Land & Life Magazine: Minnesota Farm Bureau, Content, Staff and Readers
Profile updated November 2026
Land & Life magazine is the quarterly publication of the Minnesota Farm Bureau Federation (MFBF), mailed to all members four times a year. It mixes Minnesota crop and livestock stories with University of Minnesota research, recipes and seasonal family outings.
| Publisher | Minnesota Farm Bureau Federation |
|---|---|
| Frequency | Quarterly, to all MFBF members |
| Federation founded | 1919, plan approved November 8, 1919 |
| First county Farm Bureau | Traverse County, 1913 |
| Office | 3080 Eagandale Place, Eagan, Minnesota |
| Centennial history | 100 Years and Growing, by Carolyn Van Loh |
| Official website | FBMN.org: Land & Life |
History of Land & Life Magazine
Minnesota's first county Farm Bureau formed in Traverse County in 1913, and between 1913 and 1929 county Farm Bureaus spread across the state, largely so farmers could gain access to county Extension agents. On September 4, 1919, about 125 farmers from 57 counties met at the University Farm in St. Paul to plan a state federation, and the organizational plan was approved at the first annual meeting on November 8, 1919.
From the start the bylaws reserved a seat on the state board for a woman. In 1921 MFBF loaned $1,000 to help Land O'Lakes get established, an early sign of the cooperative links that shaped Minnesota agriculture.
MFBF marked its centennial with 100 Years and Growing, a history by Carolyn Van Loh, who also wrote its 90-year history, Strong Roots.
Land & Life Magazine Today
Land & Life reaches every MFBF member each quarter. The fall 2023 edition, for example, profiled Minnesota's sugarbeet harvest, apple breeding at the University of Minnesota, morning treat recipes and fall corn mazes, a typical mix of farm, research and family content.
The magazine sits within a broader MFBF communications program that includes social media, video and web features. Recent federation news has covered a presidential delegation to the Nordic countries, a Fall Farmers to DC advocacy trip and MFBF's Sesquicentennial Farm Families honored at the Minnesota State Fair.
What Land & Life Magazine Is Publishing Now
Minnesota crops and livestock
Harvest stories from sugarbeets and corn to dairy, turkeys and hogs, told through member farms.
Research and education
University of Minnesota work such as apple breeding, plus Extension and ag literacy news.
Family and food
Recipes, seasonal destinations like corn mazes, and recognition of century and sesquicentennial farm families.
Land & Life Magazine Editors and Staff
Minnesota Farm Bureau communications staff and contacts include:
- Alison Murrell - Communications Specialist (since 2025)
- Rachel Reisig - Editorial contact
- Carolyn Van Loh - Author of the MFBF centennial history
Members who do not receive Land & Life can contact the federation at info@fbmn.org.
Who Reads Land & Life Magazine
Land & Life readers are Minnesota Farm Bureau member families, from Red River Valley sugarbeet and wheat growers to southern Minnesota corn, soybean and hog farmers and central Minnesota dairies. Minnesota county statistics for all of these can be explored in USDA's Quick Stats.
Nationally, the 2022 Census of Agriculture counted 1.9 million farms, 95% of them family farms, the kind of operations Land & Life profiles.
Land & Life readers know Minnesota farming means planting between the last frost and the first mosquito swarm. For more of that northern spirit, farm.FM offers farm satire and farm humor about lake country, long winters and hotdish at every meeting, plus ranch humor for the beef herds out west. Its farm jokes are Minnesota nice, mostly.
For context, farm.FM is the nation's first satirical farm site and the home of Tractor Tunes, country music for farmers. Its contributors each keep an archive, and this one is a good sampler of ranch humor and farm jokes.
Land & Life Magazine Sources and Agriculture Authority Links
- Minnesota Farm Bureau: Fall edition of Land & Life - frequency and contents.
- Farm Progress: Minnesota Farm Bureau marks centennial - founding and history.
- MFBF: Murrell joins staff - communications team.
- USDA NASS Quick Stats - Minnesota crop and livestock statistics.
- USDA NASS: 2022 Census of Agriculture - national farm structure data.
Land & Life Magazine FAQ
Who publishes Land & Life magazine?
The Minnesota Farm Bureau Federation, based in Eagan, Minnesota.
How often does Land & Life come out?
Quarterly. It is sent to all Minnesota Farm Bureau members four times a year.
What does Land & Life cover?
Minnesota crops and livestock, University of Minnesota research, recipes and family outings.
When was the Minnesota Farm Bureau founded?
In 1919; its organizational plan was approved at the first annual meeting on November 8, 1919.
Four times a year, Land & Life magazine brings Minnesota Farm Bureau members the stories of the state's farms and families.