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With the growth of soybean processing in the region comes the need for quality training of staff to handle the demand.

Soybean processing staff in Minnesota soon will have a training program available thanks to Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development dollars.

Out of $1.4 million in grants awarded to colleges for workforce development projects in November 2023, Central Lakes College and Minnesota, were awarded $43,037 to help bridge gaps between education and agriculture. With those DEED funds, CLC/AgCentric will collaborate with the and Minnesota Farmers Union to create a specialized soybean crush facility employee training program at the AIC. The training will be mandatory for AIC employees and available to other crush facilities that want to upskill their existing workforces to align with the growing demands of agriculture specialty production and value-added processing.

, said the need to provide such training came about with a growing industry, a growing demand and a workforce shortage. The project is in the planning stage now, but in six months time, it could be rolling out for summer 2024 training. He sees this training expanding industry-wide and nationwide as the program is planned through the grant.

Jeff Beach / Agweek

AgCentric, part of the Minnesota State Northern Agricultural Center of Excellence, is leading the charge on this because non-credit training is more in their wheelhouse, compared to the four-year University of Minnesota Crookston. The AIC in Crookston will utilize the training as it will be mandatory for the soy processing staff.

While it will start there, Olander sees this becoming a curriculum in Minnesota State technical colleges like Central Lakes College, in Staples, Ridgewater College in Willmar, and Northland College in East Grand Forks. He sees it going beyond Minnesota as well.

"This isn't just a Minnesota thing, after all," Olander said of increasing soy processing in the nation. He believes the connections that Minnesota Soybean can bring to this training has will move this further abroad.

鈥淎gCentric is a connector of education and agriculture to meet the needs of our students and their potential employers in the food and fiber industry,鈥� Olander said.

The grant is part of a larger initiative by DEED, which included 11 workforce development grants totaling over $1.4 million to six Minnesota educational institutions that partnered with Minnesota businesses to develop and deliver workforce training programs addressing those employers鈥� specific needs.

鈥淲orkforce training programs help employers with their labor recruitment and retention efforts and provide employees with essential skills and career development opportunities,鈥� said DEED Commissioner Matt Varilek. 鈥淧artnering with educational institutions is an effective way to deliver these programs because they help employers customize training opportunities and leverage teaching staff expertise.鈥�