An official website of the United States government
A .mil website belongs to an official U.S. Department of Defense organization in the United States.
A lock (lock ) or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .mil website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

Home : News : Article View
NEWS | Jan. 4, 2011

Wisconsin Guard Agribusiness Team eyes year of growth

By Courtesy Story

MADISON, Wisc. - A unique Wisconsin National Guard unit, authorized in July and just weeks away from its first training event, is putting the finishing touches on a training plan that will ultimately lead to its upcoming mission in Afghanistan.

Col. Darrell Feucht, of Columbus, Wis., will command a unit of approximately 60 Wisconsin National Guard Soldiers and Airmen headed to northeastern Afghanistan sometime in 2012 as part of an agribusiness development team – a National Guard initiative that applies the rich farming experience of many Guard members in a way that will allow a developing democracy a safer and more productive way of feeding its people.

Owing to the kinetic operations – also known as a combat environment – still present in Afghanistan, approximately half of the team consists of security personnel gleaned from the 32nd Infantry Brigade Combat Team.

The team's technical members include a high school biology teacher, large animal veterinarians, agronomists and forestry scientists.

The team also includes two members of the Wisconsin Air National Guard and five females.

Feucht said there was no shortage of volunteers for this mission, and every position will be filled.

Families have been notified of their servicemember's upcoming training commitment and deployment.

"We are bringing together some really good skill sets to accomplish the mission," Feucht said.

The agricultural experts will focus on animal husbandry, water and soil conservation, horticulture, irrigation, storage, and distribution and agribusiness education. The team will also assess local farming practices and environments to determine the best strategies to assist Afghan farmers.

Brig. Gen. Don Dunbar, adjutant general of Wisconsin, said the National Guard is uniquely suited for this type of mission.

"The skills and expertise we bring from our civilian careers demonstrates our versatility and capability for assignments like this," Dunbar said.

The team's training for the upcoming year will be detailed down to the hour, and the unit will conduct its first drill in February. Eighty percent of the training in 2011 will meet pre-mobilization requirements dictated by 1st Army.

"But being a [non-traditional] unit, we kind of make up our collective training as we go along due to our unique mission," Feucht explained.

For example, Feucht said he is hoping to collaborate with the University of Wisconsin's College of Agriculture and Life Sciences for what he described as a three-week "Extreme Ag 101" this summer to ensure, among other things, that his technical team members are well-versed in Afghan vegetation.

That collaboration would continue to allow the deployed agribusiness development team to tap into the university's academic expertise here in Wisconsin – a practice the military refers to as "reach-back" resources.

Feucht intends to enlist Future Farmers of America chapters in Lodi and perhaps Hartford as "reach-back" resources as well. A presentation at Lodi High School earlier this month sparked great excitement, he said.

"They want to be involved in this mission somehow, some way," he said.

Feucht also said that the team will emphasize physical fitness training. The elevation and rugged terrain, much of it unsuitable for motor vehicles, challenges conventional notions of fitness.

"From what I've been hearing, you find that after carrying all that equipment, you're not in the shape you thought you were in," he said. "They will need to be in the best condition of their lives."

The agribusiness development team will support the U.S. Department of Agriculture in Afghanistan, Feucht said.

Conditions at that time will dictate if the Wisconsin ADT maintains current projects or takes on new projects.

 

 

Related Articles
U.S. Soldiers assigned to the 108th Medical Company Area Support, 213th Regional Support Group prepare dummies for a simulated casualty evacuation at Fort Indiantown Gap, Pennsylvania, July 17, 2025. The 108th Medical Company engaged in a weeklong field medical exercise to validate their readiness and elevate their medical and basic Soldier skills. (U.S. Army National Guard photo by Capt. Christopher Booker)
Pennsylvania Guard Medics Simulate Chaos in Exercise
By Capt. Christopher Booker, | July 18, 2025
FORT INDIANTOWN GAP, Pa. - Soldiers assigned to the Pennsylvania National Guard's 108th Medical Company Area Support, 213th Regional Support Group, are engaged in a comprehensive two-week field medical exercise here.The...

Nevada Air National Guard's 152nd Maintenance Group and 152nd Logistics Readiness Squadron personnel load Modular Airborne Fire Fighting System (MAFFS) equipment onto MAFFS #8, aircraft #554 at the Nevada Air National Guard Base on July 12, 2025. U.S. Northern Command activated two Modular Airborne Fire Fighting System (MAFFS) Aircraft, one from the 152nd Airlift Wing out of Reno, Nevada, and one from the 146th Airlift Wing out of Channel Islands Air National Guard Station in California. Two C-130 aircraft equipped with MAFFS and their associated personnel will support firefighting efforts in the Western United States. The 152nd Airlift Wing’s “High Rollers” and 146th Airlift Wing's “Hollywood Guard” report on July 14, 2025, and will be initially based out of Channel Islands Air National Guard Base in California and are anticipated to be in place through August 14, 2025.
Nevada Air Guard Wing Assists in Firefighting Efforts
By Senior Master Sgt. Paula Macomber, | July 18, 2025
RENO, Nev. – U.S. Northern Command has activated two Modular Airborne Fire Fighting System Aircraft, one from the Nevada Air National Guard’s 152nd Airlift Wing out of Reno, Nevada, and one from the 146th Airlift Wing out of...

Air Force Gen. Steve Nordhaus, 30th Chief of the National Guard Bureau, and Senior Enlisted Advisor John Raines, SEA to the CNGB, join Texas Gov. Greg Abbott and Air Force Maj. Gen. Thomas Suelzer, the adjutant general of Texas, for an aerial assessment of flood-affected areas in Central Texas and to visit Guardsmen on duty supporting civil authorities with response efforts, Kerrville, Texas, July 15, 2025. To date, National Guard search and rescue operations, led by the Texas National Guard, have resulted in the rescue of more than 525 Texans. Hundreds of Guardsmen remain on mission to continue working with interagency partners in search and rescue and recovery operations.
Nordhaus, Raines see Heroism, Partnerships in Central Texas
By Master Sgt. Zach Sheely, | July 18, 2025
KERRVILLE, Texas – Early on July 4, almost 30 inches of rain fell within hours across Central Texas’s Hill Country, surging the Guadalupe River and triggering catastrophic flash flooding.Within hours, Texas National Guard...