MINNESOTA

Becker Transports of Wadena, Minnesota, started in with a 1985 Mack Superliner bought in 2010. A dozen years later, that ‘85 Mack is still putting in the miles as Becker Transport has grown into a regional trucking company, hauling loads like farm machinery, construction equipment, gravel and grain across the upper Midwest.

A Halstad, Minnesota, family has created a business of producing early-generation potato seed for potato seed producers. The business is a two-generation effort, with numerous employees here on H-2A visas.

Minnesota is among a group of states that have not conformed their codes to a federal law exempting student loan debt forgiveness from taxes. Changing that has bipartisan backing, but any action will likely have to wait until January when lawmakers return to the capitol in St. Paul for the regular session.

A team of tractor restorers working in Harwood, North Dakota, brought the 1909 Kerosene Annie back to life, just in time to appear at the Western Minnesota Steam Threshers Reunion in Rollag, Minnesota.

Joann Burt along with her two sons, Kyle and Kermit, are the pillars to the family business of Burt’s Meats in Eyota.

The New Roots Farm Incubator co-op is embarking on a campaign to raise $500,000 to expand into a 60-acre site and help members become independent farmers.

The state of Minnesota has launched an advertising campaign designed to inform livestock producers of the dangers of purchasing sunflower screenings, non-certified hay and other feeds from out-of-state, including North Dakota, because of the Palmer amaranth threat. State officials say the concerns are particularly strong at the Red River border between Minnesota and North Dakota, where several counties have Palmer amaranth infestations. The danger is particularly acute for the sugarbeet crop, which has few chemical tools to fight it.

The use of artificial intelligence, which enables computers to learn, has been hampered by a lack of clinical data. Sanford Health has joined with Dandelion Health and Sharp HealthCare to try to solve that problem.

Where did an infamous mobster go when he needed a little rest and relaxation? Residents of the North Shore and Iron Range have long boasted their backyard as the bootlegger’s land of leisure.