection says, “That’s going to help us promote and develop increased stress management and mental health resources for Wisconsin farmers.”

Romanski tells Brownfield the USDA money can be added to the 100-thousand dollars in the state budget, “To help us continue programming like the 24-7 hotline, counseling vouchers, and farmers mental health support groups. The great thing about the funding we’re getting from the USDA is we can promote some stress management and mental health programming by creating, printing, and distributing outreach materials.”

Romanski says the department will also adapt some farm management, financial, and mental health resources into formats that are more easily accessible by Hmong and Latinx farmers.  The department is also working on a series of videos on stress identification, prevention, and management for farmers.

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